20 Chilling Cases of Patricide and Matricide from History

20 Chilling Cases of Patricide and Matricide from History

Steve - October 23, 2018

20 Chilling Cases of Patricide and Matricide from History
Cleopatra III. Wikimedia Commons.

2. Cleopatra III was murdered by her son Ptolemy X, after helping to elevate him to the throne of Egypt

Cleopatra III (b. 160-155 BCE), also known as Cleopatra Philometor Soteira or Kokke, was the daughter of Cleopatra II and Ptolemy VI and a Queen of Egypt during the Ptolemaic period. As was customary for the dynasty, between 170-164 BCE her mother and father engaged in joint rule with her uncle, Ptolemy VIII, before being expelled; their exile was short-lived, returning in 163 BCE and forcing Ptolemy VIII’s abdication. Cleopatra III’s parents subsequently ruled unimpeded between 163-145 BCE, during which time their daughter was born.

Upon the death of Ptolemy VI in 145 BCE from injuries sustained during the Battle of Oinoparas, Cleopatra’s uncle Ptolemy VIII once again became King of Egypt. First marrying Cleopatra II, Ptolemy VIII also married Cleopatra III in 139 BCE. Although this communal family rule worked for a time, in 132 BCE Cleopatra II rebelled and Cleopatra III was forced to flee with her uncle and husband to Cyprus in 130; by 127 the pair had once again settled their differences with Cleopatra II and returned to Alexandria, becoming joint rulers with her from 124 to 116.

After the death of Ptolemy VIII in 116 BCE, Cleopatra III jointly ruled with her mother, until her death in 115, and her son, Ptolemy IX. Expelling Ptolemy IX from Alexandria in 107 BCE, Cleopatra III sought to replace him with her second son, Ptolemy X. This proved to be a fatal error, and after 6 years of joint rule, Ptolemy X murdered his mother for alleged participation in a conspiracy against him in 101 BCE.

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