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[[File: Cleopatra_VII.jpg|300px|thumbnail|left|Bust of Cleopatra]]__NOTOC__
Cleopatra (Cleopatra VII Philoptor: 51 BCE -30 BCE) was the last ruler of the Ptolemaic Dynasty after she committed suicide. Cleopatra was not only the Ptomley ruler, but she was also connected romantically to two of the most Romans in history, Julius Caesar and Marc Antony. After reigniting the Roman Civil Wars, she committed suicide when she was 20 years old to avoid being paraded around Rome by Octavian as a trophy. While it is well known that Cleopatra committed suicide, there has been a great deal of debate about how she killed herself.
She is known as a clever temptress who helped reignite the Roman Civil Wars and oversaw the collapse of the Ptolemaic-Egyptian kingdom. Her life and death has been portrayed in fictionalized accounts on both the big and small screens, most notably in the 1963 film <i>Cleopatra</i> and more recently in the HBO series <i>Rome</i>. The real Cleopatra was much more complex than how she is often depicted: she ruled Egypt with the power of a king during a period when rulership was often a male prerogative.
