She originally shared power with her father Ptolemy XII and later with her brothers Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV, whom she also married, but eventually gained sole rule. As pharaoh, she consummated a liaison with Gaius Julius Caesar that solidified her grip on the throne. She later elevated her son with Caesar, Caesarion

by Caesarion, who was declared pharaoh, but he was soon killed on Octavian's orders

The assembly of the tribes, the Comitia Tributa, was presided over by a consul,[12] and was composed of thirty-five tribes. The tribes were not ethnic or kinship groups, but rather geographical subdivisions.[15]