Dionysius the Younger

Dionysius II (Younger)
Dionysius II (Younger)
	Greek Διονύσιος ο νεότερος
Tiran Syracuse
	367 BC e. - 356 BC e.
Predecessor	Dionysius the Elder
Successor	Dion
	347 BC e. - 344 BC e.
	347 BC e. - 344 BC e.
Predecessor	Nisei
Birth	397 BC e. ; Syracuse
Death	337 BC e. ; ;
Kind	Dionysides
Father	Dionysius the Elder
Mother
Children

Dionysius the Younger , or Dionysius II ( Greek Διονύσιος ο νεότερος ; 397 - 337 BC ) - the son of Dionysius the Elder and Dorie, an ancient Greek tyrant who ruled in Siracusa in Sicily . Coming to power in 367 BC e. , Dionysius the Younger entered into a truce with Carthage , thereby ending the war begun by his father.

Southern Italy by 400 BC

The reign of Dionysius the Younger was not popular. From 357 BC e., Dion , his relative (brother of Aristomache, the third wife of his father) opposed him and consistently destroyed the power of the young tyrant. Almost all possessions fell from Syracuse. Dionysius fled to Lokra . Dionysius briefly regained control of Syracuse, having killed the half-brother of Niseus, but then besieged by Timoleon in his last stronghold - the fortress of Ortigia - Dionysius the Younger was forced to surrender and was exiled to Corinth , where he died in poverty in 337 BC. e.

He was married to his half-sister Sofrosina (died during the uprising in Lokra ). It is known that he had a son Apollocrates.

Content

First board

With the support of his father's mercenaries, Dionysius seized power. The first years he used the advice of Dion , uncle, even in some areas allowed himself to control.

At this time, the war with Carthage continued (a truce was concluded in 364 BC). Despite this, Dionysius the Younger reduced the military tax by three years. 3,000 convicted of tax debts were forgiven and freed. In addition, in 367 BC. e. he sent an invitation letter to the philosopher Plato , hoping that Plato was a friend of Dion. Plato arrived in Syracuse in 366 BC. e. Under the influence of the philosopher, Dionysius the Younger refused a luxurious lifestyle, began to express thoughts about the rejection of tyranny.

Gradually, as a result of suspicions about Dion (his attempts to negotiate with the Carthaginians without taking into account the views of Dionysius, other anti-tyrannical thoughts and actions), Dionysius removed him from power, and Dion, and after him Plato, went to Corinth. In 361 BC e. Dionysius again invited Plato to himself, but he was in Syracuse, where he and his companions investigated the anti-tyrannical mood in society. Subsequently, the philosopher’s attempt to apply his ideas here to create an ideal state ended in failure: the political system of Syracuse was far from the aristocratic and democratic ideals of Greek society ^[1] ..

However, Dionysius the Younger allowed the inhabitants of the former city of Naxos to revive the Tauromania community. Also, by his order, they began to restore the city of Regius under the new name Foybeia, where a military garrison was stationed. In general, the foreign policy of Dionysius the Younger was aimed at protecting existing possessions. In Lower Italy, he fought with a local tribe of Lucanians who attacked his possessions. After the defense of their own territory, a peace agreement was concluded (359 BC). Syracuse has developed peaceful relations with the free cities of the Gulf of Tarento. This allowed the laying of two new cities in Puglia. In addition, Dionysius the Younger was in allied relations with Sparta.

But in general, the authority of Dionysius the Younger faded away, his attempts to make tyranny more civilized failed. Therefore, when in August 357 BC. e. Dion landed on the western coast of Sicily with a detachment of mercenaries of 600 people with the support of the Carthaginian commander in the city of Mino, he quickly captured the cities of Gela , Agragant , Camarina . After this, Dion received help from the Sikuls and Sikans. Dion came to Syracuse with 2,000 warriors. Southern Italy also revolted. At the same time, the inhabitants of Syracuse opened the gate to Dion. In the hands of supporters of Dionysius the Younger remained the islands of Ortigius and Ahradin. However, from Hellas Heraclides came to the aid of Dion with 20 triremes and 1600 warriors. In this situation, Dionysius transferred the son of Apollocrates to the administration of Ortigia Island, and he himself went to Italy. From here he equipped the fleet with food and weapons to help his son, led by the Neapolitan Nipsius.

As a result, according to the agreement between Dionysius and Dion, the latter refused power over Syracuse, but received the right to conquer other cities of Sicily. For some time there was a struggle for power on the island, but Dionysius the Younger almost lost everything that his father left him. In 355 BC e. son Apollocrates left Ortigia and with five ships headed for his father in Southern Italy.

Second board

All the time after his removal from power, Dionysius the Younger was in Lokra, in the homeland of his mother. In 352 BC e. in order to create the basis for the further restoration of his power in Syracuse, he became the tyrant of Locker. At the same time, the commander Kalipp overthrew Dion, seized power in Syracuse, and then managed to take control of Katana and Regius. Soon he died, and in Syracuse political chaos was established.

In 346 BC e., taking advantage of the weakness of the tyrant Syracuse Nisei (his half-brother), Dionysius the Younger captured the city. But as soon as Dionysius left Lokr, its inhabitants rebelled, restored their freedom and executed the wife of Dionysius Sofrosin and his two daughters.

In Syracuse, Dionysius immediately confronted three opponents: the tyrant Leontin Gicket, the Carthaginians and Timoleont, whom Corinth sent to restore freedom to all the cities of Sicily. All this difficult situation made Dionysius the Younger appear to Timoleont, who was standing in a military camp near Katana (344 BC).

Recent years

Dionysius the Younger was sent to Corinth, where he calmly lived to death. Here he met with the king of Macedonia, Philip , corresponded with the philosopher Aristoxen. In general, the former tyrant was engaged in philosophical exercises.

Image in Literature

Dionysius I of Syracuse is one of the main characters in the novel "The Mask of Apollo " by the British writer Mary Renault . Considerable attention is paid to a realistic description of the city of Syracuse of the era of Dionysius: its citizens, some structures, in particular the theater, as well as the construction of the Ortigia fortress.

Notes

↑ S. Ya. Lurie . History of Greece. Part II / Classical era. Chapter xi. The crisis of the IV century (401 - 362). 9 Military monarchy in Sicily

Literature

Dionysius // The Real Dictionary of Classical Antiquities / ed. F. Lubker ; Edited by members of the Society of Classical Philology and Pedagogy F. Gelbke , L. Georgievsky , F. Zelinsky , V. Kansky , M. Kutorgi and P. Nikitin . - SPb. , 1885.
Dionysius the Younger // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
Helmut Berve . Die Tyrannis bei den Griechen. 2 Bände. München 1967

[1] S. Ya. Lurie . History of Greece. Part II / Classical era. Chapter xi. The crisis of the IV century (401 - 362). 9 Military monarchy in Sicily