Ptolemaic navy

Last updated
Ptolemaic navy
Active305-30 BC
Country Ptolemaic Kingdom
Branch Navy
Sizeest: 900-1000 ships distributed
into 4 fleets
Alexandrian Fleet
Aegean Fleet
Nile River Fleet
Red Sea Fleet
Engagements Battle of Salamis (306 BC)
Battle of Ephesus (258 BC)
Battle of Cos (261/255 BC)
Battle of Andros (246 BC)
Battle of Actium (31 BC)

The Ptolemaic navy was the naval force of the Ptolemaic Kingdom and later empire from 305 to 30 BC. It was founded by King Ptolemy I. Its main naval bases were at Alexandria, Egypt and Nea Paphos (New Paphos) in Cyprus. It operated in the East Mediterranean in the Aegean Sea, the Levantine Sea, but also on the river Nile and in the Red Sea towards the Indian Ocean. [1]

Contents

History

There were a number of maritime powers competing across the Eastern Mediterranean during this period, and the major naval powers in the Aegean in 322 BC were the Athenian navy and Macedonian navy. [2] When the Athenians learned of Alexander’s death, Athens was at the forefront of the rebellion from Macedonian hegemony, which developed into the Lamian War. Athens mobilized 170 ships to Macedon’s 240, and that eventually the Macedonian navy ‘destroyed’ the Athenian fleet in a series of battles in 322 BC. [2] After this the Athenian navy ceased to be an important independent naval force in the Aegean again. [2] The period after the death of Alexander in 320 BC various successors to Alexander were competing with each other for naval supremacy to have an effective naval force in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean. [3]

The early Ptolemies focused of developing naval instead of striving to develop a land empire in Greece or Asia. [3] Ptolemy I initially competed against other Diadochoi for naval supremacy in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, before experiencing a crushing defeat at the hands of Demetrius I at the Battle of Salamis in 306 BC. From 295 to 260 BC, the Ptolemaic navy seems to have been a dominant maritime force in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean. Ptolemy II, succeeding his father, maintained the policy ensuring the navy was dominant naval force in the Eastern Mediterranean. He expand the Ptolemaic navy into the Hellenistic world’s largest navy, in addition to commissioning some of the largest warships ever built in the ancient world. [2]

Ptolemy I’s major maritime rival in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean was therefore Antigonus I (assisted by his son, Demetrius I of Macedon). The Macedonian king Perdiccas briefly threatened Ptolemy in 321 BC when he sent an army and naval force to invade Egypt, when this operation failed he was assassinated by his officers that fleet was eventually acquired by Antigonus. [2] Antigonus chose not to focus on maritime affairs until 315 BC, after he first campaigned into the former Achaemenid Empire to defeat Eumenes. After this, he returned to the Mediterranean, where a coalition of Ptolemy, Cassander and Lysimachus was preparing to face him. [2]

Antigonus started a gigantic ship-building program, building five dockyards stating he would soon have a navy of 500 ships, but only 250 of these were actually constructed. [2] However, Ptolemy I had the ascendancy during this period, since Antigonus’ demoralized troops complained that Ptolemy was "dominating the sea". During this period, when Antigonus focused his attention to the Aegean Sea, that was when Ptolemy I also became personally active in the Aegean. [2] In 314 BC that Antigonus made his declaration of ‘freedom for the Greeks,’ intended to scupper the political influence of the other Alexandrian successors in the Aegean. Feeling that his own political interests were being threatened by Antigonus he also issued a similar declaration, [4] and order a naval force of 50 ships be sent to the Peloponnese, under the command of admiral Polycleitus. [5]

