Aristodemus ( el, Ἀριστόδημος) 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 ...

of the Greek city of

Megalopolis A megalopolis () or a supercity, also called a megaregion, is a group of metropolitan areas which are perceived as a continuous urban area through common systems of transport, economy, resources, ecology, and so on. They are integrated enoug ...

. He was a

Phigalia Phigalia or Phigaleia or Phigalea ( grc, Φιγαλεία or ΦιγαλέαSo in Polybius, '' The Histories, iv. 3. or Φιγάλεια or ΦιγαλίαSo in Pausanias), also known as Phialia (Φιαλία or Φιάλεια), was an ancient Greek ...

n by birth and a son of Artylas, who had been adopted by Tritaeus, an influential citizen of Megalopolis. He was one of those tyrants who were set up at that time in various parts of Greece by the Macedonian king Antigonus II Gonatas. During his tyranny the territory of Megalopolis was invaded by 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 under Acrotatus.

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 ...

says this was " Acrotatus I, the eldest son of king Cleomenes", but most probably it was

Acrotatus II Acrotatus ( el, Ἀκρότατος; died 262 BC) was an Agiad King of Sparta from 265 to 262 BC. He was the son of Areus I, and grandson of Acrotatus. He had unlawful intercourse with Chilonis, the young wife of Cleonymus, uncle of his fathe ...

. The army of Megalopolis had the better of the encounter and Acrotatus was killed, which allows to date the battle to c. 262 BC.

''Description of Greece'' VIII 27,11.
/ref> Aristodemus, around the year 252 BC, was assassinated by the "liberator philosophers" Ecdemus and Damophanes, and the city of Megalopolis returned for a few years to democracy. Polybius
''The Histories'' X 22,2.
/ref> His sepulchral mound in the neighborhood of Megalopolis was seen by Pausanias in the 2nd century AD.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aristodemus Ancient Greek tyrants Ancient Greek generals Ancient Megalopolitans 3rd-century BC Greek people Year of birth unknown Assassinated Greek people 250s BC deaths