Artaxias II,Temporini, ''Politische Geschichte (Provinzen Und Randv Lker: Griechischer Balkanraum; Kleinasien): Griechischer Balkanraum; Kleinasien)'', p.979 also known as Artaxes IIDaryaee, ''The Oxford Handbook of Iranian History'', p.173 and ArtashesSicker, ''The Pre-Islamic Middle East'', p.156 (60s BC – 20 BCBunson, ''Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire'', p.48) was a prince of the Kingdom of Armenia, member of the

Artaxiad dynasty The Artaxiad dynasty (also Artashesian) ruled the Kingdom of Armenia from 189 BC until their overthrow by the Romans in 12 AD. It was founded by Artaxias I, who claimed kinship with the previous ruling dynasty of Armenia, the Orontids. Their ...

and King of Armenia from 34/30 BC until 20 BC.Coinage and information on Artaxias II
/ref>

Family background and early life

Artaxias II was the eldest son of

Artavasdes II of Armenia Artavasdes II ( ), also known as Artavazd II, was king of Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity), Armenia from 55 BC to 34 BC. A member of the Artaxiad dynasty, he was the son and successor of Tigranes the Great (), who ascended the throne of a still power ...

by a mother whose name is unknown and was the namesake of his paternal ancestor, a previous ruling Armenian King

Artaxias I Artaxias I (from ) was the founder of the Artaxiad dynasty of Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity), Armenia, ruling from 189 BC to 160 BC. Artaxias was a member of a branch of the Orontid dynasty, the earlier ruling dynasty of Armenia. He expanded his ...

. Artaxias II had two siblings: a younger brother called Tigranes III and a sister, name unknown, who possibly married King Archelaus of Cappadocia. He was born and raised in Armenia.

Kingship

Artaxias II ascended to the Armenian throne in 30 BC as he regained the throne lost by his father. The Roman 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 ...

, had captured Artavasdes II with his family, who were then taken as political prisoners to

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

where Artavasdes II was later executed on the orders of

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...

VII of Egypt. Artaxias II managed to escape and fled to King Phraates IV of Parthia. Phraates IV invaded Armenia and placed Artaxias II on the throne. As a result, Artaxias II was pro-

Parthia Parthia ( ''Parθava''; ''Parθaw''; ''Pahlaw'') is a historical region located in northeastern Greater Iran. It was conquered and subjugated by the empire of the Medes during the 7th century BC, was incorporated into the subsequent Achaemeni ...

n and anti- Roman. With the support of Phraates IV, Artaxias II was successful in a military campaign against Artavasdes I of Media Atropatene, a former enemy of Artavasdes II. Artaxias II was said to be spiteful and vengeful. He massacred the remaining Roman garrison and slaughtered all the Roman traders in Armenia. A possible consequence of this action, when Artaxias II sent emissaries in Rome to try to secure the release of his family then in Roman captivity and the 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 ...

refused Artaxias II's request. Artaxias II proved to be an unpopular leader with his people. As the Armenians lost faith in their ruling monarch, they sent messengers to Augustus requesting him to remove Artaxias II from his throne and to install his brother, Tigranes III as his successor. By 20 BC, Tigranes III had lived in Rome for 10 years.Naroll, ''Military Deterrence in History: A Pilot Cross-Historical Survey'', p.161 Augustus agreed to the request from the Armenians. Augustus sent his step-son

Tiberius Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus ( ; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was Roman emperor from AD 14 until 37. He succeeded his stepfather Augustus, the first Roman emperor. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC to Roman politician Tiberius Cl ...

, with Tigranes III and a large army to depose Artaxias II. Before Tiberius and Tigranes III arrived in Armenia, a cabal within the palace was successful in murdering Artaxias II. The Romans installed Tigranes III as the new king of Armenia unopposed.

References

Sources

* R. Naroll, V.L. Bullough & F. Naroll, Military Deterrence in History: A Pilot Cross-Historical Survey, SUNY Press, 1974 * H. Temporini & W. Haase, Politische Geschichte (Provinzen Und Randv Lker: Griechischer Balkanraum; Kleinasien): Griechischer Balkanraum; Kleinasien), Walter de Gruyter, 1980 * M. Sicker, The Pre-Islamic Middle East (Google eBook), Greenwood Publishing Group, 2000 * M. Bunsen, Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire, Infobase Printing, 2009 * T. Daryaee, The Oxford Handbook of Iranian History, Oxford University Press, 2012 {{authority control 1st-century BC kings of Armenia 20 BC deaths Year of birth unknown Artaxiad dynasty