1.
Ptolemaic dynasty
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Their rule lasted for 275 years, from 305 to 30 BC. They were the last dynasty of ancient Egypt, Ptolemy, one of the seven somatophylakes who served as Alexander the Greats generals and deputies, was appointed satrap of Egypt after Alexanders death in 323 BC. In 305 BC, he declared himself Ptolemy I, later known as Sōter Saviour, the Egyptians soon accepted the Ptolemies as the successors to the pharaohs of independent Egypt. Ptolemys family ruled Egypt until the Roman conquest of 30 BC, all the male rulers of the dynasty took the name Ptolemy. Ptolemaic queens regnant, some of whom were the sisters of their husbands, were usually called Cleopatra, Arsinoe or Berenice. The most famous member of the line was the last queen, Cleopatra VII and her apparent suicide at the conquest by Rome marked the end of Ptolemaic rule in Egypt. Dates in brackets represent the dates of the Ptolemaic pharaohs. They frequently ruled jointly with their wives, who were also their sisters. Of these, one of the last and most famous was Cleopatra, several systems exist for numbering the later rulers, the one used here is the one most widely used by modern scholars. Arsinoe IV, in opposition to Cleopatra Ptolemy Keraunos - eldest son of Ptolemy I Soter, Ptolemy Apion - son of Ptolemy VIII Physcon. Ptolemy Philadelphus - son of Mark Antony and Cleopatra VII, Ptolemy of Mauretania - son of King Juba II of Numidia and Mauretania and Cleopatra Selene II, daughter of Cleopatra VII and Mark Antony. Contemporaries describe a number of the Ptolemaic dynasty members as extremely obese, whilst sculptures and coins reveal prominent eyes, familial Graves disease could explain the swollen necks and eye prominence, although this is unlikely to occur in the presence of morbid obesity. A. Lampela, Rome and the Ptolemies of Egypt, the development of their political relations 273-80 B. C. J. G. Manning, The Last Pharaohs, Egypt Under the Ptolemies, 305-30 BC. Livius. org, Ptolemies — by Jona Lendering
2.
Ancient Egypt
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Ancient Egypt was a civilization of ancient Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. It is one of six civilizations to arise independently, Egyptian civilization followed prehistoric Egypt and coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh Narmer. In the aftermath of Alexander the Greats death, one of his generals, Ptolemy Soter and this Greek Ptolemaic Kingdom ruled Egypt until 30 BC, when, under Cleopatra, it fell to the Roman Empire and became a Roman province. The success of ancient Egyptian civilization came partly from its ability to adapt to the conditions of the Nile River valley for agriculture, the predictable flooding and controlled irrigation of the fertile valley produced surplus crops, which supported a more dense population, and social development and culture. Its art and architecture were widely copied, and its antiquities carried off to far corners of the world and its monumental ruins have inspired the imaginations of travelers and writers for centuries. The Nile has been the lifeline of its region for much of human history, nomadic modern human hunter-gatherers began living in the Nile valley through the end of the Middle Pleistocene some 120,000 years ago. By the late Paleolithic period, the climate of Northern Africa became increasingly hot and dry. In Predynastic and Early Dynastic times, the Egyptian climate was less arid than it is today. Large regions of Egypt were covered in treed savanna and traversed by herds of grazing ungulates, foliage and fauna were far more prolific in all environs and the Nile region supported large populations of waterfowl. Hunting would have been common for Egyptians, and this is also the period when many animals were first domesticated. The largest of these cultures in upper Egypt was the Badari, which probably originated in the Western Desert, it was known for its high quality ceramics, stone tools. The Badari was followed by the Amratian and Gerzeh cultures, which brought a number of technological improvements, as early as the Naqada I Period, predynastic Egyptians imported obsidian from Ethiopia, used to shape blades and other objects from flakes. In Naqada II times, early evidence exists of contact with the Near East, particularly Canaan, establishing a power center at Hierakonpolis, and later at Abydos, Naqada III leaders expanded their control of Egypt northwards along the Nile. They also traded with Nubia to the south, the oases of the desert to the west. Royal Nubian burials at Qustul produced artifacts bearing the oldest-known examples of Egyptian dynastic symbols, such as the crown of Egypt. They also developed a ceramic glaze known as faience, which was used well into the Roman Period to decorate cups, amulets, and figurines. During the last predynastic phase, the Naqada culture began using written symbols that eventually were developed into a system of hieroglyphs for writing the ancient Egyptian language. The Early Dynastic Period was approximately contemporary to the early Sumerian-Akkadian civilisation of Mesopotamia, the third-century BC Egyptian priest Manetho grouped the long line of pharaohs from Menes to his own time into 30 dynasties, a system still used today
3.
Arsinoe III of Egypt
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Arsinoe III Philopator was Queen of Egypt. She was a daughter of Ptolemy III and Berenice II, between late October and early November 220 BC she was married to her brother, Ptolemy IV. She took active part in the government of the country, at least in the measure that it was tolerated by the all-powerful minister Sosibius, in 217 BC, she accompanied Ptolemy IV at the Battle of Raphia. When the battle went poorly, she appeared before the troops and she also promised two minas of gold to each of them if they won the battle, which they did. She was the mother of Ptolemy V, in summer,204 BC she was murdered in a palace coup, shortly after the death of her husband. Eratosthenes wrote a manuscript called the Arsinoe, which is lost and it is quoted by many ancient scholars
4.
Ptolemy VI Philometor
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Ptolemy VI Philometor was a king of Egypt from the Ptolemaic period. He reigned from 180 to 145 BC, in 173 BC he married his sister, Cleopatra II, as it was customary for Pharaohs, for the Ptolemaic Greek kings had adopted many customs of the Pharaohs. He had at least four children with her, Ptolemy Eupator, Ptolemy Neos, Cleopatra Thea and Cleopatra III, the outbreak of the Sixth Syrian War in 170 BC saw Ptolemy VIII and Cleopatra II becoming co-rulers. A period of reconciliation followed, but the invasion of Egypt in 168 created further unrest. In 164 Ptolemy VI was driven out by his brother and went to Rome to seek support, the Romans partitioned the Ptolemaic land, granting Ptolemy VI Cyprus and Egypt, and Ptolemy VIII Euergetes Cyrenaica. Around 150 BC he recognized Alexander Balas as the Seleucid king by marrying his daughter Cleopatra Thea to him in a ceremony at Ptolemais Akko and he remarried his daughter to Alexanders rival Demetrius II, and went to Antioch, where he crowned himself King of Asia. Alexander was defeated by Ptolemy when he returned from Cilicia with his army and fled to Arabia, for the first time since the death of Alexander the Great, Egypt and Syria were united. However, Ptolemy died three days later, in unknown circumstances, Ptolemy Philometor at LacusCurtius — Ptolemy VI — Ptolemy VI Philometor entry in historical sourcebook by Mahlon H. Smith
5.
Ptolemy VIII Physcon
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Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II, nicknamed Physcon, was a king of the Ptolemaic dynasty in Egypt. Ptolemy VIIIs complicated political career started in 170 BC and this is when Antiochus IV Epiphanes of the Seleucid Empire invaded and captured King Ptolemy VI Philometor and all of Egypt, with the exception of the city of Alexandria. Antiochus allowed Ptolemy VI to continue as a puppet monarch, meanwhile, the people of Alexandria chose Ptolemy Euergetes, his younger brother, as king. Euergetes was popularly known as Physkōn, Latinized as Physcon, meaning sausage, potbelly or bladder, instead of taking up arms against one another, the brothers decided to co-rule Egypt. After Antiochus withdrew from the area in 168 BC due to threats from Rome, Physcon agreed to jointly rule Egypt in a triumvirate with Philometor and Cleopatra II. This arrangement led to continuous intrigues, lasting until October 164 BC, when Philometor traveled to Rome to appear before the Senate, who were somewhat agreeable with the arrangement. However, areas under Physcons sole rule were not satisfied with the arrangement and this left Physcon in charge of Cyrenaica. Although the arrangement lasted until Philometors death in 145 BC, it did not end the power struggles, Physcon convinced the Roman Senate to back his claims on Cyprus, but Philometor opposed this. Physcons attempt to conquer the island failed and the Senate sent Philometors ambassadors home, in 156 or 155 BC, Philometor tried to have Physcon assassinated but failed. Physcon went to Rome, displaying the scars he had received in the attempt, despite opposition from Cato the Elder, he received the Senates support and further resources for another attempt on Cyprus. During his time in Rome he met Cornelia Africana, and asked for her hand in marriage, the second attempt on Cyprus also failed. Philometor captured and held Physcon prisoner, but spared him, offering him instead the hand of his daughter, Cleopatra Thea, when Philometor died on a campaign in 145 BC, Cleopatra II quickly had her son proclaimed King Ptolemy VII. Physcon, however, returned from battle and proposed joint rule and marriage with Cleopatra II and he had the younger Ptolemy assassinated during the wedding feast and claimed the throne himself, as Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II, and had himself proclaimed pharaoh in 144 BC. In 145 BC, Physcon took his revenge on the intellectuals of Alexandria who had opposed him, including Aristarchus of Samothrace and he engaged in mass purges and expulsions, leaving Alexandria a changed city. Physcon seduced and married Cleopatra III without divorcing Cleopatra II, who became infuriated, many speculate that Physcon only married Cleopatra II because he was plotting to marry Cleopatra III when she became of marrying age. By 132 or 131 BC, the people of Alexandria had rioted, Physcon, Cleopatra III, and their children escaped to Cyprus, while Cleopatra II had their twelve-year-old son, Ptolemy Memphitis, acclaimed as king. Physcon was able to get hold of the boy, killed him, the ensuing civil war pitted Cleopatras city of Alexandria against the rest of the country, who supported Physcon. Growing desperate, Cleopatra offered the throne of Egypt to the Seleucid king Demetrius II Nicator, by 127 BC, Cleopatra fled to Syria
6.
Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
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The royal titulary or royal protocol of an Egyptian pharaoh is the standard naming convention taken by the kings of Ancient Egypt. It symbolises worldly power and holy might and also acts as a sort of mission statement for the reign of a monarch. The full titulary, consisting of five names, did not come into standard usage until the Middle Kingdom, the Horus name is the oldest form of the pharaohs name, originating in the Predynastic Period. Many of the oldest-known Egyptian pharaohs were known only by this title, the Horus name was usually written in a serekh, a representation of a palace façade. The name of the pharaoh was written in hieroglyphs inside this representation of a palace, typically an image of the falcon God Horus was perched on top of or beside it. At least one Egyptian ruler, the 2nd dynasty Seth-Peribsen, used an image of the god Seth instead of Horus and he was succeeded by Khasekhemwy, who placed the symbols of both Seth and Horus above his name. Thereafter, the image of Horus always appeared alongside the name of the pharaoh, by the time of the New Kingdom the Horus name was often written without the enclosing serekh. The name is first definitively used by the First Dynasty pharaoh Semerkhet and this particular name was not typically framed by a cartouche or serekh, but always begins with the hieroglyphs of a vulture and cobra resting upon two baskets, the dual noun nebty. Also known as the Golden Horus Name, this form of the name typically featured the image of a Horus falcon perched above or beside the hieroglyph for gold. The meaning of this title has been disputed. One belief is that it represents the triumph of Horus over his uncle Seth, Gold also was strongly associated in the ancient Egyptian mind with eternity, so this may have been intended to convey the pharaohs eternal Horus name. Similar to the Nebty name, this particular name typically was not framed by a cartouche or serekh, the pharaohs throne name, the first of the two names written inside a cartouche, and usually accompanied the title nsw-bity. The term nsw-bity It has been suggested that the Berber term for strong man, the epithet neb tawy, Lord of the Two Lands, referring to valley and delta regions of Egypt, often occurs as well. This was the name given at birth and it was first introduced to the set of royal titles in the Fourth Dynasty and emphasizes the kings role as a representative of the solar god Ra. For women who became pharaoh, the title was interpreted as daughter also. Modern historians typically refer to the ancient kings of Egypt by this name, Middle Egyptian, An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs. The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt, Cairo, London, and New York, The American University in Cairo Press and Thames and Hudson. The Great Name, Ancient Egyptian Royal Titulary, Egyptian Grammar, Being an Introduction to the Study of Hieroglyphs
7.
Greek language
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Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece and other parts of the Eastern Mediterranean. It has the longest documented history of any living language, spanning 34 centuries of written records and its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the major part of its history, other systems, such as Linear B and the Cypriot syllabary, were used previously. The alphabet arose from the Phoenician script and was in turn the basis of the Latin, Cyrillic, Armenian, Coptic, Gothic and many other writing systems. Together with the Latin texts and traditions of the Roman world, during antiquity, Greek was a widely spoken lingua franca in the Mediterranean world and many places beyond. It would eventually become the official parlance of the Byzantine Empire, the language is spoken by at least 13.2 million people today in Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Albania, Turkey, and the Greek diaspora. Greek roots are used to coin new words for other languages, Greek. Greek has been spoken in the Balkan peninsula since around the 3rd millennium BC, the earliest written evidence is a Linear B clay tablet found in Messenia that dates to between 1450 and 1350 BC, making Greek the worlds oldest recorded living language. Among the Indo-European languages, its date of earliest written attestation is matched only by the now extinct Anatolian languages, the Greek language is conventionally divided into the following periods, Proto-Greek, the unrecorded but assumed last ancestor of all known varieties of Greek. The unity of Proto-Greek would have ended as Hellenic migrants entered the Greek peninsula sometime in the Neolithic era or the Bronze Age, Mycenaean Greek, the language of the Mycenaean civilisation. It is recorded in the Linear B script on tablets dating from the 15th century BC onwards, Ancient Greek, in its various dialects, the language of the Archaic and Classical periods of the ancient Greek civilisation. It was widely known throughout the Roman Empire, after the Roman conquest of Greece, an unofficial bilingualism of Greek and Latin was established in the city of Rome and Koine Greek became a first or second language in the Roman Empire. The origin of Christianity can also be traced through Koine Greek, Medieval Greek, also known as Byzantine Greek, the continuation of Koine Greek in Byzantine Greece, up to the demise of the Byzantine Empire in the 15th century. Much of the written Greek that was used as the language of the Byzantine Empire was an eclectic middle-ground variety based on the tradition of written Koine. Modern Greek, Stemming from Medieval Greek, Modern Greek usages can be traced in the Byzantine period and it is the language used by the modern Greeks, and, apart from Standard Modern Greek, there are several dialects of it. In the modern era, the Greek language entered a state of diglossia, the historical unity and continuing identity between the various stages of the Greek language is often emphasised. Greek speakers today still tend to regard literary works of ancient Greek as part of their own rather than a foreign language and it is also often stated that the historical changes have been relatively slight compared with some other languages. According to one estimation, Homeric Greek is probably closer to demotic than 12-century Middle English is to modern spoken English, Greek is spoken by about 13 million people, mainly in Greece, Albania and Cyprus, but also worldwide by the large Greek diaspora. Greek is the language of Greece, where it is spoken by almost the entire population
8.
Egypt
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Egypt, officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia by a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. Egypt is a Mediterranean country bordered by the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northeast, the Gulf of Aqaba to the east, the Red Sea to the east and south, Sudan to the south, and Libya to the west. Across the Gulf of Aqaba lies Jordan, and across from the Sinai Peninsula lies Saudi Arabia, although Jordan and it is the worlds only contiguous Afrasian nation. Egypt has among the longest histories of any country, emerging as one of the worlds first nation states in the tenth millennium BC. Considered a cradle of civilisation, Ancient Egypt experienced some of the earliest developments of writing, agriculture, urbanisation, organised religion and central government. One of the earliest centres of Christianity, Egypt was Islamised in the century and remains a predominantly Muslim country. With over 92 million inhabitants, Egypt is the most populous country in North Africa and the Arab world, the third-most populous in Africa, and the fifteenth-most populous in the world. The great majority of its people live near the banks of the Nile River, an area of about 40,000 square kilometres, the large regions of the Sahara desert, which constitute most of Egypts territory, are sparsely inhabited. About half of Egypts residents live in areas, with most spread across the densely populated centres of greater Cairo, Alexandria. Modern Egypt is considered to be a regional and middle power, with significant cultural, political, and military influence in North Africa, the Middle East and the Muslim world. Egypts economy is one of the largest and most diversified in the Middle East, Egypt is a member of the United Nations, Non-Aligned Movement, Arab League, African Union, and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. Miṣr is the Classical Quranic Arabic and modern name of Egypt. The name is of Semitic origin, directly cognate with other Semitic words for Egypt such as the Hebrew מִצְרַיִם, the oldest attestation of this name for Egypt is the Akkadian
9.
Cleopatra II of Egypt
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Cleopatra II was a queen of Ptolemaic Egypt. Cleopatra II was the daughter of Ptolemy V and likely Cleopatra I and she was the sister of Ptolemy VI and Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II Tryphon. She would eventually both of her brothers. Her first marriage was with her brother Ptolemy VI in ca.175 BC and they had at least four children, Ptolemy Eupator, born in 166 BC. Became co-regent with his father for a time, but died at a young age in c.152 BC. Cleopatra Thea born in c.164 BC and she married Alexander Balas, Demetrius II Nicator and Antiochus VII Sidetes. Murdered by her son in c.120 BC, born between 163 and 160 BC. Cleopatra III, born between 160 and 155 BC, married to her uncle Ptolemy VIII. Murdered in 130 BC by Ptolemy VIII Cleopatra II married her brother Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II Physcon in c.145 BC and they had at least one son, Ptolemy Memphites. Born between 144 and 142 BC, murdered by his own father in 130 BC. Ptolemy Memphites may be identical to Ptolemy VII Neos Philopator, following the death of her mother, she was married to her brother Ptolemy VI Philometor in c.175 BC. Cleopatra II, Ptolemy VI and their brother, Ptolemy VIII, were co-rulers of Egypt from c.171 BC to 164 BC, in c.169 BC, Antiochus IV of Syria invaded Egypt. Ptolemy VI Philometor joined Antiochus IV outside Alexandria, Ptolemy VI was crowned in Memphis and ruled with Cleopatra II. In 164 BC Cleopatra II and her husband were temporarily deposed by their brother Ptolemy VIII, Cleopatra II married her other brother, Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II in 145 BC. In 142 BC Ptolemy VIII took Cleopatras younger daughter, his niece, Cleopatra III, Cleopatra II led a rebellion against Ptolemy VIII in 131 BC, and drove him and Cleopatra III out of Egypt. At this time Ptolemy VIII murdered both his stepson Ptolemy and his own son Ptolemy Memphites, Ptolemy VIII is said to have had his son dismembered and his head, hands and feet sent to Cleopatra II in Alexandria as a birthday present. Cleopatra II ruled Egypt from 130 BC to 127 BC when she was forced to flee to Syria, a public reconciliation of Cleopatra and Ptolemy VIII was declared in 124 BC. After this she ruled jointly with her brother and daughter until 116 BC when Ptolemy died, Cleopatra II herself died shortly after
10.
Caesarion
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Ptolemy XV Philopator Philometor Caesar, better known by the nicknames Caesarion and Ptolemy Caesar, was the last Pharaoh of Egypt. He was the member of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt. It is unknown whether Octavians order was carried out successfully and he was the eldest son of Cleopatra VII, and possibly the only biological son of Julius Caesar, after whom he was named. Caesarion was born in Egypt on June 23,47 BC and his mother Cleopatra insisted that he was the son of Julius Caesar. Caesarion was said to have inherited Caesars looks and manner, Caesars supporter Gaius Oppius wrote a pamphlet which attempted to prove that Caesar could not have fathered Caesarion. Nevertheless, Caesar may have allowed Caesarion to use his name, the matter became contentious when Caesars adopted son Octavian came into conflict with Cleopatra. Caesarion spent two of his infant years, from 46 to 44 BC, in Rome, where he, Cleopatra hoped that her son would eventually succeed his father as the head of the Roman Republic as well as of Egypt. After Caesars assassination on March 15,44 BC, Cleopatra, Caesarion was named co-ruler by his mother on September 2,44 BC at the age of three, although he was pharaoh in name only, with Cleopatra keeping actual authority all to herself. Cleopatra compared her relationship to her son with the Egyptian goddess Isis, during the tense period leading up to the final conflict between Mark Antony and Octavian, the two of them initially shared control of the Republic in a triumvirate with Lepidus. Lepidus was forced into retirement by Octavian in 36 BC, Octavian and Mark Antony were then left in control of the Western and Eastern provinces respectively. There is no record of Caesarion between 44 BC until the Donations of Antioch in 36 BC. Two years later he appears at the Donations of Alexandria. In 34 BC, Antony granted further lands and titles to Caesarion. Caesarion was proclaimed to be a god, a son of god and this grandiose title was unprecedented in the management of Roman client-king relationships and could be seen as threatening the greatness of the Roman people. Antony also declared Caesarion to be Caesars true son and heir and this declaration was a direct threat to Octavian. These proclamations partly caused the breach in Antonys relations with Octavian. After the defeat of Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC and she may have intended to go into exile, perhaps with Antony, who may have hoped that he would be allowed to retire as Lepidus had. Caesarion reappears in the record in 30 BC, when Octavian invaded Egypt
11.
