Axidares or Ashkhadar also known as Exedares or Exedates (flourished second half of the 1st century & first half of the 2nd century, died 113) was a Parthian prince who served as a Roman client king of

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

. Axidares was one of the three sons born to King

Pacorus II of Parthia Pacorus is a male given name of Middle Iranian origin notably born by Parthia Parthia ( ''Parθava''; ''Parθaw''; ''Pahlaw'') is a historical region located in northeastern Greater Iran. It was conquered and subjugated by the empire of the ...

by a mother whose name is unknown. Through his father, he was a member of the House of Parthia thus a relation of the

Arsacid dynasty of Armenia The Arsacid dynasty, called the Arshakuni () in Armenian, ruled the Kingdom of Armenia (with some interruptions) from 12 to 428 AD. The dynasty was a branch of the Arsacid dynasty of Parthia. Arsacid kings reigned intermittently throughout the ...

. Little is known of his life prior to becoming Armenian king. Axidares succeeded his relative Sanatruces (

Sanatruk Sanatruk ( Latinized as ''Sanatruces'') was a member of the Arsacid dynasty of Armenia who succeeded Tiridates I of Armenia as King of Armenia at the end of the 1st century. He was also King of Osroene (reigned 91–109), a historic kingdom lo ...

) as Armenian king when he died in 110. He was put on the Armenian throne by his paternal uncle, King

Osroes I of Parthia Osroes I (also spelled Chosroes I or Khosrow I; ''Husrōw'') was a Parthian contender, who ruled the western portion of the Parthian Empire from 109 to 129, with a one-year interruption. For most of his reign he contended with the rival king Vo ...

without Roman consultation. Axidares was king of Armenia from 110 until 113. Although the Romans supported Axidares' kingship over Armenia, Trajan viewed the action by his uncle as an invitation to war with Parthia. Osroes I considered Axidares as incapable of governing. To avoid to going to war with the Roman emperor

Trajan Trajan ( ; born Marcus Ulpius Traianus, 18 September 53) was a Roman emperor from AD 98 to 117, remembered as the second of the Five Good Emperors of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. He was a philanthropic ruler and a successful soldier ...

and keep peace with him, Osroes I deposed Axidares from his Armenian throne and replaced him with his other brother Parthamasiris as king.Yarshater, ''The Cambridge History of Iran, Volume 3'', p.87

References

Sources

* D.T. Potts, Araby the Blest: Studies in Arabian Archaeology, Museum Tusculanum Press, 1988 * Yarshater, The Cambridge History of Iran, Volume 3, Cambridge University Press, 1993 * M. Bunson, A Dictionary of the Roman Empire, Oxford University Press, 1995 * T. Mommsen, W. Purdie Dickson & F. Haverfield, The provinces of the Roman Empire: from Caesar to Domitian, Gorgias Press LLC, 2004 * K. Farrokh, Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War, Osprey Publishing, 2007 {{Arsacid dynasty of Armenia 2nd-century kings of Armenia Arsacid kings of Armenia Roman client kings of Armenia 2nd-century Iranian people