Parthia: Encyclopedia II - Parthia - The Parthian Empire

Parthia - The Parthian Empire

Initially, ca. 250 BCE, a king named Arsaces established his dynasty's independence from Seleucid rule in remote areas of northern Iran in what is today known as Turkmenistan, where his descendants of the same name ruled until Antiochus III the Great briefly made them submit to Seleucid authority again in 206 BCE.

It was not until the 2nd century BCE that the Parthians were able to profit from the continuing erosion of the Seleucid Empire, gradually capturing all its territories east of Syria. Once the Parthians had gained Herat, the movement of trade along the Silk Road to China was effectively choked off and the post-Alexandrian Hellenistic Greco-Bactrian Kingdom was doomed.

The Seleucid monarchs attempted to "hold the line" against the Parthian expansion; Antiochus IV Epiphanes spent his last years on a campaign against the newly emerging Iranian states. After his death in 164 BCE, the Parthians took advantage of the ensuing dynastic squabbles to make even greater gains.

In 139 BCE, the Parthian king Mithridates I captured the Seleucid monarch Demetrius II Nicator, holding him captive for ten years while his troops overwhelmed Mesopotamia and Media.

By 129 BCE the Parthians were in control of all the lands right to the Tigris, and established their winter encampment on its banks at Ctesiphon, downstream from modern Baghdad. Ctesiphon was then a small suburb directly across the river from Seleucia on the Tigris, the most Hellenistic city of western Asia. Because of their need of the wealth and trade provided by Seleucia, the Parthian armies limited their incursions to harassment, allowing the city to preserve its independence. In the heat of the Mesopotamian summer, the Parthian horde would withdraw to the ancient Persian capitals of Susa and Ecbatana (modern Hamadan).

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "The Parthian Empire", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki