Mithridates I of Parthia
Mithridates I 𐭌𐭄𐭓𐭃𐭕 | |
---|---|
Arsacid dynasty | |
Father | Priapatius |
Mithridates I (also spelled Mithradates I or Mihrdad I;
Mithridates I was the first Parthian king to assume the ancient Achaemenid title of King of Kings. Due to his accomplishments, he has been compared to Cyrus the Great (r. 550–530 BC), the founder of the Achaemenid Empire.[3] Mithridates I died in 132 BC, and was succeeded by his son Phraates II.
Name
"Mithridates" is the
Background
Mithridates was the son of Priapatius, the great-nephew of the first Arsacid king, Arsaces I (r. 247–217 BC). Mithridates had several brothers, including Artabanus and his older brother Phraates I, the latter succeeding their father in 176 BC as the Parthian king. According to Parthian custom, the reigning ruler had to be succeeded by his own son. However, Phraates I broke tradition and appointed his own brother Mithridates as his successor.[1] According to the 2nd-century Roman historian Justin, Phraates I had made his decision after noticing Mithridates' remarkable competence.[8]
Reign
The kingdom that Mithridates inherited in 165 BC was one of the many medium-sized powers that had risen with the decline of Seleucid Empire or had appeared on its borders.
Wars in the east
He first turned his sights on the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom which had been considerably weakened as a result of its wars against the neighbouring Sogdians, Drangianans and Indians.[8] The new Greco-Bactrian king Eucratides I (r. 171–145 BC) had usurped the throne and was as a result met with opposition, such as the rebellion by the Arians, which was possibly supported by Mithridates I, as it would serve to his advantage.[10] Sometime between 163–155 BC, Mithridates I invaded the domains of Eucratides, whom he defeated and seized Aria, Margiana and western Bactria from.[11] Eucratides was supposedly made a Parthian vassal, as is indicated by the classical historians Justin and Strabo.[12] Merv became a stronghold of Parthian dominance in the northeast.[11] Some of Mithridates I's bronze coins portray an elephant on the reverse with the legend "of the Great King, Arsaces."[13] The Greco-Bactrians minted coins with images of elephants, which suggests that Mithridates I's coin mints of the very animal was possibly to celebrate his conquest of Bactria.[13]
Wars in the west
Turning his sights on the Seleucid realm, Mithridates I invaded Media and occupied Ecbatana in 148 or 147 BC; the region had recently become unstable after the Seleucids suppressed a rebellion led by Timarchus.[14] Mithridates I afterwards appointed his brother Bagasis as the governor of the area.[15] This victory was followed by the Parthian conquest of Media Atropatene.[16][17] In 141 BC, Mithridates I captured Babylonia in Mesopotamia, where he had coins minted at Seleucia and held an official investiture ceremony.[18] There Mithridates I appears to have introduced a parade of the New Year festival in Babylon, by which a statue of the ancient Mesopotamian god Marduk was led along parade way from the Esagila temple by holding the hands of the goddess Ishtar.[19] With Mesopotamia now in Parthian hands, the administrative focus of the empire relocated towards there instead of eastern Iran.[20] Mithridates I shortly afterwards retired to Hyrcania, whilst his forces subdued the kingdoms of Elymais and Characene and occupied Susa.[18] By this time, Parthian authority extended as far east as the Indus River.[21]
Whereas
The Seleucid ruler Demetrius II Nicator was at first successful in his efforts to reconquer Babylonia, however, the Seleucids were eventually defeated and Demetrius himself was captured by Parthian forces in 138 BC.[26] He was afterwards paraded in front of the Greeks of Media and Mesopotamia with the intention of making them to accept Parthian rule.[27] Afterwards, Mithridates I had Demetrius sent to one of his palaces in Hyrcania. There Mithridates I treated his captive with great hospitality; he even married his daughter Rhodogune to Demetrius.[28] According to Justin, Mithridates I had plans for Syria, and planned to use Demetrius as his instrument against the new Seleucid ruler Antiochus VII Sidetes (r. 138–129 BC).[29] His marriage to Rhodogune was in reality an attempt by Mithridates I to incorporate the Seleucid lands into the expanding Parthian realm.[29] Mithridates I then punished the Parthian vassal kingdom of Elymais for aiding the Seleucids–he invaded the region once more and captured two of their major cities.[30][24]
