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Greek – Macedonian Kingdom – King Demetrius I Poliorcetes –
294-288 B.C.
Bronze 17mm (4.54 grams) Struck 294-288 B.C.
Reference: Sear 6774; Newell 131 –
Macedonian shield, with monogram of Demetrios at center.
BA ΣΙ either side of crested Macedonian helmet, in field to left, anchor.
Son of Antigonos the One-eyed, Demetrios Poliorketes (the ‘Besieger’) was a
romantic character who pursued a most colorful career spanning more than three
decades. In his earlier years he assisted his father, whose power was centered
in Asia Minor, and in 306 he achieved a great naval victory over Ptolemy of
Egypt, in the battle of Salamis, off the coast of Cyprus. After many
vicissitudes he seized the Macedonian throne in 294, although he reigned for
only six years the dynasty which he founded lasted until the end of the
Macedonian Kingdom. He died as a captive in Syria in 283 B.C.
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Demetrius I (Greek:
Δημήτριος Α`, 337-283 BC), called Poliorcetes (Greek:
Πολιορκητής – “The Besieger”), son of
Antigonus I Monophthalmus
and
Stratonice
, was a king of
Macedon
(294–288 BC). He belonged to the
Antigonid dynasty
.
Biography
At the age of twenty-two he was left by his father to defend
Syria
against
Ptolemy
the son of
Lagus
; he was
totally defeated in
Battle of Gaza
, but soon partially repaired his loss by a victory in the
neighbourhood of Myus
.
In the spring of 310, he was soundly defeated when he tried to expel
Seleucus I Nicator
from
Babylon
; his
father was defeated in the autumn. As a result of this
Babylonian War
, Antigonus lost almost two thirds of his empire: all eastern
satrapies became Seleucus’.
After several campaigns against Ptolemy on the coasts of
Cilicia
and
Cyprus
,
Demetrius sailed with a fleet of 250 ships to
Athens
. He
freed the city from the power of
Cassander
and Ptolemy, expelled the garrison which had been stationed there under
Demetrius of Phalerum
, and besieged and took
Munychia
(307 BC). After these victories he was worshipped by the Athenians
as a
tutelary
deity under the title of Soter (σωτήρ) (“Preserver”).
In the campaign of 306 BC against Ptolemy he defeated
Menelaus
, Ptolemy’s brother, in the naval
Battle of Salamis
, completely destroying the naval power of
Egypt
. In 305 BC,
now bearing the title of king bestowed upon him by his father, he endeavoured to
punish the Rhodians
for having deserted his cause; his ingenuity in devising new
siege engines
in his unsuccessful attempt to reduce the capital gained him
the title of Poliorcetes. Among his creations were a
battering ram
180 feet (55 m) long, requiring 1000 men to operate it; and a
wheeled siege tower
named “Helepolis”
(or “Taker of Cities”) which stood 125 feet (38 m) tall and 60 feet (18 m) wide,
weighing 360,000 pounds.
In 302 BC he returned a second time to Greece as liberator, and reinstated
the
Corinthian League
. But his licentiousness and extravagance made the
Athenians long for the government of Cassander. Among his outrages was his
courtship of a young boy named Democles the Handsome. The youth kept on refusing
his attention but one day found himself cornered at the baths. Having no way out
and being unable to physically resist his suitor, he took the lid off the hot
water cauldron and jumped in. His death is seen as a mark of honor for himself
and his country. In another instance, he waived a fine of 50 talents imposed on
a citizen in exchange for the favors of Cleaenetus, that man’s son.[1]
He also sought the attention of Lamia, a Greek courtesan. She demanded a price
of 250 talents. He put a tax on soap to raise the money.[2]
He also roused the jealousy of
Alexander
‘s Diadochi
;
Seleucus
, Cassander and
Lysimachus
united to destroy him and his father. The hostile armies met at the
Ipsus
in Phrygia
(301 BC). Antigonus was killed, and Demetrius, after sustaining
severe losses, retired to
Ephesus
. This
reversal of fortune stirred up many enemies against him—the Athenians refused
even to admit him into their city. But he soon afterwards ravaged the territory
of Lysimachus
and effected a reconciliation with Seleucus, to whom he gave his
daughter
Stratonice
in marriage. Athens was at this time oppressed by the tyranny of
Lachares
– a popular leader who made himself supreme in Athens in 296 BC –
but Demetrius, after a protracted blockade, gained possession of the city (294
BC) and pardoned the inhabitants for their misconduct in 301.
In the same year he established himself on the throne of Macedonia by
murdering
Alexander V
, the son of Cassander. In 291 BC he married
Lanassa
, the former wife of
Pyrrhus
. But his new position as ruler of Macedonia was continually
threatened by Pyrrhus, who took advantage of his occasional absence to ravage
the defenceless part of his kingdom (Plutarch,
Pyrrhus, 7 if.); at length, the combined forces of Pyrrhus, Ptolemy and
Lysimachus, assisted by the disaffected among his own subjects, obliged him to
leave Macedonia in 288 BC.
He passed into Asia and attacked some of the provinces of Lysimachus with
varying success. Famine and pestilence destroyed the greater part of his army,
and he solicited Seleucus’ support and assistance. But before he reached Syria
hostilities broke out, and after he had gained some advantages over his
son-in-law, Demetrius was totally forsaken by his troops on the field of battle
and surrendered to Seleucus.
His son
Antigonus
offered all his possessions, and even his own person, in order to
procure his father’s liberty. But all proved unavailing, and Demetrius died
after a confinement of three years (283 BC). His remains were given to Antigonus
and honoured with a splendid funeral at
Corinth
.
His descendants remained in possession of the Macedonian throne till the time
of
Perseus
, when Macedon was conquered by the
Romans
in 168 BC.
Literary references
Demetrius appears (under the Greek form of his name, Demetrios) in
L. Sprague de Camp
‘s historical novel,
The Bronze God of Rhodes
, which largely concerns itself with his siege
of Rhodes.
Alfred Duggan’s novel Elephants and Castles provides a lively
fictionalised account of his life.
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