Theoxena of Syracuse
Encyclopedia
For others of this name see Theoxena (disambiguation)
Theoxena was a Greek
Macedonian
noblewoman. Through her mother’s second marriage, she was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty
and through marriage was a Queen of Sicily
.
Theoxena was the second daughter and third child of the noblewoman Berenice
and her first husband Philip
. She had two older siblings: a brother called Magas
and a sister called Antigone
.
Her father, Philip was the son Amyntas by an unnamed mother. Based on the implying of Plutarch
(Pyrrhus 4.4), her father was previously married and had children, including daughters born to him. He served as a military officer in the service of the Greek King Alexander the Great and was known in commanding one division of the Phalanx
in Alexander’s wars.
Her mother Berenice was a noblewoman from Eordeaea. She was the daughter of local obscure nobleman Magas
and noblewoman Antigone. Berenice’s mother was the niece of the powerful Regent
Antipater
and was a distant collateral relative to the Argead dynasty
. Her name was either chosen by her parents or she was probably named in honor of a relative either from her mother’s or father’s family.
About 318 BC, her father died of natural causes. After the death of Theoxena’s father, Theoxena's mother took her and her siblings to Egypt
where they were a part of the entourage of her mother’s second maternal cousin Eurydice
. Eurydice was then the wife of Ptolemy I Soter
, the first Greek Pharaoh and founder of the Ptolemaic dynasty.
By 317 BC, Ptolemy I fell in love with Berenice and divorced Eurydice to marry her. Her mother through her marriage to Ptolemy I, was an Egyptian Queen and the Queen mother of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Through her mother’s marriage to Ptolemy I, Theoxena was a stepdaughter to Ptolemy I; became an Egyptian Princess living in her stepfather’s court and was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Her mother bore Ptolemy I three children: two daughters, Arsinoe II, Philotera
and the future Pharaoh Ptolemy II Philadelphus
.
Around the year 300 BC, Ptolemy I was in engaged in a round of diplomatic marriages involving his children. Theoxena was a part of his strategy by marrying Agathocles of Syracuse, a Syracusan Greek Tyrant of Syracuse and later King of Sicily. Theoxena married Agathocles as his third and final wife. From her marriage to Agathocles, reveals and indicates that Theoxena was a noblewoman of high status, in particular when she lived in Sicily. Little is known on her relationship with her husband and her life in Sicily. Agathocles became tyrant of Syracuse in 317 BC and declared himself Sicilian King in 305 BC.
She was a stepmother to Agathocles’ daughter, Lanassa
who was the second wife of King Pyrrhus of Epirus
. Pyrrhus was previously married to Theoxena’s first sister, Antigone. Theoxena had with Agathocles a son, Archagathus
and a daughter, Theoxena
. Her children with Agathocles are only known through surviving archaeological evidence.
When Agathocles felt his death was approaching, he sent away Theoxena and their children to Egypt. Agathocles died in 289 BC and declared his kingdom as a democracy on his death. Theoxena spent her remaining years living in Egypt with her family. Theoxena and Agathocles’ children and their descendants rosed to very high prominence in the reigns of Theoxena’s half-brother Ptolemy II; her nephew Ptolemy III Euergetes
and her great-nephew Ptolemy IV Philopator
.
Theoxena (disambiguation)
Theoxena is an ancient Greek name and can refer to:* Theoxena of Syracuse , a Greek Macedonian noblewoman who was the third wife of Greek King Agathocles of Syracuse...
Theoxena was a Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
Macedonian
Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...
noblewoman. Through her mother’s second marriage, she was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty
Ptolemaic dynasty
The Ptolemaic dynasty, was a Macedonian Greek royal family which ruled the Ptolemaic Empire in Egypt during the Hellenistic period. Their rule lasted for 275 years, from 305 BC to 30 BC...
and through marriage was a Queen of Sicily
Sicily
Sicily 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,...
.
Theoxena was the second daughter and third child of the noblewoman Berenice
Berenice I of Egypt
Berenice I was a Greek Macedonian noblewoman and through her marriage to Ptolemy I Soter, became the first Queen of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt.-Family:...
and her first husband Philip
Philip (first husband of Berenice I of Egypt)
Philip was a Greek Macedonian nobleman that lived in the 4th century BC.Philip was the son of Amyntas by an unnamed mother. He served as a military officer in the service of the Greek King Alexander the Great. Philip was known in commanding one division of the Phalanx in Alexander’s wars and...
. She had two older siblings: a brother called Magas
Magas of Cyrene
Magas of Cyrene was a Greek Macedonian nobleman. Through his mother’s second marriage he was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty. He became King of Cyrenaica and he managed to wrestle independence for Cyrenaica from the Greek Ptolemaic dynasty of Ancient Egypt.-Family Background & Early Life:Magas...
and a sister called Antigone
Antigone of Epirus
Antigone was a Greek Macedonian noblewoman. Through her mother’s second marriage was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty and through marriage was a Queen of Epirus....
.
Her father, Philip was the son Amyntas by an unnamed mother. Based on the implying of Plutarch
Plutarch
Plutarch then named, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. 46 – 120 AD, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
(Pyrrhus 4.4), her father was previously married and had children, including daughters born to him. He served as a military officer in the service of the Greek King Alexander the Great and was known in commanding one division of the Phalanx
Phalanx formation
The phalanx is a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar weapons...
in Alexander’s wars.
