Cleopatra Dies

On August 12, 30 BC, Cleopatra VII, the last active ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt, committed suicide in Alexandria, traditionally by the bite of an asp (cobra). Her death followed the defeat of her forces and those of her lover, Mark Antony, by Octavian (later Augustus) at the Battle of Actium.

Her death marked the end of the Hellenistic period and the beginning of Roman control over Egypt.