Hiero II of Syracuse (300-215 BC) (metal) (b/w photo) (detail of 239700)

Hiero II the Greek Sicilian king of Syracuse from 270 to 215 BC who struggled against the Mamertini and eventually allied his city with Rome. Hieron defeated the Mamertini in a battle near Mylae but Carthaginian forces prevented him from capturing Messana. In 264 the Romans supported the Mamertini and Hieron joined the Carthaginian leader Hanno but they were defeated by the forces of the Roman consul Appius Claudius. Hieron withdrew to Syracuse and was compelled to conclude a treaty with Rome that restricted his kingdom to southeast Sicily. His kinsman Archimedes constructed ingenious mechanical devices for the defence of the city.