Cleopatra

Queen of Egypt (r.51-30 BC) and the last of the Greek Ptolemy dynasty, Cleopatra VII used her charisma and astuteness to lure two Roman generals, Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, into supporting her disintegrating kingdom. She had children by them both. Her stratagems failed when Mark Antony and Cleopatra's forces were defeated by Octavian (later the emperor Augustus) at Actium in 31 BC, and she committed suicide. She has remained an object of fascination ever since.