Cleopatra VII Philopator (in Greek:Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ; January 69 BC – August 12, 30 BC), later Cleopatra Thea Neotera Philopator kai Philopatris, was queen of Ptolemaic Egypt, the last member of the Ptolemaic dynasty and hence the last Hellenistic ruler of Egypt. Although many other Egyptian Queens shared the name, she is usually known as simply Cleopatra, and all of her similarly named predecessors have mostly been forgotten.

Cleopatra was a co-ruler of Egypt with her father (Ptolemy XII Auletes), her brothers/husbands Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV and later her son Ptolemy XV Caesarion. Cleopatra survived a coup engineered by her brother Ptolemy XIII's courtiers, consummated a liaison with Gaius Julius Caesar that solidified her grip on the throne, and, after Caesar's assassination, aligned with Mark Antony, with whom she produced twins. She later married Mark Antony and gave birth to another son. In all, Cleopatra had 4 children, 3 by Antony and 1 by Caesar. Her unions with her brothers produced no children.

After Antony's rival and Caesar's legal heir, Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian, brought the might of Rome against Egypt, Cleopatra took her own life on August 12, 30 BC. Her legacy survives in the form of numerous dramatizations of her story, including William Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra and several modern films.

Cleopatra was a direct decendent of Alexander's general, Ptolemy I Soter, son of Arsinoe and Lacus, both of Macedon. A Greek by language and culture, Cleopatra is reputed to have been the first member of her family in their 300-year reign in Egypt to have learned the Egyptian language.

In Greek mythology, Sparta was the daughter of Eurotas by Clete. She was wife of Lacedaemon by whom she became the mother of Amyclas and Eurydice (no relation to Orpheus' Eurydice). The city of Sparta is said to have been named after her; however, the city was often called Lacedaemon as well. The two names were used interchangeably.