Artaxias II,Temporini, ''Politische Geschichte (Provinzen Und Randv Lker: Griechischer Balkanraum; Kleinasien): Griechischer Balkanraum; Kleinasien)'', p.979 also known as Artaxes IIDaryaee, ''The Oxford Handbook of Iranian History'', p.173 and ArtashesSicker, ''The Pre-Islamic Middle East'', p.156 (60s BC – 20 BCBunson, ''Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire'', p.48) was a Prince of the Kingdom of Armenia, member of the Artaxiad Dynasty and King of Armenia from 34 BC until 20 BC.Coinage and information on Artaxias II
/ref>

Family background and early life

Artaxias II was the eldest son of

Artavasdes II of Armenia Artavasdes II ( grc, ΑΡΤΑΒΑΖΔΟΥ ''Artabázēs'') was king of Armenia from 55 BC to 34 BC. A member of the Artaxiad Dynasty, he was the son and successor of Tigranes the Great (). His mother was Cleopatra of Pontus, thus making his mater ...

by an unnamed mother and was the namesake of his paternal ancestor, a previous ruling Armenian King

Artaxias I Artaxias I (from gr, Άρταξίας; in hy, Արտաշէս, translit=Artašēs) was the founder of the Artaxiad dynasty of Armenia, ruling from 189 BC to 160 BC. Artaxias was a member of a branch of the Orontid dynasty, the earlier ruling d ...

. Artaxias II had two siblings: a younger brother called

Tigranes III Tigranes (, grc, Τιγράνης) is the Greek transliteration of the Old Iranian name ''*Tigrāna''. This was the name of a number of historical figures, primarily kings of Armenia. The name of Tigranes, which was theophoric in nature, was ...

and an unnamed sister who possibly married King

Archelaus of Cappadocia Archelaus ( el, Ἀρχέλαος; fl. 1st century BC and 1st century, died 17 AD) was a Roman client prince and the last king of Cappadocia. Family and early life Archelaus was a Cappadocian Greek nobleman. His full name was ''Archelaus Sisin ...

. He was born and raised in Armenia.

Kingship

Artaxias II ascended to the Armenian throne in 34 BC as he regained the throne lost by his father. The Roman Triumvir

Mark Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the autoc ...

, had captured Artavasdes II with his family, who were then taken as political prisoners to

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

where Artavasdes II was later executed on the orders of

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...

VII of Egypt. Artaxias II managed to escape and fled to King

Phraates IV of Parthia Phraates IV (also spelled Frahad IV; xpr, 𐭐𐭓𐭇𐭕 ''Frahāt''), was King of Kings of the Parthian Empire from 37 to 2 BC. He was the son and successor of Orodes II (), and was given the throne after the death of his brother Pacorus I. ...

. Phraates IV invaded Armenia and placed Artaxias II on the throne. As a result, Artaxias II was pro-

Parthia Parthia ( peo, 𐎱𐎼𐎰𐎺 ''Parθava''; xpr, 𐭐𐭓𐭕𐭅 ''Parθaw''; pal, 𐭯𐭫𐭮𐭥𐭡𐭥 ''Pahlaw'') is a historical region located in northeastern Greater Iran. It was conquered and subjugated by the empire of the Med ...

n and anti-

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 ...

. With the support of Phraates IV, Artaxias II was successful in a military campaign against

Artavasdes I of Media Atropatene Artavasdes I of Media Atropatene, also known as Artavasdes I of Atropatene (before or about 59 BC-about 20 BC) and Artabazus, was a Prince who served as a King of Media Atropatene. Artavasdes I was an enemy of King Artavasdes II of Armenia and his ...

, a former enemy of Artavasdes II. Artaxias II was said to be spiteful and vengeful. He massacred the remaining Roman garrison and slaughtered all the Roman traders in Armenia. A possible consequence of this action, when Artaxias II sent emissaries in Rome to try to secure the release of his family then in Roman captivity and the Roman emperor

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

refused Artaxias II's request. Artaxias II proved to be an unpopular leader with his people. As the Armenians lost faith in their ruling monarch, they sent messengers to Augustus requesting him to remove Artaxias II from his throne and to install his brother, Tigranes III as his successor. By 20 BC, Tigranes III had lived in Rome for 10 years.Naroll, ''Military Deterrence in History: A Pilot Cross-Historical Survey'', p.161 Augustus agreed to the request from the Armenians. Augustus sent his step-son

Tiberius Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus (; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was the second Roman emperor. He reigned from AD 14 until 37, succeeding his stepfather, the first Roman emperor Augustus. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC. His father ...

, with Tigranes III and a large army to depose Artaxias II. Before Tiberius and Tigranes III arrived in Armenia, a cabal within the palace was successful in murdering Artaxias II. The Romans installed Tigranes III as the new king of Armenia unopposed.

References

Sources

* R. Naroll, V.L. Bullough & F. Naroll, Military Deterrence in History: A Pilot Cross-Historical Survey, SUNY Press, 1974 * H. Temporini & W. Haase, Politische Geschichte (Provinzen Und Randv Lker: Griechischer Balkanraum; Kleinasien): Griechischer Balkanraum; Kleinasien), Walter de Gruyter, 1980 * M. Sicker, The Pre-Islamic Middle East (Google eBook), Greenwood Publishing Group, 2000 * M. Bunsen, Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire, Infobase Printing, 2009 * T. Daryaee, The Oxford Handbook of Iranian History, Oxford University Press, 2012
{{DEFAULTSORT:Artaxias Ii 1st-century BC kings of Armenia 1st-century BC rulers in Asia 20 BC deaths Year of birth unknown Artaxiad dynasty Vassal rulers of the Parthian Empire