Greek-Roman Timeline
323 BCE (Before Common Era) to Present |
Detailed Greek and Roman Timeline
323: Death of Alexander
the Great
323 - 273: Wars
of the Successors
Alexander's generals and the regional governors of his empire and
the heirs to these struggle for supremacy. The Empire splinters.
The most notable states to develop from the conflict are Egypt under
the Ptolemies, Syria and old Persia under the Seleucids, and Macedon
with a hegemony over Greece under the Antigonids. Asia Minor breaks
into numerous smaller kingdoms: Armenia, Cappadocia, Pontus, Bithynia,
Galatia, and Pergamum, which is largely on-again, off-again under
the Seleucid yoke.
Hellenism and the continued Hellenization of the Near East flourishes
as Alexander's lasting legacy. The wealth of the old kingdoms enriches
the new empires. The urban centers of the chief Successor States
become the new centers of art and learning, while the cities of
the Greek mainland experience a steady decline in prestige, power,
and wealth. Simplified Greek ("koine") becomes the lingua franca
of the Hellenistic world and trade in the Mediterranean. [^ TOP ]
264 - 241: First Punic
War
241 - 218: Pirates!
Though victorious, Rome's navy, like that of Carthage, is severely
depleted. Piracy begins to flourish in the western Mediterranean
until Rome rebuilds sufficiently to drive the pirates east. Crete
and the islands of the Aegean become bases for pirates and smugglers.
Attacks on the coast of Asia Minor weaken Syria's grip on its territories
there, and fortify the importance of Rhodes (a vassal of Egypt)
as the great Mediterranean trading center. Macedon tries to encourage
the rebellion of the city of Pergamum against Syria while Macedon
itself attempts to build sufficient naval strength to deal with
piracy -- at the expense of the Greek cities. [^ TOP ]
218 - 202: Second
Punic War
Carthage attempts both to avenge its earlier defeat and to reclaim
its lost dominance. Hannibal manages to occupy southern Italy for
more than a decade. Macedon, still struggling to control the pirate-filled
Aegean and encourage Pergamum's revolt, foolishly allies itself
with Carthage. Syria makes a hard stab into Asia Minor, crushing
Pergamum's rebellion, but at great expense in wealth and manpower.
Egypt quietly builds its forces along the borders with Syria, prompting
a hasty movement of Syrian forces to the south. Ultimately, Carthage
is trounced, leaving Rome in control of the entire western Mediterranean
excepting North Africa. [^ TOP ]
214 - 168: The
Macedonian Wars
When Macedon allied with Carthage during the Second Punic War, Rome
was forced to open a front in Greece to prevent the Macedonians
from invading Italy while Hannibal still occupied the southern part
of the peninsula. With its forces and resources stretched in the
conflict against Rome as well as the Aegean debacle, Macedon demands
men and material from the Greeks. A unified Greek resistance to
Macedon's demands and the defeat of a Macedonian army sent to enforce
the king's demands seals the fate of Macedon in its fight with Rome.
Rome obliterates the Macedonian army, destroying the military threat
and greatly humbling the kingdom.
Alerted by Pergamum, Rhodes, and Greece that Macedon and Syria
had agreed upon plans to divide up Egypt once the situation with
the western upstart (Rome) had resolved itself, Rome decides to
ensure such plans could not go forward. The wealth and resources
of Egypt transferred into the hands of the vast and wealthy Syrian
Empire might pose to great a threat to Roman interests in the future.
Even though it had already begun a withdrawal from Macedon, the
Roman army stops and prepares an offensive against Syria.
Syria itself has already launched its own attack, seeking at once
to capitalize on Macedon's loss of control over the Greek cities
and provide a strong warning to Rome. The Syrian and Roman armies
meet in Greece, at Thermopylae. Roman victory there is followed
by a Roman drive into Asia Minor. Pergamum is released from Syrian
control, and still the Romans push east, driving the Syrian forces
out of Asia Minor altogether.
Having broken the back of Syrian ambitions and squelched the thorn
of Macedon, Rome withdraws from Asia and Greece to set about fortifying
its newly won possessions in the west.
