1 Introduction
Greek colonization in Asia Minor began in the 16th century BC. [1]
Hittite influence extended into Asia Minor, and Greek settlements were limited to Miletus, Lycia, Rhodes, Lesbos, Chios, and Samos.
In the late 13th century BC, as Hittite power waned, settlements were made from Tegea in Arcadia to Mysia. [2]
In the 12th century BC, Colophon was settled from Boeotia. [3]
A little later a settlement was made from Orchomenus at Teos, near Colophon. [4]
After these settlements, full-scale colonization efforts began in Asia Minor.
2 Aeolis colony of Achaeans (1170-1055 BC)
2.1 When Aeolian colonization began
Strabo reports that the Aeolian colonization of Asia Minor began four generations earlier than the Ionians. [5]
The first expedition of Aeolian colonization was by Orestes, son of Agamemnon.
The first expedition of Ionian colonization was by Neileus, son of Codrus, who set out from the Prytaneum of Athens in 1073 BC.
Neileus was the son of Codrus, son of Melanthus, and Melanthus and Tisamenus, son of Orestes, were contemporaries, so Orestes was three generations earlier than Neileus.
According to Herodotus, who calculates 3 generations as 100 years, the beginning of Aeolis colonization is estimated to be 1170 BC. [6]
2.2 Colonization of Orestes
In 1170 BC, Orestes, son of Agamemnon, and Peisander, a Spartan, went on an expedition to the island of Tenedos and founded the city of Tenedos. [7]
The inhabitants of Tenedos, off the coast of Troy, were settled on Tenea in Argolis by Agamemnon, and after the Trojan War the island was largely uninhabited. [8]
Peisander's maternal grandfather was Melanippus, a defender of Thebes. [9]
Nymphodorus, author of Voyage round Asia, describes Tenedos as an island of beauties. [10]
Also accompanying Orestes on his expedition was Perinthus of Epidaurus, who founded Perinthus (not the city of Thracia). [11]
2.3 Causes of Orestes colonization
2.3.1 Destruction of Mycenae
Shortly after Agamemnon died and his son Orestes inherited Mycenae, Cleodaeus, son of Hyllus, led the Dorians against Mycenae and destroyed the city. [12]
It is estimated that Agamemnon died in 1173 BC after a 30-year reign. [13]
Recent archaeological research has confirmed traces of destruction by the Mycenae in the 12th century BC. [14]
The Dorians also destroyed Tiryns and Midea and occupied Argos. [15]
Orestes then assembled an army and expelled the Dorians who had occupied Argos.
However, the walls of Mycenae were in ruins, and Orestes continued to live in exile in Tegea.
Two battles devastated the land around Mycenae.
2.3.2 Climate change
Aristotle tells us that after the Trojan War, Mycenae became dry and barren. [16]
Considering that Amyclae and Epidaurus also participated in the colonization activities of Orestes, this phenomenon seems to have occurred throughout Peloponnesus. [17]
It is assumed that the reason for the migration was that not only the harvest obtained from the land decreased, but also the land that made it possible to harvest decreased, leading to famine.
2.4 Colonization of Penthilus
After the death of Orestes, Penthilus, son of Orestes, led a group of immigrants to Aeolis.
