Anaxilas or Anaxilaus ( grc-gre, Ἀναξίλας, Ἀναξίλαος), son of Cretines, was a

tyrant A tyrant (), in the modern English usage of the word, is an absolute ruler who is unrestrained by law, or one who has usurped a legitimate ruler's sovereignty. Often portrayed as cruel, tyrants may defend their positions by resorting to re ...

Rhegium Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label= Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated pop ...

(modern Reggio Calabria). He was originally from

Messenia Messenia or Messinia ( ; el, Μεσσηνία ) is a regional unit (''perifereiaki enotita'') in the southwestern part of the Peloponnese region, in Greece. Until the implementation of the Kallikratis plan on 1 January 2011, Messenia was a ...

, a region in the Peloponnese.

Life

Anaxilas was master of Rhegium in 494 BC, when he encouraged the

Samians Samos (, also ; el, Σάμος ) is a Greek island in the eastern Aegean Sea, south of Chios, north of Patmos and the Dodecanese, and off the coast of western Turkey, from which it is separated by the -wide Mycale Strait. It is also a separate ...

and other Ionian fugitives to seize

Zancle Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in t ...

, a city across the strait in

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

which was then under the rule of the tyrant

Scythes Scythes ( grc, Σκύθης, ''Skýthi̱s'') was tyrant or ruler of Zancle in Sicily. He was appointed to that post in about 494 BC by Hippocrates of Gela. The Zanclaeans had contacted Ionian leaders to invite colonists to join them in founding a ...

. Shortly after the Samian takeover, Anaxilas besieged the city himself, drove the Samians out, peopled it with fresh inhabitants, and changed its name to

Messana Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in t ...

, after his native

Messene Messene (Greek: Μεσσήνη 𐀕𐀼𐀙 ''Messini''), officially Ancient Messene, is a local community within the regional unit (''perifereiaki enotita'') of Messenia in the region (''perifereia'') of Peloponnese. It is best known for the ...

Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to: *Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium'' *Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC * Pausanias of Sicily, physician of t ...

tells a somewhat different story. After the second war with the

Sparta Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referre ...

ns, Anaxilas assisted the refugees from Messina in the Peloponnese to take

in Sicily. Anaxilas married Cydippe, daughter of

Terillus Terillus ( el, Τήριλλος; fl. early 5th century BC) was a son of Crinippus, tyrant of Himera, in Sicily. Nothing is known about how Terillus rose to power. Nor is there any information available to historians about the duration or events ...

, tyrant of

Himera Himera (Greek: ), was a large and important ancient Greek city, situated on the north coast of Sicily at the mouth of the river of the same name (the modern Imera Settentrionale), between Panormus (modern Palermo) and Cephaloedium (modern Cef ...

. In 480 BC he obtained the assistance of the

Carthaginians The Punic people, or western Phoenicians, were a Semitic people in the Western Mediterranean who migrated from Tyre, Phoenicia to North Africa during the Early Iron Age. In modern scholarship, the term ''Punic'' – the Latin equivalent of the ...

for his father-in-law, who had been expelled from his city by Theron, tyrant of

Agrigentum Agrigento (; scn, Girgenti or ; grc, Ἀκράγας, translit=Akrágas; la, Agrigentum or ; ar, كركنت, Kirkant, or ''Jirjant'') is a city on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy and capital of the province of Agrigento. It was one o ...

. It was this auxiliary army that

Gelo Gelon also known as Gelo (Greek: Γέλων ''Gelon'', ''gen.'': Γέλωνος; died 478 BC), son of Deinomenes, was a Greek tyrant of the Sicilian cities Gela and Syracuse, and first of the Deinomenid rulers. Early life Gelon was the son o ...

defeated at

. Anaxilas wanted to destroy the

Locrians The Locrians ( el, Λοκροί, ''Locri'') were an ancient Greek tribe that inhabited the region of Locris in Central Greece, around Parnassus. They spoke the Locrian dialect, a Doric-Northwest dialect, and were closely related to their neighbour ...

, but was prevented by

Hiero I of Syracuse Hieron I ( el, Ἱέρων Α΄; usually Latinized Hiero) was the son of Deinomenes, the brother of Gelon and tyrant of Syracuse in Sicily from 478 to 467 BC. In succeeding Gelon, he conspired against a third brother, Polyzelos. Life During hi ...

, as related by

Epicharmus Epicharmus of Kos or Epicharmus Comicus or Epicharmus Comicus Syracusanus ( grc-gre, Ἐπίχαρμος ὁ Κῷος), thought to have lived between c. 550 and c. 460 BC, was a Greek dramatist and philosopher who is often credited with ...

. Anaxilas' daughter was married to Hiero. Anaxilaus died in 476 BC, leaving

Micythus Micythus ( grc, Μίκυθος), son of Choerus, was a 5th-century BC tyrant of Rhegium (modern Reggio Calabria), Zancle (modern Messina). He also founded the city of Pyxus (c. 471 BC). He was at first a slave in the service of Anaxilas, tyra ...

guardian of his children. The children only gained control of their inheritance in 467 BC, when Leophron became tyrant. However, in 461 BC the new rulers were removed by a popular revolt of the citizens of both Rhegium and Messana. Diodorus Siculus, xi. 48, 66, 76

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anaxilas Ancient Rhegians Ancient Messenians Ancient Greek rulers Ancient Olympic competitors 5th-century BC Greek people 476 BC deaths Sicilian tyrants Year of birth unknown People from Reggio Calabria