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Eucratides I

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Eucratides I
Great King,Basileus
Portrait of Eucratides wearing aBoeotian styleMacedonian helmet.
King of theBactrian Empire
Reign171–145 BC
PredecessorEuthydemus II
SuccessorEucratides II
SuccessorHeliocles I
Bornc. 205 BC
Died145 BC
Bactria
Issue
DynastyEucratid
FatherHeliocles
MotherLaodice

Eucratides I(Ancient Greek:Εὐκρατίδης,Eukratídēs,reigned 172/171–145 BC), also calledEucratides the Great,[1]andEvukratidain Indian sources,[2]was one of the most importantGreco-Bactriankings.[1][3]He conquered large parts of northern India,[4]and minted a vast and prestigious coinage, suggesting a rule of considerable importance and prosperity. His immediate successors were the last Greek kings to rule inBactria.[5]

Biography[edit]

Origins[edit]

Eucratides was born around 210–205 BC, the son of Heliocles and Laodice as depicted on various finds of his coinage.[6]It is unclear whether he was a Bactrian nobleman who raised a rebellion, or, according to some scholars,[7]a cousin of theSeleucidkingAntiochus IV Epiphaneswho was trying to regain the Bactrian territory. There has been much speculation on Eucratides' background and parentage.[8]His mother, Laodice, is depicted wearing a royal diadem and therefore of royal descent, while his father is bare-headed. Tarn asserted that Laodice was aSeleucidprincess, the daughter ofSeleucus II Callinicus.[7]Narain and other modern authors have challenged this established view.[8][9][10]

Coup d'état[edit]

Whatever his origins, Eucratides came to power by overthrowing theEuthydemid dynastyin Bactria, possibly when its king,Demetriuswas conquering northwesternIndia.The king whom Eucratides dethroned in Bactria was probablyAntimachus I.[11]

Justinexplains that Eucratides acceded to the throne at about the same time asMithridates,whose rule is accurately known to have started in 171 BC, thereby giving an approximate date for the accession of Eucratides:

Almost at the same time that Mithridates ascended the throne among the Parthians, Eucratides began to reign among the Bactrians –Justin,trans. J. S. Watson[12]

Having become master of Bactria after de-throning theEuthydemid dynasty,Eucratides was faced with a Parthian invasion which began whenDemetrius Iwas conquering India. Having takenTapuriaandMargianafrom Demetrius in about 170 BC, the powerfulMithridates Iattempted to conquer Bactria itself but was checked by Eucratides.[13]Having secured his western borders, Eucratides then conquered parts of the India, campaigning as far south as Barigaza (modern dayBharuch), solidifying Greek presence in Northern India with theIndo-Greek Kingdom.[14]According to the single remaining source, Roman historian Justin, Eucratides defeated Demetrius of India, but the identity of this king is uncertain: he could be eitherDemetrius I,orDemetrius II,but more likelyMenander I.

Eukratideion
The "Eukratideion", gold coin of Eucratides I (obverse and reverse)
Coin with flange visible
The largest gold coin of Antiquity was minted by Eucratides I: the 20-statercoin of Eucratides weighs 169.2grams,and has a diameter of 58 millimeters. It was originally found inBukhara,and later acquired byNapoleon III.Cabinet des Médailles,Paris.[15][16]
"Eucratides led many wars with great courage, and, while weakened by them, was put under siege by Demetrius, king of the Indians. He made numerous sorties, and managed to vanquish 60,000 enemies with 300 soldiers, and thus liberated after four months, he put India under his rule" Justin XLI,6[17]

Numismatic evidence suggests that Eucratides I was a contemporary of the Indo-Greek kingsApollodotus I,Apollodotus IIandDiodotus III.In any case, Eucratides' advances into India are proved by his abundant bilingual coinage that are spread all over northern India and Pakistan.

The city ofEucratideia(Εὐκρατίδεια), which is mentioned by ancient Greek geographers as city of great wealth straddling theOxusRiver, was probably named after Eucratides. It might have been a totally new foundation or an existing city which he had renamed after himself.[18][19]The location of the city is uncertain, but it was probablyAi-Khanoumor perhapsDilbarjin.[20]

Death[edit]

Justin ends his account of Eucratides' life by claiming that the warlike king was murdered on his way back from India by his son, who hated Eucratides so much that he mutilated and dragged his dead body after his chariot. This may have been a misinterpretation by Justin, and the regicide could instead have been perpetrated by an Euthydemid prince,Demetrius II,the son and successor of Demetrius I. Justin appears to believe Eucratides was killed by his own son,Heliocles I,but this is unlikely as patricide was uncommon in the Hellenistic age.

