300s BC (decade)

This article concerns the period 309 BC – 300 BC.

Events

309 BC

By place

Asia Minor

• Ptolemy I Soter personally commands a fleet that takes the coastal regions of Lycia and Caria from Antigonus I Monophthalmus, capturing the cities of Phaselis, Xanthos, Kaunos, Iasos and Myndus.

Greece

• Cassander, who has held Roxana, widow of Alexander the Great, in prison for a number of years, has her put to death along with her young son Alexander, the nominal King Alexander IV of Macedon.
• Heracles, the illegitimate son of Alexander the Great
  , to Polyperchon to be treated as a pretender to the throne of Macedonia.
• Polyperchon manages to form an army consisting of 20,000 infantry and 1,000 cavalry and challenges Cassander's army. Instead of fighting, Cassander starts negotiations with Polyperchon. By offering to make him a general of his own army and placing him as governor of Peloponnesus, he convinces Polyperchon to change allegiance to him instead of Heracles. As a result, Polyperchon murders Heracles and his mother Barsine.
• Areus I succeeds his grandfather Cleomenes II as king of Sparta.
• A census is carried out in Athens. 21,000 citizens, 10,000 foreign residents and 400,000 others – women, children and slaves – are living in the city.

Carthage

• Since 480 BC, an aristocratic Council of Elders has effectively ruled Carthage. The titular king of Carthage, Bomilcar, attempts a coup to restore the monarchy to full power. His attempt fails, which leads to Carthage becoming, in name as well as in fact, a republic.
• Leaving his brother Antander to continue the defence of Syracuse, Agathocles lands in North Africa with the aim of distracting the Carthaginians from their siege of Syracuse. Agathocles concludes a treaty with Ophellas, ruler of Cyrenaica. He then takes advantage of the civil unrest in Carthage and nearly succeeds in conquering the city.

Roman Republic

• The Samnites again rise against Rome. Lucius Papirius Cursor is appointed dictator for the second time and wins a great victory at Longula over the Samnites.

China

• Soon after the
  State of Shu (in modern-day Sichuan province), they employ the Shu engineer Bi Ling to create the Guanxian irrigation
  system, which will eventually provide for over five million people in an area of 40 to 50 square miles (130 km²), still in use today.

By place

Mesopotamia/Babylonia

• Antigonus marches his main army east to confront Seleucus. The Antigonid and Seleucid armies meet somewhere in southern Mesopotamia or northern Babylonia and a battle is fought to a draw. The next morning Seleucus launches a surprise attack on Antigonus' camp and wins a simple victory. After his defeat Antigonus gives up on his ambitions to reconquer the eastern provinces.^[1]
• Satrapies
  .

Greece

• Asia Minor into Greece, where he takes possession of Corinth, Sicyon and Megara.^[2]
• Ptolemy makes peace with Cassander^[2]
• Cleopatra of Macedon is assassinated by the order of Antigonus^[2]

Roman Republic

• The
  Marsians join the war against Rome
  . However, Rome is able to control the uprising.
• The
  Etruscans
  sue for peace with Rome, which is granted by the Romans on severe terms.

By place

Babylonia

• Antigonus makes peace with Seleucus, who is left free to consolidate his empire in the east.

Syria

• Antigonus founds the city of Antigoneia on the Orontes intended to become his eastern capital.^[3]

Asia Minor

• Demetrius. They gather a fleet of 250 ships and a large army in western Asia Minor. Antigonus gives his son 5.000 talents and some of his top officers, chief among them Medius of Larissa and Aristodemus of Miletus
  .