In 313 BC, Seleucus (who was serving as Ptolemy’s Admiral) led a Ptolemaic fleet around Phoenicia and into the Aegean. [6] This force assisted Cassander’s navy in attacking Lemnos, before retiring to the island of Cos. Ptolemy I attentions then were diverted elsewhere, in dealing with a revolt in Cyrene and Demetrius’ presence in Syria, as well as spending time organizing Cyprus. [2] Antigonus’ war fleet was active around the Aegean in between 313 and 312 BC, and attacked Miletus. After the peace agreement brokered in 311 BC, Ptolemy I took personal command a Ptolemaic fleet sent on an expedition into the Aegean, the intention may have been to capture the Macedonian throne from Cassander. [2] Ptolemy I succeeded in capturing Andros and Megara, and managed to military garrison both Sicyon and Corinth, after a diplomatic negotiations with Polyperchon. It was during this naval expedition that the future Ptolemy II was born on Cos during this naval expedition, which may have in influenced his own future interest in the maritime affairs. [2]

In 306 BC Antigonus ordered his fleet under his son Demetrius to head to Cyprus for what was to be the decisive naval conflict with Ptolemy, this naval engagement was known as the Battle of Salamis of 306 BC, that resulted in victory for Antigonid forces. [2] Following the defeat of Ptolemaic navy at Salamis the Ptolemaic Kingdom ceased to be the dominant naval force in the Eastern Mediterranean. In 305 BC the Antigonid navy sent a large fleet of 200 warships and 170 transports on an expedition to capture Rhodes one of Ptolemy’s major allies. [2] Almost ten years following the navy's loss at Salamis the navy was rebuilt and was once again projecting its naval power into the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean, taking full control of Cyprus for good. [2]

In 294 BC recorded by Plutarch, Demetrius began construction of a huge shipbuilding program that was to consist of 500 ships built at dockyards in Corinth, Chalcis, Pella and Piraeus. [2] This program was halted when following his seven year reign he lost his throne in 288 BC, at which point Ptolemy I took this chance to return to the matters of Greek affairs by personally commanding an expedition of his Aegean Fleet sent into the Aegean Sea. The expedition succeeded, he gained possession of Cyprus and strategic bases in the Aegean like Andros, the Ptolemaic navy once again became the strongest navy in the Eastern Mediterranean area. [2]

After this, the Ptolemaic navy remained unchallenged for almost 30 years when there followed a number of decisive naval battles in the Aegean during the reign of Ptolemy II. The first was at the Battle of Ephesus involving the Ptolemaic Kingdom and its former ally Rhodes it took place of the coast of Anatolia at Ephesus. The Rhodian fleet was under the command of Agathostratus, whilst the Ptolemaic fleet was commanded by an Athenian admiral called Chremonides resulted in a major defeat for Ptolemaic navy. The outcome of which was the success breaking Ptolemaic dominance in the Aegean Sea.

To ensure the Ptolemaic navy never gained resurgence in the Aegean region, a further engagement, the Battle of Cos, said to have taken place either in 261 BC or 255 BC. [7] This proved to be the decisive battle of the Second Syrian War. The battle was fought by the fleets of Ptolemy II and his admiral Patroclus against Antigonus II Gonatas of Macedonia, resulting in another defeat for the Ptolemaic navy, which also led to resurgence of Macedonian naval power in the region. [7]

It was during the Chremonidean War that the Ptolemaic navy was able to effectively blockade Macedonia, and restricted Antigonus II to the mainland Greece. [7] Nine years later in 246 BC the Ptolemaic Kingdom sent another fleet back to the Aegean during the Third Syrian War to confront the forces of Macedonia once again it was defeated and withdrew to Egypt. [8]

For almost the next two hundred years the navy was not involved in any further major conflicts until the Final War of the Roman Republic, during which the Roman Senate declared war on the Ptolemaic Egyptian queen Cleopatra VII, Mark Antony, her lover and ally, betrayed the Roman government and joined the war on Cleopatra's side. After the decisive victory for Octavian at the naval engagement at Battle of Actium in 31 BC, Cleopatra and Antony withdrew to Alexandria, where Octavian besieged the city until both Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide in 30 BC. Ptolemaic Egypt was annexed as a Roman province, leaving the Roman navy as only force in the entire Mediterranean.

