Zeuxis (; ; ) was a general and official in the service of the

Seleucid The Seleucid Empire ( ) was a Greek state in West Asia during the Hellenistic period. It was founded in 312 BC by the Macedonian general Seleucus I Nicator, following the division of the Macedonian Empire founded by Alexander the Great, a ...

king

Antiochus III the Great Antiochus III the Great (; , ; 3 July 187 BC) was the sixth ruler of the Seleucid Empire, reigning from 223 to 187 BC. He ruled over the region of Syria and large parts of the rest of West Asia towards the end of the 3rd century BC. Rising to th ...

at the end of the 3rd century BC. He led the royal forces in Mesopotamia against the rebel Molon, served as the governor of cis-Tauric Asia Minor from 213 BC onwards, and was a general at the

Battle of Magnesia The Battle of Magnesia took place in either December 190 or January 189 BC. It was fought as part of the Roman–Seleucid War, pitting forces of the Roman Republic led by the Roman consul, consul Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiaticus and the allied ...

. After that defeat he went to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

to negotiate a peace.

Career

Zeuxis, son of Kynagos, was engaged in 221 BC in the war with Molon,

satrap A satrap () was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median kingdom, Median and Achaemenid Empire, Persian (Achaemenid) Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic period, Hellenistic empi ...

Media Media may refer to: Communication * Means of communication, tools and channels used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Interactive media, media that is inter ...

, whom he prevented from crossing the

Tigris The Tigris ( ; see #Etymology, below) is the eastern of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, the other being the Euphrates. The river flows south from the mountains of the Armenian Highlands through the Syrian Desert, Syrian and Arabia ...

. He was subsequently left in charge of the camp while his commander Xenoetas engaged with Molon. Following Xenoetas's catastrophic defeat, Zeuxis retreated on the approach of Molon, who was now able to cross the Tigris unopposed. When Antiochus himself marched against Molon, Zeuxis advised him to cross the Tigris in opposition to Hermeias's proposal that the army march down the near side of the river - according to

Polybius Polybius (; , ; ) was a Greek historian of the middle Hellenistic period. He is noted for his work , a universal history documenting the rise of Rome in the Mediterranean in the third and second centuries BC. It covered the period of 264–146 ...

, despite his fear of Hermeias's power. He was in command of the left wing in the battle that ensued. He also took a prominent part in the siege of

Seleucia on the Tigris Seleucia (; ), also known as or or Seleucia ad Tigrim, was a major Mesopotamian city, located on the west bank of the Tigris River within the present-day Baghdad Governorate in Iraq. It was founded around 305 BC by Seleucus I Nicator as the f ...

. It is this same Zeuxis whom we find satrap of

Lydia Lydia (; ) was an Iron Age Monarchy, kingdom situated in western Anatolia, in modern-day Turkey. Later, it became an important province of the Achaemenid Empire and then the Roman Empire. Its capital was Sardis. At some point before 800 BC, ...

under Antiochus the Great. In the winter of 201-200 BC,

Philip V of Macedon Philip V (; 238–179 BC) was king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon from 221 to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by the Social War (220–217 BC), Social War in Greece (220-217 BC) ...

, when at war with

Attalus Attalus or Attalos may refer to: People *Several members of the Attalid dynasty of Pergamon **Attalus I, ruled 241 BC–197 BC **Attalus II Philadelphus, ruled 160 BC–138 BC **Attalus III, ruled 138 BC–133 BC *Attalus, father of Ph ...

, applied to Zeuxis for wheat provisions, which he supplied.. He is well attested by inscriptions in his capacity as vice-roy of Asia Minor.J. and L. Robert, Fouilles d'Amyzon en Carie I (Paris, 1983); P. Gauthier, Nouvelles Inscriptions de Sardes II (Paris and Geneva, 1989) In the decisive

with the Romans in 190 BC, Zeuxis was one of the commanders of the center, and after the defeat of Antiochus III, he was one of the ambassadors sent to Scipio Asiaticus and

Scipio Africanus Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus (, , ; 236/235–) was a Roman general and statesman who was one of the main architects of Rome's victory against Ancient Carthage, Carthage in the Second Punic War. Often regarded as one of the greatest milit ...

to sue for peace, on which mission he proceeded to

. However, by then, the Seleucid position in

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

had been so undermined by the campaign of Gnaeus Vulso that Zeuxis and his fellow ambassador, Antipatros, had little choice but to accept the border on the Taurus.

References

Appian Appian of Alexandria (; ; ; ) was a Greek historian with Roman citizenship who prospered during the reigns of the Roman Emperors Trajan, Hadrian, and Antoninus Pius. He was born c. 95 in Alexandria. After holding the senior offices in the pr ...

,
The foreign wars
', Horace White (translator),

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, (1899) *

;
Histories
', Evelyn S. Shuckburgh (translator);

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, (1889) * Smith, William (editor); ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' is a biographical dictionary of classical antiquity, edited by William Smith (lexicographer), William Smith and originally published in London by John Taylor (English publisher), Tayl ...

'', ,

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, (1867)

Notes

---- {{DEFAULTSORT:Zeuxis Seleucid generals 3rd-century BC births 2nd-century BC deaths