First Mithridates War

At the end of III - beginning of II centuries BC. e. the situation in Asia Minor, characterized by relative stability and an equal balance of power , has changed dramatically. At first, the influence of the Seleucids increased, whose king Antiochus III began an active conquest policy. However, the Romans defeated Antiochus III during the Syrian war , as a result of which Pergamum intensified. This did not appeal to the Bithynian king Prusius I , who began the war with Pergamum (186-183 BC). Pontic king Farnak I in this conflict supported Prussia. Later, through the mediation of Rome, the relations of Bithynia and Pergamum began to improve. Farnak had territorial claims on Phrygia and Galatia , which in fact became the property of his enemies ^[3] . In 183 BC e. Farnak captured Sinop , and soon began a war with Pergamum, Bithynia and Cappadocia . In 179 BC e. with the mediation of the Romans, peace negotiations began. At the same time, Farnak launched a campaign in Cappadocia, but was forced to retreat under the pressure of the combined allied forces. The Pontic king was forced by the allies to peace, according to which he abandoned all the conquered territories ^[4] .

Now Pontus had to face the interests of Rome, whose allies were states to which the Pontians had territorial claims. Not deciding on an armed confrontation with Rome, the Pontic kings were forced to act by diplomatic methods ^[5] . After the defeat, Farnak switched to phylline politics, thereby demonstrating his sympathies for Rome ^[6] . In the second quarter of the second century BC e. Pontus’s policies changed a lot and became more loyal to Rome. This was expressed in a departure from the previous stiffness with respect to Greek policies and in the transition to phyllian politics, which Farnac’s successors Mithridates IV Philopatre Philadelphus and Mithridates V Evergett even more actively implemented ^[7] .

In the spring of 133 BC e. the childless king of Pergamum Attal III died, bequeathed his homeland to Rome. His illegitimate brother Aristonik , who organized a powerful rebellion, did not agree with this. In its suppression, both Roman troops and the armies of neighboring kingdoms participated. For their help in suppressing the uprising, their rulers received good gifts: the Pontic king Mithridates V Everget seized Great Phrygia, the sons of the ruler of Cappadocia Ariarat received Lyconia and part of Cilicia , and Bithynia got part of Phrygia . In the remaining part of Pergamum, the Roman province of Asia was created, to which was added Kariya , torn away from Rhodes ^[8] . Also during the suppression of the uprising, the Pontic king, with the tacit consent of Rome, annexed Paflagonia and Galatia to his possessions ^[9] .

After the death of the Cappadocian king, power in this country fell into the hands of his widow Laodika (130-129 BC), who killed five of her sons to maintain her power, but the sixth survived and was proclaimed king Ariarat VI . Mithridates took advantage of the situation and invaded Cappadocia, supporting Ariarat. He decided to marry him with his daughter, as a result of which he would become the de facto ruler of Cappadocia ^[10] . Thus, Mithridates ended the work of his predecessors, establishing control over the areas to which the Pontic kings had their claims. In Rome, talk began about the legitimacy of the transfer to Pontus of Great Phrygia, but Mithridates was not inferior ^[10] .

The assassination of Mithridates Everget (about 123 BC) sparked speculation about the benefits of this event to the Romans. Widow of King Laodice in 120/119 BC e. abandoned control of Great Phrygia, which the Romans made free, but in 116 defiantly joined their possessions ^[11] . From this moment, Roman and Italian moneylenders even more actively began to take control of the economy of Asia Minor, causing hatred of the local population ^[12] .

In 109-108 BC e. the new Pontic king Mithridates VI, along with several friends went on a secret trip to Paflagonia, Bithynia and the Roman province of Asia. So he was able to obtain data on the state of affairs in these areas, as well as secure the support of some local elites ^[13] . In addition, an alliance was concluded with the ruler of Bithynia Nycomed III .

After this, Mithridates commanded the organization of military exercises, and in 106/105 the troops of Pontus and Bithynia captured Paphlagonia. The local royal family has recently ceased, and the local dynasties (rulers who were subordinate to the king, and who had military and civil power in the provided area ^[14] ) could not provide serious resistance. The country was divided as follows: the coast went to Pontus to Heraclea of ​​Pontica and the valley of the Amnius River, and Bithynia received inland areas ^[15] .

The local population asked Rome to exert pressure on the invaders. His ambassadors arrived at the courts of both rulers, but Mithridates and Nycomed did not want to abandon the occupied lands. However, Rome was occupied by wars with the Cimbrians , and did not seriously react to political changes in the east ^[16] .

In 94 BC e. Mithridates was able to enter into an alliance with the ruler of Armenia, Tigran II , giving him his daughter Cleopatra. After that, he asked the ally to return the throne of Cappadocia to his son Ariarat, to which he received consent. An army led by Gordia quickly expelled a Roman protégé, but the Roman commander Sulla was able to return the throne to Ariobarzan. Mithridates decided not to resist the Roman representatives ^[17] .