Her mother Berenice was a noblewoman from Eordeaea. She was the daughter of local obscure nobleman Magas
Magas of Macedon
Magas was a Greek Macedonian nobleman that lived in the 4th century BC.Magas was a local nobleman from obscure origins and was from Eordeaea. Little is known on his life....
and noblewoman Antigone. Berenice’s mother was the niece of the powerful Regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
Antipater
Antipater
Antipater was a Macedonian general and a supporter of kings Philip II of Macedon and Alexander the Great. In 320 BC, he became Regent of all of Alexander's Empire. Antipater was one of the sons of a Macedonian nobleman called Iollas or Iolaus and his family were distant collateral relatives to the...
and was a distant collateral relative to the Argead dynasty
Argead dynasty
The Argead dynasty was an ancient Greek royal house. They were the ruling dynasty of Macedonia from about 700 to 310 BC. Their tradition, as described in ancient Greek historiography, traced their origins to Argos, in southern Greece...
. Her name was either chosen by her parents or she was probably named in honor of a relative either from her mother’s or father’s family.
About 318 BC, her father died of natural causes. After the death of Theoxena’s father, Theoxena's mother took her and her siblings to Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
where they were a part of the entourage of her mother’s second maternal cousin Eurydice
Eurydice of Egypt
Eurydice was daughter of Antipater and wife of Ptolemy, the son of Lagus. The period of her marriage is not mentioned by any ancient writer, but it is probable that it took place shortly after the partition of Triparadisus, and the appointment of Antipater to the regency, 321 BC. She was the...
. Eurydice was then the wife of Ptolemy I Soter
Ptolemy I Soter
Ptolemy I Soter I , also known as Ptolemy Lagides, c. 367 BC – c. 283 BC, was a Macedonian general under Alexander the Great, who became ruler of Egypt and founder of both the Ptolemaic Kingdom and the Ptolemaic Dynasty...
, the first Greek Pharaoh and founder of the Ptolemaic dynasty.
By 317 BC, Ptolemy I fell in love with Berenice and divorced Eurydice to marry her. Her mother through her marriage to Ptolemy I, was an Egyptian Queen and the Queen mother of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Through her mother’s marriage to Ptolemy I, Theoxena was a stepdaughter to Ptolemy I; became an Egyptian Princess living in her stepfather’s court and was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Her mother bore Ptolemy I three children: two daughters, Arsinoe II, Philotera
Philotera
Philotera was a Greek Macedonian noblewoman and a Greek Egyptian Princess of the Ptolemaic dynasty.Philotera was a daughter born to Ptolemy I Soter and Berenice I of Egypt. She had one older sister: Arsinoe II and a younger brother the future Pharaoh Ptolemy II Philadelphus...
and the future Pharaoh Ptolemy II Philadelphus
Ptolemy II Philadelphus
Ptolemy II Philadelphus was the king of Ptolemaic Egypt from 283 BCE to 246 BCE. He was the son of the founder of the Ptolemaic kingdom Ptolemy I Soter and Berenice, and was educated by Philitas of Cos...
.
Around the year 300 BC, Ptolemy I was in engaged in a round of diplomatic marriages involving his children. Theoxena was a part of his strategy by marrying Agathocles of Syracuse, a Syracusan Greek Tyrant of Syracuse and later King of Sicily. Theoxena married Agathocles as his third and final wife. From her marriage to Agathocles, reveals and indicates that Theoxena was a noblewoman of high status, in particular when she lived in Sicily. Little is known on her relationship with her husband and her life in Sicily. Agathocles became tyrant of Syracuse in 317 BC and declared himself Sicilian King in 305 BC.
She was a stepmother to Agathocles’ daughter, Lanassa
Lanassa (wife of Pyrrhus)
Lanassa was a daughter of king Agathocles of Syracuse, Sicily, perhaps by his second wife Alcia. In 295 BC Agathocles married Lanassa to King Pyrrhus of Epirus. Agathocles himself escorted his daughter with his fleet to Epirus to her groom. Lanassa brought the island of Corcyra as dowry into the...
who was the second wife of King Pyrrhus of Epirus
Pyrrhus of Epirus
Pyrrhus or Pyrrhos was a Greek general and statesman of the Hellenistic era. He was king of the Greek tribe of Molossians, of the royal Aeacid house , and later he became king of Epirus and Macedon . He was one of the strongest opponents of early Rome...
. Pyrrhus was previously married to Theoxena’s first sister, Antigone. Theoxena had with Agathocles a son, Archagathus
Archagathus of Libya
For others of this name see Archagathus Archagathus was a Syracusan Greek Prince and was a Ptolemaic Official.-Family Background:Archagathus was a man of Sicilian origin and his name was a well-attested local Greek name in Sicily...
and a daughter, Theoxena
Theoxena of Egypt
For others of this name see Theoxena Theoxena, also known as Theoxena the Younger to distinguish her from her mother was a Syracusan Greek Princess and was a noblewoman of high status.-Family Background:...
. Her children with Agathocles are only known through surviving archaeological evidence.
When Agathocles felt his death was approaching, he sent away Theoxena and their children to Egypt. Agathocles died in 289 BC and declared his kingdom as a democracy on his death. Theoxena spent her remaining years living in Egypt with her family. Theoxena and Agathocles’ children and their descendants rosed to very high prominence in the reigns of Theoxena’s half-brother Ptolemy II; her nephew Ptolemy III Euergetes
Ptolemy 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 her great-nephew Ptolemy IV Philopator
Ptolemy IV Philopator
Ptolemy IV Philopator , son of Ptolemy III and Berenice II of Egypt was the fourth Pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt...
.
Sources
- Ancient Library article: Theoxena no. 1
- Ancient Library article: Magas no.1
- Berenice I article at Livius.org
- Ptolemaic Dynasty - Affiliated Lines: The Antipatrids & Agathocles
- Ptolemaic Genealogy: Berenice I
- Ptolemaic Genealogy: Theoxena
- W. Heckel, Who’s who in the age of Alexander the Great: prosopography of Alexander’s empire, Wiley-Blackwell, 2006