Eurydice ( el, Εὐρυδίκη, was a

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 ...

Princess who was of Macedonian and

Thessalian Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessa ...

descent. She was the first daughter and second child born to the diadochus who was King of

Thrace Thrace (; el, Θράκη, Thráki; bg, Тракия, Trakiya; tr, Trakya) or Thrake is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe, now split among Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey, which is bounded by the Balkan Mountains to t ...

Asia Minor Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...

and Macedonia,

Lysimachus Lysimachus (; Greek: Λυσίμαχος, ''Lysimachos''; c. 360 BC – 281 BC) was a Thessalian officer and successor of Alexander the Great, who in 306 BC, became King of Thrace, Asia Minor and Macedon. Early life and career Lysimachus was b ...

from his first wife the Queen consort,

Nicaea of Macedon Nicaea ( el, Nίκαια, – ) was a Greek Macedonian noblewoman and was a daughter of the powerful regent Antipater. Her mother's name is unknown. She was born and raised in Macedonia while her father was governor of Macedonia during the reign ...

. Eurydice had one older brother called

Agathocles Agathocles (Greek: ) is a Greek name, the most famous of which is Agathocles of Syracuse, the tyrant of Syracuse. The name is derived from , ''agathos'', i.e. "good" and , ''kleos'', i.e. "glory". Other personalities named Agathocles: *Agathocles, ...

and a younger sister called Arsinoe. Her paternal grandfather was

Agathocles of Pella Agathocles ( el, Ἀγαθοκλῆς, flourished 4th century BC) was a Greek nobleman who was a contemporary to King Philip II of Macedon (reigned 359 BC–336 BC). Agathocles was a Thessalian serf Serfdom was the status of many peasants ...

a nobleman who was a contemporary to King

Philip II of Macedon Philip II of Macedon ( grc-gre, Φίλιππος ; 382 – 21 October 336 BC) was the king ('' basileus'') of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty, founders of the ...

who reigned 359 BC-336 BC, while her maternal grandfather was the powerful

Regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

Antipater Antipater (; grc, , translit=Antipatros, lit=like the father; c. 400 BC319 BC) was a Macedonian general and statesman under the subsequent kingships of Philip II of Macedon and his son, Alexander the Great. In the wake of the collaps ...

. Eurydice was named in honor of her maternal aunt

Eurydice of Egypt Eurydice ( grc, Εὐρυδίκη) third known wife to Ptolemy I Soter and as such a queen of Egypt Life Eurydice (ca. 330-post 279 BCE) is thought to be the youngest of Antipater's known daughters. Her wedding date and repudiation date are a ...

, another daughter of Antipater, who was one of the wives of the Greek Pharaoh

Ptolemy I Soter Ptolemy I Soter (; gr, Πτολεμαῖος Σωτήρ, ''Ptolemaîos Sōtḗr'' "Ptolemy the Savior"; c. 367 BC – January 282 BC) was a Macedonian Greek general, historian and companion of Alexander the Great from the Kingdom of Macedon ...

. The name ''Eurydice'', is a dynastic name of the Argead dynasty (see

Eurydice Eurydice (; Ancient Greek: Εὐρυδίκη 'wide justice') was a character in Greek mythology and the Auloniad wife of Orpheus, who tried to bring her back from the dead with his enchanting music. Etymology Several meanings for the name ...

-Historical women). The name also reveals her relations to the Argead dynasty as her maternal grandfather and her maternal great-uncle

Cassander Cassander ( el, Κάσσανδρος ; c. 355 BC – 297 BC) was king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia from 305 BC until 297 BC, and ''de facto'' ruler of southern Greece from 317 BC until his death. A son of Antipater and a cont ...

were distant collateral relatives to the Argead dynasty. At an unknown date, Lysimachus renamed the city

Smyrna Smyrna ( ; grc, Σμύρνη, Smýrnē, or , ) was a Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to promi ...

to ''Eurydiceia'' in honor of Eurydice, an innovation that did not last long. Lysimachus issued coinage depicting Eurydice on the obverse as a veiled woman, although Eurydice never owned nor had any control of the city. Little is known on her life prior to marrying. Lysimachus gave Eurydice to marry her maternal cousin Antipater I, the son of the rulers of Macedonia,

and Thessalonike. Eurydice's marriage to Antipater I, thereby extended into the next generation the historical link between Thrace and Macedonia. In her life, Eurydice was a participant in the never ending conflict over control of Macedonia in the generations after the death of

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 ...

. Antipater I was co-King of Macedonia from 297 BC-294 BC with his brother Alexander V and through marriage, she became a Queen consort. On the death of her maternal uncle Kassander, his wife Thessalonike divided the kingdom into two: one part to be ruled by Antipater I ’s youngest brother

Alexander V Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

and his wife

Lysandra Lysandra (Greek: Λυσάνδρα, meaning "Liberator, Emancipator"; lived 281 BC) was a Queen of Macedonia, daughter of Ptolemy I Soter to Eurydice or Berenice. She was married first to her maternal cousin Alexander, one of the sons of Cassand ...

and the other part to be ruled by Antipater I and Eurydice. Antipater I wanted the whole kingdom to rule for himself and had his mother killed. Alexander V appealed to Pyrrhus and

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

for help and protection from his older brother. Pyrrhus did in exchange of two Upper Macedonian cantons. When Demetrius I arrived with his troops he had Alexander V murdered and drove out Antipater and Eurydice out of Macedonia. Demetrius I then made himself master of Macedonia. Eurydice and Antipater I returned to her father and his wife

Arsinoe II Arsinoë II ( grc-koi, Ἀρσινόη, 316 BC – unknown date between July 270 and 260 BC) was a Ptolemaic queen and co-regent of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of ancient Egypt. She was given the Egyptian title "King of Upper and Lower Egypt", making ...

. Lysimachus made peace with Demetrius I, which resulted in Antipater quarrelling with Lysimachus about his Macedonian inheritance and Lysimachus had put Antipater I to death. Eurydice siding with her cousin-husband was put into prison by her father and probably died there.Lightman, ''A to Z of ancient Greek and Roman women'', p.129

References

Sources

Ptolemaic Genealogy: Arsinoe I

{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140423010517/http://www.livius.org/lu-lz/lysimachus/lysimachus.html , date=2014-04-23 * H. Bengtson, Griechische Geschichte von den Anfängen bis in die römische Kaiserzeit, C.H.Beck, 1977 * H.S. Lund, Lysimachus: A Study in Early Hellenistic Kingship, Routledge, 2002 * F. Chamoux, Hellenistic civilization, John Wiley & Sons, 2003 * W. Heckel, Who's who in the age of Alexander the Great: prosopography of Alexander's empire, Wiley-Blackwell, 2006 * M. Lightman & B. Lightman, A to Z of ancient Greek and Roman women (Google eBook), Infobase Publishing, 2007 4th-century BC Greek people 4th-century BC Macedonians 3rd-century BC rulers 3rd-century BC Greek people 3rd-century BC Macedonians Ancient Thessalians Hellenistic Thrace Antipatrid Macedonia Ancient Macedonian queens consort Argead dynasty