But Macedon attempts to muster its forces -- to rebuild its armies
and reestablish control over Greece. Rome steps in and again crushes
Macedon, saddling the kingdom with huge restrictions on the size
of its military and looting its coffers. Yet Macedon once more stirs
and attempts to rebuild its military and political might, and Rome,
its interests focused elsewhere, becomes embroiled in a hard-fought
struggle to put an end to Macedon's continued annoyance. But it
is the Greeks, not the Romans, who strike the final blow. A joint
Athenian, Theban, and Corinthian army drives north and destroys
the Macedonians at Pydna. A relieved Rome withdraws west to continue
securing its possessions -- and to shortly deal with vague stirrings
of trouble, yet again, from Carthage. [^ TOP ]
149 - 146: Third Punic
War
168 - 133: The
Greek Resurgence
With their Macedonian master gone, the poleis of Greece face a challenge
greater than throwing off that yoke. In the post-Alexandrian world,
they had suffered continual decline -- in populace, in wealth, and
in resources. The centers of trade in the Mediterranean no longer
includes the cities on the Greek mainland, nor do the centers of
art or thought. The Greek cities are weak and poor, outmatched by
the Hellenistic kingdoms to the east and, far worse, by the barbarian
Rome. But in less than half a century, they manage -- not all in
the same manner -- to halt and then reverse the decline.
The first major development is the formation of a Confederation,
primarily a military concern, for common defense of the mainland.
Initially, the armies of this Confederation are composes almost
exclusively of citizen militias, as none of the cities possess the
resources to field a professional body. The first acts of the Confederation
focus on silencing the murmurings of restoring the monarchy in Macedon.
With a rather brutal simplicity, the Confederation eliminates one
Antigonid heir after another, and establishes Therma (Thessalonica)
as the capital of a democratic Macedonia.
The other major development that sets Greece back on course is
its own re-acquaintance with its past. Even as Classical Greek literature,
philosophy, and even culture are coming into vogue in Rome, the
mainland Greeks rediscover them, as well. A return to the past,
a reawakening of old ideals, leads the poleis to model themselves
on their pre-Philip selves. With a rapidity born out of desperation,
the cities undergo sweeping reforms -- political, economic, and
social. Though the "return to the old" process is not complete,
the poleis reestablish much of their old policies and practices,
albeit modified by the circumstances of the day. Perhaps most importantly,
the study of and attempt to reclaim the ways of "the good old days"
invokes a renewed sense of pride -- in one's citizenship in a polis
and in being a Hellene. This pride is only fanned and furthered
by the interest in Greek culture apparent in the major power of
the day, Rome.
The developments of each polis and their slow, but steady rise
to relative prosperity are many and unique. By 133 BCE, however,
the city-states of the Greek Confederation are no longer weak, impoverished
polities on the brink of starvation or collapse. Rather, they, each
in their own right and the confederation at large, are a power ascending.
[^ TOP ]
133: The
Gift of Pergamum
After his death, it is discovered that the king of Pergamum had
bequeathed his kingdom to Rome. While they had shown little interest
in possessions in Asia during the wars with Syria following the
Second Punic War, the Romans are easily agreeable to accepting the
gift of Pergamum. A defensive force and bodies of regional governors
are dispatched to administrate the new addition. Though the surprising
transfer of power is not greeted favorably by neighboring kingdoms,
none (yet) possess the strength, political will, or leader needed
to challenge Rome. Likewise do the Greeks look upon the development
with concern, as they are now surrounded by Roman territory on all
sides but the north. They, too, however, recognize the futility
of a move against Rome. [^ TOP ]
180 - 130: The
Persian Restoration
After the expulsion of its armies from Asia Minor, Syria faces further
humiliation in an ill-fated campaign against Egypt. It is a campaign
that Rome itself had warned the Syrians against when first they
heard of it. Syria lays siege to the old Phoenecian cities of Sidon
and Tyre, but fails at both, losing entire armies in the misguided
attempt.
To many in old Persia, this is the final indignity. Revolts erupt
throughout the empire as lingering resentment against their Seleucid
rulers is fanned into rebellious resolve, most strongly among the
old Persian nobility. In the series of civil wars that result, the
Seleucid rulers of Syria hire vast mercenary armies. Though the
early military engagements go poorly for the rebels, seeing the
golden grandeur of Persia thrown to foreigners fans the flames further.
By 150 BCE, Seleucid holdings have been reduced to little more
than the region around Antioch. A quarrel among the rebels concerning
ruler-ship and the bloodlines of Darius and Bessus, the last kings
of Persia before Alexander's conquest, grants the Syrians a brief
respite. They regroup enough to make one last stand at Antioch,
where the last vestiges of the Seleucid Empire are finally destroyed.
The victors set about rebuilding their reborn Persian Empire.
