What is the name of Cleopatra's capital city?

Cleopatra’s capital city was Alexandria. Founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BC, Alexandria became the political, cultural, and intellectual centre of Ptolemaic Egypt, the Hellenistic kingdom ruled by Cleopatra VII.

The city stood on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast and connected the Nile Valley with the wider Greek and Roman worlds. Its famous institutions included the Library of Alexandria and the Mouseion, a scholarly centre associated with major advances in mathematics, astronomy, medicine, and literature.

Cleopatra ruled from Alexandria during her alliance and conflict with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. The royal palace complex occupied part of the city’s eastern harbour, and important events in her final struggle with Octavian took place there. Alexandria fell to Octavian in 30 BC, shortly before Cleopatra’s death.

A common mix-up is Cairo, which is Egypt’s modern capital but did not exist as the country’s capital in Cleopatra’s lifetime. Memphis and Thebes were also major ancient Egyptian cities, yet neither was Cleopatra’s political capital.