Ptolemaic Period
Ptolemy VII Neos Philopator
Ptolemaic kings · 305-30 BCE
Open full-size illustration →Source: Shaw, Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000)
Background
Ptolemy VII's reign was brief and is documented mainly through the manner of its end: his uncle, Ptolemy VIII, had him removed in order to marry his mother, Cleopatra II, though even that basic fact is not as settled as older accounts suggest. Further reading: UCL Digital Egypt.
Chronological source: Shaw, Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000)
Full profile
A short reign, a disputed ending
When Ptolemy VI died in 145 BCE, his widow Cleopatra II had their young son proclaimed king as Ptolemy VII, but Ptolemy VI's brother, Ptolemy VIII, returned to Egypt and proposed a joint rule sealed by his own marriage to Cleopatra II. Ancient sources describe Ptolemy VII being murdered on the occasion of that wedding, but this site follows the traditional account cautiously: some modern historians, working from later inscriptions, argue the boy may actually have survived a further year or two, holding a ceremonial priesthood before his uncle finally had him killed. Either way, the outcome was the same, a child king eliminated to clear the way for Ptolemy VIII's own reign as Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II.
Sources for this profile
- Shaw, I. (Ed.). (2000). The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press.
- Dodson, A., & Hilton, D. (2004). The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt. Thames & Hudson.
- University College London. Kings of Ptolemaic Egypt.
- UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology. Chronology. UCLA.
The complete, APA-formatted reference list is on the Academic Sources & Bibliography page.