One of the principal moves is to "cleanse" the empire and its institutions
of Hellenistic influence. Much as the Greeks were connecting with
their own past, the Persians attempt to restore the ways and the
glory of old Persia. [^ TOP ]
130 - 90: Athens
Ascending
Positioned between Rome and the East, the Greek states enjoy a period
of great prosperity as a center point for trade. Much of this prosperity
comes at the expense of Rhodes, which finds its primacy as a trading
hub coming under mounting threat. To ease this, the Rhodesians first
turn to the pirates of the Aegean, offering in essence to commission
them as privateers against the Greeks. The Greeks, Athens in particular,
beat them to it, however. Pirate vessels in contracted employ of
Athens regularly plunder ships bound for and departing from Rhodes.
Rhodes next appeals to Rome, but political turmoil within Rome,
beginning with the crisis of the Gracchi, preclude any direct Roman
assistance. And so it falls next to Persia as Rhodes' hopeful. Persia's
commitment comes with the condition that Rhodes support Persia's
intended expansion into Asia Minor. Rhodes agrees.
While its armies are driving into Armenia, Persia dispatches a
small fleet to the Aegean to assault the pirate strongholds there.
Its first stop is the southernmost: Crete. In the resulting conflict,
the fleets based out of Crete are destroyed and the island's principal
harbors ruined. The Persian fleet, however, suffers such losses
in the fight that it returns home rather than press onward to a
certain defeat in the Aegean. Persia's armies crush Armenia and
spearhead into Cappadocia. With the bulk of Aegean piracy untouched
and continuing their attacks on Rhodes' trade, the Rhodes is far
from satisfied that Persia has lived up to the agreement.
Athens enjoys uninterrupted increase, profiting both from its
growing merchant fleets and the plunder of its privateers. The rest
of Greece doesn't fare as well as Athens, but the increased goods
coming through the Attican ports find their way throughout Greece,
and the rising Athenian population means rising demand for food
and goods from its neighbors. Though the whole of Greece enjoys
the prosperity, the fact that Athens enjoys the lion's share is
not lost on the rest. [^ TOP ]
100 - 80: The
Minoan Restoration
Crete had enjoyed years of unexpected prosperity as a principal
pirate stronghold. Following the assault by the Persian navy, the
island finds its income and its ruling oligarchy of self-styled
pirate-kings gone. In the period of chaos to follow, Crete, like
Greece and Persia before, finds its future in its past. Unlike the
Greeks and Persians, however, Crete's knowledge of and connection
with its past is thin and uncertain. The centuries since the collapse
of the Minoan civilization saw the island sparsely populated and,
on the whole, uneducated. The years of piracy had seen a rise in
population, but mostly foreigners -- mainland Greeks and a host
of barbarian peoples from throughout the Mediterranean. This had
further removed Crete from its glorious past.
But the memory had endured in oral traditions. And it is with
these in mind that the Cretans set about restoring order and security
and ensuring survival. By 80 BCE, the Palace of Knossos has been
rebuilt on the old ruins and a king, adopting the name Minos as
his own, has taken residence along with a "court" of advisors and
administrators. [^ TOP ]
88 - 83: The
First War of Mithridates
While the Persian army storms through Armenia and drives deep into
Cappadocia, Mithridates, ruler of the Pontus, a kingdom in north-central
Asia Minor that the king had already built into a large power on
the Black Sea, strikes at the Roman positions in Asia Minor. Mithridates
styles himself as a champion of Hellenism against the barbarians.
The first war is part invasion and part revolt, as the Asian cities
under Roman control rebel against the corrupt regional administrators
and rally to the cause. Adding Thracian and Macedonian mercenaries
to his already considerable forces, the king of Pontus strikes a
hard blow, dislodging Rome from Asia, but leaving his rear vulnerable
to the Persians.
Across the Aegean, Athens tries to push the Greek Confederation
to ally with Mithridates, seeing, in the potential expulsion of
Rome, a chance for Athens to reclaim some of the glory of its own
former empire by taking possession of the old Greek colonies along
the Aegean coast of Asia Minor. Wary of both the ire of Rome and
the ambitions of Athens, the majority of the Confederation reject
the proposed action. In retaliation, Athens cuts off trade with
the rest of Greece, positioning armies at every major roadway into
and out of Attica and forbidding vessels using Attican ports from
landing elsewhere in Greece. In the midst, it assembles its own
invasion force, comprised largely of mercenaries and militias of
the poor.
The Athenian force lands in Asia just as Mithridates is forced
to turn to engage the Persians. Old enmities surpass ambitions of
established dominion along the coast, and the Athenian army marches
to Mithridates' aid against Persia. Relieved of some of the burden
of the Persian front, Mithridates is able to pull forces west to
catch a Roman force newly arrived.
