Leptines

(Λεπτίνης).

1. A Syracusan, son of Hermocrates, and brother of Dionysius the elder, tyrant of Syracuse. He is first mentioned as commanding his brother's fleet at the siege of Motya (B. C. 397), and was for some time entrusted by Dionysius with the whole direction of the siege, while the latter was engaged in reducing the other towns still held by the Carthaginians. (Diod. 14.48.) After the fall of Motya he was stationed there with a fleet of 120 ships, to watch for and intercept the Carthaginian fleet under Himilco; but the latter eluded his vigilance, and effected his passage to Panormus in safety, with the greater part of his forces, though Leptines pursued them, and sunk fifty of his transports, containing 5000 troops. (Id. 53-55.) The face of affairs was now changed: Himilco was able to advance unopposed along the north coast of the island, and took and destroyed Messana; from whence he advanced upon Syracuse, his fleet, under Mago, supporting the operations of the army. Leptines, by his brother's orders, immediately advanced with the Syracusan fleet to engage that of Mago, and a great naval action ensued, in which Leptines displayed the utmost valour; but having imprudently advanced with 30 of his best ships into the midst of the enemy, he was cut off from the rest of his fleet, and only able to effect his escape by standing out to sea. The result was, that the Syracusans were defeated with great loss, many of their ships fell into the hands of the enemy, and Leptines himself retired with the rest to Syracuse. During the siege that followed, he continued to render important services, and commanded (together with the Lacedaemonian Pharacidas) the final attack upon the naval camp of the Carthaginians, which terminated in the complete destruction of their fleet, (Diod. 14.59, 60, 64, 72.) We hear no more of him until B. C. 390, when he was again despatched by Dionysius with a fleet to the assistance of the Lucanians against the Italian Greeks. He arrived just as the former had gained a great victory over the Thurians; but instead of joining them to crush their enemies, he afforded a refuge to the Thurian fugitives, and succeeded in bringing about a peace between the contending parties. For this conduct, which was entirely opposed to the views of Dionysius, he was deprived of the command of the fleet, which was given to his younger brother, Thearides. (Id. 14.102.) Some time afterwards he gave farther offence to the jealous temper of the tyrant, by giving one of his daughters in marriage to Philistus, without any previous intimation to Dionysius, and on this account he was banished from Syracuse, together with Philistus. He thereupon retired to Thurii, where the services rendered by him to that city during the late war with the Lucanians secured him a favourable reception; and he quickly rose to so much power and influence among the Greeks of Italy, that Dionysius judged it prudent to recal his sentence of banishment, and invite him again to Syracuse. Here he was completely reinstated in his former favour, and obtained one of the daughters of Dionysius in marriage. (Diod. 15.7; Plut. Dion. 11.) In B. C. 383, war having again broken out with the Carthaginians, Leptines once more took an active part in the support of his brother, and commanded the right wing of the Syracusan army in the battle near Cronium: but after displaying the greatest personal prowess, he himself fell in the action, and the troops under his command immediately gave way. (Diod. 15.17.)

2. A Syracusan, who joined with Callippus in expelling the garrison of the younger Dionysius from Rhegium, B. C. 351. Having effected this, they restored the city to nominal independence, but it appears that they continued to occupy it with their mercenaries: and not long afterwards Leptines took advantage of the discontent which had arisen among these, to remove Callippus by assassination. (Diod. 16.45; Plut. Dion. 58.) We know nothing of his subsequent proceedings, nor of the circumstances that led him to quit Rhegium, but it seems probable that he availed himself of the state of confusion in which Sicily then was to make himself master of the two cities of Apollonia and Engyum: at least there is little doubt that the Leptines whom we find established as the tyrant of those cities when Timoleon arrived in Sicily is the same with the associate of Callippus. He was expelled in common with all the other petty tyrants, by Timoleon; but his life was spared, and he was sent into exile at Corinth, B. C. 342. (Diod. 16.72; Plut. Tim. 24.)

3. One of the generals of Agathocles, who, during the absence of that monarch in Africa, defeated Xenodocus, the governor of Agrigentum, in a pitched battle, and with great slaughter. (Diod. 20.56.) When Agathocles, after repairing for a short time to Sicily, returned once more to Africa, B. C. 307, he again left Leptines in command during his absence, who obtained a second victory over Xenodocus. (Id. 20.61, 62.)

4. A Syracusan, whose daughter was married to Hieron, afterwards king of Syracuse. Leptines was at that time, we are told, unquestionably the man of the highest consideration among his fellowcitizens, which induced Hieron, who had just been appointed general of the republic, but was already aiming at higher objects, to court his alliance. (Plb. 1.9.)

5. An Athenian, known only as the proposer of a law taking away all special exemptions from the burden of public charges (ἀτέλειαι τῶν λειτουργιῶν), against which the celebrated oration of Demosthenes is directed, usually known as the oration against Leptines. This speech was delivered in B. C. 355: and the law must have been passed above a year before, as we are told that the lapse of more than that period had already exempted Leptines from all personal responsibility. Hence the efforts of Demosthenes were directed solely to the repeal of the law, not to the punishment of its proposer. It appears that his arguments were successful, and the law was in fact repealed. (See Wolf. Prolegom. ad Demosth. Orat. adv. Leptinem; Liban. Argum. p. 452; Dionys. Ep. ad Amm.. 1.4.)

6. A Syrian Greek, who assassinated with his own hand at Laodiceia, Cn. Octavius, the chief of the Roman deputies, who had been sent to examine into the state of affairs in Syria. This murder took place during the short reign of Antiochus Eupator (B. C. 162), and not without the connivance, as was supposed, of Lysias, the minister and governor of the young king. As soon as Demetrius had established himself on the throne, wishing to conciliate the favour of the Romans, he caused Leptines, who, far from denying the deed, had the audacity to boast of it publicly, to be seized, and sent as a prisoner to Rome: but the senate refused to receive him, being desirous, as we are told, to reserve this cause of complaint as a public grievance, instead of visiting it on the head of an individual. (Plb. 31.19, 32.4, 6, 7; Appian, App. Syr. 46, 47; Diod. Exc. Legat. xxxi. p. 526; Cic. Philipp. 9.2.) [E.H.B]

(Λεπτίνης). An Athenian, known only as the proposer of a law taking away all special exemptions from the burden of public charges (ἀτέλειαι τῶν λειτουργιῶν), against which the oration of Demosthenes is directed, usually known as the Oration against Leptines, B.C. 355. The argument of Demosthenes is directed to the repeal of the law, and was successful in its object. See Demosthenes.