NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Dionysius I of Syracuse

Dionysius I or Dionysius the Elder (ca. 432–367 BC, Greek: Διονύσιος), tyrant of Syracuse, conquered several cities in Sicily and southern Italy, opposed Carthage's influence in Sicily and made Syracuse the most powerful of the Western Greek colonies. He was regarded by the ancients as an example of the worst kind of despot--cruel, suspicious and vindictive. Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC - 430s BC - 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC Years: 437 BC 436 BC 435 BC 434 BC 433 BC 432 BC 431 BC 430 BC... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC - 360s BC - 350s BC 340s BC 330s BC 320s BC 310s BC 372 BC 371 BC 370 BC 369 BC 368 BC - 367 BC - 366 BC 365 BC 364... Syracuse (Italian, Siracusa, ancient Syracusa - see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a city on the eastern coast of Sicily and the capital of the province of Syracuse, Italy. ... Sicily (Sicilia in Italian and Sicilian) is an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, with an area of 25,708 kmÂ² (9,926 sq. ... Roman Carthage with former military harbor Carthage (Greek: , Latin: , from the Phoenician meaning new town; Arabic: ) refers both to an ancient city in Tunisia and to the civilization that developed within the citys sphere of influence. ...

Early life

Dionysius I began life as a clerk in a public office. Because of his achievements in the war against Carthage that had begun in 409 BC, he was elected supreme military commander in 406 BC; in the following year he seized total power and became tyrant. In subsequent years he consolidated his position ruthlessly. Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC - 400s BC - 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC Years: 414 BC 413 BC 412 BC 411 BC 410 BC - 409 BC - 408 BC 407 BC... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC - 400s BC - 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC Years: 411 BC 410 BC 409 BC 408 BC 407 BC - 406 BC - 405 BC 404 BC...

Conquests

He carried on war with Carthage with varying success; his attempts to drive the Carthaginians entirely out of the island of Sicily failed, and at his death they were masters of at least a <1/3> it. He also carried on an expedition against Rhegium and its allied cities in Magna Graecia. In one campaign, in which he was joined by the Lucanians, he devastated the territories Thurii, Croton and Locri. Categories: Italy-related stubs | Coastal cities | Towns in Calabria ... Magna Graecia around 280 b. ... Thurii, or Thueium, was a city of Magna Graecia on the Gulf of Taranto, near the site of the older Sybaris. ... Crotone is a city in Calabria, southern Italy, on the Gulf of Taranto. ... Locri Epizephyri (epi-Zephyros, under the West wind; see also List of traditional Greek place names) was founded about 680 BC on the Italian shores of the Ionian Sea, near modern Capo Zefirio, by the Locrians, apparently by Opuntii (East Locrians) from the city of Opus, but including Ozolae (West...

After a protracted siege he took Rhegium (386), and sold the inhabitants as slaves. He joined the Illyrians in an attempt to plunder the temple of Delphi, pillaged the temple of Caere on the Etruscan coast, and founded several military colonies on the Adriatic. In the Peloponnesian War he espoused the side of the Spartans, and assisted them with mercenaries. Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC - 380s BC - 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC 330s BC 391 BC 390 BC 389 BC 388 BC 387 BC - 386 BC - 385 BC 384 BC 383... Slave redirects here. ... Location of Illyria Illyria (Albanian Iliria Land of the Free; Ancient Greek ; Latin Illyria [1] (see also Illyricum) was in Classical antiquity a region in the western part of todays Balkan Peninsula, founded by the tribes and clans of Illyrians, an ancient people who spoke the Illyrian languages. ... Delphi (Greek , [Ã°eÌžlËˆfi]) is an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece on the south-western spur of Mount Parnassus in a valley of Phocis. ... Caere is the Latin name given by the Romans to one of the larger cities of Southern Etruria approximately 50-60 kilometres north (NNW) of Rome. ... Extent of Etruscan civilization and the twelve Etruscan League cities. ... The Adriatic Sea is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea separating the Apennine peninsula (Italy) from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges. ... For the earlier war beginning in 460 BC, see First Peloponnesian War. ... Sparta (Doric: SpÃ¡rtÄ, Attic: SpÃ¡rtÄ“) is a city in southern Greece. ... Mercenary (disambiguation). ...

