291:, proconsul in Cilicia. After defeating Nicomedes IV, Mithridates then defeated Aquillius in Bithynia, forcing Cassius to withdraw to the Aegean and Rhodes. Proceeding south, Mithridates induced the citizens of Laodicea, where Oppius was present, to surrender the proconsul. By the middle of 89 BC, Mithridates had defeated four allied armies and conquered most of Roman Asia. He revelled in his victory as he remitted all taxes for five years and appointed satraps and overseers for the conquered territories.
37:
251:. Mithridates attempted to sway the Romans into accepting his conquests but was largely unsuccessful. After a revolution overthrew Mithridates' son in 97 BC, Nicomedes appealed to Rome for support. Mithridates did so also, but the Romans – probably finding the matter too difficult to untangle – ordered both kings to leave Cappadocia and to allow its nobility to choose a new king. It then sent the governor of Cilicia, then
304:
Maximus and Memnon indicate a death toll of approximately 80,000; Plutarch claims – "less credibly" – a death toll of 150,000. The reported numbers, according to fragments of Dio, are however probably exaggerated. They were planned, with
Mithridates writing secretly to regional satraps and leaders to kill all Italian residents (along with wives, children, and freedmen of Italian birth) thirty days after the day of writing.
367:, making use of his partisans there, including the peripatetic philosophers. He could not, however, despite maximum effort, take the port of Rhodes, as the Rhodians were master mariners, on whose ships the Romans had redesigned their own. When Sulla's men finally arrived to conduct a siege of Athens, all mainland Greece had rallied to the Roman cause. A series of conflicts known as the
303:
The massacres were a calculated response to the Roman declaration of war. They were meant to force cities to take a side: "no city that did his bidding now could ever hope to be received back into Roman allegiance". The killings took place probably in the first half of the year 88 BC. Valerius
294:
News reached Rome of
Mithridates' victories and the collapse of Roman rule in Asia in the autumn of 89 BC. Distracted by the Social war, the Romans immediately declared war on Mithridates but moved slowly in forming up forces. The consul of 88 BC, Lucius Cornelius Sulla, was given the
282:
to lead a commission. Facing Roman demands for withdrawal, Mithridates complied and had his own puppet king of
Bithynia executed. However, the reinstalled kings of Cappadocia and Bithynia were faced with a Roman bill for their restoration. Unable to find the funds, the Romans encouraged them to
307:
Mithridates furthermore offered freedom to slaves which informed on their
Italian masters and debt relief to those who slew their creditors. Assassins and informers would share with the Pontic treasury half the properties of those who were killed.
360:. At the instigation of his men, he marched on Rome to assert the authority of the Senate. Assured of its and his authority, he crossed the Adriatic with minimal troops and no heavy warships, after one year of doing nothing on the eastern front.
278:, Mithridates and Tigranes unseated Ariobarzanes from Cappadocia and, after an assassination attempt failed, expelled Nicomedes IV from Bithynia. When news reached Rome, the senate decreed that both kings were to be restored and dispatched
286:
Mithridates responded to the provocation by invading
Cappadocia and Bithynia. Manius Aquillius attempted to raise troops from Bithynia and also called upon reinforcements under Gaius Cassius, the proconsul in Asia, and
828:
340:, and many of the inhabitants enthusiastically fell upon their Italian neighbours, who were blamed "for the prevailing climate of aggressive greed acquisitiveness and... malicious litigation".
363:
Meanwhile, Mithridates had created a large fleet that scoured the Aegean of Romans. Pontic forces occupied many vacated parts of the
Hellenic world. Mithridates subverted the city of
387:, saying "precision seems impossible", places it in the first half of 88 BC, no later than the middle of that year. The name "Vêpres éphésiennes" was coined in 1890 by historian
578:, p. 148. Scholars differ as to the exact dates: Badian dates the massacres to "somewhat before the middle of 88"; Sherwin-White places it the winter of 89 and 88 BC.
218:, Mithridates saw an opportunity in 108–107 BC and partitioned Paphlagonia. A Roman embassy protested and demanded the two kings to withdraw, but was ignored.
348:
The declaration of war was immediate, but implementation of the mandate was delayed by an unrelated civil war already ongoing within the Roman
Republic.
