Sicily Syracuse Dionysios I ca 400 BC. Tetras. Octopus . Ancient Greek Rare

Description: Dionysius IorDionysius the Elder(c.432 367 BC) was aGreektyrantofSyracuse, inSicily. He conquered several cities in Sicily and southern Italy, opposedCarthage's influence in Sicily and made Syracuse the most powerful of the WesternGreekcolonies. He was regarded by the ancients as an example of the worst kind of despotcruel, suspicious and vindictive. Dionysius I fromGuillaume Rouill'sPromptuarii Iconum Insigniorum Early life of Dionysius the Elder Dionysius began his working life as a clerk in a public office.Because of his achievements in the war against Carthage that began in 409 BC, he was elected supreme military commander in 406 BC. In the following year he seized total power and became tyrant.He was married toAristomache, and had a daughter by her,Arete. He was married at the same time toDoris of Locris, who bore him his son,Dionysius II of Syracuse. Rise to power Dionysius' rise to tyranny began when he was granted 600 mercenaries to guard his person after he staged a false attack on his own life. He managed to increase this guard to one thousand, and after gradually consolidating his power, he established himself as a tyrant. He employed a group of ancient mercenaries that most likely wereSileraioi. He imposed his mercenaries on all parts of thepoliscommunity. This act made it clear that democracy had ended in Syracuse. His rule was "unconstitutional and illegitimate and could not fail to provoke rebellions among the partisans of democratic government". Dionysius' position at home was threatened as early as 403 by those philosophically opposed to tyranny.Sparta, which had in the pastdeposedtyrants fromCorinthtoAthens, did not damn Dionysius and hisautocracy. In fact, according to the historianDiodorus Siculus, relations between the two were very positive: When the Lacedaemonians [Spartans] had settled the affairs of Greece to their own taste, they dispatched Aristus, one of their distinguished men, to Syracuse, ostensibly pretending that they would overthrow the government, but in truth with intent to increase the power of the tyranny; for they hoped that by helping to establish the rule of Dionysius they would obtain his ready service because of their benefactions to him. Dionysius even received the privilege of conscripting mercenaries from lands under Spartan authority. The demise of such a prominent democraticpolisand the subsequent actions of Dionysius represented a recurring norm in fourth-century Greek states, thanks to the prevalence of mercenaries. The mercenary and the tyrant went hand in hand; for example,Polybiusnoted that "the security of despots rests entirely on the loyalty and power of mercenaries".Aristotlewrote that some form of "guard" (i.e., a personal army) is needed for absolute kingship,and for an elected tyrant an optimum number of professional soldiers should be employed. Too few would undermine the tyrant's power, while too many would threaten the polis itself. The philosopher also notes that the people of Syracuse were warned not to let Dionysius conscript too many "guards" during his regime. Conquests He fought awar with Carthagefrom 397 BC to 392 BC with mixed success;his attempts to drive theCarthaginiansentirely out of the island of Sicily failed, and at his death they were masters of at least a third of it. He also carried on an expedition againstRhegium, capturing itand attacking its allied cities inMagna Graecia. In one campaign, in which he was joined by the Lucanians, he devastated the territories ofThuriiandCrotonin an attempt to defendLocri. Dionysius of Syracuse's military attempts to place Alcetas in the throne of the Molossians After a protracted siege, hetook Rhegiumin 386 and sold the inhabitants as slaves. He also pillaged the temple ofCaere(then allied with Rome) on theEtruscancoast.In theAdriatic, to facilitate trade, Dionysius foundedAncona,AdriaandIssa.After him, the Adriatic became a sea of Syracuse. In theCorinthian War, he joined the side of theSpartansand assisted them withmercenariesand ships (which contributed in blocking the Athenians' supplies from the Black Sea forcing them to peace) . In 385 BC,Alcetas of Epiruswas a refugee in Dionysius' court. Dionysius wanted a friendly monarch inEpirus, so he sent 2,000 Greekhoplitesand 500 suits