• At the beginning of June (the 26th day of the
  Pireaus, Athens' harbour, his forces are able to secure control of the entire port city, except the fortress on the Mounychia which remains in the hands of Dionysius, the commander of Cassander
  's garrison in Athens.
• Demetrius of Phalerum, who ruled Athens for 10 years with the support of Cassander, recognizes his possition has become untenable. He opens up negotiations, and after several diplomatic exchanges involving Aristodemus of Miletus, Antigonus top diplomat, he is given safe conduct to Thebes. Eventually he settles in Alexandria^[4]
• Demetrius captures the fortress on the Mounychia and razes it to the ground. The old democracy, with the old constitution, is re-establishes in Athens under the leadership of Stratocles and Demochares. The grateful Athenians honour Antigonus and Demetrius as divine saviours (theoi soteres).^[4]
• Demetrius captures Megara and there he restores the old constitution as well.^[5]
• Antigonus gives Athens control of the island of Lemnos and Imbros.^[6]
• Upon becoming ruler of
  Demetrius and through him with Antigonus
  .

• The tyrant of Syracuse, Agathocles, is forced to return to Syracuse to deal with growing unrest in his Sicilian dominions. Agathocles' expeditionary army, that remain behind in Africa, near Carthage, is soon destroyed.
• The Carthaginian general Hamilcar fails to take Syracuse and is captured and killed.
• The city of Segesta in Sicily is destroyed by Agathocles.

China

• The Chinese King Wuling of Zhao reforms the military of the State of Zhao by putting more emphasis on cavalry over charioteers.

By topic

Philosophy

• Epicureanism, a system of philosophy based upon the teachings of Epicurus, is founded (approximate date).

306 BC

By place

Cyprus

• Mediterranean.^[7]

• Antigonus I Monophthalmus proclaims himself king of
  Asia Minor and northern Syria thus commencing the Antigonid dynasty. He appoints his son Demetrius king and co-regent.^[8]

• A peace agreement is reached between Syracuse and Carthage. The peace restricts Carthaginian power in Sicily to the area west of the Halycus (Platani) River. This agreement allows the tyrant of Syracuse, Agathocles, to strengthen his rule over the Greek cities of Sicily.

Egypt

• Antigonus Monophthalmus tries to follow up his victory in Cyprus by invading Egypt with a large army and a formidable fleet, but Ptolemy Soter successfully holds the frontier against him. However, the year's events mean that Ptolemy no longer engages in overseas expeditions against Antigonus.

Thrace

• A four-drachma coin, picturing
  Lysimachos from this time until 281 BC. At least one of them is now preserved at the British Museum in London
  .

By place

Seleucid Empire

• Tigris River
  as his capital.

Syria

• Demetrius to initiate the Siege of Rhodes, as the city has refused him armed support against Ptolemy.^[9]

By place

Greece

• Demetrius shows ingenuity in devising a new siege engine: a wheeled siege tower named Helepolis (or "Taker of Cities"), which stands 40 meters tall and 20 meters wide and weighs 180 tons.^[10]
• The Siege of Rhodes ends after a year.
• Demetrius Poliorcetes and the Rhodians come to a truce, with the agreement that the city should be autonomous, should keep its own revenue and that the Rhodians should be allies of Antigonus unless he is at war with Ptolemy.^[11]
• Antigonus then concludes a peace treaty and an alliance with the island state, guaranteeing it autonomy and neutrality in his conflicts with Ptolemy.^[12][11]
• Cassander invades Attica and besieges Athens. He captures the island of Salamis off the coast of Athens.
• Demetrius Poliorcetes invades mainland Greece for Asia-Minor, drives Cassander out of central Greece and liberates Athens. In return, the Athenians bestow on him a new religious honour, synnaos (meaning "having the same temple") of the temple of the goddess Athena
  .

• The
  Etruscans four years earlier. Under the peace, Rome gains no territory, but the Samnites renounce their hegemony over Campania. Rome is also successful in ending the revolts amongst the tribes surrounding Roman territory.^[13]

• The
  Mauryan emperor Chandragupta defeats Seleucus I Nicator as he tries to invade India
  .

