Contents: 200 B.C.–176 B.C.175 B.C.–151 B.C. 150 B.C.–126 B.C. 125 B.C.–101 B.C. |
The Battle of Panium gives the Seleucid forces of Syria's Antiochus III a decisive victory over Egypt's young Ptolemy V Epiphanes in the Fifth Syrian War.
A second Macedonian War begins between Philip V of Macedonia and Rome, whose ambassador to Greece, Syria, and Egypt delivers an ultimatum to Philip, warning him not to make war on any Greek state. Philip is not dissuaded (see Cynoscephalae, 197 B.C.).
200 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: Stichus by Titus Maccius Plautus: "An unwilling woman given to a man in marriage is not his wife but an enemy."
197 B.C.: political events
The Battle of Cynoscephalae in southeastern Thessaly gives a Roman army under Titus Quinctius Flamininus, 30, a great victory over Macedonia's Philip V in the Second Macedonian War. Each side has about 26,000 men, but the flexible Roman legion demonstrates its superiority over the rigid Macedonian phalanx, which proves to be vulnerable if it does not keep ranks, and about half the Macedonians are killed or wounded while Roman casualties are light. The Roman Senate adopts the peace terms proposed by Flamininus, which call for Philip to retain his throne but give up all dependencies outside Macedonia. The Senate has no wish to assume administrative responsibilities that might extend the range of the republic's ruling circle (see 196 B.C.).
The Spartan king Nabis acquires Argos from Macedonia's Philip V; Titus Quinctius Flaminius allows him to keep it but will soon proclaim the autonomy of the Greek states, charge Nabis with tyranny, take Gythium in Laconia, and force Nabis to give up Argos (see 194 B.C.).
Pergamum's Attalus I Soter dies after a 44-year reign and is succeeded by his eldest son, who will rule the northwest Anatolian kingdom as Eumenes II until his death in 159 B.C.
Egypt's Ptolemy V Epiphanes tries to suppress a revolt in the Nile Delta, punishing with great cruelty any rebel leader who surrenders (but see 196 B.C.).
196 B.C.: political events
The Second Macedonian War ends after 4 years of hostilities (see 197 B.C.). The Romans force Philip V to surrender Greece, reduce his army to 5,000 and his navy to five ships, promise not to declare war without Rome's permission, and pay Rome 1,000 talents in 10 years. Rome declares Greece to be independent (see Pydna, 168 B.C.).
The Roman general Titus Quinctius Flamininus announces at the Isthmian Games at Corinth that all Greeks in Europe and Asia are to be freed and will henceforth be governed by their own laws.
Egypt's Ptolemy V Epiphanes issues a decree pardoning rebels who have surrendered, releasing prisoners, remitting debts and taxes, and increasing benefactions to temples (see 197 B.C.). He has broadened the authority of the governor of Thebes to include all of upper Egypt, and his decree is incribed in Greek, hieroglyphs, and demotic characters on a stone that will be discovered in 1799 A.D. (see Decree of Canopus, 238 B.C.).
196 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: The Haunted House (Mostellaria) by Titus Maccius Plautus: "Things which you don't hope happen more frequently than things which you do hope" (I, iii). Plautus's play The Persian (Persa) will appear next year.
195 B.C.: political events
China's first Han dynasty emperor Gaozu (Kao-tsu) dies at age 61 (approximate) after an 11-year reign in which he has used a combination of diplomacy and force to consolidate his empire, developing an imperial system whose essential characteristics will survive until 1911 A.D., but although Gaozu (formerly Liu Bang) has eased the tax burden on peasants, worked to revive the rural economy, and recognized the need for educated men in his court, he has shown his disdain for education by publicly urinating into the formal hat of a court scholar. Gaozu's young son Ying succeeds to power and will reign until 188 B.C. as Huidi (Hui-di) under the regency of his mother, Lü Zhi (Kao-hou), whose driving ambition was largely responsible for her late husband's gaining the throne and who will remain the power behind the scenes until her death in 180 B.C., having Gaozu's relatives murdered and promoting her own relatives to major positions in preference to members of the imperial family.
194 B.C.: political events
Roman forces withdraw entirely from Greece and leave Gythium. Sparta's tyrant Nabis tries to recover Gythium in Laconia, but his forces are badly defeated by Achaean League troops under the command of their general Philopoemen.
194 B.C.: science
North African mathematician-astronomer-geographer Eratosthenes of Cyrene dies at Alexandria at age 82 (approximate), having been head librarian from 245 B.C. to 204 B.C. He has devised a prime-number sieve (the sieve of Eratosthenes), computed the distance to the sun and moon, measured the tilt of the Earth's axis, made the first accurate measurement of the Earth's circumference, compiled a star dictionary, sketched out the route of the Nile to Khartoum and suggested that the river arose from two lakes, worked out a calendar that includes leap years, and tried to give a chronology of literary and political events from the time of the siege of Troy.
194 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: The Pot of Gold (Aulularia) and The Rope (Rudens) by Titus Maccius Plautus, whose play The Weevil (Curculio) will appear next year.
193 B.C.: political events
The Roman general Titus Quinctius Flamininus tries to rally Greeks against the Seleucid king Antiochus III, who has gained favor with the Aetolians.
192 B.C.: political events
Aetolians murder Sparta's king Nabis and occupy his realm in a scheme to precipitate hostilities between Rome and Syria. Nabis has reigned since 207 and will be the last ruler of an independent Sparta. Syria's Antiochus III invades Greece in the fall at the invitation of the Aetolians, but he has only 10,500 men, and although the Achaean League makes him its commander in chief, he finds little support in central Greece. The Roman general Titus Qinctius Flamininus blocks the Achaean League's general Philopoemen from taking Sparta and persuades the league to make war on both the Syrians and Aetolians.
191 B.C.: political events
Roman forces at Thermopylae rout the Syrian forces of Antiochus III, repeating the maneuver executed by Xerxes in 480 B.C. The consul Marcus Porcius Cato distinguishes himself in the battle and makes efforts to reverse the trend toward Greek refinement and luxury among the Romans, advocating instead a return to the simpler, stricter life of earlier times. Antiochus flees with his surviving troops to Chalcis on the Euboean coast and thence to Ephesus (see 190 B.C.). Titus Quinctius Flamininus helps to restore order and peace in Greece.
