The Chrysaorian League ( grc, σύστημα Χρυσαορικόν, ''systema Chrysaorikon'') was an informal loose federation of several cities in ancient region of
Caria
Caria (; from Greek: Καρία, ''Karia''; tr, Karya) was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid- Ionia (Mycale) south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined ...
,
Anatolia
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The ...
that was apparently formed in the early
Seleucid
The Seleucid Empire (; grc, Βασιλεία τῶν Σελευκιδῶν, ''Basileía tōn Seleukidōn'') was a Greek state in West Asia that existed during the Hellenistic period from 312 BC to 63 BC. The Seleucid Empire was founded by the ...
period and lasted at least until 203 BC. The League had its primary focus on unified defense, and secondarily on trade, and may have been linked by ethnic bonds (the
Chrysaorians). It had an assembly and financial institutions, and a form of reciprocal citizenship whereby a citizen of a member city was entitled to certain rights and privileges in any other member city. The capital of the League was
Chrysaorium where the assembly met.
Other member cities included:
Alabanda
Alabanda ( grc, Ἀλάβανδα) or Antiochia of the Chrysaorians was a city of ancient Caria, Anatolia, the site of which is near Doğanyurt, Çine, Aydın Province, Turkey.
The city is located in the saddle between two heights. The area is ...
(renamed ''Antiochia of the Chrysaorians''),
Alinda
Alinda ( grc, Ἄλινδα) was an inland city and bishopric in ancient Caria, in Asia Minor ( Anatolia). Modern scholars identify Alinda with the Hellenistic foundation of Alexandria ad Latmum (Ἀλεξάνδρεια πρὸς τῷ Λάτμ ...
,
Amyzon,
Ceramus,
Mylasa
Milas ( grc, Μύλασα, Mylasa) is an ancient city and the seat of the district of the same name in Muğla Province in southwestern Turkey. The city commands a region with an active economy and very rich in history and ancient remains, the ter ...
,
Kaunos
Kaunos (Carian: ''Kbid'';. Translator Chris Markham.
Lycian: ''Khbide''; Ancient Greek: ; la, Caunus) was a city of ancient Caria and in Anatolia, a few kilometres west of the modern town of Dalyan, Muğla Province, Turkey.
The Calbys ...
,
Stratonicea,
Thera
Santorini ( el, Σαντορίνη, ), officially Thira (Greek: Θήρα ) and classical Greek Thera (English pronunciation ), is an island in the southern Aegean Sea, about 200 km (120 mi) southeast from the Greek mainland. It is the ...
.
For periods of time, some of the member cities were subject to
Rhodes
Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the S ...
as part of the
Rhodian Peraea
The Rhodian Peraea or Peraia ( grc, ἡ τῶν Ῥοδίων περαία, 3=''peraia'' of the Rhodians) was the name for the southern coast of the region of Caria in western Asia Minor during the 5th–1st centuries BC, when the area was controll ...
.
References
* J. Ma, Antiochos III and the Cities of Western Asia Minor, ({{ISBN, 0-19-815219-1), p. 175
External links
Hazlitt, Classical Gazetteer, "Chrysaorium"
Hellenistic Caria
Leagues in Greek Antiquity
Ancient Rhodes
States in Hellenistic Anatolia