Hellenistic period
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It is often considered a period of transition, sometimes even of decadence or degeneration, compared to the enlightenment of the Greek Classical era. The Hellenistic period saw the rise of New Comedy, Alexandrian poetry, the Septuagint, Greek science was advanced by the works of the mathematician Euclid and the polymath Archimedes. The religious sphere expanded to include new gods such as the Greco-Egyptian Serapis, eastern deities such as Attis and Cybele, the Hellenistic period was characterized by a new wave of Greek colonization which established Greek cities and kingdoms in Asia and Africa. This resulted in the export of Greek culture and language to new realms. Equally, however, these new kingdoms were influenced by the cultures, adopting local practices where beneficial, necessary. Hellenistic culture thus represents a fusion of the Ancient Greek world with that of the Near East, Middle East and this mixture gave rise to a common Attic-based Greek dialect, known as Koine Greek, which became the lingua franca through the Hellenistic world. Scholars and historians are divided as to what event signals the end of the Hellenistic era, Hellenistic is distinguished from Hellenic in that the first encompasses the entire sphere of direct ancient Greek influence, while the latter refers to Greece itself. The word originated from the German term hellenistisch, from Ancient Greek Ἑλληνιστής, from Ἑλλάς, Hellenistic is a modern word and a 19th-century concept, the idea of a Hellenistic period did not exist in Ancient Greece. Although words related in form or meaning, e. g, the major issue with the term Hellenistic lies in its convenience, as the spread of Greek culture was not the generalized phenomenon that the term implies. Some areas of the world were more affected by Greek influences than others. The Greek population and the population did not always mix, the Greeks moved and brought their own culture. While a few fragments exist, there is no surviving historical work which dates to the hundred years following Alexanders death. The works of the major Hellenistic historians Hieronymus of Cardia, Duris of Samos, the earliest and most credible surviving source for the Hellenistic period is Polybius of Megalopolis, a statesman of the Achaean League until 168 BC when he was forced to go to Rome as a hostage. His Histories eventually grew to a length of forty books, covering the years 220 to 167 BC, another important source, Plutarchs Parallel Lives though more preoccupied with issues of personal character and morality, outlines the history of important Hellenistic figures. Appian of Alexandria wrote a history of the Roman empire that includes information of some Hellenistic kingdoms, other sources include Justins epitome of Pompeius Trogus Historiae Philipicae and a summary of Arrians Events after Alexander, by Photios I of Constantinople. Lesser supplementary sources include Curtius Rufus, Pausanias, Pliny, in the field of philosophy, Diogenes Laertius Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers is the main source. Ancient Greece had traditionally been a collection of fiercely independent city-states. After the Peloponnesian War, Greece had fallen under a Spartan hegemony, in which Sparta was pre-eminent but not all-powerful
12.
Argead dynasty
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The Argead dynasty was an ancient Greek royal house. They were the founders and the dynasty of Macedon from about 700 to 310 BC. Their tradition, as described in ancient Greek historiography, traced their origins to Argos, initially the rulers of the homonymous tribe, by the time of Philip II they had expanded their reign further, to include under the rule of Macedonia all Upper Macedonian states. The mythical founder of the Argead dynasty is King Caranus, the words Argead and Argive derive from the Greek Ἀργεῖος, of or from Argos, which is first attested in Homer, where it was also used as a collective designation for the Greeks. The Argead dynasty claimed descent from the Temenids of Argos, in the Peloponnese, whose ancestor was Temenus. In the excavations of the royal Palace at Aegae Manolis Andronikos discovered in the room an inscription relating to that belief. The latter asked them to leave his territory, believing in an omen that something great would happen to Perdiccas, the boys went to another part of Macedonia, near the garden of Midas, above which mount Bermio stands. There they made their abode and gradually formed their own kingdom, the Hellanodikai, however, after examining his Argead claim confirmed that the Macedonians were Greeks and allowed him to participate. They also added Mygdonia in their territory through the expulsion of the Edoni, Eordians, the Kings of Makedon, 399–369 BC. Archived from the original on 26 April 2008
13.
Philip II of Macedon
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Philip II of Macedon was the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon from 359 BC until his assassination in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty of Macedonian kings, the son of King Amyntas III. However, his assassination led to the succession of his son Alexander. Philip was the youngest son of the king Amyntas III and Eurydice I, in his youth, Philip was held as a hostage in Thebes, which was then the leading city of Greece. In 364 BC, Philip returned to Macedon, the deaths of Philips elder brothers, King Alexander II and Perdiccas III, allowed him to take the throne in 359 BC. Originally appointed regent for his infant nephew Amyntas IV, who was the son of Perdiccas III, Philips military skills and expansionist vision of Macedonian greatness brought him early success. He first had to remedy a predicament which had greatly worsened by the defeat against the Illyrians in which King Perdiccas himself had died. Using diplomacy, Philip pushed back the Paionians and Thracians promising tributes, momentarily free from his opponents, he concentrated on strengthening his internal position and, above all, his army. Philip had married Audata, great-granddaughter of the Illyrian king of Dardania, however, this did not prevent him from marching against the Illyrians in 358 and crushing them in a ferocious battle in which some 7,000 Illyrians died. By this move, Philip established his authority inland as far as Lake Ohrid, the Athenians had been unable to conquer Amphipolis, which commanded the gold mines of Mount Pangaion. So Philip reached an agreement with Athens to lease the city to them after its conquest, however, after conquering Amphipolis, Philip kept both cities. As Athens had declared war against him, he allied Macedon with the Chalkidian League of Olynthus and he subsequently conquered Potidaea, this time keeping his word and ceding it to the League in 356. In 357 BC, Philip married the Epirote princess Olympias, who was the daughter of the king of the Molossians, Alexander was born in 356, the same year as Philips racehorse won at the Olympic Games. During 356 BC, Philip conquered the town of Crenides and changed its name to Philippi and he then established a powerful garrison there to control its mines, which yielded much of the gold he later used for his campaigns. In the meantime, his general Parmenion defeated the Illyrians again, in 355–354 he besieged Methone, the last city on the Thermaic Gulf controlled by Athens. During the siege, Philip was injured in his eye, despite the arrival of two Athenian fleets, the city fell in 354. Philip also attacked Abdera and Maronea, on the Thracian coast, Philip was involved in the Third Sacred War which had begun in Greece in 356. In summer 353 he invaded Thessaly, defeating 7,000 Phocians under the brother of Onomarchus, the latter however defeated Philip in the two succeeding battles
14.
Alexander the Great
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Alexander III of Macedon, commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon and a member of the Argead dynasty. He was born in Pella in 356 BC and succeeded his father Philip II to the throne at the age of twenty and he was undefeated in battle and is widely considered one of historys most successful military commanders. During his youth, Alexander was tutored by Aristotle until the age of 16, after Philips assassination in 336 BC, he succeeded his father to the throne and inherited a strong kingdom and an experienced army. Alexander was awarded the generalship of Greece and used this authority to launch his fathers Panhellenic project to lead the Greeks in the conquest of Persia, in 334 BC, he invaded the Achaemenid Empire and began a series of campaigns that lasted ten years. Following the conquest of Anatolia, Alexander broke the power of Persia in a series of battles, most notably the battles of Issus. He subsequently overthrew Persian King Darius III and conquered the Achaemenid Empire in its entirety, at that point, his empire stretched from the Adriatic Sea to the Indus River. He sought to reach the ends of the world and the Great Outer Sea and invaded India in 326 BC and he eventually turned back at the demand of his homesick troops. Alexander died in Babylon in 323 BC, the city that he planned to establish as his capital, without executing a series of planned campaigns that would have begun with an invasion of Arabia. In the years following his death, a series of civil wars tore his empire apart, resulting in the establishment of several states ruled by the Diadochi, Alexanders surviving generals, Alexanders legacy includes the cultural diffusion which his conquests engendered, such as Greco-Buddhism. He founded some twenty cities that bore his name, most notably Alexandria in Egypt, Alexander became legendary as a classical hero in the mold of Achilles, and he features prominently in the history and mythic traditions of both Greek and non-Greek cultures. He became the measure against which military leaders compared themselves, and he is often ranked among the most influential people in human history. He was the son of the king of Macedon, Philip II, and his wife, Olympias. Although Philip had seven or eight wives, Olympias was his wife for some time. Several legends surround Alexanders birth and childhood, sometime after the wedding, Philip is said to have seen himself, in a dream, securing his wifes womb with a seal engraved with a lions image. Plutarch offered a variety of interpretations of dreams, that Olympias was pregnant before her marriage, indicated by the sealing of her womb. On the day Alexander was born, Philip was preparing a siege on the city of Potidea on the peninsula of Chalcidice. That same day, Philip received news that his general Parmenion had defeated the combined Illyrian and Paeonian armies, and it was also said that on this day, the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, burnt down. This led Hegesias of Magnesia to say that it had burnt down because Artemis was away, such legends may have emerged when Alexander was king, and possibly at his own instigation, to show that he was superhuman and destined for greatness from conception
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Philip III of Macedon
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Philip III Arrhidaeus reigned as king of Macedonia from after 11 June 323 BC until his death. He was a son of King Philip II of Macedonia by Philinna of Larissa, named Arrhidaeus at birth, he assumed the name Philip when he ascended to the throne. As Arrhidaeus grew older it became apparent that he had learning difficulties. Alexander was fond of Arrhidaeus and took him on his campaigns, after Alexanders death in Babylon in 323 BC, the Macedonian army in Asia proclaimed Arrhidaeus as king, however, he served merely as a figurehead and as the pawn of a series of powerful generals. Arrhidaeus whereabouts during the reign of his brother Alexander are unclear from the extant sources and he was in Babylon at the time of Alexanders death on 10 June 323 BC. Arrhidaeus was the most obvious candidate, but he was unfit to rule. This eventuality did indeed arise and resulted in Roxanas son, Alexander and it was immediately decided that Philip Arrhidaeus would reign, but not rule, this was to be the prerogative of the new regent, Perdiccas. When news arrived in Macedonia that Arrhidaeus had been chosen as king, Cynane and this move was an obvious affront to the regent, whom Cynane had completely bypassed, and to prevent the marriage, Perdiccas sent his brother, Alcetas, to kill Cynane. The reaction among the troops generated by this murder was such that the regent had to give up his opposition to the proposed match and accept the marriage. From that moment on, Philip Arrhidaeus was to be under the sway of his bride, eurydices chance to increase her husbands power came when the first war of the Diadochi sealed the fate of Perdiccas, making a new settlement necessary. An agreement was made at Triparadisus in Syria in 320 BC, the regent died of natural causes the following year, nominating as his successor not his son Cassander, but his friend and lieutenant, Polyperchon. Cassanders refusal to accept his fathers decision sparked the Second War of the Diadochi, an opportunity presented itself in 317 BC when Cassander expelled Polyperchon from Macedonia. Eurydice immediately allied herself with Cassander and persuaded her husband to him as the new regent. Cassander reciprocated by leaving her in control of the country when he left to campaign in Greece. But individual circumstances and events at time were subject to rapid change. That same year, Polyperchon and Olympias allied with her cousin, Aeacides, king of Epirus, the Macedonian troops refused to fight Olympias, the mother of Alexander. Philip and Eurydice had no choice but to escape, only to be captured at Amphipolis, in 1977, important excavations were made near Vergina leading to the discovery of a two-chambered royal tomb, with an almost perfectly preserved male skeleton. He appears as one of the characters in the novel Funeral Games by Mary Renault
