Pacorus of Media Atropatene (also spelled Pakorus) was a
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 ...
prince who ruled
Media Atropatene
Atropatene ( peo, Ātṛpātakāna; grc, Ἀτροπατηνή), also known as Media Atropatene, was an ancient Iranian kingdom established in by the Persian satrap Atropates. The kingdom, centered in present-day northern Iran, was ruled by A ...
in the mid 1st-century.
Pacorus was a son of
Vonones II (r. 51). When Vonones II died in 51, his son
Vologases I
Vologases I ( xpr, 𐭅𐭋𐭂𐭔 ''Walagash'') was the King of Kings of the Parthian Empire from 51 to 78. He was the son and successor of Vonones II (r. 51). He was succeeded by his younger son Pacorus II, who continued his policies.
Name
V ...
became the new Parthian king. Vologases I sought to continue the policies of the prominent former Parthian king
Artabanus II (), and thus, one of his first objectives was to strengthen the bolster the Parthian position in strategically and politically unstable regions which had served for decades as the source of war with the
Romans
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 lette ...
. He gave the kingship of Media Atropatene to Pacorus, while the even more politically important kingship of
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...
was given to Vologases I's brother
Tiridates.
Little is known of Pacorus' rule in Media Atropatene, except that, in 72, a group of
Alans
The Alans (Latin: ''Alani'') were an ancient and medieval Iranian nomadic pastoral people of the North Caucasus – generally regarded as part of the Sarmatians, and possibly related to the Massagetae. Modern historians have connected the A ...
invaded his kingdom and forced him to flee into the mountains. Pacorus was forced to pay the Alans to have his wife and concubines released from captivity. The Alans also invaded Armenia, and nearly captured Tiridates in battle; he was lassoed from a distance and caught, but he quickly managed to whip out his sword and slash the rope in time. The Alans then withdrew with a lot of booty after plundering Armenia and Media Atropatene.
References
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* {{cite encyclopedia , article = Azerbaijan iii. Pre-Islamic History , last = Schippmann , first = K. , url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/azerbaijan-iii , encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 2 , pages = 221–224 , year = 1987
1st-century monarchs in the Middle East
1st-century Iranian people
Rulers of Media Atropatene
Vassal rulers of the Parthian Empire
Atropatene