It may be sad, but all epic journeys must come to an end. In our previous video in this
series, we discussed Pyrrhus’ victory in the Battle of Asculum as well as his unsuccessful
campaign on the island of Sicily. The high point of his foreign wars had now passed,
and he would soon suffer a defeat which would arguably change the fate of the world. Welcome
to the last episode on Pyrrhus of Epirus, featuring the Battle of Beneventum in 275BC
and Pyrrhus’ final return to the Greek world.
After its retreat from Sicily, the Pyrrhic army finally arrived back to Tarentum in the
spring of 275 BC and Pyrrhus immediately began attempting to rebuild it. Finding troops was
seemingly not a problem for the reputable commander, but finding more veteran troops
to replace those he had lost in his previous battles was a more difficult matter. The core
of the Pyrrhic phalanx were Greeks and the various Balkan tribes, who were in short supply
in southern Italy; he had to make do with a weaker militia from Tarentum.
Pyrrhus’ reputation among the local tribes and Greek city states had also suffered due
to his previous abandonment of them, and so tribes such as the Samnites hardly supported
him at all. One rested and replenished, Pyrrhus and his army marched north to meet the legions
for the third time. At that point, there were two Roman armies
in the field and, feeling confident he could defeat them in detail, Pyrrhus sent a small
contingent of his army to Lucania in order to delay the second consular army’s approach.
He then took around 35,000 of his best remaining soldiers and the main portion of his army
to attack the roughly 25,000 strong force of Manius Curius Dentatus, which had encamped
on a hill near the town of Beneventum. Again, the Romans had chosen rugged terrain which
would disrupt the Pyrrhic phalanx, and had an excellent defensive position. The Epirots
could not hope to attack head on, so Pyrrhus, possibly being influenced by the legendary
final stand of the Spartans at Thermopylae and needing a swift victory, sent ¼ of the
best troops and remaining elephants in his army on a deep flanking maneuver up a forested
hillside at night, which would bring them up above and behind the Roman position. Meanwhile,
the main force of the army would wait, formed up for battle on the plain below the legionary
camp, waiting for the trumpets which would signal that the flanking force had made it.
Pyrrhus’ flanking contingent set off at dusk and travelled throughout the night, but
they got lost in the dark and thickly forested woods, possibly due to the resentment of their
Samnite guides who, itching for revenge, led the Greek force astray. Contingents of soldiers
began to wander off in the dark and became hopelessly lost, while others tried to find
the path on their own. Confusion in this beleaguered group was total and it was clear that there
would be no coordinated night attack. Eventually, even their torches went out and they were
irreversibly lost. Back down on the plain, the soldiers in the
main force were kept awake, becoming more and more tired. As the hours ticked by, it
became clear to them that the trumpets would not be sounding that night. Dawn broke, and
the Pyrrhic flanking force finally emerged fully visible on the heights behind the Romans
with their element of surprise completely gone. Nevertheless, trumpets finally sounded,
and the battle began. The Roman velite skirmishers charged forward
and threw a storm of light javelins at the Phalanx, which was already disordered by the
terrain, and now began to fray under the pressure. As the velites rushed between the Roman maniples
in retreat, the Hastati now smashed into the tired and hungry Phalangites. Their final
rain of Pila, as well as their frontal charge began to disintegrate Pyrrhus’ flanking
force on the heights, and he hastily ordered his remaining elephants to charge at the Roman
flanks. Unfortunately for him the Romans had learned well, and had shifted the Principes,
in addition to the withdrawn velites, to the wings with many Pila at the ready, and they
unleashed a withering hail of missiles against the elephants, which panicked and bolted,
crushing many of their own tightly packed infantry as they did.
Seeing that all was lost on the heights, Pyrrhus and a few hundred elite guards began to charge
down the hill towards the remainder of his army and attempted to rally them, before positioning
himself with the cavalry on the right flank. Turning away from Pyrrhus’ now mauled flanking
force, the triumphant Roman army began to charge downhill at the main body of the phalanx.