Supreme Commander

Callicrates held the title of nauarchos (admiral) and was appointed supreme commander of the Ptolemaic navy, in effect a Commander-in-Chief. [9] [10] The title was not conferred on a regular basis. In 142 BC the 'nauarchia' was added to the functions of the governor-generals of Cyprus to denote supreme commander of the Ptolemaic Navy for the Mediterranean if not for the entire Ptolemaic Empire. [11] This title and its responsibility was inscribed on the base of a statue of Seleucus, Governor of Cyprus (142-131 BC) erected by the city of Kourion. [12] Governors of Cyprus from 142 BC down through to the reign of Ptolemy IX Soter II, co held two military titles that of Strategoi and Naurarch of the Ptolemaic Fleet. [13]

NameDatesAppointer
Callicrates 270–250 BC Ptolemy II [14]
Seleucus, son of Bithys 144–ca. 130 BC Ptolemy VIII Euergetes [15]
Crocus ca. 130–124 BC [16] [17]
Theodorus, son of Seleucus 123–118 BC [15]
Helenus of Cyrene (1st time)118–117 BC [15]
Ptolemy IX Soter II 117–116 BC< [15]
Ptolemy X Alexander 116–114 BC [15] Ptolemy IX Soter II
Helenus of Cyrene (2nd time)114 BC–106 BC [15]
King Ptolemy IX Soter II 105–88 BC [15] himself
Potamon105–88 BC [15] Ptolemy IX Soter II
Chaereas?88–80 BC
King Ptolemy of Cyprus 80–53 BC [15] himself

Fleet Commanders

Below is a list of post holders holding the title of nauarchos, some of whom were fleet commanders, commanding individual fleets, whilst others were supreme commanders of the navy such as Callicrates. [9]

NameDatesAppointed byNotes/Ref
Polycleitus 313 BC Ptolemy I Soter [5]
Menelaus 322-254 BC Ptolemy I Soter and Ptolemy II [18]
Zenon 286 BC Ptolemy I Soter [19]
Timosthenes 280s-270s BC Ptolemy II [20]
Philocles, King of Sidon 260–253 BC Ptolemy II [21]
Perigenes 218 BC Ptolemy IV Philopator [22]

Fleets

Alexandrian fleet

The Ptolemaic Kingdom constructed a huge navy following the victory of Ptolemy II during the First Syrian War (274–271 BC), as a result the Ptolemaic Navy was successful in repulsing both the Seleucid Empire and the Kingdom of Macedonia for control of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean. [23] Ancient Greek records seem to confirm that Ptolemy II possessed a fleet of 336 warships, that were rated according to the number of banks of oars they possessed. [24] Athenaeus records that Ptolemy II had at his disposal more than 4,000 ships that consisted of individual war fleets in addition to transports and ships from allies. [24] The Alexandrian Fleet was said to number about 336 warships, not including those ships stationed elsewhere. [24] The cost of maintaining this fleet would have been enormous. [24]

Aegean fleet

The Aegean fleet was established and headquartered at Thera from the 3rd century BC. This was the main wartime fleet for the entire Aegean Sea and was stationed in the city's harbour. It was disbanded in 145 BC. [25]

Nile River fleet

The Nile Fleet or Royal River fleet was a naval force garrisoned at Alexandria from at least the 3rd century BC. [26] Part of this fleet included a river guard force or police patrol to ensure the free movement of commerce up and down the Nile, which in these times could be dangerous. The Nile fleet was operating until at least 94 BC. [26]

Red Sea fleet

The Red Sea Fleet, was based at Berenice Troglodytica seaport of Egypt on the west coast of the Red Sea. [27] The fleet's primary role was to protect trade convoys or shipping on the main trade route between Southern Arabia, India, Sri Lanka and Upper Egypt. [28]

