Amyntas (Galatia)

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Amyntas († 25 BC ) was from 36 BC Until his death King of Galatia and some neighboring countries.

Life

Amyntas came from the Phrygian-Pisid border area of ​​the Roman province of Asia . He came to political influence through his wealth and large estates and initially emerged as secretary and troop commander of the Galatian king Deiotaros . In the Roman civil war after Caesar's assassination, Amyntas commanded Galatian auxiliary troops for Deiotaros, who supported the armies of the Caesar murderers Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus , but after the first battle at Philippi (October 42 BC) sided with the triumvirs Mark Antony and Octavian over.

After the death of Deiotarus (40 BC), his grandson Castor first came to rule Galatia. Antony appointed Amyntas in 39 BC. To king of Pisidia . There, however, Amyntas first had to prevail against gangs of robbers and rebels. He got help from Termessos . Apparently he proved himself in this task, so that he was supported by Antony 36 BC. Was made a more important clientele king . At that time, after the laborious defense of the Parthians , Antonius reorganized the eastern vassal states and installed trustworthy client rulers in Asia Minor and Syria . Amyntas now got Galatia and parts of Lycaonia and Pamphylia , although he did not come from the ruling class of these areas. At the same time, Antonius also installed other foreign rulers such as Polemon I and Archelaus , who were very dependent on him, as they could not rely on any dynastic claims. Antony's lover, the Egyptian Queen Cleopatra , could, of course , be pleased about the greatest appreciation of her position .

When Sextus Pompey fled to Antony's half of the empire after his defeat by Octavian and fighting began there, he soon had to retreat into the interior of Bithynia before the forces of Marcus Titius and Gaius Furnius . These two confidants of Antony took up the pursuit of Pompey, in which Amyntas also participated. The Galatian King and his 1500 riders were finally able to catch up with Pompey before reaching the coast near Mideion in Phrygia and take him prisoner. He handed Pompey over to Titius, who ordered the execution of the high-ranking prisoner (35 BC).

When the clashes between Antony and Octavian came to a head in the decisive military confrontation in Greece, Amyntas was initially one of the client kings who supported Antony, but went with his 2,000 horsemen in 31 BC. Before the battle of Actium on the side of Octavian. But the victorious Octavian - who soon assumed the name of Augustus as emperor - did not touch Amyntas' position and even enlarged his territory to include parts of Pisidia, Isauria and Cilicia Tracheia . As Amyntas 25 BC BC wanted to expand his empire even further and went to the field against the Isaurian Homonadis , he was killed in the course of the war. Galatia was drafted as a Roman province.

literature

Remarks

  1. ^ Cassius Dio 49, 32, 3.
  2. ↑ Cassius Dio 47, 48, 2.
  3. ^ Appian , Civil Wars 5, 75; Strabo 12, 6, 3; Christian Marek (2010), p. 385; Christoph Schäfer (2006), p. 152.
  4. ↑ Strabo 12, 5, 1f .; Plutarch , Antonius 61, 2; Cassius Dio 49, 32, 3.
  5. ↑ Christian Marek (2010), p. 385; Christoph Schäfer (2006), p. 151f.
  6. ^ Appian, Civil Wars 5, 140-144; Cassius Dio 49, 18, 4f .; among others
  7. ↑ Plutarch, Antonius 63, 3; Velleius Paterculus 2, 84, 2; Cassius Dio 50, 13, 8.
  8. ↑ Strabo 14, 5, 6; Cassius Dio 51, 2, 1.
  9. ↑ Strabo 12, 6, 3; see. Cassius Dio 53, 26, 3.
personal data
SURNAME Amyntas
BRIEF DESCRIPTION King of Galatia (36-25 BC)
DATE OF BIRTH 1st century BC Chr.
DATE OF DEATH 25 BC Chr.