Antigone is the name of two different women in Greek mythology. The name may be taken to mean "unbending", coming from "anti-" and "-gon / -gony" , but has also been suggested to mean "opposed to motherhood" or "in place of a mother" based from the root gonē, "that which generates" Antigone and, in 297 BC, with Ptolemy I's financial and military aid, restored his kingdom in Epirus and had Neoptolemus II, puppet of the now-deceased Seleucus and Pyrrhus' co-ruler for a short while, murdered.
In 295 BC Pyrrhus transferred the capital of his kingdom to Ambrakia (modern
ArtaArta is a city with a rich history in north-western Greece, capital of the Arta Prefecture which is part of the Epirus province. The city was known in ancient times as Amvrakia . Arta is famous for its old bridge located over the Arachthos river, situated west of downtown...
). Next, he went to war against his former ally and brother-in-law Demetrius and by 286 BC he had taken control over the kingdom of Macedon. Pyrrhus was driven out of Macedon by
LysimachusFor other uses, see Lysimachus Lysimachus was a Macedonian officer and diadochus of Alexander the Great, who became a basileus in 306 BCE, ruling Thrace, Asia Minor andMacedonia.-Early career:Lysimachus was born in 362/361 BC, the son of the Thessalian Agathocles from Crannon...
in 284 BC.
Struggle with Rome
In 281 BC, the Greek city of
TarentumTaranto is a coastal city in Puglia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto and is an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base.It is the third-largest continental city of southern Italy: according to the 2001 census, it has a population of...
, in
southern ItalySouthern Italy or the Mezzogiorno generally refers to the southern portion of the continental Italian peninsula and Sicily, historically forming the Kingdom of Two Sicilies plus the island of Sardinia...
, fell out with Rome and was faced with a Roman attack and certain defeat. Rome had already made itself into a major power, and was poised to subdue all the Greek cities in
Magna GraeciaMagna Græcia is the name of the coastal areas of Southern Italy on the Tarentine Gulf that was extensively colonized by Greek settlers, especially the Achaean collonies of Tatentium, Crotone and Sybaris but also, more loosely, the cities of Cumae and Neopolis to the north...
. The Tarentines asked Pyrrhus to lead their war against the Romans.
Pyrrhus was encouraged to aid the Tarentines by the oracle of
DelphiDelphi is both an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece on the south-western spur of Mount Parnassus in the valley of Phocis...
. His goals were not, however, selfless. He recognized the possibility of carving out an empire for himself in Italy. He made an alliance with Ptolemy Ceraunus, King of Macedon and his most powerful neighbor, and arrived in
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
in 280 BC.
He entered Italy with an army consisting of 3,000
cavalryCavalry were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback in combat. Cavalry were historically the second oldest and most mobile of the combat arms...
, 2,000
archersArchery is the art, practice, or skill of propelling arrows with the use of a bow. Archery has historically been used for hunting and combat; in modern times, however, its main use is that of a recreational activity...
, 500
slingersA sling is a projectile weapon typically used to throw a blunt projectile such as a stone. It is also known as the shepherd's sling....
, 20,000
infantryInfantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of the Combat Arms they are the backbone of armies...
and 20
war elephantA war elephant is an elephant trained and guided by humans for combat. Their main use was to charge the enemy, trampling them and breaking their ranks....
s in a bid to subdue the Romans. The elephants had been loaned to him by
Ptolemy IIPtolemy 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, and was educated by Philitas of Cos...
, who had also promised 9,000 soldiers and a further 50 elephants to defend Epirus while Pyrrhus and his army were away.
Due to his superior cavalry and his elephants, he defeated the Romans, led by
Consul-Ancient Rome:During the time of ancient Rome as a Republic, the consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates, serving as the heads of government for the Republic. New consuls were elected every year. There were two consuls, and they ruled together...
Publius Valerius LaevinusPublius Valerius Laevinus was commander of the Roman forces at the Battle of Heraclea in 280 BC, in which he was defeated by Pyrrhus of Epirus. In his Life of Pyrrhus, Plutarch wrote that Caius Fabricius said of this battle that it was not the Epirots who had beaten the Romans, but only Pyrrhus who...