As the Romans crashed into the phalangites with immense momentum, the Pyrrhic left flank
quickly caved and began to pull back, followed by the right flank. Again, the now desperate
Epirot king attempted to save the situation by sending in his last remaining elephants,
and again the Roman skirmishers and javelinmen scattered them. Finally, the battered and
exhausted Pyrrhic soldiers could take no more, and Pyrrhus ordered an orderly retreat to
prevent his entire army routing. This crushing defeat was the final straw and
Pyrrhus, whose treasury was completely empty, left a strong garrison in Tarentum before
returning to his capital at Ambracia with 8,000 infantry and 500 cavalry. Despite his
losses in Italy, Pyrrhus still burned with a limitless ambition and immediately began
planning his next campaign. Whether because he wished to raise more funds, or was angered
at Antigonus for not supporting him in Italy, or because he wanted to become the king of
Macedon, Pyrrhus attacked his eastern neighbor in 274 BC. The campaign began well, with the
Epirotes taking many border towns and even having 2,000 Macedonians phalangites defect
to them. After a few weeks, Antigonus marched against the invaders and met Pyrrhus at a
narrow gorge near the Aous River. Pyrrhus’ veteran phalanx had the best of
the initial fighting and drove the Macedonians back, while Antigonus’ Galatian mercenary
rearguard resisted for a short while, but were then cut to pieces and routed. This left
the unengaged Antigonid elephants isolated and their handlers surrendered both themselves
and their animals to Pyrrhus. On the frontline of the phalanx clash, the
Macedonians were wavering, and the Epirote king decided on a bold course of action. He
raised his right arm and called on the Macedonian officers by name to surrender to him. As they
had on a number of earlier occasions, the fickle phalanx of Antigonus deserted en masse.
The battle was over, and Antigonus fled with a few bodyguards to Thessalonica. Pyrrhus
now followed up his victory by overrunning all of Thessaly and most of upper Macedonia,
while Antigonus managed to hang onto some of the coastal cities with his strong navy.
Always the tactician and never the strategist, Pyrrhus failed to finish off Antigonus when
he had the chance and he would pay the price. A rejected Spartan royal candidate named Cleonymus
appeared at the Epirote court and approached Pyrrhus, proposing a plan to overthrow the
Spartan King Areus and place himself on the throne while the king was campaigning in Crete.
The opportunity to place his own puppet on one of Sparta’s thrones was too tempting,
as it would allow the conquest of the remaining Antigonid strongholds in southern Greece.
With 25,000 infantry, 2,000 cavalry and 24 elephants Pyrrhus invaded the Peloponnese
in 272 BC, crossing the gulf of Corinth by sea as the only land route into the area at
the Isthmus of Corinth was occupied by Antigonid forces. The Pyrrhic army disembarked and then
marched south towards Megalopolis in Arcadia, where he was met by the Spartan ambassador.
Here, Pyrrhus lied and professed that he simply wished to attack the forces of Antigonus,
and to liberate the Greek cities from his rule. He also claimed that he wished to send
his sons to Sparta for a military education, and the Spartans believed him, proceeding
to reduce their patrols. Pyrrhus then betrayed the Spartans and marched on their city through
the friendly territory of Messenia. By keeping to the west of the Taiyetos mountains he concealed
his movements from the Spartans and emerged to the south of Sparta, completely surprising
them. Outside of the city, Pyrrhus’ 27,000 strong
force met Sparta’s 15,000 and routed them. As he marched on the city, the Spartan council
decided to send their women and children away to safety in Crete. However, when they learned
of the decision the Spartan women vigorously opposed it. One woman known as Archidamia
came to the council with sword in hand, saying she had no wish to live on if Sparta perished.