Cisalpine Gaul becomes a Roman province following the end of resistance by some of the Boii, a Celtic tribe, but another branch of the tribe joins the Helvetii and will continue until 58 B.C. to hold out against Roman domination. The new province embraces an area that encompasses what later will be France, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
Parthia's Arsaces II dies after a 20-year reign in which he has lost much of his realm to Bactria's Euthydemus. He is succeeded by his son who will reign until 176 as Priapatios, ruling under Persia's Seleucid king Antiochus III until Parthia regains her independence in 189 B.C.
191 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: Pseudolus by Titus Maccius Plautus: "If you utter insults you will also hear them" (IV); Epidicus by Plautus.
190 B.C.: political events
The Battle of Magnesia near Smyrna gives the Romans another victory over Antiochus III's Syrian forces (see 191 B.C.). Lucian Cornelius Scipio (soon to be called Scipio Asiaticus) and his brother Scipio Africanus have crossed the Hellespont with 30,000 men to pursue Antiochus, who tries to negotiate on the basis of Rome's previous demands but now finds that he must give up the region west of the Taurus Mountains. Refusing to comply, Antiochus assembles a heterogeneous army of 70,000 men near Mt. Sipylus but suffers a decisive defeat (see Treaty of Apamea, 188 B.C.).
The two Armenian satraps of Syria's Seleucid king Antiochus III seize the opportunity of Antiochus's defeat and revolt, making themselves independent; Artaxias builds his capital on the Araxes River (later the Ares, or Araks) near Lake Sevan, Zariadres build his to the southwest in Sophene. They and their descendants will reign separately in Greater Armenia (Armenia Major) and Sophene (Armenia Minor), respectively, until 94 B.C.
The Bactrian king Euthydemus dies and is succeeded by his son Demetrius, who will conquer much of northern India and reign until 167 (years approximate; see 184 B.C.).
190 B.C.: science
The Greek mathematician Apollonius of Perga dies at Alexandria at age 72 (year and age approximate), having introduced in his book Conics the geometric terms ellipse, hyperbola, and parabola. Appolonius has also pioneered mathematical astronomy, using geometric models to explain planetary theory, and his book On the Burning Mirror discusses the properties of a parabolic mirror, showing that parallel rays of light are not brought to a focus by a spherical mirror (as had been thought).
189 B.C.: political events
Roman forces defeat Persia's Seleucid king Antiochus III, who is forced to give up Parthia. Parthia's king Priapatios begins a slow expansion of his realm.
189 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: The Two Bacchaides by Titus Maccius Plautus: "He whom the gods love dies young, while he is in health, has his senses, and his judgment sound" (IV, vii).
188 B.C.: political events
The Treaty of Apamea ends hostilities between Syria and Rome (see 190 B.C.), but the Romans and their allies force the Seleucid king Antiochus III to surrender all of his European and Asiatic possessions as far as the Taurus Mountains, pay 15,000 talents over a period of 12 years, and surrender Hannibal (who will escape).
China's boy emperor Huidi (Hui-ti) dies after a 7-year reign and is succeeded by a younger brother, who is placed on the throne by his mother, Lü Zhi (Kao-hou), but will be removed by her in 180 B.C. when he tries to assert his independence.
188 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: The Captives (Captivi) by Titus Maccius Plautus: "It is the nature of the poor to hate and envy men of property" (III); "All men love themselves" (III).
187 B.C.: political events
Syria's Seleucid king Antiochus III is murdered in a temple erected to Baal near Susa at age 55 (approximate) while exacting tribute from the Persians. In his 36-year reign he has built an empire in the East but failed to stem the rise of Rome in Europe and the Near East. Antiochus is succeeded by his 30-year-old son, who will reign until his assassination in 175 B.C. as Seleucus IV Philopator.
187 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: Three-Penny Day (Trinummus) by Titus Maccius Plautus: "Keep what you have; the known evil is best" (I, iii); "What you lend is lost; when you ask for it back, you may find a friend made an enemy by your kindness" (IV, iii).
186 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: Amphitryon (Amphitruo) by Titus Maccius Plautus: "If anything is spoken in jest, it is not fair to turn it to earnest" (III); Truculentus by Plautus.
185 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: Casina by Titus Maccius Plautus, who will die next year at age 70.
185 B.C.: everyday life
Troops returning from the war with Syria's Antiochus III introduce eastern indulgence to Rome.
184 B.C.: political events
The consul Marcus Porcius Cato, now 50, is elected censor of Rome, a position in which he will repair watercourses, pave reservoirs, cleanse drains, reduce the contract prices paid by the state, and raise the rents paid by tax-farmers, opposing innovations and earning himself the epithet Cato the Censor.
Northern India's Mauryan Empire collapses (year approximate) but by some accounts will be virtually reestablished by the Bactrian king Demetrius (see 190 B.C.).
183 B.C.: political events
Rome sends its general Titus Quinctius Flaminius to the court of Bithynia's Prusia I to demand the surrender of the Carthaginian general, but Hannibal poisons himself before Prusia can betray him to the Romans.
Pisa and Parma become Roman colonies.
182 B.C.: political events
Messene rebels from the Achaean League, have been dominated since 192 B.C. by the general Philopoemen. He is taken prisoner in a skirmish, given poison, and dies at age 70 (approximate).
180 B.C.: political events
Egypt's Macedonian king Ptolemy V Epiphanes dies suddenly in May at age 29 (approximate), having sent a capable eunuch to recruit Greek mercenaries to recover Coele Syria and the other foreign territories that have been lost since he came to power in 205 B.C. He is succeeded by two sons and a daughter, whose mother, Cleopatra, is a sister of Syria's Seleucid king Seleucus IV Philopator and will share the throne with her elder son until her death in 176 B.C. The boy will reign until 145 B.C. as Ptolemy VI Philometor.
China's imperial regent Lü Zhi (Kao-hou) dies after 7 years in which she imprisoned her son, who succeeded the late Huidi (Hui-tu) in 188 B.C., when he tried to assert independence and replaced him with another infant son. A coalition of high-ranking ministers join with disgruntled princes following her death, massacre her clan, and elevate to the imperial throne the eldest surviving son of the late Han dynasty emperor Gao Zu (Kao-tsu) by another wife. Heng will assume power next year and reign until 157 B.C. as the emperor Wendi (Wen-ti).
