Artabanus II (also spelled Artabanos II or Ardawan II; xpr, 𐭍𐭐𐭕𐭓 ''Ardawān''), incorrectly known in older scholarship as Artabanus III, was
King of Kings
King of Kings; grc-gre, Βασιλεὺς Βασιλέων, Basileùs Basiléōn; hy, արքայից արքա, ark'ayits ark'a; sa, महाराजाधिराज, Mahārājadhirāja; ka, მეფეთ მეფე, ''Mepet mepe'' ...
of the
Parthian Empire
The Parthian Empire (), also known as the Arsacid Empire (), was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe in conque ...
from 12 to 38/41 AD, with a one-year interruption. He was the nephew and successor of
Vonones I (). His father was a
Dahae prince, whilst his mother was a daughter of the Parthian King of Kings
Phraates IV ()
Before his ascension to the Parthian crown, Artabanus had ruled as king of
Media Atropatene, which later served as his base of attacks against the
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
-supported Parthian king Vonones I. Artabanus eventually defeated Vonones I, who fled to Armenia and became its king. Artabanus' efforts to replace Vonones I with his son were blocked by the Romans, who eventually reached an agreement with the Parthians to appoint
Artaxias III the new king of Armenia and renounce their support of Vonones I.
Name
' is the
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
form of the
Greek ''Artábanos'' (), itself from the
Old Persian
Old Persian is one of the two directly attested Old Iranian languages (the other being Avestan language, Avestan) and is the ancestor of Middle Persian (the language of Sasanian Empire). Like other Old Iranian languages, it was known to its native ...
''*Arta-bānu'' ("the glory of
Arta Arta, ARTA, or Artà may refer to:
Places Djibouti
* Arta, Djibouti, a regional capital city in southeastern Djibouti
* Arta Mountains, a mountain range in Djibouti
* Arta Region, Djibouti
Greece
* Arta, Greece, a regional capital city in northwes ...
."). The
Parthian Parthian may be:
Historical
* A demonym "of Parthia", a region of north-eastern of Greater Iran
* Parthian Empire (247 BC – 224 AD)
* Parthian language, a now-extinct Middle Iranian language
* Parthian shot, an archery skill famously employed by ...
and
Middle Persian
Middle Persian or Pahlavi, also known by its endonym Pārsīk or Pārsīg () in its later form, is a Western Middle Iranian language which became the literary language of the Sasanian Empire. For some time after the Sasanian collapse, Middle Per ...
variant was ''Ardawān'' ().
Background and kingship of Media Atropatene
Artabanus was not from the ruling branch of the Arsacid royal family; his father was a
Dahae prince, who was most likely descended from the former Parthian monarch
Mithridates II (), whilst his mother was a daughter of the incumbent Parthian
King of Kings
King of Kings; grc-gre, Βασιλεὺς Βασιλέων, Basileùs Basiléōn; hy, արքայից արքա, ark'ayits ark'a; sa, महाराजाधिराज, Mahārājadhirāja; ka, მეფეთ მეფე, ''Mepet mepe'' ...
Phraates IV (). Born between 30–25 BC, Artabanus was raised amongst the Dahae in
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
. When he reached adulthood, he became the ruler of
Media Atropatene, which occurred sometime during the late reign of Phraates IV or during the reign of the latters son and successor
Phraates V (). The factor behind Artabanus' rise to kingship of Media Atropatene is unclear. The kingdom served as Artabanus' headquarters of his attacks against the Parthian king
Vonones I ( AD), with whom he fought against over the crown. Vonones I, who had originally resided in
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
, had been placed on the Parthian throne by a faction led by the
Karin
Karin may refer to:
*Karin (given name), a feminine name
Fiction
* ''Karin'' (manga) or ''Chibi Vampire'', a Japanese media franchise
*Karin Hanazono, title character of the manga and anime ''Kamichama Karin''
*Karin Kurosaki, a character in ''Bl ...
and
Suren clans. His rule was supported by the
Romans. However, the Parthian nobility was quickly alienated by Vonones I, who had become Romanized during his stay in Rome. This increased Artabanus' odds—after years of fighting—to finally defeat Vonones I, who fled to
Armenia and became its king.
Reign
Artabanus, now the monarch of the Parthian Empire, attempted to depose Vonones I from the Armenian throne and appoint his own son instead. This attempt was instantly opposed by the Romans, who regarded this as posing a danger to their interests. As a result, the Roman emperor
Tiberius ( AD) sent his stepson
Germanicus
Germanicus Julius Caesar (24 May 15 BC – 10 October AD 19) was an ancient Roman general, known for his campaigns in Germania. The son of Nero Claudius Drusus and Antonia the Younger, Germanicus was born into an influential branch of the Patric ...
to prevent this from happening. However, the Roman general met no resistance from the Parthians. Instead, Germanicus reached an agreement with Artabanus to appoint
Artaxias III the new king of Armenia and renounce their support of Vonones I. The Romans thus acknowledged Artabanus as the legitimate Parthian ruler. In order to ratify the friendly relationship between the two empires, Artabanus and Germanicus met on an island in the
Euphrates
The Euphrates () is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Tigris–Euphrates river system, Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia ( ''the land between the rivers'') ...
in 18 AD.
The Romans moved Vonones I to
Cilicia
Cilicia (); el, Κιλικία, ''Kilikía''; Middle Persian: ''klkyʾy'' (''Klikiyā''); Parthian: ''kylkyʾ'' (''Kilikiyā''); tr, Kilikya). is a geographical region in southern Anatolia in Turkey, extending inland from the northeastern coas ...
