Asander (king)
Asander | |
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Greek Polytheism |
Asander, named Philocaesar Philoromaios (
Revolt against Pharnaces II
By 47 BC, Asander had married Dynamis, the daughter of Pharnaces II by a Sarmatian wife, as his second wife. She was a granddaughter of King Mithridates VI of Pontus by his first wife, his sister Laodice.
In 47 BC, Pharnaces II put Asander in charge of the Bosporan Kingdom while he went with an army to invade the eastern parts of Anatolia. Following a successful campaign, Pharnaces advanced towards the western parts of Anatolia. However, he had to stop because Asander revolted against him. Asander hoped that by betraying his father-in-law he would win favour with the Romans and they could help him become the Bosporan King [citation needed].
Pharnaces defeated
Overthrow of Asander
Asander was soon overthrown from the Bosporan throne. Julius Caesar gave a tetrarchy in
Restoration to Bosporan Kingdom
Asander came back to defeat Mithridates in 47/46 BC. Sometime between 27 and 17 BC, Augustus formally recognised Asander as king of Bosporan Kingdom.
According to Strabo, Asander blocked the isthmus of the Chersonesus (
Lucian wrote that Asander "at about ninety years proved himself a match for anyone in fighting from horseback or on foot; but when he saw his subjects going over to Scribonius on the eve of battle, he starved himself to death at the age of ninety-three."[6]
Subsequent Events
Cassius Dio wrote that a certain Scribonius claimed to be a grandson of Mithridates VI and that he had received the Bosporan Kingdom from Augustus after the death of Asander. He gained the control of the kingdom by marrying Dynamis, who had been entrusted with the regency of the kingdom by her husband. Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa sent Polemon I of Pontus against him. Scribonius was killed by the people, before Polemon got there because they had heard of his advance. They resisted Polemon because they were afraid that he may be appointed as their king. Polemon defeated them but was unable to quell the rebellion until Agrippa went to Sinope to prepare a campaign against them. They surrendered. Polemon was appointed as their king. He married Dynamis with the sanction of Augustus.[7]
Dynamis died in 14 BC, and Polemon ruled until his death in 8 BC, succeeded by
Notes
- ^ "Asander, lover of Caesar lover of Rome"
References
Bibliography
- Primary sources
- Cassius Dio, Roman History, vol. 4, Books 41-45 (Loeb Classical Library), Loeb, 1989; ISBN 978-0674990739
- Cassius Dio, Roman History, vol. 5, Books 46-50 (Loeb Classical Library), Loeb, 1989; ISBN 978-0674990913
- Strabo, Geography: vol. 5, Books 10-12 (Loeb Classical Library), Loeb, 1989; ISBN 978-0674992337
- Strabo, Geography: vol. 6, Books 13-14 (Loeb Classical Library), Loeb, 1989; ISBN 978-0674992467
- Secondary sources
- Mayor, A., The Poison King: The Life and Legend of Mithradates, Rome's Deadliest Enemy, ISBN 978-0691150260
See also
- Bosporan Kingdom
- Roman Crimea
External links
- "Smith, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology: Asander". Archived from the original on June 7, 2008. Retrieved May 30, 2009.
- "Smith, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology: Scribonius". Archived from the original on March 15, 2009. Retrieved May 30, 2009.
- "Bosporos, Kings - Ancient Greek Coins". WildWinds.com. Retrieved 2016-05-23.
- Treister, M., On the weapons of Sarmatian type in the Bosporan Kingdom in the 1st-2nd century AD by Mikhail (Bonn) [8]
- Coinage of Asander