179 B.C.: political events
Macedonia's Philip V dies at Amphipolis at age 59 (approximate) while conspiring with the Bastarnae to move against the Dardanians. Having achieved only temporary success in his 42-year reign, he is succeeded by his 34-year-old son Perseus, who will reign until 168 B.C.
179 B.C.: transportation
Rome's Pons Aemilius is completed across the Tiber; it is the world's first stone bridge.
176 B.C.: political events
Parthia's king Priapatios dies after a 15-year reign and is succeeded by his son, who assumes the throne as Phraates I and will continue the expansion begun by his father until his death in 171 B.C.
The death of Egypt's co-ruler Cleopatra I leaves her young son Ptolemy VI Philometer easy prey for two ambitious courtiers, who will encourage him to raise an army and invade Coele Syria (see 170 B.C.).
Syria's seventh Seleucid king Seleucus IV Philopator sends his son Demetrius to Rome in exchange for the boy's 40-year-old uncle, who has been held hostage since 189 B.C. Seleucus is then assassinated at age 42 (approximate) by his chief minister, Heliodorus; dead after a 12-year reign, he is succeeded by his brother, who returns from Rome, ousts Heliodorus, seizes the throne, and will reign until 164 as Antiochus IV Ephiphanes.
174 B.C.: political events
The Roman general and statesman Titus Qinctius Flamininus dies at age 53 (approximate).
173 B.C.: political events
Syria's eighth Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes pays Rome the remainder of the war indemnity imposed under terms of the Treaty of Apamea in 188, thereby obtaining the release of his nephew Demetrius.
173 B.C.: religion
The Jewish leader Joshua at Jerusalem obtains the position of high priest by abandoning the monotheism of the Pharasaic party, promising Antiochus IV Epiphanes greater tribute, and promoting Greek culture and religion throughout Judaea (but see 169 B.C.).
172 B.C.: political events
Roman forces attack Macedonia, but her new king Perseus defeats the legions, beginning a Third Macedonian War that will continue until 167 (see Pydna, 168 B.C.).
171 B.C.: political events
Parthia's Phraates I dies after a 5-year reign and is succeeded by a philhellenic brother who will reign until 138 as Mithradates I, extending his territory westward into Mesopotamia and eastward into Bactria (see 146 B.C.).
170 B.C.: political events
Egyptian forces invade Coele Syria (see 176 B.C.). Egypt's boy king Ptolemy VI Philometor was married about 3 years ago to his sister Cleopatra II, his brother (later Ptolemy VIII Euergetes) has gained influence at court, and his guardians have laid claim to Coele Syria, Palestine, and Phoenicia, which were conquered by the late Antiochus III. Syria's Seleucid king Antiochus IV defeats the Egyptians between the frontier city of Pelusium and Mount Kasion, occupies Pelusium, and invades Egyptian territory in a preemptive move (see 169 B.C.).
170 B.C.: transportation
Rome lays out the world's first paved streets. The new streets are passable in all weather and easier to keep clean, but they add to the din of traffic.
170 B.C.: everyday life
Rome's first professional cooks appear in the form of commercial bakers, but most Roman households continue to grind their own flour and bake their own bread.
169 B.C.: political events
Syria's Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes occupies all of Egypt except for the capital, Alexandria (see 170 B.C.). He makes himself guardian of his nephew Ptolemy VI Philometor and rules the country as such. Alexandria's citizens appeal to their young king's brother and sister to form a rival government, disturbances in Palestine force Antiochus to return to Jerusalem, but he leaves a strong garrison at Pelusium (see 168 B.C.).
169 B.C.: religion
Antiochus IV Epiphanes begins a purge of all Judaic practices in Judaea and replaces the high priest Joshua with Menelaus, another Jew bent on Hellenizing the country. Joshua flees to Asia Minor (see 168 B.C.).
168 B.C.: political events
A Syrian fleet under the command of the Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes forces the surrender of Cyprus, and Antiochus invades Egypt again, demanding that Cyprus and Pelusium be ceded to him (see 169 B.C.). The Egyptian king Ptolemy VI Philometor has come to terms with his siblings and sent to Rome for assistance against the Syrians, but Antiochus camps outside Alexandria and occupies Lower Egypt (see 164 B.C.).
The Battle of Pydna near the mouth of the Aeson River on the western bank of the Gulf of Thessalonika June 22 gives Roman forces a victory over the Macedonian king Perseus in the Third Macedonian War (see 172 B.C.). General Lucius Aemilius Paulus, 51, deploys four legions and auxiliaries (about 25,000 men) against Perseus, who has 40,000 infantry (including a phalanx of 20,000) plus 4,000 cavalry, but the legions prove far more flexible, their short swords prove far more effective at close quarters than the Macedonian pikes, and at least 20,000 Macedonians are killed and 10,000 captured, while Roman casualties total only about 500 killed and wounded. Perseus flees but is captured, the Romans divide his country into four republics, and Paulus returns to Rome with Perseus in his triumphal procession (Perseus will die in captivity in 161 B.C., ending the Macedonian monarchy).
168 B.C.: human rights, social justice
Macedonians captured at Pydna are sold into slavery at Rome. Females fetch as much as 50 times the price of males.
168 B.C.: commerce
Huge amounts of booty brought home by Paulus after the Battle of Pydna enrich the Roman treasury. Rome relieves her citizens of direct taxation (the tributum).
168 B.C.: religion
Syria's Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes outlaws Judaism, lays waste the (second) Great Temple at Jerusalem, and tries to Hellenize the Jews by erecting idols to be worshipped by the people of Judaea (see 169 B.C.). His intention is to create one religion for everyone in his huge and polyglot empire, which extends from the Mediterranean to the Caspian Sea (see 165 B.C.).
167 B.C.: political events
The Third Macedonian War ends after 5 years of conflict; Rome establishes a protectorate over Greece.
