Theopompus facts for kids

Theopompus (born around 380 BC, died around 315 BC) was an ancient Greek historian and a master of public speaking. He was known for writing detailed histories, especially about King Philip II of Macedon.

Biography of Theopompus

Theopompus was born on the island of Chios. When he was young, he lived in Athens with his father. His father had to leave Chios because he supported the city of Sparta. In Athens, Theopompus became a student of a famous teacher named Isocrates. He quickly became very good at public speaking. His teacher Isocrates even said that while another student, Ephorus, needed to be pushed, Theopompus needed to be held back because he was so eager.

At first, Theopompus wrote speeches meant to show off his skill. He became so good that in 352–351 BC, he won a speaking contest. Even his teacher Isocrates was one of the competitors! It was Isocrates who advised Theopompus to become a historian. Theopompus was well-suited for this job because he had money from his family and knew a lot about different people and places.

Around 333 BC, with help from Alexander the Great, Theopompus was allowed to go back to Chios. For a while, he was a leader of the rich and powerful people in his hometown. After Alexander the Great died, Theopompus was forced to leave Chios again. He went to Ancient Egypt to seek safety with Ptolemy I of Egypt. However, he wasn't welcomed very warmly there. We don't know exactly when he died.

The Works of Theopompus

Theopompus mainly wrote history books. Many later writers often quoted his works. His writings included a summary of Herodotus's Histories (though some people debate if he actually wrote this). He also wrote the Hellenica and the History of Philip. He also wrote several speeches praising people or encouraging them, like his Letter to Alexander.

The Hellenica History

The Hellenica was a history of Greece, written in twelve books. It covered the period from 411 BC (where another historian, Thucydides, stopped his work) to 394 BC. This was the year of the Battle of Cnidus. For a long time, only small pieces of this work were known.

In 1907, a piece of ancient paper (called a papyrus fragment) was found. It contained writing from a Greek historian from the 4th century BC. Some experts believe this fragment is part of Theopompus's Hellenica. However, other experts disagree and think it might be by another historian named Cratippus of Athens.

History of Philip II

A much bigger work by Theopompus was his history of King Philip II's rule (360–336 BC). This history included many side stories about the names and customs of different groups of people and countries. There were so many side stories that Philip V of Macedon later shortened the history from 58 books to just 16! He cut out all the parts that weren't directly about Macedonia.

Much of the information in the Historiae Philippicae by Gnaeus Pompeius Trogus (which we know through a summary by Justin) came from Theopompus's history. Fifty-three books of Theopompus's history were still around in the 9th century. Many small pieces of this work, mostly stories and comments about different nations and people, have been saved by other writers like Athenaeus and Plutarch.

Theopompus's work sometimes felt a bit messy because of all the long side stories. One important side story was called On the Athenian Demagogues. It was in the 10th book of his Philippica. This part strongly criticized many important leaders in Athens. It's believed that Plutarch used this section a lot in his own writings about famous lives. Another long side story, called Marvels, was put into books 8 and 9.

Theopompus also liked to include amazing and sometimes unbelievable stories. A collection of some of these stories was later published under his name. People in ancient times also criticized him for being too harsh in his judgments. This is very clear in the pieces of his writing that we still have. However, overall, he seemed to try to be fair. Theopompus criticized King Philip for some of his actions, but he also praised Demosthenes warmly.

Other Writings

The Attack upon Plato and a writing called On Piety are sometimes thought of as separate works. But they might have just been two of the many side stories within his history of Philip. Some writers even doubt if Theopompus wrote them at all.

A work called The Three-headed, which criticized the cities of Athens, Sparta, and Thebes, was published under Theopompus's name by his enemy Anaximenes of Lampsacus.

In his work Philippica, Theopompus created a made-up island called Meropis. It was like a funny version of the famous lost city of Atlantis.

Mentioned by Other Writers

Aristotle mentioned Theopompus's ideas about slavery in his book Politics. The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus tells a story about Theopompus. He writes that Demetrius of Phalerum told Ptolemy II Philadelphus that the Jewish Law was very special. He said that anyone who tried to write about it would get sick. He claimed that Theopompus once tried to write about the Jewish Law but became unwell for 30 days. When he felt a little better, he prayed to get well and decided to stop trying to write about it. After that, he was cured.

A passage from Theopompus is included by Athenaeus in his book Deipnosophistae. Claudius Aelianus also mentions Theopompus as a source for information about the religious practices of the Adriatic Veneti people.

See also

In Spanish: Teopompo para niños