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Alexander IV of Macedon
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Alexander IV, erroneously called sometimes in modern times Aegus, was the son of Alexander the Great and Princess Roxana of Bactria. Alexander IV was the son of a Macedonian father, Alexander the Great and he was Philip II of Macedons grandson. Because Roxana was pregnant when her died and the sex of the baby was unknown. The factions compromised, deciding that Perdiccas would rule the Empire as regent while Philip would reign, if the child was male, then he would be king. Alexander IV was born in August,323 BC and he brought with him Roxana and the two kings to Macedon and gave up the pretence of ruling Alexanders Empire, leaving former provinces in Egypt and Asia in control of the satraps. When Antipater died in 319 BC he left Polyperchon, a Macedonian general who had served under Philip II and Alexander the Great, as his successor, passing over his own son, Cassander. Cassander allied himself with Ptolemy Soter, Antigonus and Eurydice, the wife of king Philip Arrhidaeus. Polyperchon was allied with Eumenes and Olympias, although Polyperchon was successful at first, taking control of the Greek cities, his fleet was destroyed by Antigonus in 318 BC. When, after the battle, Cassander assumed full control of Macedon, Polyperchon was forced to flee to Epirus, followed by Roxana, a few months later, Olympias was able to persuade her relative Aeacides of Epirus to invade Macedon with Polyperchon. When Olympias took the field, Eurydices army refused to fight against the mother of Alexander and defected to Olympias, after which Polyperchon and Aeacides retook Macedon. Philip and Eurydice were captured and executed on December 25,317 BC, leaving Alexander IV king, Cassander returned in the following year, conquering Macedon once again. Olympias was immediately executed, while the king and his mother were taken prisoner, cassanders response was definitive, to secure his rule, in 309 BC he commanded Glaucias to secretly assassinate the 14-year-old Alexander IV and his mother. The orders were carried out, and they were both poisoned, one of the royal tombs discovered by the archaeologist Manolis Andronikos in the so-called Great Tumulus in Vergina in 1977/8 is believed to belong to Alexander IV. Smith, William, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, Alexander IV, livius. org, Alexander IV Wiki Classical Dictionary, Alexander IV
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Antigonid dynasty
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The Antigonid dynasty was a dynasty of Hellenistic kings descended from Alexander the Greats general Antigonus I Monophthalmus. Succeeding the Antipatrid dynasty in much of Macedonia, Antigonus ruled mostly over Asia Minor and his attempts to take control of the whole of Alexanders empire led to his defeat and death at the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BC. After a period of confusion, Demetriuss son Antigonus II Gonatas was able to establish the control over the old Kingdom of Macedon, as well as over most of the Greek city-states. It was one of four established by Alexanders successors, the others being the Seleucid dynasty, Ptolemaic dynasty. The ruling members of the Antigonid dynasty were, The Greek rebel against Rome and last King of Macedonia, Andriscus, claimed to be the son of Perseus
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Antigonus I Monophthalmus
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Antigonus I Monophthalmus, son of Philip from Elimeia, was a Macedonian nobleman, general, and satrap under Alexander the Great. During his early life he served under Philip II, and he was a figure in the Wars of the Diadochi after Alexanders death, declaring himself king in 306 BC. Antigonus was appointed governor of Greater Phrygia in 333 BC and he was primarily responsible for defending Alexanders lines of supply and communication during the latters extended campaign against the Achaemenid Persian Empire. As part of the division of the provinces after Alexanders death in 323 BC, Antigonus also received Pamphylia and Lycia from Perdiccas, regent of the empire, at the Partition of Babylon. He incurred the enmity of Perdiccas, the regent, by refusing to assist Eumenes to obtain possession of the allotted to him. Leonnatus had left with his army for Greece, leaving Antigonus alone to deal with Cappadocia, Perdiccas seems to have viewed this as a direct affront to his authority and went up with the royal army himself to conquer the area. Eumenes was defeated and forced to retire to the fortress of Nora in Cappadocia, when Antipater died in 319 BC, he gave the regentship to Polyperchon, excluding Cassander, his son. Antigonus and the other refused to recognize Polyperchon, since it would undermine their own ambitions. He entered into negotiations with Eumenes, but Eumenes had already been swayed by Polyperchon, effecting his escape from Nora, he raised an army and built a fleet in Cilicia and Phoenicia, and soon after formed a coalition with the satraps of the eastern provinces. Antigonus fought against Eumenes in two battles at Paraitacene in 317 BC and Gabiene in 316 BC. After some deliberation, Antigonus had Eumenes executed, as a result, Antigonus now was in possession of the empires Asian territories, his authority stretching from the eastern satrapies to Syria and Asia Minor in the west. He seized the treasures at Susa and entered Babylon, the governor of the city, Seleucus, fled to Ptolemy and entered into a league with him, Lysimachus and Cassander against Antigonus. In 314 BC Antigonus invaded Phoenicia, under Ptolemys control, and his son Demetrius was defeated at the Battle of Gaza by Ptolemy in 312 BC, and after the battle, Seleucus made his way back to Babylonia. Seleucus returned to Babylon in order to build up a base of his own, the Babylonian War began between Antigonus and Seleucus, where Seleucus defeated both Demetrius and Antigonus, and secured Babylonia. After the war had been carried on with varying success from 315 to 311, peace was concluded, by which the government of Asia Minor and Syria was provisionally secured to Antigonus. This agreement was violated on the pretext that garrisons had been placed in some of the free Greek cities by Antigonus. Demetrius Poliorcetes, the son of Antigonus, wrested part of Greece from Cassander, after defeating Ptolemy at the naval Battle of Salamis in 306 BC, Demetrius conquered Cyprus. Following the victory Antigonus assumed the title king and bestowed the same upon his son, the other dynasts, Cassander, Ptolemy, Lysimachus and Seleucus, soon followed
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Demetrius I of Macedon
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Demetrius I, called Poliorcetes, son of Antigonus I Monophthalmus and Stratonice, was a Macedonian Greek nobleman, military leader, and finally king of Macedon. He belonged to the Antigonid dynasty and was its first member to rule Macedonia, at the age of twenty-two he was left by his father to defend Syria against Ptolemy the son of Lagus. He was defeated at the Battle of Gaza, but soon partially repaired his loss by a victory in the neighbourhood of Myus. In the spring of 310, he was defeated when he tried to expel Seleucus I Nicator from Babylon. As a result of this Babylonian War, Antigonus lost almost two thirds of his empire, all eastern satrapies fell to Seleucus, after several campaigns against Ptolemy on the coasts of Cilicia and Cyprus, Demetrius sailed with a fleet of 250 ships to Athens. He freed the city from the power of Cassander and Ptolemy, expelled the garrison which had been stationed there under Demetrius of Phalerum, after these victories he was worshipped by the Athenians as a tutelary deity under the title of Soter. In the campaign of 306 BC he defeated Ptolemy and Menelaus, Ptolemys brother, in the naval Battle of Salamis, Demetrius conquered Cyprus in 306 BC, capturing one of Ptolemys sons. Following the victory Antigonus assumed the title king and bestowed the same upon his son Demetrius, in 302 BC he returned a second time to Greece as liberator, and reinstated the Corinthian League, but his licentiousness and extravagance made the Athenians long for the government of Cassander. Among his outrages was his courtship of a boy named Democles the Handsome. The youth kept on refusing his attention but one day found himself cornered at the baths, having no way out and being unable to physically resist his suitor, he took the lid off the hot water cauldron and jumped in. His death was seen as a mark of honor for himself, in another instance, Demetrius waived a fine of 50 talents imposed on a citizen in exchange for the favors of Cleaenetus, that mans son. He also sought the attention of Lamia, a Greek courtesan and he demanded 250 talents from the Athenians, which he then gave to Lamia and other courtesans to buy soap and cosmetics. He also roused the jealousy of Alexanders Diadochi, Seleucus, Cassander and Lysimachus united to destroy him, the hostile armies met at the Battle of Ipsus in Phrygia. Antigonus was killed, and Demetrius, after sustaining severe losses and this reversal of fortune stirred up many enemies against him—the Athenians refused even to admit him into their city. But he soon afterwards ravaged the territory of Lysimachus and effected a reconciliation with Seleucus, in 294 he established himself on the throne of Macedonia by murdering Alexander V, the son of Cassander. He faced rebellion from the Boeotians but secured the region after capturing Thebes in 291 BC, after besieging Athens without success he passed into Asia and attacked some of the provinces of Lysimachus with varying success. Famine and pestilence destroyed the part of his army, and he solicited Seleucus support. His son Antigonus offered all his possessions, and even his own person, in order to procure his fathers liberty, but all proved unavailing and his remains were given to Antigonus and honoured with a splendid funeral at Corinth
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Antigonus II Gonatas
