241 BC
Encyclopedia
Year 241 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar
. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Atticus and Cerco (or, less frequently, year 513 Ab urbe condita
). The denomination 241 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.
Roman calendar
The Roman calendar changed its form several times in the time between the founding of Rome and the fall of the Roman Empire. This article generally discusses the early Roman or pre-Julian calendars...
. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Atticus and Cerco (or, less frequently, year 513 Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita is Latin for "from the founding of the City ", traditionally set in 753 BC. AUC is a year-numbering system used by some ancient Roman historians to identify particular Roman years...
). The denomination 241 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
Anno Domini
and Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....
calendar era
Calendar era
A calendar era is the year numbering system used by a calendar. For example, the Gregorian calendar numbers its years in the Western Christian era . The instant, date, or year from which time is marked is called the epoch of the era...
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Greece
- The Eurypontid King of SpartaSpartaSparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...
, Agis IVAgis IVAgis IV , the elder son of Eudamidas II, was the 24th king of the Eurypontid dynasty of Sparta. Posterity has reckoned him an idealistic but impractical monarch.-Succession:...
, is called away from Sparta when Aratus of SicyonAratus of SicyonAratus was a statesman of the ancient Greek city-state of Sicyon and a leader of the Achaean League. He deposed the Sicyonian tyrant Nicocles in 251 BC. Aratus was an advocate of Greek unity and brought Sicyon into the Achaean League, which he led to its maximum extent...
, temporarily Sparta's ally, requests Agis' aid in his war against the AetoliaAetoliaAetolia is a mountainous region of Greece on the north coast of the Gulf of Corinth, forming the eastern part of the modern prefecture of Aetolia-Acarnania.-Geography:...
ns. Upon his return, Agis finds that his supporters are discontented with the rule of his uncle, Agesilaus, and are disillusioned by the delay in implementing the Agis IV's reforms. As a result, the Agiad king of Sparta, Leonidas IILeonidas IILeonidas II , was Agiad King of Sparta from 254 to 235 BC. He was raised at the Persian Court, and according to Plutarch's Life of Agis IV, he married a Persian woman. According to other sources, this non-Spartan wife was actually a Seleucid, possibly the daughter of Seleucus I Nicator by his...
, gains power, supported by mercenaries. Rather than engage in a war with Leonidas, Agis takes sanctuary in a temple, but is enticed out, summarily tried and then executed, along with his mother and grandmother. - Archidamus VArchidamus VArchidamus V was the 27th of the Kings of Sparta of the Eurypontid line, reigning 228-227 BC.He was the son of Eudamidas II and Agesistrata and through him the grandson of Archidamus IV, after whom he was named....
, son of the Spartan King, Eudamidas II, and grandson of Archidamus IVArchidamus IVArchidamus IV was a king of Sparta from 305 BC to c. 275 BC. He was the 23rd of the Eurypontids, the son of Eudamidas I and Arachidamia and the brother of Agesistrata, the nephew of Agis III and the grandson of Archidamus III. In 296 BC he was defeated by Demetrius Poliorcetes. He was succeded by...
, flees to MesseniaMesseniaMessenia is a regional unit in the southwestern part of the Peloponnese region, one of 13 regions into which Greece has been divided by the Kallikratis plan, implemented 1 January 2011...
after the murder of his brother Agis IV. - As general of the Achaean LeagueAchaean LeagueThe Achaean League was a Hellenistic era confederation of Greek city states on the northern and central Peloponnese, which existed between 280 BC and 146 BC...
, Aratus of SicyonAratus of SicyonAratus was a statesman of the ancient Greek city-state of Sicyon and a leader of the Achaean League. He deposed the Sicyonian tyrant Nicocles in 251 BC. Aratus was an advocate of Greek unity and brought Sicyon into the Achaean League, which he led to its maximum extent...
defeats the Aetolians at Pellene and then pursues a policy of establishing democracies in the PeloponnesePeloponneseThe Peloponnese, Peloponnesos or Peloponnesus , is a large peninsula , located in a region of southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...
.
Roman Republic
- March 10 – The CarthaginianCarthageCarthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
fleet sent to relieve the RomanRoman RepublicThe Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
blockade of the SicilianSicilySicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
cities of Lilybaeum and Drepanum is totally defeated near the Aegates Islands off western Sicily by the Roman fleet led by Roman consulConsulConsul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...
and commander, Gaius Lutatius CatulusGaius Lutatius CatulusGaius Lutatius Catulus was a Roman statesman and naval commander in the First Punic War.He was elected as a consul in 242 BC, a novus homo. During his consulship he supervised the construction of a new Roman fleet. This fleet was funded by donations from wealthy citizens, since the public treasury...
. The result is a decisive Roman victory which forces an end to the protracted First Punic WarFirst Punic WarThe First Punic War was the first of three wars fought between Ancient Carthage and the Roman Republic. For 23 years, the two powers struggled for supremacy in the western Mediterranean Sea, primarily on the Mediterranean island of Sicily and its surrounding waters but also to a lesser extent in...
, to Rome's distinct advantage. - The Carthaginians under Hamilcar BarcaHamilcar BarcaHamilcar Barca or Barcas was a Carthaginian general and statesman, leader of the Barcid family, and father of Hannibal, Hasdrubal and Mago. He was also father-in-law to Hasdrubal the Fair....
are forced to accept severe peace terms and agree to evacuate Sicily. As part of the treaty with Rome, Carthage agrees to abandon all its claims on Sicily, to refrain from sailing her warships in Italian waters and to pay an indemnity of 3,200 talentsTalent (weight)The "talent" was one of several ancient units of mass, as well as corresponding units of value equivalent to these masses of a precious metal. It was approximately the mass of water required to fill an amphora. A Greek, or Attic talent, was , a Roman talent was , an Egyptian talent was , and a...