Their resolve was strengthened by the courage that their women showed, and they began to
construct defensive trenches and stone walls. As they did, however, their women came to
them and told the soldiers to rest, as they would need all the strength they could get,
and they themselves began to prepare the defences. In the morning, Pyrrhus led a frontal attack
on the Spartan trench, but was repelled. His son Ptolemy then led a force of 2,000 Galatian
and Epirote infantry around the left side of the trench, but he was ambushed from the
rear by 300 men following the Spartan Prince Acrotatus, and Ptolemy’s soldiers were almost
all killed, with only a small contingent managing to make it back to the Epirote line.
Pyrrhus then attempted several more times to break the Spartan defences, but the trench
held firm. The Spartan women continued to assist in the battle, digging further defences
and carrying the wounded away to the rear. Nightfall eventually stopped the battle. In
the morning, King Areus arrived back from Crete with another 2,000 men and now the Pyrrhic
army could not hope to break the Spartan line. Irritated at his failure, Pyrrhus retreated
and marched on Argos to intervene in a dispute. However, during the withdrawal, his son Ptolemy
was killed in a Spartan ambush and Pyrrhus descended into a black mood.
Two politicians; Aristeas and Aristippus, were feuding in Argos. As Aristippus was an
ally of Antigonus, it was only natural that Aristeas sought aid from Pyrrhus.
As he arrived near the city, Pyrrhus saw that his rival Antigonus had already occupied the
heights above the plain, and challenged him to come down onto the plain and fight for
the kingdom. Antigonus, who was a much more cautious and less glory-seeking character
than Pyrrhus, declined and retreated slightly from the city, as his army was much smaller
than that of Pyrrhus. During the night, Pyrrhus’ allies within
Argos opened one of the gates into the city and his Galatian mercenaries took possession
of the marketplace, along with his elephants. The Argives, who learned of the attack, sounded
the alarm and rushed to take strong points in the city. In addition, they sent messages
to Antigonus asking for help; he had not withdrawn far and quickly marched back to his position
outside the city, sending a contingent inside in order to assist against Pyrrhus. At the
same time, Spartan king Areus came with a force of 1,000 lightly armed Spartans and
Cretans. The Argives, along with their new allies, attacked the Galatian mercenaries.
However, as the night progressed, the darkness caused both sides to become confused, and
so the fighting died down until morning. When the sun rose and illuminated the situation,
Pyrrhus was concerned by the numbers of the enemy troops in the city and decided to retreat,
but was worried by the narrowness of the gates. He sent a message to his son Helanus to tear
down a part of the city wall to allow a quicker withdrawal, but the courier misheard the order
due to the noise of fighting. Instead, he delivered an order to march to his father’s
assistance in the city, and his relief force clashed head on with his father’s retreating
force. The largest of Helanus’ elephants had also become trapped in the narrow gateway
and blocked the retreat. The Epirote army inside the city now began
to panic and flee in all directions as the Argives attacked, while Pyrrhus himself turned
to his pursuers. One of them was a hastily enrolled poor young man of the city. He managed
to wound Pyrrhus slightly with a spear through his breastplate, but was set upon by the King
and a duel began. This Argive’s mother was said to be watching the battle from the rooftops
and, seeing her son confronted by such a lethal foe, threw a roof tile at him in desperation
which knocked him off his horse. Pyrrhus of Epirus, the fiery figure who had battled Romans,
Carthaginians, Macedonians and Spartans, was beheaded as he lay injured on the ground.
One of Antigonus’ sons; Alcyoneus, took the head and rode to his father, presenting
it to him. The Antigonid king however, rather than being happy, flew into a rage at his
son and struck him repeatedly, driving him away. He covered his face in mourning and
burst into tears of sorrow, as the death of his foe reminded him of the reversals of fortune
which had occurred to his father and grandfather. The death of Pyrrhus caused his army to surrender
and, in the aftermath, Macedonian hegemony was re-established over Greece.
Pyrrhus would be one of the last vestiges of the Alexandrian spirit of a Greek warrior-king,
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