How the Cimmerians Almost Conquered Anatolia

Depiction of Cimmerian soldiers connected a Greek vase. Credit: Wikimedia Commons, CC-BY 3.0, Shams948

The past of Anatolia could person been altered wholly if things had turned retired otherwise successful the seventh period BC. At that time, a federation known arsenic the Cimmerians was raiding passim Anatolia, astir bringing it to its knees. What yet stopped them from wholly conquering this captious territory?

How the Cimmerian conquest of Anatolia began

The Cimmerians were a federation intimately related to the Scythians. In fact, Ancient Greek writers occasionally confused the 2 peoples. They were some from the portion northbound of the Black Sea. At immoderate constituent towards the extremity of the eighth period BC, the Cimmerians began migrating southwards.

The nonstop crushed for this is uncertain. However, it is wholly imaginable that it was owed to unit from the enlargement of the Scythians, but it was astir this clip that the Cimmerians began coming into struggle with the nations successful and adjacent Anatolia.

For instance, successful the precocious eighth period BC, they attacked the kingdom of Urartu successful Armenia. However, soon afterwards, they were defeated and repulsed by the Assyrians. This drove them westwards, resulting successful their raiding heavy into Anatolia.

The devastating attacks of the Cimmerians

Once successful Anatolia, the Cimmerians proved to beryllium a unit to reckon with. At the time, the astir almighty kingdom successful that portion was the kingdom of Phrygia. The Cimmerians waged warfare against this almighty federation and had sizeable occurrence against it.

With utmost swiftness, the Cimmerians were capable to overwhelm the Phrygians. They defeated them truthful crushingly that the King of Phrygia, Midas, committed suicide. This was the celebrated King Midas of Greek legend, with the celebrated aureate touch. The Cimmerians past went connected to sack Gordion, the superior of Phrygia.

After bringing astir the autumn of Phrygia and conquering their land, the Cimmerians became little nomadic and started focusing connected establishing a fixed kingdom successful the erstwhile territory of Phrygia.

How the Cimmerians astir subdued each of Anatolia

Although not chiefly nomadic arsenic they had erstwhile been, the Cimmerians continued trying to grow their territory into Anatolia successful the pursuing decades. For example, they attacked and plundered Greek colonies, including Sinope, connected the seashore of the Black Sea.

Furthermore, to the east, it appears that definite Neo-Hittite kingdoms successful the portion of bluish Syria were subdued by the Cimmerians. The regularisation of the Cimmerians encompassed an tremendous portion of Anatolia, stretching from the Assyrian Empire successful the eastbound to the kingdom of Lydia successful the west.

Cappadocia, supra Syria, became their caller capital. At this time, the king of the Cimmerians was a definite Dugdammi. The Greeks recorded him nether the variant spelling “Lygdamis.” Seeing that the Assyrians to the eastbound were a important threat, Dugdammi preferred to debar engaging them successful outright warfare. Instead, helium focused his enlargement efforts connected the west.

The downfall of the Cimmerians

It was this onslaught against Lydia that yet triggered the downfall of the Cimmerians and prevented them from wholly conquering Anatolia. If they had succeeded successful defeating Lydia, they whitethorn person go the overlords of the full peninsula.

Initially, the Cimmerians had immoderate occurrence successful their enlargement further into occidental Anatolia. They enactment sizeable unit connected King Gyges of Lydia, who felt compelled to petition the assistance of the Assyrians. Scholars statement whether the Assyrians really provided specified assistance oregon not, but it would look that they astir apt had. As a result, Gyges managed to decision the Cimmerians, and helium sent 2 captured chieftains to Nineveh.

About 2 decades later, the Cimmerians attacked Gyges for a last clip and successfully sacked Sardis, the superior of Lydia. This besides resulted successful the decease of King Gyges. However, this did not effect successful the full decision of the Lydians. While their concern was rather precarious, they persevered.

Some years later, successful the second fractional of the seventh period BC, the Cimmerians were yet defeated erstwhile they were attacked connected 2 main fronts. In the east, they were attacked by the Scythians, with enactment from the Assyrian Empire. In the west, they were attacked by the Lydians.

Together, these nations were capable to decision the Cimmerians, but they past disappeared from humanities record. However, galore historians judge they settled successful Cappadocia. The Armenian sanction for that portion is Gamirk, which whitethorn good constituent to Cimmerian colony successful the area.