Bircenna
Encyclopedia
Bircenna was an Illyria
n princess and later an Epirote queen.
Bircenna was the daughter of Bardylis II
of the Dardanian Kingdom. Bircenna was one of the five wives of Pyrrhus of Epirus
; she married him around 292 BC
. Pyrrhus married Bircenna for diplomatic reasons and to increase his power in southern Illyria
as he was an ally of Bircenna's father. Bircenna had a son named Helenus, who at an early age accompanied his father in his ambitious campaigns conducted in the Italian peninsula
. Lanassa
, one of the wives of Pyrrhus, left him because she claimed that he took better care of his 'barbarian' wives.
Illyria
In classical antiquity, Illyria was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by the Illyrians....
n princess and later an Epirote queen.
Bircenna was the daughter of Bardylis II
Bardylis II
Bardyllis II was an Illyrian king of the Dardanian Kingdom. Bardyllis II also called Bardyllis the Younger was the son of Cleitus and grandson of Bardyllis, both enemies of the Macedonian kingdom...
of the Dardanian Kingdom. Bircenna was one of the five wives of 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...
; she married him around 292 BC
292 BC
Year 292 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 Scaeva...
. Pyrrhus married Bircenna for diplomatic reasons and to increase his power in southern Illyria
Illyria
In classical antiquity, Illyria was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by the Illyrians....
as he was an ally of Bircenna's father. Bircenna had a son named Helenus, who at an early age accompanied his father in his ambitious campaigns conducted in the Italian peninsula
Italian Peninsula
The Italian Peninsula or Apennine Peninsula is one of the three large peninsulas of Southern Europe , spanning from the Po Valley in the north to the central Mediterranean Sea in the south. The peninsula's shape gives it the nickname Lo Stivale...
. Lanassa
Lanassa
Lanassa was the name of some ancient noble women:*the mythical ancestress of the royal dynasty of the Molossians in Epirus*Lanassa , a daughter of king Agathocles of Syracuse, wife of king Pyrrhus of Epirus and later of the diadoch Demetrius I of Macedon...
, one of the wives of Pyrrhus, left him because she claimed that he took better care of his 'barbarian' wives.