The Bactrian king Demetrius dies by some accounts after a 23-year reign in which he has struck coins inscribed both in Greek and Prakrit (year approximate). He is succeeded by a man who may be a cousin of Persia's Seleucid king Antiochus IV or may simply be a Bactrian official who has raised an insurrection while Demetrius was in India but who will reign in either case until about 159 B.C. as Eucratides.
167 B.C.: religion
The Jewish priest and landowner Mattathias of Modein defies Syria's Antiochus IV Ephiphanes, who has outlawed Judaism (see 168 B.C.). Mattathias escapes into the mountains outside Lydda with his five sons and begins a revolt, using guerrilla tactics to fight the Syrians (see 166 B.C.).
166 B.C.: religion
The Jewish priest Mattathias dies, but his sons continue the revolt that he began last year. His third son, Judah, will receive the surname Maccabee—the Hammerer (see 165 B.C.).
166 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: The Women of Andros (Andria) by Roman playwright Terence (Publius Terentius Afer), 24, with flute music by his fellow-slave Flaccus at the Megaleusian games in April. "Obsequiousness makes friends; truth breeds hate" (I, i).
165 B.C.: religion
Judah Maccabee (Maccabaeus) and his brothers retake Jerusalem from the Syrians, whose egomaniacal Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes bears a substitute name that means "god manifest" in Greek.
The Maccabees cleanse the (second) Great Temple, destroy the idols erected by Syria's Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and restore the monotheistic religion of Judaism. It will later be said that the Maccabees found only enough oil in the temple to keep a light burning for 1 day but that somehow the oil lasted for 8 days, and Jews will commemorate the event in the annual Feast of Dedication called Hanukkah, or Chanukah (see 54 B.C.).
165 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: The Mother-in-Law (Hecyra) by Terence, who has adopted a play by Apollodorus.
164 B.C.: political events
Syria's proud Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes falls ill and dies at Tabae (later Isfahan) in Persia at age 51 (approximate) after a 12-year reign in which he has tried to Hellenize his realm, antagonizing the Jews, warring with the Parthians, and occupying Egypt. He is succeeded by his 10-year-old son, who will reign briefly as Antiochus V under the regency of Lysias, who will make peace with the Jews.
The brother of Egypt's Macedonian king Ptolemy VI Philometer expels him from Alexandria in October (see 168 B.C.). Ptolemy flees to Rome and requests support, but the Romans partition his realm, giving Philometor Cyprus and Egypt, while sending his brother into Cyrenaica (see 154 B.C.).
164 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: The Self-Avenger (Heautontimorumenos) by Terence: "I am a man; and nothing human is foreign to me" (Homo sum; humani nihil a me alienum puto, I, i).
162 B.C.: political events
Syria's Seleucid king Antiochus V is overthrown and killed by his cousin, who will reign until 150 B.C. as Demetrius I Soter.
161 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: The Eunuch (Eunuchus) by Terence: "I know the nature of women;/ When you want to, they don't want to;/ And when you don't want to, they desire exceedingly" (IV, vii), Phormio by Terence: "A word to the wise is sufficient" (Dictum sapienti sat est, III, iii).
160 B.C.: political events
The newly appointed governor of Judaea is killed in battle by the Maccabees, whose leader Judah Maccabee is killed soon afterward at the Battle of Elasa. Judah Maccabee is survived by his older brother Simon and his youngest, Jonathan, who succeeds as leader and will make Judaea a nearly independent principality by the time of his death in 143 B.C.
160 B.C.: theater, film
Theater: The Brothers (Adelphoe) by Terence at the funeral games for Lucius Aemilus Paulus: "It is better to bind your children to you by a feeling of respect, and by gentleness, than by fear" (I, i). A Carthaginian who was brought to Rome as a slave for a senator, Terence will die next year.
159 B.C.: political events
Pergamum's Eumenes II dies after a 38-year reign and is succeeded by his brother, now 61, who has fought beside the Romans in Galatia and Greece and will reign until his death in 138 B.C. as Attalus II (Philadelphus).
Bactria's king Eucratides returns from India after an absence during which Parthians have annexed two of his provinces (year approximate; see 167 B.C.). He is by some accounts murdered by his son.
157 B.C.: political events
China's fourth Han dynasty emperor Wendi (Wen-ti) dies after a 23-year reign and is succeeded by his son Qi, who will reign from 156 B.C. until his death in 140 B.C. as the emperor Jingdi (Ching-ti) (but see 154 B.C.).
155 B.C.: political events
Syria's Seleucid king Demetrius I Soter antagonizes Egypt's Macedonian king Ptolemy VI Philometer by conspiring to seize Cyprus (see 154 B.C.)
154 B.C.: political events
Egypt's Macedonian king Ptolemy VI Philometer defeats his brother, who has tried to seize Cyprus by force (see 164 B.C.). The Roman Senate has agreed to help the brother, who has twice journeyed to Rome in quest of support, but instead of wreaking vengeance Ptolemy restores his brother to the throne of Cyrenaica, arranges for the marriage of one of his daughters to the brother, and grants him a grain subsidy.
Chinese feudal princes rebel against efforts by the new Han dynasty emperor Jingdi (Ching-ti) to curtail their power, but Han forces will crush the Revolt of the Seven Kingdoms, the domains of the lords will be divided among their sons, and they will no longer be allowed to appoint ministers for their fiefs.
153 B.C.: political events
A usurper to Syria's Seleucid throne arises in the person of Alexander Balas, who claims to be a son of the late Antiochus IV Epiphanes but fails in an assassination attempt on Egypt's Macedonian king Ptolemy VI Philometor, who is visiting Antioch. Ptolemy has given one of his daughters in marriage to Alexander.
Lusitanians in southern Spain revolt against Roman rule, but the Roman praetor Lucius Mommius puts down the rebellion and will celebrate a triumph next year at Rome.
153 B.C.: everyday life
January 1 becomes the first day of the civil year in Rome. An uprising in Rome's Spanish provinces has obliged Roman consuls to take office earlier than the traditional date of March 15, but the months of September, October, November, and December will retain their names, even though the names indicate that they are the seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth months of the year, respectively (see 45 B.C.; 1582 A.D.; Britain, 1752 A.D.).
152 B.C.: political events
The Roman statesman Marcus Aemilius Lepidus dies, having twice served as consul, once as censor. He has been princeps senatus since 179 B.C., and a district of southern Italy will be called Emilia in his honor.