714:
838:
868:
888:
214:. However, due to Mithridates' subjugation of Armenia and other territories along the Black Sea, Roman attention fell on Pontus. With
206:
In the 100s BC, Mithridates had continued to avoid confrontation with the Roman republic, which itself was occupied in the
929:
981:
814:
1001:
737:
395:
of 1282. Subsequent historians have adopted some variation of the phrase, using
Vespers as a euphemism for "massacre".
626:
428:
1026:
781:
279:
379:
The precise date of the massacre is disputed by modern historians, who have written about the question at length.
754:
943:
240:, Ariarathes went to war. Mithridates invaded with a large army and killed Ariarathes, installing his own son –
271:
256:
178:
of Roman influence. An estimated 80,000 people were killed during the episode. The incident served as the
1021:
241:
1031:
806:
773:
1011:
1006:
996:
263:
237:
215:
900:
853:
Sherwin-White, AN (1980). "The opening of the
Mithridatic war". In Fontana, MJ; et al. (eds.).
654:
275:
650:
252:
167:
112:
896:
233:
201:
185:
28:
329:
295:
command against
Mithridates and it took him some eighteen months to assemble five legions.
8:
380:
333:
824:
388:
908:
862:
977:
810:
787:
777:
742:
171:
41:
Asia Minor and surrounding region at the start of the First Mithridatic War, in 89 BC
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924:
392:
368:
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received it first from the Senate. After he had taken command of the legions at
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were all scenes of atrocities. Many of these cities were under the control of
990:
746:
232:: Nicomedes sent a garrison into the country and married its dowager queen,
974:
The Poison King: The Life and Legend of Mithradates, Rome's Deadliest Enemy
802:
The poison king: the life and legend of Mithradates, Rome's deadliest enemy
384:
357:
356:, a Roman Assembly passed a law stripping him of his authority in favor of
211:
149:
97:
791:
766:
Hind, John GF (1992). "Mithridates". In Crook, John; et al. (eds.).
317:
180:
75:
36:
267:
229:
175:
123:
50:
505:
236:. After Mithridates attempted to assassinate the king of Cappadocia,
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313:
157:
79:
684:
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to describe the massacre, making a retrospective analogy with the
325:
920:
309:
283:
invade Pontus. This was a "disastrous and fatal miscalculation".
884:
364:
337:
321:
274:. With the death of Nicomedes III and the accession of his son
349:
153:
101:
761:. Vol. 2. New York: American Philological Association.
353:
772:. Cambridge Ancient History. Vol. 9 (2nd ed.).
696:
16:
Massacre which occurred before the First Mithridatic War
855:
Miscellanea di studi classici in onore di Eugenio Manni
837:] (in French). Paris: Firmin-Didot. Archived from
735:
Badian, Ernst (1976). "Rome, Athens and Mithridates".
672:
660:
605:
603:
601:
557:
533:
457:
228:, Nicomedes and Mithridates came into a dispute over
174:, who orchestrated the massacre in an attempt to rid
976:, Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press.
598:
545:
521:
493:
481:
469:
445:
433:
988:
266:, Mithridates took the opportunity to ally with
852:
769:The last age of the Roman Republic, 146–43 BC
690:
156:-speaking peoples living in parts of western
383:places the event in late 89 or early 88 BC.
640:, p. 148 n. 66, citing Dio, fr. 109.8.
867:: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
35:
926:Seven Books of History Against the Pagans
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738:American Journal of Ancient History
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835:Mithridate Eupator, king of Pontus
14:
1043:
343:
262:When Rome became occupied in the
755:Broughton, Thomas Robert Shannon
830:Mithridate Eupator, roi de Pont
708:
643:
631:
615:
585:
569:
417:
404:
1:
722:
245:
222:
195:
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148:) refers to the massacres of
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902:Abridgement of Roman History
255:, to install the new king –
7:
956:Memorable Deeds and Sayings
298:
192:and the Kingdom of Pontus.
10:
1048:
1002:Massacres of ethnic groups
807:Princeton University Press
774:Cambridge University Press
199:
184:or immediate cause of the
238:Ariarathes VII Philometor
216:Nicomedes III of Bithynia
118:
108:
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85:
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56:
46:
34:
26:
21:
1027:Ethnic cleansing in Asia
799:Mayor, Adrienne (2010).
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164: early 88 BC
64: early 88 BC
375:Dating of the massacre
253:Lucius Cornelius Sulla
168:Mithridates VI Eupator
113:Mithridates VI Eupator
693:, pp. 1981–1995.
