Mithridatic Wars
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Were three conflicts fought by Rome against the Kingdom of Pontus and its allies between 88 BC and 63 BC. They are named after Mithridates VI, the King of Pontus during the course of the wars.
Chronology
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January 115 BC: Mithridates had his brother-in-law, Ariarathes VI, assassinated by Gordius leaving the Kingdom of Cappadocia in the hands of Laodice, who ruled as regent for her son Ariarathes VII of Cappadocia. Laodice married Nicomedes III of Bithynia, whose country was Pontus' traditional enemy. Nicomedes occupied Cappadocia.
January 99 BC: Mithridates established himself as patron of his nephew's kingship on the throne. After this he murdered Ariarathes VII of Cappadocia and installed his son on the Cappadocian throne as Ariarathes IX under the guardianship of Gordius.
January 94 BC: Nicomedes appealed to the Roman Senate, which decreed that Mithridates be removed from Cappadocia and the Senate appointed Ariobarzanes I of Cappadocia as King of this same region.Sulla succeeded and Ariobarzanes was restored to his throne.
January 89 BC: In Bithynia Nicomedes III had died. He was succeeded by his son Nicomedes IV. Unfortunately for Nicomedes IV, his bastard half-brother, Socrates Chrestus, supported by Mithridates drove him from his kingdom.
Was a war challenging the Roman Republic's expanding domain over the Greek world. In this conflict, the Kingdom of Pontus and many Greek cities rebelled against Roman rule under the leadership of Mithridates VI of Pontus.
January 84 BC: Pontic ruler Mithridates met with Roman general Sulla at Dardanus (a city in Troas) in 85 BC, and accepted peace terms which restored all his gains in Asia, Cappadocia and Bithynia to their original rulers, but left him his own kingdom.
December 90 BC: In the late summer 90 BC a Senatorial legation was sent east, under Manius Aquillius and Manlius Maltinus, to restore Nicomedes and Ariobarzanes to their kingdoms. Both kings were restored without any fighting in autumn 90 BC.
September 89 BC: After Pelopidas' return he sent his son Ariarathes into Cappadocia with a strong army. The occupation (summer 89 BC) was rapid.
January 88 BC: He was restored to his throne by Manius Aquillius due to Rome's influence in the region.
January 87 BC: Aquillius encouraged Nicomedes IV to raid Mithridates VI's territory, prompting Mithridates VI to retaliate again in 88 BC. Nicomedes IV fled once again to Rome.
January 87 BC: Mithridates of Pontus finished capturing Asia Minor.
1.1.Campaign in Greece (First Mithridatic War)
A military campaign in Greece by the Kingdom of Pontus under the command of General Archelaus.
January 86 BC: Archelaus was a general in the Kingdom of Pontus, led by King Mithridates VI. The Battle of Chaeronea in -87 was fought against the Roman Republic, led by Lucius Cornelius Sulla. Archelaus' defeat marked a turning point in the First Mithridatic War.
January 87 BC: Archelaus was sent to Greece, where he established Aristion as a tyrant in Athens.
January 86 BC: Mithridates VI of Pontus, a powerful ruler in the Kingdom of Pontus, successfully captured Asia Minor and expanded his influence into northern Greece, Macedonia, and Thessaly in -87. This marked the beginning of his campaign to challenge Roman dominance in the region.
March 86 BC: The Romans quickly declared war. In 87 BC, Consul Lucius Cornelius Sulla landed in Epirus and marched on Athens. Sulla captured Athens on March 1, 86 BC.
January 84 BC: Battle of Orchomenus. Greece was fully restored to Roman rule.
1.2.Flaccus mission
Was a Roman military campaign in Greece and Asia minor led by Lucius Valerius Flaccus during the First Mithridatic War.
January 84 BC: After crossing the Hellespont, Flaccus was killed in a mutiny led by Flavius Fimbria, who went on to defeat Mithridates and recapture Pergamum.
Was one of three wars fought between Pontus and the Roman Republic.
February 82 BC: After this raid, Murena was able to return undisturbed to Phrygia and Galatia laden with booty.
January 82 BC: Mithridates thus decided to send an embassy to the Senate and to Silla, complaining about Murena's actions. Meanwhile the latter had crossed the Halys river.
January 81 BC: Although Calidio did not have a decree from the Senate with him, he invited him not to harass the king of Pontus anymore, to avoid that this had the meaning of breaking the existing treaty. Murena, however, again invaded the territories of Mithridates, who, this time believed that the war had been so ordered by the Roman Senate itself.
February 81 BC: Mithridates defeats Murena in battle.
February 81 BC: Murena expelled out of Cappadocia.
January 80 BC: Sulla, believing that it was not right to wage war against Mithridates, since he had not violated any treaty, sent a new embassy to Murena, this time led by Aulus Gabinius, forbidding him to resume any kind of hostility, on the contrary to reconcile Mithridates with the king Ariobarzanes I.
