- 279 BC
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Events
By place
Greece
* An army of
Gaul s under Brennus invade Greece. A section of the army, commanded byBolgios , crushes aMacedon ian army led byPtolemy Keraunos , who is killed in the battle. At the narrow pass ofThermopylae , on the east coast of central Greece, Brennus' forces suffer heavy losses while trying to break through the Greek defence comprising thePhocians and theAetolians . Eventually Brennus finds a way around the pass but the Greeks escape by sea. Brennus pushes on toDelphi where he is defeated and forced to retreat, after which he dies of wounds sustained in the battle. His army falls back to the river Spercheios where it is routed by Thessalians and Malians. Some of the survivors settle in a part ofAsia Minor that will eventually be calledGalatia , while some settle inThrace , founding a short-lived city-state namedTylis .
* With the death of Ptolemy Keraunos, the previous King of Macedonia, Antipater II becomes king again. However, his new reign lasts only few months before he is killed by his cousin Sosthenes who becomes the new King of Macedonia.
* The Phocians are readmitted into theAmphictyonic League after they have joined in the defence of Delphi against the Gauls.Roman Republic
* The Carthaginians and the Romans agree to support each other against a common foe. The Carthaginians give Rome money and ships in their fight against Pyrrhus, the king of Epirus.
* Pyrrhus realizes that he cannot capture Rome and suggests peace terms to the Romans. Pyrrhus sends his chief advisor,Cineas , to Rome to negotiate a peace. Cineas demands that the Romans halt their aggression against the Greeks of southernItaly and restore the lands the Romans have taken from theBruttii , theApulia ns, and theSamnites . The Romans reject his demands, largely at the instigation of the former Roman censor,Appius Claudius Caecus .
* In renewed fighting, Pyrrhus of Epirus, leading the combined Tarantine,Oscan , Samnite, and Greek forces, wins a 'Pyrrhic victory ' against the Romans led by consul Publius Decius Mus at theBattle of Asculum , called such because his victory comes at a great cost to his own forces. Pyrrhus is reported to have said afterwards, "One more victory against the Romans and we shall be utterly ruined!" Disheartened, Pyrrhus retires to Tarentum and sends Cineas to make renewed peace overtures to Rome. These talks are inconclusive.Egypt
* The aggression of Ptolemy II of Egypt continues to cause friction with Antiochus, who loses
Miletus , in south-western Asia Minor, to Ptolemy.The Balkans
*
Scordisci Celts found a city called Singidon (RomanSingidunum ) which is today theSerbia n city ofBelgrade .Births
*
Deaths
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Ptolemy Keraunos , King ofMacedon ia from 281 to 279 BC
* Brennus, leader of the army of Gauls who in 279 BC invadedMacedon ia and northern Greece
* Antipater II, king ofMacedon ia from 297 to294 BC and again in 279 BC
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