, in the
Battle of HeracleaThe Battle of Heraclea took place in 280 BC between the Romans under the command of Consul Publius Valerius Laevinus and the combined forces of Greeks from Epirus, Tarentum, Thurii, Metapontum, and Heraclea under the command of King Pyrrhus of Epirus....
in 280 BC. There are conflicting sources about casualties.
Hieronymus of CardiaHieronymus of Cardia , Greek general and historian, contemporary of Alexander the Great After the death of the king he followed the fortunes of his friend and fellow-countryman Eumenes. He was wounded and taken prisoner by Antigonus, who pardoned him and appointed him superintendent of the asphalt...
reports the Romans lost about 7,000 while Pyrrhus lost 3,000 soldiers, including many of his best. Dionysius gives a bloodier view of 15,000 Roman dead and 13,000 Greek. Several tribes including the
LucaniLučani is a town and municipality located in the Dragačevo region within the Moravica District of Serbia . In 2002, the population of the town was 4,309, while population of the municipality was 24,614....
,
BruttiiThe Bruttii , were an ancient Italic people who inhabited the southern extremity of Italy, from the frontiers of Lucania to the Sicilian Straits and the promontory of Leucopetra, roughly corresponding to modern Calabria....
, Messapians, and the Greek cities of
CrotonCrotone is a city in Calabria, southern Italy, on the Ionian Sea. Founded circa 710 BC as the Achaean colony of Croton , it was known as Cotrone from the Middle Ages until 1928, when its name was changed to Crotone. In 1994 it became the capital of the newly established Province of Crotone...
and
LocriLocri is a town and comune in the province of Reggio Calabria, Calabria, southern Italy. The name derives from the ancient Greek "Locris" .-History:...
joined Pyrrhus. He then offered the Romans a peace treaty which was eventually rejected. Pyrrhus spent winter in
CampaniaCampania is a region of southern Italy in Europe. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,595 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
.
When Pyrrhus invaded
ApuliaApulia is a region in southeastern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its southern portion known as Salento, a peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy...
(279 BC), the two armies met in the Battle of Asculum where Pyrrhus won a very costly victory. The consul
Publius Decius MusPublius Decius Mus was a Roman politician and general. As consul in 279 BC, he and his fellow consul, Publius Sulpicius Saverrio, combined their armies against Pyrrhus of Epirus at the Battle of Asculum. Pyrrhus was victorious, but at such a high cost that the security of Asculum was guaranteed...
was the Roman commander, and his able force, though defeated, broke the back of Pyrrhus' Hellenistic army, and guaranteed the security of the city itself. The battle foreshadowed later Roman victories over more numerous and well armed successor state military forces and inspired the term "
Pyrrhic victoryA Pyrrhic victory is a victory with devastating cost to the victor.-Origin:The phrase is named after King Pyrrhus of Epirus, whose army suffered irreplaceable casualties in defeating the Romans at Heraclea in 280 BC and Asculum in 279 BC during the Pyrrhic War...
", meaning a victory which comes at a crippling cost. At the end, the Romans had lost 6,000 men and Pyrrhus 3,500 but, while battered, his army was still a force to be reckoned with.
Ruler of Sicily
In 278 BC, Pyrrhus received two offers simultaneously. The Greek cities in
SicilySicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is an autonomous region of Italy. Several much smaller islands surrounding it are considered to be part of Sicily....
asked him to come and drive out
CarthageCarthage refers both to an ancient city in present-day Tunisia, and a modern-day suburb of Tunis. The civilization that developed within the city's sphere of influence is referred to as Punic or Carthaginian...
, which along with Rome was one of the two great powers of the Western
MediterraneanThe Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by Africa, and on the east by the Levant. The sea is technically a part of the Atlantic Ocean, although it...
. At the same time, the
MacedoniansThe Macedonians were an ancient Greek tribe which inhabited the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axius, north of Mount Olympus in Greece. Historians generally agree that the ancient Macedonians, whether they originally spoke a Greek dialect or a distinct language, came to...
, whose King Ceraunus had been killed by invading
GaulsThe Gauls were a Celtic people living in Gaul, the region roughly corresponding to what is now France and Belgium, from the Iron Age through the Roman period. They spoke the Continental Celtic language called Gaulish....