The Roman general Sulla arrives to crush Mithridates. In a hard-won
campaign, Sulla manages to drive out Mithridates' forces remaining
in the former Roman territories, but can push no further. Though
an able commander, Sulla faces in the king of Pontus an adversary
unlike any Rome has faced since Hannibal. Mithridates and his kingdom
remain, and Rome merely recaptures its lost possessions in Asia
Minor.
Meanwhile, the campaign against Persia ends in a bloody draw.
Rome's return makes the Persians hesitate in their advance, and
rather than pushing forward for conquest, they hold their lines
and route the Athenian army. [^ TOP ]
84 - 82: The
Isthmus War
While Athens' armies meet a crushing defeat against the Persians
in Cappadocia, its rivals in Greece rise to strike a blow against
what they fear to be the early stirrings of Athenian hegemony. A
massive (by contemporary Greek standards) army of Spartans and Corinthians
invade across the Isthmus of Corinth while the Argosseans attempt
to seize control of the the Athenian seas. As the only northern
poleis capable of fielding a meaningful force, Thebes is tasked
with breaking into Attica through the Kithaeron Mountains.
Facing certain defeat, Athens lays bare its coffers to raise mercenary
armies for its defense. In the ensuing battles, the invaders manage
to make inroads into Attica, but only at great expense. With both
sides wanting a quick end to the war, they negotiate a peace. The
invaders agree to withdraw from Attica, and Athens agrees to reopen
its trade with the rest of Greece. The terms of military commitments
to and the use of military force by the Confederation are redrafted.
And the use of mercenaries on mainland Greek soil is prohibited
excepting when repelling foreign invaders. [^ TOP ]
150 - 80: Rise
of the Warlords
The uneven prosperity Greece enjoyed during the Resurgence passes
by many, most notably those outside of the old Greek poleis. Thrace
and Macedon, in particular, see little benefits during the period.
Facing poverty, or near poverty, increasing numbers of men take
up professional soldiering, serving in the wars and skirmishes that
erupt in tumultuous Asia Minor. From straggling bands and wanderers
willing to fight for pay, the mercenaries develop into larger and
larger professional armies for hire.
As the need for their services flows and ebbs over the years,
it becomes increasingly common for out-of-work mercenaries to take
up plundering and looting. Some mercenary commanders even manage
to carve out mini-kingdoms for themselves, often with the blessing
of the enemies of the leaders at whose expense these little domains
are created.
Romanticized notions of the mercenary's life draw increasing numbers
to join existing armies or to form new ones. Some successful mercenary
leaders become legends in their own right and revered -- or feared
-- by many. While typically small and insignificant compared to
the vast armies of the larger states, such as Rome, Persia, and
even Mithridates' Pontus, the increasing numbers of these warlords
ensures instability in Asia Minor. This becomes especially true
as the warlord "culture" develops, and the ambitions of its most
successful members grow along with their legends.
By 90 BCE, warlord armies are a part of life and the social makeup
in Asia Minor. Many of the cities that threw off Roman rule during
the First War of Mithridates are in truth controlled by warlords
using Roman administrators as their puppets. The war certainly depletes
the number of active warlords, but in its aftermath, many see the
smaller numbers as an aid to their ambitions.
Mainland Greece is largely untouched by warlordism, though a large
portion of the warlord armies are Greeks, the bulk being Macedonian
and Thracian. The battles to be fought and glory to be won are in
Asia Minor. The decision to avoid use of mercenaries by the Greek
Confederation after the Isthmus War and a stunning Persian onslaught
through Asia Minor both work to change that. Swept out of Asia by
the Persian armies, the warlords withdraw, primarily, to various
points in Thrace, Macedon, and northern Thessaly. To the south they
see prospering cities that don't want them. The relative wealth
of the greater poleis is a a siren's call to the warlords. And afterward,
the instability that had shook Asia Minor will grip Greece. [^ TOP ]
82 - 76: Persian
Advance
Taking a brief time to regroup after defeating the Athenian allies
of Mithridates, the Persians renew their expansion into Asia Minor.