. However, the Carthaginian army is allowed to return home with its arms. Rome is now the dominant power in the Western Mediterranean basin.
Carthage
- A mercenary army of some 20,000 is transported from Sicily to Carthaginian territory, by Carthaginian commander, Gesco. On arrival in Carthaginian territory, the mercenaries submit a demand to Hanno the GreatHanno the GreatThere were three leaders of ancient Carthage who were known as Hanno the Great, according to two historians . These figures they call for convenience: Hanno I the Great, Hanno II the Great, and Hanno III the Great...
for payment of their contracts. Hanno attempts, unsuccessfully, to convince the mercenaries to accept smaller payments due to Carthage's impoverished post-war conditions. Negotiations break down. The mercenaries take up arms, march on TunisTunisTunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants....
, occupy it, and threaten Carthage directly. - Given their strong position, the mercenaries inflate their demands and demand payment for the non-mercenary LibyaLibyaLibya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
n conscripts in the army as well. Gesco is sent to negotiate with the mercenaries at Tunis.
Pergamum
- Attalus I Soter succeeds his uncle, Eumenes IEumenes IEumenes I was dynast of the city of Pergamon in Asia Minor from 263 BC until his death in 241 BC. He was the son of Eumenes, the brother of Philetaerus, the founder of the Attalid dynasty, and Satyra, daughter of Poseidonius...
, to the throne of Pergamum.
Egypt
- Peace is finally reached between Ptolemy IIIPtolemy III Euergetes-Family:Euergetes was the eldest son of Ptolemy II Philadelphus and his first wife, Arsinoe I, and came to power in 246 BC upon the death of his father.He married Berenice of Cyrene in the year corresponding to 244/243 BC; and their children were:...
and Seleucus IISeleucus II CallinicusSeleucus II Callinicus or Pogon , was a ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire, who reigned from 246 to 225 BC...
. Ptolemy manages to keep the Orontes RiverOrontes RiverThe Orontes or ‘Āṣī is a river of Lebanon, Syria and Turkey.It was anciently the chief river of the Levant, also called Draco, Typhon and Axius...
region in SyriaSyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and AntiochAntiochAntioch on the Orontes was an ancient city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. It is near the modern city of Antakya, Turkey.Founded near the end of the 4th century BC by Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals, Antioch eventually rivaled Alexandria as the chief city of the...
as well as EphesusEphesusEphesus was an ancient Greek city, and later a major Roman city, on the west coast of Asia Minor, near present-day Selçuk, Izmir Province, Turkey. It was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League during the Classical Greek era...
in Asia MinorAsia MinorAsia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
and ThraceThraceThrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
and CiliciaCiliciaIn antiquity, Cilicia was the south coastal region of Asia Minor, south of the central Anatolian plateau. It existed as a political entity from Hittite times into the Byzantine empire...
.
Births
- Antiochus III the GreatAntiochus III the GreatAntiochus III the Great Seleucid Greek king who became the 6th ruler of the Seleucid Empire as a youth of about eighteen in 223 BC. Antiochus was an ambitious ruler who ruled over Greater Syria and western Asia towards the end of the 3rd century BC...
, younger son of Seleucus II CallinicusSeleucus II CallinicusSeleucus II Callinicus or Pogon , was a ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire, who reigned from 246 to 225 BC...
, the 6th ruler of the Seleucid EmpireSeleucid EmpireThe Seleucid Empire was a Greek-Macedonian state that was created out of the eastern conquests of Alexander the Great. At the height of its power, it included central Anatolia, the Levant, Mesopotamia, Persia, today's Turkmenistan, Pamir and parts of Pakistan.The Seleucid Empire was a major centre...
(d. 187 BC187 BCYear 187 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Lepidus and Flaminius...
)
Deaths
- Agis IVAgis IVAgis IV , the elder son of Eudamidas II, was the 24th king of the Eurypontid dynasty of Sparta. Posterity has reckoned him an idealistic but impractical monarch.-Succession:...
, Eurypontid King of SpartaSpartaSparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...
who has failed in his attempt to reform Sparta's economic and political structure (b. c. 265 BC265 BCYear 265 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Gurges and Vitulus...
) - Eumenes IEumenes IEumenes I was dynast of the city of Pergamon in Asia Minor from 263 BC until his death in 241 BC. He was the son of Eumenes, the brother of Philetaerus, the founder of the Attalid dynasty, and Satyra, daughter of Poseidonius...
, ruler of Pergamum from 263 BC263 BCYear 263 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Mesella and Crassus...
, liberator of his city from the overlordship of the Seleucids - ArcesilausArcesilausArcesilaus was a Greek philosopher and founder of the Second or Middle Academy—the phase of Academic skepticism. Arcesilaus succeeded Crates as the sixth head of the Academy c. 264 BC. He did not preserve his thoughts in writing, so his opinions can only be gleaned second-hand from what is...
, Greek philosopher, who has become the sixth head of the Greek Academy founded by Plato (b. c. 316 BC316 BCYear 316 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Rutilus and Laenas...
)