Mithridatic Wars

Pompey then passed over Mount Taurus and made [*](B.C. 64) war against Antiochus, the king of Commagene, until the latter entered into friendly relations with him. He also fought against Darius the Mede, and put him to flight, either because he had helped Antiochus, or Tigranes before him. He made war against the Arabs of Nabathæi, whose king was Aretas, and against the Jews (whose king, Aristobulus, had revolted), until he had captured their holiest city, Jerusalem. He advanced against, and brought under Roman rule without fighting, those parts of Cilicia that were not yet subject to it, and the remainder of Syria which lies along the Euphrates, and the countries called Cœle-Syria, Phœnicia, and Palestine, also Idumea and Ituræa, and the other parts of Syria by whatever name called; not that he had any complaint against Antiochus, the son of Antiochus Pius, who was present and asked for his paternal kingdom, but because he thought that since he (Pompey) had dispossessed Tigranes, the conqueror of Antiochus, it belonged to the Romans by the law of war. While he was settling these affairs ambassadors came to him from Phraates and Tigranes, who had gone to war with each other. Those of ligranes asked the aid of Pompey as an ally, while those of the Parthian sought to secure for him the friendship of [*](Y.R. 691) the Roman people. As Pompey did not think it best to [*](B.C. 63) fight the Parthians without a decree of the Senate, he sent mediators to compose their differences. [*](Y.R. 689)

While Pompey was about this business Mithridates [*](B.C. 65) had completed his circuit of the Euxine and occupied Panticapæum, a European market-town at the outlet of that sea. [*](On the contrary, Panticapæum was at the outlet of the Palus Mæotis (sea of Azov) on the site of the modern city of Kertsch.) There at the Bosporus he put to death Xiphares, one of his sons, on account of the following fault of his mother. Mithridates had a castle where, in a secret underground treasury, a great deal of money lay concealed in numerous iron-bound brazen vessels. Stratonice, one of the king's concubines or wives, had been put in charge of this castle, and while he was still making his journey around the Euxine she delivered it up to Pompey and revealed to him the secret treasures, on the sole condition that he should spare her son, Xiphares, if he should capture him. Pompey took the money and promised her that he would spare Xiphares, and allowed her to take away her own things. When Mithridates learned these facts he killed Xiphares at the straits, while his mother was looking on from the opposite shore, and cast his body out unburied, thus wreaking his spite on the son in order to grieve the mother who had offended him. And now he sent ambassadors to Pompey, who was still in Syria and who did not know that the king was at that place. They promised that the king would pay tribute to the Romans if they would let him have his paternal kingdom. When Pompey required that Mithridates should come himself and make his petition as Tigranes had done, he said that as long as he was Mithridates he would never agree to that, but that he would send some of his sons and his friends to do so. Even while he was saying these things he was levying an army of freemen and slaves promiscuously, manufacturing arms, projectiles, and machines, helping himself to timber, and killing plough-oxen for the sake of their sinews. He levied tribute on all, even those of the slenderest means. His ministers made these exactions with harshness to many, without his knowledge, for he had fallen sick with ulcers on his face and allowed himself to be seen only by three eunuchs, who cured him. [*](Y.R. 690)

When he had recovered from his illness and his army [*](B.C. 64) was collected (it consisted of sixty picked cohorts of 6000 men each and a great multitude of other troops, besides ships and strongholds that had been captured by his generals while he was sick) he sent a part of it across the strait to Phanagoria, another trading-place at the mouth of the sea, in order to possess himself of the passage on either side while Pompey was still in Syria. Castor of Phanagoria, who had once been maltreated by Trypho, the king's eunuch, fell upon the latter as he was entering the town, killed him, and summoned the citizens to revolt. Although the citadel was already held by Artaphernes and other sons of Mithridates, the inhabitants piled wood around it and set it on fire, in consequence of which Artaphernes, Darius, Xerxes, and Oxathres, sons, and Eupatra, a daughter, of Mithridates, in fear of the fire, surrendered themselves and were led into captivity. Of these Artaphernes alone was about forty years of age; the others were handsome children. Cleopatra, another daughter, resisted. Her father, in admiration of her courageous spirit, sent a number of row-boats and rescued her. All the neighboring castles that had been lately occupied by Mithridates now revolted from him in emulation of the Phanagoreans, namely, Chersonesus, Theodosia, Nymphæum, and others around the Euxine which were well situated for purposes of war. Mithridates, observing these frequent defections, and having suspicions of the army itself, lest it should fail him because the service was compulsory and the taxes very heavy, and because soldiers always lack confidence in unlucky commanders, sent some of his daughters in charge of eunuchs to be married to the Scythian princes, asking them at the same time to send him reënforcements as quickly as possible. Five hundred soldiers accompanied them from his own army. Soon after they left the presence of Mithridates they killed the eunuchs who were leading them (for they always hated these persons, who were all-powerful with Mithridates) and conducted the young women to Pompey.

Although bereft of so many children and castles and of his whole kingdom, and in no way fit for war, and although he could not expect any aid from the Scythians, still no inferior position, none corresponding to his present misfortunes, even then found a place in his mind. He proposed to turn his course to the Gauls, whose friendship he had cultivated a long time for this purpose, and with them to invade Italy, hoping that many of the Italians themselves would join him on account of their hatred of the Romans; for he had heard that such had been Hannibal's policy after the Romans had waged war against him in Spain, and that he had become in this way an object of the greatest terror to them. He knew that almost all of Italy had lately revolted from the Romans by reason of their hatred and had waged war against them for a very long time, and had sustained Spartacus, the gladiator, against them, although he was a man of no repute. Filled with these ideas he was for hastening to the Gauls, but his soldiers, though the very bold enterprise might be attractive, were deterred chiefly by its magnitude, and by the long distance of the expedition in foreign territory, against men whom they could not overcome even in their own country. They thought also that Mithridates, in utter despair, wanted to end his life in a valiant and kingly way rather than in idleness. So they tolerated him and remained silent, for there was nothing mean or contemptible about him even in his misfortunes. [*](Y.R. 691)