PAPHLAGONIA
This
was an ancient region on the Black Sea coast in northern Anatolia.
It was relatively unimportant in its level of participation in historical
events. Much of the country is rugged and mountainous, with occasional
fertile valley regions, and its inhabitants were often regarded
as ungovernable barbarians. Strabo mentioned that the region's western
limits were formed by the River Parthenius (the modern Bartin, with
its source in the Ilgaz Mountains), whilst an eastern border was
supplied by the River Halys (the modern Kizilirmak, which the Hittites
called the Maraššantiya).
Paphlagonia
emerged at the end of the second millennium BC during the Bronze
Age collapse, with Luwian-speaking Indo-Europeans apparently migrating
into what had recently been Kaskan territory. The Kaskans themselves
were non-Indo-Europeans who had seemingly only recently migrated
into the region to take over territory around the indigenous city
of Zalpa, and it seems that they may have been bumped further eastwards
by the arrival of the Luwian speakers. The Luwians came from the
south, from neighbouring Tabal (later known as Cappadocia) as part
of a general colonisation of southern Anatolia and expansion northwards.
In
Classical times Paphlagonia was located between Bithynia to the
west and Pontus to the east. Phrygia lay to the south-west but was
separated from it by a mountain range called the Bithynian Olympus.
Homer sets out a basic framework for Paphlagonia's initial settlement
by Trojans, and Strabo makes it clear that nothing has changed in
the meantime, including the names and the people. Its largely independent
princes seemingly termed themselves pylaimenes as a symbol of their
claimed descent from Pylaemenes of the Eneti, supposedly the chief
of the Paphlagonians during the early twelfth century BC (and who
is mentioned in the Iliad). Towards the end of the Classical period
Phrygia was invaded and taken over by Celts who founded a kingdom
that became known as Galatia. However, the kingdom only partially
infiltrated into Paphlagonia.
(Additional
information from A Geographical and Historical Description of Asia
Minor, John Anthony Cramer, from The Iliad, Homer (Translated by
E V Rieu, Penguin Books, 1963), and from External Link: Encyclopaedia
Britannia, 11th Edition.)
c.1500
BC :
According to Greek legend, Phineas is the son of Agenor, king of
Tyre. He and his four brothers, Cadmus, Cilix, Phoenix, and Thasus
have all departed their Phoenician home in search of their sister,
Europa, who had been abducted by Zeus. Phineas gives up his search
in eastern Thrace, where he settles on the western shores of the
Black Sea and rules a city state of his own.
![Phineas and the harpies](Thrace_PhineasHarpies01_full.jpg)
There
are two kings of early Thrace named Phineas, the first of whom was
a Phoenician while the second was rescued by Jason from harpies,
and it is the latter who is shown here
Phineas
becomes the father to Bithynus, Mariandynus, Paphlagonus, and Thynus
(Bithynus and Thynus are adopted from one Odrysus, the eponymous
namesake of the later Thracian kingdom). The four each found kingdoms
along the shores of the Black Sea; Bithynia, Mariandyne, Paphlagonia,
and Thynia.
fl
c.1480 BC :
Paphlagonus
: Son
of Phineas of Thrace.
c.1180s
BC :
Pylaemenes
of the Eneti : The
Eneti (Heneti) was a Thracian tribe. Killed at Troy.
c.1180s
BC :
Harpalion
of the Eneti : Son.
Killed at Troy.
c.1193
- 1183 BC :
Pylaemenes of the shaggy breast leads the Paphlagonian force to
the Trojan War on the side of Troy, which includes his son
Harpalion, and contingents from Aegialus, Cromna, Cytorus, Erythini,
Sesamus, and from along the River Parthenius.
Antenor,
ally of Aeneas of the Dardanians, sails into the furthest part of
the Adriatic (the northern reaches), accompanied by a number of
Enetians who have been driven from Paphlagonia by revolution following
the death of their king, Pylaemenes, before the gates of Troy. They
defeat the north Italian Euganei and occupy their lands near the
coast, later to be known as the Veneti tribe.