In 1126 BC, Penthilus sailed from the port of Aulis in Boeotia and occupied and colonized Lesbos. [18]
Lesbos was once known as Pelasgia and was home to many Pelasgians who settled there and were led by Xanthus, son of Triopas of Argos. Later, Macareus, son of Aeolus, settled there, Lesbos, son of Lapithus, led a band of immigrants to the island, and some of the Pelasgians migrated to the mainland, where Aeolis lived in large numbers. [19]
Both the settlers led by Penthilus and most of the inhabitants of Lesbos were of the same tribe. Phorbas and his son Ilioneus, who fought on the side of Troy, were both killed in battle, so the island's inhabitants likely accepted them as co-residents. [20]
Penthilus led emigrants on several trips back and forth between his homeland and Aeolis. Cometes, son of his half-brother Tisamenus, accompanied him and migrated to Aeolis. [21]
Tisamenus also led a group of Boeotians. [22]
2.5 Colonization of Cleues and Malaus
Penthilus's departure for Lesbos in 1126 BC was to be followed by an expedition by Cleues, son of Dorus, and Malaus, but they remained in their home for a long time. [23]
He was watching the progress of the return of the Heracleidae to Peloponnesus, led by Aristomachus. They set out for migration much later than Penthilus. [24]
Both Cleues and Malaus were great-grandsons of Agamemnon and lived near Locris and Mt. Phricium. [25]
The emigrants of Cleues and Malaus migrated to the other side of Lesbos, conquered the Pelasgians who lived in Larisa, and founded the Phryconian Cyme. [26]
Cyme is named after the Amazons, and may have had an ancient settlement there. [27]
In 1186 BC, after the fall of Troy, the Athenians under Menestheus had settled at Elaea, near Cyme. [28]
The Pelasgians around Larisa were a powerful tribe led by the sons of Lethus, Pylaeus and Hippothous, but were weakened by the Trojan War. [29]
2.6 Colonization of Archelaus, son of Penthilus
In 1100 BC, Archelaus (or Echelas), son of Penthilus, led a band of Achaean immigrants to the area around Dascylium near Propontis. [30]
Gyges, son of Dascylus, who became king of Lydia after Candaules in 680 BC, was a native of Dascylium. [31]
Gyges, who became king of Lydia, captured Ionian towns one after another, but this was because the Achaeans and Ionians were enemies. [32]
2.7 Colonization of Gras
Colonization by the descendants of Orestes continued after the return of the Heracleidae, and the Lacedaemonians supported the colonization of Gras, son of Archelaus, son of Penthilus. [33]
The immigrants to Aeolis may have included Lacedaemonians, Sparta's ancient inhabitants. Even though the rulers changed, the connection between Sparta and its colonies was likely maintained.
In 1055 BC, Archelaus' son Gras campaigned as far as the Granicus River, recaptured Lesbos, and took possession of Aeolis between Mysia and Ionia. [34]
The wife of Helicaon, brother of Hypsipylus, who was killed by Achilles in Lesbos, was Priam's daughter Laodice, and Lesbos had strong connections with the Trojans. [35]
2.8 12 Cities of Aeolis
According to the 5th century BC historian Herodotus, the 12 cities of Aeolis are:
Phryconian Cyme, Larissa, Neonteichus, Temnus, Cilla, Notium, Aegiroessa, Pitane, Aegaeae, Myrina, Gryneia [36]
3 Ionians colonize Asia Minor (1073-43 BC)
When Codrus, the 17th king of Athens, died, his eldest son Medon succeeded his father. His other brothers, along with Neileus, led a group of colonists on an expedition to find land that would accommodate the overflowing people of Athens. [37]
They migrated to the region south of Aeolis, where the Achaeans settled after the fall of Troy.
The region was inhabited by Carians in ancient times. [38]
In 1426 BC, Astypalaea, daughter of Cadmus's half-brother Phoenix, married a ruler of the area and had a son, Ancaeus. Along with Astypalaea, the people who settled there became known as Leleges. [39]
Ionian colonization of Asia Minor took place several times between 1073 BC and 1043 BC.
Apollodorus of Athens tells us that there were 267 years between the Ionian migration and the first Olympiad (776 BC), and 1043 BC was the year in which the Ionian migration was completed. [40]
Castor of Rhodes tells us that there was a period of 60 years between the return of the Heracleidae and the migration of the Ionians. [41]
It is estimated that Tisamenus, son of Orestes of Sparta, surrendered the city to the Heracleidae in 1104 BC.
Therefore, if Castor's theory is the year in which the Ionians completed their migration, it would roughly match Apollodorus' theory. [42]
3.1 Colony participants other than Ionians
Most of the Asia Minor immigrants to Ionia were Ionians who had long lived in the northern part of the Peloponnesus peninsula and were chased by the Achaeans and migrated to Athens.
However, the following tribes also migrated to Asia Minor along with the Ionians. [43]
3.1.1 Abantes
The Abantes, who joined the emigrant group from Euboea, were the second largest group after the Ionians. [44]
The Abantes were originally Pelasgians living in Argos. Abantes was named after Abas, the father of Chalcodon, who migrated to Euboea from Abae, founded in Phocis by Abas, son of Hypermnestra, daughter of Danaus. [45]
Although the Abantes and Ionians have no racial ties at all, it is thought that they had a close connection from the following points.
