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The siege of Athens and Piraeus was a siege of the
First Mithridatic War The First Mithridatic War /ˌmɪθrəˈdædɪk/ (89–85 BC) was a war challenging the Roman Republic's expanding empire and rule over the Greek world. In this conflict, the Kingdom of Pontus and many Greek cities rebelling against Roman rule ...
that took place from autumn of 87 BC to the spring of 86 BC. The battle was fought between the forces of the
Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...
, commanded by
Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (, ; 138–78 BC), commonly known as Sulla, was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman of the late Roman Republic. A great commander and ruthless politician, Sulla used violence to advance his career and his co ...
on the one hand, and the forces of the
Kingdom of Pontus Pontus ( ) was a Hellenistic kingdom centered in the historical region of Pontus in modern-day Turkey, and ruled by the Mithridatic dynasty of Persian origin, which may have been directly related to Darius the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty. ...
and the Athenian City-State on the other. The Greek and Pontic forces were commanded by
Aristion Aristion ( Greek: Άριστίων; died 1 March 86 BC in Athens) was a philosopher who became tyrant of Athens from 88 BC until he died in 86 BC. Aristion joined forces with King Mithridates VI of Pontus against Greece's overlords, the Romans ...
and Archelaus.


Historical context

The invasion of
Mithridates VI Eupator Mithridates or Mithradates VI Eupator (; 135–63 BC) was the ruler of the Kingdom of Pontus in northern Anatolia from 120 to 63 BC, and one of the Roman Republic's most formidable and determined opponents. He was an effective, ambitious, and ...
, king of
Pontus Pontus or Pontos may refer to: * Short Latin name for the Pontus Euxinus, the Greek name for the Black Sea (aka the Euxine sea) * Pontus (mythology), a sea god in Greek mythology * Pontus (region), on the southern coast of the Black Sea, in modern ...
, into the
Kingdom of Bithynia The Kingdom of Bithynia () was a Hellenistic kingdom centred in the historical region of Bithynia, which seems to have been established in the fourth century BC. In the midst of the Wars of the Diadochi, Zipoites assumed the title of king (''ba ...
, an ally of Rome, coupled with the assassination of
Roman citizen Citizenship in ancient Rome () was a privileged political and legal status afforded to free individuals with respect to laws, property, and governance. Citizenship in ancient Rome was complex and based upon many different laws, traditions, and cu ...
s in the Asiatic Vespers, caused war between Rome and Pontus. Allegedly, up to 80,000 Roman citizens were massacred. The Roman province of Asia was then occupied by the forces of Mithridates VI under the command of Archelaus and before long, Mithridates VI had won over all the Greek city-states which had previously been under Roman rule. In the spring of 87 BC Roman forces under Sulla landed at Dyrrachium, in
Illyria In classical and late antiquity, Illyria (; , ''Illyría'' or , ''Illyrís''; , ''Illyricum'') was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by numerous tribes of people collectively known as the Illyrians. The Ancient Gree ...
. Sulla's first target was
Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
, ruled by a Mithridatic puppet—the tyrant
Aristion Aristion ( Greek: Άριστίων; died 1 March 86 BC in Athens) was a philosopher who became tyrant of Athens from 88 BC until he died in 86 BC. Aristion joined forces with King Mithridates VI of Pontus against Greece's overlords, the Romans ...
. Sulla moved southeast, picking up supplies and reinforcements as he went. Sulla’s chief of staff was
Lucullus Lucius Licinius Lucullus (; 118–57/56 BC) was a Ancient Romans, Roman List of Roman generals, general and Politician, statesman, closely connected with Lucius Cornelius Sulla. In culmination of over 20 years of almost continuous military and ...
, who went ahead of him to scout the way and negotiate with Bruttius Sura, the existing Roman commander in Greece. After speaking with Lucullus, Sura handed over the command of his troops to Sulla. At
Chaeronea Chaeronea ( English: , ) is a village and a former municipality in Boeotia, Greece, located about 35 kilometers east of Delphi. The settlement was formerly known as (), and renamed to () in 1916. Since the 2011 local government reform it is pa ...
, ambassadors from all the major cities of Greece (except Athens) met with Sulla, who impressed on them Rome's determination to drive Mithridates from Greece and Asia Province. Sulla then advanced on Athens.