A
contingent of Halizones which also fights for Troy could be from
Paphlagonia. Homer calls Odius the chief of the Paphlagonians, placing
them in north-eastern Anatolia. It seems likely that the Halizones
move into the region at the same time that Paphlagonia begins to
emerge, displacing or subsuming Kaskans here until the latter finally
vanish from the historical records in the eighth century BC.
c.1180s
BC :
Odius
: Son
of Mecisteus of the Halizones. Chief of the Paphlagonians?
c.630 BC :
Greek settlers from Miletus in Caria refound the town of Sinope
in Paphlagonia. The city seems previously to have been a Hittite
port named Sinuwa until the dark age collapse of that state. The
city becomes an important link in a regional trade route and in
time founds its own colonies.
c.585
BC :
Alyattes
of II Lydia loses the Battle of the Eclipse to Media in a fifteen
year war which is otherwise relatively evenly matched. Lydia expands
in his reign to form an empire that covers all of western Anatolia
and includes Paphlagonia. The end of the war signals the start of
closer ties between the two kingdoms. Alyattes gives his daughter
in marriage to Astyages, son of Cyaxares.
549
- 546 BC :
The Persian defeat of the Medes opens the floodgates for Cyrus with
a wave of conquests, beginning with Cilicia in 549 BC. Harpagus,
a Median of the royal house and the main cause of the defeat of
the Medes, commands Cyrus' army in Anatolia, conquering it between
547-546 BC. Taken during this campaign are Caria, Lycia, Lydia,
Paphlagonia, Phrygia, and Tabal (Cappadocia). Harpagus and his descendants
reign thereafter in Karkâ (Caria) and Lykia (Lycia) as satraps of
the empire, normally within the satrapy of Karkâ. Paphlagonia appears
to be granted special status, perhaps due to the ungovernable nature
of the land. The natives retain their own princes who rule independently
of neighbouring satraps.
Persian
Satraps of Paphlagonia :
The attempt in 549 BC by the kingdom of Lydia to invade Anatolian
lands which now belonged to the Persian empire saw an appropriate
Persian response. Cyrus the Great invaded Lydia and crushed it,
and then proceeded to capture the rest of Anatolia too. The kingdom
of Phrygia and the minor city states of Karkâ also fell between
549-546 BC. Following that, a Persian layer of administration was
introduced to replace the lost kingships. However, direct control
may only have been nominal. Later events suggest that the Paphlagonians
were not especially controlled by anyone other than themselves.
To
the west, Paphlagonia bordered the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia.
To the north it reached the sea, and in the east the minor satrapy
of Katputka (Cappadocia). The southern border is somewhat less clear,
but the writer Curtius Rufus reported that Paphlagonia was entered
near Ancyra, so the border may have followed the modern Ankara Suyu,
a tributary of the ancient Sangarius (Sakarya).
The satraps perpetuated the illusion of ruling the region in the
name of the Persian king until invasion and conquest by Alexander
the Great gave them the chance of going it alone - now in name as
well as in probable fact. Occasionally local leaders would be able
to form a unified tribal kingdom, but rarely one that endured. Typically,
details of the satraps themselves in the fifth century are extremely
scarce, and even immediately preceding the Greek invasion little
is really known of them. If the Persians recorded the names and
dates of office of their various satraps, these details rarely survived.
(Information by Peter Kessler, with additional information from
The Histories, Herodotus (Penguin, 1996), from The Persian
Empire, J M Cook (1983), from Alexander the Great, Krzysztof
Nawotka (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2009), from A Political
History of the Achaemenid Empire, M A Dandamaev, and from External
Links: Encyclopaedia Iranica, and Lives of Eminent Commanders,
Cornelius Nepos (1886 Edition).)