"Carthage must be destroyed" (Delenda est Carthago), says the Roman censor Marcus Porcius Cato, now 84, who has been urging destruction of the prosperous Punic city since 157 B.C., when he helped arbitrate a truce between Carthage and her former ally Masinna, now 88, king of Numidia. Masinna is now Rome's ally, Carthage has attacked Numidia, and Cato demands that a Roman army be sent against Carthage.
The Syrian usurper Alexander Balas defeats the Seleucid king Demetrius I Soter in battle and kills him. The Romans support him, and he will rule Syria until 145 B.C.
149 B.C.: political events
A Roman army invades North Africa and lays siege to Carthage. The Carthaginians offer to submit but refuse to vacate their city (see 146 B.C.).
149 B.C.: environment
Cato the Elder dies at age 85, leaving as his legacy some commentaries on agriculture. De Agriculture (or De Re Rustica) urges farmers to plant grapes and olives that draw moisture and nutrients from the subsoil rather than grain, which is more subject to drought.
148 B.C.: political events
The Roman praetor Quintus Caecilius Metellus deposes the Macedonian usurper Andriscus, making Macedonia a Roman province. Metellus will become known as Metellus Macedonicus.
146 B.C.: political events
Carthage falls to Roman legions led by Scipio Aemilianus in 6 days and nights of house-to-house fighting after a long blockade (see 149 B.C.). Some 900 Roman deserters torch the Temple of Aesculapius and choose death by fire rather than execution, Hasdrubal surrenders his garrison February 5, and his wife contemptuously throws herself and her children into the flames of the temple. The city's ashes are plowed under, its environs become the Roman province of Africa, and the Third Punic War is ended.
Legions led by the Roman consul Lucius Mommius defeat Greek forces under the command of Leucopetra on the Isthmus of Corinth and sack the city. Mommius has been appointed commander in the war against the Achaean League and acts on orders by the Senate to replace all democracies with oligarchies, smash the 134-year-old Achaean League, and place Greece under the supervision of the governor of Macedonia, which becomes a Roman province. To those who have contracted for the shipment of Corinth's irreplaceable treasures to Rome, Mommias shows his ignorance by saying that "if they lose or damage them they will have to replace them." The Senate dissolves the league.
Parthia's Mithradates I defeats Seleucid forces to conquer Babylon and Media. He makes Ctesiphon-Seleucia his capital.
Scythian warriors (the Tochari) invade the Seleucid satrapy of Bactria.
146 B.C.: human rights, social justice
Some 50,000 Carthaginians—men, women, and children—are sold into slavery following the fall of the city to Roman legions.
145 B.C.: political events
The people of Antioch and the Syrian army ask Egypt's Ptolemy VI Philometor to be their ruler, he declines, the Syrian usurper Alexander Balas soon draws him into battle, and Alexander dies in the fighting outside Antioch. His forces flee from Demetrius II and Ptolemy VI Philometor, but Ptolemy falls from his horse, fractures his skull, and dies a few days later. Alexander's son by Cleopatra Thea succeeds to the Syrian throne and will rule under a regent as Antiochus VI until 142. Ptolemy's son succeeds him as Ptolemy VII Neos Philpator but is promptly deposed by his uncle, who has vied for control of Egypt and Cyprus for 20 years and has ruled since 163 as king of Cyrenaica (see 144 B.C.).
144 B.C.: political events
Egypt's Macedonian king Ptolemy VII Neos Philopator is executed by his uncle, who will reign (with a brief interruption) until 116 as Ptolemy VIII Euergetes Physcon (the "pot-bellied"), quarreling incessantly with his sister and queen, Cleopatra II.
143 B.C.: political events
Roman legions under the command of the consul Quintus Caecilius Metellus Macedonicus defeat an army of Celtibrerians in northern Iberia.
The Syrian usurper Tryphon traps Judaea's Jonathan Maccabee and kills him at Bethshean. Jonathan's older brother Simon succeeds him and will drive all the Syrians out of the citadel at Jerusalem.
142 B.C.: political events
Syria's boy king Antiochus VI dies and is succeeded by the son of the late Demetrius I Soter, who will reign until next year as Demetrius II Nicator.
Judaea gains independence from Syria under the leadership of Simon Maccabee. He sends an embassy to Rome and begins coinage of money.
141 B.C.: political events
Syria's Seleucid king Demetrius II Nicator is captured while fighting the Parthians and will be held prisoner for more than 7 years (see 138 B.C.).
Jewish forces under Simon Maccabee liberate Jerusalem while the Seleucid king Demetrius II Nicator is preoccupied with conquering Babylon. Judaean independence will last until 63 B.C.
141 B.C.: agriculture
The Maccabee brothers and their followers will improve agriculture in the Jerusalem region.
140 B.C.: political events
China's fifth Han dynasty emperor Jingdi (Ching-ti) dies after a 17-year reign in which he has suppressed a rebellion by feudal princes. Jingdi is succeeded by his 16-year-old son Liuche, who will reign until 87 B.C. as the emperor Wudi (Wu-ti), extending the empire to the south, annexing parts of Korea and Tonkin, and sending his emissary Zhang Qian (Jang Qian) halfway round the world to Bactria and Sogdiana in quest of an east-west alliance against the Huns, or Xiong Nu (Hsiung Nu) (see 133 B.C.).
140 B.C.: commerce
News of Zhang Qian and of Serica, "land of silk," will reach Rome, and caravans will begin to carry the first apricots and peaches (the "Chinese fruit") to Europe while Zhang Qian introduces grapes, pomegranates, and walnuts to China.
138 B.C.: political events
Parthia's Mithradates I dies after a 33-reign in which he has made Parthia a great power. He is succeeded by his young son, who will reign as Phraates II until his death in 127 B.C. Syria's 21-year-old Seleucid king Antiochus VII Sidetes takes advantage of the situation by attacking Parthia. Antiochus has married Cleopatra Thea, wife of his imprisoned brother Demetrius II, and prevented the usurper Tryphon from seizing power (see 141 B.C.). He sends an ultimatum to the Jews, demanding that they recognize his suzerainty (see 134 B.C.).
