I finished a book on the Ptolemaic Dynasty yesterday:

Not bad. Perhaps a little boring.

The dynasty did not last as long lasting was I thought (less than 300 years), and perhaps as expected, Alexandria – specifically the library, is the most interesting part.

The early part of the dynasty was more interesting (e.g. Ptolemy II and Ptolemy III). For example, the interactions with the islands in the Aegean, with Rhodes and Cypress, the back and forth with the mainland. The were big dogs in the region for a short while.

Anyway, to get things straight in my head, I asked gpt5 for an overview timeline:

Ptolemaic Dynasty Timeline (305–30 BCE)

Ptolemy I Soter (305–282 BCE)

  • One of Alexander the Great’s generals; became satrap of Egypt in 323 BCE.
  • Declared himself king in 305 BCE, founding the Ptolemaic dynasty.
  • Established Alexandria as an intellectual center; founded the Library and Museion.
  • Secured Egypt’s borders; wrote histories of Alexander.

Ptolemy II Philadelphus (282–246 BCE)

  • Oversaw Egypt’s peak prosperity and influence.
  • Expanded the Library of Alexandria; patronage of scholars (e.g., translation of the Septuagint traditionally associated).
  • Built major public works and promoted trade across the Mediterranean and Red Sea.
  • Conflict with Seleucid Empire (First and Second Syrian Wars).

Ptolemy III Euergetes (246–222 BCE)

  • Military high point: victorious in the Third Syrian War; Egypt reached maximum territorial extent.
  • Brought prosperity; major building projects across Egypt.
  • Instituted the Canopus Decree, precursor to the Rosetta Stone tradition.

Ptolemy IV Philopator (222–204 BCE)

  • Decline begins: court intrigue and corruption expand.
  • Victory at Battle of Raphia (217 BCE) against Antiochus III.
  • Internal unrest; weakening of central authority.

Ptolemy V Epiphanes (204–180 BCE)

  • Child king; regency plagued by foreign interference.
  • Loss of Coele-Syria to Seleucids.
  • Rosetta Stone carved in 196 BCE, celebrating his coronation.

Ptolemy VI Philometor (180–145 BCE)

  • Complex co-rule with his mother Cleopatra I, then his siblings.
  • Repeated Syrian conflicts; intervention by Rome.
  • Influence lost in Syria; internal dynastic civil wars.

Ptolemy VII Neos Philopator (short reign, debated identity, c. 145 BCE)

  • Possibly reigned briefly or was co-ruler; details uncertain.
  • Often considered a child murdered early in the succession disputes.

Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II “Physcon” (170–163, 145–116 BCE)

  • Notorious for brutality and repression.
  • Turbulent co-regencies with Cleopatra II and Cleopatra III.
  • Periods of civil war and population decline.
  • Still patronized scholarship at Alexandria.

Ptolemy IX Soter II “Lathyros” (116–110, 109–88 BCE)

  • Repeatedly deposed and restored by his mother and brother.
  • Lost influence in the Levant.
  • Era marked by factionalism and weakening monarchy.

Ptolemy X Alexander I (110–109, 107–88 BCE)

  • Expelled and restored due to palace politics.
  • Allegedly sold off Alexander the Great’s tomb accoutrements for money.
  • Died during military struggles in Cyprus.

Ptolemy XI Alexander II (80 BCE)

  • Reigned only a few weeks.
  • Killed his stepmother Cleopatra Berenice III, provoking public outrage.
  • Lynched by the Alexandrian populace.

Ptolemy XII Auletes (80–58, 55–51 BCE)

  • “The Flute Player,” known for paying Rome heavily for recognition.
  • Unpopular; briefly ousted.
  • Father of Cleopatra VII.
  • Increasing Roman control over Egypt’s affairs.

Ptolemy XIII Theos Philopator (51–47 BCE)

  • Co-ruler with Cleopatra VII.
  • Civil war with Cleopatra; involved Julius Caesar.
  • Died during the Alexandrian War (47 BCE).

Ptolemy XIV (47–44 BCE)

  • Younger brother and co-ruler with Cleopatra VII.
  • Likely killed on Cleopatra’s orders to clear succession for her son Caesarion.

Ptolemy XV Caesarion (44–30 BCE)

  • Son of Cleopatra VII and (claimed) Julius Caesar.
  • Co-ruled with Cleopatra VII.
  • Killed by Octavian (Augustus) after the Roman conquest.

Cleopatra VII Philopator (51–30 BCE)

(Most famous monarch; ruled alongside Ptolemies XIII, XIV, and Caesarion.)

  • Political and diplomatic strategist; aligned with Julius Caesar, later Mark Antony.
  • Tried to preserve Egypt’s independence through Roman alliances.
  • Lost to Octavian in the Final War of the Roman Republic.
  • Suicide in 30 BCE → end of the Ptolemaic dynasty; Egypt becomes a Roman province.