Apama II
Encyclopedia
For other uses of this name see, Apama (disambiguation)
Apama II , sometimes known as Apame II was a Syrian Greek
Princess of the Seleucid Empire
and through marriage was a Queen of Cyrenaica
.
Apama II was of Greek Macedonian
and Persian descent
. She was one of the daughters and among the children born to the second Seleucid King Antiochus I Soter
and Seleucid Queen Stratonice of Syria
. Among her siblings were Stratonice of Macedon and the Seleucid King Antiochus II Theos
. Her paternal grandparents was the first Seleucid King Seleucus I Nicator
and his wife Queen Apama
I while her maternal grandparents was the King from the Antigonid dynasty
Demetrius I of Macedon
and his wife Queen Phila. Apama was the name sake of her paternal grandmother and paternal aunt of the same name . Apama was born and raised in the Seleucid Empire.
Around 275 BC, Apama married her maternal third cousin the Greek King Magas of Cyrene
. The maternal grandmothers of Apama and Magas were paternal first cousins. The fathers of their grandmothers were brothers . Although her marriage to Magas was a dynastic one, Antiochus I arranged this marriage to occur as a part of a political alliance between him and Magas to invade Egypt
. Through her marriage to Magas, Apama became Queen of Cyrenaica. In Cyrenaica, there is a surviving honorific inscription dedicated to Apama, as a monarch and wife of Magas.
After 270 BC, Apama bore Magas a daughter called Berenice II
, who would be their only known child. In 250 BC, Magas and Apama had betrothed Berenice II, to her paternal cousin and Ptolemaic prince
Ptolemy III Euergetes
. Magas and the father of Ptolemy III, were maternal half brothers .
Either in 250 BC or 249 BC, Magas had died . Apama had become a widower and a powerful Greek monarch. In order to protect Cyrenaica from the Ptolemaic dynasty
, Apama summoned her maternal uncle the Greek Macedonian prince Demetrius the Fair
to Cyrenaica. Apama offered Demetrius, her daughter in marriage to him; in return he would become King. Demetrius agreed to his niece’s request and married her daughter. When Demetrius became king, there was no opposition in his rise to the throne. When Demetrius became king, he became so ambitious it reached the point of recklessness.
Sometime after Demetrius married his great niece, Apama and Demetrius became lovers . Berenice became jealous of her mother’s affair with her husband, she argued with both her mother and her husband fatally stabbed Demetrius who died in Apama’s arms. The poem Coma Berenices by Greek poet Callimachus
(lost, but known in a Latin translation or paraphrase by Catullus
), apparently refers to her killing of Demetrius: "Let me remind you how stout-hearted you were even as a young girl: have you forgotten the brave deed by which you gained a royal marriage?"
After the death of Demetrius, Cyrenaica became a part of the Ptolemaic Empire . Berenice II left Cyrenaica and travelled to Egypt where she married her cousin Ptolemy III and through her marriage became Queen of Egypt . Apama had travelled with Berenice II to Alexandria where eventually she settled there with her daughter and her family.
Apama is sometimes known as Arsinoe . After she married Magas, there is a possibility Apama changed her name to Arsinoe, which was a more familiar Ptolemaic name . Apama was related to the Ptolemaic dynasty through marriage and was a distant relative of Eurydice of Egypt
and Berenice I of Egypt
, who were among the various wives of Ptolemy I Soter
.
Apama (disambiguation)
-Nature:* Apama, a synonym of the flowering plant genus Thottea* Sepia apama, a species of the Australian Giant Cuttlefish* For the tree in South America, see Tabebuia rosea* The Food plant Apama tomentosa, see Atrophaneura coon-People:...
Apama II , sometimes known as Apame II was a Syrian 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....
Princess of the Seleucid Empire
Seleucid Empire
The 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...
and through marriage was a Queen of Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica is the eastern coastal region of Libya.Also known as Pentapolis in antiquity, it was part of the Creta et Cyrenaica province during the Roman period, later divided in Libia Pentapolis and Libia Sicca...
.
Apama II was of Greek 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...
and Persian descent
Persian people
The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...
. She was one of the daughters and among the children born to the second Seleucid King Antiochus I Soter
Antiochus I Soter
Antiochus I Soter , was a king of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire. He reigned from 281 BC - 261 BC....
and Seleucid Queen Stratonice of Syria
Stratonice of Syria
For other persons with the same name, see StratoniceStratonice of Syria was the daughter of king Demetrius Poliorcetes and Phila, the daughter of Antipater...
. Among her siblings were Stratonice of Macedon and the Seleucid King Antiochus II Theos
Antiochus II Theos
Antiochus II Theos was a king of the Hellenistic Seleucid Kingdom who reigned 261 BC – 246 BC). He succeeded his father Antiochus I Soter in the winter of 262–61 BC...
