Category:Aretas III Philhellenos (subject)
Aretas III Philhellenos was a Nabatean King, from 87 to 62 BCE.
See Nabatean Kings
Overview
Aretas III succeeded his father Obodas I upon his death in battle.
Under his rule, the Nabatean kingdom reached its peak. Aretas' greatest success was the conquest of Damascus from the Seleucids in 85 BCE. Damascus was then one of the major commercial towns of the Middle East.
Aretas renamed himself "Philhellenos." He reshape his kindgom as a small Hellenistic Kingdom, adopting Greek as the official language and building marvelous monuments in Hellenistic style.
In 82 BCE Aretas defeated Alexander Jamnaeus in the Battle of Adida, but in a counterattack lost territories in Moab and Gilead.
Aretas' power in the region was challenged by the invasion of the Armenian King Tigranes the Great, who in 72 BCE pushed the Nabateans out of Damascus. Only the Roman intervention caused Tigranes the Great to withdraw in 69 BCE and allowed the Nabateans to regain control of the city.
Aretas then tried to take advantage of the conflict between John Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II to expand his influence in Judea. He supported the defeated Hyrcanus, allowing him to flee to Petra and advanced against Jerusalem with his army, besieging the city for several months. When the Roman general Scaurus ordered Aretas to withdraw, Aristobulus II attacked and defeated the Nabatean army on their journey back to Nabatea. Scaurus marched on Petra and forced Aretas to pay the tribute and recognize the Roman supremacy on the region.
Aretas III Philhellenos in ancient sources
- Aretas III Philhellenos (sources) -- survey of ancient sources
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