Babylonia (satrapy)
Babylonia was incorporated into the Persian Empire as a satrapy with the beginning of Achaemenid rule under the old Persian name Babairu / Bābiruš ; she is one of the best attested satrapies in the Achaemenid Empire.
Until Dareios I (522 to 486 BC) she formed a double satrapy with the satrapy of Ebir-Nari (perhaps the satrapy of Assyria , the double satrapy of Eber-Nari and Babylonia). There are indications that satrapy was temporarily divided and hints of satrapy of Mesopotamia . Since the satrapies are often only known from Greek sources, it is often uncertain to what extent Greek writers were informed in detail about the conditions in the Achaemenid Empire or to what extent there were confusions.
Alexander the Great and the following Seleucids took over the provincial division of the satrapies. Under Antiochus III. the satrapy of the Erythraean Sea was separated from the satrapy of Babylonia . This provincial administration seems to have continued under the Parthians as well.
The following satraps of Babylonia are known from Greek sources and from cuneiform texts .
Double Satrapy Ebir-Nari (Transmesopotamia) and Babylonia (Babairu)
Surname | Term of office | comment |
---|---|---|
Sardanapalos | (pre-Persian) | |
Cambyses II | Cyrus II | 538-537 BC Chr. |
Gobryas II. | Cyrus II / Cambyses II | 536-522 BC Chr. |
Hystanes (Uštannu) | Dareios I , 1st to 6th year | 521-515 BC Chr. |
Hytanna | Dareios I, 36th year | known from a cuneiform text |
Zopyros I. | Dareios I or Xerxes I. | Classification as a satrap not sure |
Satraps of Babylonia
Surname | Term of office | comment |
---|---|---|
Tritantaichmes | Xerxes I. | is in Herodotus called |
Megapanos | Xerxes I. | Son of Tritantaichmes is in Herodotus called |
Artarios | Artaxerxes I to Dareios II. | Brother of Artaxerxes I. |
Sicha | Darius II | unsure |
Menostanes | Artaxerxes I to Dareios II. | |
Gobryas II. | Darius II | |
Rhoparas | unsure | |
Bupares | Dareios III. | unsure |
Satraps in Hellenistic times
Surname | Term of office | comment |
---|---|---|
Mazaios | Alexander the Great | up to 328 BC In office |
Stamenes | Alexander the Great | 328 to 321 BC Chr. |
Archon | from 323 to 321 BC Chr. | |
Dokimos | Perdiccas | from 321 BC Chr. |
Seleucus I. | ||
Theron | Antiochus I. | |
Timarchus | Antiochus IV. | unsure |
Satraps in Parthian times
Surname | Term of office | comment |
---|---|---|
Himeros | Phraates II. | |
Mithridates | Artabanos II. |
literature
- Hilmar Klinkott : The satrap. An Achaemenid office holder and his room for maneuver (= Oikumene. Studies on ancient world history; Vol. 1). Verlag Antike, Berlin 2005, ISBN 978-3-938032-02-2 , pp. 453–454, 505–506 ( review ).