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Antigonus Gonatas was born around 319 BC, probably in Gonnoi in Thessaly unless Gonatas is derived from an iron plate protecting the knee. He was related to the most powerful of the Diadochi, Antigonuss father was Demetrius Poliorcetes, who was the son of Antigonus I Monophthalmus, who then controlled much of Asia. His mother was Phila, the daughter of Antipater, the latter controlled Macedonia and the rest of Greece and was recognized as regent of the empire, which in theory remained united. In this year, however, Antipater died, leading to further struggles for territory, the careers of Antigonuss grandfather and father showed great swings in fortune. The fate of Antigonus Gonatas, now 18, was tied with that of his father Demetrius. Jealousy among the victors eventually allowed Demetrius to regain part of the power his father had lost and he conquered Athens and in 294 BC he seized the throne of Macedonia from Alexander, the son of Cassander. Hoping to seize Lysimachuss territories in Thrace and Asia, Demetrius delegated command of his forces in Boeotia to Antigonus, while he was away, the Boeotians rose in rebellion, but were defeated by Antigonus, who bottled them up in Thebes. After the failure of his expedition to Thrace, Demetrius rejoined his son at the siege of Thebes, as the Thebans defended their city stubbornly, Demetrius often forced his men to attack the city at great cost, even though there was little hope of capturing it. It is said that, distressed by the losses, Antigonus asked his father, Why, father. Demetrius appears to have showed his contempt for the lives of his soldiers by replying, but he also showed a similar disregard for his own life and was badly wounded at the siege by a bolt through the neck. In 291 BC, Demetrius finally took the city after using siege engines to demolish its walls, but control of Macedonia and most of Greece was merely a stepping stone to his plans for further conquest. He aimed at nothing less than the revival of Alexanders empire and started making preparations on a scale, ordering the construction of a fleet of 500 ships. Such preparations and the intent behind them, naturally alarmed the other kings, Seleucus, Ptolemy, Lysimachus, and Pyrrhus. In the spring of 288 BC Ptolemys fleet appeared off Greece, at the same time, Lysimachus attacked Macedonia from the east while Pyrrhus did so from the west. Demetrius left Antigonus in control of Greece, while he hurried to Macedonia, by now the Macedonians had come to resent the extravagance and arrogance of Demetrius, and were not prepared to fight a difficult campaign for him. In 287 BC, Pyrrhus took the Macedonian city of Verroia and Demetriuss army promptly deserted, at this change of fortune, Phila, the mother of Antigonus, killed herself with poison. Demetrius therefore returned and besieged the city, but he grew impatient. Leaving Antigonus in charge of the war in Greece, he assembled all his ships and embarked with 11,000 infantry and all his cavalry to attack Caria and Lydia, provinces of Lysimachus
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Antigonus III Doson
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Antigonus III Doson was king of Macedon from 229 BC to 221 BC. He was a member of the Antigonid dynasty, Antigonus III Doson was a half-cousin of his predecessor, Demetrius II Aetolicus. Dosons father was Demetrius the Fair, the son of Demetrius Poliorcetes and his wife, Ptolemaïs, daughter of Ptolemy I Soter and Eurydice. According to Eusebius, Dosons own mother was a Thessalian noblewoman, Olympias, Antigonus also had a brother named Echecrates, whose son, named Antigonus after Doson himself, was put to death by Perseus on the latters accession to the throne of Macedon. Rather than contenting himself with his bride, Demetrius openly became the lover of her powerful mother. So the jealous bride took her revenge by having him assassinated and it is unclear whether Dosons mother had died before this time. The meaning of Antigonus by-name is uncertain, according to Plutarch it implied that he was given to promising but did not perform his engagements, though even the exact meaning of this is unclear. When Demetrius II died in battle in 229 BC, his son and would-be successor, according to Plutarch, both the Macedonian army and nobility thought the political situation too volatile to wait for Philip V to mature enough to assume command. As a consequence, the Macedonian nobility turned to Doson, who was made regent of the kingdom and married to his predecessors widow. Unlike his Antigonid ancestors, he had no rivals to challenge his right to rule. Yet, even as king he apparently envisioned himself as caretaker for his cousins son, as king, Antigonus III proved to be as much a master of tactical diplomacy as of military strategy. In less than a decade of rule he not only secured the borders of his nation, unlike previous Macedonian rulers who attempted direct dominion over their fiercely independent neighbors to the West and South, he formed alliances with Epirus and the Achaean League. Establishing his base on the heights above Corinth, Antigonus reconstituted a broad-based Hellenic league under his leadership before launching his attack on Sparta. However, in a gesture, Antigonus restrained his soldiers from plundering Sparta, saying it was Cleomenes, not Sparta. Antigonus did not long survive this victory, for, while his forces were campaigning in the southern Peloponnese, Illyrians invaded Macedonia from the north. Antigonus had to rush north to repel this new threat and his death occurred soon after, when he returned to Macedon and engaged the Illyian army, for though Macedonian forces were once again victorious, the commander became sick during the battle and died. Antigonus III Doson entry in historical sourcebook by Mahlon H. Smith
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Philip V of Macedon
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Philip V was King of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia from 221 to 179 BC. Philips reign was marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of the Roman Republic. Philip was attractive and charismatic as a young man, the son of Demetrius II and Chryseis, Philip was nine years old at his fathers death in 229 BC. He had a paternal half sister called Apame. His cousin, Antigonus Doson, administered the kingdom as regent until his death in 221 BC when Philip was seventeen years old, on his ascent to the throne, Philip quickly showed that while he was young, this did not mean that Macedon was weak. In the first year of his rule, he pushed back the Dardani, in the Social War, the Hellenic League of Greek states was assembled at Philip V’s instigation in Corinth. He then led the Hellenic League in battles against Aetolia, Sparta, in this way he was able to increase his own authority amongst his own ministers. His leadership during the Social War made him well-known and respected both within his own kingdom and abroad and he first tried to invade Illyria from the sea, but with limited success. His first expedition in 216 BC had to be aborted, while he suffered the loss of his fleet in a second expedition in 214 BC. A later expedition by land met with success when he captured Lissus in 212 BC. In 215 BC, he entered into a treaty with Hannibal and their treaty defined spheres of operation and interest, but achieved little of substance or value for either side. Philip became heavily involved in assisting and protecting his allies from attacks from the Spartans, romes alliance with the Aetolian League in 211 BC effectively neutralised Philips advantage on land. The intervention of Attalus I of Pergamum on the Roman side further exposed Philips position in Macedonia, Philip and his troops sacked Thermum, the religious and political centre of Aetolia. His troops destroyed 2,000 statues and hauled away vast sums of treasure which included some fifteen thousand shields and suits of arms the Aetolians had decorated their stoas with. These shields were the armor taken from the enemies of the Aetolians during their previous military victories, Philip V took immense sums of gold and treasures and then burned down temples and public buildings of the Aetolians. Philip was able to force the Aetolians to accept his terms in 206 BC, the following year he was able to conclude the Peace of Phoenice with Rome and its allies. This expansion of Macedonian influence created alarm in a number of neighbouring states, including Pergamum and their navies clashed with Philip’s off Chios and Lade in 201 BC. At around the time, the Romans were finally the victors over Carthage
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Perseus of Macedon
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Perseus was the last king of the Antigonid dynasty, who ruled the successor state in Macedon created upon the death of Alexander the Great. He also has the distinction of being the last of the line, after losing the Battle of Pydna on 22 June 168 BC, Perseus was the son of king Philip V of Macedon and a concubine, probably Polycratia of Argos. He therefore feared that the throne pass on his legitimate younger brother Demetrius, not least due to interference from the Romans. Perseus thus staged a plot to make their father believe that his brother was a traitor, in 179 BC Philip V of Macedon died and Perseus took the throne. Although his role in killing Demetrius had not endeared him to the Romans, yet, Perseus other actions troubled the Senate. Soon Rome and Perseus went to war in the Third Macedonian War, blaise Pascal mentions in his Pensées that Perseus was blamed for not committing suicide, supposedly after his defeat at Pydna. The Antigonid kingdom was dissolved, and replaced with four republics, Andriscus of Macedon broke off the Roman rule for about a year, but was defeated in 148 BC by the Romans. In 146 BC, following the quashing of a rebellion led by the last Macedonian king Andriscus, the four republics were dissolved, in 178 BC, he had married Laodice V, the daughter of Seleucus IV from Syria. He became a metalworker, learned the Latin language. History of Macedonia Macedonian Wars Media related to Perseus of Macedon at Wikimedia Commons
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Andriscus
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Andriscus, also often referenced as Pseudo-Philip, was the last King of Macedon. A pretender who claimed to be the son of Perseus of Macedon and his reign lasted just a year. In 168 BC, the Romans invaded Macedonia and overthrew king Perseus in the First Battle of Pydna, in 149 BC, Andriskos, claiming to be Perseus son, announced his intention to retake Macedonia from the Romans. As his first attempt, he travelled to Syria to request military help from Demetrius Soter of Syria, Demetrius instead handed him over to the Romans but Andriskos managed to escape from Roman captivity, and raised a Thracian army. With this army, he invaded Macedonia and defeated the Roman praetor Publius Juventius in 149 BC, Andriskos then declared himself King Philip VI of Macedonia. In 148 BC, Andriskos conquered Thessaly and made an alliance with Carthage, Andriscus brief reign over Macedonia was marked by cruelty and extortion. After this, Macedonia was formally reduced to a Roman province, attribution This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. Andriscus. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Smith. Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology
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Ptolemy I Soter
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Ptolemy I Soter I, also known as Ptolemy Lagides, was a Macedonian Greek general under Alexander the Great, one of the three Diadochi who succeeded to his empire. Ptolemy became ruler of Egypt and founded a dynasty which ruled it for the three centuries, turning Egypt into a Hellenistic kingdom and Alexandria into a center of Greek culture. He assimilated some aspects of Egyptian culture, however, assuming the title pharaoh in 305/4 BC. The use of the title of pharaoh was often situational, pharaoh was used for an Egyptian audience, like all Macedonian nobles, Ptolemy I Soter claimed descent from Heracles, the mythical founder of the Argead dynasty that ruled Macedon. Ptolemy was one of Alexanders most trusted generals, and was among the seven somatophylakes attached to his person and he was a few years older than Alexander and had been his intimate friend since childhood. He was succeeded by his son Ptolemy II Philadelphus, Ptolemy served with Alexander from his first campaigns, and played a principal part in the later campaigns in Afghanistan and India. Ptolemy had his first independent command during the campaign against the rebel Bessus whom Ptolemy captured and handed over to Alexander for execution. During Alexanders campaign in the Indian subcontinent Ptolemy was in command of the guard at the siege of Aornos. When Alexander died in 323 BC, Ptolemy is said to have instigated the resettlement of the made at Babylon. Ptolemy quickly moved, without authorization, to subjugate Cyrenaica, by custom, kings in Macedonia asserted their right to the throne by burying their predecessor. Ptolemy then openly joined the coalition against Perdiccas, Perdiccas appears to have suspected Ptolemy of aiming for the throne himself, and may have decided that Ptolemy was his most dangerous rival. Ptolemy executed Cleomenes for spying on behalf of Perdiccas — this removed the check on his authority. In 321 BC, Perdiccas attempted to invade Egypt only to fall at the hands of his own men, Ptolemys decision to defend the Nile against Perdiccass attempt to force it ended in fiasco for Perdiccas, with the loss of 2000 men. This failure was a blow to Perdiccas reputation, and he was murdered in his tent by two of his subordinates. Ptolemy immediately crossed the Nile, to provide supplies to what had the day before been an enemy army, Ptolemy was offered the regency in place of Perdiccas, but he declined. Ptolemy was consistent in his policy of securing a power base and his first occupation of Syria was in 318, and he established at the same time a protectorate over the petty kings of Cyprus. When Antigonus One-Eye, master of Asia in 315, showed dangerous ambitions, Ptolemy joined the coalition against him, in Cyprus, he fought the partisans of Antigonus, and re-conquered the island. A revolt in Cyrene was crushed the same year, in 312, Ptolemy and Seleucus, the fugitive satrap of Babylonia, both invaded Syria, and defeated Demetrius Poliorcetes, the son of Antigonus, in the Battle of Gaza
