Wars of the Diadochi > Syrian Wars > Battle of Cos

Battle of Cos

Background

Battle of Cos

Part of the Syrian Wars (Chremonidean War)

Asia Minor - Sebastian Munster (AD 1550)

Date: 261 or 255 BC

Location: Kos (Cos)

Coordinates: 36.8500°N 27.2333°E

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Combatants
Macedon	Ptolemaic Kingdom
Commanders
Antigonus II Gonatas	Patroclaus (admiral of Ptolemy II)
Military Forces
4,000 Infantry	15,000
1,500 Cavalry
Casualties
Unknown	3,000

Aftermath: Macedonian victory

Territorial Changes:

Next Battle:

Previous Battle: N/A

The Battle of Cos (c. 261-255 BC) was a battle between the Ptolemaic Kingdom and the Antigonids as part of the Second Syrian War and the larger Wars of the Diadochi. The date of the battle is unknown with historians believing it is between 261 BC and 255 BC with more emphasis on the later dates.

During the Battle of Cos the Ptolemaic Navy which was led by admiral Patroclus under the command of Ptolemy II Philadelphus was defeated by Antigonus II Gonatas. Following this battle it is believed by some historians that the Ptolemies lost hegemony over the Aegean Sea but others dissent. After the conclusion of the battle Antigonus II would dedicate his flagship to the god Apollo.

The Battle of Cos is believed by modern historians to have been one of three naval battles that provided the impetus to construct the statue known as the Nike of Samothrace. Other possible battles given are the Battle of Amorgos (322 BC) and the Battle of Salamis (306 BC) which were also part of the wars that began following the establishment of the various Hellenistic Kingdoms in the aftermath of the death of Alexander the Great.

Sources

John Boardman, Frank William Walbank. The Cambridge ancient history, Volume 7, Part 1. The Cambridge Ancient History, John Boardman, ISBN 0-521-85073-8, ISBN 978-0-521-85073-5 Cambridge University Press, 1982. ISBN 052123445X. p.243

Janice J. Gabbert, Antigonus II Gonatas. A Political Biography. London and New York: Routledge, 1997. ISBN 0-415-01899-4. p.52

Nicholas Geoffrey Lemprière Hammond, Frank William Walbank. A History of Macedonia: 336-167 B.C. Volume 3 of A History of Macedonia, Nicholas Geoffrey Lemprière Hammond Oxford University Press, 1988. ISBN 0-19-814815-1. Appendix IV

Reger, Gary (1994). "The Political History of the Kyklades 260–200 B.C.". Historia. 43 (1): 33. ISSN 0018-2311.

Lawrence, A. W. (1926). "The Date of the Nike of Samothrace". Journal of Hellenic Studies. 46: 213–218. doi:10.2307/625309.

Burn, 2005. Hellenistic Art: From Alexander the Great to Augustus.

James Henry Oliver. Demokratia, the gods, and the free world: Morals and law in ancient Greece. Ayer Publishing, 1979. ISBN 0-405-11564-4. p.149.

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