1) Chalciope, one of the wives of Aegeus, the 9th king of Athens, was the daughter of Chalcodon, son of Abas. [46]
2) The sons of Theseus, the 10th king of Athens, took refuge with Elephenor, son of Chalcodon. [47]
3.1.2 Minyans
In 1188 BC, the Hyantes of Hyampolis of Phocis invaded Orchomenus. The Minyans, driven from the city, migrated to Ionia and founded Teos, led by Athamas, a descendant of Athamas, son of Aeolus. [48]
Some of the Minyans were accepted into Athens and lived in Munychia. [49]
In 1126 BC, the Boeotians returned from Arne of Thessaly to Boeotia, expelling the Pelasgians of Coroneia and annexing Orchomenus as well. [50]
At this time, the Minyans who lived in Athens returned to Orchomenus.
However, some Minyans remained in Athens and later joined the Ionian colonization efforts. [51]
3.1.3 Cadmeians
The Cadmeians, led by Philotas, a descendant of Peneleus, the grandfather of Damasichthon, the grandfather of Xanthus, the last king of Thebes, also migrated with the Ionians. [52]
3.1.4 Other races
Along with the Ionians, the Dryopians, Phocians (other than the Delphians), Molossians, Arcadians, and the new inhabitants of Epidaurus, the Dorians, also participated in the migration. [53]
3.2 12 cities of Ionia
The Ionians founded as many towns on the coasts of Lydia and Caria in Asia Minor as the 12 towns in the northern Peloponnesus before being chased away by the Achaeans. [54]
Before the Ionians, the regions south of Ephesus were inhabited by the Carians, and the regions to the north were inhabited by the Leleges. [55]
3.2.1 Miletus
3.2.1.1 Before Ionian migration
3.2.1.1.1 First Greeks
Ancaeus, son of Astypalaea, daughter of Cadmus' brother Phoenix, was king of the Leleges. Ancaeus' wife Samia was the daughter of the river god Maeander. [56]
In ancient times, Miletus was called Lelegeis and was the residence of the Leleges. [57]
From the above, it is assumed that Ancaeus ruled Miletus, where the Maeander River flows.
Leleges was the name given to mixed-race people who did not belong to any particular tribe. [58]
In other words, the people Ancaeus ruled were mixed-race Greeks who cohabited with the indigenous Carians. [59]
Anax, likely the son of Ancaeus, succeeded his father, and Miletus was called Anactria. [60]
3.2.1.1.2 Dependency on Hittite
In 1318 BC, the Hittite king Mursili II attacked and captured Miletus. [61]
The reason for this battle was that Miletus was allied with Uhha-Ziti, who were rebelling against the Hittites. [62]
Asterius, son of Anax, fled to an island near Lade, which was in front of Miletus, and died. [63]
Also, Cleochus, believed to be the son of Anax, joined Uhha-Ziti's army.
Cleochus was then defeated in a battle with Mursili II and taken prisoner by the Hittite forces along with Uhha-Ziti's son Piyama-Kurunta. [64]
Cleochus' future fate is unknown, but he was buried in the Didymaeum near Miletus. [65]
Cleochus' daughter Aria fled to Crete, and a son Miletus was born to her. [66]
3.2.1.1.3 Independence from Hittite
In 1295 BC, Miletus, son of Aria, with the help of Minos' brother Sarpedon, migrated from Crete to Asia Minor and restored his grandfather's former territory. [67]
Erginus, son of Miletus, deepened his relationship with Troy by taking Hesione, daughter of Laomedon, as his wife. [68]
3.2.1.1.4 Subordination to Hittite again
When Miletus died, the town of Miletus again became a vassal of the Hittites.
However, Erginus, the son of Miletus, whose father was an enemy of the Hittite king, was left in charge of Miletus by the Hittite king. [69]
It is assumed that Erginus was forgiven because his wife was the daughter of Laomedon, king of Troy.
