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Magas of Cyrene (r. 276 - 250 BCE) was a Greek king of Cyrene
Cyrenaica

Cyrenaica or Cirenaica is the eastern coastal region of Libya and also an ex-province or state of the country in the pre-1963 administrative system....
 (today's Libya
Libya

Libya , officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya , is a country located in North Africa. Bordering the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Libya lies between Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
). He managed to wrestle independence for Cyrene from the Greek Ptolemaic dynasty
Ptolemaic dynasty

The Ptolemaic dynasty was a Hellenistic Macedonian royal family which ruled the Ptolemaic Empire in Egypt for nearly 300 years, from 305 BC to 30 BC....
 in Egypt
Egypt

Egypt is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia. Covering an area of about , Egypt borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south and Libya to the west....
. Magas was the son of Berenice
Berenice I of Egypt

Berenice I, daughter of Magas, was first the wife of Philip, an obscure Macedon nobleman, with whom she gave birth to the future Magas of Cyrene....
 and Philip, a Macedonian noble man, before Berenice remarried with the powerful Ptolemy I Soter
Ptolemy I Soter

Ptolemy I Soter was a Macedonian general under Alexander the Great who became ruler of Egypt and founder of both the Ptolemaic Kingdom and the Ptolemaic Dynasty....
, founder of the Greek Ptolemaic dynasty
Ptolemaic dynasty

The Ptolemaic dynasty was a Hellenistic Macedonian royal family which ruled the Ptolemaic Empire in Egypt for nearly 300 years, from 305 BC to 30 BC....
 in Egypt. Magas was a half-brother to their son, Ptolemy II Philadelphus
Ptolemy II Philadelphus

Ptolemy II Philadelphus , was the king of Ptolemaic Egypt from 283 BC to 246 BC. He was the son of the founder of the Ptolemaic kingdom Ptolemy I Soter and Berenice I of Egypt, and was educated by Philitas of Cos....
, the second Ptolemy ruler of Egypt
Egypt

Egypt is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia. Covering an area of about , Egypt borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south and Libya to the west....
.

s received the governorship of Cyrene from his mother Berenice.






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Magas of Cyrene (r. 276 - 250 BCE) was a Greek king of Cyrene
Cyrenaica

Cyrenaica or Cirenaica is the eastern coastal region of Libya and also an ex-province or state of the country in the pre-1963 administrative system....
 (today's Libya
Libya

Libya , officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya , is a country located in North Africa. Bordering the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Libya lies between Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
). He managed to wrestle independence for Cyrene from the Greek Ptolemaic dynasty
Ptolemaic dynasty

The Ptolemaic dynasty was a Hellenistic Macedonian royal family which ruled the Ptolemaic Empire in Egypt for nearly 300 years, from 305 BC to 30 BC....
 in Egypt
Egypt

Egypt is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia. Covering an area of about , Egypt borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south and Libya to the west....
. Magas was the son of Berenice
Berenice I of Egypt

Berenice I, daughter of Magas, was first the wife of Philip, an obscure Macedon nobleman, with whom she gave birth to the future Magas of Cyrene....
 and Philip, a Macedonian noble man, before Berenice remarried with the powerful Ptolemy I Soter
Ptolemy I Soter

Ptolemy I Soter was a Macedonian general under Alexander the Great who became ruler of Egypt and founder of both the Ptolemaic Kingdom and the Ptolemaic Dynasty....
, founder of the Greek Ptolemaic dynasty
Ptolemaic dynasty

The Ptolemaic dynasty was a Hellenistic Macedonian royal family which ruled the Ptolemaic Empire in Egypt for nearly 300 years, from 305 BC to 30 BC....
 in Egypt. Magas was a half-brother to their son, Ptolemy II Philadelphus
Ptolemy II Philadelphus

Ptolemy II Philadelphus , was the king of Ptolemaic Egypt from 283 BC to 246 BC. He was the son of the founder of the Ptolemaic kingdom Ptolemy I Soter and Berenice I of Egypt, and was educated by Philitas of Cos....
, the second Ptolemy ruler of Egypt
Egypt

Egypt is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia. Covering an area of about , Egypt borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south and Libya to the west....
.