Pergamum's Attalus II Philadelphus dies at age 82 (approximate) after a 21-year reign in which he has maintained close ties to Rome, a policy that has enabled him to resist aggression on the part of Bithynia's Prusias II.
135 B.C.: human rights, social justice
Rome's first Servile War begins as slaves on the large Sicilian estates revolt under the Syrian Eunus, who calls himself King Antiochus, organizes 70,000 slaves into a formidable fighting force, and holds Henna and Tauromenium against Roman armies sent to subdue the insurrection (see 132 B.C.).
134 B.C.: political events
Syria's Antiochus VII Sidetes captures Jerusalem following a siege that he has personally commanded (see 138 B.C.). The Jews have refused to acknowledge his suzerainty, dissension among the leaders of Judaea has played into his hands, and he tears down the city's walls.
Simon Maccabee is treacherously murdered along with 300 of his followers by his son-in-law, the governor of Jericho. Simon's sons Mattathias and Judah are also killed, and he is succeeded by his surviving son John Hyrcanus, who will rule Judaea until 104 B.C., extending the kingdom to include Samaria, Idumaea, and lands east of the Jordan.
134 B.C.: religion
Antiochus VII Sidetes shrugs off suggestions that he eliminate the Jews, appoints his vassal John Hyrcanus high priest, and permits religious autonomy.
133 B.C.: political events
The Roman consul Scipio Aemilianus (Scipio Africanus the Younger) commands an expedition to the Iberian Peninsula, where discipline among the troops has been lax and the Celtiberians on the Douro River have resisted Roman occupation for years. Accompanied by volunteers and a 500-man corps of personal bodyguards, Scipio surrounds the hill town of Numantia with seven camps, has six miles of continuous ramparts constructed, and maintains the siege for 8 months, starving the Celtiberians until the 4,000 who remain alive surrender. He burns Numantia to the ground, putting an end to any significant resistance in the region.
Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus, 30, wins election as Roman tribune on a platform of social reform. A cousin (and brother-in-law) of Scipio Africanus the Younger, he proposes an agrarian law that would limit holdings of public land to 312 acres per person, with an additional 250 acres for each of two sons, but large landholders in Etruria and Campania block efforts to recover lands held in violation of the new law, and Gracchus is murdered. The great estates (latifundia) are not distributed among new settlers but grow at the expense of the small peasants and to some extent of Rome's urban proletariat.
China's Han emperor Wudi (Wu-ti) launches attacks on the nomadic Huns, or Xiong Nu (Hsiung Nu), who represent the chief threat to his nation's northern frontier. Now 23, Wudi commits his regime to a policy of expansionism (see 128 B.C.).
132 B.C.: political events
Scipio Aemilianus (Scipio Africanus the Younger) returns to Rome for a second triumph, having established unchallenged control of the Iberian Peninsula (see 133 B.C.; but see also 129 B.C.).
132 B.C.: human rights, social justice
Rome's Servile War is ended as Roman forces under the command of the consul Publius Repuilius capture the Syrian slave Eunus and savagely execute him and his supporters (see 135 B.C.). More than 70,000 slaves are believed to have taken part in the uprising; 20,000 are crucified.
131 B.C.: political events
Egypt's Macedonian king Ptolemy VIII Euergetes is sent into exile and will not be allowed to return until 129 B.C.
131 B.C.: population
The Roman censor Quintus Caecilius Metellus Macedonicus delivers an oration proposing that all citizens be compelled to marry in order to increase the birth rate.
129 B.C.: political events
Parthian forces under the command of their king Phraates II make a surprise attack early in the year on the winter quarters of Syria's Antiochus VII Sidetes in Media. Antiochus is killed, and Phraates takes thousands of Greek prisoners, ending Seleucid dominion over territories east of the Euphrates. Syria lapses into civil war that will continue even after the accession of a new Seleucid king (see 125 B.C.).
Scipio Aemilianus (Scipio Africanus the Younger) is found dead at Rome at age 55 (approximate) after favoring concessions to the Italian peasants, who have grown increasingly bitter at their treatment by Roman landowners. Murder is suspected.
Pergamum becomes the Roman province of Asia.
128 B.C.: political events
Parthia's Phraates II advances against nomadic Shaka and Tocharoi tribesmen who have invaded eastern Persia. He presses Greek prisoners from the army of the late Seleucid king Antiochus VII Sidetes into his own army, but they desert him in battle. He is defeated and killed, and his uncle succeeds to the Parthian throne as Artabanus II.
Northern and central Korea slip from Chinese control, but China's Han emperor Wudi (Wu-ti) will try to reconquer them.
127 B.C.: political events
Parthia's Phraates II falls in battle against Indo-Scythian nomads on his eastern border after an 11-year reign. Various contenders for the succession struggle for the throne, a paternal uncle of Phraates prevails, and he will reign until 124 as Artabanus I, losing Babylon to the Characene.
127 B.C.: science
The Nicaean-born Greek astronomer and mathematician Hipparchus makes observations on the star Eta Canis Majoris (year approximate). He has compiled the first known star catalogue, calculated the length of the year to within 6½ minutes, discovered the procession of the equinoxes, and done some pioneer work in trigonometry (see Ptolemy, 140 A.D.).
Syria's Seleucid dynasty continues in the person of a new king, whose half brother contests the succession but who will reign until 96 B.C. as Antiochus VIII (see 129 B.C.).
124 B.C.: political events
Parthia's Artabanus I falls in battle late in the year with the same Indo-Scythian nomads who killed his nephew 3 years ago. His son will succeed to the throne next year and reign until 88 B.C. as Mithradates II, consolidating the empire and assuming the Achaemenid title "king of kings."
123 B.C.: political events
Gaius Sempronius Gracchus, 30, wins election as Roman tribune on a platform similar to that of his late brother Tiberius. A more forceful man, Gaius puts through a far more extreme program that includes a law obliging the government to provide grain to Rome's citizens at a price below the market average. Opposed by the former censor Quintus Caecilius Metellus Macedonicus (who also opposed Gaius's brother Tiberius) and other conservatives, the law protects the poor against famine and against speculators, establishing a precedent. State control of the grain supply will permit demagogues to gain popular support by distributing free grain.
