Amage ()Polyaenus, Strategems, 8.56 /ref> (fl. 2nd-century) was a
Sarmatian
The Sarmatians (; ; Latin: ) were a large confederation of Ancient Iranian peoples, ancient Iranian Eurasian nomads, equestrian nomadic peoples who dominated the Pontic–Caspian steppe, Pontic steppe from about the 5th century BCE to the 4t ...
queen. According to the writings of
Polyaenus
Polyaenus or Polyenus ( ; see ae (æ) vs. e; , "much-praised") was a 2nd-century Roman Macedonian author and rhetorician, known best for his ''Stratagems in War'' (), which has been preserved. He was born in Bithynia, Asia Minor. The ''Suda'' c ...
, she was the wife of the
Sarmatian
The Sarmatians (; ; Latin: ) were a large confederation of Ancient Iranian peoples, ancient Iranian Eurasian nomads, equestrian nomadic peoples who dominated the Pontic–Caspian steppe, Pontic steppe from about the 5th century BCE to the 4t ...
king Medosacus (Μηδόσακκος). she ruled as
regent
In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
to a dissolute husband. They were from the coast of the Euxine Sea.
Having observed that her husband was "totally given up to luxury", she took over the government, acting as a judge of causes, stationing garrisons, repulsing enemy invasions, and was such a successful leader that she became famous through all
Scythia
Scythia (, ) or Scythica (, ) was a geographic region defined in the ancient Graeco-Roman world that encompassed the Pontic steppe. It was inhabited by Scythians, an ancient Eastern Iranian equestrian nomadic people.
Etymology
The names ...
.
As a result of this fame, the people of the Tauric
Chersonesus
Chersonesus, contracted in medieval Greek to Cherson (), was an Greeks in pre-Roman Crimea, ancient Greek Greek colonization, colony founded approximately 2,500 years ago in the southwestern part of the Crimean Peninsula. Settlers from He ...
, having been harassed by a neighboring Scythian king, requested a treaty with her. As a result of the formation of this treaty, she wrote to the Scythian prince, requesting that he cease harassing the people. When he replied contemptuously, she marched against him with 120 strong and seasoned warriors, and gave each warrior three horses. In one night and one day, she covered a distance of 100 stades (roughly 184.81 kilometers), and arrived at the palace, surprising the inhabitants and killing all the guards. As the prince was taken off guard, and perceived her force to be larger than it really was, she was able to charge and personally kill him, as well as his friends and relatives.
Thus she enabled the people of Chersonesus to regain free possession of their land. She allowed the prince's son to live and rule the kingdom on the condition that he not invade nearby kingdoms. This took place towards the end of the second century, BC.The Role of Women in the Altaic World, edited by Veronika Veit, 2007, p.261