Pyrrhus Ier

Biography

He claimed to go down from Achille and was a relative distant from Alexandre. The father of Pyrrhus, Éacide, having been driven out of his kingdom by his subjects mutinés and having perished of violent death, the child was collected by Glaucias, king of Illyrie, and is twelve years old, was restored by this prince (towards 307 av. J-C. - 306 av. J-C.). It was again dispossessed by his Néoptolème cousin, who had stripped his father. It stuck to the fortune of Antigone and of Démétrios Poliorcète, fought near them with Ipsos (301) and announced themselves like a large captain. After this battle, it was brought like hostage in Egypt, where it married Antigonè, girl of Bérénice Ire. This alliance enabled him to return in Épire and Néoptolème had to share the capacity with him. A little later this one died poisoned.

At this point in time Pyrrhus, to which his States could hardly provide 10.000 soldiers, solved to control the world. Thanks to the anarchy which continued to reign in the succession of Alexandre, it conquered half of the Macedonia, then the remainder of this region and finally again lost the whole (285), driven out by Lysimaque with which it had divided its kingdom. Pyrrhus, although it was one of most formidable the generals of the history, was only one poor politician, who could not exploit his advantages and which well too often dispersed its efforts. Coming to assistance with Tarente, it intervened in Large-Greece against Rome. He thought of easily conquering the Italy and then, the Sicily and the Africa. It is this dream of ambition, to which rétorqua wise the Cinéas, that Plutarque told. Victory of Héraclée (280) that it gained over the Romains, terrified with the sight of the elephants, appeared one moment to give him reason. One second victory was gained with the battles of Ausculum (279) but was to him so expensive that it was made invite in Sicily by the Greek cities to avoid a new confrontation with the Romans. He would have declared besides, at the conclusion of this battle: “If we must gain another victory over the Romans, we are lost”. The victories of Pyrrhus, so dearly acquired are at the origin of the expression “Pyrrhic victory” who indicates a battle gained at the price of heavy losses.

Pyrrhus drove out then the Carthaginois of Sicily, but dissatisfied the inhabitants of the island who forced it to re-embark. The Carthaginians destroyed part of its fleet and the Romans, led by Curius Dentatus, crushed it with Bénévent (275). He guerroya still with various successes in Greece and Macedonia, and was killed, during a forwarding against Sparte, while penetrating of sharp force in the city of Argos, by a launched tile of the hand of an old woman.

Quotations

“When Cinéas said to Pyrrhus, who proposed to enjoy the rest with his friends after having conquered a great part of the world, that it would make better advance itself his happiness while enjoying this rest consequently, without the outward journey to seek per so many tirednesses, it gave him a council which received great difficulties, and which was hardly more reasonable than the intention of this ambitious young person. One and the other supposed that the man could be satisfied with oneself and his goods present, without filling the vacuum of his heart of imaginary hopes, which is false. Pyrrhus could be happy neither nor after having conquered in front the world. ”
(Pascal, Thought , Brunschvicg, 139)

Source

New illustrated Larousse , 1898-1907, a publication in the public domain

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