In 94 BC e. the king of Bithynia Nycomed III died unexpectedly, leaving two illegitimate children: Nycomed IV and Socrates . The first of them became the new ruler, and the second was forced to retire into exile. In 91 BC e. Eupator provided the exile with money and troops, and he was able to expel his half-brother. At the same time, the troops of Mithridates and Tigranes invaded Cappadocia and again expelled Ariobarzan from there. The ousted rulers appeared before the Senate, which ordered the consul Mania Aquilius and the governor of the province of Asia Lucius Cassius to provide military assistance to the states. Mithridates was ordered to provide assistance, but he refused, recalling the seized from Pontus Phrygia and Cappadocia ^[18] . But he soon changed his mind: Socrates was killed, and the Roman ambassadors could go to Pontus, in order to verify the peaceful intentions of his king.

Bithynia and Cappadocia were returned to their former masters by Roman weapons, although Galatians and Phrygians also had to be used. Despite the restoration of the status quo , the current state of affairs did not suit either Mithridates or Rome ^[19] .

Having finished with the supporters of Khrest, the king of Bethany faced large debts to Roman officials and money-lenders. By agreement with the Romans, Nycomed was supposed to invade Pontus, and in return the republic would protect him from the response of Mithridates ^[18] .

The Bethynians robbed the area right up to Amastria , and the fleet blocked the Bosporus of Thrace , inflicting heavy damage on enemy trade. Mithridates ordered his troops not to resist and retreat, allowing the aggressors to return home. After that, he sent Pelopides to the Romans. The ambassador demanded that they intervene in the conflict, affecting Nycomed or allowing the Pontians to strike back. To this he heard the following: We would not want Mithridates to suffer anything unpleasant from Nycomed, but we will not tolerate a war against Nycomed: we believe that it is not in the interests of the Romans that Nycomed suffer damage ^[20] .

Romans

The troops of the Romans and their allies prepared for the invasion of Pontus and divided their forces into three parts, commanded by the Roman generals. Cassius stood on the border of Bithynia and Galatia , Manius on the way from Pontus to Bithynia, and Oppius on the borders of Cappadocia . Each of them, according to Appian , had 40 thousand infantry and 4 thousand horsemen. The Bithin army comprised 50 thousand foot soldiers and 6 thousand horsemen ^[1] .

Pontians

Mithridates possessed an army of 250,000 foot soldiers and 40,000 horsemen , 300 military ships. In addition, auxiliary troops were present: Arkafiy brought 10,000 horsemen from Little Armenia, as well as 130 battle chariots ^[2] . Pontus also had numerous allies: Egypt, Syria, Armenia, Athens and the Cilician pirates , as well as some Thracian tribes, although only some of them could help in this fight.

King of Bethany, Nycomed IV, invaded Pontus, but was defeated , losing most of the army ^[21] . During the battle, the Vithins had an advantage, but as a result of the flanking maneuver and the use of sickle-chariots, the victory remained with the Pontians. Nycomed, with a small detachment of associates, fled to the Aquilia Mania camp. The newly arrived Mithridates pardoned the Vyfintsy prisoners and released him, creating a reputation as a merciful sovereign ^[22] . After the victory, Mithridates invaded Phrygia .

According to Appian, the Roman generals were frightened by the defeat of Nycomed, and therefore Manius wanted to quietly leave. The king of Bithyn, meanwhile, fled to Cassius. Near Pachius Akivilius overtook the Pontians under the command of Neoptolem and Neman. The fortified camp Mania was captured, and he himself fled to Pergamum ^{[23] [24]} . Learning about this, Cassius and Nycomed retreated to Leontokefaleya and tried to recruit volunteers from the locals, but they did not succeed, because the inhabitants were not eager to fight for the Romans, and Cassius retired to Apamea , Nycomed to Pergamum , and Maniy to Lesbos ^[25] . Quintus Oppius entrenched himself in Laodicea , but the locals extradited him to Mithridates, and soon Manius was extradited (he was later executed). The Pontic fleet took control of the Black Sea straits and entered the Aegean Sea .

The stronghold of resistance to Mithridates at the first stage of the war was Rhodes . It was there that the Romans fled from Asia , including Lucius Cassius, as well as Tsar Nycomed. The Rhodes began to prepare for the siege and decided to first meet the Pontians at sea and defeat them. However, seeing a numerically superior enemy fleet, they were forced to retreat to the harbor, where they were blocked. During the siege , several sea battles took place, which did not bring an advantage to either side. The assault on Rhodes was canceled due to the unreadiness of the siege guns. After that, Mithridates ordered the siege to be lifted ^[26] and decided to confine himself to a blockade of the island ^[27] .