549
- 546 BC :
The defeat of the Medes opens the floodgates for Cyrus the Great
with a wave of conquests, beginning with Cilicia in 549 BC. Harpagus,
a Median of the royal house and the main cause of the Median defeat,
commands Cyrus' army in Anatolia, conquering it between 547-546
BC. Taken during this campaign are Armenia, Caria, Lycia, Lydia,
Paphlagonia, Phrygia, and Tabal (Cappadocia), and Harpagus and his
descendants reign thereafter in Karkâ (Caria) and Lykia (Lycia),
and apparently Cilicia too, as satraps.
![Cyrus the Great](Persia_CyrusGreat_01_full.jpg)
Cyrus
the Great freed the Indo-Iranian Parsua people from Median domination
to establish a nation that is recognisable to this day, and an empire
that provided the basis for the vast territories that were later
ruled by Alexander the Great
While
the other conquered regions in Anatolia gain major or minor satrapies
or, in a few cases, retain local leaders as vassals, how Paphlagonia
is governed remains a mystery. Local princes are known to rule on
at least a semi-independent basis during the mid-fifth century BC,
so it is likely they do so from the start, with the blessing of
their new overlord, Cyrus, who tacitly understands that bringing
these strong-willed mountain folk under full control is probably
more trouble than it is worth. Instead it is likely that the satrap
of Katputka or Phrygia is tasked with keeping an eye on things here.
546
- ? BC :
?
: Satrap
or native vassal ruler unknown.
480 - 479 BC :
Paphlagonia
with its still-independent but generally unrecorded princes contributes
an important, numerous contingent to the Persian army of Xerxes
which invades Greece. Once there the Persians subdue the Thracian
tribes, and they join his forces too, all except the Satrai, precursors
to the Bessoi, who refuse to succumb. The Macedonians are also subdued
but continue to supply aid in the war against the Persians. Then
the vast army of the Persian King Xerxes makes its way southwards
and is swiftly engaged by Athens and Sparta in the Vale of Tempe.
The Persians are subsequently stymied by a mixed force of Greeks
led by Sparta at Thermopylae. (These events are depicted somewhat
colourfully - but no less impressively for that - in the 2007 film,
300.)
Athens, as the leader of the coalition of city states known as the
Delian League, then defeats the Persian navy at Salamis, and after
Xerxes returns home his army is decisively defeated at the Battle
of Plataea and kicked out of Greece. (The naval battles of Artemisium
and Salamis are shown to superb graphic effect in the 2014 sequel
film, 300: Rise of an Empire, although it does contain a
great many historical inaccuracies.)
c.425 BC :
By this time a dynasty of native satraps have emerged into history,
governing the region (probably on the usual semi-independent basis)
for the Achaemenid Persians. They are reputedly descended from Pylaemenes
of the Eneti, a twelfth century BC Thracian in Paphlagonia who had
been killed at Troy.
![Southern coast of the Black Sea](BlackSea_SouthCoast01_full.jpg)
Like
the Kaskans before them, the Paphlagonians struggled to survive
in the somewhat tough conditions of the Black Sea's southern coast
c.425 - 400 BC :
Corylas
: Prince,
or Achaemenid satrap of Paphlagonia?
c.400 - 380 BC :
Cotys
: Son
or brother. Achaemenid satrap of Paphlagonia?
c.380 - 364 BC :
Thuys
/ Thyus : Son
or brother. Achaemenid satrap of Paphlagonia?
364 BC :
This is the point at which the native princes of Paphlagonia are
finally removed from holding any kind of office. They are replaced
by various individuals from more powerful regions. By now the Greek
city of Sinope has also fallen under Persian domination.
Datames,
satrap of Khilakku (which includes Katpatuka and Paphlagonia) is
the first outsider to take control. He seizes Paphlagonia upon the
orders of Autophradates, satrap of Sparda. Cornelius Nepos writes
that Thyus, 'prince of Paphlagonia, a man of ancient family', descended
from the twelfth century Pylaemenes (see above), is taken prisoner
by Datames. He also states that Datames and Thyus are first cousins,
so it is apparent that the vassal Persian satraps are likely taken
from compliant members of the local nobility.