Was the last and longest of the three Mithridatic Wars, fought between Mithridates VI of Pontus and the Roman Republic. The conflict ended in defeat for Mithridates, ending the Pontic Kingdom, ending the Seleucid Empire (by then a rump state), and also resulting in the Kingdom of Armenia becoming an allied client state of Rome.
October 69 BC: Battle of Tigranocerta: The Roman force, led by Consul Lucius Licinius Lucullus, defeated Tigranes, and as a result, captured Tigranes' capital city of Tigranocerta.
January 66 BC: According Appian, while Roman general Lucullus was camped not far from Mithridates, the proconsul of Asia sent him some messengers to inform him that, since he had uselessly prolonged the war, Rome deprived him of command and gave the peremptory order his soldiers to dissociate and abandon him. Mithridates then decided to invade Cappadocia again, managing to conquer almost all of his old domains.
January 65 BC: Border corrections due to military occupations and reorganization.
December 74 BC: Towards the end of autumn, Eumacus, a general of the King of Pontus, invaded Phrygia and killed a large multitude of Roman citizens, including wives and children. Then Eumacus also subjugated the populations of Pisidia, Isauria, and Cilicia.
January 65 BC: To Ariobarzanes, Pompeus gave back, once again, Cappadocia, now adding Sophene and Gordiene, as well as the city of Ierapolis Castabala and others of Cilicia.
January 65 BC: After the conquest of Armenia by the Romans in 66 BC it lost many of its areas, so that the southern border of Albania shifted to the Aras River.
January 64 BC: Establishment of the Kingdom of Lesser Armenia (Roman Vassal).
January 63 BC: Around 64 BC, the Roman General and Triumvir, Pompey had reorganised Syria and the surrounding countries into Roman provinces. Pompey had installed client kings in the region, who would become allies of Rome. Among these was Sampsiceramus I of the Emesene Dynasty.
January 62 BC: At the end of the Third Mithridatic War, the Kingdom of Pontus was dismantled and reduced to only its eastern portion, while the western part, including the capital Sinope, was incorporated into the Roman province of Bithynia and Pontus.
January 77 BC: Due to the death of Roman Dictator Sulla, Cappadocia was left without aid of the Roman Republic. Mithridates persuaded his son-in-law, Tigranes II of Armenia, to invade Cappadocia as if it were his independent action. But this artifice failed to deceive the Romans. The Armenian king invaded the country of Cappadocia.
January 73 BC: Mithridates arranged to invade Bithynia following the death of its king, Nicomedes IV, who was childless and therefore decided to bequeath his kingdom to the Romans. The then provincial governor, Marcus Aurelius Cotta, a completely cowardly man, could do nothing but flee to Chalcedon with all the forces he had at his disposal. Thus Bithynia returned again under the rule of Mithridates.
January 72 BC: Roman General Gaius Valerius Triario set sail for Apamea which he occupied.
January 72 BC: The Romans subjugated Prusa, located at the base of a mountain, and then also occupied Nicaea.
January 72 BC: Roman period of the settlement, which began in 73 BC.
April 72 BC: The Roman general Lucullus moved his armies towards the eastern front through Bithynia and Galatia, subjugating the territories previously under Roman control and reaching the plain of Themiscyra and the river Thermodon.
January 71 BC: The Battle of Cabira was a clash between the army of the Roman Republic, commanded by Lucius Licinius Lucullus, and that of Mithridates VI of Pontus, fought in 72 BC near the city of Cabira. It saw the Roman forces prevail.
January 71 BC: Apollonia, located on the west coast of Pontos, was conquered and sacked by the Roman legions of Marcus Lucullus in 72 BC. Marcus Lucullus was a Roman general and politician who served under Lucius Licinius Lucullus during the Third Mithridatic War.
January 71 BC: In 72 BC, Callatis was conquered by the Roman general Lucullus.
January 71 BC: Tomis was conquered during the campaign of Roman general Lucullus of 72 BC.
January 70 BC: Roman General Lucullus marched against the last enemy resistance, subjugating the Chaldeans and Tibareni and occupying Armenia Minor.
January 70 BC: However, in 72-71 BC, during the Third Mithridatic War, these cities were occupied by the forces of Marcus Terentius Varro Lucullus, the Roman proconsul of Macedonia. A foedus was signed between the Greek colonies and the Roman Empire.
January 70 BC: Mesambria (Pontos) fell under Roman rule in 71 BC.
January 69 BC: Siege of Amiso: the city is conquered by the Romans after three years of siege.
January 69 BC: During 70 BC, the city of Sinop continued to resist. The Roman general Lucullus, upon entering the city, killed 8,000 Cilicians. After capturing the city, he then liberated it and repopulated it.
