Laodice III (Greek: Λαοδίκη) also known as Laodika, was a princess of Pontus and a Seleucid queen. She was regent for her first born son, Antiochus, during the Anabase expedition of her husband, Antiochus III the Great, between 212 and 206 BC. Antiochus III created a royal cult dedicated to her in 193 BC. In 192 BC she was pushed out of political life due to her husband's remarriage. Her last known activities are documented in 177–176 BC and relate to the court of her son, Seleucus IV.
Biography
She was a daughter of King Mithridates II of Pontus and his wife Laodice. Her sister was Laodice of Pontus and her brother was Mithridates III of Pontus.
Laodice married Antiochus III around 221 BC in a ceremony at Zeugma and named queen at Antioch. Polybius states that she was promised to Antiochus III as “a virgin and aforenamed as wife to the king”. The fact that her parents named her ‘Laodice’ in the Seleucid female tradition suggests that her parents intended this marriage from her birth, and named her accordingly. Like her sisters, her marriage was part of a diplomatic strategy to strengthen relations between the Seleucids and Pontus.
Laodice gave birth to her eldest child, Antiochus, while her husband Antiochus III set out his expedition against Molon. During her marriage, it is believed that Laodice and her children sometimes followed Antiochus during his expeditions throughout his empire.
Laodice III bore Antiochus III eight children who were: Antiochus, Seleucus IV Philopator, Ardys, an unnamed daughter who was engaged to Demetrius I of Bactria, Laodice IV, Cleopatra I Syra, Antiochis and Antiochus IV Epiphanes (birth name Mithridates).
Many inscriptions refer to Laodice as the “sister” or “sister-queen” of Antiochus III, and Laodice often referred to Antiochus as “brother”, despite the fact that the couple were only maternal first cousins. This was not an official title, but used for multiple reasons; it played up to attributions of loyalty and devoted like-mindedness of the couple, as well as affirming Laodice's position as a member of the dynasty, and her position as being an equal to her husband. Towns could use the term “sister-queen” to further praise Laodice as a faithful consort. Furthermore, Laodice's position as ‘sister’ to Antiochus mimicked the traditions of the previous Hecatomnid dynasty that ruled Caria during the 4th century BC, integrating the Seleucids into that territory's traditions. This practice was also borrowed from the Greek world, were Ptolemy II's marriage to his full sister was likened to the divine union of Zeus and Hera, and started a tradition of representing wives as sisters in the Ptolemaic dynasty.
Laodice and Antiochus furthered the tradition of brother-sister rulers by arranging the marriage of two of their own children, Antiochus and Laodice, in 195 BC.
In 192 BC Antiochus took a second wife, Euboea of Chalcis, which led to Laodice being pushed to the periphery of Antiochus' court. It has been suggested that Laodice was repudiated by Antiochus in favour of his new wife, but there is no evidence for this. Although Antiochus' second wife did not have the political influence of Laodice, Laodice disappears from the public record until after the death of Antiochus.
Political power
Regency
In 210 BC, Antiochus, the king's eldest son, was made co-ruler with his father, at the age of 10 or 11 years old, in order to keep the throne secure while Antiochus III went on campaign in the east. During this time Laodice most probably acted as regent. A clay seal impression is thought to show Antiochus the son in the foreground, with Laodice in the background, suggesting that she overtly displayed her power as ruler during her regency.
The royal cult that Antiochus III initiated in 195 BC may have been a way for Antiochus to acknowledge Laodice for her good management of the kingdom during his absences.
Benefactor
During and after her regency, Laodice continued to assert her political power by acting as a benefactor, or philanthropist. Philanthropic action was typical of Hellenistic queens as a way to further their power and assert their position, particularly in the religious sphere, but Laodice was unusually active and her donations addressed political problems and targeted depopulation and poverty by focusing on food and marriage. Laodice's donations are evidenced in inscriptions of her honours, and her letters to the towns.