121 B.C.: political events
The Roman tribune Gaius Sempronius Gracchus is killed in an attack organized by opponents of his measures. His fellow tribune Marcus Livius Drusus has disgraced him by offering more extreme democratic proposals; the former censor Quintus Caecilius Metellus Macedonicus participates in the action.
The Roman province of Gallia Narbonensis is established, but the Greek city-state Massilia (later Marseilles) remains an equal ally of the Roman Republic.
120 B.C.: political events
The king of Pontus Mithradates Euergetes dies and is succeeded by his son, who will reign until 63 as Mithradates VI Eupator, initially with his mother as regent. He will depose her in 5 or 6 years, throw her into prison, and rule alone, sending expeditions to conquer the Crimea and the district of Colchis on the eastern of the Black Sea, defeating their Scythian rulers and adding both to the Pontic kingdom.
118 B.C.: political events
Numidia's king Micipsa dies and is succeeded by his two sons Hiempsal and Adherbal, who share power with Micipsa's popular adopted son Jugurtha, now 42. Jugurtha has Hiempsal assassinated, but Adherbal flees to Rome in quest of support; envoys sent by Jugurtha bribe corrupt officials to obtain authorization from the Senate for a division of the country, with Adherbal getting the eastern (poorer) half (see 112 B.C.).
116 B.C.: political events
Egypt's Macedonian king Ptolemy VIII Euergetes dies after a 29-year reign in which he has encouraged Roman interference in affairs of state while beginning his country's interest in the spice trade. His will partitions Egypt's possessions, leaving his widow, Cleopatra III, as effective ruler of Egypt and Cyprus, and although she prefers her younger son, Ptolemy X Alexander, who will rule over part of the realm until 110, it is her older son who will reign until 88 as Ptolemy IX Soter II (see 115 B.C.). The will provides for Ptolemy VIII's illegitimate son Ptolemy Apion, who was born to his concubine; he inherits neighboring Cyrenaica (later Libya) and becomes at least nominal ruler of that country.
Phrygia becomes linked to the Roman province of Asia.
115 B.C.: political events
The Roman merchant Marcus Aemilius Scaurus, 47, obtains the consulship with backing from the Metelli family, gains a military victory over some Alpine tribes, and is chosen senior senator (princeps senatus).
The Roman statesman Quintus Caecilius Metellus Macedonicus dies, having erected a colonnade in the Campus Martius and two temples dedicated to Jupiter Stator and Juno.
Egypt's dowager queen Cleopatra III forces her son Ptolemy IX Soter to divorce his strong-willed sister-queen Cleopatra IV and marry his younger, more pliable sister Cleopatra Selene (see 114 B.C.).
112 B.C.: political events
Rome's senatorial party makes the demagogic former tribune Marcus Livius Drusus consul. Drusus's son will also be a leader of the senatorial party (see 91 B.C.).
Numidia's king Jugurtha attacks his co-ruler Hiempsal and captures the latter's capital, Cirta, but massacres a group of Italian businessmen (see 118 B.C.). A mission headed by Marcus Aemilius Scaurus visits Jugurtha, but the corrupt Roman Senate has little choice but to declare war on Jugurtha (see 111 B.C.).
111 B.C.: political events
The Roman consul Lucius Calpurnius Bestia concludes a treaty with the Numidian king Jugurtha, granting generous terms (see 112 B.C.). Marcus Aemilius Scaurus is accused of having accepted a bribe (see 109 B.C.), Jugurtha is summoned to Rome to explain how he was able to obtain such an agreement, and after his arrival he has a potential rival killed, provoking a renewal of hostilities, but the Roman generals sent against him prove to be incompetent (see 110 B.C.).
110 B.C.: political events
A Roman army under the command of Aulus Postumius Albinus surrenders early in the year to Numidia's king Jugurtha, who chases the Romans out of his country (see 111 B.C.). Rome disavows the terms of the surrender and sends a new force to engage the Numidians (see 109 B.C.).
Egypt's dowager queen Cleopatra III sends her younger son and favorite Ptolemy X Alexander to Cyprus as governor (see 115 B.C.), but public sentiment forces her to dismiss him and place his older brother Ptolemy IX Soter on the throne as joint ruler. Cleopatra expels the older son in October and recalls the younger one from Cyprus (see 109 B.C.).
110 B.C.: marine resources
Romans cultivate oysters in the first Western efforts to domesticate marine wildlife. Cultured oyster beds are operated in the vicinity of Baia near the town that will become Naples, where local oysterman Sergius Orata makes a fortune selling his bivalves to the luxury trade (see 850 B.C.; 407 A.D.).
109 B.C.: political events
Egypt's Ptolemy IX Soter returns from exile early in the year, but his mother, Cleopatra III, remains hostile to him (see 110 B.C.; 108 B.C.).
The Roman consul Quintus Caecilius Metellus defeats Numidia's leader Jugurtha in a battle on the Muthul River in North Africa and is given the honorific title Numidicus (see 110 B.C.). The former consul Marcus Aemilius Scaurus has himself appointed (as censor) to a commission established to inquire into the allegations made 2 years ago that he accepted a bribe from Jugurtha.
109 B.C.: transportation
The censor Marcus Aemilus Scaurus directs construction of the Via Aemilia through Pisa to Dertona (later Tortona).
109 B.C.: literature
The Roman philosopher Panaetius dies at age 71 (approximate), having founded Roman Stoic philosophy.
108 B.C.: political events
Egypt's dowager queen Cleopatra banishes her son Ptolemy IX Soter again in March (see 109 B.C.), the two effect a reconciliation in May, and he then flees once again, establishing himself in Cyprus (see 107 B.C.).
The Roman consul Quintus Caecilius Metellus Numidicus achieves further military successes against the Numidian Jugurtha but loses his command (and consulship) to the 48-year-old commoner (novus homo) Gaius Marius (see 107 B.C.).
107 B.C.: political events
The new Roman consul Gaius Marius arrives in North Africa to direct operations against the Numidian king Jugurtha (see 109 B.C.), but Jugurtha continues to harry the Romans with guerrilla actions (see 105 B.C.).
