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Amyrtaeus ( , a
Hellenization Hellenization (other British spelling Hellenisation) or Hellenism is the adoption of Greek culture, religion, language and identity by non-Greeks. In the ancient period, colonization often led to the Hellenization of indigenous peoples; in ...
of the original Egyptian name Amenirdisu) of
Sais Sais ( grc, Σάϊς, cop, Ⲥⲁⲓ) was an ancient Egyptian city in the Western Nile Delta on the Canopic branch of the Nile,Mish, Frederick C., Editor in Chief. "Saïs." '' Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary''. 9th ed. Springfiel ...
, is the only pharaoh of the
Twenty-eighth Dynasty of Egypt The Twenty-eighth Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XXVIII, alternatively 28th Dynasty or Dynasty 28) is usually classified as the third dynasty of the Ancient Egyptian Late Period. The 28th Dynasty lasted from 404 BC to 398 BC and it includes ...
Cimmino 2003, p. 385. and is thought to be related to the royal family of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty (664–525 BC). He ended the first Persian occupation of Egypt (i.e. the Twenty-seventh Dynasty: 525–404 BC) and reigned from 404 BC to 399 BC.Clayton 1999, p. 202. Amyrtaeus' successful insurrection inaugurated Egypt's last significant phase of independence under native sovereigns, which lasted for about 60 years until the Persians conquered the country again.


Biography


Sources and identity

Sextus Julius Africanus Sextus Julius Africanus (c. 160 – c. 240; Greek: Σέξτος Ἰούλιος ὁ Ἀφρικανός or ὁ Λίβυς) was a Christian traveler and historian of the late second and early third centuries. He is important chiefly because o ...
(''Chronographiai'') calls him "Amyrteos", while Eusebius of Caesarea ('' Chronicon'') calls him "Amirtaios" — both of them recording that he reigned for 6 years. An ancient Egyptian prophetic text, the ''
Demotic Chronicle The ''Demotic Chronicle'' is an ancient Egyptian prophetic text. The work is intended to provide a chronicle of the 28th, 29th and 30th dynastiesBresciani, op. cit., p. 551 – thus the independence interval between the two Persian domina ...
'' (3rd/2nd century BC), states: Amyrtaeus was probably the grandson of the Amyrtaeus of Sais who, with
Inaros II Inaros (II), also known as Inarus, (fl. ca. 460 BC) was an Egyptian rebel ruler who was the son of an Egyptian prince named Psamtik, presumably of the old Saite line, and grandson of Psamtik III. In 460 BC, he revolted against the Persians w ...
(himself a grandson of Pharaoh
Psamtik III Psamtik III ( Ancient Egyptian: , pronounced ), known by the Graeco-Romans as Psammetichus or Psammeticus ( Ancient Greek: ), or Psammenitus ( Ancient Greek: ), was the last Pharaoh of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt from 526 BC to 525 BC. Most ...
), led a rebellion between 465 BC and 463 BC against the
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
Artaxerxes I Artaxerxes I (, peo, 𐎠𐎼𐎫𐎧𐏁𐏂𐎠 ; grc-gre, Ἀρταξέρξης) was the fifth King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, from 465 to December 424 BC. He was the third son of Xerxes I. He may have been the "Artasy ...
. He is known from Aramaic and ancient Greek sources, and is mentioned in the
Demotic Chronicle The ''Demotic Chronicle'' is an ancient Egyptian prophetic text. The work is intended to provide a chronicle of the 28th, 29th and 30th dynastiesBresciani, op. cit., p. 551 – thus the independence interval between the two Persian domina ...
. A "virtually unknown ruler", he is not known to have left any monuments, and his name in Egyptian is only reconstructed from
demotic Demotic may refer to: * Demotic Greek, the modern vernacular form of the Greek language * Demotic (Egyptian), an ancient Egyptian script and version of the language * Chữ Nôm, the demotic script for writing Vietnamese See also * * Demos (dis ...
notices: no hieroglyphic writing of his names has been found.


