Famous 1st Century Empresses & Queens

The last active ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom and the last true pharaoh of Egypt, Cleopatra is described as an extremely beautiful woman who was also intelligent and educated with command over numerous languages. Her romance and military alliances with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony have inspired numerous art works.

Boudica served as a queen of the Iceni tribe. She is regarded as a British folk hero for leading an uprising against the Roman Empire, which wanted to conquer her land. She has remained a prominent cultural symbol in the UK. A bronze statue named Boadicea and Her Daughters is located in London, facing the Palace of Westminster.

Agrippina the Younger was a Roman empress who ruled from 49 to 54 AD. She is regarded as one of the most prominent women in the Julio-Claudian dynasty. She was the younger sister of emperor Caligula and was married to emperor Claudius. A beautiful and ambitious woman, she has been described as ruthless, violent, and domineering. 

Ptolemaic princess Cleopatra Selene II, the only daughter of Queen Cleopatra VII of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt, was the Queen of Numidia and Mauretania through her marriage with King Juba II. Considered a leading royal lady of the early Augustan age, Selene had great influence in decisions made by the Mauretania government, particularly those related to trade and construction projects. 

The second wife of Roman Emperor Nero, Poppaea Sabina, apparently used her charms to get Nero to murder his mother, Agrippina, and then execute his first wife, Claudia Octavia. According to Roman historian Tacitus, a heavily pregnant Poppaea eventually succumbed to Nero’s anger, when he kicked her in her belly.

Arsinoe IV reigned as the Queen of Egypt from 48 to 47 BC. She ruled alongside her brother Ptolemy XIII and was among the last surviving members of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Arsinoe IV is best remembered for her role in overseeing the famous siege of Alexandria in 47 BC against her half-sister Cleopatra VII Philopator.

Cleopatra Selene of Syria served as the Queen consort of Egypt between 115 and 102 BC, during which she was first married to Ptolemy IX and then to Ptolemy X. She later served as the Queen consort of Syria from 102 to 92 BC, thanks to her marriages with Antiochus VIII, Antiochus IX, and Antiochus X.

Cleopatra I Syra served as the Queen of Ptolemaic Egypt from 193 to 176 BC during which she was married to Ptolemy V Epiphanes, the King of Egypt. When her husband died in 180 BC, Cleopatra I became regent of Egypt and helped her son Ptolemy VI rule the kingdom until her own demise in 176 BC.  

The eldest daughter of Egyptian king Ptolemy XII Auletes, Berenice IV, reigned as queen after his father’s exile and mother’s death. However, when Ptolemy was about to be restored, the Alexandrians got Berenice married to Archelaus. Ptolemy killed Berenice and all her followers after his return.

Cleopatra V served as the Queen of the Ptolemaic Dynasty of Egypt. Although it is certain that Cleopatra V was the only attested wife of Ptolemy XII, she remains an enigmatic member of the Ptolemaic dynasty due to the lack of information and the poor body of source material available today.

Berenice III, also known as Cleopatra Berenice, was the daughter of Cleopatra Selene and Ptolemy IX Soter. She had initially reigned as queen, as the wife of her uncle, Ptolemy X Alexander I. She also ruled as co-regent with her father and then with her half-brother/husband, Ptolemy XI Alexander II.