Bases and ports

Cyprus was the main base of the Ptolemaic navy outside of Alexandria for almost 200 years, it was where the Ptolemies sourced their timber to build their warships. Nea Paphos in south-west Cyprus was a centre of Ptolemaic administration, possessed a major harbour, and the city and the surrounding region. [29] Its importance as a major shipbuilding location in Ptolemaic times when Ptolemy II Philadelphos had two very large ships built there by the naval architect Pyrgoteles son of Zoes. [30] Paphos became the Ptolemaic capital of Cyprus around 200 BC, and the headquarters of the Ptolemaic strategos. [31] Ephesus was established as a naval base in 262 BC. After the Ptolemaic navy was defeated at the Battle of Ephesus (ca. 258 BC) the base was retaken by the Seleucid Empire. In 246 BC Seleucid forces abandoned the base leaving the Ptolemies to move in again. Ephesos remained as a military base until 197 BC when Antiochus III seized the city. [32] Samos was first established as a naval base between 280 and 270 BC. It remained an important naval base for the Ptolemies until 201 BCE when Philip V of Macedon conquered the island. In 197 BC the base was recaptured by, shortly after that, the island regained its freedom. [33] As with Itanos, Patroclus had built a military facility on the island of Thera in 267/6 BC whilst on his way to Attica leading Ptolemaic forces during the Chremonidean War. Patroclus then appointed Apollodotos as the base commander. After Ptolemy VIII ascended to the throne in 145 BC he withdrew all Ptolemaic forces from Thera. [33]

#Base/PortArea
1. Alexandria Mediterranean Sea
2. Berenice Troglodytica Red Sea
3. Ephesus Aegean Sea
4. Itanos, Crete [34] Aegean Sea
5. Kom Ombo [35] Upper Nile
6. Nea Paphos, Cyprus Levantine Sea
7. Ptolemais, Phoenicia Levantine Sea
8. Salamis, Cyprus Levantine Sea
9. Samos Aegean Sea
10. Thera [36] Aegean Sea
#battleagainstdate/spart ofresult
1. Naval expedition against Greece Corinth, Megara & Sikyon 308 BC Fourth War of the Diadochi Won. [37]
2. Battle of Salamis Macedonian navy & Athenian navy 306 BCFourth War of the DiadochiLoss. [38]
3. Battle of Cos Macedonian navy 261/255 BC Second Syrian War Loss.
4. Battle of Ephesus Rhodian navy258 BC Second or Third Syrian Wars Loss. [39]
5. Battle of Andros Macedonian navy246 BC Third Syrian War Loss. [40]
6. Battle of the Plane Tree Pass Seleucid navy218 BC Fourth Syrian War Undecided [41]
7. Battle of Actium Roman navy 31 BC Final War of the Roman Republic Loss. [42]

