Monunius I of Dardania
| Monunius | |
|---|---|
.svg) |
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| Reign | c. 290 – c. 270 BC |
| Predecessor | Bardylis II |
| Successor | Mytilus |
| Died | Royal Tombs of Selcë e Poshtme |
| Illyrian | Μονούνιος |
Monunius (Ancient Greek: Μονούνιος; ruled c. 290 – c. 270 BC) was an Illyrian king of the Dardanian State. As a figure, Monunius has left more archaeological traces than historical records. Monunius was a strong opponent of Macedonia but offered aid of 10,000 soldiers to Ptolemy Keraunos during the Gallic Invasions, which was refused. The Dardanian State while headed by Monunius ranked among the strongest in the Balkans at that time. The invasions of the Gauls through the Balkans did not affect the Dardanians as much as the Macedonians.
In 281 BC Monunius entered into an alliance with Pyrrhus. Their joint interests against a strong Macedonia had induced Pyrrhus to accept Monunius as his ally. He is the first Illyrian to have struck his own silver coins probably after he gained control over the Taulantii State and the Greek colonies on the coast. The king was buried in the Royal Tombs of Selca e Poshtme in the city of Pelion. A helmet with an inscription in Greek letters found in modern Ohrid and silver coins bearing both the king's and Macedonian symbols indicates Monunius' aspirations towards Macedonia, perhaps in the time of confusion following the Gallic invasions. After Ptolemy Keraunos' death, Monunius might have taken the Macedonian throne for a brief period.
Many Dardanian rulers of this era were named Monunius and there seems to be some confusion as to whom certain actions and events pertain. It is not known whether the same king struck coins in Durrës and offered military aid to the Macedonians. The hypothesis is doubtful because silver coins minted by Monunius bear only the symbols of Durrës and Appolonia, and they have been never found away from the coastal lowlands. The name of the Dardanian king who offered Macedonia help against the Celts is not known but some historians have connected him with the Monunius who struck coins in Durrës.
During the 4th Century BC, a Gallic population had settled in Pannonia, in the territory that is now Hungary. Many Illyrians tribes had been subdued. About 280 BC, according to Diodorus and Pausanias, they moved in three directions: toward Macedonia and Illyria, toward Greece, and toward Thrace. The main army consisted of 150,000 foot soldiers (equipped with great shields) and 10,000 horsemen. They were followed by 2,000 wagons transporting food and equipment. All the states of the Balkans looked at this Gallic movement with great apprehension, but Ptolemy, the king of Macedonia, took the news of the approach of the Gauls in his stride. In 279 BC Monunius offered the young king military aid against the Gauls. Ptolemy rejected the Dardanian proposal, despite the Dardanian delegates saying that they could offer 20,000 warriors to assist him. In what the writer Justin considered to be an insulting manner, he said that the work was for the Macedonians to do and that they, who had subjugated all the east, had no need for the Dardanians to protect their borders. Monunius had been allied with Thrace and had waged a war against Ptolemy for the Macedonian throne a short time before the invasion of the Gauls. When Monunius was told of Ptolemy's rejection of his offer, Pausanias states that he replied that the soon glorious Macedonian kingdom would fall because of the immaturity of a youth.
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