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EUCRATIDES

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Originally appearing in Volume V09, Page 881 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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EUCRATIDES , See also:

king of See also:Bactria (c. 175–129 B.C.), came to the See also:throne by a See also:rebellion against the See also:dynasty of See also:Euthydemus, whose son See also:Demetrius had conquered western See also:India. His authority was challenged by a See also:great many other pretenders and See also:Greek dynasts in See also:Sogdiana, See also:Aria (See also:Herat), Drangiana (Sijistan), &c., whose names—Pantaleon, See also:Agathocles, See also:Antimachus, See also:Antalcidas " the victorious " (vtKf06pos), See also:Plato, whose unique See also:coin is dated from the See also:year 147 of the Seleucid era (=166 B.c.), and others—are known only from coins with Greek and See also:Indian legends. In the See also:west the See also:Parthian king See also:Mithradates I. began to enlarge his See also:kingdom and attacked Eucratides; he succeeded in conquering two See also:province between Bactria and See also:Parthia, called by See also:Strabo " the See also:country of Aspiones and Turiva," two Iranian names. But the See also:principal opponent of Eucratides was Demetrius (q.v.) of India, who attacked him with a large See also:army " of 300,000 men"; Eucratides fled with 300 men into a fortress and was besieged. But at last he See also:beat Demetrius, and conquered a great See also:part of western India. According to See also:Apollodorus of Artemita, the historian of the Parthians, he ruled over r000 towns (Strabo xv. 686; transferred to See also:Diodotus of Bactria in See also:Justin 41, 4. 6); and the extent of his kingdom over Bactria, Sogdiana (See also:Bokhara), Drangiana (Sijistan), See also:Kabul and the western See also:Punjab is confirmed by numerous coins. On these coins, which See also:bear Greek and Indian legends (in Kharoshti See also:writing, cf. BACTRIA), he is called " the great King Eucratides." On one his portrait and name are associated on the See also:reverse with those of Heliocles and Laodice; Heliocles was probably his son, and the coin may have been struck to celebrate his See also:marriage with Laodice, who seems to have been a Seleucid princess. In Bactria Eucratides founded a Greek See also:city, Eucratideia (Strabo xi.

516, Ptolem. vi. r r. 8). On his return from India Eucratides was (about 150 B.C.) murdered by his son, whom he had made co-See also:

regent (Justin 41, 6). This son is probably the Heliocles just mentioned, who on his coins calls himself " the Just " ((3asnMws 'HA1oKX ovs &Kalov). In his See also:time the Graeco-Bactrian kingdom lost the countries See also:north of the See also:Hindu Kush. Mongolian tribes, the Yue-chi of the See also:Chinese, called by the Greeks Scythians, by the See also:Indians See also:Saka, among which the Tochari are the most conspicuous, invaded Sogdiana in 159 B.C. and conquered Bactria in 139. Meanwhile the Parthian See also:kings Mithradates I. and Phraates II. conquered the provinces in the west of the Hindu Kush (Justin 41, 6. 8); for a See also:short time Mithradates I. extended his dominion to the See also:borders of India (Diod. 33. 18, See also:Orosius v. 4. 16).

When See also:

Antiochus VII. Sidetes tried once more to restore the Seleucid dominion in 130, Phraates allied himself with the Scythians (Justin 42, 1. 1); but after his decisive victory in 129 he was attacked by them and See also:fell in the See also:battle. The changed See also:state of affairs is shown by the numerous coins of Heliocles; while his predecessors maintained the See also:Attic See also:standard, which had been dominant throughout the Greek See also:east, he on his later coins passes over to a native See also:silver standard, and his See also:bronze coins became quite barbarous. Besides his coins we possess coins of many other Greek kings of these times, most of whom take the epithet of " invincible " (avLic See also:ros) and "saviour" Qwrilp). They are records of a desperate struggle of the Greeks to maintain their See also:nationality and See also:independence in the Far East; one usurper after the other See also:rose to fight for the See also:rescue of the kingdom. But these See also:internal See also:wars only accelerated the destruction; about 120 B.C. almost the whole of eastern See also:Iran was in the hands either of a Parthian dynasty or of the Mongol invaders, who are now called Indo-Scythians. Only in the Kabul valley and western India the Greeks maintained themselves about two generations longer (see See also:MENANDER). (ED.

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