By place

Seleucid Empire

• Maurya dynasty of India. In a pact concluded by the two leaders, Seleucus agrees to territorial concessions in exchange for 500 war-trained elephants.^[14]
• Seleucus refounds the town of Orrhoa in northern
  Macedon.^{[citation needed}
  ]

• Cassander and Lysimachus persuade Seleucus and Ptolemy to join them in trying to destroy Antigonus.^{[citation needed]}
• Arcadia join his side.^{[citation needed}
  ]

• The citizens of Tarentum seek the help of the Spartan general, Cleonymus. He is able to pacify the Lucanians with the agreement of the Romans.^{[citation needed]}

302 BC

By place

Asia Minor

• Following their agreement to work together to defeat
  Asia Minor from Babylonia, while Ptolemy attacks Syria and Lysimachus
  moves into the western part of Asia Minor.
• Docimus, the regent of Phrygia, and Phoenix, the strategos of Lycia, desert Antigonus.
• The
  talents
  .

Greece

• Antigonus' son
  Demetrius Poliorcetes attacks Cassander's forces in Thessaly. Cassander loses his possessions south of Thessaly to Demetrius. Antigonus and Demetrius crown their success by renewing the pan-Hellenic league. Ambassadors from all the Hellenic states (with the exception of Sparta, Messenia and Thessaly) meet at Corinth
  to elect Antigonus and Demetrius protectors of the new league.
• As Antigonus is finding his enemies closing in on him, a truce is made and the gains by Demetrius have to be abandoned. Demetrius reaches Ephesus to support his father.
• Pyrrhus is dethroned as King of Epirus by an uprising and joins Demetrius while in exile.

301 BC

By place

Asia Minor

• In the
  Demetrius Poliorcetes are defeated by the forces of Lysimachus and Seleucus. Antigonus is killed in the battle.^[15]
• Antigonus' defeat and death secures
  Macedonia. Through this victory, Lysimachus is able to add the greater part of Asia Minor to his European possessions while Seleucus now controls most of Syria. However, Demetrius is able to keep a foothold in Greece.^[15]

• The southern part of Syria is occupied by Ptolemy.

300 BC

By place

Greece

• sacrifices
  .

Egypt

• Pyrrhus, the King of Epirus, is taken as a hostage to Egypt after the Battle of Ipsus and makes a diplomatic marriage with the princess Antigone, daughter of Ptolemy and Berenice.
• Ptolemy concludes an alliance with King
  Arsinoe II
  in marriage.

China

• Warring States period

Seleucid Empire

• Seleucus founds the city of Antioch, some 20 miles up the Orontes River, naming it after his father.^[16]
• After the death of his wife
  Demetrius Poliorcetes
  .

By topic

Art

• In
  Macedonia, the artist Gnosis
  creates his Stag Hunt mosaic floor decoration.

309 BC

• Ptolemy II Philadelphus, King of Egypt (d. 246 BC)

308 BC

• Hiero II, Greek Sicilian tyrant and king of Syracuse (approximate date)
• Zhao Sheng, Chinese chancellor of the Zhao State (approximate date)

305 BC

• Zou Yan, Chinese philosopher (d. 240 BC)
• Arsinoe I, queen of Egypt

304 BC

• Ashoka, Indian emperor and ruler of the Maurya Empire in present-day Eastern India 273–232 BC (d. 232 BC)
• Erasistratus, Greek anatomist and physician (approximate date)

303 BC

• Xiaowen of Qin, 34th Ruler of Qin (d. 251 BC)

302 BC

• Maharani Devi, Mauryan empress and wife of Ashoka
• Xiaowen of Qin, Chinese king of the Qin State (d. 250 BC)

Deaths

309 BC

• King Alexander IV of Macedon (b. 323 BC)
• Cleomenes II, Agiad King of Sparta
• Macedon (b. 327 BC
  )
• Ptolemy (general)
  general of Antigonus I Monophthalmus
• Roxana, wife of Alexander the Great, and mother of Alexander IV of Macedon
• Zhang Yi, strategist of the Chinese state of Qin

• Cleopatra of Macedon, sister of Alexander the Great and daughter of King Philip II of Macedon and Olympias (b. c. 356 BC)

305 BC

• Tiberius Minucius Augurinus

301 BC

• Macedonian general under Alexander the Great who founded and became the first king of the Macedonian dynasty of the Antigonids (b. 382 BC
  )
• Aristobulus of Cassandreia, Greek historian (b. ca. 375 BC)

References