Parthia Reproduction of a Parthian warrior as depicted on Trajan's Column The Parthian Empire was the dominating force on the Iranian plateau beginning in the late 3rd century BCE, and intermittently controlled Mesopotamia between ca 190 BCE and 224 CE. Origins The Parthians were an illiterate nomadic people, thought to have spoken an Indo-Iranian languages, who arrived at the Iranian plateau from Central Asia. They were consummate horsemen, known for the 'Parthian shot' turning backwards at full gallop to loose an arrow directly to the rear. Later, at the height of their power, Parthian influences reached as far as Ubar in Arabia, the nexus of the frankincense route, where Parthian-inspired ceramics have been found. The power of the early Parthian empire seems to have been overestimated by some ancient historians, who could not clearly separate the latter, very strong empire from its rather obscure origins. Little is known of the Parthians: they had no literature of their own and consequently their written history consists of biased descriptions of conflicts with Romans, Greeks, Jews and — at the far end of the Silk Road — the Chinese empire. Even their own name for themselves is up for debate due to a lack of domestic records; the best guess is that they called their empire Eranshahr. Their strength was a combination of the guerilla warfare of a mounted nomadic tribe with sufficient organisation to build a vast empire, even if it never matched the two Persian empires in strength. Vassal kingdoms seem to have made up a large part of their territory (see Tigranes II of Armenia), and Hellenistic cities enjoyed a certain autonomy. The Parthian Empire Initially, a king named Arsaces (possibly of a nomad tribe named Parni, a name whose relation to the word Parthian is much debated, or according to Armenian sources of White Hun origins) made himself independent of Seleucid rule in remote areas of northern Iran ca 250 BCE, where his descendants of the same name ruled until Antiochus III the Great briefly made them submit to the Seleucid empire again in 206 BCE. Coin of the 6th Arsacid, Mithridates I (171-138BC) It was not until the second century BC that the Parthians profited from the increasing Seleucid weakness and gradually captured all of their territories east of Syria. Once the Parthians had captured 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. It fell to the Seleucid monarchs to hold the line against the Parthians. Antiochus IV Epiphanes spent his last years fruitlessly battling the Parthians in the endless war, until he died in 163 BCE. The Parthians were able to take advantage of Seleucid weakness during the dynastic squabbles that followed Antiochus' death. In 139 BCE, the Parthian king Mithridates I captured the Seleucid monarch, Demetrius Nicator, and held him captive for ten years, while the Parthians overwhelmed Mesopotamia and Media. Vologases III (105-147AD) on a silver drachm By 129 BCE the Parthians were in control of all the lands right to the Tigris River, and established their winter encampment at Ctesiphon on the banks of the Tigris downstream from modern Baghdad. Ctesiphon was a small suburb directly across the river from Seleucia, the most populous Hellenistic city of western Asia. Seleucia they only harassed; they needed its wealth and trade, and the city preserved its independence and Greek culture. In the heat of the Mesopotamian summer, the Parthian horde would withdraw to the ancient Persian capitals of Susa and Ecbatana (modern Hamadan). In the 1st century BCE, the Parthians intervened frequently in eastern Mediterranean politics from their capital at Ctesiphon. They clashed with the Romans, gaining respect when they managed to defeat the army of Roman general Crassus at the Battle of Carrhae (53 BCE). Having established themselves across most of the old Persian Empire, the Parthians became arch-enemies of Rome, whose Eastern campaigns (for instance under Trajan and Septimius Severus) never crushed the resilient and somewhat de-centralized Parthian 'empire,' but bled capital from Rome. The Indo-Parthian kingdom Also during the 1st century BCE, the Parthians started to make inroads into eastern territories that had been occupied by the Indo-Scythians and the Yuezhi. The Parthians ended up controlling all of Bactria and extensive territories in Northern India, after fighting many local rulers such as the Kushan Empire ruler Kujula Kadphises,in the Gandhara region. Around 20 CE, Gondophares, one of the Parthian conquerors, declared his independence from the Parthian empire and established the Indo-Parthian Kingdom in the conquered territories. Decline In 224 CE, Ardashir, governor in the Achaemenid home province of Fars/Persis, overthrew Artabanus V and established the Sassanid dynasty. After their defeat the Parthians, at this point no doubt a thin stratum of nobles, seem to have vanished with few traces. Parthian rulers Arsaces I 246-211 BCE Artabanus I 211-191 BCE Priapatius 191-176 BCE Phraates I 176-171 BCE Mithridates I 171-138 BCE Phraates II 138-128 BCE Artabanus II 128-124 BCE Mithridates II 124-87 BCE Gotarzes I 91-78 BCE Orodes I d.78 BCE Sanatruces 77-70 BCE Phraates III 70-58 BCE Mithridates III 58-57 BCE Orodes II 57-37 BCE Phraates IV 37-30 BCE Tiridates II 30-29 BCE Phraates IV (restored) 29-28 BCE Tiridates II (restored) 28-26 BCE Phraates IV (restored) 26-2 BCE Phraataces 2 BCE - 4 CE Orodes III 4-7 Vonones I 7-11 Artabanus III 11-38 Gotarzes II 38-51 Vardanes 39-47 Vonones II 51 Vologases I 51-78 Pacorus II 78-79 Artabanus IV 79-81 Pacorus II (restored) 81-115 Vologases II 106 Chrosoes 109-116 Parthamaspates 116 Chosroes (restored) 117-128 Mithridates IV 128-147 Vologases III 148-192 Vologases IV 191 vacant 192-207 (?) Vologases V 207-213 Artabanus V 213-226 Artavasdes 226-227 External link http://www.parthia.com/ Most Popular Articles: Music    Musical Instruments    Guitar    Classical Music    History    Music Definition    Country Music    Rock Music    Pop Music    Hip Hop    Rap    DJ    Video Games    Casino Games    Poker    Blackjack    Casinos    Real Estate    Loan    Auction    eBay    Marketing    Search Engine Optimization    File Sharing    MP3    Music Industry    Kazaa    Internet    Supermodel    Fashion    Fashion Designers    Erotica    Modeling    Clothing    Boots    Shoes    Diamond Engagement Rings    Diamond    Rugs    Gospel Music    Affiliate    E-Commerce    Radio This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License at http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html You may copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license. 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