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Fischer-Bovet, Christelle (2014). Army and Society in Ptolemaic Egypt. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. pp. 58–59. ISBN   9781107007758.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Robinson, Carlos. Francis. (2019). "Queen Arsinoë II, the Maritime Aphrodite and Early Ptolemaic Ruler Cult". Chapter: Naval Power, the Ptolemies and the Maritime Aphrodite. pp.79-94. A thesis submitted for the degree of Master of Philosophy. University of Queensland, Australia.
  3. 1 2 Robinson. pp.79-94.
  4. ↑ Worthington, Ian (2016). Ptolemy I: King and Pharaoh of Egypt. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. pp. 118–119. ISBN   9780190202330.
  5. 1 2 Montagu, John Drogo (2006). Greek and Roman Warfare: Battles, Tactics and Trickery. Port Adelaide, Australia: Greenhill. p. 254. ISBN   9781853676857.
  6. ↑ Worthington. pp. 118-119.
  7. 1 2 3 Rickard, J (6 June 2007), Battle of Cos, 258 BC, http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_cos.html
  8. ↑ Tarn, W. W. (1909). "The Battles of Andros and Cos". The Journal of Hellenic Studies. 29 (2): 264–285. doi:10.2307/624686. ISSN   0075-4269. JSTOR   624686.
  9. 1 2 Hauben 2013, p. 52.
  10. ↑ Bing, Peter (2009). The Scroll and the Marble: Studies in Reading and Reception in Hellenistic Poetry. University of Michigan at Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. p. 235. ISBN   9780472116324.
  11. ↑ Mavrogiannis, Theodoros. "The Mausoleum of Ptolemy Eupator and the "Tombs of the Kings" at Nea Paphos in the Light of the Portraiture of the Ptolemaic Strategoi from Voni - Kythrea', Ostraka XXV 2016, pp. 119-162". academia.edu. University of Cyprus, Department of History and Archaeology.: 123. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  12. ↑ Mitford, Terence Bruce (1971). The Inscriptions of Kourion. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States: American Philosophical Society. pp. 98–99. ISBN   9780871690838.
  13. ↑ Bagnall 1976, p. 47.
  14. ↑ Canevaro, Mirko; Gray, Benjamin David (2018). The Hellenistic Reception of Classical Athenian Democracy and Political Thought. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. p. 31. ISBN   9780198748472.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Bagnall 1976, pp. 45, 47.
  16. ↑ T. B. Mitford: "The Hellenistic Inscriptions of Old Paphos," The Annual of the British School at Athens, 56 (1961), p. 28, no. 74. Supplementum Epigraphicum Graecum 13.573. Inscriptions de Délos 1528 = OGIS 140.
  17. ↑ Bagnall 1976, p. 45.
  18. ↑ Sharpe, Samuel (1852). "V". The History of Egypt from the Earliest Times Till the Conquest by the Arabs A. D. 640 by Samuel Sharpe: Vol. 1. London, England: Edward Moxon. p. 206.
  19. ↑ Buraselis 2013, p. 106.
  20. ↑ Matvejevic, Predrag; Matvejević, Predrag (1999). Mediterranean: A Cultural Landscape. Berkeley, California, United States: University of California Press. p. 158. ISBN   9780520207387.
  21. ↑ Chaniotis, Angelos (2018). Age of Conquests: The Greek World from Alexander to Hadrian. Cambridge, MA, United States: Harvard University Press. p. 268. ISBN   9780674659643.
  22. ↑ "Polybius • Histories — Book 5. 68". penelope.uchicago.edu. University of Chicago. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  23. ↑ Muhs, Brian (2 August 2016). "7:The Ptolemaic Period (332–30 BCE)". The Ancient Egyptian economy, 3000-30 BCE. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. ISBN   9781107113367.
  24. 1 2 3 4 Muhs.
  25. ↑ Constantakopoulou, Christy (2017). Aegean Interactions: Delos and Its Networks in the Third Century. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. p. 48. ISBN   9780198787273.
  26. 1 2 Kruse 2013, pp. 172–185.
  27. ↑ Sidebotham, Steven E. (2019). Berenike and the Ancient Maritime Spice Route. Berkeley, California, United States.: University of California Press. p. 52. ISBN   9780520303386.
  28. ↑ Sidebotham, Steven E. (1986). Roman Economic Policy in the Erythra Thalassa: 30 B.C.-A.D. 217. Leiden, Netherlands.: BRILL. p. 60. ISBN   9789004076440.
  29. ↑ Christodoulou, Paraskevi; Satraki, Anna (2010). POCA 2007: Postgraduate Cypriot Archaeology Conference. Cambridge. England: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 265. ISBN   9781443826198.
  30. ↑ "The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites, PACHIA AMMOS ("Minoa") Ierapetra district, Crete., PANTELIMONUL DE SUS, see ULMETUM, PAPHOS or Nea Paphos (Kato Paphos) Cyprus". www.perseus.tufts.edu. Princeton, New Jersey, United States.: Princeton University. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
  31. ↑ Christodoulou. p.265.
  32. ↑ Glomb, Tomáš; Mertel, Adam; Pospíšil, Zdeněk; Stachoň, Zdeněk; Chalupa, Aleš (21 March 2018). "Ptolemaic military operations were a dominant factor in the spread of Egyptian cults across the early Hellenistic Aegean Sea". PLOS ONE. 13 (3): S1 Appendix Ptolemaic garrisons and naval bases. Bibcode:2018PLoSO..1393786G. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0193786 . ISSN   1932-6203. PMC   5862441 . PMID   29561857.
  33. 1 2 Public Library of Science (PLOS).
  34. ↑ Grainger, John D. (2010). The Syrian Wars. Leiden, Netherlands.: BRILL. p. 114. ISBN   9789004188310.
  35. ↑ Bagnall, Roger S. (2004). Egypt from Alexander to the Early Christians: An Archaeological and Historical Guide. Los Angeles, California, United States: Getty Publications. p. 239. ISBN   9780892367962.
  36. ↑ Constantakopoulou. p.48.
  37. ↑ Morkot, Robert (2010). The A to Z of Ancient Egyptian Warfare. Lanham, Maryland, United States.: Rowman & Littlefield. p. xxxi. ISBN   9780810876255.
  38. ↑ Jaques, Tony (2007). Dictionary of Battles and Sieges: P-Z. Westport, Connecticut, United States.: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 887. ISBN   9780313335396.
  39. ↑ Fischer-Bovet, Christelle (2014). Army and Society in Ptolemaic Egypt. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. p. 61. ISBN   9781107007758.
  40. ↑ Rickard, J (17 June 2007), Battle of Andros, 246 or 245 B.C., http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_andros.html
  41. ↑ Rickard, J (18 June 2007), Battle of the Plane Tree Pass, 218 BC, http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_plane_tree_pass.html
  42. ↑ Wilson, Nigel Guy (2006). Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece. London: Psychology Press. p. 172. ISBN   9780415973342.

