Calippus of Syracuse
Encyclopedia
Callippus was a tyrant
of Syracuse who ruled briefly for thirteen months from 354 to 352 BC. He was a native Athenian
, who traveled with Dion
to Sicily
to capture Syracuse, where Dion became the tyrant. Calippus then gained power by assassinating
Dion, but ruled briefly before being ousted from power himself. Afterwards he commanded a band of mercenaries
, who later killed him with the same sword that he used to kill Dion.
. As the future tyrant of Syracuse, Dion, who was also a student of Plato, recruited Calippus as a member of his army which successfully invaded Syracuse. The army marched into Syracuse with 800 mercenaries and took control of the city, disposing of the previous tyrant, Dion’s nephew Dionysius II
.
Calippus used the money from Dionysius to bribe some of Dion’s troops to defect to him. He then won Dion’s trust by betraying some of the soldiers to Dion, who then enlisted Calippus’s as a secret agent
to discover further plotters. In addition, whenever men told Dion that Calippus was maligning him, Dion simply thought that Calippus was acting as a spy.
Shortly afterwards, Dion’s only son fell from a window and died. Calippus spread a rumor saying that Dion had invited Dionysius’s son, Apollocrates
to come to Syracuse as Dion’s successor. Dion’s wife, Arete, and sister, Aristomache, discovered the Calippus’s plot against Dion, but Dion was still paralyzed with remorse from his son’s death, and refused to take action.
Arete and Aristomache further inquired about the plot against Dion, and when Calippus discovered their inquisitiveness, he approached them and told them that he was loyal, and that he would prove his loyalty. They told him to take the Great Oath, involving a ceremony in Persephone’s
temple, which he took. Following the ceremony, Calippus broke his vow and stabbed Dion to death, whereupon Calippus took control of Syracuse.
, Hipparinus, a son of Dionysius the Elder
, a previous tyrant of Syracuse, attacked Syracuse with a fleet and army, after which Calippus fled from the city. According to Polyaenus , Hipparinus was staying in Leontini
when Calippus had sent out his army. Hipparinus attacked while most of the army was gone and secured control of the city.
And according to Plutarch
, Calippus does lose control of the city while he is absent, on an expedition to conquer Catana
. But in Plutarch’s version Hipparinus is not mentioned, and instead Syracuse revolted against Calippus.
instead, but his army was defeated. With his remaining troops he wandered around Sicily, but finding himself unable to support himself he traveled to Italy . There he conquered Rhegium
, which had previously been controlled by Dionysius the Younger. But because he mistreated his mercenaries, his comrades Leptines II
and Polyperchon stabbed him to death with a sword, reputed to be the same sword that killed Dion.
Tyrant
A tyrant was originally one who illegally seized and controlled a governmental power in a polis. Tyrants were a group of individuals who took over many Greek poleis during the uprising of the middle classes in the sixth and seventh centuries BC, ousting the aristocratic governments.Plato and...
of Syracuse who ruled briefly for thirteen months from 354 to 352 BC. He was a native Athenian
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, who traveled with Dion
Dion of Syracuse
Dion , tyrant of Syracuse in Sicily, was the son of Hipparinus, and brother-in-law of Dionysius I of Syracuse.-Family:Dion was the son of the Syracusan statesman Hipparinus, who had assisted the despot Dionysius I, in the Syracusan army. Hipparinus' other children were Megacles and Aristomache...
to Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
to capture Syracuse, where Dion became the tyrant. Calippus then gained power by assassinating
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
Dion, but ruled briefly before being ousted from power himself. Afterwards he commanded a band of mercenaries
Mercenary
A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...
, who later killed him with the same sword that he used to kill Dion.
Dion's lieutenant
Calippus was an Athenian who became a student of PlatoPlato
Plato , was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. Along with his mentor, Socrates, and his student, Aristotle, Plato helped to lay the...
. As the future tyrant of Syracuse, Dion, who was also a student of Plato, recruited Calippus as a member of his army which successfully invaded Syracuse. The army marched into Syracuse with 800 mercenaries and took control of the city, disposing of the previous tyrant, Dion’s nephew Dionysius II
Dionysius II of Syracuse
Dionysius the Younger or Dionysius II ruled Syracuse, Sicily from 367 BC to 357 BC and again from 346 BC to 344 BC....
.