In two years, they overrun the unconquered half of Cappadocia, Galatia,
and capture large portions of the Roman possessions, sweeping warlord
armies aside before them. After a failed jab at Pontus again, they
concentrate on securing the remaining Roman territories. By the
winter of 76 BCE, all of Asia Minor except for Pontus is under Persian
control. The kingdom of Bithynia, Pontus' western neighbor, is made
a tributary, but not formally part of the Persian Empire. [^ TOP ]
74 - 67: The
Second War of Mithridates
The king of Bithynia, like the king of Pergamum before him, bequeaths
his kingdom to Rome. This news alarms both Pontus and Persia. Mithridates
spurns a Persian offer of alliance. Timing his attack perfectly,
he drives his armies south through Galatia all the way to the Mediterranean,
dividing Persia from its westernmost possession just as the Roman
general Lucullus lands his forces. While the Romans destroy the
isolated Persians, Mithridates withdraws to Pontus, opening the
floodgates for Persian armies to attack the Romans right on the
heels of Lucullus' initial victory.
Then Mithridates strikes along a broad southern front against
both of his weakened adversaries. The Persians fall first, pulling
all the way back to the borders of Armenia. The Roman army proves
more steadfast. With a series of small victories, Lucullus halts
Mithridates' advance and then seizes the initiative and drives the
king's armies first back to Pontus and finally all the way east
to Armenia, trapping him between the Roman and Persian armies.
But Lucullus' political opponents and the mutiny of his forces
in Asia over his old-school military discipline, saved Mithridates
for the day. Lucullus was recalled to Rome. Mithridates returned
to Pontus. Command of the region was given to Pompey. [^ TOP ]
66 - 62: The
Third War of Mithridates
The Eastern Campaigns of Pompey
Given command over a huge fleet, vast army, and extensive territories
in Asia Minor, Pompey first moves against the pirates of the Aegean.
The pirates, with and without the backing of Athens, had continued
to flourish after the destruction of Crete's fleet. Their range
extended further and further, as far as Italy and the adjacent islands
in the west.
Pompey's fleets pour into the Aegean, sinking pirate and Greek
merchant ships alike, and brutally sacking the pirate strongholds
in the islands. The devastation wrought on honest shipping is a
stern warning to Athens.
Next, Pompey tackles the problem of Mithridates. The Roman armies
march into Asia Minor, defeat the weakened king of Pontus, and take
possession of Pontus, which is merged with Bithynia into a Roman
province. Pompey pushes east, and the Persians are driven back before
him. By the end of his campaign, Pompey has captured all of Asia
Minor and the western Persian Empire, from the Aegean in the northwest
to Syria and Judea in the southeast. [^ TOP ]
64: Voyage of the Argonauts
60: The First Triumvirate
formed
60 - 44: The
Persian Return
Pompey's embroilment with politics close to Rome gives the Persians
an opportunity to reclaim territory they lost during the Third War
of Mithridates. Beginning with a quiet build-up and slow drive into
Armenia, the Persians recapture that kingdom before a drive south
to reclaim Syria. With the east secured, they push into Asia Minor.
Roman mismanagement of the provinces there have given ample opportunity
to ambitions warlord, destabilizing Roman control. The Persians
take full advantage of this, until Pompey returns to reassert control.
Over the next decade, he is forced to return numerous times to deal
with the tireless aggression of the Persians, whose armies he is
never able to again push back past Armenia. Asia Minor remains a
war-torn, tumultuous region.
In 53 BCE, a lightning assault by the Persians penetrates all the
way through Asia Minor to the Aegean, where the Persians seize a
fleet and cross to launch a surprise, but failed, attack on Greece
at the Second Battle of Marathon, some 400 years after the first.
[^ TOP ]
58 - 51: Caesar's Conquest
of Gaul
53 - ? : The
Syrian War
The wealthy triumvir Crassus is given command of an army and the
province of Syria, which Pompey had conquered, but which the Persians
had since occupied. Eager to secure a domain for himself and to
overshadow his rival by doing what Pompey could not -- defeat the
Persians -- Crassus launches his campaign. A string of initial success
enable his armies to reclaim Syria and penetrate deep into Persian
territory. Overly extended, Crassus falls victim to encirclement
by a Persian counterattack that weakens his army and, more importantly,
isolates it from Syria and the sea. [^ TOP ]
52: The
Here and Now
Rome, under Julius Caesar, rules the West, and has influence throughout
the Mediterranean. Persia rules the East. Asia Minor is a hotbed
of conflict. Greece is a quarreling bunch of rivaling city-states
managing to prosper in the Roman World despite its internal conflicts
and the warlords roaming its countryside. Rome, with its strong
dislike for such instability, would likely conquer Greece, if Rome
didn't have its own internal problems to deal with. [^ TOP ]
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