"As Eucratides returned from India, he was killed on the way back by his son, who ran his chariot over the blood of the king, and ordered the corpse to be left without a sepulture" Justin XLI,6[21]
Tetradrachm of Eucratides I, obverse showing him wearing a Macedonian Boeotian type helmet with a diadem and holding a spear in his right hand; NMAT RN474-1.

The murder of Eucratides probably brought about a civil war amongst the members of the dynasty. The successors to Eucratides wereEucratides IIandHeliocles I(145–130 BC), who was the last Greek king to reign in Bactria. Once theYuezhitribes overpowered Heliocles, the Greco-Bactrians lost control of the provinces north of theHindu Kush.

Two other members of the dynasty werePlato of Bactriaand probablyDemetrius II,who in that case was not identical with the king Justin claimed was the enemy of Eucratides I.[22]

The rule of the Greco-Bactrians soon crumbled following these numerous wars:

"The Bactrians, involved in various wars, lost not only their rule but also their freedom, as, exhausted by their wars against the Sogdians, the Arachotes, the Dranges, the Arians and the Indians, they were finally crushed, as if drawn of all their blood, by an enemy weaker than them, the Parthians." Justin, XLI,6[21]

However, the rule of theIndo-Greeksover territories south of the Hindu Kush lasted for a further 150 years, ultimately collapsing under the pressure of the Yüeh-chih andScythian(Saka) invasions in around 10 BC, with the last Indo-Greek rulerStrato II.

Name[edit]

Eucratides' name is derived from the Greek name Εὐκράτης (meaning "good power or rule" ) and the patronymic suffix -ῐ́δης (meaning "descendant of" ). His name therefore means "descendant of Eucrates", and may possibly have had a grandfather or another male ancestor named Eucrates.[23]

Modern[edit]

The coinage of Eucratides has been used in the design of some Afghanistan banknotes between 1979-2002, and is now in the emblem of theBank of Afghanistan.

Da Afghanistan Bankwhich is thecentral bankofAfghanistan,in its seal has a Eucratides I-era coin having the Greek text, "ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΜΕΓΑΛΟΥ ΕΥΚΡΑΤΙΔΟΥ" which means “Of the great king Eucratides.”

Sources[edit]

Full account of Justin on Eucratides:

"Almost at the same time that Mithridates ascended the throne among the Parthians, Eucratides began to reign among the Bactrians; both of them being great men. But the fortune of the Parthians, being the more successful, raised them, under this prince, to the highest degree of power; while the Bactrians, harassed with various wars, lost not only their dominions, but their liberty; for having suffered from contentions with the Sogdians, the Drangians, and the Indians, they were at last overcome, as if exhausted, by the weaker Parthians. Eucratides, however, carried on several wars with great spirit, and though much reduced by his losses in them, yet, when he was besieged by Demetrius king of the Indians, with a garrison of only three hundred soldiers, he repulsed, by continual sallies, a force of sixty thousand enemies. Having accordingly escaped, after a five months’ siege, he reduced India under his power. But as he was returning from the country, he was killed on his march by his son, with whom he had shared his throne, and who was so far from concealing the murder, that, as if he had killed an enemy, and not his father, he drove his chariot through his blood, and ordered his body to be cast out unburied."

— Justin, Epitome of the Philippic History of Pompeius Trogus, XLI 6.1-5, IIe CE.[24]

Gallery[edit]

  • Silver tetradrachm of King Eucratides I (171–145 BC). Obv: Bust of Eucratides, helmet decorated with a bull's horn and ear, within bead and reel border. Rev: Dioscuri, each holding palm in left hand, spear in right hand. Greek legend: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΜΕΓΑΛΟΥ ΕΥΚΡΑΤΙΔΟΥ "Of Great King Eucratides". Mint monogram below. Diameter 34 mm, weight 16.96 g, Attic standard.[25]
    Silver tetradrachm of KingEucratides I(171–145 BC).Obv:Bust of Eucratides, helmet decorated with a bull's horn and ear, withinbead and reelborder.Rev:Dioscuri,each holding palm in left hand, spear in right hand. Greek legend: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΜΕΓΑΛΟΥ ΕΥΚΡΑΤΙΔΟΥ "Of Great King Eucratides". Mint monogram below. Diameter 34 mm, weight 16.96 g, Attic standard.[25]
  • Bilingual coin of Eucratides in the Indian standard (Greek on the obverse ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΜΕΓΑΛΟΥ ΕΥΚΡΑΤΙΔΟΥ "Of Great King Eucratides", Pali in the Kharoshthi script on the reverse reads Maharajasa Evukratidasa "Of King Eucratides").
    Bilingual coin of Eucratides in the Indian standard (Greekon the obverse ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΜΕΓΑΛΟΥ ΕΥΚΡΑΤΙΔΟΥ "Of Great King Eucratides",Paliin theKharoshthiscript on the reverse readsMaharajasa Evukratidasa"Of King Eucratides" ).
  • Coin of Eucratides with parents Heliokles and Laodike. Greek legends: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΥΣ ΜΕΓΑΣ ΕΥΚΡΑΤΙΔΗΣ "Great King Eucratides" and ΗΛΙΟΚΛΕΟΥΣ ΚΑΙ ΛΑΟΔΙΚΗΣ "Son of Heliokles and Laodike".
    Coin of Eucratides with parents Heliokles and Laodike. Greek legends: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΥΣ ΜΕΓΑΣ ΕΥΚΡΑΤΙΔΗΣ "Great King Eucratides" and ΗΛΙΟΚΛΕΟΥΣ ΚΑΙ ΛΑΟΔΙΚΗΣ "Son of Heliokles and Laodike".
  • Eucratides I, Scythian imitation, end of 2nd century BC
    Eucratides I,Scythianimitation, end of 2nd century BC