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

This article concerns the period 319 BC – 310 BC.

This article concerns the period 269 BC – 260 BC.

This article concerns the period 249 BC – 240 BC.

Year 246 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Crassus and Licinus. The denomination 246 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Demetrius I Poliorcetes</span> King of Macedon (294–288 BC)

Demetrius I Poliorcetes was a Macedonian Greek nobleman and military leader who became king of Asia between 306 – 301 BC and king of Macedon between 294–288 BC. A member of the Antigonid dynasty, he was the son of its founder, Antigonus I Monophthalmus and his wife Stratonice, as well as the first member of the family to rule Macedon in Hellenistic Greece.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ptolemy I Soter</span> Macedonian general, founder and first Pharaoh of the Ptolemaic Kingdom

Ptolemy I Soter was a Macedonian Greek general, historian, and successor of Alexander the Great who went on to found the Ptolemaic Kingdom centered on Egypt. Ptolemy was basileus and pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt from 305/304 BC to his death in 282 BC, and his descendants continued to rule Egypt until 30 BC. During their rule, Egypt became a thriving bastion of Hellenistic civilization and Alexandria a great seat of Greek culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ptolemy II Philadelphus</span> Pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt, 284 – 246 BCE

Ptolemy II Philadelphus was the pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt from 284 to 246 BC. He was the son of Ptolemy I, the Macedonian Greek general of Alexander the Great who founded the Ptolemaic Kingdom after the death of Alexander, and Queen Berenice I, originally from Macedon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hellenistic Greece</span> Historical period of Greece following Classical Greece

Hellenistic Greece is the historical period of Ancient Greece following Classical Greece and between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the annexation of the classical Greek Achaean League heartlands by the Roman Republic. This culminated at the Battle of Corinth in 146 BC, a crushing Roman victory in the Peloponnese that led to the destruction of Corinth and ushered in the period of Roman Greece. Hellenistic Greece's definitive end was with the Battle of Actium in 31 BC, when the future emperor Augustus defeated Greek Ptolemaic queen Cleopatra VII and Mark Antony, the next year taking over Alexandria, the last great center of Hellenistic Greece.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Salamis (306 BC)</span> Naval battle during the Wars of the Diadochi

The naval Battle of Salamis in 306 BC took place off Salamis, Cyprus between the fleets of Ptolemy I of Egypt and Antigonus I Monophthalmus, two of the Diadochi, the generals who, after the death of Alexander the Great, fought each other for control of his empire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ancient history of Cyprus</span>

The ancient history of Cyprus shows a precocious sophistication in the Neolithic era visible in settlements such as at Choirokoitia dating from the 9th millennium BC, and at Kalavassos from about 7500 BC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chremonidean War</span> War fought by some Greek city-states and Ptolemaic Egypt against Antigonid Macedonian

The Chremonidean War was fought by a coalition of some Greek city-states and Ptolemaic Egypt against Antigonid Macedonian domination. It ended in a Macedonian victory which confirmed Antigonid control over the city-states of Greece.