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Ptolemy II Philadelphus
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Ptolemy II Philadelphus was the king of Ptolemaic Egypt from 283 to 246 BCE. He was the son of the founder of the Ptolemaic kingdom Ptolemy I Soter and Berenice and he had two half-brothers, Ptolemy Keraunos and Meleager, who both became kings of Macedonia, and who both died in the Gallic invasion of 280–279 BCE. Ptolemy was first married to Arsinoë I, daughter of Lysimachus, who was the mother of his children, after her repudiation he married his full sister Arsinoë II. During Ptolemys reign, the material and literary splendour of the Alexandrian court was at its height and he promoted the Museum and Library of Alexandria, and he erected a commemorative stele, the Great Mendes Stela. Ptolemy II began his reign as co-regent with his father Ptolemy I from c.285 BCE to c.283 BCE, Egypt was involved in several wars during his reign. Magas of Cyrene opened war on his half-brother, and the Seleucid king Antiochus I Soter, desiring Coele-Syria with Judea, two or three years of war followed. The Ptolemaic sphere of power extended over the Cyclades to Samothrace, in 275/4 BC, Ptolemaic forces invaded Nubia and annexed the Triakontaschoinos. In 270 BCE Ptolemy hired 4,000 Gallic mercenaries. ”The victory won by Antigonus II Gonatas, king of Macedonia, Ptolemy was of a delicate constitution. Elias Joseph Bickermann gives the date of his death as January 29, Ptolemys first wife, Arsinoë I, daughter of Lysimachus, was the mother of his legitimate children, Ptolemy III Euergetes, his successor. Lysimachus Berenice Phernopherus, married Antiochus II Theos, king of Syria, after her repudiation he married his full sister Arsinoë II, the widow of Lysimachus — an Egyptian custom—which brought him her Aegean possessions. Ptolemy deified his parents and his sister-wife after their deaths, the material and literary splendour of the Alexandrian court was at its height under Ptolemy II. Although an enthusiast for Hellenic culture, he also adopted Egyptian religious concepts, callimachus, keeper of the library, Theocritus, and a host of lesser poets, glorified the Ptolemaic family. Ptolemy himself was eager to increase the library and to scientific research. The tradition preserved in the pseudepigraphical Letter of Aristeas which connects the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek with his patronage is probably overdrawn, pliny the Elder, The Natural History, Chap. 21 He is also mentioned in the Edicts of Ashoka as a recipient of the Buddhist proselytism of Ashoka, Alexandrian Pleiad Library of Alexandria Ptolemaic period - period of Egyptian history during the Ptolemaic dynasty. Ptolemais - towns and cities named after members of the Ptolemaic dynasty, list of people whose parent committed suicide Mookerji, Radha Kumud, Chandragupta Maurya and his times, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 81-208-0433-3 Clayton, Peter A. Chronicles of the Pharaohs, the record of the rulers. The Foreign Policy of Ptolemy II, in McKechnie, Paul R. Guillaume, Philippe
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Ptolemy III Euergetes
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Ptolemy III Euergetes was the third king of the Ptolemaic dynasty in Egypt. Euergetes was the eldest son of Ptolemy II Philadelphus and his first wife, Arsinoe I and he married Berenice of Cyrene in the year corresponding to 244/243 BC, and their children were, Arsinoe III, born in c. She later married her brother Ptolemy IV Ptolemy IV Philopator, born c.244 BC Possibly Lysimachus, the name of the son is not known, but he is said to have been born in c.243 BC. Alexander, born in c.242 BC Magas, born in c.241 BC, scalded to death in his bath by Theogos or Theodotus, at the orders of Ptolemy IV. Berenice, probably born in c.239 BC and died a year later, Ptolemy III Euergetes was responsible for the first known example of a series of decrees published as bilingual inscriptions on massive stone blocks in three writing systems. His stone stela is the Canopus Stone of 238 BC, Ptolemy IIIs stone contains decrees about priestly orders, and is a memorial for his daughter Berenice. But two of its 26 lines of hieroglyphs decree the use of a day added to the Egyptian calendar of 365 days. Also, the reliefs on the pylon were only completed in the reign of Ptolemy XII. He, like many Pharaohs before him, also added to the Temple of Karnak, due to a falling out at the Seleucid court, Ptolemys eldest sister Berenice Phernophorus was murdered along with her infant son. In response Ptolemy III invaded Syria, during this war, the Third Syrian War, he occupied Antioch and even reached Babylon. In exchange for a peace in 241 BC, Ptolemy was awarded new territories on the northern coast of Syria, including Seleucia Pieria, from this capture he received fifteen hundred talents of silver, roughly a tenth of his annual income. During his involvement in the Third Syrian War, he managed to regain many Egyptian works of art that had been stolen when the Persians conquered Egypt. While he was fighting, he left his wife, Berenice II, in charge of the country. The Ptolemaic kingdom reached the height of its power during this reign and he maintained his fathers foreign policy of subduing Macedonia by supporting its enemies. He continued his predecessors work on Alexandria, especially in the Great Library and he had every book unloaded in the Alexandria docks seized, had copies made of each one, and gave the copies to the previous owners while the original copies were kept in the Library. He was even more liberal towards Egyptian religion than his predecessors, Ptolemy IIIs reign was also marked by trade with other contemporaneous polities. In the 1930s, excavations by Mattingly at a close to Port Dunford in present-day southern Somalia yielded a number of Ptolemaic coins. Among these pieces were 17 copper mints from the reigns of Ptolemy III to Ptolemy V, as well as late Imperial Rome, history of Ptolemaic Egypt- Ptolemais - towns and cities named after members of the Ptolemaic dynasty
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Ptolemy IV Philopator
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Ptolemy IV Philopator, son of Ptolemy III and Berenice II, was the fourth Pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt. The decline of the Ptolemaic dynasty began under the reign of Ptolemy IV, among the children of Ptolemy IV Philopator and his sister-wife Arsinoe III of Egypt was Ptolemy V Epiphanes, who married Cleopatra I Syra, daughter of Antiochus III the Great and Laodice III. Philopator was devoted to orgiastic forms of religion and literary dilettantism and he built a temple to Homer and composed a tragedy, to which his favourite Agathocles added a commentary. He married his sister Arsinoë III, but continued to be ruled by his mistress Agathoclea, in late c.210 BC, Agathoclea may have given birth to a son from her affair with Ptolemy IV, who may have died shortly after his birth. Ptolemy is said to have built a giant ship known as the tessarakonteres and this showpiece galley was described by Callixenus of Rhodes, writing in the 3rd century BC, and quoted by Athenaeus in the 2nd century AD. Plutarch also mentions that Ptolemy Philopator owned this immense vessel in his Life of Demetrios, the current theory is that Ptolemys ship was an oversized catamaran galley, measuring 128 m. Ptolemy IV is a major antagonist of the apocryphal 3 Maccabees, Ptolemy IVs reign was also marked by trade with other contemporaneous polities. In the 1930s, excavations by Mattingly at a close to Port Dunford in present-day southern Somalia yielded a number of Ptolemaic coins. Among these pieces were 17 copper mints from the reigns of Ptolemy III, Ptolemy IV and Ptolemy V, as well as late Imperial Rome, chronicles of the Pharaohs, the reign-by-reign record of the rulers and dynasties of ancient Egypt. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh
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Ptolemy V Epiphanes
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Ptolemy V Epiphanes, son of Ptolemy IV Philopator and Arsinoe III of Egypt, was the fifth ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty. He inherited the throne at the age of five, and under a series of regents, the Rosetta Stone was produced during his reign as an adult. Ptolemy Epiphanes was only a boy when his father, Ptolemy Philopator. However, in 202 BC, Tlepolemus, the general in charge of Pelusium, once Epiphanes was in the hands of Tlepolemus he was persuaded to give a sign that his mothers killers should be killed. The child king gave his consent, it is more from fear than anything else. Antiochus III the Great and Philip V of Macedon made a pact to divide the Ptolemaic possessions overseas, Philip seized several islands and populated places in Caria and Thrace, whilst the Battle of Panium definitively transferred Coele-Syria, including Judea, from the Ptolemies to the Seleucids. Antiochus then concluded peace, giving his own daughter Cleopatra I to Epiphanes in marriage, nevertheless, when war broke out between Antiochus and Rome, Egypt ranged itself with the latter power. Epiphanes came of age in approximately 196 or 197 BC with a known as an anacleteria. In manhood, Epiphanes was a sportsman, he excelled in athletic exercises. Great cruelty and treachery were displayed in the suppression of the native rebellion, in 197 BC, Lycopolis was held by the forces of Ankmachis, the secessionist pharaoh of Upper Egypt, but he was forced to withdraw to Thebes. The war between Upper and Lower Egypt continued until 185 BC with the arrest of Ankhmachis by Ptolemaic general Conanus and this victory re-established Ptolemaic rule in Upper Egypt, as well as the Triakontaschoinos. In 183 BC/184 BC, the rebels in Lower Egypt surrendered on the basis of terms that Epiphanes had personally promised to honor, however, showing himself treacherous and vindictive, he had them put to death in a cruel manner. The elder of Ptolemy Vs two sons, Ptolemy VI Philometor, succeeded as an infant under the regency of his mother Cleopatra the Syrian and her death was followed by a rupture between the Ptolemaic and Seleucid courts, on the old question of Coele-Syria. Ptolemy Vs reign was marked by trade with other contemporaneous polities. In the 1930s, excavations by Mattingly at a close to Port Dunford in present-day southern Somalia yielded a number of Ptolemaic coins. Among these pieces were 17 copper mints from the Ptolemy III to Ptolemy V dynasties, as well as late Imperial Rome, a History of Egypt Under the Ptolemaic Dynasty. Chronicles of the Pharaohs, The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Rulers, Ptolemy V Epiphanes entry in historical sourcebook by Mahlon H. Smith
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Cleopatra I Syra
