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[German version] The term refers to the wars between the former companions and generals of king Alexander [4] ( Diadochi and Epigoni) for his inheritance, lasting from his death in 323 BC to the formation of the Hellenistic state system. The period of the D. can be roughly divided into two periods: the wars leading up to the death of  Antigonos [1] Monophthalmos (301 BC), who championed most forcefully the unity of the empire, and the subsequent phase, beginning as early as c. 305, in which the Hellenistic successor states of Alexander's empire slowly took on the characteris…

[German version] (Βυρεβίστας; Byrebístas, Βοιρεβίστας; Boirebístas). King of the Dacians, c. 60 BC founded a coherent kingdom, which at times extended from the Hungarian low plain to the Julian Alps. His conquests included Scordisci, Taurisci and Boii; his attacks on Thracian territories in the western Pontus region also led to heavy plundering of Greek colonies (i.a. Apollonia). Pompey negotiated with him in 48 for military support (Syll.3 762,22-42). In 44 Caesar planned a campaign against B. (Str. 7.3.5), but almost simultaneously with his assassination the …

[German version] Daughter of the West Roman emperor Avitus [1], sister of Ecdicius, married the poet Sidonius Apollinaris before AD 455. She brought great wealth to the marriage and was supposedly opposed to her husband's charitableness (Sidon. Epist. 2,2,3; 2,12,1f.; 5,16; Greg. Tur. Franc. 2,21f.). PLRE 2, 830 (P. 2) with stemma 14. Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld)

[German version] [1] Elean, brother of the seer Teisamenus (5th cent. BC) Elean, son of Antiochus, received as a result of the activity of his brother, the seer Teisamenus, together with him Spartan citizenship (Hdt. 9,33; 35). Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld) [German version] [2] Elean, seer in Sparta (5th cent. BC) Elean, son of Agelochus, grandson of Teisamenus. As a seer, A. is supposed to have predicted for  Lysander the victory at Aegospotami (in 405) (Paus. 3,11,5 f.). Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld) [German version] [3] Companion of  Aristomachus [4] II (3rd cent. BC) Companion of  Aristo…

[German version] (μεσότης, mesótēs: ‘middle’, ‘mean’, understood in the positive sense). Key concept of a Greek ethical (and resulting political) maxim, which - according to the classical definition of Aristotle (see below) - postulates an orientation toward the mean between ‘too much’ ( hyperbolḗ) and ‘too little’ ( élleipsis). A diffuse mesótēs ideal is perceptible since the Archaic period, and was already propagated by Hesiodus (Op. 694) and ascribed primarily to the Delphic oracle or the Seven Sages ( mēdén ágan: ‘nothing too much’, supporting documents in [1. 11f.]). A…

[German version] (οἱ ὑπομείονες/ hoi hypomeíones, literally: the ‘lesser ones’). In the context of the conspiracy of  Kinadon in 398 BC, the hypomeiones are named along with the  helots, the   neodamṓdeis and the   períoikoi as a group of Spartans with limited rights (Xen. Hell. 3,3,6). This was probably not a technical term but rather a collective designation for former   Spartiátai , who for various reasons and in different ways had fewer rights than the   hómoioi : cowardice in battle (cf.   trésantes ) caused the hypomeiones to be socially stigmatized, and loss of wealth or failure in the   a…

[German version] (ναύαρχος; naúarchos). Title of a Spartan naval commander, first evidence of use during the Persian Wars in 480 BC, when Sparta commanded the Greek forces, including the fleet, and the establishment of military offices became necessary. The first naúarchos was Eurybiades (Hdt. 8,2; 8,42). The office of nauarchía then only became significant again in the Peloponnesian War, where it appeared as a one-year office, which any Spartiate could hold only once; this stipulation could be evaded, however, by appointing a competent military commander, e.g. Lysander [1], as epis…

[German version] Regarding the name [5. 394]. King of the Vandals and Alani AD 428-477, successor to his half-brother  Gundericus. In 429 G. crossed from the south of Spain to north Africa with 80,000 others (Victor Vitensis 1,2), possibly called in by the Comes Africae  Bonifatius [1], who fell from grace in 427, but ultimately he went because the wealth of the country. Neither Boniface nor an eastern Roman auxiliary corps commanded by Aspar ( Ardabur [2]) were able to stop the Vandals' advance; in 431 G. conquered H…

(Εὐδαμίδας; Eudamídas). [German version] [1] Spartan, general about 380 BC Spartan, the brother of Phoebidas. E. was supposed to lead a campaign in 382 BC together with Amyntas of Macedonia against Olynthus, but was defeated because of his weak forces and probably killed (Xen. Hell. 5,2,24f.; Diod. Sic. 15,20f.; Dem. Or. 19,264). Maybe he is identical with the early 4th-cent. ephor mentioned in IG V 1, 1232. Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld) [German version] [2] Spartan king about 330 BC E. I, Spartan king, Eurypontid, the son of Archidamus III, since 331 or 330 successor of his …

[German version] (Gundahar, Gundihar, Guntiar). Traditionally the son of Gibica; king of the Burgundians. In AD 411 with the king of the Alanians Goar, G. elevated the Gaulish senator  Jovinus in Mainz to the status of emperor (Olympiodorus FHG 4, 61 fr. 17). After the latter's death in 417, he entered into a   foedus with  Honorius (Chron. min. 1,467; 2,155 Mommsen), but in 435 invaded the province of Belgica I where  Aetius [2] defeated him (Sid. Apoll. Carm. 7,234f.). In 436 G., allegedly with 20,000 Burgundians, was killed in…

