Aretaphila of Cyrene

Aretaphila of Cyrene (Flourished circa 50 B.C., Cyrene, an ancient Greek colony in North Africa) was a Cyrenean noble woman who according to Plutarch in his work De mulierum virtutes (On the Virtues of Women), deposed the tyrant Nicocrates.

Aretaphilia was compelled to marry the tyrant Nicocrates after he had killed her husband, Phaedimus. She first tried to poison Nicocrates but was discovered and tortured. She then, arranged a marriage of her own daughter to the tyrant's brother, Leander. She was then able to convince Leander to murder Nicocrates.

She went on to manoeuvre Leander into a war with the native Libyans, which ended with his capture and execution.

Seen as a heroic liberator, Aretaphila was invited to join the new government of her country, but she declined, and return to a domestic life.

Notes

References

• Aretaphilia of Cyrene at the Brooklyn Museum Dinner party databse of notable women. Accessed February 2008
• De Mulierum Virtutibus by Plutarch as published in Vol. III of the Loeb Classical Library edition, 1931. Accessed February 2008
• Images of Women in Antiquity By Averil Cameron, Amélie Kuhrt. Published 1993. Routledge ISBN 0415090954. At Google books. Accessed February 2008