Ultimately, Cleopatra’s "fratricide" wasn't personal—it was survival. In the cutthroat politics of ancient Egypt, you either wore the crown or fell by the sword of those who shared your blood.
By the time Cleopatra VII was born in 69 BCE, the family was a pressure cooker of parricide. Her father, Ptolemy XII Auletes, was a weak ruler who spent more time bribing Romans than governing Egyptians. When he died in 51 BCE, he left his kingdom not to one heir, but to two: 18-year-old Cleopatra and her 10-year-old brother, Ptolemy XIII. cleopatra and brother
But Ptolemy XIII was not ruling alone. Behind the boy-king stood a cabal of powerful courtiers, most notably the eunuch Pothinus and the general Achillas. They viewed Cleopatra’s ambition as a threat to their own influence. They played on the young King's insecurities, fueling a rivalry that would tear the country apart. Her father, Ptolemy XII Auletes, was a weak