305–282 BCE
Ptolemaic Dynasty of Egypt
305–30 BCE
The Ptolemaic dynasty was a Macedonian Greek royal house that ruled Egypt from Alexandria for nearly three centuries. Its kings and queens took Egyptian royal titles, supported the traditional cults and built or completed great temples at Edfu, Dendera, Philae and Kom Ombo.
Later reigns were shaped by dynastic rivalry and growing Roman influence. Cleopatra VII was the last ruler, and Egypt became a Roman province after Octavian's victory in 30 BCE.
- Period
- Ptolemaic Period
- Dates
- 305–30 BCE
- Rulers profiled
- 18
Foundation under Ptolemy I
Ptolemy son of Lagos was a general of Alexander the Great who took Egypt as his province after Alexander's death in 323 BCE. He brought Alexander's body to Egypt, held the country against rivals in the wars of the Successors and took the royal title in 305 BCE as Ptolemy I Soter. Later Ptolemies all bore his name, and the dynasty ruled for nearly three centuries.
Alexandria and the Hellenistic court
The capital was Alexandria on the Mediterranean coast, a city that had been founded by Alexander. Ptolemy I and Ptolemy II established the Library and the Museum there, and the Pharos lighthouse was built in the same period. Greek was the language of the court and administration, while Egyptian priests, scribes and temples kept their own traditions.
Ptolemy II Philadelphus married his sister Arsinoe II, and later Ptolemies often did the same, a practice that fitted Egyptian royal precedent as well as Greek dynastic politics.
Pharaohs in Egyptian temples
The Ptolemies were shown on temple walls as traditional pharaohs and paid for major building projects. The temple of Horus at Edfu was begun under Ptolemy III in 237 BCE and completed under Ptolemy XII, and other great temples were built or completed at Dendera, Philae and Kom Ombo. Priestly decrees such as that of Canopus (238 BCE) and the Memphis decree inscribed on the Rosetta Stone (196 BCE) show the king's relationship with the temple priesthoods.
Wars, revolts and family conflict
The Ptolemies fought a series of wars against the Seleucid Empire over Syria. After Ptolemy IV's victory at Raphia in 217 BCE, native Egyptian revolts broke out, and for a time a rival line of Egyptian kings ruled Upper Egypt. Later dynastic quarrels, especially between Ptolemy VI, Ptolemy VIII and their sisters and wives Cleopatra II and Cleopatra III, kept the kingdom in turmoil.
In 168 BCE, a Roman envoy ordered the Seleucid king Antiochus IV to leave Egypt, and from then on the dynasty survived under Roman protection.
Rome and the last Ptolemies
Ptolemy XII Auletes was restored to his throne with Roman help and ran up large debts to Roman creditors. His daughter Cleopatra VII ruled with her brothers Ptolemy XIII and XIV, and won Julius Caesar's support in the civil war of 48–47 BCE. She had a son, Ptolemy XV Caesarion, and later allied with Mark Antony.
Antony and Cleopatra were defeated by Octavian at Actium in 31 BCE. Cleopatra died in 30 BCE, and Egypt became a province of the Roman Empire, ending the Ptolemaic dynasty and the long line of pharaonic rulers.
Rulers of the Ptolemaic Dynasty
Every ruler profile in the archive for this dynasty, in the order used by the chronology. Each name links to a full profile with dates, background, sources and illustrations.
285–246 BCE
246–221 BCE
221–204 BCE
204–180 BCE
180–145 BCE
145 BCE
170–116 BCE
131–107 BCE
116–107 BCE
107–88 BCE
80 BCE
80–51 BCE
58–55 BCE
51–30 BCE
51–47 BCE
47–44 BCE
44–30 BCE
Major monuments
- Temple of Horus at Edfu
- Temple of Hathor at Dendera
- Temples of Isis at Philae and of Sobek and Haroeris at Kom Ombo
- The royal quarter, Library, Museum and Pharos of Alexandria
- The Rosetta Stone (Memphis decree of Ptolemy V, 196 BCE)
Key events
- Ptolemy I takes the royal title (305 BCE)
- The Decree of Canopus (238 BCE) and the Rosetta Stone decree (196 BCE)
- Battle of Raphia and the native Egyptian revolts
- Roman intervention under Antiochus IV (168 BCE)
- Cleopatra VII, Caesar, Antony and the battle of Actium (31 BCE)
- Roman annexation of Egypt (30 BCE)
Reading the evidence
Greek and Egyptian sources illuminate different aspects of rule; the dynasty’s history should not be reduced to Cleopatra alone.
Sources: Metropolitan Museum, Egypt in the Ptolemaic Period; Lloyd in Shaw (2000). See the full bibliography.