PYRRHUS, King of Epirus, b. about 318 B. c., a Greek warrior, whose personal bravery and passion for adventurous exploits equals anything recorded of the knights of chivalry, was the son of iEacides, who succeeded to the throne of Epirus by the death of his cousin, Alexander, 326 B.C. Alexander was the brother of Olympias, the mother of Alexander the great; and thus young Pyrrhus was a distant kinsman of the Macedonian hero, whose career of far-stretching conquest he dared to dream of imitating. After experiencing many vicissitudes of fortune in his youth, he became sole king of Epirus in 295 B.C.; and, in the following.year, increased his territories by the addition of the western parts of Macedonia, which he obtained in reward for aidilhg Alexander, son of Cassander, against his brother, Antipater, in their struggle for the paternal inheritance. In 281 B.C. a glorious prospect opened up before the eyes of the restless warrior—nothing less than the conquest of Rome and the western world, which (if he should achieve it) would confer on him a renown equal to that of his Macedonian kinsman. The Taren tines, a Greek colony in lower Italy, then at war with the Romans, sent an embassy to Pyrrhus, in the name of all the Greek colonies in Italy, offering him the command of all their troops against their enemies. The king was overjoyed at the proposal; instantly accepted it; and in the beginning of 280 B. c. sailed for Tarentum with 20,000 foot, 3,000 horse, 2,000 archers, 500 stingers, and a number of elephants. The gay, pleasure-loving Tarentines had no great relish for the rigorous service of war, and were far from pleased at the strict measures taken by Pyrrhus to inure them to its hardships. The first battle between Pyrrhus and the Romans (who were commanded by the consul, M. Valerius Laevinus) took place at the river Sins in Lucania. The contest was long, obstinate, and bloody; and Pyrrhus only succeeded by bringing forward his elephants, whose strange appearance and gigantic size excited a sudden panic among the Romans. It was a hard bought victory for Pyrrhus, who said, as lie looked upon the field, thick-strewn with his numerous dead, " Another such victory, and I must return to Epirus alone." Many of the Italian nation now joined Pyrrhus (for Rome was not liked by her neighbors and dependants), and he proceeded on his march toward central Italy. The Roman senate
was thoroughly frightened, and would have come to terms with Pyrrhus but for the stir speech of old Ap. Claudius Omens, which made them resolve to "fight it out" with the foreigner. Pyrrhus, after penetrating to within 20 m. of Rome, found it impossible to proceed further with safety, as one Roman army occupied the city, and another hung upon his flanks and rear. He therefore withdrew to Campania, and thence to Tarentum, where he wintered. The campaign of 279 B.C. was carried on in Apulia, and the prin cipal engagement took place near Asculum. The Romans were again defeated; but Pyrrhus himself lost so heavily that he felt it impossible to follow up his victory, and again withdrew to Tarentum. Here a truce was entered into between the belligerents, -and Pyrrhus passed over into Sicily to assist the Sicilian Greeks against the Carthagin ians, 278 B.C. His first exploits in that island were both brilliant and successful; but the repulse which he sustained in his attack on Lllybseurn broke the spell which invested his name. Soon afterward he became involved in misunderstandings with the Greeks, and in 276 B.C. he quitted the island in disgust, to renew his war with Rome. While crossing over to the mainland the Carthaginians attacked him, and destroyed 70 of his ships, and although he reached Tarentum in safety, his prospects were now much more clouded than at first. In 274 B.c. he fought a great battle with the Romans, under the consul Curius Dentatus, near Beneventum, and was utterly defeated, escaping to Tarentum with only a few personal attendants. He now saw himself forced to abandon Italy and return to Epirus, where be almost immediately engaged in war with Antigonus Gonatas, son of Demetrius, and king of Macedonia. His success was complete, for the Macedonian troops deserted to him en masse, and he once more obtained possession of the country; but nothing could satisfy his love of fighting, and in less than a year he was induced to enter on a war with the Spartans. He marched a large force into the PeIoponnesus, and tried to take their city, but was repulsed in all his attempts. He then proceeded against Argos. where he met his death, 272 B.C., in the 46th year of his reign.