Pyrrhus (c. 318 BC – 272 BC) was a Greek king of the Molossian dynasty of Epirus, renowned as a military commander. He is best known for his costly victories against the Roman Republic in southern Italy, which gave rise to the term 'Pyrrhic victory'. A distant relative of Alexander the Great, Pyrrhus participated in the Wars of the Diadochi before being invited by the Greek city of Tarentum to aid in its conflict with Rome. He won battles at Heraclea and Asculum but suffered heavy losses. Later campaigns in Sicily and Greece ended in failure, and he was killed in street fighting in Argos. Pyrrhus is remembered as a brilliant tactician but a flawed strategist.
