Cleopatra's father was Ptolemy XII, who began his rule of Egypt in 80 BC but he was not respected and thought to be weak. His nickname was "Auletes", which means flute player in Greek. Cleopatra's mother could possibly be Cleopatra V, who either died or disappeared in 68 BC. Cleopatra had two older sisters, two younger brothers, and one younger sister.
Ptolemy XII ruled until his death in 51 BC. His will said that Cleopatra and Ptolemy XIII were heirs to the throne. The two married and jointly ruled Egypt. Ptolemy II had established these brother-sister marriages as custom, when he married his sister Arsinoe II. Cleopatra and her brother ruled jointly, though the marriage was solely in law. Cleopatra was about 18, and Ptolemy XIII was about 10. They were named King and Queen of Egypt in 51 BC. Cleopatra did most of the ruling and left her brother out it.
Ptolemy served as a puppet for power-hungry advisors and in 48 BC kicked Cleopatra out of the palace. Cleopatra retaliated by......

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Title: Cleopatra
Approximate Word Count: 1556
Approximate Pages: 7 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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