Name Association

His name is most well known for the legends of Damocles and Damon and Pythias. In Richard Westalls Sword of Damocles, 1812, the pretty boys of Ciceros anecdote have been changed to maidens for a neoclassical patron, Thomas Hope. ... In Greek mythology, the legend of Damon and Pythias (or Phintias) symbolizes trust and loyalty in a true friendship. ...

He also posed as an author and patron of literature; his poems, severely criticized by Philoxenus, were hissed at the Olympic games; but having gained a prize for a tragedy on the Ransom of Hector at the Lenaea at Athens, he was so elated that he engaged in a debauch which proved fatal. Philoxenus, of Cythera (435-380 BC) was a Greek dithyrambic poet. ... The Lenaia was a dramatic but one of the lesser festivals in Athens and Ionia in ancient Greece. ... Athens (ancient Greek: Î±á¼± á¼ˆÎ¸á¿†Î½Î±Î¹ (plural), evolving into the modern Î±Î¹ Î‘Î¸Î®Î½Î±Î¹ in Greek until recently, and Î· Î‘Î¸Î®Î½Î± nowadays (IPA : singular see below: Origin of the name ) is both the largest and the capital city of Greece, located in the Attica periphery. ...

Death

According to others, he was poisoned by his physicians at the instigation of his son, Dionysius the Younger who succeeded him as ruler of Syracuse. His life was written by Philistus, but the work is not extant. Dionysius the Younger or Dionysius II (c. ... Philistus, Greek historian of Sicily, was born at Syracuse about the beginning of the Peloponnesian War (432 BC). ...

Additionally, it is said that upon hearing news of his play, The Ransom of Hector, winning the competition at the Lanaean festival at Athens, he celebrated so fiercely that he drank himself to death. Others report that he died of natural causes shortly after learning of the his play's victory in 367 BC. Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC - 360s BC - 350s BC 340s BC 330s BC 320s BC 310s BC 372 BC 371 BC 370 BC 369 BC 368 BC - 367 BC - 366 BC 365 BC 364...

Intellectual Tastes

Like Pisistratus, tyrant of Athens, Dionysius was fond of having literary men about him, such as the historian Philistus, the poet Philoxenus, and the philosopher Plato, but treated them in a most arbitrary manner. Once he had Philoxenos arrested and brought before him for a poetry reading. Dionysius read his own work and the audience applauded. When he asked Philoxenos how he liked it, the poet replied only "take me back to the quarries". Peisistratos or Peisistratus (Greek: )[1] (ca. ... Athens (ancient Greek: Î±á¼± á¼ˆÎ¸á¿†Î½Î±Î¹ (plural), evolving into the modern Î±Î¹ Î‘Î¸Î®Î½Î±Î¹ in Greek until recently, and Î· Î‘Î¸Î®Î½Î± nowadays (IPA : singular see below: Origin of the name ) is both the largest and the capital city of Greece, located in the Attica periphery. ... PLATO was one of the first generalized Computer assisted instruction systems, originally built by the University of Illinois (U of I) and later taken over by Control Data Corporation (CDC), who provided the machines it ran on. ...

The Ear of Dionysius in Syracuse is an artificial limestone cave named after Dionysius. The Ear of Dionysius (Italian: Orecchio di Dionisio) is an artificial limestone cave carved out of the Temenites hill in the city of Syracuse, on the island of Sicily in Italy. ...

Fictional References

A fictional version of Dionysius is a character in Mary Renault's historical novel The Mask of Apollo. He also features prominently in L. Sprague de Camp's historical novel The Arrows of Hercules, as a patron of inventors on the island of Ortygia near Syracuse. He is the main character in Valerio Massimo Manfredi's novel Tyrant. He is also mentioned in Dante's The Divine Comedy as a tyrant who indulged in blood and rapine and suffers in a river of boiling blood. Mary Renault (1905â€“1983) was an English novelist whose works are still popular with devotees of the historical novel. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Lyon Sprague de Camp, (November 27, 1907 â€“ November 6, 2000) was an American science fiction and fantasy author. ... A historical novel is a novel in which the story is set among historical events, or more generally, in which the time of the action predates the lifetime of the author. ... The Arrows of Hercules by L. Sprague de Camp, Curtis Books, 1970 The Arrows of Hercules is an historical novel by L. Sprague de Camp, first published in hardback by Doubleday in 1965 and in paperback by Curtis Books in 1970. ... Ortygia is an island in Greek mythology. ... Valerio Massimo Manfredi (born 1943) is an Italian scholar of archaeology, journalist, TV host, mainly famous as historical novelist. ...

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