3.2.1.1.5 Trojan War Era
Achilles, son of Peleus, attacked Miletus and killed Trambelus, king of Leleges. [70]
Trambelus' mother was Hesione, daughter of Laomedon, who had inherited Miletus from Erginus. [71]
3.2.1.2 Ionian migration
In 1073 BC, Neileus, son of Codrus, set out from the Prytaneum for the New World as part of an official emigrant party sent by Athens. [72]
Neileus' immigrant group was a group of young people that did not include women. [73]
Miletus, the settlement of Neileus who fought for the succession of Codrus, king of Athens, failed to become the royal capital of Ionia. [74]
This was because Miletus was not in the center of Ionia, and its inhabitants were not Ionians, but Messenians, who had immigrated to Athens with Melanthus, the father of Codrus. [75]
Later, the sage Thales of Miletus argued that it should be made the central city of Ionia. [76]
Philistus, son of Pasicles, who accompanied Neileus, built the temple of Ceres of Eleusis in the land of Scolopoeis, near Miletus. [77]
3.2.2 Myus
In 1080 BC, Cydrelus (or Cyaretus), the illegitimate son of Codrus, had a falling out with Neileus and moved to land a short distance up the Maeander River from Miletus and founded Myus. [78]
3.2.3 Ephesus
3.2.3.1 Before the Ionians Immigration
At the time of the Troyan War, it was called Alope and was inhabited by Carians and Legeges. [79]
Apasa, the capital of Arzawa mentioned in Hittite texts, appears to be an old name for Ephesus. [80]
The founders of Apasa were probably the Carians.
In 1318 BC, Apasa fell to Hittite forces and its inhabitants were expelled. [81]
Afterwards, 1,000 slaves of Samos settled in Ephesus. [82]
In 1150 BC, the Amazons led by Smyrna attacked Ephesus and burned the temple. [83]
Otrera of the Amazons built a temple to Diana, one of the Seven wonders of the world. [84]
Many historical sources say that the Amazons founded Ephesus. [85]
However, neither founder was Greek.
3.2.3.2 Ionian migration
In 1068 BC, Androclus, son of Codrus, expelled the Carians and Leleges and founded Ephesus, which became the royal capital of Ionia. [86]
Some of the settlers were originally from Messenia and settled in the Smyrna district of Ephesus, but they moved north of the city, across the Meles River, and founded Smyrna. [87]
In 1053 BC, Androclus led the Ephesians to rescue Priene, which was attacked by the Carians, and was victorious, but Androclus was killed in battle. [88]
Then a conflict arose between the sons of Androclus and other Ephesians, and the opponents countered by accepting colonists from Teos and Carine of Mysia. As a result, the Ephesians became five tribes. In other words, in addition to the original Ephesians, there are Bennaeans, Euonymous, Teians, and Carineans. [89]
3.2.4 Lebedus
In 1068 BC, Andraemon, son of Codrus, expelled the Carians and founded Lebedus. [90]
3.2.5 Colophon
3.2.5.1 Before Ionian migration
In 1200 BC, Rhacius, son of Lebes, led a group of immigrants from Crete to the mainland between Chios and Samos, where he founded Colophon. [91]
Lebes was a Mycenian, and seems to have been the son of Iphitus, son of Sthenelus of Mycenae. [92]
In 1196 BC, shortly after Rhacius settled in Colophon, the Boeotians who had been taken captive by Epigoni migrated there and lived with the Cretans. Among them was Manto (or Daphne), the daughter of Tiresias, the seer of Thebes, who married Rhacius and bore him a son, Mopsus, who became a greater prophet than Calchas, who served Agamemnon. [93]
After the fall of Troy in 1186 BC, Polypoetes, son of Peirithous, and Leonteus, son of Coronus, who had joined the expedition from Thessaly, did not return to their homeland, but instead settled in Colophon. [94]
3.2.5.2 Ionian migration
In 1065 BC, two sons of Codrus, Damasichthon and Promethus, led the Ionians to Colophon, where they were allowed to live with the Cretans. [95]
At the time of the Ionian migration, the descendants of Rhacius ruled Colophon. Colophon was then ruled by two sons of Codrus, either because many of its inhabitants became Ionians or because it joined the Ionian League. [96]
3.2.6 Priene
In 1060 BC, Aepytus, son of Neileus, son of Codrus, of Miletus, led the Ionians and founded Priene.