, asked Pyrrhus to ascend the throne of Macedon. Pyrrhus decided that Sicily offered him a greater opportunity, and transferred his army there.
Pyrrhus was proclaimed king of Sicily. He was already making plans for his son Helenus to inherit the kingdom of Sicily and his other son Alexander to be given Italy. In 277 Pyrrhus captured
EryxEryx , was an ancient city and a mountain in the west of Sicily, about 10 km from Drepana , and 3 km from the sea-coast...
, the strongest Carthaginian fortress in Sicily. This prompted the rest of the Carthaginian-controlled cities to defect to Pyrrhus.
In 276 BC, Pyrrhus negotiated with the Carthaginians. Although they were inclined to come to terms with Pyrrhus, supply him money and send him ships once friendly relations were established, he demanded that Carthage abandon all of Sicily and make the Libyan Sea a boundary between themselves and the Greeks. The Greek cities of Sicily opposed making peace with Carthage because the Carthaginians still controlled the powerful fortress of Lilybaeum, on the Western end of the island. Pyrrhus eventually gave in to their proposals and broke off the peace negotiations. Pyrrhus' army then began besieging Lilybaeum. For two months he launched unsuccessful assaults on the city, until finally he realised he could not mount an effective siege without blockading it from the sea as well. Pyrrhus then requested manpower and money from the Sicilians in order to construct a powerful fleet. When the Sicilians became unhappy about these contributions he had to resort to compulsary contributions and force to keep them in line. These measures culminated in him proclaiming a military dictatorship of Sicily and installing military garrisons in Sicilian cities.
These actions were deeply unpopular and soon Sicilian opinion became inflamed against him. Pyrrhus had so alienated the Sicilian Greeks that they were willing to make common cause with the Carthaginians. The Carthaginians took heart from this and sent another army against him. This army was promptly defeated. In spite of this victory Sicily continued to grow increasingly hostile to Pyrrhus, who began to consider abandoning Sicily. At this point Samnite and Tarentine envoys reached Pyrrhus and informed him that of all the Greek cities in Italy only Tarentum had not been conquered by Rome. Pyrrhus made his decision and departed from Sicily. As his ship left the island, he turned and said to his companions: "What a wrestling ground we are leaving, my friends, for the Carthaginians and the Romans."
Retreat from Italy
While Pyrrhus had been campaigning against the Carthaginians, the Romans rebuilt their army by calling up thousands of fresh
recruitsRecruit or army recruit is a term often colloquially used to refer to the lowest military rank in various armed services. It usually implies that the soldier so labeled has not yet completed basic training....
. When Pyrrhus returned from Sicily, he found himself vastly outnumbered against a superior Roman army. After the inconclusive Battle of Beneventum in 275 BC Pyrrhus decided to end his campaign in Italy and return to Epirus which resulted in the loss of all his Italian holdings. Before leaving Italy Pyrrhus sent requests for military and financial assistance to Greece and Macedon, as well as to the Hellenic empires of the Ptolemaic and Seleucid dynasties. These appeals were all in vain.
Last wars and death
Though his western campaign had taken a heavy toll on his army as well as his treasury, Pyrrhus went to war yet again. Attacking King
Antigonus II GonatasAntigonus II Gonatas was a powerful ruler who firmly established the Antigonid dynasty in Macedonia and acquired fame for his victory over the Gauls who had invaded the Balkans.-Birth and family:...
, he won an easy victory and seized the Macedonian throne.
In 272 BC,
CleonymusCleonymus was a member of the Spartan royal family of the Agiads. He was the second son of Cleomenes II and a pretender to the Spartan throne. He did not succeed his father , allegedly because he was violent and tyrannic. His nephew Areus I became new king instead...
