Pleistarchus
King of Sparta
Reign480–459 BC
PredecessorLeonidas I
SuccessorPleistoanax
Diedc. 458 BC
FatherLeonidas I[1]
MotherGorgo

Pleistarchus (Greek: Πλείσταρχος Pleistarchos; died c. 458 BC) was the Agiad King of Sparta from 480 to 458 BC.[2]

Biography

Pleistarchus was born as a prince, likely the only son of King Leonidas I and Queen Gorgo. His grandparents were Kings Anaxandridas II and Cleomenes I.[3] He was born from an avunculate marriage – his parents were uncle and niece.[4] His uncle Cleombrotus was his tutor.[5]

Pleistarchus' father King Leonidas perished in 480 BC at the Battle of Thermopylae. For the early part of Pleistarchus's reign, his uncle Cleombrotus acted as regent; after Cleombrotus's death in 479 BC, Pleistarchus's cousin Pausanias was regent.[6]

It is unknown whether Pleistarchus was married. He died without an heir, and was succeeded by Pleistoanax, son of Pausanias.[7]

He had no known surviving relatives after his death, marking the end of his bloodline.

Notes

  1. ^ Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology/Pleistarchus 1.
  2. ^ Jona Lendering (2006-03-31). "Eurypontids and Agiads". Livius.org. Archived from the original on 2005-11-18. Retrieved 2011-07-24.
  3. ^ Herodotus; Histories, A. D. Godley (translator), Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1920; ISBN 0-674-99133-8. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
  4. ^ "Gorgo of Sparta". Ancienthistory.about.com. 2011-07-07. Archived from the original on 2016-08-18. Retrieved 2011-07-24.
  5. ^ Herodotus, The Greek-Persian War (Osiris, Budapest, 2000) ISBN 963-379-309-2
  6. ^ The History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides
  7. ^ Bradford, Alfred S. (2011). Leonidas and the Kings of Sparta. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger. p. 158. ISBN 978-0-313-38598-8.
Regnal titles Preceded byLeonidas I Agiad King of Sparta 480–458 BC Succeeded byPleistoanax
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