Given
the fact that he has made enemies within the regional Persian administration
through his successes and his promotion to govern the minor satrapy
of Cappadocia-beside-the-Pontus, Datames seized Paphlagonia as his
own and effectively declares that he is in revolt against Persia.
364
- 362 BC :
Datames
: Of
Katpatuka. Achaemenid satrap of Khilakku (inc Paphlagonia).
364 - 358 BC :
Soon all of Asia Minor (Anatolia) revolts against Persian King Artaxerxes
II and, in 362 BC, even Autophradates, satrap of Sparda, is driven
to join the rebels. Sparta, and also Takhôs, pharaoh of Egypt, send
substantial help to the rebels. Two years later, in 360 BC, Ariobarzanes
is betrayed by his son, Mithridates, and is executed. The satrapal
revolt is finally suppressed in 359-358 BC, by which time a replacement
satrap seems to have been appointed in Paphlagonia, while Datames'
son, Ariaramnes, is satrap of Katpatuka.
362
- 353 BC :
Sysinas
: Achaemenid
satrap of Paphlagonia. Also in Khilakku?
353 - 334 BC :
Arsites
: Achaemenid
satrap of Paphlagonia. Also in Phrygia. Suicide.
334 - 323 BC :
Alexander the Great launches his campaign into the Persian empire
by crossing the Dardanelles. The first battle is fought on the River
Graneikos (Granicus), eighty kilometres (fifty miles) to the east.
The Persian defeat forces Arsites to commit suicide while the region
is incorporated into Alexander's growing Greek empire. Sparda surrenders
but Karkâ's satrap holds out in the fortress of Halicarnassus with
the Persian General Memnon.
![Alexander the Great crosses the River Graneikos](Macedonia_Alexander03_full.jpg)
Alexander
the Great crossed the River Graneikos (or Granicus) in 334 BC to
spark a direct face-off with the Persians that had been brewing
for generations, and his victory in battle near the river sent shockwaves
through the Persian empire
Greek
satraps hold nominal command, but often from beyond the mountain
range that isolates Paphlagonia. In fact the mountain dwellers appear
to provide as much trouble as ever to the Greek region of Paphlagonia.
Argead
Dynasty in Paphlagonia :
The Argead were the ruling family and founders of Macedonia who
reached their greatest extent under Alexander the Great and his
two successors before the kingdom broke up into several Hellenic
sections. Following Alexander's conquest of the Persian holdings
in Anatolia and Syria between 334-331 BC, the Greek empire ruled
the region until Alexander's death in 323 BC and the subsequent
regency period which ended in 310 BC. Alexander's successors held
no real power, being mere figureheads for the generals who really
held control of Alexander's empire. Following that latter period
and during the course of several wars, Anatolia was divided between
Cassander of Macedonia, the Lysimachian empire, and the Antigonid
empire.
The Persian satraps had perpetuated the illusion of ruling Paphlagonia
in the name of the king until invasion and conquest by Alexander
the Great gave the natives the chance of going it alone. However,
direct control by the Persians may only have been nominal. Events
during the lifetime of the empire events suggest that the Paphlagonians
were not especially controlled by anyone other than themselves.
Occasionally local leaders would be able to form a unified tribal
kingdom, but rarely one that endured. Alexander was content to accept
nominal submission from them without tribute being exacted.
Upon Alexander's death his two successors were retained as figureheads
while the empire was governed by his powerful generals. Perdiccas,
the leading cavalry commander, was the first general to rule, carrying
the title 'Regent of Macedonia', initially with Meleager, head of
the infantry officers, as his lieutenant, but alone after he had
him murdered. Control of the empire was divided up, with Alexander's
secretary, Eumenes of Cardia, gaining Cappadocia, Mysia, and Paphlagonia
until he was also killed during the four Wars of the Diadochi.