Coup and reign

Before assuming the throne of Egypt, Amyrtaeus had revolted against the Persian King Darius II (423–404 BC) as early as 411 BC, leading a guerrilla action in the western Nile Delta around his home city of Sais. Following the death of Darius, Amyrtaeus declared himself king in 404 BC. According to Isocrates,
Artaxerxes II Arses ( grc-gre, Ἄρσης; 445 – 359/8 BC), known by his regnal name Artaxerxes II ( peo, 𐎠𐎼𐎫𐎧𐏁𐏂 ; grc-gre, Ἀρταξέρξης), was King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire from 405/4 BC to 358 BC. He was the son and suc ...
assembled an army in Phoenicia under the command of Abrocomas to retake Egypt shortly after coming to the Persian throne, but political problems with his brother
Cyrus the Younger Cyrus the Younger ( peo, 𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁 ''Kūruš''; grc-gre, Κῦρος ; died 401 BC) was an Achaemenid prince and general. He ruled as satrap of Lydia and Ionia from 408 to 401 BC. Son of Darius II and Parysatis, he died in 401 BC ...
prevented this from taking place, allowing the Egyptians sufficient time to throw off Achaemenid rule. While the rule of Amyrtaeus in the western Delta was established by 404 BC, Artaxerxes II continued to be recognized as king at
Elephantine Elephantine ( ; ; arz, جزيرة الفنتين; el, Ἐλεφαντίνη ''Elephantíne''; , ) is an island on the Nile, forming part of the city of Aswan in Upper Egypt. The archaeological sites on the island were inscribed on the UNESCO ...
as late as 401 BC, but
Aramaic papyri Hebrew and Aramaic papyri have increasingly been discovered from the 1960s onwards, although these papyri remain rare compared to papyri written in Koine Greek and Demotic Egyptian (no relation except in name, "popular," to modern demotic Greek). ...
from the site refer to Regnal Year 5 of Amyrtaeus in September 400 BC. The Elephantine papyri also demonstrate that between 404 and 400 BC (or even 398 BC) Upper Egypt remained under Persian control, while the forces of Amyrtaeus dominated the Delta. In 1st century BC, the Greek historian Diodorus Siculus wrote in his ''
Bibliotheca historica ''Bibliotheca historica'' ( grc, Βιβλιοθήκη Ἱστορική, ) is a work of universal history by Diodorus Siculus. It consisted of forty books, which were divided into three sections. The first six books are geographical in theme, a ...
'' (XIV, 35.3–5) that a King named Psamtik — which seems to be identified with Amyrtaeus, perhaps being "Psamtik" his lost regnal name — murdered the Greek admiral Tamos who had taken refuge in Egypt after the defeat of the rebel Cyrus. If the information was correct, Amyrtaeus would seem to have acted in this way to ingratiate himself with Artaxerxes II. It is likely that King Amyrtaeus concluded an alliance with Sparta implying that Egypt was provided with military aid by Sparta in exchange for grain.


Fall and death

Amyrtaeus was defeated in open battle by his successor,
Nepherites I Nefaarud I or Nayfaurud I, better known with his hellenised name Nepherites I, was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh, the founder of the 29th Dynasty in 399 BC. Reign Accession It is believed that Nepherites was a general from the deltaic city of Men ...
of MendesCimmino 2003, p. 388. and executed at Memphis, an event which the Aramaic papyrus Brooklyn 13 implies occurred in October 399 BC. Nepherites I then transferred the capital to Mendes ( Lower Egypt). There is no further information available regarding Amyrtaeus' rule, fall and death. Nepherites I reigned until 393 BC, being succeeded by his designated heir, his son
Hakor Hakor or Hagar, also known by the hellenized forms Achoris or Hakoris, was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the 29th Dynasty. His reign marks the apex of this feeble and short-lived dynasty, having ruled for 13 years – more than half of its entir ...
.


References


Bibliography

* Cimmino, Franco (2003). ''Dizionario delle Dinastie Faraoniche''. Milan: Bompiani. . * Clayton, Peter A. (1999). ''Chronicles of the Pharaohs''. London: Thames and Hudson. . * Lemaire, A. (1995). ''La fin de la première période perse in Égypte et la chronologie judéene vers 400 av. J.-C.'', ''Transeuphratène'' 9, Leuven: Peeters Publishers. pp. 51–61. * Lloyd, Alan B. (2003). ''The Late Period'', in The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, edited by I. Shaw. Oxford: University Press. . * Perdu, O. (2010). ''Saites and Persians (664—332)'', in A.B. Lloyd (ed.), ''A Companion to Ancient Egypt'' Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. . pp. 140–58 (at pp. 153–7). * Ray, J.D. (1987). ''Egypt: Dependence and Independence (425-343 B.C.)'', in: ''Achaemenid History I: Sources, Structures, and Syntheses'', edited by H. Sancisi-Weerdenburg. Leiden: Nederlands Instituut voor het Nabije Oosten. pp. 79–95. {{DEFAULTSORT:Amyrtaeus 5th-century BC Pharaohs 4th-century BC Pharaohs Pharaohs of the Twenty-eighth Dynasty of Egypt Nile Delta 5th-century BC births 399 BC deaths Achaemenid Egypt Executed monarchs