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{{Short description|Last king of Pergamon from 138 to 133 BC}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name               = Attalus III Philometor Euergetes
| succession         = [[Attalid dynasty|King of Pergamon]]
| image              = Attalid portrait at the Antikensammlung Berlin.jpg
| image_size         = 200px
| caption            = Attalus III (or II), 150/152 BC from Antikensammlung in Berlin.
| reign              = 138–133 BC
| native_lang1       = Greek
| native_lang1_name1 = {{lang|grc|Άτταλος Γ΄ Φιλομήτωρ Ευεργέτης}}
| birth_date         = c. 170 BC
| birth_place        =
| death_date         = 133 BC
| death_place        = 
| predecessor        = [[Attalus II]]
| successor          = [[Eumenes III]]
| queen              = 
| royal house        = [[Attalid dynasty]]
| father             = [[Eumenes II]]
| mother             = [[Stratonice of Pergamon|Stratonice]] of Cappadocia
| issue              = 
| religion           = [[Religion in ancient Greece|Greek Polytheism]]
}}

'''Attalus III''' ({{langx|el|Ἄτταλος Γ΄}}) '''Philometor Euergetes''' ({{circa|170 BC}}&nbsp;– 133 BC) was the last [[Attalid]] king of [[Pergamon]], ruling from 138 BC to 133 BC.

==Biography==
Attalus III was the son of king [[Eumenes II]] and his queen [[Stratonice of Pergamon]], and he was the nephew of [[Attalus II]], whom he succeeded.  "Philometor Euergetes" means "Loving-his-Mother, Benefactor" in Greek; he was so-called because of his close relationship with his mother Stratonice. He is the likely addressee of a fragmentary hymn by the poet [[Nicander]] which celebrates his heritage.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Nelson|first=Thomas J.|title=Nicander's Hymn to Attalus: Pergamene Panegyric|date=December 2020|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/cambridge-classical-journal/article/nicanders-hymn-to-attalus-pergamene-panegyric/7CEF27AAE606FBE5A3814275866A88D5|journal=The Cambridge Classical Journal|language=en|volume=66|pages=182–202|doi=10.1017/S1750270519000083|s2cid=211927577|issn=1750-2705|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

According to [[Livy]], Attalus III had little interest in ruling Pergamon, devoting his time to studying [[medicine]], [[botany]], [[gardening]], and other pursuits. He had no male children or heirs of his own, and in his [[will (law)|will]] he left his kingdom to the [[Roman Republic]],<ref>Livy: Periochae 58</ref> believing that if he did not then Rome would take the kingdom anyway and this way would avoid bloodshed.<ref>Asimov, I. and F. White, ''[[The March of the Millennia]]'' (1991), p. 74</ref> [[Tiberius Gracchus]] requested that the treasury of Pergamon be opened up to the Roman public, but the [[Roman Senate|Senate]] refused this.

Not everyone in Pergamon accepted Rome's rule. In 131 BC [[Eumenes III|Aristonicus]], who claimed to be Attalus' brother as well as the son of [[Eumenes II]], an earlier king, led a [[Aristonicus uprising|popular uprising]] with the help of the Roman philosopher [[Blossius]]. He ruled as ''Eumenes III''. The revolt was put down in 129 BC, and Pergamon was divided among Rome, [[Kingdom of Pontus|Pontus]], and [[Kingdom of Cappadocia|Cappadocia]].

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

== References ==
* Hansen, Esther V. (1971). ''The Attalids of Pergamon''. Ithaca, New York: [[Cornell University Press]]; London: Cornell University Press Ltd. {{ISBN|0-8014-0615-3}}.
* Kosmetatou, Elizabeth (2003) "The Attalids of Pergamon," in Andrew Erskine, ed., ''A Companion to the Hellenistic World''. Oxford: Blackwell: pp.&nbsp;159–174. {{ISBN|1-4051-3278-7}}. [https://books.google.com/books?id=c1-SvffPjUUC&pg=PA159&dq=kosmetatou&ei=5n0sSPeUPIuOywSjx6XLAw&sig=1cqZNmNUIlpKQecTZeac2XRwn5M text]
*[https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/cambridge-classical-journal/article/nicanders-hymn-to-attalus-pergamene-panegyric/7CEF27AAE606FBE5A3814275866A88D5/share/04fe9dc20269c04097e8e8154d600eee92aa35a1 Nelson, T.J. (2020) ‘Nicander’s ''Hymn to Attalus'': Pergamene Panegyric’, ''CCJ'' 66, 182–202].
*Simon Hornblower and Tony Spawforth, Who's Who (Classical World), pg. 61.

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{{succession box | before = [[Attalus II]]| title = [[Attalid dynasty|King of Pergamon]]|years=138–133 BC | after = [[Eumenes III]]}}
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[[Category:Kings of Pergamon]]
[[Category:People from Pergamon]]
[[Category:Ancient Greek botanists]]
[[Category:Ancient Greek writers]]
[[Category:2nd-century BC Greek people]]
[[Category:2nd-century BC monarchs in Asia]]
[[Category:Year of birth unknown]]
[[Category:133 BC deaths]]