Mithridates II Antiochus Epiphanes Philorhomaeus Philhellen Monocrites (, died 20 BC), also known as Mithridates II of Commagene, was a king of

Commagene Commagene () was an ancient Greco-Iranian kingdom ruled by a Hellenized branch of the Orontid dynasty, Orontids, a dynasty of Iranian peoples, Iranian origin, that had ruled over the Satrapy of Armenia. The kingdom was located in and around the ...

in the 1st century BC. Of

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

; ; ; ; ; ; and Greek descent, he was one of the sons of King Antiochus I Theos of Commagene. When his father died in , he succeeded his father and reigned until his death.

Biography

According to

Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...

, Mithridates was an ally of the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

triumvir

Mark Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman people, Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the Crisis of the Roman Republic, transformation of the Roman Republic ...

. In 31 BC, Mithridates personally led his forces to Actium in

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

in support of Antony in the war against Caesar Octavian, the future Roman emperor

Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...

. After the defeat of Antony, however, Mithridates became a loyal ally to Augustus. Nevertheless, Augustus forced Mithridates to hand over a village in Commagene called Zeugma, which was a major crossing point of the

Euphrates The Euphrates ( ; see #Etymology, below) is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of West Asia. Tigris–Euphrates river system, Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia (). Originati ...

River, to the Roman province of

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

. To show his support for Augustus, Mithridates dropped the title '' Philhellen'' ("friend of the Greeks") from his Aulic titulature and adopted the title ''Philorhomaeus'' ("friend of the Romans") instead. Both titles were derived from the Commagenean royal cult that Mithridates' father had founded, and in which Mithridates played an important role. His other title ''Monocrites'' is an otherwise unattested title and was most likely a judicial function within the royal administration and a sign of his high social standing. Mithridates had a brother, Antiochus II of Commagene, who was also a prince of the kingdom. In 29 BC, Antiochus was summoned to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and executed by Roman emperor Augustus, because Antiochus had caused the assassination of an ambassador whom Mithridates had sent to Rome.

References

Sources

* * * * * * * {{Hellenistic rulers Kings of Commagene 20 BC deaths 1st-century BC monarchs in Asia Year of birth unknown