Pontus, a region in northern Asia Minor, was originally part of the Persian satrapy of Cappadocia. The Persian Dynasty that was to found the kingdom of Pontus ruled the Greek city of Cius in Mysia during the fourth century BC. After the death of its first known king Mithridates-I of Cius, sometime before 362 BC, the dynasty was taken over by Ariobarzanes (fl.407-362 BC), the famous satrap of Phrygia. He was succeeded by another Ariobarzanes (r.362-377 BC).
In 302 BC Mithridates II of Cius (84; r.337-302 BC) was suspected of conspiring with Cassander (c.53; r.305-297 BC) against Antigonus-I (c.81; r.306-301 BC) and was killed near Cius. His son (Mithridates III of Cius) fled to Paphlagonia and at some stage proclaimed himself Mithridates-I of Pontus (r.302-266 BC). In 281 or 280 BC he joined the anti-Seleucid Northern League; an alliance between Pontus, Heraclea Pontica, Byzantium and Chalcedon, located on the coasts of the Black Sea and the Propontis. Mithridates and his son Ariobarzanes (r.266-c.250 BC) with the support of the newly-arrived Galatians, defeated a force sent by Ptolemy of Egypt.
After her separation from her husband Lysimachus, Queen Amastris founded the city of Amastris on the Black Sea coast of eastern Paphlagonia. Its tyrant Eumenes of Tieium, rather than submit to domination by Heraclea Pontica, presented it to Ariobarzanes c.279 BC.
Mithridates II (r.c.250-c.220 BC), son of Ariobarzanes, although married to the sister Laodice of Seleucus II (c.40; r.246-225 BC), he sided with Antiochus Hierax (c.263-226 BC) in a war against Seleucus II, who was eventually defeated by Mithridates in a Battle at Ancyra in 239 BC. He made gifts to Rhodes after the great earthquake (227/6 BC), but an attempt on Sinope by him or his son (220 BC), was defeated with Rhodian aid. Mithridates III (r.c.220-c.185 BC) may have ruled during this uncertain period.
Pharnaces-I (r.c.185-c.156 BC) captured Sinope in 183 BC, and made war against Eumenes II of Pergamum (r.197-160 BC). He refused to come to terms at the instance of a Roman commission (181 BC), but was defeated by a combination of kingdoms and cities and compelled to surrender most of his conquests (179 BC). However, he kept Sinope and united her colonies Cerasus and Cotyora to form the city of Pharnacia.
Mithridates IV (r.c.156-c.150 BC), brother of Pharnaces-I, adopted a less aggressive foreign policy, involving the establishment and maintenance of good relations with Rome. He supported his ‘friend’s’ ally Attalus II of Pergamum (82; r.160-138 BC) in his war against Prusias II of Bithynia (r.182-149 BC) in 156-154 BC.
Mithridates V (r.c.150-120 BC), probably son of Pharnaces-I, aided Rome against Carthage in 149-146 BC and against Aristonicus of Pergamum (r.133-129 BC), and received Phrygia as a reward from Manius Aquillius (consul 129 BC). He had already gained control of Galatia, was named heir to Pylaemenes of Inner Paphlagonia (r.c.133 BC), and brought Cappadocia under his influence by the marriage of his daughter Laodice with Ariarathes IV (r.220-163 BC). He was murdered at Sinope in a conspiracy by his own attendants.
Mithridates VI (c.69; r.c.120-63 BC), son of Mithridates V, continued his father’s policy of expansion. He first extended his realm eastwards along the southern shore of the Euxine (=Black Sea) to Colchis, and north to Crimea and its adjacent cornfields. Attempts to control Cappadocia and Paphlagonia and to remove Nicomedes IV (r.c.94-75/4 BC) from Bithynia were less successful. Raids into Mithridates territory by Nicomedes were the immediate cause of the First Mithridatic War (88-66 BC). Mithridates occupied much of the Roman province of Asia and, aided by the Athenians, much of Greece. After Sulla (c.138-78 BC) defeated Mithridates’ forces at Chaeronea (86 BC) and Orchomenus (85 BC), peace was made and Mithridates gave up his conquests. He easily repelled the preemptive raids of Sulla’s lieutenant Murena (consul 62 BC) in the Second Mithridatic War (83-81 BC). Peace was restored on Sulla’s orders.
Rome’s annexation of Bithynia in 74 BC caused the Third Mithridatic War (73-67 BC). Mithridates occupied Bithynia, but the resistance of Cyzicus enabled Lucullus (c.118-c.57 BC) to cut off his army from supplies and destroy it. He was expelled from Bithynia by Lucullus (72-71 BC), and although a mutiny of the Roman army allowed Mithridates to recover much of his territory (68-67 BC), he was seriously weakened. In the Fourth Mithridatic War (66-63 BC) he was defeated by Pompey (106-48 BC) at Nicopolis (66 BC). Mithridates fled to Colchis and made his way to Crimea. Here his demands on his subjects to raise new forces provoked a revolt led by his son Pharnaces II (r.63-47 BC). Immune from poison, Mithridates died by the sword of one of his guards.
As a reward for his part in the revolt Pompey granted Pharnaces the Cimmerian Bosporus kingdom of eastern Crimea and the Taman Peninsula. During the war between Caesar and Pompey, Pharnaces took Colchis, Lesser Armenia (northwest) and some of Cappadocia, defeated Caesar’s lieutenant Calvinus (consul 53 and 40 BC), and overran much of Pontus, but was defeated at Zela (47 BC) by Caesar himself (veni, vidi, vici). Pharnaces escaped to his kingdom but was killed in battle with the Borporan rebel, Asander (93; r.47-17 BC).
In 64 BC Pompey created the Roman province of Bithynia and Pontus. The western part was known as Pontus Galaticus, with Amaseia as its metropolis. Polemon-I (r.37-00-08) was the son of Zenon, the orator of Laodicea. For Zenon’s service in the Parthian campaign Antony appointed Polemon in 39 BC as client king of Cilicia, and then as client king of eastern Pontus in 37 BC. Polemon was killed by Bosporan and was succeeded by his widow Pythodoris (57/8; r.08-38). Polemon II (r.38-64), second son of Polemon-I and Pythodoris, was induced by Nero (30; r.54-68) to abdicate the Pontian throne and Pontus became a Roman province in AD 64.
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