(Information by Peter Kessler, with additional information from
Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, William
Smith (Ed, 1867), from The Persian Empire, J M Cook (1983),
from The Histories, Herodotus (Penguin, 1996), from Anabasis
Alexandri, Arrian of Nicomedia, from Panyassis of Halikarnassos:
Text and Commentary, Paníasis, from The Generalship of Alexander
the Great, J F C Fuller, from the Historical Dictionary of
Ancient Greek Warfare, J Woronoff & I Spence, and from External
Links: Encyclopaedia Iranica, and The Geography of Strabo (Loeb
Classical Library Edition, 1932).)
334
- 323 BC :
Alexander III the Great : King
of Macedonia. Conquered Persia.
323 - 317 BC :
Philip III Arrhidaeus : Feeble-minded
half-brother of Alexander the Great.
317 - 310 BC :
Alexander IV of Macedonia : Infant
son of Alexander the Great and Roxana.
334
- 325 BC :
Calas
: Son
of Harpalus of Elimiotis. Satrap of Paphlagonia & Phrygia.
325
- 323 BC :
Demarchus
: Greek
satrap of Paphlagonia.
323 BC :
Following the death of Alexander the Great, his former secretary,
Eumenes of Cardia, commands Cappadocia, Mysia, and Paphlagonia.
He is confirmed in 322 BC by the Greek regent, Perdiccas. The regent
underlines his choice of ruler by defeating the deposed Ariarathes
of Cappadocia, and then having him and many of his relations crucified.
Eumenes soon finds his rule opposed by Nikanor, a Macedonian officer
who serves first Cassander, would-be regent and king of Greece,
and then Antigonus.
![Map of Central Asia & Eastern Mediterranean 334-323 BC](Map_Bactria-&-India-334-324BC_full.jpg)
![Diogenes of Sinope](Greek_DiogenesSinope01_full.jpg)
Diogenes
of Sinope was the rather eccentric father of the Greek cynicism
school of philosophy, living between either 412 or 404 BC and 323
BC, while above is the route of Alexander's ongoing campaigns, leading
him from Europe to Egypt, into Persia, and across the vastness of
eastern Iran as far as the Pamir mountain range
323
- 316 BC :
Eumenes
of Cardia : Greek
satrap of Cappadocia, Mysia, & Paphlagonia.
319/306
- 301 BC :
The death of Antipater of Greece leads to the Second War of the
Diadochi. He had passed over his son, Cassander, in favour of
Polyperchon as his successor (possibly to avoid claims of dynasticism)
but the two rivals go to war. In the resultant shifts in power and
control, Cappadocia and its surrounding regions (including Paphlagonia)
become part of the Antigonid empire and Eumenes is killed. The kingdom
of Cappadocia is subsumed until 301 BC.
316
- 306 BC :
Antigonus
Monophthalmus (One Eye) : Greek
founder of the Antigonid empire.
305 - 301 BC :
During the Fourth War of the Diadochi, the diadochi
generals proclaim themselves king of their respective domains following
a similar proclamation by Antigonus the year before (306 BC). In
302 BC, Lysimachus enters western Asia Minor, governed as part of
Greater Phrygia, and gains (or regains) control of much of it.
![Battle of Ipsus](Macedonia_Ipsus01_full.jpg)
The
Battle of Ipsus in 301 BC ended the drawn-out and destructive Wars
of the Diadochi which decided how Alexander's empire would be divided
Following
the death of Antigonus at the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BC, his territories
are carved up by the other diadochi. As part of his Lysimachian
empire, Lysimachus gains Ionia, Lydia, Phrygia, and the southern
Black Sea coast of Asia Minor. Mithradates takes control of Pontus
from the fragmenting empire, creating his own kingdom which also
encompasses part of Paphlagonia. This removes Cappadocian access
to the Black Sea, whilst the Greek city of Sinope within Paphlagonia
retains its independence under Scydrothemis.