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Cleopatra I Syra was a princess of the Seleucid Empire and by marriage, Queen of Ptolemaic Egypt. Cleopatra I was the daughter of Antiochus III the Great, King of the Seleucid Empire and she married Ptolemy V, King of Egypt, in 193 BC. The Romans supported the Egyptian interests, when they negotiated with the Seleucid king in Lysimachia in 196 BC, in response, Antiochus III indicated his willingness to make peace with Ptolemy V and to have his daughter Cleopatra I marry Ptolemy V. They were betrothed in 195 BC and their marriage took place in 193 BC in Raphia, at that time Ptolemy V was about 16 years and Cleopatra I about 10 years old. Later on, Egypts Ptolemaic kings were to argue that Cleopatra I had received Coele-Syria as her dowry and, therefore and it is not clear if this was the case. However, in practice, Coele-Syria remained a Seleucid possession after the Battle of Panium in 198 BC, in Alexandria, Cleopatra I was called the Syrian. As part of the Ptolemaic cult she was honoured with her husband as Theoi Epiphaneis, in line with ancient Egyptian tradition, she was also named adelphe of Ptolemy V. A synod of priests held at Memphis in 185 BC transferred all honours that Ptolemy V had received in 196 BC to his wife. In 187 BC, Cleopatra I was appointed vizier and upon her husbands death in 180 BC, she ruled on behalf of her young son and she was the first Ptolemaic queen to be a sole ruler of Egypt. This can be concluded from date formulas on the written in the years from 179 BC to 176 BC. She also minted her own coins, which bear her name before that of her son. On June 22,2010, archaeologists uncovered a gold coin bearing her image at Tel Kedesh in Israel near the Lebanon border and it was reported to be the heaviest and most valuable gold coin ever found in Israel. Cleopatra I died around 176 BC, in, Realencyclopädie der Classischen Altertumswissenschaft, vol. Werner Huß, Ägypten in hellenistischer Zeit
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Cleopatra III of Egypt
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Cleopatra III was a queen of Egypt 142–101 BC. Cleopatra III was also known as Cleopatra Euergetis while associated with her husband Ptolemy VIII or her son Ptolemy X and she is attested as Cleopatra Philometor Soteira while associated with her eldest son Ptolemy IX. But he was forced to abdicate. Cleopatra III’s parents retook the throne and remained in power for almost 20 years until 145 BC and it was during this time that Cleopatra III was born, a sister of Ptolemy Eupator, Cleopatra Thea and possibly Berenice. Ptolemy VIII first married Cleopatra III’s mother Cleopatra II in 145 BC, Cleopatra II rebelled against Ptolemy VIII in c.132 BC and Cleopatra III fled to Cyprus in 130 BC with her husband, but was able to return to Alexandria in 127 BC. Cleopatra III and Ptolemy VIII had five children, Ptolemy IX born c.143 BC Tryphaena born c.141 BC, married Antiochus VIII Grypus, king of Syria in 124 BC Ptolemy X born c.140 or 139 BC. Married his niece Berenice Cleopatra IV born between 138 and 135 BC, married first her brother Ptolemy IX and second Antiochus IX Cyzicenus, king of Syria Cleopatra Selene I born between 135 and 130 BC. Married first to her brother Ptolemy IX, and later to her brother Ptolemy X, after the death of Ptolemy VIII in 116 BC Cleopatra III ruled jointly with her mother Cleopatra II and her son Ptolemy IX. Cleopatra III expelled Ptolemy IX from Alexandria in 107 BC and replaced him as co-regent with her second son Ptolemy X, after 6 years of joint rule Ptolemy X had his mother Cleopatra III murdered in 101 BC
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Ptolemy IX Lathyros
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Ptolemy IX Soter II or Lathyros was king of Egypt three times, from 116 BC to 110 BC,109 BC to 107 BC and 88 BC to 81 BC, with intervening periods ruled by his brother, Ptolemy X Alexander. At first he was chosen by his mother Cleopatra III to be her co-regent and he married his sister Cleopatra IV, but his mother pushed her out and replaced her with his younger sister Cleopatra Selene. Later, she claimed that he tried to kill her, and successfully deposed him, however, she later grew tired of the now Ptolemy X and deposed him, putting Ptolemy IX back on the throne. She was soon murdered by Ptolemy X, who took the throne again and he was then killed in battle, and Ptolemy IX reigned until his own death. His daughter Berenice III took the throne after his death, and she was forced to marry her stepson Alexander, who reigned under the name Ptolemy XI Alexander II and had her killed nineteen days later. Ptolemy IXs name recalls that of his great Macedonian ancestor, Ptolemy I Soter, in references and in younger ones by the German historian Huss. Ptolemy Soter II at LacusCurtius — Ptolemy IX Lathyrus entry in historical sourcebook by Mahlon H. Smith Ptolemy IX at Thebes by Robert Ritner
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Ptolemy X Alexander I
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Ptolemy X Alexander I was King of Egypt from 110 BC to 109 BC and 107 BC till 88 BC. He was the son of Ptolemy VIII Physcon and Cleopatra III, in 110 BC he became King with his mother as co-regent, after his mother had deposed his brother Ptolemy IX Lathyros. However, in 109 BC he was deposed by Ptolemy IX, in 107 BC he became King again, and again with his mother as co-regent. In 101 BC he had his mother killed, and ruled either alone or with his niece/wife, when he died, Ptolemy IX regained the throne. When Ptolemy IX died, Ptolemy Xs wife Berenice III took over the throne for six months, Ptolemy X Alexander entry in historical sourcebook by Mahlon H. Smith
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Berenice III of Egypt
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Berenice III, sometimes called Cleopatra Berenice, ruled as queen of Egypt from 81 to 80 BC, and possibly from 101 to 88 BC jointly with her uncle/husband Ptolemy X Alexander I. She was born in 120 BC, the daughter of Ptolemy IX Lathyros and she married Ptolemy X Alexander I in 101 BC, after he took the throne from Lathyros and had his mother Cleopatra III killed. When Lathyros reclaimed the throne, Berenice lost her own rule, however, when Lathyros died at the end of 81 BC, Berenice took over the throne and ruled for six months, during which time she gained the love of the people. She was forced to marry Ptolemy XI Alexander II in 80 BC and he had her killed 19 days later, which moved the people to revolt and kill him a few days later. Berenice is the subject of Berenice, an opera by Handel
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Ptolemy XII Auletes
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Ptolemy Neos Dionysos Theos Philopator Theos Philadelphos, more commonly known as Auletes or Nothos, was an Egyptian king of Macedonian descent. Auletes means pipes-player, referring to the love of playing the pipes. Ptolemy reigned during the Hellenistic period and he is assumed to have been an illegitimate son of Ptolemy IX Soter, perhaps by an Alexandrian woman. But he may instead be the son of Ptolemy IX by Cleopatra IV and his reign as king was interrupted by a general rebellion that resulted in his exile from 58 to 55 BC. Thus, Ptolemy XII ruled Egypt from 80 to 58 BC, Ptolemy XII was generally described as a weak, self-indulgent man, a drunkard, and a music lover. Ptolemy may have had two wives and he married Cleopatra Tryphaena, who may have been either a sister or a cousin. Cleopatra Tryphaena is not mentioned after 69 BC and it is not clear who the mother of Ptolemys three youngest children is and his children include, Possibly a daughter named Cleopatra Tryphaena. Porphyry mentions a daughter Cleopatra Tryphaena who ruled with her sister Berenice, strabo however states that Ptolemy had only three daughters of whom the eldest has been referred to Berenice IV. Suggesting that the Cleopatra Tryphaena referred to by Porphyry may have been Ptolemys wife, many experts now identify Cleopatra VI with Cleopatra V of Egypt, Ptolemys wife. When Ptolemy XI died without a heir, the only available male descendents of the Ptolemy I lineage were the illegitimate sons of Ptolemy IX by an unknown Greek concubine. The boys were living in exile in Sinope, at the court of Mithridates VI, as the eldest of the boys Ptolemy XII was proclaimed king as Ptolemy XII Neos Dionysos and married his sister, Tryphaena. Ptolemy XII was coregent with his daughter Cleopatra VI Tryphaena and his wife Cleopatra V Tryphaena, however, Ptolemy XI had left the throne to Rome in his will, therefore Ptolemy XII was not the legitimate successor. Nevertheless, Rome did not challenge Ptolemy XIIs succession because the Senate was unwilling to acquire an Egyptian expansion, before Ptolemy XIIs reign, the geographical distance between Rome and Egypt resulted in an indifferent attitude towards each other. Nevertheless, Egyptians asked the Romans to settle dynastic conflicts During his reign, Ptolemy XII attempted to secure his own fate, Pompey accepted the riches but refused the invitation. After paying a bribe of six thousand talents to Julius Caesar and Pompey, in 58 BC, Ptolemy XII failed to comment on the Roman conquest of Cyprus, a territory ruled by his brother, thereby inciting the Egyptian population to start a rebellion. Egyptians were already aggravated by taxes and a substantial increase in the cost of living. Ptolemy XII fled to Rome, possibly with his daughter Cleopatra VII and his daughter Berenice IV became his successor. She ruled as coregent with her sister Cleopatra VI Tryphaena, a year after Ptolemy XIIs exile, Cleopatra VI Tryphaena died and Berenice ruled alone over Alexandria from 57 to 56BC
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Ptolemy XIV of Egypt
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Ptolemy XIV, was a son of Ptolemy XII of Egypt and one of the last members of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt. Following the death of his older brother Ptolemy XIII of Egypt on January 13,47 BC, he was proclaimed Pharaoh and co-ruler by their sister and remaining Pharaoh. He and Cleopatra were married, but Cleopatra continued to act as lover of Roman dictator Julius Caesar, Ptolemy is considered to have reigned in name only, with Cleopatra keeping actual authority to herself. On March 15,44 BC Caesar was murdered in Rome by a group of conspirators whose most notable members were Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus, Ptolemy soon followed him in death. An inscription mentioning him as alive was dated at July 26,44 BC, Ptolemy XIV Theos Philopator II entry in historical sourcebook by Mahlon H. Smith
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Cleopatra
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Cleopatra VII Philopator, known to history simply as Cleopatra, was the last active ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt, briefly survived as pharaoh by her son Caesarion. After her reign, Egypt became a province of the recently established Roman Empire, Cleopatra was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty, a Greek family of Macedonian origin that ruled Egypt after Alexander the Greats death during the Hellenistic period. By contrast, Cleopatra did learn to speak Egyptian and represented herself as the reincarnation of the Egyptian goddess Isis, as queen, she consummated a liaison with Julius Caesar that solidified her grip on the throne. She later elevated Caesarion, her son with Caesar, to co-ruler in name, after Caesars assassination in 44 BC, she aligned with Mark Antony in opposition to Caesars legal heir Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus. With Antony, she bore the twins Cleopatra Selene II and Alexander Helios, Antony committed suicide after losing the Battle of Actium to Octavians forces, and Cleopatra followed suit. According to tradition, she killed herself by means of an asp bite on August 12,30 BC and she was outlived by Caesarion, who was declared pharaoh by his supporters, but he was soon killed on Octavians orders. Egypt then became the Roman province of Aegyptus, Cleopatras father Auletes was a direct descendant of Alexander the Greats general Ptolemy I Soter, son of Arsinoe and Lagus, both of Macedon. Centralization of power and corruption led to uprisings in and the losses of Cyprus and Cyrenaica, Ptolemy went to Rome with Cleopatra, Cleopatra VI Tryphaena seized the crown but died shortly afterwards in suspicious circumstances. It is believed that Berenice IV poisoned her so that she could assume sole rulership, regardless of the cause, she ruled until Ptolemy Auletes returned in 55 BC with Roman support, capturing Alexandria aided by Roman general Aulus Gabinius. Berenice was imprisoned and executed afterwards, her head allegedly being sent to the royal court on the decree of her father. Cleopatra now became joint regent and deputy to her father at age 14, Ptolemy XII died in March 51 BC. His will made 18-year-old Cleopatra and her 10-year-old brother Ptolemy XIII joint monarchs, the first three years of their reign were difficult due to economic failures, famine, deficient floods of the Nile, and political conflicts. Cleopatra was married to her brother, but she quickly made it clear that she had no intention of sharing power with him. In August 51 BC, relations broke down between Cleopatra and Ptolemy. Cleopatra dropped Ptolemys name from official documents and her face appeared on coins. The Gabiniani killed the sons of the Roman governor of Syria Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus when they came to ask the Gabiniani to assist their father against the Parthians, Cleopatra handed the murderers over to Bibulus in chains, whereupon the Gabiniani became bitter enemies of the queen. This conflict was one of the causes of Cleopatras fall from power shortly afterward. The sole reign of Cleopatra was finally ended by a cabal of courtiers led by the eunuch Pothinus, in connection with half-Greek general Achillas, circa 48 BC, Cleopatras younger brother Ptolemy XIII became sole ruler