Medius or Medeios, son of Oxythemis, was a native of Larissa in Thessaly, an officer and friend of Alexander the Great, and a senior commander under Antigonus I Monophthalmus.

The Battle of Cos was fought in c. 261 BC, or as late as 255 BC, between an Antigonid fleet and a Ptolemaic fleet. Antigonus II Gonatas led his forces to victory, possibly over Patroclus, admiral of Ptolemy II. It has been widely assumed that the battle severely damaged Ptolemaic control of the Aegean, but this has been contested After the battle, Antigonus dedicated his flagship to Apollo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ptolemaic Kingdom</span> Hellenistic-era Greek state in Egypt (305–30 BC)

The Ptolemaic Kingdom or Ptolemaic Empire was an Ancient Greek polity based in Egypt during the Hellenistic period. It was founded in 305 BC by the Macedonian general Ptolemy I Soter, a companion of Alexander the Great, and ruled by the Ptolemaic dynasty until the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC. Reigning for nearly three centuries, the Ptolemies were the longest and final dynasty of ancient Egypt, heralding a distinctly new era for religious and cultural syncretism between Greek and Egyptian culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marion, Cyprus</span>

Marion was one of the Ten city-kingdoms of Cyprus. It was situated in the north-west of the island in the Akamas region, close to or under the present town of Polis. Both Strabo and Pliny the Elder mention the city in their writings.

Patroclus, also spelled Patroklos, was a leading official and admiral of the Ptolemaic Kingdom. He is best known for his activity during the Chremonidean War, when he commanded the navy sent to Greece by Ptolemy II. His early career is obscure, but it must have been distinguished enough for him to rise to the chief priesthood of Alexander and the Theoi Adelphoi in 271/270 BC. After the outbreak of the Chremonidean War, he led a diplomatic and military expedition to the Aegean Sea that expanded Ptolemaic control by establishing bases at Crete, Ceos, Thera, Attica and the Argolid. From these bases he tried, without much success, to aid the Athenians against Antigonus II Gonatas, King of Macedon. He may have been the defeated Ptolemaic commander at the Battle of Cos, which marked the end of Ptolemaic thalassocracy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">League of the Islanders</span> Ancient federal league of Greek city-states on the Cyclades islands

The League of the Islanders or Nesiotic League was a federal league (koinon) of ancient Greek city-states encompassing the Cyclades islands in the Aegean Sea. Organized under the auspices of Antigonus Monophthalmus in c. 314/3 BC, it remained under Antigonid control until c. 287 BC. It then passed under the aegis of the Ptolemaic Kingdom until Ptolemaic control over the central Aegean collapsed and the League was dissolved sometime in the mid-3rd century BC. The Cycladic islands reverted to independence, except for a few that passed under Macedonian control. The league was re-established under the leadership of Rhodes in c. 200 BC, and survived until c. 167 BC.

Philocles was King of Sidon and a military commander under the Ptolemaic dynasty in the late 4th and early 3rd century BC, and one of the architects of Ptolemaic imperialism in the coasts of Asia Minor and the Aegean Sea. He served as an admiral in the Ptolemaic navy during the Second Syrian War.

Callicrates or Kallikrates, was a fleet commander (nauarchos) of the Ptolemaic navy, who served under Ptolemy II Philadelphus during the Second Syrian War from 270 to 250 BC.

The Achaemenid navy was the principle naval force of the Achaemenid Empire which existed between 525 BC and 330 BC.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.