Demetrius II
Demetrius II: king of ancient Macedonia, ruled 239-229.
Relatives
- Father: Antigonus II Gonatas
- Mother: Phila II (daughter of Stratonice I and Seleucus I Nicator)
- First wife: Stratonice II (daughter of Antiochus II Theos and Laodice I)
- Second wife: Nicaea (perhaps engagement only), daughter of Alexander of Corinth
- Third wife: Phthia
- Son: Philip V
- Daughter: Apame III (married to Prusias I the Lame of Bithynia)
Main deeds
- Late 250s: Marries to Stratonice II (daughter of Antiochus II Theos and Laodice I); they have no children
- Mid 240s: Engagement or brief marriage to Nicaea, daughter of Alexander of Corinth; her dowry is Corinth, which becomes part of Macedonia
- 239: After a coregency, Demetrius II becomes sole ruler when his father dies
- An anti-Macedonian alliance is created by the Aetolian League and the Achaean League, which is led by Aratus; beginning of the Demetrian War
- Demetrius marries Phthia, daughter of Alexander II of Epirus (his first wife, Stratonice II, returns to Syria); Demetrius occupies southern Epirus, which he uses against Aetolia, which also has to give up Boeotia
- 238: Birth of Philip V
- Demetrius prevents Aratus' surprise attacks on Argos and Athens
- 233: The Aetolians capture Ambracia in southern Epirus
- 229: Unexpected death; his queen Phthia marries to Antigonus III Doson, who acts as regent for Demetrius' son Philip V
Succeeded by: Antigonus III Doson
Literature
- O.L. Gabelko & Yu.N. Kuzmin, "Matrimonial Policy of Demetrius II of Macedonia. New Solutions of Old Problems", in: Vestnik drevnej istorii 264 (2008) 141-164