Siege of Athens
| date | 87 to 86 BC Chr. |
|---|---|
| place | Athens |
| output | Victory of the Romans |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
| Troop strength | |
| 5 legions | unknown |
| losses | |
|
unknown |
unknown |
The siege and storming of Athens by the Romans in 87–86 BC. BC was the strategic turning point in the First Mithridatic War . At the same time, the Roman success contributed to the consolidation of the political position of the Roman general Lucius Cornelius Sulla in the simultaneously raging Roman civil war (88-82 BC).
prehistory
The ruler of the kingdom of Pontus , Mithridates VI. Eupator Dionysus (132–63 BC) pursued an expansive foreign policy since the beginning of his active reign. After the occupation of the eastern and northern Black Sea area, he made several attempts to rule over Paphlagonia and Cappadocia . In the year 88 BC Chr. He took advantage of the opportunity the province of Asia by the Social War (v. 91-88 BC.) And the beginning of the Civil War (88-82 v. Chr.) To occupy weakened Roman Republic and the territories of the allied small Asian states . This marks the beginning of the first of the three Mithridatic Wars . The initially successful course encouraged Mithridates VI. To extend the campaign to Europe. The most important European ally proved to be Athens , which, under the leadership of Aristion, terminated the previous alliance with Rome. The Attic port of Piraeus was then expanded by the Pontic general Archelaos to become the base of the Pontic fleet, which at that time ruled the eastern Mediterranean.
With great difficulties - mainly caused by the turmoil of the civil war - Rome equipped an army of 5 legions under Lucius Cornelius Sulla. After landing in Epirus in 87 BC In BC Sulla advanced quickly to Boeotia , defeated the Pontic-Attic army under Archelaus and Aristion on the Thilphossian Mountain and thereby seized the entire Greek mainland, with the exception of Athens and Piraeus.
The siege of Athens
Aristion had escaped to Athens, Archelaus was able to reach the port of Piraeus, which was also strongly fortified. Sulla did not succeed in taking the two fortresses in a single blow, so that he and his army were forced to double siege the neighboring towns. Sulla built in the autumn of 87 BC A fortified camp at Eleusis and Megara , so that on the one hand he was able to advance the siege, but on the other hand he could exercise the rule over Greece that had just been regained. In order to build the siege device, the trees of the Athens Academy and the Lykeion (German also Lyceum) were felled. Initially, the focus of the siege seems to have been on Piraeus. Archelaus, who still had functioning sea connections, repulsed all attacks by the Romans.
In Athens, further inland, however, the supplies were gradually running out. Archelaus sent grain transports from Piraeus to the city several times, some of which actually managed to reach their destination, but these deliveries could no longer meet the minimum needs of Athens. A relief army under the Pontic general Dromichates was defeated by Sulla's legions in front of the city wall of Athens. In the spring of 86 BC BC the supply situation in Athens had deteriorated so much that Aristion offered surrender negotiations. However, Sulla rejected the delegation of Athens and only wanted to accept the unconditional surrender. Since Aristion hesitated with the acceptance, on March 1, 86, Athens, which was only weakly defended, was stormed. Aristion saved himself with the last followers in the Acropolis, but soon surrendered to Sulla.
Sulla's judgment on Athens
Sulla gave the legionaries a free hand to sack the city. The leaders of the Pontic party, including Aristion, were executed. However, Sulla - with reference to the famous personalities of the city's history - gave Athens back its freedom and its possessions, including the important free port of Delos.
The Siege of Piraeus
While Athens was under siege, Sulla continued his attacks on Piraeus, which Archelaus had cleverly defended. By laying mines and using siege equipment , it was possible to bring down part of the mighty walls from the time of Pericles . However, before the storm of the legions began, Archelaus had new defensive walls built behind the breaches. Sulla then gave up the siege and limited himself to the blockade of the port. Archelaus was only on the orders of King Mithridates VI. , who wanted a land battle against Sulla and therefore ordered a concentration of the Pontic troops in Boeotia, first to evacuate Piraeus except for the citadel Munychia , then completely. Sulla ordered the destruction of the now undefended Piraeus with its famous structures in order to avoid a renewed arrest of Pontic troops. The Mithridates VI. The land battle called for took place in the plain of Kephissos near Chaironeia and ended with a complete defeat of the Pontic army.
literature
- Theodor Mommsen : Roman history. Reprint of the original edition, Phaidon Verlag, Essen 1995, ISBN 3-88851-164-X .
Notes and individual references
- ↑ About his early years - he was born in 120 B.C. Chr. Raised to the successor of Mithridates V. Euergetes (approx. 150–120 BC) in childhood - only little reliable is known.
- ↑ See entry Mithridātes. In: Meyers Konversationslexikon. Publishing house of the Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig and Vienna 1885–1892. ( here online )