Assassination and rise to power
In exile, Dionysius bribed Calippus to kill Dion. , and Calippus accepted the offer. He was in a prime position to assassinate Dion, since most of Dion’s closest friends had been killed by Dionysius the Younger, and Calippus was his closest friend remaining.Calippus used the money from Dionysius to bribe some of Dion’s troops to defect to him. He then won Dion’s trust by betraying some of the soldiers to Dion, who then enlisted Calippus’s as a secret agent
Secret Agent
Secret Agent is a British film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, loosely based on two stories in Ashenden: Or the British Agent by W. Somerset Maugham. The film starred John Gielgud, Peter Lorre, Madeleine Carroll, and Robert Young...
to discover further plotters. In addition, whenever men told Dion that Calippus was maligning him, Dion simply thought that Calippus was acting as a spy.
Shortly afterwards, Dion’s only son fell from a window and died. Calippus spread a rumor saying that Dion had invited Dionysius’s son, Apollocrates
Apollocrates
Apollocrates was the son of Dionysius II of Syracuse.Two years after Dion and Heraclides conquered Syracuse in 357 BC, Dion maintained control of the fortress of Ortygia...
to come to Syracuse as Dion’s successor. Dion’s wife, Arete, and sister, Aristomache, discovered the Calippus’s plot against Dion, but Dion was still paralyzed with remorse from his son’s death, and refused to take action.
Arete and Aristomache further inquired about the plot against Dion, and when Calippus discovered their inquisitiveness, he approached them and told them that he was loyal, and that he would prove his loyalty. They told him to take the Great Oath, involving a ceremony in Persephone’s
Persephone
In Greek mythology, Persephone , also called Kore , is the daughter of Zeus and the harvest-goddess Demeter, and queen of the underworld; she was abducted by Hades, the god-king of the underworld....
temple, which he took. Following the ceremony, Calippus broke his vow and stabbed Dion to death, whereupon Calippus took control of Syracuse.
Rule
Following Dion’s assassination, Calippus sent a message to Athens bragging of his deeds, but despite his bluster, Calippus’s hold on Syracuse was tenuous. Friends of Dion attempted a revolt against him, but were unsuccessful. Calippus also had Arete and Aristomache thrown in prison, where Arete gave birth to Dion’s son. But due to his rising unpopularity, Calippus did not have Dion's son killed, despite the danger he posed.Fall
Several different accounts are given of how Calippus fell from power in Syracuse. According to Diodorus SiculusDiodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus was a Greek historian who flourished between 60 and 30 BC. According to Diodorus' own work, he was born at Agyrium in Sicily . With one exception, antiquity affords no further information about Diodorus' life and doings beyond what is to be found in his own work, Bibliotheca...
, Hipparinus, a son of Dionysius the Elder
Dionysius I of Syracuse
Dionysius I or Dionysius the Elder was a Greek tyrant of Syracuse, in what is now Sicily, southern Italy. He conquered several cities in Sicily and southern Italy, opposed Carthage's influence in Sicily and made Syracuse the most powerful of the Western Greek colonies...
, a previous tyrant of Syracuse, attacked Syracuse with a fleet and army, after which Calippus fled from the city. According to Polyaenus , Hipparinus was staying in Leontini
Lentini
Lentini , historically Leontini, Leontinoi , or Leontium, is a town and comune in the Province of Syracuse, southeast Sicily .-History:...
when Calippus had sent out his army. Hipparinus attacked while most of the army was gone and secured control of the city.
And according to Plutarch
Plutarch
Plutarch then named, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. 46 – 120 AD, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
, Calippus does lose control of the city while he is absent, on an expedition to conquer Catana
Catania
Catania is an Italian city on the east coast of Sicily facing the Ionian Sea, between Messina and Syracuse. It is the capital of the homonymous province, and with 298,957 inhabitants it is the second-largest city in Sicily and the tenth in Italy.Catania is known to have a seismic history and...
. But in Plutarch’s version Hipparinus is not mentioned, and instead Syracuse revolted against Calippus.
Mercenary leadership and death
Calippus then attempted to conquer MessinaMessina, Italy
Messina is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, Italy and the capital of the province of Messina. It has a population of about 250,000 inhabitants in the city proper and about 650,000 in the province...
instead, but his army was defeated. With his remaining troops he wandered around Sicily, but finding himself unable to support himself he traveled to Italy . There he conquered Rhegium
Reggio Calabria
Reggio di Calabria , commonly known as Reggio Calabria or Reggio, is the biggest city and the most populated comune of Calabria, southern Italy, and is the capital of the Province of Reggio Calabria and seat of the Council of Calabrian government.Reggio is located on the "toe" of the Italian...
, which had previously been controlled by Dionysius the Younger. But because he mistreated his mercenaries, his comrades Leptines II
Leptines II
Leptines II , son of Leptines I, was the nephew of Dionysius the Elder.In 351 BC, Leptines aided Callippus in successfully expelling the garrison of Dionysius the Younger from Rhegium...
and Polyperchon stabbed him to death with a sword, reputed to be the same sword that killed Dion.