Mithridates returned to Pergamum and made this city his capital. Here he announced the forgiveness of public and private debts to the cities and exempted from taxes for five years, which caused a new increase in sympathy for the Pontic king. The further conduct of the war Mithridates entrusted to his commanders. Pelopides was sent against the Lycians , his son Arkathius - to Thrace , and Archelaus - to the islands of the Aegean. At the same time, Mithridates gave a secret order to all the heads of his garrisons in one day to kill all the Romans and Italians who lived in Asia. Residents excited by hatred of the Romans killed about 80 thousand people during the so-called Ephesian Vespers ^[27] .

In 88 BC e. Archelaus landing corps began subjugation of the islands of the Aegean. Almost all of them went over to the side of the Pontians without a fight. Only Delos was resisted. As a result of these events, 20 thousand Romans and Italians were killed. Archelaus announced the transfer of the island and the sacred treasury to Athens, which formally were an independent city. Aristion was sent to Athens with money, who, relying on dissatisfaction with the Romans, seized power in the city. Soon the Peloponnese and Boeotia crossed to the side of Pontus ^[28] .

In 87 BC e. Archelaus and Aristion made an army in Boeotia, where they began to besiege the city of Thespius, whose inhabitants refused to go over to the side of Pontus ^[29] . The Pontic strategist Metrofan captured Euboea and landed in Central Greece, but was defeated by the legate of Macedonian governor Brutius Sura who arrived in Greece and retreated. Gross moved against Archelaus, but in a three-day battle, neither side was able to win. After an unsuccessful attempt to capture Piraeus, Bruttius retreated to Macedonia. Arkathius back in 88 BC. e. was sent to conquer Thrace, but acted hesitantly ^[30] .

In the fall of 87 BC five Roman legions, led by Lucius Cornelius Sulla , appointed commander in the war with Pontus, landed in Greece ( Aetolia ). Having received the mercenaries, food and money, he went through Thessaly to Attica against Archelaus. During his passage through Boeotia, some Boeotian cities crossed over to his side ^[29] . The Pontic commander did not dare to enter the battle and retreated to Piraeus, who was immediately besieged . Another part of the army besieged Athens. The first assault on Piraeus failed, and Sulla embarked on a proper siege ^[31] . By the winter, Athens began a famine, and Archelaus could not deliver food to the city. Sulla decided to organize a naval blockade of Piraeus, for which he sent Lucullus to the kings of Syria, Egypt and Rhodes. He managed to cope with the assignment, and Lucullus launched a naval campaign against the fleet of Mithridates.

In the winter of 87/86 BC e. Neoptolemus’s detachment was defeated at Chalkis, but Ariarat passed Thrace, occupied Macedonia and moved to Greece. To avoid a battle with two armies at once, Sulla launched an assault on Piraeus. However, he did not succeed, and he again proceeded to the siege. Meanwhile, Ariarat was ill and died on the road, and his army was delayed because of this. The Athenians suffered from hunger and sent ambassadors to Sulla to ask for peace, but he refused them. As a result of the night assault, the Romans on March 1, 86 BC. e. entered Athens. Aristion with a small detachment took refuge in the Acropolis , where he stayed for several days, and the massacre began in the city. After taking the city, the commander sent his forces to storm Piraeus. For several days during the bloody battles, the Romans occupied most of the port, and Archelaus sailed with the remaining troops to Boeotia, and then to Thessaly ^[32] .

Having reached Thermopylus, the Pontic strategist joined the forces of Ariarat, and then under his command there were 50,000 foot soldiers, 10,000 horsemen and 90 battle chariots. Sulla also teamed up with the 6,000th legion of Hortense, and commanded an army of 15,000 infantry and 1,500 cavalry. После этого Архелай направился в сторону Фокиды , и встал лагерем у города Херонея, расположив войско между холмами, когда его настиг Сулла ^[33] .

Понтийский военачальник направил в атаку кавалерию и колесницы, но эти его действия не увенчались успехом. Тогда в атаку пошло всё войско. В первых рядах шла кавалерия, затем 15-тысячная фаланга, набранная из освобождённых македонских рабов, а затем италийские перебежчики, вооружённые по римскому образцу. Конница разбила римские ряды, и начала их окружение. Но Сулла вместе со всадниками и двумя когортами смог отбросить понтийских всадников, которые своим отступлением смешали ряды фаланги. Римская пехота начала прорубаться сквозь понтийские ряды, а большая скученность и ландшафт окончательно решили исход битвы. Из войска Архелая уцелело 10 000 человек, которые смогли достигнуть Халкидики, и оттуда продолжили набеги на побережье ^[33] .