Around the same period, Mithridates I conquered the southwestern Iranian region of Persis and installed Wadfradad II as its frataraka; he granted him more autonomy, most likely in an effort to maintain healthy relations with Persis as the Parthian Empire was under constant conflict with the Saka, Seleucids, and the Mesenians.[31][32] He was seemingly the first Parthian monarch to have an influence on the affairs of Persis. The coinage of Wadfradad II shows influence from the coins minted under Mithridates I.[33] Mithridates I died in c. 132 BC, and was succeeded by his son Phraates II.[34]
Coinage and Imperial ideology
Since the early 2nd century BC, the Arsacids had begun adding obvious signals in their dynastic ideology, which emphasized their association with the heritage of the ancient
The Arsacid monarchs preceding Mithridates I are depicted on the obverse of their coins with a soft cap, known as the
The other titles that Mithridates I used in his coinage was "of Arsaces", which was later changed into "of King Arsaces", and eventually, "of the Great King Arsaces."[39] The name of the first Arsacid ruler Arsaces I had become a royal honorific among the Arsacid monarchs out of admiration for his achievements.[1][44] Another title used in Mithridates' coinage was "whose father is a god", which was also later used by his son, Phraates II.[39]
Building activities
Under Mithridates I, the city of Nisa, which served as a royal residence of the Arsacids,[45] was completely transformed.[46] Renamed Mithradatkert ("Mithridates' fortress"), the city was made into a religious hub that was dedicated to promote the worship of Arsacid family.[46] A sculpted head broken off from a larger statue from Mithradatkert, depicting a bearded man with noticeably Iranian facial characteristics, may be a portrait of Mithridates I.[47][39] Ctesiphon, a city on the Tigris next to Seleucia, was founded during his reign.[48] According to Strabo, the city was established as a camp for the Parthian troops, due to Arsacids not finding it suitable to send them into Seleucia.[48] Pliny the Elder, however, states that Ctesiphon was founded in order to lure the inhabitants of Seleucia out of their city.[48]
The Xong-e Noruzi relief
One of the most famous Parthian reliefs is a scene with six men at Xong-e Noruzi in
Legacy
Of all Mithridates' accomplishments, his greatest one was to transform Parthia from a small kingdom into a major political power in the
References
- ^ a b c Dąbrowa 2012, p. 169.
- ^ Frye 1984, p. 211.
- ^ a b Katouzian 2009, p. 41.
- ^ Mayor 2009, p. 1.
- ^ Schmitt 2005.
- ^ Olbrycht 2016, pp. 97, 99–100.
- ^ a b Olbrycht 2016, p. 100.
- ^ a b Justin, xli. 41.
- ^ a b c Olbrycht 2010, pp. 229–230.
- ^ Olbrycht 2010, p. 234.
- ^ a b Olbrycht 2010, p. 237.
- ^ Olbrycht 2010, pp. 236–237.
- ^ a b Dąbrowa 2016, p. 40.
- ^ Curtis 2007, pp. 10–11; Bivar 1983, p. 33; Garthwaite 2005, p. 76
- ^ Shayegan 2011, pp. 72–74.
- ^ Olbrycht 2010, pp. 239–240.
- ^ Dąbrowa 2010, p. 28.
- ^ a b Curtis 2007, pp. 10–11; Brosius 2006, pp. 86–87; Bivar 1983, p. 34; Garthwaite 2005, p. 76;
- ^ Shayegan 2011, p. 67.
- ^ Canepa 2018, p. 70.
- ^ Garthwaite 2005, p. 76; Bivar 1983, p. 35
- ^ Brosius 2006, pp. 103, 110–113
- ^ Kennedy 1996, p. 73; Garthwaite 2005, p. 77; Brown 1997, pp. 80–84
- ^ a b c d e f g Schippmann 1986, pp. 525–536.
- ^ Bivar 1983, p. 34
- ^ Brosius 2006, p. 89; Bivar 1983, p. 35; Shayegan 2007, pp. 83–103, 178
- ^ Dąbrowa 2018, p. 75.
- ^ Brosius 2006, p. 89; Bivar 1983, p. 35; Shayegan 2007, pp. 83–103; Dąbrowa 2018, p. 75
- ^ a b Nabel 2017, p. 32.
- ^ Hansman 1998, pp. 373–376.
- ^ Wiesehöfer 2000, p. 195.
- ^ Shayegan 2011, p. 178.
- ^ Sellwood 1983, p. 304.
- ^ Assar 2009, p. 134.
- ^ a b c Dąbrowa 2012, p. 179.
- ^ Sinisi 2012, p. 280.
- ^ Curtis 2012, p. 68.
- ^ Brosius 2006, pp. 101–102.
- ^ a b c d e Curtis 2007, p. 9.
- ^ Dąbrowa 2012, p. 170.
- ^ Dąbrowa 2013, p. 54.
- ^ Curtis 2012, p. 69.
- ^ Curtis 2012, pp. 69, 76–77.
- ^ Kia 2016, p. 23.
- ^ Dąbrowa 2012, p. 179–180.
- ^ a b Dąbrowa 2010, pp. 42–43.
- ^ Invernizzi.
- ^ a b c Kröger 1993, pp. 446–448.
- ^ Mathiesen 1992, pp. 119–121.
- ^ Shayegan 2011, p. 106.
- ^ Colledge 1977, p. 92.
- ^ Shayegan 2011, pp. 106–107.
- ^ Kawami 2013, pp. 762–763.
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- Justin, Epitome of the Philippic History of Pompeius Trogus.
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