Epirus

An area of northwestern Greece known from early times for its oracle to Apollo at Dodona. Gradually Hellenized by Greek colonies on the coast, the area was united into a single kingdom under a chieftain from the central Molossian tribe in the 4th century BC. Epirus' greatest period of prosperity then followed. Its most famous king was Pyrrhus. The kingdom collapsed in the 3rd century BC and was conquered by the Romans in 167 BC; they allegedly enslaved 150,000 people.