January 67 BC: The Battle of Artaxata was fought near the Arsanias River in 68 BC between an army of the Roman Republic and the army of the Kingdom of Armenia.
January 67 BC: Siege of Nisibis (68 BC): the Romans conquer the city of Nisibis.
January 67 BC: Mithridates hurried back to what little territory he had left, also reconquering parts of Pontus and Armenia Minor.
January 67 BC: The Battle of Comana Pontica was fought between the Roman army commanded by Lucius Licinius Lucullus' legate, Gaius Valerius Triarius, and the army of the Kingdom of Pontus commanded by Mithridates VI in 68 BC. It saw the Roman commander prevail over the Pontic king.
January 65 BC: Pompey passed through the Taurus Mountains and waged war both against Antiochus I of Commagene, forcing him to seek peace, and against Darius of Media, whom he put to flight because he had aided Antiochus or Tigranes before him.
January 65 BC: Tigranes of Armenia surrendered to Rome and was allowed to retain the heartland of his kingdom as a Roman buffer state, while all of his conquests were annexed.
January 65 BC: Armenia came under the Ancient Roman sphere of influence in 66 BC, after the battle of Tigranocerta and the final defeat of Armenia's ally.
January 65 BC: After Pompey's successes against Pontos and Armenia, he advanced to the Euphrates and reclaimed Gordyene from the Parthians. Since they wanted to avoid a conflict with Rome, Afranius, sent by Pompey, was able to take the area without a fight. The remaining Parthians were expelled from the country. The state became a Roman vassal.
January 65 BC: Battle of the Lycus. The last major battle of the war. The Roman Republican army under the command of Gnaeus Pompeius defeated the forces of Mithridates VI of Pontus. Mithridates fled to Crimea and committed suicide in 63 BC, finally ending the Third Mithridatic War.
January 64 BC: The Romans left control of the Lesser Armenia to various client kings.
January 62 BC: Because Mithridates' younger son, Pharnaces II, had revolted against his father, he was given the Bosporan Kingdom by Rome.
January 63 BC: However, the taking of the city induced some surrounding cities (Chersonesus, Theodosia, Nymphaeum and others) to rebel against the ex-sovereign of Pontus.
3.1.Military Campaign of Pompey in Cilicia
Was a succesful Roman military campaign led by Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus in Cilicia during the Third Mithridatic War.
January 66 BC: Cilicia proper (Trachea and Pedias), which had been a hideout for pirates for over forty years, was subjugated by Rome.
3.2.Caucasian campaign of Pompey
Was a succesful Roman military campaign led by Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus in the Caucasus during the Third Mithridatic War.
January 64 BC: After subduing Iberia, Pompey headed towards the small kingdom of Colchis and subjugated its main stronghold and various local peoples. Pompey gave the rule of Colchis to Aristarches, effectively making it a Roman province, part of Bithynia et Pontus.
January 64 BC: The Caucasian Albani decided to act before the Romans could invade. Oroeses, king of the Albani, organized a concerted attack on the divided Roman forces. The attacks were to coincide with the Roman feast of Saturnalia to maximize their success. Unfortunately the capably led veteran Roman forces were more than a match for the Albani tribesmen and their attacks were easily repulsed. Oroeses was forced to submit to terms.
January 64 BC: Fearing imminent invasion Artoces (probably the Artag of Georgian history) king of the Iberians turned to diplomacy and promised the Romans unconditional friendship. Pompey accepted the terms but because he was alerted by his intelligence service that the Iberians were secretly planning an attack, in the spring of 65 BC he marched his forces into Iberia.
Selected Sources
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 100, 102, 111
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 105
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 106
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 110, 114
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 114
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 116-117
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 118
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 15
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 67
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 71
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 75
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 77
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 83
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 86
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 90
Appian, XII - The Mithridatic Wars, 94-96
Cassius Dio: Roman History, XXXVI, 10.2
Cassius Dio: Roman History, XXXVI, 53.5-6
Cassius Dio: Roman History, XXXVI, 8.1-2.
Cassius Dio: Roman History, XXXVII, 1.3-4, s.4-7
Plutarch: Parallel Lives, Lucullus, 12.2
Plutarch: Parallel Lives, Lucullus, 14.2
Plutarch: Parallel Lives, Lucullus, 19.1
Plutarch: Parallel Lives, Lucullus, 23.3
Plutarch: Parallel Lives, Lucullus, 25.3-4
Plutarch: Parallel Lives, Lucullus, 31.4-8
Plutarch: Parallel Lives, Lucullus, 32.4-5
Plutarch: Parallel Lives, Lucullus, 32.5
Plutarch: Parallel Lives, Pompey, 24-29
Plutarch: Parallel Lives, Pompey, 34
Plutarch: Parallel Lives, Pompey, 45.2-5
Titus Livius: Ab Urbe Condita, 93.4
Titus Livius: Ab Urbe Condita, 97.5
