First war of Mithridate

The first war mithridatic is held 88 or 89 av. J. - C. with 85 av. J. - C. between Rome, whose legions are carried out by Sylla, and the Pontus directed by Mithridate VI. The exit of the war is the victory of Rome.

Before the war

Going up on the throne in 112 av. J. - C., Mithridate VI Eupator was 20 years old. He imprisons his mother, regent abusive, like his brother. Its kingdom is then completely sclerosed, deposed of the row which had been it his when it was directed by his father, Mithridate Evergète. But the kingdom is raised under its impulse, becoming again large and strong, with the image of its king. Hardly it subjected the Euxin which it prepares already the conquest of the Asia Mineure. Successes and the victories of Mithridate and its Armenian ally Tigrane encourage the Romains to react.

Ariobarzane, king of a Cappadoce subjected recently by Mithridate, takes refuge with Rome. Its prayers, and more probably its treasures, push the Roman Sénat to restore it. One charges L. Cornelius Sylla, young person Consul in addition starting to carry shade to Marius to direct forwarding. Sylla, with the head of a small troop, sweeps the troops of Gordios (regent of Cappadoce installed by Mithridate), as well as the Armenian troops their bearing help. It restores Ariobarzane, and ties diplomatic bonds with the king of the Parthes, Mithridate, which abstains from reacting vis-a-vis the Romans. This one is the loser of this countryside, because its alliance with the Armenian is put at evil. Not being able to seize Cappadoce, it is satisfied to give to the step the agitated north of Euxin. With the beginning of the year -91, the Roman domination on the Asia Mineure firmly appears established. Mithridate and Nicomède (king of Bithynie) remain disobedient, but rejected behind their borders. Only the Macedonia is agitated, but no threat really weighs on the Republic.

At this point in time occurs what was called “the social war”, like a clap of thunder, fine -91. Rome must then recall, threatened of the interior as it is it, the maritime quotas of its allies. Macedonia, without defenses from now on, is left with the devastations of the Thraces. For Mithridate, as for all the other leaders, this abrupt explosion is a surprise; in addition, it arrives well too early in its plans. Its fleet is still in building site, and half of its army guerroie in north; its beam of alliance is not yet completely made up. But it cannot be allowed not to benefit from the situation, and to act as Asia Mineure. And it does it without being compromised, as it already made to seize - temporarily - Cappadoce.

Bithynie is it weakened well since the death of the old man Nicomède Épiphane. His/her oldest son succeeds to him, but, cruel, lazy and hated, it is driven out by his brother, with the support of Mithridate. This one, as soon as Sylla set out again in Rome, recontracté alliance with the Armenian Tigrane, which D-invades Cappadoce. The two kings thus détrônés (Nicomède and Ariobarzane), in exile, go together to Rome, to plead their cause, or rather, to beg the Sénat to help them.

Mithridate thinks that the Romans are occupied too much by their interior crisis, and that they will leave the kings installed by Mithridate to strengthen their capacity and their throne. But in Italy, the large one of the crisis passed, and Rome reacts much more quickly than discounted it the king of the Pont. They receive the deposed kings and hasten to proclaim their restoration. A special Ambassade is sent, carried out by the consul Manius Aquilius. Mithridate yields once again, and the two kings are restored without confrontation. But Aquilius, given to draw either glory, or fortune of this forwarding, is strongly frustrated by it, and seeks to revive animosities. He asks Mithridate to pay the forwarding costs, which Mithridate refuses to do, estimating more the creditor of Rome that his debtor. Aquilius is turned then towards two kings de Bithynie and of Cappadoce to find payment. But those see their personal treasure drained completion. Aquilius and its colleagues then suggest to them restoring their finances at the expense of Mithridate, by devastating its territory. Ariobarzane abstains from, more pleutre that rancorous. But Nicomède, under the pressure of the Romans, chooses the war and invades the territory of the Bridge, until Amastris. This unjustifiable aggression could have degenerated, but Mithridate plays the thing more finely: he protests officially, invades Cappadoce, driving out once more Ariobarzane, and in parallel sends a delegation to Rome.

The Romans are not unaware of anything the preparations of Mithridate. Its army becomes strong, but the Romans underestimate it, seeing in its prudence a weakness. Pélopidas, general of the Bridge, poses an ultimatum: the respect of the treaties; if the Romans agree to lend hand-strong to Mithridate to punish the Bithynie, Mithridate will be committed helping Rome vis-a-vis the Italian insurrection, and if they do not want similar engagement, that they remain neutral, while waiting for the decision of the Senate.

But Aquilius does not await the reaction of Rome and acts of its own boss. He declares that Mithridate was to respect the territory bithynien, with his risks and dangers. As for Cappadoce, the Romans undertake themselves to bring back Ariobarzane there. What is equivalent to a declaration of war. Aquilius engaged joyeusement its fatherland in a frightening war, of which he does not imagine only one second the future width.

The war

The Roman Armed , divided into four groups, too separate to support itself but too close to avoid a wave of general panic all the same, is crushed by the pontic and Armenian troops. Following the escape of the Roman leaders and their allies Bithynie NS, the heart of the province of Asia opens with Mithridate. Aquilius is captured and killed and Mithridate, after reflection, orders the total extermination of the residents Roman and Italian, those being potentially a factor risks (Espionnage, resistance, etc) 80.000 people are massacred. All the continental Greece falls between the hands from Mithridate. Ones of full liking, it accommodating like a saver, the others by the force (Délos). Rhodos resists; Mithridate destroys its fleet but ridges on its ramparts.