(Ἀνάξανδρος; Anáxandros). [German version] [1] Spartan king at the time of the second Messenian war According to Paus. 3,3,4 and 4,15,3 Spartan king at the time of the second Messenian war, Agiad, son of Eurycrates (Hdt. 7,204). Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld) [German version] [2] Leader of the Thebans at  Thermopylae (480) According to Aristophanes of Boeotia (FGrH 379 F 6) leader of the Thebans at  Thermopylae (480). Cf. Hdt. 7,233, who names Leontiades in this position. Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld) [German version] [3] Theban, mercenary commander in the Peloponnesian War Theban, 411 BC m…

(Ἀναξανδρίδας; Anaxandrídas). [German version] [1] Son of the Spartan king Theopompus According to Hdt. 8,131 son of the Spartan king Theopompus, Eurypontid; his historicity is doubtful. Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld) [German version] [2] Spartan king around the middle of the 6th cent. BC Spartan king around the middle of the 6th cent. BC, Agiad. Under the reign of A. and of Ariston Tegea formed an alliance with Sparta. A report, according to which Aeschines, the tyrant of Sicyon, was expelled by A. and  Chilon when the latter was ephor (556…

[German version] (Χερσικράτης; Chersikrátēs). Corinthian; descendant of the Bacchiads (Timaeus FGrH 566 F 80). According to Str. 6,2,4 C. was left behind by  Archias, founder of Syracuse, on the way to Sicily, and settled Corcyra. The credibility of these inherently contradictory statements must be doubted. Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld)

(Ἀγασικλῆς; Agasiklês), Ion. Hegesicles. [German version] [1] Spartan king (1st half of 6th cent. BC) Spartan king, Eurypontid, father of Ariston. During the basileia of A. and of Leon (first half of the 6th cent. BC) the Spartans suffered a defeat against Tegea (Hdt. 1,65; otherwise Paus. 3,7,6, who claims that A. did not wage any wars). Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld) [German version] [2] Son of Scythes (4th cent. BC) Son of Scythes, achieved Attic citizenship through bribery.  Dinarchus directed a speech against him (Dion. Hal. Dein. 10; cf. also Hyp. Eux. 3). Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld)

[German version] (Ὀθρυάδας/ Othryádas, Ὀθρυάδης/ Othryadēs). When, during their conflict over the territory of Thyreatis around 550 BC, the Argives and Spartans had agreed to hold a decisive battle with 300 selected warriors on either side, O. was the only Spartiate to survive. While the two Argive survivors were reporting the outcome in their homeland, O. robbed his fallen enemies of their weapons. Both sides claimed victory, so that a great battle did nonetheless take place, in which Sparta was vic…

[German version] Spartan nauarchos in Byzantium, when in 400 BC the remains of the army of the younger Cyrus entered Bithynia. Recalled from there in 400/399, A. was sent as harmost to Abydus in 389 to secure the Spartan position in the northern Aegean against Athens, but he fell in 388 in a battle against the Athenians under Iphicrates (Xen. An. 5,1,4; 6,1,16; 7,1.2; Diod. Sic. 14,30,4; Xen. Hell. 4,8,32 ff.). Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld)

[German version] (Ἀγησανδρίδας; Agēsandrídas) Spartan, son of Agesander, vanquished the Athenians under  Thymochares with a Peloponnesian fleet in 411 BC at Eretria, which caused Euboea (with the exception of Oreos) to secede from Athens (Thuc. 8,94 ff.). After the Spartan defeat at Cynossema (411), A. was sent with a contingent to the Hellespont, where he beat Thymochares again (Thuc. 8,107; Xen. Hell. 1,1,1). In 409/08 he was in Thrace (Xen. Hell. 1,3,17). Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld)

[German version] King of the Thuringians c. AD 507/511-531/2. Around 510 he married  Amalaberga, the niece of the king of the Ostrogoths  Theoderic the Great, and thus became involved in his policy of alliances (Anon. Vales. 12,70; Cassiod. Var. 4,1; Iord. Get. 299; Procop. Goth. 5,12,22). H. initially ruled with his brothers Baderic and Berthar. After their murder, he was sole ruler until he was overthrown by the king of the Franks  Theoderic c. 531/2. He died shortly afterwards. His territory became part of Franconia (Greg. Tur. Franc. 3,4-8; Procop. Goth. 5,13,1f.…

[German version] Son of  Hunericus and Eudocia [2], the daughter of Valentinian III (Theoph. 5964; 6026), king of the Vandals in AD 523-530 who ended the anti-Catholic policies of his predecessors and attempted to come closer to Byzantium (he minted coins with the image of Justin I [1. 94]), while the relationship with the East Goths deteriorated considerably. The Vandal opposition under the leadership of  Gelimer therefore took advantage of a defeat of H.'s troops against Arabs in Byzacena to dep…

[German version] (πατρονόμος, ‘guardian of the ancestral traditions’). Predominantly epigraphically attested title of a Spartan annual official, created in c. 227 BC by Cleomenes [6] III; the institution of this office was probably connected with the temporary abolition of the éphoroi and the limitation of the political influence of the  gerousía (Paus. 2,9,1). In the Roman period, the patronomos, attested from the 1st cent. BC as Sparta's eponymous magistrate, oversaw six sýnarchoi or synpatronómoi (cf. IG V 1,48; SEG XI 503 with [2]). The tasks of a patronomos, which were linked…