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Berenice II of Egypt

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Father
  
Magas of Cyrene

Died
  
221 BC

Role
  
Ruler

Name
  
Berenice of

House
  
Ptolemaic dynasty

Mother
  

Berenice II of Egypt berenice ii Tumblr

Issue
  
Ptolemy IV, Arsinoe III, Alexander, Magas, Berenice

Children
  
Ptolemy IV Philopator, Arsinoe III of Egypt

Similar People
  
Ptolemy III Euergetes, Ptolemy IV Philopator, Ptolemy II Philadelphus, Berenice IV of Egypt, Ptolemy V Epiphanes

Grandchildren
  
Ptolemy V Epiphanes

Parents
  
Apama II, Magas of Cyrene

Berenice II (267 or 266 BC – 221 BC) was a ruling queen of Cyrene by birth, and a queen and co-regent of Egypt by marriage to her cousin Ptolemy III Euergetes, the third ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt.

Contents

Berenice II of Egypt HAIR39S MYTHOLOGY

Life

Berenice II of Egypt httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediacommonsthu

She was the daughter of Magas of Cyrene and Queen Apama II. She was the grand-daughter of Berenice I.

Queen of Cyrene

Berenice II of Egypt Head of Berenice II 269221 BC Ptolemaic Period

In approximately 249 BC, her father died, making Berenice ruling queen of Cyrene. Soon after her father died, Berenice was married to Demetrius the Fair, a Macedonian prince. Berenice had no children with Demetrius.

Berenice II of Egypt Berenice II queen of Egypt Britannicacom

After Demetrius came to Cyrene, he became the lover of her mother, Apama. In a dramatic event, Bernice had him killed in Apama's bedroom. Berenice stood at the door and instructed the hired assassins not to hurt her mother while she attempted to protect her mother's lover. Apama lived on afterward. Although there were many plots to assassinate her, all hired assassins became fearful of her "exceptional courage."

Queen of Egypt

After the death of Demetrius, Berenice married Ptolemy III.

Berenice is said to have participated in the Nemean Games (between 245 and 241 BC) and to have competed in Olympic games at some unknown date. Berenice had a strong equestrian background and was accustomed to fighting from horseback. According to Hyginus's Astronomica, he tells of when Berenice's father Magas, king of Cyrene in modern day Libya, and his troops were routed in battle, Berenice mounted a horse, rallied the remaining forces, killed many of the enemy, and drove the rest to retreat.

Soon after her second husband's death in 221 BC, she was murdered at the instigation of her son, Ptolemy IV, with whom she probably was associated in the government.

Nevertheless, a decree “issued delineating the cult for the newly deified queen Berenike II…specified that men and women singers were to sing all day in front of the statue of Berenike.”

Issue

With Ptolemy III she had the following children:

  • Arsinoe III, born in c. 246/245 BC. She later married her brother Ptolemy IV
  • Ptolemy IV Philopator, born c. 244 BC
  • Possibly Lysimachus. The name of the son is not known, but he is said to have been born in c. 243 BC.
  • Alexander, born in c. 242 BC
  • Magas, born in c. 241 BC. Scalded to death in his bath by Theogos or Theodotus, at the orders of Ptolemy IV.
  • Berenice, probably born in c. 239 BC and died a year later.
  • Myths

    During her second husband's absence on an expedition to Syria, she dedicated locks of her hair to Aphrodite for his safe return and victory in the Third Syrian War, and placed the offering in the temple of the goddess at Zephyrium. By some unknown means, the hair offering disappeared when Ptolemy returned to Egypt, Conon of Samos explained the phenomenon in courtly phrase, by saying that it had been carried to the heavens and placed among the stars. The name Coma Berenices or Berenice's hair, applied to a constellation, commemorates this incident. This made the locks of Berenice the only war trophy in Greco-Roman sky. Callimachus celebrated the transformation in a poem, of which only a few lines remain, but there is a fine translation of them by Catullus. Neoclassical painters illustrated this theme abundantly.

    The city of Euesperides was refounded by her and received her name, Berenice (near the location of Benghazi). The asteroid 653 Berenike, discovered in 1907, also is named after Queen Berenice.

    References

    Berenice II of Egypt Wikipedia


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