Battus II of Cyrene, sometimes called ''Eudaimon'' (''the Blessed'') or the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

equivalent ''Felix'', ( el, Βάττος ὁ Εὐδαίμων; flourished ca. 583 to 560 BC) was the third Greek king of

Cyrenaica Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika ( ar, برقة, Barqah, grc-koi, Κυρηναϊκή ��παρχίαKurēnaïkḗ parkhíā}, after the city of Cyrene), is the eastern region of Libya. Cyrenaica includes all of the eastern part of Libya between ...

and Cyrene 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. ...

Ancestry

Battus II was the son of the second Cyrenaean king Arcesilaus I and an unknown mother. His paternal grandfather was Battus I, founder of the Greek colony in Africa. Battus II’s sister was the princess Critola and was the maternal aunt to Arcesilaus II. She was also mother to Polyarchus and the future Cyrenaean Queen

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 ...

. Eryxo would later marry Battus II's son, Arcesilaus II.

Oracle

An oracle delivered at

Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), in ancient times was a sacred precinct that served as the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. The oracle ...

encouraged people from various parts from

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, particularly those in the

Peloponnese The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmu ...

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, and ...

and the other islands to settle in Cyrene. Battus also invited Greeks to move to

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 ...

. The oracle declared that people who would never settle in delightful Libya, would one day regret it. The oracle declared caused a great rush among Greeks to join Cyrene.

Battle of the Well of Thaetis

Adicran dispatched an embassy to the

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

ian

Pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: ''pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until the an ...

Apries Apries ( grc, Ἁπρίης) is the name by which Herodotus (ii. 161) and Diodorus (i. 68) designate Wahibre Haaibre, a pharaoh of Egypt (589 BC570 BC), the fourth king (counting from Psamtik I) of the Twenty-sixth dynasty of Egypt. He was equ ...

. Apries collected his strong force and sent them to Cyrene to declare war on the Greeks. Around 570 BC the Egyptians, Battus and the Cyrenaeans marched to the Well of Thestis in Irasa to engage in war. The Cyrenaeans won against the Egyptian army. Very few Egyptians survived and returned home.

Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...

states that the Egyptians had no warfare experience against the Greeks and they didn’t take this battle seriously. Herodotus also states that this was the first battle that Greeks and Egyptians ever fought against each other. The victory at The Well of Thestis confirmed the sovereignty of Cyrene and the establishment of Cyrenaica and her new founding cities. Battus also made an alliance with the new 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 ...

Death

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 ...

considers Battus as a worthy and honourable man. Battus died in 560 BC and was buried near his father and paternal grandfather. Battus’ wife is unknown and was succeeded by his son Arcesilaus II .

Sources

*Herodotus, The Histories, Book 4. *Morkot, R., ''The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Greece'', Penguin Books, The Bath Press - Avon, Great Britain, 1996. *Burn, A R. ''The Penguin History Greece'', Penguin Books, Clay Ltd, St Ives P/C, England, 1990.
Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology: Abaeus-Dysponteus
edited by Sir William Smith

in Livius.org

in ''A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography'', by William Smith (1873)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Battus 02 Of Cyrene 6th-century BC Greek people Kings of Cyrene 560 BC deaths Year of birth unknown 6th-century BC rulers

Ancestry

Oracle

Battle of the Well of Thaetis

Death

See also

Sources