The Power Wars of Cleopatras of Ptolemaic Origin, Who Attended the Seleucid Kingdom Through Marriage

Marriages arranged to support political alliances between Hellenistic kingdoms were a symbol of peace between dynasties. These marriages were especially applied between the two important kingdoms of the Hellenistic world, the Seleucid and Ptolemaic dynasties. With diplomatic marriages, the Seleucid and Ptolemaic kingdoms aimed to make the peace process permanent. In the peace text that will come into effect after the Second Syrian War (260-253 BC) between the Seleucid and Ptolemaic kingdoms, the marriage to be realized between these two dynasties was reflected in the text of the treaty and the Seleucid King II. Antiochos Theos and Ptolemaic Princess Berenike Phernophoros formalized their marriage in 252 BC. With the political marriages between the Seleucid and Ptolemaic kingdoms, the peace establishment was tried to be preserved and consolidated. Cleopatras of Ptolemaic origin took place in the Seleucid Dynasty and assumed an active role in the kingdom, with Cleopatra Thea as of 150 BC. The increasing dominance of Queen Cleopatra Thea with her attempts to gain political power in the Seleucid Kingdom showed that Cleopatras of Ptolemaic origin tried to be permanent and active. Cleopatra Trypheana, Cleopatra IV and Cleopatra V Selene, as Seleucid queens of Ptolemaic origin, entered into a struggle for existence with a series of political and social activities in the Seleucid Dynasty. In this study, the political existence struggles of the Ptolemaic origin Cleopatras in the Seleucid Kingdom were examined, and it was aimed to analyze the effects of these activities on the Seleucid Kingdom in line with ancient and modern sources.