Siege

Sulla marched towards Athens and upon his arrival he encountered his first problem. The main outer wall that had surrounded the city, connecting the main city with its port at
Piraeus Piraeus ( ; ; , Ancient: , Katharevousa: ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens city centre along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf in the Ath ...
, was in ruins. As such, Sulla was forced to conduct two separate sieges, throwing up siege works surrounding both Athens and its port Piraeus. A force commanded by Archelaus defended Piraeus whilst another commanded by
Aristion Aristion ( Greek: Άριστίων; died 1 March 86 BC in Athens) was a philosopher who became tyrant of Athens from 88 BC until he died in 86 BC. Aristion joined forces with King Mithridates VI of Pontus against Greece's overlords, the Romans ...
took up the main defense of Athens. The sea defense was considerably easier as a Pontic fleet dominated the nearby sea, facilitating reinforcement and replenishment whenever necessary. Furthermore, Piraeus already had ample supplies from the onset while Athens did not. Sulla decided to first concentrate his attacks on Piraeus, seeing as without its port, there was no way that Athens could be resupplied. He sent Lucius Licinius Lucullus to raise a fleet from the remaining Roman allies in the eastern Mediterranean to deal with the Pontic navy. The first attack on the city was entirely repulsed, so Sulla decided to build huge earthworks. Wood was also needed, so he cut down everything, including the sacred groves of Greece, up to 100 miles from Athens' main town. When more money was needed he “borrowed” from temples and
Sibyl The sibyls were prophetesses or oracles in Ancient Greece. The sibyls prophet, prophesied at holy sites. A sibyl at Delphi has been dated to as early as the eleventh century BC by Pausanias (geographer), PausaniasPausanias 10.12.1 when he desc ...
s alike. The currency minted from this treasure was to remain in circulation for centuries and prized for its quality. Siege works were built to facilitate the next attack which was eventually successful in taking the outer wall of Piraeus. Once the outer wall was taken, Sulla discovered that Archelaus had built more walls inside the city. Despite the complete encirclement of Athens and its port, and several attempts by Archelaus to raise the siege, a stalemate developed. Roman attention was temporarily shifted towards Athens, which was starving. Inside the city, the population was reduced to eating shoe leather and grass. A delegation from Athens was sent to treat with Sulla, but instead of serious negotiations they expounded on the glory of their city. Sulla sent them away saying: “I was sent to Athens, not to take lessons, but to reduce rebels to obedience.” Soon Sulla's camp was to fill with refugees from Rome, fleeing the massacres of Marius and Cinna. These also included his wife and children, as well as those of the
Optimate ''Optimates'' (, ; Latin for "best ones"; ) and ''populares'' (; Latin for "supporters of the people"; ) are labels applied to politicians, political groups, traditions, strategies, or ideologies in the late Roman Republic. There is "heated ...
party who had not been killed. With his political enemies having taken power in Rome, Sulla realized that the money and reinforcements he believed were coming to bolster his forces could no longer be counted on. Thus, Sulla ordered the sacking of every temple and religious site in the vicinity. The chronicles state that one of the people sent on such a sacking mission became afraid due to ominous voices having been heard upon entering the temple. Deciding not to continue sacking the temple, the soldier returned to Sulla, who ordered him back, stating that he had heard laughter because the gods would be pleased with his victory. With Athens on the verge of starvation,
Aristion Aristion ( Greek: Άριστίων; died 1 March 86 BC in Athens) was a philosopher who became tyrant of Athens from 88 BC until he died in 86 BC. Aristion joined forces with King Mithridates VI of Pontus against Greece's overlords, the Romans ...
grew less popular by the day. Greek deserters informed Sulla that Aristion was neglecting the Heptachalcum (part of the city wall). Sulla immediately sent sappers to undermine the wall. Nine hundred feet of wall was brought down between the Sacred and Piraeic gates on the southwest side of the city. On 1 March 86 BC, after five months under siege, a midnight sack of Athens began. After Aristion's taunts, Sulla was not in a mood to be magnanimous. Blood was said to have literally flowed in the streets, it was only after the entreaties of a couple of his Greek friends (Midias and Calliphon) and the pleas of the Roman Senators in his camp that Sulla decided enough was enough. After setting fire to large portions of the city, Aristion and his forces fled to the
Acropolis An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens ...
, where they had gathered a store of supplies over the preceding few weeks. At the same time, Archelaus abandoned the city of Piraeus and concentrated his forces in the city's citadel. Sulla, in a bid to stop an escape by Archelaus, who would surely join his reinforcement army sent by Mithridates VI elsewhere in Greece, left the taking of the Acropolis to Gaius Scribonius Curio Burbulieus. In any case, Sulla, not having a navy, was powerless to stop the escape of Archelaus, who was able to rejoin his relief army. Sulla then advanced into Boeotia to take on Archelaus's armies and remove them from Greece. Before leaving the area however, he burnt the city of Piraeus to the ground. While Aristion and his party were able to stave off the Roman attackers for some time, they eventually surrendered after their water ran out and they had heard of the Pontic defeat at the Battle of Chaeronea. They were all executed shortly after their surrender.