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ab"Eucratides I".Oxford Reference.Retrieved26 April2024.
  2. ^"The COININDIA Coin Galleries: Greek: Eucratides I (Eukratides I)".coinindia.Retrieved12 July2024.
  3. ^"Eucratides | king of Bactria".Encyclopedia Britannica.Retrieved12 August2021.
  4. ^Marcellinus,xxvii. 6.
  5. ^Boyce 1986,pp. 460-580
  6. ^Astin, A. E. (1990).The Cambridge Ancient History.Cambridge University Press. p. 401.ISBN978-0-521-23448-1.
  7. ^abTarn 1938,p. 196-197.
  8. ^abGlenn, Simon."Heliocles and Laodice of Bactria: a Reconsideration".
  9. ^Hollis, Adrian S. (1996)."Laodice Mother of Eucratides of Bactria".Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik.110:161–164.ISSN0084-5388.JSTOR20189683.
  10. ^Narain, A. K. (1957).Indo-Greeks.pp. 53–57.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  11. ^Jakobson; Glenn."New Research on the Bactrian Tax-receipt"(PDF).
  12. ^Justin,Epitome of Pompeius Trogus41.6
  13. ^"Mithradates I (c. 171 - 138 B.C.)".parthia.Retrieved12 August2021.
  14. ^"Indo-Greek kingdom | Asian history".Encyclopedia Britannica.Retrieved12 August2021.
  15. ^"Eucratides I".Oxford Reference.
  16. ^Hollis, Adrian S. (1996)."Laodice Mother of Eucratides of Bactria".Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik.110:161–164.ISSN0084-5388.JSTOR20189683.
  17. ^Justin on Demetrius: "Multa tamen Eucratides bella magna uirtute gessit, quibus adtritus cum obsidionem Demetrii, regis Indorum, pateretur, cum CCC militibus LX milia hostium adsiduis eruptionibus uicit. Quinto itaque mense liberatus Indiam in potestatem redegit."Justin XLI,6
  18. ^Ptolemy,vi, 1, 7;Straboxi. 11
  19. ^William W. Tarn:The Greeks in Bactria and India.2. Aufl., Cambridge 1951, p. 207-208
  20. ^"Encyclopaedia Iranica".
  21. ^abJustin XLI,6
  22. ^"Demetrios II of Bactria and Hoards fromAi Khanoum"by L.M. Wilson (Oriental Numismatic Society newsletter nr 180)
  23. ^"User-submitted name Eukratides - Behind the Name".behindthename.Retrieved19 June2024.
  24. ^Translation: John Selby Watson 1853
  25. ^Monnaie, Eucratide I. (roi de Bactriane) Autorité émettrice de.[Monnaie: 20 Statères, Or, Incertain, Bactriane, Eucratide I].

References[edit]

  • The Shape of Ancient Thought. Comparative studies in Greek and Indian Philosophiesby Thomas McEvilley (Allworth Press and the School of Visual Arts, 2002)ISBN1-58115-203-5
  • Buddhism in Central Asiaby B. N. Puri (Motilal Banarsidass Pub, 1 January 2000)ISBN81-208-0372-8
  • Tarn, W.W.(1938).The Greeks in Bactria and India.Cambridge University Press.ISBN978-1108009416.

External links[edit]

Wikisourcehas the text of the1911Encyclopædia Britannicaarticle "Eucratides".
Preceded by:
Demetrius
and his sub-kings:

(inBactria)
Antimachus I
Demetrius II

(In theParopamisade,Arachosia,Gandhara)
Apollodotus I
Antimachus II 		Greco-Bactrian Ruler
(Bactria,Paropamisade,Arachosia,Gandhara)
171–145 BC 		Succeeded by:
(InBactria)
Eucratides II
Plato
Heliocles I

(InParopamisade,Arachosia,Gandhara)
Menander I

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