Galatian
Kings of Paphlagonia (Celts) :
The Persians in Paphlagonia had never convincingly controlled the
region. Events during the lifetime of the empire events suggest
that the Paphlagonians were not especially controlled by anyone
other than themselves. Occasionally local leaders would be able
to form a unified tribal kingdom, but rarely one that endured. The
invasion and conquest of Anatolia by Alexander the Great gave the
natives the chance of going it alone as Alexander was content to
accept nominal submission from them without tribute being exacted.
However, it appears to have been Galatians who become dominant in
areas of Paphlagonia.
(Information by Peter Kessler, with additional information from
Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, William
Smith (Ed, 1867), from The Persian Empire, J M Cook (1983),
from The Histories, Herodotus (Penguin, 1996), from the Historical
Dictionary of Ancient Greek Warfare, J Woronoff & I Spence,
from The Cambridge Ancient History, edited by I E S Edwards,
from The Kingdom of the Hittites, Trevor Bryce (1998), from
The Hittites, O R Gurney (1991), and from External Links:
Encyclopaedia Iranica, and The Geography of Strabo (Loeb Classical
Library Edition, 1932).)
279
BC :
Despite ruling both the Lysimachian empire and Macedonia, and having
his main rival, the Antigonid King Antigonus II Gonatas bottled
up in his own capital, Ptolemy II Ceraunus is killed in the invasion
of Greece by a large contingent of Galatian Celts under the command
of Bolgios. The kingdom is plunged into anarchy as the Celts invade
further into Greece, and only the Aetolians seem to be able to take
the lead in defending Greek territory.
278
- 277 BC :
A
third campaign by the Celts is eventually defeated by a force led
by the Aetolians. Following victory at Thermopylae, they advance
to Delphi in 278 BC where they are routed by the Greek army, and
then suffer a crushing defeat at the hands of the Antigonid King
Antigonus II in 277 BC.
Subsequently
they retreat from Greece and pass through Thrace to enter into Asia
Minor. These Celts in Anatolia (centred on lands that are taken
from Antigonid Phrygia) form tribal regions that are based around
each of the three main constituents of the confederation. The Trocmes
concentrate themselves at Tauion (Tavium, in southern Paphlagonia).
235
BC :
Antiochus Heirax, co-regent of the Seleucid empire and governor
of regions in Anatolia - together with Mithradates of Pontus, continues
his campaign to wrest the empire from his brother by defeating him
at the battle of Ancyra in 235 BC, leaving Anatolia outside of Seleucid
power. This victory is clearly also good for Pontus itself, giving
it more freedom to expand its own power and territory. However,
Mithradates is unable to conquer the city of Sinope in Paphlagonia.
c.200
BC :
By now Galatia has been settled for almost a century around the
River Halys and the Phrygian plain - the poorest parts of Anatolia.
According to Pliny the Elder, it lies 'above' Phrygia and includes
the greater part of the territory taken from that province, along
with its former capital at Gordion (Gordium). The Gauls of Maeonia
(Lydia) and Paphlagonia are called the Trocmi (Trocmes), and number
of their leaders are known to history (shown below). Cappadocia
stretches along to the north-west of Galatia, with its most fertile
regions being in the possession of the Galatian Tectosages and Teutobodiaci.
183
BC :
Following
Roman victories over Macedonia and the Seleucids in Syria (190 BC),
Pharnaces I of Pontus allies his kingdom to Rome. In 183 BC he completes
the conquest of neighbouring Paphlagonia by taking Sinope. The region's
history now largely follows that of Pontus and its successor, Rome.
No further mention is made of independent princes and today Paphlagonia
forms part of Turkey.
Source
:
https://www.historyfiles.co.uk/
KingListsMiddEast/
AnatoliaPaphlagonia.htm