Consequences

After routing the Pontic army at the Battle of Chaeronea, Sulla had another victory at the
Battle of Orchomenus A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
the following year. Sulla and
Mithridates VI of Pontus Mithridates or Mithradates VI Eupator (; 135–63 BC) was the ruler of the Kingdom of Pontus in northern Anatolia from 120 to 63 BC, and one of the Roman Republic's most formidable and determined opponents. He was an effective, ambitious, and r ...
finally got together in 85 BC to sign the
Treaty of Dardanos The Treaty of Dardanos (85 BC) was a treaty between Rome and Pontus signed between Lucius Cornelius Sulla of Rome and King Mithridates VI of Pontus. It ended the First Mithridatic War. Defeat of Mithridates Due the victories over Mithridates by ...
, concluding the
First Mithridatic War The First Mithridatic War /ˌmɪθrəˈdædɪk/ (89–85 BC) was a war challenging the Roman Republic's expanding empire and rule over the Greek world. In this conflict, the Kingdom of Pontus and many Greek cities rebelling against Roman rule ...
. Sulla's army took Athens on the Kalends of March, in the consulate of Marius and Cinna, February 12 86 BC. The siege of Athens was a long and brutal campaign, Sulla's rough battle hardened legions, veterans of the Social War thoroughly devastated the city. Athens had chosen the wrong side in this struggle, portrayed as a war of Greek freedom against Roman domination. It was punished severely, a show of vengeance that ensured Greece would remain docile during later civil wars and
Mithridatic wars The Mithridatic Wars were three conflicts fought by the Roman Republic against the Kingdom of Pontus and its allies between 88 and 63 BC. They are named after Mithridates VI, the King of Pontus during the course of the wars, who initiated the ho ...
.


See also

*
First Mithridatic War The First Mithridatic War /ˌmɪθrəˈdædɪk/ (89–85 BC) was a war challenging the Roman Republic's expanding empire and rule over the Greek world. In this conflict, the Kingdom of Pontus and many Greek cities rebelling against Roman rule ...
*
Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (, ; 138–78 BC), commonly known as Sulla, was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman of the late Roman Republic. A great commander and ruthless politician, Sulla used violence to advance his career and his co ...


References


Bibliography


Contemporary sources

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Modern sources

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External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Siege of Athens and Piraeus (87-86 BC) 80s BC 86 BC Roman Athens 80s BC conflicts 1st century BC in the Roman Republic 87 BC 1st century BC in Greece Mithridatic Wars
Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
Sieges of Athens Massacres in Greece