of Greek armour to help the Illyrians underBardyllisin attacking theMolossiansof Epirus. They ravaged the region and killed 15,000 Molossians, and Alcetas regained his throne.He joined theIllyriansin an attempt to plunder the temple ofDelphi. Sparta intervened underAgesilaus, however, and with aid from Thessaly, Macedonia, and the Molossians themselves, the Spartans expelledthe Illyrians. Death According to some sources, after gaining a prize for one of his tragedies, The Ransom of Hector (seeIntellectual tastesbelow), at a competition at theLenaiafestival at Athens, he was so elated that he drank himself to death. Others report that he died of natural causes shortly after learning of his play's victory in 367 BC.According to others, he was given an overdose of a sleeping potion by his physicians at the instigation of his son,Dionysius the Younger, who succeeded him as ruler of Syracuse.A similar theory, proposed byJustin, stated that Dionysius "was defeated and broken by constant warfare, and finally murdered by a conspiracy of his own kin". His life was written byPhilistus, but the work is not extant. Intellectual tastes LikePisistratus, tyrant ofAthens, Dionysius was fond of having literary men about him, such as the historianPhilistus, the poetPhiloxenus, and the philosopherPlato, but treated them in a most arbitrary manner.Diodorus Siculusrelates in hisBibliotheca historicathat Dionysius once had Philoxenus arrested and sent to the quarries for voicing a bad opinion about his poetry. The next day, he released Philoxenus because of his friends' requests, and brought the poet before him for another poetry reading. Dionysius read his own work and the audience applauded. When he asked Philoxenus how he liked it, the poet turned to the guards and said "take me back to the quarries."Plutarchrelates a version of this story in hisOn the Fortune of Alexander. He also posed as an author and patron of literature; his poems, severely criticized byPhiloxenus, were hissed at the Olympic games, but having gained a prize for a tragedy on theRansom of Hectorat theLenaeaatAthens, he was so elated that he engaged in a debauch which, according to some sources, proved fatal.His name is also known for the legend ofDamon and Pythias, and he features indirectly (via his son) in the legend of the Sword ofDamocles. TheEar of Dionysiusin Syracuse is an artificial limestone cave named after Dionysius. Historical significance and legacy Dionysius was one of the major figures in Greek and European history. He was a champion of the struggle between the Greeks andCarthagefor Sicily, and was the first to bring the war into the enemy's territory. He transformed Syracuse into the most powerful city in the Greek world, and made it the seat of an empire stretching from Sicily across to Italy. Although this empire was technically a constitutional republic, in fact it was the first Greek empire which was in effect a monarchy; in this, Dionysius foreshadowed the accomplishments ofAlexander the Greatand beyond him ofAugustus. He also foreshadowed these later rulers in being one of the first Greek rulers to be given divine honors during his lifetime, and he made innovations in military technique, such as siege engines, which became a standard feature of warfare under Alexander the Great and later generals.[17] It has been theorized thatBrennuswas working in concert with Dionysius, who sought to control all of Sicily. Rome had strong allegiances withMessana, a small city state in north east Sicily, which Dionysius wanted to control. Rome's army being pinned down by Brennus' efforts would have assisted Dionysius's campaign. Walls of Syracuse In 402 BC Dionysius I began building the Circuit Walls of Syracuse, which included an impressive citadel, theEuryalus fortress, protecting the plateau to the northwest of Syracuse, the remains of which are still visible today. The walls were completed in 397 BC and had the following characteristics: Length: 27 kilometers Width at base: 3.3 m to 5.35 m Number of known towers on circuit: 14 (including Euryalos) Largest tower: 8.5 m x 8.5 m Deepest ditch (at Euryalos fortress): 9 m Building so big a fortress would have involved installing well over 300 tons of stone every day for 5 years.

Price: 275 USD

Location: Reading, Pennsylvania

End Time: 2024-02-19T01:39:04.000Z

Shipping Cost: 4 USD