Deidamia (in

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

Δηιδάμεια; died 300 BC) was a

Princess Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin ''princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince. Princess as a subst ...

Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinrich ...

Family

Deidamia was a daughter of

Aeacides :''Aeacides may also refer to Peleus, son of Aeacus, or Achilles, grandson of Aeacus.'' Aeacides ( el, Aἰακίδης; died 313 BC), king of Epirus (331–316, 313), was a son of king Arybbas and grandson of king Alcetas I. Family Aeac ...

, king of

Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinrich ...

and his wife, Queen Phthia, and sister of King Pyrrhus. While yet a girl she was betrothed by her father to Alexander IV, the son of

Roxana Roxana (c. 340 BC – 310 BC, grc, Ῥωξάνη; Old Iranian: ''*Raṷxšnā-'' "shining, radiant, brilliant"; sometimes Roxanne, Roxanna, Rukhsana, Roxandra and Roxane) was a Sogdian or a Bactrian princess whom Alexander the Great married a ...

and

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

, and having accompanied that prince and

Olympias Olympias ( grc-gre, Ὀλυμπιάς; c. 375–316 BC) was a Greek princess of the Molossians, and the eldest daughter of king Neoptolemus I of Epirus, the sister of Alexander I of Epirus, the fourth wife of Philip II, the king of Macedonia a ...

into

Macedon Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled by ...

ia, was besieged in

Pydna Pydna (in Greek: Πύδνα, older transliteration: Pýdna) was a Greek city in ancient Macedon, the most important in Pieria. Modern Pydna is a small town and a former municipality in the northeastern part of Pieria regional unit, Greece. Sinc ...

(316 BC) together with them.

Life

After the death of Alexander and Roxana in 309 BC, she was married to

Demetrius Poliorcetes Demetrius I (; grc, Δημήτριος; 337–283 BC), also called Poliorcetes (; el, Πολιορκητής, "The Besieger"), was a Macedonian nobleman, military leader, and king of Macedon (294–288 BC). He belonged to the Antigonid dynasty ...

, at the time when the latter was endeavouring to establish his power in

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 ...

, and thus became a bond of union between him and Pyrrhus. Coin of Demetrius I of Macedon

When Demetrius proceeded to Asia to support his father Antigonus against the confederate kings, he left Deidamia at

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

; but after his defeat at

Ipsus Ipsus or Ipsos ( grc, Ἴψος) or Ipsous (Ἴψους), was a town of ancient Phrygia a few miles below Synnada. The place itself never was of any particular note, but it is celebrated in history for the great battle fought in its plains, in 30 ...

(301 BC), the Athenians sent her away to

Megara Megara (; el, Μέγαρα, ) is a historic town and a municipality in West Attica, Greece. It lies in the northern section of the Isthmus of Corinth opposite the island of Salamis Island, Salamis, which belonged to Megara in archaic times, befo ...

, though still treating her with regal honours. She soon after repaired to

Cilicia Cilicia (); el, Κιλικία, ''Kilikía''; Middle Persian: ''klkyʾy'' (''Klikiyā''); Parthian: ''kylkyʾ'' (''Kilikiyā''); tr, Kilikya). is a geographical region in southern Anatolia in Turkey, extending inland from the northeastern coa ...

to join Demetrius, who had just given his daughter Stratonice in marriage to Seleucus, but had not been there long when she fell ill and died, 300 BC. She left one son by Demetrius, named Alexander, who is said by

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 ...

to have spent his life in

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 ...

, probably in an honourable captivity.

References

* Smith, William (editor); ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' (1849, originally published 1844 under a slightly different title) is an encyclopedia/biographical dictionary. Edited by William Smith, the dictionary spans three volumes and 3,700 p ...

''
"Deidameia (1)"

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, (1867)

Notes

---- {{DEFAULTSORT:Deidamia 01 Of Epirus 4th-century BC Greek people 4th-century BC Greek women Ancient Macedonian queens consort Ancient Epirote princesses 300 BC deaths Year of birth unknown