13 января 86 года до н. e. в Риме умер Гай Марий, и новым консулом стал Луций Валерий Флакк . Он был противником Суллы, и Сенат направил его в Грецию, а оттуда он решил двинуться к городу Византий . В 85 году до н. e. в Халкиде высадилась новая 80-ти тысячная понтийская армия под командованием Дорилая, соединившаяся с Архелаем. После этого Беотия снова перешла в руки Митридата.

Сулла выдвинулся навстречу понтийцам, и между ними состоялась битва при Орхомене . Местом стала равнина, лишённая деревьев и простиравшаяся до болот. Сулла приказал копать ров перед своим лагерем, чтобы лишить понтийскую кавалерию преимущества, но вражеская кавалерия разогнала римских землекопов. Преследуя их, всадники успели разгромить большую часть римского войска, и солдаты бросились в бегство. Сулла смог их остановить, и затем, с помощью двух когорт с правого фланга отбросить кавалеристов ^[34] . После этого римляне снова начали копать ров, что вынудило понтийцев начать новую атаку, которая была отбита. За один день понтийцы потеряли 15 000 человек.

На следующий день Сулла начал штурм вражеского лагеря, в ходе которого воины с обеих сторон проявили незаурядные героизм и мужество. Однако римляне смогли одолеть противника, и Архелаю пришлось бежать. В это время к Сулле прибыли представители римской аристократии, изгнанные из города его противниками, так что он колебался в вопросе продолжения войны ^[34] .

Узнав об Орхоменском поражении, царь дал приказ Архелаю заключить мир на благоприятных условиях. Сулла хотел как можно быстрее вернуться в Рим для борьбы с политическими противниками, но он желал возвратиться туда триумфатором, и поэтому выдвинул жестокие условия: понтийский флот передавался римлянам, Понт выплачивал компенсацию римских военных расходов, Митридат возвращал все свои завоёванные земли, выдавал пленников и перебежчиков. Стратег незамедлительно начал вывод войск, а об остальных пунктах решил узнать у своего повелителя. За это время легионеры разграбили земли энетов, дарданов и синтов, живших на границе с Македонией. Послы Диониса сообщили о его несогласии с уступкой римлянам флота и уступкой Пафлагонии. Узнав это, Сулла отдал приказ о походе в Азию и приказал Лукуллу готовить флот. Только личное участие Архелая смогло убедить его господина согласиться на мир ^[35] .

В августе 85 года до н. e. лидеры противоборствующих сторон встретились у малоазийского города Дарданы. Суллу сопровождали четыре когорты пехоты и 200 всадников, Митридата — 20 000 гоплитов и 6000 кавалеристов ^[36] . Оставив спутников, они пришли к следующим условиям: Понт отдавал Сулле 3000 талантов и 80 триер, провинция Азия возвращалась к Риму, а Вифиния и Каппадокия обретали свой прежний статус. Малоазийские города получали амнистию, а некоторые из них (Хиос, Родос, Илиум, Магнезия-на-Меандре, несколько ликийских и карийских поселений) за сопротивление понтийцам наградили титулом Друзей римского народа . Стороны отказались от письменной копии договора ^[37] . После этого Сулла разгромил войска под командованием Фимбрия и возвратился в Рим, а Дионис направил войска в Боспор и Колхиду, отделившихся от его владений за время войны. Римский государственный деятель весьма активно занялся восстановление довоенной ситуации в регионе. Для восстановления царей был направлен Гай Скрибоний Курион, а Пафлагония была разделена между местным царём Пиломеном и Атталом. Все реформы Евпатора были отменены ^[38] .

В результате войны Митридат не достиг ни одной из своих задач: захватить Азию, освободить Грецию, ослабить Рим. С другой стороны, он почти ничего не потерял: 3000 талантов контрибуции были значительно меньше той суммы, которая была вывезена из Азии, территориальные потери спорны. Вероятно, обе стороны отказались от продолжения войны по внутриполитическим причинам ^[39] .

Римские солдаты и офицеры были недовольны мирным договором. Вероятно, они рассчитывали на продолжение войны и большую добычу ^[40] . Несмотря на декларируемую сторонами обязанность соблюдать неписаные условия мирного договора, нарушения были с обеих сторон. Бойцы Митридата не покинули несколько каппадокийских крепостей, а Сулла жестоко обошёлся с полисами, поддержавшими понтийцев. Сулла оставил в Азии Луция Лициния Мурену вместе с двумя легионами. С отплытием своего патрона, тот начал готовиться к войне с Понтом, к чему его побуждал Архелай, оскорблённый своим повелителем и опасавшийся за свою жизнь. В 83 году до н. e. римские войска вторглись в Понт, начав тем самым вторую Митридатову войну .

• Плутарх . Сравнительные жизнеописания . Гай Марий
• Плутарх . Сравнительные жизнеописания . Кимон и Лукулл
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