, where he was killed the following year after attempting to flee. His death and the now unchallenged dominance of Artabanus split the Parthian nobility, since not all of them supported a new branch of the Arsacid family taking over the empire. In 19/20 AD, the Parthian
satrap
A satrap () was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic empires.
The satrap served as viceroy to the king, though with consid ...
of
Sakastan,
Drangiana and
Arachosia, named
Gondophares
Gondophares I (Greek: Γονδοφαρης ''Gondopharēs'', Υνδοφερρης ''Hyndopherrēs''; Kharosthi: 𐨒𐨂𐨡𐨥𐨪 ', '; 𐨒𐨂𐨡𐨥𐨪𐨿𐨣 ', '; 𐨒𐨂𐨡𐨂𐨵𐨪 ', ') was the founder of the Indo-Parthian K ...
, declared independence from Artabanus and founded the
Indo-Parthian Kingdom. He assumed the titles of "Great King of Kings" and "''
Autokrator
''Autokrator'' or ''Autocrator'' ( grc-gre, αὐτοκράτωρ, autokrátōr, , self-ruler," "one who rules by himself," whence English "autocrat, from grc, αὐτός, autós, self, label=none + grc, κράτος, krátos, dominion, power ...
''", demonstrating his new-found independence. Nevertheless, Artabanus and Gondophares most likely reached an agreement that the Indo-Parthians would not intervene in the affairs of the Arsacids.
Artabanus spent the following years increasing his authority. To the north-east, he was victorious in his efforts to have a new dynasty established in
Khwarazm, thus starting a new era in the history of the country. Artabanus most likely operated in western
Bactria
Bactria (; Bactrian: , ), or Bactriana, was an ancient region in Central Asia in Amu Darya's middle stream, stretching north of the Hindu Kush, west of the Pamirs and south of the Gissar range, covering the northern part of Afghanistan, southwe ...
as well, which had been part of the Parthian domains for centuries.
In 35 AD, Artabanus tried again to conquer Armenia and to establish his son Arsaces I as Armenia's king. A war with Rome seemed inevitable. The faction among the Parthian magnates which was hostile to Artabanus II applied to Tiberius for a king who was a descendant of Phraates IV. Tiberius sent Phraates IV's grandson,
Tiridates III, and ordered
Lucius Vitellius the Elder (the father of the Roman emperor
Vitellius) to restore Roman authority in the East. By very dexterous military and diplomatic operations Vitellius succeeded completely. Artabanus II was deserted by his followers and fled to the East.
Tiridates III, who was proclaimed King, could not keep control of the Parthian throne, because he appeared to his subjects to be a vassal of the Romans. In the meantime, Artabanus II returned from
Hyrcania with a strong army of
Scythian (Dahae) auxiliaries and was again acknowledged by the Parthians. Tiridates III left Seleucia and fled to Syria. Artabanus II wasn’t strong enough for a war with Rome. He therefore concluded a treaty with Vitellius in 37 AD, in which he gave up all further pretensions towards Armenia. A short time afterwards Artabanus II was deposed again, and Cinnamus was proclaimed king. Artabanus II took refuge with his vassal, the King
Izates bar Monobaz. Izates, by negotiations and the promise of a complete pardon, persuaded the Parthians to restore Artabanus II once more to the throne. Shortly afterwards Artabanus II died and was succeeded by his son,
Vardanes I
Vardanes I was a king of the Parthian Empire from 40 to 46 AD. He was the heir apparent of his father Artabanus II (), but had to continually fight against his brother Gotarzes II, a rival claimant to the throne. Vardanes' short reign ended whe ...
, whose reign was still more turbulent than that of his father.
Artabanus II had four sons:
Arsaces I Arsaces or Arsakes (, , Graecized form of Old Persian ) is the eponymous Greek form of the dynastic name of the Parthian Empire of Iran adopted by all epigraphically attested rulers of the Arsacid dynasties. The indigenous Parthian and Armenian fo ...
,
Orodes, Artabanus,
Vardanes I
Vardanes I was a king of the Parthian Empire from 40 to 46 AD. He was the heir apparent of his father Artabanus II (), but had to continually fight against his brother Gotarzes II, a rival claimant to the throne. Vardanes' short reign ended whe ...
and an adopted son named
Gotarzes II
Gotarzes II ( xpr, 𐭂𐭅𐭕𐭓𐭆 ''Gōtarz'') was king of the Parthian Empire from 40 to 51. He was an adopted son of Artabanus II. When his father died in 40, his brother Vardanes I was to succeed to the throne. However, the throne was s ...
.
Mandaeans
Mandaeans credit a king named Artabanus (Mandaic: ''Ardban''), most likely to be Artabanus II, with helping them escape persecution in
Jerusalem and settling in
Media during his reign. He is mentioned in the ''
Haran Gawaita'', a Mandaean text.
[Buckley, Jorunn Jacobsen (2010). Turning the Tables on Jesus: The Mandaean View. In (pp94-11). Minneapolis: Fortress Press]
References
Notes
Sources
*
*
*
*
*
*
* .
*
* (2 volumes)
* .
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* .
* .
* .
* .
Further reading
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Artabanus 02 Of Parthia
Rulers of Media Atropatene
1st-century Parthian monarchs
38 deaths
1st-century BC births
1st-century Iranian people
1st-century Babylonian kings