city state · Italy

Syracuse

734 BCE – 212 BCE (approx.) · capital Syracuse

The greatest Greek city of the West, which defeated Carthage and Athens, ruled much of Sicily under its tyrants and kings, and fell to Rome in 212 BCE.

Origins

Corinthian colonists led by Archias founded Syracuse in 734 or 733 BCE on the island of Ortygia, with its freshwater spring of Arethusa and two harbours. The city expanded onto the mainland and founded daughter colonies including Kamarina, controlling south-eastern Sicily.

Rule and society

Its politics swung between aristocracy, democracy and powerful tyrants. Gelon made it the leading Greek power and with Theron of Acragas crushed Carthage at Himera in 480 BCE. A democracy defeated the Athenian expedition in 415–413 BCE. Dionysius I built the Epipolae walls and an empire over Sicily and southern Italy; Agathocles later took the title of king. Under Hieron II, Rome's ally from 263 BCE, Syracuse enjoyed peace and Archimedes worked there.

Decline and legacy

After Hieron II's death Syracuse sided with Carthage. Marcus Claudius Marcellus besieged it from 214 BCE and took it in 212 BCE, when Archimedes was killed. It became the seat of the Roman governor of Sicily and remained a major city; its ancient centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Lineage

Gela 688 BCE – 282 BCESyracuse

Connections (14)

Kamarina split from Syracuse598 BCE
Megara Hyblaea was conquered by Syracuse483 BCE
Catana was conquered by Syracuse476 BCE – 461 BCE
Sicel League was conquered by Syracuse440 BCE
Leontini was conquered by Syracuse422 BCE
Naxos (Sicily) was conquered by Syracuse403 BCE
Motya was conquered by Syracuse397 BCE
Locri Epizephyrii was a vassal of Syracuse390 BCE – 346 BCE
Kaulonia was conquered by Syracuse389 BCE
Rhegion was conquered by Syracuse387 BCE – 351 BCE
Croton was conquered by Syracuse379 BCE – 367 BCE
Tauromenium was a vassal of Syracuse275 BCE – 212 BCE
Syracuse was a vassal of Roman Republic263 BCE – 215 BCE
Syracuse was conquered by Roman Republic212 BCE

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Cite this page

APA: The Epoch Institute. (2026). Syracuse. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/syracuse
MLA: “Syracuse.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/syracuse. Accessed .
Chicago: The Epoch Institute. “Syracuse.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/syracuse.
Harvard: The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Syracuse’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/syracuse (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