Demetrius II Aetolicus (

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 ...

: Δημήτριος ὁ Αἰτωλικός) was the son of Antigonus II Gonatas and Phila who reigned as king of

Macedon Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an Classical antiquity, ancient monarchy, kingdom on the periphery of Archaic Greece, Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. Th ...

ia from the winter of 239 to 229 BC.

Biography

Demetrius II belonged to the Antigonid dynasty and was born in 275 BC. He had already distinguished himself during his father's lifetime by defeating Alexander II of Epirus at Derdia and so saving Macedonia There is a possibilitythat his father had already elevated him to position of power equal to his own before his death. If this had occurred it would be in 256 or 257 BC. On his accession, Demetrius faced a coalition of enemies which included the two great leagues. Usually rivals, the

Aetolian Aetolia ( el, Αἰτωλία, Aἰtōlía) is a mountainous region of Greece on the north coast of the Gulf of Corinth, forming the eastern part of the modern regional unit of Aetolia-Acarnania. Geography The Achelous River separates Aetolia ...

and

Achaean League The Achaean League ( Greek: , ''Koinon ton Akhaion'' "League of Achaeans") was a Hellenistic-era confederation of Greek city states on the northern and central Peloponnese. The league was named after the region of Achaea in the northwestern P ...

s now became allies against the Macedonian power. He succeeded in dealing this coalition severe blows, wresting

Boeotia Boeotia ( ), sometimes Latinized as Boiotia or Beotia ( el, Βοιωτία; modern: ; ancient: ), formerly known as Cadmeis, is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Central Greece. Its capital is Livadeia, and its ...

from their alliance. The revolution in

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 Heinri ...

, which substituted a republican league for the monarchy, gravely weakened his position. During his reign, his kingdom extended into

Euboea Evia (, ; el, Εύβοια ; grc, Εὔβοια ) or Euboia (, ) is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. It is separated from Boeotia in mainland Greece by the narrow Euripus Strait (only at its narrowest poin ...

, Magnesia,

Thessaly 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, The ...

and its environs, excluding

Dolopia Dolopia ( grc, Δολοπία) is a mountainous region of Greece, located north of Aetolia. Geography Dolopia was located between Epirus and Thessaly, eventually absorbed into the latter. It was a mountainous district in the southwestern corner of ...

and possibly

Peparethos Skopelos ( el, Σκόπελος) is the main town on the island of Skopelos. The island is located east of mainland Greece, northeast of the island of Euboea and is part of the regional unit of the Sporades in the region of Thessaly. It has a port ...

and

Achaea Phthiotis Achaea Phthiotis ( grc, Ἀχαΐα Φθιῶτις, "Achaea of Phthia") or simply Phthiotis (Φθιῶτις) was a historical region of ancient Thessaly in ancient Greece. It lay in southeastern Thessaly, between Mount Othrys and the northern s ...

. In 236 BC, he invaded

, making the Boeotians submit immediately. In 234 BC due to a federal republic replacing the monarchy in Epirus, which led to the events of 231 BC, Demetrius hired Agron for military aid against the advancing Aetolians. His kingdom was not threatened by the Illyrian

Ardiaei The Ardiaei were an Illyrian people who resided in the territory of present-day Albania, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia between the Adriatic coast on the south, Konjic on the north, along the Neretva river and its righ ...

, ruled by Agron, despite them having gathered the greatest force in their history (c. 231 BC), but Epirus needed some sort of force to deter them. At the end of his reign, Demetrius defended his domain from the tribal peoples of the north. A battle with the

Dardani The Dardani (; grc, Δαρδάνιοι, Δάρδανοι; la, Dardani) or Dardanians were a Paleo-Balkan people, who lived in a region that was named Dardania after their settlement there. They were among the oldest Balkan peoples, and their ...

ans turned out disastrously, and he died shortly afterwards, leaving Philip, his son by Chryseis, still a child, on the throne.

Marriage and family

Demetrius married four times, though the chronology of these marriages is a matter of dispute. *

Stratonice of Macedon Stratonice ( el, Στρατονίκη, ''Stratoníkē''; lived in the 3rd century BC) of Macedonia was the daughter of Stratonice of Syria and of the Seleucid king Antiochus I Soter (281–261 BC). She was married to Demetrius II (239–229 ...

, his aunt/cousin, the daughter of the Seleucid king

Antiochus I Antiochus I Soter ( grc-gre, Ἀντίοχος Σωτήρ, ''Antíochos Sōtér''; "Antiochus the Saviour"; c. 324/32 June 261 BC) was a Greek king of the Seleucid Empire. Antiochus succeeded his father Seleucus I Nicator in 281 BC and reigned du ...

and his aunt Stratonice, by whom he had a daughter called

Apama III Prusias I Cholus (Greek: Προυσίας ὁ Χωλός "the Lame"; c. 243 – 182 BC) was a king of Bithynia, who reigned from c. 228 to 182 BC. Life and Reign Prusias was a vigorous and energetic leader; he fought a war against Byzantium ...

who married

Prusias I of Bithynia Prusias I Cholus (Greek: Προυσίας ὁ Χωλός "the Lame"; c. 243 – 182 BC) was a king of Bithynia, who reigned from c. 228 to 182 BC. Life and Reign Prusias was a vigorous and energetic leader; he fought a war against Byzantium ...

. Stratonice left him after he married his second wife. *

Nicaea Nicaea, also known as Nicea or Nikaia (; ; grc-gre, Νίκαια, ) was an ancient Greek city in Bithynia, where located in northwestern Anatolia and is primarily known as the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea (the first and s ...

, the widow of his cousin

Alexander of Corinth Alexander ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος) (died 247 BC) was a Macedonian governor and tyrant of Corinth. He was the son of Craterus who had faithfully governed Corinth and Chalcis for his half-brother Antigonus II Gonatas. His grandmother was Phila, ...

, c. 245/244 BC. *

Phthia In Greek mythology Phthia (; grc-gre, Φθία or Φθίη ''Phthía, Phthíē'') was a city or district in ancient Thessaly. It is frequently mentioned in Homer's ''Iliad'' as the home of the Myrmidones, the contingent led by Achilles in the ...

(239 BC) the daughter of Alexander II of Epirus. * Chryseis, probably a former war prisoner turned concubine, whom he married around 237 BC after they had a son,

Philip V of Macedon Philip V ( grc-gre, Φίλιππος ; 238–179 BC) was king ( Basileus) of Macedonia from 221 to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of the Roman Republic. He would lead Macedon ag ...

. After Demetrius' death, she remarried to his successor,

Antigonus III Doson Antigonus III Doson ( el, Ἀντίγονος Γ΄ Δώσων, 263–221 BC) was king of Macedon from 229 BC to 221 BC. He was a member of the Antigonid dynasty. Family background Antigonus III Doson was a half-cousin of his predecessor, Demetr ...

. Informationregarding the life of Demetrius is drawn mainly from inscriptions, as only

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 hi ...

writes of him, in Life of Aratus, and Polybiuscf.2.44.1-2 makes scarce mention of him.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Demetrius 02 Of Macedon 229 BC deaths 3rd-century BC Macedonian monarchs Ancient Macedonian monarchs 3rd-century BC rulers Year of birth unknown Antigonid dynasty