In 1053 BC, Priene was attacked by the Carians, and Androclus from Ephesus came to the rescue and won the battle, but Androclus was killed in battle. [97]
In 1043 BC, Philotas, a descendant of Peneleus, son of Hippalcimus, led a group of immigrants from Thebes and rebuilt the city. [98]
Bias, son of Teutames, who is listed as the first of the Seven Sages by his early 2nd century BC biographer Satyrus, was a descendant of the settlers at this time. [99]
The early inhabitants of Priene included many from Helice of Achaia, and the Panionium was dedicated to the Heliconian Neptune. [100]
3.2.7 Teos
3.2.7.1 Emigration of Orchomenians
In 1188 BC, some of the inhabitants of Orchomenus, chased by the Thracians, migrated to Ionia and founded Teos, led by Athamas, a descendant of Athamas, son of Aeolus. [101]
Immediately to the east of Teos was Colophon, where the Boeotians who had been taken captive in the Epigoni attack on Thebes had settled some time before. [102]
3.2.7.2 Ionian migration
In 1065 BC, the Ionians, led by Codrus' illegitimate son Nauclus, first settled Teos.
In 1060 BC, it was settled by the Ionians, led by Damasus, brother of Nauclus, and Apoecus, great-grandson of Melanthus, and the Boeotians, led by the Boeotian Geres. [103]
3.2.8 Erythrae
3.2.8.1 Before the Ionian Immigration
In 1260 BC, Erythrus, son of Rhadamanthus (or Rhadamanthys), led a group of immigrants from Crete and settled on the other side of Chios, where he founded Erythrae. The town was cohabited by the Carians, who were friendly to the Cretans, and by a people called the Lycians, who had been expelled by Minos and immigrated with Sarpedon some time before. [104]
The 5th century BC historian Hellanicus says that Neileus, the son of Codrus, founded Erythrae, and it is likely that he rebuilt the old town. [105]
3.2.8.2 Ionian migration
In 1060 BC, Codrus' illegitimate son Cnopus gathered people from all the towns of Ionia and brought them to Erythrae to live together, and the town was called Cnopopolis. [106]
Erythrae is also said to be a colony of the town of the same name in Boeotia. [107]
3.2.9 Clazomenae
In 1050 BC, the Ionians who came to Asia invited Paralus (or Parphorus) of Colophon as their leader and first built a town at the foot of Mount Ida. However, he abandoned this town and built Scyppium near Colophon. Afterwards, he founded Clazomenae on land that was not yet inhabited. [108]
Most of the Ionians of Clazomenae were Cleonae of Argolis and Achaeans of Phlius, who were chased by the Heracleidae. Paralus appears to be a descendant of Codrus, as Clazomenae is a member of the Ionian League. [109]
3.2.10 Phocaea
In 1080 BC, Euctemon's two sons, Philogenes and Damon, were part of the first immigrant group of Neileus, son of Codrus, but they separated. They led the Phocians of Phocis to the uninhabited lands of southern Aeolis and founded Phocaea. [110]
The land was under the control of Cyme Phricium, founded in 1126 BC by Agamemnon's great-grandson Malaus, who led the people living at the foot of Phricium in Locris, expelling the native Pelasgians. It seems that they were given land out of respect for their former hometown. [111]
Later, the inhabitants of Phocaea offered to join the Ionian League, but were granted membership by having a descendant of Codrus as king.
From Erythrae and Teos he took as king the descendants of Codrus, Deoetes, Periclus, and Abartus. The timing of Phocaea's accession to the Ionian League is unknown, but it was after the settlements of Erythrae and Teos. [112]
Phocaea joined the Ionian League much later, as shipping developed and a conflict of interest with Cyme arose. [113]
3.2.11 Samos
3.2.11.1 Before Ionian migration
In 1365 BC, Macareus' son Cydrolaus migrated from Lesbos to Samos. [114]
The native inhabitants of the island prior to this migration appear to have migrated to Ephesus. [115]
In 1248 BC, Ancaeus, son of Astypalaea, from Samos took part in the expedition of the Argonauts, together with his brother Erginus of Miletus. [116]
Legend has it that the Argonauts brought back a statue of Hera from Argos and founded the shrine of Hera in Samos. [117]
In 1213 BC, Eurystheus' daughter Admete, a priestess of the Temple of Hera in Argos, moved to Samos. [118]
3.2.11.2 Ionian migration
In 1095 BC, Procles, son of Pityreus, led most of the original Epidaurus population from Athens and settled in Samos, founding the town of Samos. [119]
The city of Samos was founded by Tembrion and later rebuilt by Procles. [120]
Procles' father, Pityreus, was a descendant of Ion, son of Xuthus, who had been driven from Epidaurus in Argolis by the Heracleidae in 1102 BC, and had migrated to Athens, where his kin lived. [121]
However, the Heracleidae expelled the inhabitants from Epidaurus and settled them with Ionians who had accompanied the Heracleidae expedition from Attica.
