M. Antonius Polemo 34/3-31 BC
Description
Marcus Antonius Polemon—better known as Polemon I of Pontus—rose from regional notable to one of Rome’s most useful eastern clients through a sequence of carefully rewarded services. Mark Antony first elevated him in 39 BC, granting the city-state of Iconium in Lycaonia after Polemon helped blunt a Parthian raid. Polemon repaid that favor during Antony’s Parthian expedition of 36 BC, suffering capture and ransom but reaffirming his loyalty. Antony’s greater recompense followed in 34/33 BC: on completing his punitive invasion of Armenia, the triumvir detached Armenia Minor and added it to Polemon’s Pontic realm. The arrangement suited Rome’s forward policy: a friendly “buffer-king” could guard the western approaches to Greater Armenia, keep the Cappadocian and Galatian roads secure, and spare Rome a permanent garrison.
Polemon styled himself basileus megas, “Great King,” a title that appears on a bronze series whose style matches Cilician mints. These coins, once misassigned either to a Polemon of Olba or—through a conjectural emendation of Tacitus—to a later Polemon II installed by Nero, fit more convincingly within the 30s BC when client-princes routinely advertised their newly enlarged status. The iconographic claim to grandeur was balanced by a consciously Hellenic presentation—Greek legends, royal portraiture, and weight standards—designed to resonate with both local notables and Rome-leaning urban elites. Polemon’s matrimonial diplomacy is dimly lit: a first wife, Julia Mamaea, may link him to the Emesene dynasty, while his later marriage to the Cappadocian princess Dynamis cemented alliances on the Black Sea.
The settlement, however, was tethered to Antony’s fortunes. After Actium in 31 BC, Octavian reevaluated every eastern grant. Polemon swiftly transferred allegiance and was confirmed in Pontus but stripped of Armenia Minor, which was either placed under the Cappadocian king or entrusted to Roman prefects. By 20 BC Augustus formally annexed the district to Cappadocia, extinguishing its separate kingship. Polemon redirected his energies to Pontus and, from 14 BC, to the Bosporan Kingdom, serving Rome as a dependable intermediary until his death.
Polemon styled himself basileus megas, “Great King,” a title that appears on a bronze series whose style matches Cilician mints. These coins, once misassigned either to a Polemon of Olba or—through a conjectural emendation of Tacitus—to a later Polemon II installed by Nero, fit more convincingly within the 30s BC when client-princes routinely advertised their newly enlarged status. The iconographic claim to grandeur was balanced by a consciously Hellenic presentation—Greek legends, royal portraiture, and weight standards—designed to resonate with both local notables and Rome-leaning urban elites. Polemon’s matrimonial diplomacy is dimly lit: a first wife, Julia Mamaea, may link him to the Emesene dynasty, while his later marriage to the Cappadocian princess Dynamis cemented alliances on the Black Sea.
The settlement, however, was tethered to Antony’s fortunes. After Actium in 31 BC, Octavian reevaluated every eastern grant. Polemon swiftly transferred allegiance and was confirmed in Pontus but stripped of Armenia Minor, which was either placed under the Cappadocian king or entrusted to Roman prefects. By 20 BC Augustus formally annexed the district to Cappadocia, extinguishing its separate kingship. Polemon redirected his energies to Pontus and, from 14 BC, to the Bosporan Kingdom, serving Rome as a dependable intermediary until his death.
Collection Tree
- ANCIENT
- Armenia Minor
- M. Antonius Polemo 34/3-31 BC
- Armenia Minor