Battus III of Cyrene, surnamed The Lame ( el, Βάττος ο Χωλός, flourished 6th century BC) was the fifth Greek Cyrenaean king and a member of the

Battiad dynasty The Battiadae, or Battiads ( gr, Βαττιάδαι), were the ruling dynasty of the Greek city-state of Cyrene, in modern Libya. Battus I, who founded Cyrene in 631 BC, was also the founder of the dynasty. The Battiads were overthrown in 440 BC. ...

. Battus was the son and only child of king Arcesilaus II and queen Eryxo. His paternal grandfather was the third Cyrenaean King, Battus II, while his paternal grandmother is unknown. His maternal grandmother was the princess Critola, while his maternal grandfather was a noble whose name is unknown and was murdered by

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 ...

(a rival to Arcesilaus II) in 550 BC. Battus II and Critola were siblings and were children to the second Cyrenaean King Arcesilaus I. Their paternal grandfather was the first Cyrenaean King, Battus I. Battus received the surname ''The Lame'' because he was born with a defective leg that caused him to limp. Battus was proclaimed King in 550 BC by his maternal uncle Polyarchus, when his uncle and his mother Eryxo had successfully plotted to kill Learchus, who murdered Arcesilaus II and attempted to become king. During his reign, Battus realised that Cyrenaica had become an unstable state, from the unstable relations with the

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 the east, Suda ...

ns, Egyptian Pharaoh

Amasis II Amasis II ( grc, Ἄμασις ; phn, 𐤇𐤌𐤎 ''ḤMS'') or Ahmose II was a pharaoh (reigned 570526 BCE) of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt, the successor of Apries at Sais. He was the last great ruler of Egypt before the Persian conquest ...

and the attempted overthrow of his late father and himself from Learchus. He visited the Oracle at Delphi for advice and consulted the priestess, on what he could do about Cyrenaica. The priestess advised Battus to go and visit

Mantineia Mantineia (also Mantinea ; el, Μαντίνεια; also Koine Greek ''Antigoneia'') was a city in ancient Arcadia, Greece, which was the site of two significant battles in Classical Greek history. In modern times it is a former municipality in ...

in Arcadia and ask for a man called Demonax, who could assist him to reform the Cyrenaean constitution. Demonax was held in high regard by the Mantineians and held a high position there. Battus returned to Cyrene with Demonax to assist him in reforming the constitution. Demonax reformed the Cyrenaean constitution and did the following. He divided Cyrenaica into three groups: * Greeks from Thera (modern Santorini) * Greeks from the Peloponnese and

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...

* Greeks from the other Aegean Islands Demonax created a Senate which controlled Cyrenaica. The senate's members were representatives from the three groups and the king was the senatorial president. The new constitution reduced the powers, responsibilities and authority of the king. The monarchy remained, but the king had only the authority to grant land to citizens and to function as a high priest in charge of religious duties. Demonax also put in place ephors to punish impostors and created a 300-strong armed police force patrolling and protecting Cyrenaica. To further protect Cyrenaica from the Libyans and their aristocracy, Battus made an alliance with the Egyptian Pharaoh

. As a sign of gratitude, Battus allowed Amasis to marry a Greek woman from Cyrenaica. Amasis chose Battus' daughter, Ladice, and they married after 548 BC. Battus reigned until his death in 530 BC, and was buried near his paternal ancestors. He was survived by his wife, queen Pheretima, their son Arcesilaus III and their daughter Ladice. He was succeeded by Arcesilaus III.

Sources

*Herodotus, The Histories, Book 4.

*https://www.livius.org/ct-cz/cyrenaica/cyrenaica.html *http://www.mediterranees.net/dictionnaires/smith/cyrene.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Battus 03 Of Cyrene 6th-century BC Greek people 6th-century BC births 530 BC deaths Kings of Cyrene 6th-century BC rulers

See also

Sources