The Battiadae, or Battiads ( gr, Βαττιάδαι), were the ruling dynasty of the Greek

city-state A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world since the dawn of history, including cities such as ...

of Cyrene, in modern

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...

. Battus I, who founded Cyrene in 631 BC, was also the founder of the dynasty. The Battiads were overthrown in 440 BC.

List of members

''The kings of Cyrene are shown in bold, all dates BC.'' * Battus I (c. 631–600 BC), founder of Cyrene. * Arcesilaus I (c. 600–583 BC), son of Battus I. * Battus II "the Blessed" (c. 583–560 BC), son of Arcesilaus I. * Arcesilaus II "the Cruel" (c. 560–550 BC), son of Battus II. * Perseus, younger brother of Arcesilaus II, he rebelled against him and left Cyrene to found Barke in c.560 with three other brothers.Asheri et al., ''Commentary on Herodotus'', p. 689. * Zacynthius, younger brother of Arcesilaus II, he rebelled against him and left Cyrene to found Barke in c.560 with three other brothers. * Aristomedon, younger brother of Arcesilaus II, he rebelled against him and left Cyrene to found Barke in c.560 with three other brothers. * Lycus, younger brother of Arcesilaus II, he rebelled against him and left Cyrene to found Barke in c.560 with three other brothers. *

Learchus In Greek mythology, Learchus (Ancient Greek: Λέαρχος) or Learches was a Boeotian prince as the son of King Athamas and Ino, daughter of King Cadmus of Thebes. He was the brother of Melicertes. Mythology The story of Learchus is part ...

, younger brother of Arcesilaus II. Unlike his other brothers, he remained in Cyrene, but murdered Arcesilaus II and ruled as regent. He was murdered by Eryxo, Arcesilaus II's widow. According to

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...

, he was only a friend of Arcesilaus II. *

Eryxo {{no footnotes, date=May 2012 Eryxo ( grc, Ἐρυξώ; flourished 6th century BC) was a Greek woman, who was a Queen of Cyrenaica and was a member of The Battiads dynasty, the family that ruled Cyrenaica and Cyrene. From the ancient Greek source ...

, wife of Arcesilaus II, she murdered Learchus. * Battus III "the Lame" (c. 550–530 BC). During his reign, most of the royal prerogatives were transferred to citizens by the reformer

Demonax Demonax ( el, Δημώναξ, ''Dēmōnax'', ''gen''.: Δημώνακτος; c. AD 70 – c. 170) was a Greek Cynic philosopher. Born in Cyprus, he moved to Athens, where his wisdom, and his skill in solving disputes, earned him the admiration of ...

of Mantinea. *

Pheretima ''Pheretima'' is a genus of earthworms found mostly in New Guinea and parts of Southeast Asia. Species belonging to the genus Pheretima have a clitellum, which is a band of glandular tissue present on segments 14 to 16. Individuals are hermaph ...

, wife of Battus III, mother of Arcesilaus III. * Arcesilaus III (c. 530–515 BC), son of Battus III and Pheretima. * Battus IV (c. 515–465 BC) * Arcesilaus IV (c. 465–440 BC) A famous descendant of Battus and thus one of the Battiadae was

Callimachus Callimachus (; ) was an ancient Greek poet, scholar and librarian who was active in Alexandria during the 3rd century BC. A representative of Ancient Greek literature of the Hellenistic period, he wrote over 800 literary works in a wide variety ...

, Epigr. 35 the Greek

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

and the best known member of the

Neoteroi The Neoterikoi (Ancient Greek: '; Latin: ', "new poets") or Neoterics were a series of avant-garde Latin poets who wrote in the 1st century BCE. Neoteric poets deliberately turned away from classical Homeric epic poetry. Rather than focusing on the ...

References

Bibliography

David Asheri David Asheri (1 November 1925, Florence - 3 February 2000, Jerusalem), born David Bonaventura, was an Italian-Israeli historian. Asheri is regarded as "one of the most distinguished scholars of ancient Greece". He is perhaps best known for his ...

, Alan Lloyd, Aldo Corcella, ''A Commentary on Herodotus Books I-IV'', Oxford University Press, 2007. Ancient Greek dynasties Cyrenean Greeks {{AncientGreece-bio-stub