Reign

Magas received the governorship of Cyrene from his mother Berenice. Following the death of Ptolemy I, however, Magas tried on several occasions to wrestle independence for Cyrene, until he crowned himself king around 276 BCE.

Magas then married Apama, the daughter of the Seleucid Empire
Seleucid Empire

The Seleucid Empire /s?'lus?d/ was a Hellenistic empire, i.e. a successor state of Alexander the Great's empire. The Seleucid Empire was centered in the near East and at the height of its power included central Anatolia, the Levant, Mesopotamia, Persia, today's Turkmenistan, Pamir Mountains and parts of Pakistan....
 king Antiochus I Soter
Antiochus I Soter

Antiochus I Soter , was a king of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire. He reigned from 281 BC - 261 BC.Antiochus I was half Persians, his mother Apama being one of the eastern princesses whom Alexander the Great had given as wives to his generals in 324 BC....
, and used his marital alliance to foment a pact to invade Egypt. Apama and Magas had a daughter called Berenice II
Berenice II

Berenice II , was the daughter of Magas of Cyrene of Cyrene and Queen Apama, and the wife of Ptolemy III of Egypt, the third ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt....
, who was their only child. He opened hostilities against his half brother Ptolemy II Philadelphus
Ptolemy II Philadelphus

Ptolemy II Philadelphus , was the king of Ptolemaic Egypt from 283 BC to 246 BC. He was the son of the founder of the Ptolemaic kingdom Ptolemy I Soter and Berenice I of Egypt, and was educated by Philitas of Cos....
 in 274 BCE, attacking Egypt from the west, as Antiochus I was attacking Palestine
Palestine

Palestine is a name which has been widely used since Roman times to refer to the region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. It is derived from a name used already much earlier for a narrower geographical region, mainly along the coastal region....
. 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 Philadelphus. Magas at least managed to maintain the independence of Cyrene until his death in 250 BCE, upon which the kingdom was almost immediately reabsorbed by Ptolemaic Egypt.

Relations with India

Magas is mentioned in the Edicts of Ashoka
Edicts of Ashoka

The Edicts of Ashoka are a collection of 33 inscriptions on the Pillars of Ashoka, as well as boulders and cave walls, made by the Emperor Ashoka the Great of the Mauryan dynasty during his reign from 272 to 231 BC....
, as one of the recipients of the Indian Emperor Ashoka the Great's Buddhist
Buddhism

Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices considered by most to be a religionand is based on the teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as "The Buddha" , who was born in what is today Nepal....
 proselytism
Proselytism

Proselytism is the practice of attempting to convert people to another opinion and, particularly, another religion. The word proselytism is derived ultimately from the Greek language prefix 'p???' and the verb '?????a?' ....
, although no Western historical record of this event remains Ashoka also claims that he encouraged the development of herbalism
Herbalism

Herbalism is a traditional medicinal or folk medicine practice based on the use of plants and plant extracts. Herbalism is also known as botanical medicine, medical herbalism, herbal medicine, herbology, and phytotherapy....
, for men and animals, in the territories of the Hellenistic kings

The philosopher Hegesias of Cyrene
Hegesias of Cyrene

Hegesias of Cyrenes was a Cyrenaic philosopher, who probably lived c. 300 BC.He is said by Diogenes La?rtius to have been the disciple of Paraebates, himself a disciple of Antipater of Cyrene, himself a pupil of Aristippus ....
, from the city of Cyrene
Cyrene

Cyrene may refer to:* Cyrene , a Greek mythological figure* Cyrene, Libya, an ancient Greek colony in North Africa* The USS Cyrene , a motor torpedo boat tender...
 where Magas ruled, is sometimes thought to have been influenced by the teachings of Ashoka's Buddhist missionaries.

See also

  • List of Kings of Cyrene
    List of Kings of Cyrene

    Cyrene, Libya or Cyrenaica was a Greece colony on the North African coast, in what is now northeastern Libya, founded by settlers from Thera in the 7th century BC....


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