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Philip (husband of Berenice I of Egypt)

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Philip (Greek: Φίλιππος, died c. 318 BC) was a Greek Macedonian nobleman who lived during the 4th century BC.

Early life

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Philip was the son of Amyntas by a mother whose name is unknown.[1] He served as a military officer in the service of the Greek king Alexander the Great. Philip was known to have commanded one division of the phalanx in Alexander’s wars[2] and, in particular, he commanded one of the divisions of the phalanx at the Battle of the Granicus in May 334 BC.[3] His name does not subsequently appear in the campaigns of Alexander, but can be at least distinctly identified.[4]

Based on information provided by Plutarch (Pyrrhus 4.4), before Philip married Berenice he was already married and had children from those marriages.[5] The identities of his first wife and children are unknown.

Marriage to Berenice I

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Berenice I from Promptuarii Iconum Insigniorum

In c. 325 BC, Philip married Berenice I as her first husband.[6] Pausanias (1.7.1), criticises his marriage to Berenice I and describes him as "a Macedonian but of no note and of lowly origin". The ancient sources don’t say anything else about him and there is no evidence against this.[7] Philip must have been a nobleman of some social status and influence as he married the great-niece of the powerful Regent Antipater and the grandchild of Antipater’s brother Cassander.[8]

Berenice bore Philip three children:

Death

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Philip died of unknown causes. After his death, Berenice and her children travelled to Egypt, where they were a part of the entourage of Berenice’s second maternal cousin Eurydice. Eurydice was then the wife of Ptolemy I Soter. By 317 BC, Berenice married Ptolemy I and became the queen mother of the Ptolemaic dynasty.

As a posthumous honour to Philip, his son Magas, when he served as a priest of the Greek God Apollo, had dedicated an honorific inscription proudly naming him as "the eponymous priest" and "Magas, son of Philip".[12]

Family tree of Philip

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Cassander
nobleman
Antipater
regend of Macedonian Empire
AmyntasMagas of MacedonAntigone
Philip
military officer
Berenice IPtolemy I Soter
king of Egypt
Eurydice
Apama II
daughter of
Antiochus I Soter
Seleucid emperor
Magas of Cyrene
king of Cyrene
3.TheoxenaAgathocles
tyrant of Syracuse
king of Sicily
2.Alcia
Demetrius the Fair
king of Cyrene
Antigonid dynasty
Berenice IIPtolemy III Euergetes
king of Egypt
Antigone1.Pyrrhus I
king of Epirus
(2) Lanassa2.Demetrius I Poliorketes
king of Macedon
Magas of EgyptAlexander II
king of Epirus

References

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  1. ^ Ancient Library article: Philippus no. 5
  2. ^ Ancient Library article: Magas no.1
  3. ^ Arrian, Anab. 14.3
  4. ^ Ancient Library article: Philippus no. 5
  5. ^ Ptolemaic Genealogy: Berenice I, Footnote 6
  6. ^ "Berenice I article at Livius.org". Archived from the original on 2016-03-17. Retrieved 2020-03-26.
  7. ^ Ptolemaic Genealogy: Berenice I, Footnote 5
  8. ^ Ptolemaic Genealogy: Berenice I
  9. ^ Ptolemaic Genealogy: Berenice I
  10. ^ Ptolemaic Genealogy: Berenice I
  11. ^ Ptolemaic Genealogy: Berenice I
  12. ^ Ptolemaic Genealogy: Magas of Cyrene, Footnote 2

Sources

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