202:First Mithridatic War
200:Further information:
186:First Mithridatic War
29:First Mithridatic War
857:. Vol. 4. Rome.
776:. pp. 129–164.
582:, p. 148 n. 66.
332:, and the island of
914:History of Heraclea
705:, pp. 105–128.
381:A. N. Sherwin-White
221:A few years later,
166:by forces loyal to
136:(also known as the
1022:Hellenistic Pontus
932:2013-12-25 at the
691:Sherwin-White 1980
669:, pp. 148–49.
566:, pp. 147–48.
542:, pp. 146–47.
518:, pp. 34, 42.
466:, pp. 141–42.
249: 101 BC
226: 102 BC
126:of Roman influence
1032:Genocides in Asia
982:978-0-691-12683-8
825:Reinach, Théodore
816:978-0-691-12683-8
681:, pp. 13–24.
591:Val. Max. 9.2.3;
410:Val. Max. 9.2.3;
172:Kingdom of Pontus
130:
129:
104:-speaking peoples
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1012:Ancient Anatolia
1007:Bosporan Kingdom
997:Mithridatic Wars
952:Valerius Maximus
890:Mithridatic Wars
872:
866:
858:
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847:
846:
820:
795:
762:
750:
717:
715:Reinach, p. 131.
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393:Sicilian Vespers
389:Théodore Reinach
369:Mithridatic Wars
280:Manius Aquillius
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165:
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146:Vespers of 88 BC
142:Ephesian Vespers
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934:Wayback Machine
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22:Asiatic Vespers
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741:: 105 et seq.
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554:, p. 147.
544:
532:
530:, p. 146.
520:
516:Broughton 1952
504:
502:, p. 144.
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480:
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456:
454:, p. 141.
444:
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344:Roman response
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289:Quintus Oppius
259:– into power.
257:Ariobarzanes I
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190:Roman Republic
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841:on 2017-02-11
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843:. Retrieved
839:the original
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385:Ernst Badian
378:
362:
358:Gaius Marius
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293:
285:
276:Nicomedes IV
261:
220:
212:Cimbric wars
205:
188:between the
179:
145:
141:
137:
133:
131:
109:Perpetrators
27:Part of the
703:Badian 1976
653:; Eutrop.,
318:Adramyttion
181:casus belli
76:Mass murder
71:Attack type
991:Categories
845:2014-12-29
723:References
679:Mayor 2010
593:Memn. 22.9
412:Memn. 22.9
371:followed.
268:Tigranes I
264:Social war
230:Cappadocia
208:Jugurthine
196:Background
176:Asia Minor
152:and other
124:Asia Minor
51:Asia Minor
897:Eutropius
863:cite book
747:0362-8914
667:Hind 1992
638:Hind 1992
610:Hind 1992
580:Hind 1992
576:Hind 1992
564:Hind 1992
552:Hind 1992
540:Hind 1992
528:Hind 1992
512:Hind 1992
500:Hind 1992
488:Hind 1992
476:Hind 1992
464:Hind 1992
452:Hind 1992
440:Hind 1992
144:, or the
972:, 2010.
940:Plutarch
930:Archived
827:(1890).
757:(1952).
314:Pergamon
299:Massacre
158:Anatolia
80:Genocide
47:Location
921:Orosius
651:6.2.2-3
649:Oros.,
338:tyrants
326:Tralles
310:Ephesus
272:Armenia
234:Laodice
94:Victims
980:
909:Memnon
885:Appian
813:
792:121060
790:
780:
745:
621:Plut.
423:Plut.
365:Athens
322:Caunus
122:Purge
119:Motive
98:Romans
86:Deaths
1017:88 BC
833:[
655:5.5.2
627:24.4.
623:Sull.
429:24.4.
425:Sull.
399:Notes
350:Sulla
334:Chios
154:Latin
150:Roman
102:Latin
978:ISBN
869:link
811:ISBN
788:OCLC
778:ISBN
743:ISSN
354:Nola
330:Nysa
210:and
132:The
100:and
78:and
57:Date
270:of
993::
954:,
942:,
923:,
911:,
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887:,
865:}}
861:{{
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324:,
320:,
316:,
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246:c.
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223:c.
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893:.
871:)
848:.
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749:.
657:.
595:.
414:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