Egypt's Macedonian king Ptolemy IX Soter invades northern Syria from Cyprus in a campaign to support a claimant to the Seleucid throne (see 108 B.C.). His mother, Cleopatra III, allies herself with the Jewish king in Palestine and provides active assistance to another Seleucid pretender (see 101 B.C.).
105 B.C.: political events
The Mauretanian king Bocchus I captures Numidia's king Jugurtha early in the year, having been persuaded to intervene by the consul Gaius Marius's 33-year-old quaestor (financial magistrate) Lucius Cornelius Sulla. Jugurtha will be executed at Rome next year.
The Battle of Arausio on the Rhône October 6 ends in defeat for two Roman armies by the Cimbri, a Celtic or Germanic people from east of the Rhine who have moved into Transalpine Gaul and crossed the Rhône together with the Teutons. The consul Gnaeus Mallius Maximus has been sent with an army to reinforce the troops of Quintus Servilius Caepio, he has begun negotiations with the Cimbri, but Caepio launches an attack on the Cimbri while the negotiations are proceeding, his forces are overwhelmed, the river blocks their retreat, close to 80,000 Romans are killed, and the consul's army is destroyed as well. The defeat leaves Rome virtually defenseless against its northern neighbors, and Roman citizens are furious at the government for losing so many men and jeopardizing their safety (see 104 B.C.).
104 B.C.: political events
The former Roman consul Gaius Marius wins reelection despite a law requiring that a person wait at least 2 years between consulships; now 51, he responds to last year's defeat of the legions at the Battle of Arausio by reforming the army, which has been run by the nobility and grown arrogant; he increases the size of a legion to 6,000 men, introduces an eagle-topped standard to be carried by the legions, engages gladiators to help train his troops, and recruits men from landless families who are prepared to serve 20 years. (Roman soldiers heretofore have come only from landholding families.) The Cimbri tribesmen who defeated the Romans last year migrate to Spain, the Teutoni to northern Gaul, and they will not return to southern Gaul for another 2 years (see 102 B.C.).
Judaea's John Hyrcanus dies after a 30-year reign and is succeeded by his son, 37, who will rule briefly as Aristobulus I. He will complete the conquest of Galilee and force the people of Hurae to embrace Judaism.
103 B.C.: political events
Judaea's Aristobulus I dies at age 38 and is succeeded by his brother Alexander Jannaeus, who will extend the boundaries of the kingdom in a selfish and savage reign that will continue until 76 B.C.
The Roman tribune Lucius Appuleius Saturninus tries to gain working-class support by proposing a measure that would sharply reduce the price of the monthly grain ration. He obtains passage of other laws, one that establishes the first permanent court for treason charges and another that assigns land grants to veterans of the Jugurthine War that ended 2 years ago, giving each man more than 60 acres (see 102 B.C.).
103 B.C.: human rights, social justice
A second Servile War erupts in Sicily as slaves rebel under the leadership of Tryphon and Athenion. Slaves from lands conquered by Rome's legions provide much of the power for Roman agriculture, being able to follow verbal orders even though they are less powerful and less docile than horses, whose efficiency is limited also by lack of metal horseshoes and lack of proper harnesses.
102 B.C.: political events
The Battle of Aqua Sextiae (later Aix-en-Provence) near the Mediterranean in southern Gaul gives the Roman consul Gaius Marius a victory over the Teutoni and Cimbri, avenging the defeat by the legions at the Battle of Arausio 3 years ago. Now 53, Marius has been reelected consul repeatedly since 107 B.C. in violation of the law of 151 B.C. The Teutoni have come back from northern Gaul and joined with some Celts (the Tigurini) and Cimbri to plan an invasion of Italy, with the Cimbri to come through the Alps via what later will be called the Brenner Pass, the Tigurini to come through by way of a pass to the northeast, and the Teutoni to drive along the coast. A Teutonic advance guard of some 30,000 men attacks Marius's professional army of 32,000 before the rest of the tribesmen can arrive, the Romans slaughter them, Marius hides about 3,000 of his men in ambush, and when the main Germanic army appears there is a much bigger slaughter: close to 100,000 Teutoni are killed. The people of Provence hail Marius's triumph, and Provençal families will name one of their sons Marius by tradition for more than 2,000 years (see Cimbri, 101 B.C.).
Rome's two conservative censors try to expel the demagogic politician Lucius Appuleius Saturninus and his colleague Gaius Servilius Glaucia, but they are unsuccessful. A bill put through the Senate by Glaucius restores to the privileged equites their exclusive right to constitute the juries in permanent courts, thereby winning their support (see 101 B.C.).
101 B.C.: political events
The Battle of Campi Raudii near Vercellae gives the Roman consuls Gaius Marius and Lucius Lutatius Catulus, 51, a victory over the Cimbri, avenging the Roman defeat at the Battle of Arausio in 105 B.C. Marius has developed the army into a powerful, disciplined force whose ferocity is hard to match, the Cimbri dead number about 65,000, and Marius becomes a national hero. He and Catulus celebrate a joint triumph, but Marius receives most of the credit for saving the city, he is reelected consul for 100 B.C., and his popularity alienates Catulus.
The demagogic politician Lucius Appuleius Saturninus wins acquittal on capital charges, having gained the backing of the equites (see 102 B.C.; 100 B.C.).
Egypt's dowager queen Cleopatra III dies, and her son Ptolemy X Alexander is widely suspected of having assassinated his mother; the people of Alexandria do not accept his rule, and actual power passes to his strong-minded wife and niece, Berenice III, daughter either of Cleopatra Selene or Cleopatra IV; her father, Ptolemy IX Soter, controls Cyprus (see 89 B.C.).
A Chinese army returns from a successful expedition to Fergana (later Uzbekistan) with the head of that country's ruler and "blood-sweating" horses (a parasite that infects them causes skin hemorrhaging), prized by the Han emperor Wudi (Wu-ti) as having mystical significance.
101 B.C.: transportation
Chinese ships reach the east coast of India for the first time with help from the navigational compass pioneered by the Chinese. They have discovered the orienting effect of magnetite, or lodestone (see 1086 A.D.).
101 B.C.: food and drink
The Romans apply waterpower to milling flour and are the first people to do so.
200 B.C.–176 B.C. 175 B.C.–151 B.C. 150 B.C.–126 B.C. 125 B.C.–101 B.C.
