Pactya or Paktye () was an

ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

city located in

ancient Thrace The Thracians (; ; ) were an Indo-European languages, Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Southeast Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied the area that today is shared betwee ...

, on the

Thracian Chersonesus The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning 'b ...

. It is cited in the ''

Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax The ''Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax'' is an ancient Greek periplus (περίπλους ''períplous'', 'circumnavigation') describing the sea route around the Mediterranean and Black Sea. It probably dates from the mid-4th century BC, specifically t ...

'', in its recitation of the towns of the Thracian Chersonesus, along with Aegospotami, Cressa, Crithote and then Pactya, situated 36 stadia from

Cardia The stomach is a muscular, hollow organ in the upper gastrointestinal tract of humans and many other animals, including several invertebrates. The Ancient Greek name for the stomach is ''gaster'' which is used as ''gastric'' in medical terms re ...

. It is said that

Miltiades Miltiades (; ; c. 550 – 489 BC), also known as Miltiades the Younger, was a Greek Athenian statesman known mostly for his role in the Battle of Marathon, as well as for his downfall afterwards. He was the son of Cimon Coalemos, a renowned ...

founded it.

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-si ...

places it on the

Propontis The Sea of Marmara, also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, is a small inland sea entirely within the borders of Turkey. It links the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea via the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, separating Turkey's E ...

between Crithote and

Macron Teichos The Anastasian Wall (Greek: , ; ) or the Long Walls of Thrace (Greek: , ; Turkish: ''Uzun Duvar'') or simply Long Wall / Macron Teichos () is an ancient stone and turf fortification located west of Istanbul, Turkey, built by the Eastern Roman Em ...

. According to

Herodotus Herodotus (; BC) was a Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus (now Bodrum, Turkey), under Persian control in the 5th century BC, and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria, Italy. He wrote the '' Histori ...

Miltiades the Elder Miltiades the Elder (ca. 590 – 525 BC) was an Athenian politician from the Philaid family. He is most famous for travelling to the Thracian Chersonese (now Gallipoli) where, at the behest of the local peoples, he ruled as a tyrant. During his r ...

ordered a wall built between Cardia, which was on the coast of

Gulf of Melas Gulf of Saros or Saros Bay () is a gulf north of the Dardanelles, Turkey. Ancient Greeks called it the Gulf of Melas (). The bay is long and wide. Far from industrialized areas and thanks to underwater currents, it is a popular summer recre ...

and Pactya, which was on the Propontis side, to prevent invasion of the Chersonesus by the Apsinthii.

Alcibiades Alcibiades (; 450–404 BC) was an Athenian statesman and general. The last of the Alcmaeonidae, he played a major role in the second half of the Peloponnesian War as a strategic advisor, military commander, and politician, but subsequently ...

retired here the

Athenians Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

had for the second time deprived him of the command. It was a member of the

Delian League The Delian League was a confederacy of Polis, Greek city-states, numbering between 150 and 330, founded in 478 BC under the leadership (hegemony) of Classical Athens, Athens, whose purpose was to continue fighting the Achaemenid Empire, Persian ...

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/24 79), known in English as Pliny the Elder ( ), was a Roman Empire, Roman author, Natural history, naturalist, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the Roman emperor, emperor Vesp ...

points out that both Cardia and Pactya later joined to form

Lysimachia ''Lysimachia'' ( ) is a genus consisting of 182 accepted species of flowering plants traditionally classified in the family Primulaceae. Based on a molecular phylogenetic study it was transferred to the family Myrsinaceae, before this family w ...

. Its site is located south of

Bolayır Bolayır is a village in the Gelibolu District of Çanakkale Province, situated on the Gallipoli Peninsula in the European part of Turkey. Its population is 1,053 (2021). Between 1958 and the 2013 Turkish local government reorganisation, 2013 reor ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

References

Populated places in ancient Thrace Former populated places in Turkey Greek colonies in the Thracian Chersonese Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey History of Çanakkale Province Members of the Delian League {{Çanakkale-geo-stub

See also

References