Hiero II of Syracuse

Great altar of Syracuse, built by Hiero II Hiero II (/ˈhaɪəroʊ/ ; also Hieron /ˈhaɪərɒn/; Ancient Greek: Ἱέρων; c. 308 BC – 215 BC) was the Greek tyrant of Syracuse, Greek Sicily, from 275 to 215 BC, and the illegitimate son of a Syracusan noble, Hierocles, who claimed descent from Gelon. He was a former general of Pyrrhus of Epirus and an important figure of the First Punic War. He figures in the story of famed thinker Archimedes shouting "Eureka".

Rise to power