, a Spartan of royal blood who was hated among fellow
SpartaSparta was a city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the River Eurotas in the southern part of the Peloponnese. From c. 650 BC it rose to become the dominant military power in the region and as such was recognized as the overall leader of the combined Greek forces during the Greco-Persian Wars...
ns, asked Pyrrhus to attack Sparta and place him in power. Pyrrhus agreed to the plan intending to win control of the
PeloponneseThe Peloponnese or Peloponnesus is a large peninsula and region in southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...
for himself but unexpected strong resistance thwarted his assault on Sparta. He was immediately offered an opportunity to intervene in a civic dispute in
ArgosArgos is a city in Greece in the Peloponnese near Nafplion, which was its historic harbour .-Name:The region of Argos is known as the Argolis, Argolid, or Argeia...
. Entering the city with his army by stealth, he found himself caught in a confused battle in the narrow city streets. During the confusion an old Argead woman watching from a rooftop threw a roofing tile which stunned him, allowing an Argive soldier to kill him.
The same year, upon hearing the news of Pyrrhus' death, the Tarentinians surrendered to Rome.
Legacy
While he was a mercurial and often restless leader, and not always a wise king, he was considered one of the greatest military commanders of his time.
PlutarchPlutarch, born Plutarchos then, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. AD 46 – 120, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
records that Hannibal ranked Pyrrhus as the greatest commander the world had ever seen, though
AppianAppianus , of Alexandria was a Roman historian who flourished during the reigns of Trajan, Hadrian and Antoninus Pius. He is commonly referred to by the anglicised form of his name, Appian....
gives a different version of the story, in which Hannibal placed him second after
Alexander the GreatAlexander III of Macedon, popularly known as Alexander the Great , was an Ancient Greek king of Macedon who created one of the largest empires in ancient history...
.
Pyrrhus was also known to be very benevolent. As a general, Pyrrhus' greatest political weaknesses were his failures to maintain focus and to maintain a strong treasury at home (many of his soldiers were costly mercenaries).
His name is famous for the term "
Pyrrhic victoryA Pyrrhic victory is a victory with devastating cost to the victor.-Origin:The phrase is named after King Pyrrhus of Epirus, whose army suffered irreplaceable casualties in defeating the Romans at Heraclea in 280 BC and Asculum in 279 BC during the Pyrrhic War...
" which refers to an exchange at the Battle of Asculum. In response to congratulations for winning a costly victory over the Romans, he is reported to have said: "One more such victory will undo me!" (In
GreekAncient Greek is the historical stage in the development of the Greek language spanning across the Archaic , Classical , and Hellenistic periods of ancient Greece and the ancient world. It is predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
: Ἂν ἔτι μίαν μάχην νικήσωμεν, ἀπολώλαμεν.)
Pyrrhus and his campaign in Italy was effectively the only chance for Greece to check the advance of Rome towards domination of the Mediterranean world. Rather than banding together, the various Hellenic powers continued to fight among themselves, sapping the financial and military strength of Greece and to a lesser extent, Macedon and the greater Hellenic world. By
197 BC-Greece:* The Spartan ruler, Nabis, acquires the important city of Argos from Philip V of Macedon, as the price of his alliance with the Macedonians. Nabis then defects to the Romans in the expectation of being able to hold on to his conquest....
Macedonia and Greece were under the control of Rome and the age of Greece as a major power was well and truly over. In
188 BC-Greece:* The leader of the Achaean League, Philopoemen, enters northern Laconia with his army and a group of Spartan exiles. His army demolishes the wall that the former tyrant of Sparta, Nabis, has built around Sparta. Philopoemen then restores Spartan citizenship to the exiles and abolishes...
the Seleucid Empire was forced to cede most of Asia Minor to Rome and Egypt was left as the last vestige of
Alexander's EmpireAlexander III of Macedon, popularly known as Alexander the Great , was an Ancient Greek king of Macedon who created one of the largest empires in ancient history...
.
Pyrrhus wrote
Memoirs and several books on the art of war. These have since been lost, although, according to Plutarch, Hannibal was influenced by them, and they received praise from Cicero.
Sources
Primary
Secondary
- Pyrrhus by Jacob Abbott
- Pyrrhus of Epirus
- Pyrrhus, King of Epirus by Petros E. Garoufalias ISBN 0-905743-13-X
- The Pyrrhus Portrait by Rolf Winkes, in The Age of Pyrrhus, Proceedings of an International Conference held at Brown University April 8-10, 1988 (Archaeologia Transatlantica XI), Providence 1992, pages 175-188.