Rome panics. Hardly left a crisis threatening until its existence even, it is already confronted with a formidable enemy, who at the base is only one small king Iran IEN. An adversary as Rome did not see any since Hannibal.

Their finances are catastrophic, but one must however react. One sells the grounds surrounding the Capitole, and one can thus arm with the troops. But the question of the command arises then, and the quarrel which results from this delays the departure of the task force several months. With the fight for the glorious command of this countryside, two men of being able are with the face: C. Marius and L. Cornelius Sylla. The first manages to drive out the second with the assistance of the Tribun L. Sulpicius, but Sylla goes on Rome and occupies it militarily, killing Sulpicius and driving out Marius. But a republican reaction causes its departure. It leaves to Capoue, where it finds its troops, and embarks in the ports of the Adriatique, with the beginning of the year 87 av. J. - C.

When it unloads in Épire, Mithridate is stopped: Métrophane, lieutenant of Archélaos, itself General and friend of Mithridate, devastated the coast of the Magnésie, and threatened Démétriade, a Roman fortified town, in Thessalie. Q. Bruttius Sura attacked Métrophane with the improvist, and recovers the treasure of the island of Sciathos. After this exploit, Bruttius carries help to Thespies, besieged by Archélaos and Aristion, two large pontic generals. Thespies is the last of the Greek cities to being remained faithful to Rome. The confrontation takes place with Chéronée, but at the end of three days of fight without advantage on a side like other, quotas Achaens and lacédémoniens oblige Bruttius to beat a retreat. It joined the avant-garde of Sylla, ordered by the questeur Lucullus, who asks him to leave for the Macedonia.

In the passing of the Romans through Béotie, the cities, and Thèbes in first, hasten to join them, like those of the Peloponnese. It remains soon in Pontiques only the Attique and the Eubée. Archélaos and Aristion, vis-a-vis this army of scale, give up the combat and are cut off, Aristion in Athens, and Archélaos in the port of the Pirée. Pontiques control the sea completely, and Pirée can thus support the seat set up by Sylla at once. With Rome, Marius makes his return, and under its impulse, Sylla is repudiated by its pars, deposed of its command, and is declared public enemy. It must thus overcome or die, and chooses the first solution. Athens is cut supplies, and fall, in spite of a keen resistance. Pirée falls to its continuation. Aristion is barricaded in the Acropole and Archélaos flees on the impregnable peninsula of Munychie. Mithridate lost its principal base of operation in Greece.

Its two generals cut off themselves in waiting from an army from reinforcement which only arrives well too late. During the seat, Mithridate could have completed the conquest of the Thrace and the Macedonia, then to send these troops to the south, but his/her son Arcathias, in load of the operations, is a young inexperienced general, and his mentor Taxile lack of authority. Slownesses while resulting prevent any sending of troops, because they are exténuées, therefore unusable. At the beginning of the year -86, Arcathias leaves Macedonia with the large one of its forces, and goes down along the coast thessalienne. But a suspect death stops it. Probably, his/her father made it poison, tired of his incapacity. Taxile takes again the command of its army, and arrived at Élatée, where it assembles the seat, it enjoint Archélaos to join it and take the command as a chief. But this one hesitated, not very trustful in the solidity of the army of Taxile. He prefers to insulate and starve Sylla and his troops, private of supply and resources. But this one does not hear it this ear, and advances towards north, leaving a detachment in front of the Acropolis. Archélaos joined then without delaying Taxile with the Thermopyles.

The two Roman generals, Sylla and Hortensius, are found with Patronis and their joined together army camps on the famous hill of Philobéotos. The involved forces are strongly disproportionate: in spite of the garrisons and detachments that Taxile had to leave on the way, its army, linked with that of Archélaos, counts more than 60.000 combatants, whereas Sylla and Hortensius lay out only of 15.000 riding infantrymen and 1500 . The terrified Roman troops do not dare to leave to the combat and remain behind their Palissade S. the pontic army, weary, are spread anarchically in the area, plundering and ransacking the cities. The local commands are exceeded, because they do not get along (because different nationalities). Archélaos does not manage to sit its authority. Sylla, to force its men to fight, initially obliges them to dig ditches, and at the end of three days of painful labor, also moved by the oracles learnedly spread by Sylla, the soldiers shout with the combat.

Sylla acts at once and seizes, on left bank of the Céphise, the Citadelle in ruin of the Parapotamiens. It is a capital position and Taxile included/understood it, but it is preceded little by Sylla. In parallel, it puts garrison at Chéronée, seven kilometers (40 stages) of the Citadelle in ruin, in south-east.

Thus, it holds all the exits of the plain of Céphise and leaves in Pontiques only one road of retirement, difficult to borrow, circumventing the lake Copaïs to lead vis-a-vis Chalcis. Thus the begins battles of Chéronée. After the defeat of Archélaos, Mithridate, touched full whip, seizes Chios, against which it has a particular resentment since one of their Trière S.A. éperonné its ship during the seat - unfruitful - of Rhodos. It must also face several interior plots, which it solves in blood (1600 victims). It then sends a detachment of 60.000 men under the command of Dorylaos, which must join the remainder of the troops of Archélaos. During this time, in Rome, Flaccus is elected Consul and embarks for the Greece, supposedly to fight against Mithridate, but to actually do it against Sylla. When it unloads, this last goes to its meeting, but stops its advance, when it learns the arrival from fresh and well trained troops Pont. It reconsiders its steps, and inflicts a new defeat cuisante with the mithridatic army, Orchomène, by its courage and its capacity of born leader. The resounding defeat of the pontic troops however higher proves than the organization and the Roman rigor carries it largely on the Anarchie Barbare. These defeats are the first step of the decline of the vast empire of Mithridate.

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