Hieron II
Part of The Encyclopedia of Southern Italy.
Hieron II: (b. 305 BC; d. 215 BC). King of Syracuse (r270-215 BC). The illegitimate son of a Syracusan noble named Hierocles, he claimed to be a descendant of Gelon, tyrant of Syracuse (r485 BC-478 BC). After serving on the staff of Pyrrhus of Epirus, he became the commander of Syracuse’s army in 275 BC. He married the daughter of Leptines, a powerful and wealthy nobleman of the city. After defeating the Mamertines near Mylae (mod. Milazzo), he was proclaimed king by the Syracusans in 270 BC. In 264 BC, he continued his war with the Mamertines, intending to break their power in NE Sicily. The Mamertines appealed to both the Carthaginians and Romans for help to defend their base at Messana, creating a crisis that sparked off the First Punic War. The arrival of a Roman army under Appius Claudius Caudex to support the Mamertines motivated Hieron to form an alliance with the Carthaginian commander Hanno. When the latter was defeated by the Romans, Hieron withdrew back to Syracuse. In 263 BC, faced with a probable attack by the Romans, Hieron agreed to sign a treaty of alliance with Appius Claudius. In return for support against the Carthaginians, Hieron was guaranteed his throne and control over SE Sicily. Hieron thereafter remained a loyal ally of Rome throughout the remainder of his long reign.
In general, Hieron’s reign was a prosperous one for Syracuse. He was free to build up his kingdom’s defenses with the blessings of the Romans. His court was center for art and science. Hieron encouraged his kinsman Archimedes in his education and studies.
When Hieron died in 215 BC at age 90, he was succeeded by grandson Hieronymus but the latter’s youth and inexperience left him vulnerable to the plots of his guardians. The peace and stability created by Hieron quickly fell into strife and chaos.