Battus IV of Cyrene

Battus IV of Cyrene surnamed The Handsome or The Fair (Greek: Βάττος ο Καλός, flourished 6th century BC & 5th century BC) was the seventh and second to last Greek King of Cyrenaica of the Battiad dynasty. He was the first Cyrenaean king to serve as a client king under the Persian Empire.

Ancestry

Battus was the son and only child of the fifth Cyrenaean king, Arcesilaus III, and his mother was an unnamed Libyan woman, who was the daughter of Alazir, a Libyan who served as governor of Barca. Herodotus states that his father and his maternal grandfather were related and his maternal grandmother is unknown.

Reign

Battus succeeded his paternal grandmother in late 515 BC. She had died from a dreaded skin disease in Egypt. From 515 BC until 465 BC, Battus served as King of Cyrenaica. Very little is known on his reign and appeared his reign to be peaceful. During his reign, Cyrene became a wealthy town. Cyrenaica exported wheat, barley, olive oil and silphium (an unidentified plant with aromatic & medicinal properties). Battus’ wife is unknown and died in 465 BC. He was succeeded by his son Arcesilaus IV and was buried near his paternal ancestors.

See also

• List of Kings of Cyrene
• Silphium

Sources

• Herodotus, The Histories, Book 4
• Smith, W, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, Volume 1
• http://www.livius.org/ct-cz/cyrenaica/cyrenaica.html
• http://www.mediterranees.net/dictionnaires/smith/cyrene.html