Demetrius I (of Macedonia)

Demetrius I (of Macedonia), called Poliorcetes (“besieger of cities”) (337?-283 bc), king of Macedonia (294-283 bc). He was the son of King Antigonus I, called Monophthalmus, a general of Alexander the Great. In the wars for power and territory after Alexander's death, both Antigonus and Demetrius participated actively. Demetrius defeated Ptolemy I, king of Egypt, in a battle (306 bc) at Salamís, on the island of Cyprus. In 294 bc he murdered his rival Alexander, son of Cassander, and seized Macedonia, but six years later he was driven out by an alliance of Pyrrhus, king of Epirus and Lysimachus, king of Thrace. Demetrius sought refuge with Seleucus I, king of Syria, but was confined until his death, when his son, Antigonus II Gonatas, claimed the throne of Macedonia.