. Her paternal grandparents was the first Seleucid King Seleucus I Nicator
Seleucus I Nicator
Seleucus I was a Macedonian officer of Alexander the Great and one of the Diadochi. In the Wars of the Diadochi that took place after Alexander's death, Seleucus established the Seleucid dynasty and the Seleucid Empire...
and his wife Queen Apama
Apama
Apama , sometimes known as Apama I or Apame I was the wife of the first ruler of the Seleucid Empire, Seleucus I Nicator. They married at Susa in 324 BC...
I while her maternal grandparents was the King from the Antigonid dynasty
Antigonid dynasty
The Antigonid dynasty was a dynasty of Hellenistic kings descended from Alexander the Great's general Antigonus I Monophthalmus .-History:...
Demetrius I of Macedon
Demetrius I of Macedon
Demetrius I , called Poliorcetes , son of Antigonus I Monophthalmus and Stratonice, was a king of Macedon...
and his wife Queen Phila. Apama was the name sake of her paternal grandmother and paternal aunt of the same name . Apama was born and raised in the Seleucid Empire.
Around 275 BC, Apama married her maternal third cousin the Greek King Magas of Cyrene
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...
. The maternal grandmothers of Apama and Magas were paternal first cousins. The fathers of their grandmothers were brothers . Although her marriage to Magas was a dynastic one, Antiochus I arranged this marriage to occur as a part of a political alliance between him and Magas to invade 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...
. Through her marriage to Magas, Apama became Queen of Cyrenaica. In Cyrenaica, there is a surviving honorific inscription dedicated to Apama, as a monarch and wife of Magas.
After 270 BC, Apama bore Magas a daughter called Berenice II
Berenice II
Berenice II was the daughter of Magas of Cyrene and Queen Apama II, and the wife of Ptolemy III Euergetes, the third ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt....
, who would be their only known child. In 250 BC, Magas and Apama had betrothed Berenice II, to her paternal cousin and Ptolemaic prince
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...
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:...
. Magas and the father of Ptolemy III, were maternal half brothers .
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...
, Apama summoned her maternal uncle the Greek Macedonian prince Demetrius the Fair
Demetrius the Fair
For the similarly named Macedonian ruler, see Demetrius II of Macedon.Demetrius the Fair or surnamed The Handsome , also known in modern ancient historical sources as Demetrius of Cyrene, was a Hellenistic king of Cyrene.-Family:Demetrius was of Greek Macedonian descent...
to Cyrenaica. Apama offered Demetrius, her daughter in marriage to him; in return he would become King. Demetrius agreed to his niece’s request and married her daughter. When Demetrius became king, there was no opposition in his rise to the throne. When Demetrius became king, he became so ambitious it reached the point of recklessness.
Sometime after Demetrius married his great niece, Apama and Demetrius became lovers . Berenice became jealous of her mother’s affair with her husband, she argued with both her mother and her husband fatally stabbed Demetrius who died in Apama’s arms. The poem Coma Berenices by Greek poet Callimachus
Callimachus
Callimachus was a native of the Greek colony of Cyrene, Libya. He was a noted poet, critic and scholar at the Library of Alexandria and enjoyed the patronage of the Egyptian–Greek Pharaohs Ptolemy II Philadelphus and Ptolemy III Euergetes...
(lost, but known in a Latin translation or paraphrase by Catullus
Catullus
Gaius Valerius Catullus was a Latin poet of the Republican period. His surviving works are still read widely, and continue to influence poetry and other forms of art.-Biography:...
), apparently refers to her killing of Demetrius: "Let me remind you how stout-hearted you were even as a young girl: have you forgotten the brave deed by which you gained a royal marriage?"
After the death of Demetrius, Cyrenaica became a part of the Ptolemaic Empire . Berenice II left Cyrenaica and travelled to Egypt where she married her cousin Ptolemy III and through her marriage became Queen of Egypt . Apama had travelled with Berenice II to Alexandria where eventually she settled there with her daughter and her family.
Apama is sometimes known as Arsinoe . After she married Magas, there is a possibility Apama changed her name to Arsinoe, which was a more familiar Ptolemaic name . Apama was related to the Ptolemaic dynasty through marriage and was a distant relative of Eurydice of Egypt
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...
and Berenice I of Egypt
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:...
, who were among the various wives 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...
.
Sources
- Heckel W., Who’s who in the age of Alexander the Great: prosopography of Alexander’s empire, Wiley-Blackwell, 2006
- http://www.livius.org/ap-ark/apame/apame_ii.html
- http://www.virtualreligion.net/iho/antigonus_3.html
- http://www.livius.org/be-bm/berenice/berenice_ii.html
- http://www.tyndalehouse.com/egypt/ptolemies/berenice_i_fr.htm
- http://www.tyndalehouse.com/egypt/ptolemies/apama-arsinoe_fr.htm