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Magas of Cyrene
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Magas of Cyrene was a Greek Macedonian nobleman. Through his mother’s second marriage he was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty and he became King of Cyrenaica and he managed to wrestle independence for Cyrenaica from the Greek Ptolemaic dynasty of Ancient Egypt. Magas was the son of the noblewoman Berenice and her first husband Philip. He had two sisters, Antigone and Theoxena. His father, Philip was the son of Amyntas by an unnamed mother, plutarch implies that his father was previously married and had children, including daughters born to him. Phillip served as a officer in the service of the Macedonian King Alexander the Great and was known for commanding one division of the Phalanx in Alexander’s wars. His mother Berenice was a noblewoman from Eordeaea and she was the daughter of local obscure nobleman Magas and noblewoman Antigone. Berenice’s mother was the niece of the powerful Regent Antipater and was a distant collateral relative to the Argead dynasty and he was the namesake of his maternal grandfather. About 318 BC, his father died of natural causes, after the death of Magas’ father, Magas’ mother took him and his siblings to Egypt where they were a part of the entourage of his mother’s second maternal cousin Eurydice. Eurydice was then the wife of Ptolemy I Soter, the first Greek Pharaoh, by 317 BC, Ptolemy I fell in love with Berenice and divorced Eurydice to marry her. His mother, through her marriage to Ptolemy, was an Egyptian Queen, through his mother’s marriage to Ptolemy, Magas was a stepson to Ptolemy, he became an Egyptian Prince living in his stepfather’s court and was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty. His mother bore Ptolemy three children, two daughters, Arsinoe II, Philotera and the future Pharaoh Ptolemy II Philadelphus, Magas received the governorship of Cyrenaica from his mother. Magas then married Apama II, his maternal cousin and one of the daughters of Seleucid King Antiochus I Soter. Antiochus I used his marital alliance to foment a pact to invade Egypt, Apama II and Magas had a daughter called Berenice II, who was their only child. Magas opened hostilities against Ptolemy II in 274 BC, attacking Egypt from the west, however, Magas had to cancel his operations due to an internal revolt of the Libyan nomad Marmaridae. In the east, Antiochus I suffered defeat against the armies of Ptolemy II, Magas at least managed to maintain the independence of Cyrenaica until his death in 250 BC. Over a year after Magas died, his daughter married Ptolemy III Euergetes, through Berenice II’s marriage to her paternal cousin, Magas’ Kingdom was reabsorbed by Ptolemaic Egypt. Magas is mentioned in the Edicts of Ashoka, as one of the recipients of the Indian Emperor Ashokas Buddhist proselytism, Ashoka also claims that he encouraged the development of herbalism, for men and animals, in the territories of the Hellenistic Kings
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Ptolemy Apion
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Ptolemy Apion or simply known as Apion was the last Greek Cyrenaean King and was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Ptolemy was Greek and native Egyptian in descent and his second name Apion is a name of ancient Egyptian origin and could be a name from his maternal ancestry. Ptolemy was a son and was the first child among the children of Egyptian Greek prince, Cyrenaean King, Ptolemy’s paternal uncle was the Egyptian Greek Pharaoh Ptolemy VI Philometor and his paternal aunt was the Egyptian Greek princess and queen Cleopatra II of Egypt. His paternal grandparents were Egyptian Greek Pharaoh Ptolemy V Epiphanes and Egyptian Greek Queen who was a Greek princess of the Seleucid Empire Cleopatra I of Egypt, Ptolemy’s mother was a native Egyptian woman called Eirene or according to the Roman Jewish historian Josephus her name was Ithaca. Eirene originated from Cyrenaica and not much is known on her origins and she was a mistress of Physcon’s and was among his concubines. Eirene served as Physcon’s mistress from 150 BC til 127 BC, Eirene accompanied Physcon in 145 BC to Egypt when he became pharaoh and succeeded his brother Ptolemy VI. Ptolemy was most probably born in Cyrene, the capital of Cyrenaica, until 116 BC, he most probably lived in Egypt. Ptolemy never held a royal Egyptian title, in 116 BC, Ptolemy’s father had died. From Physcon’s will, Ptolemy inherited Cyrenaica and in that year, when he became king, Ptolemy succeeded without any political opposition. Unfortunately, little is recorded of Ptolemy’s reign of Cyrenaica, Ptolemy died in 96 BC and he implemented the terms of his father’s will for Cyrenaica. He never married and had no heirs, in Ptolemy’s will, he left Cyrenaica and his ancestral royal estates to the rule of the Roman Republic. Physcon had planned this for Cyrenaica after Ptolemy’s death, Ptolemy’s ancestral estates were occupied by locals in the 1st century. The occupiers of the estates, needed assistance from the Roman Emperor Nero to legalise the land title through their occupations, so they could own the estates
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Seleucid Empire
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Seleucus received Babylonia and, from there, expanded his dominions to include much of Alexanders near eastern territories. At the height of its power, it included central Anatolia, Persia, the Levant, Mesopotamia, and what is now Kuwait, Afghanistan, and parts of Pakistan and Turkmenistan. The Seleucid Empire was a center of Hellenistic culture that maintained the preeminence of Greek customs where a Greek political elite dominated. The Greek population of the cities who formed the dominant elite were reinforced by immigration from Greece, Seleucid expansion into Anatolia and Greece was abruptly halted after decisive defeats at the hands of the Roman army. Their attempts to defeat their old enemy Ptolemaic Egypt were frustrated by Roman demands, contemporary sources, such as a loyalist degree from Ilium, in Greek language define the Seleucid state both as an empire and as a kingdom. Similarly, Seleucid rulers were described as kings in Babylonia and he refers to either Alexander Balas or Alexander II Zabinas as a ruler. Alexander, who conquered the Persian Empire under its last Achaemenid dynast, Darius III, died young in 323 BC. Alexanders generals jostled for supremacy over parts of his empire, Ptolemy, a former general and the satrap of Egypt, was the first to challenge the new system, this led to the demise of Perdiccas. Ptolemys revolt led to a new subdivision of the empire with the Partition of Triparadisus in 320 BC, Seleucus, who had been Commander-in-Chief of the Companion cavalry and appointed first or court chiliarch received Babylonia and, from that point, continued to expand his dominions ruthlessly. Seleucus established himself in Babylon in 312 BC, the used as the foundation date of the Seleucid Empire. The whole region from Phrygia to the Indus was subject to Seleucus, but Seleucus Nicator gave them to Sandrocottus in consequence of a marriage contract, and received in return five hundred elephants. Following his and Lysimachus victory over Antigonus Monophthalmus at the decisive Battle of Ipsus in 301 BC, Seleucus took control over eastern Anatolia, in the latter area, he founded a new capital at Antioch on the Orontes, a city he named after his father. An alternative capital was established at Seleucia on the Tigris, north of Babylon, Seleucuss empire reached its greatest extent following his defeat of his erstwhile ally, Lysimachus, at Corupedion in 281 BC, after which Seleucus expanded his control to encompass western Anatolia. He hoped further to take control of Lysimachuss lands in Europe – primarily Thrace and even Macedonia itself, nevertheless, even before Seleucus death, it was difficult to assert control over the vast eastern domains of the Seleucids. Seleucus invaded the Punjab region of India in 305 BC, confronting Chandragupta Maurya and it is said that Chandragupta fielded an army of 600,000 men and 9,000 war elephants. Archaeologically, concrete indications of Mauryan rule, such as the inscriptions of the Edicts of Ashoka, are known as far as Kandahar in southern Afghanistan and it is generally thought that Chandragupta married Seleucuss daughter, or a Macedonian princess, a gift from Seleucus to formalize an alliance. In a return gesture, Chandragupta sent 500 war elephants, an asset which would play a decisive role at the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BC. In addition to this treaty, Seleucus dispatched an ambassador, Megasthenes, to Chandragupta, Megasthenes wrote detailed descriptions of India and Chandraguptas reign, which have been partly preserved to us through Diodorus Siculus
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Seleucus I Nicator
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Seleucus I Nicator /səˈljuːkəs naɪˈkeɪtər/ was one of the Diadochi. However, after the outbreak of the Wars of the Diadochi in 322, Perdiccas was betrayed and assassinated in a conspiracy by Seleucus, Peithon and Antigenes in Pelusium sometime in either 321 or 320 BC. At the Partition of Triparadisus in 321 BC, Seleucus was appointed Satrap of Babylon under the new regent Antipater, but almost immediately, the wars between the Diadochi resumed and Antigonus forced Seleucus to flee Babylon. Seleucus was only able to return to Babylon in 312 BC with the support of Ptolemy, from 312 BC, Seleucus ruthlessly expanded his dominions and eventually conquered the Persian and Median lands. Seleucus ruled not only Babylonia, but the entire eastern part of Alexanders empire. Seleucus victories against Antigonus and Lysimachus left the Seleucid dynasty virtually unopposed in Asia, however, Seleucus also hoped to take control of Lysimachus European territories, primarily Thrace and Macedon itself. But upon arriving in Thrace in 281 BC, Seleucus was assassinated by Ptolemy Ceraunus, the assassination of Seleucus destroyed Seleucid prospects in Thrace and Macedon, and paved the way for Ptolemy Ceraunus to absorb much of Lysimachus former power in Macedon. Seleucus was succeeded by his son Antiochus I as ruler of the Seleucid empire, Seleucus was the son of Antiochus. It is possible that Antiochus was a member of an upper Macedonian noble family, Seleucus mother was supposedly called Laodice, but nothing else is known of her. Later, Seleucus named a number of cities after his parents, Seleucus was born in Europos, located in the northern part of Macedonia. Just a year before his birth, the Paeonians invaded the region, Philip defeated the invaders and only a few years later utterly subdued them under Macedonian rule. Seleucus year of birth is unclear, justin claims he was 77 years old during the battle of Corupedium, which would place his year of birth at 358 BC. Appianus tells us Seleucus was 73 years old during the battle, eusebius of Caesarea, however, mentions the age of 75, and thus the year 356 BC, making Seleucus the same age as Alexander the Great. This is most likely propaganda on Seleucus part to him seem comparable to Alexander. As a teenager, Seleucus was chosen to serve as the kings page and it was customary for all male offspring of noble families to first serve in this position and later as officers in the kings army. A number of legends, similar to those told of Alexander the Great, were told of Seleucus and it was said Antiochus told his son before he left to battle the Persians with Alexander that his real father was actually the god Apollo. The god had left a ring with a picture of an anchor as a gift to Laodice, Seleucus had a birthmark shaped like an anchor. It was told that Seleucus sons and grandsons also had similar birthmarks, the story is similar to the one told about Alexander
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