Epidaurus had previously been ruled by Pityreus, a descendant of Ion, son of Xuthus, and many of its inhabitants are thought to have been Achaeans.
Of the four dialects of Ionia, only the Samians spoke a unique dialect. [122]
In 1087 BC, Hippasus, leader of Phlius in Argolis, migrated to Samos after being chased by the Heracleidae. Hippasus was the ancestor of the famous Pythagoras. [123]
3.2.11.3 Emigration from the island and return
In 1070 BC, the Ephesians led by Androclus invaded the island, claiming that Leogorus, son of Procles, was plotting with the Carians against the Ionians.
Some of the Samians emigrated to Samothrace, while the rest went to the mainland with Leogorus and settled on the other side of the island, in the Amazons at the burial site of Anaea and on the Mycale peninsula. [124]
Some of the Samians who migrated to Samothrace founded Perintus on the northern coast of the Propontis Sea. [125]
In 1060 BC, the expelled people from Samos drove the Ephesians from the island and reclaimed it. [126]
Samos joined the Ionian League after this.
3.2.12 Chios
3.2.12.1 Before the Ionian Immigration
In 1390 BC, the Pelasgians, who lived in Thessaly, were chased by the Aeolis and migrated elsewhere. [126-1]
Some of the Pelasgians migrated to Chios. [126-2]
In 1370 BC, the eldest son of Macareus of Lesbos settled Chios, inhabited by Carians and Leleges. He married Parthenope, daughter of Ancaeus, son of Astypalaea, daughter of Phoenix, son of Agenor, and they had a son, Chios. [127]
Xerxes' army that invaded Greece in 480 BC included the Pelasgians of Chios. They were Pelasgians who migrated from Peloponnesus to Lesbos with Macareus, and later to Chios with Macareus' eldest son. [128]
In 1250 BC, Oenopion, son of Minos' daughter Ariadne, settled Chios from Naxos. [129]
3.2.12.2 Ionian migration
In 1060 BC, Amphiclus of Histiaea from Euboea settled Chios. [130]
In 970 BC, Hector, the fourth generation from Amphiclus, expelled the Abantes and Carians from Chios and joined the Ionian League. [131]
Pausanias notes that he does not know why Hector was able to join the alliance, but it was because the people he ruled were Ionians. [132]
Hector's ancestor Amphiclus was the brother of Ellops, who led a group of immigrants from Athens to Euboea and founded Ellopia. [133]
Ellops also took control of nearby Histiaea, and Amphiclus moved to Chios, leading the town's inhabitants and a number of other migrants from Athens. [134]
Ellops was the son of Xuthus (or Ion), and by race he was a Phoenician, belonging to a tribe called the Gephyraeans. [135]
In 1415 BC, Eumolpus invaded Attica, and the Athenians briefly took refuge near Tanagra in Boeotia, where the Gephyraeans lived and were accepted by the Gephyraeans. [136]
In 1200 BC, the Gephyraeans around Tanagra were chased by the Boeotians and fled to Athens, where they were accepted as citizens. [137]
The Gephyraeans who fled to Athens were led by the sons of Astacus of Sparti, Ismarus, Leades, and Amphidicus, and Xuthus, the father of Ellops, was their descendant. [138]
3.2.12.3 Founding of Chios
After Chios joined the Ionian League, Egertius led a motley group of settlers to the island and founded the town of Chios. [139]
3.2.13 Smyrna
3.2.13.1 Before Ionian migration
Herodotus tells us that Tyrrhenus, the son of Atys, led a group of immigrants and sailed from Smyrna to Italy. This happened in 1300 BC, and at that time there was no Smyrna. [140]
In that land flows the river Meles, named after Meles, king of Lydia, and was inhabited by the Leleges. [141]
3.2.13.2 Founding of Smyrna
In 1075 BC, Androclus, the illegitimate son of Codrus, expelled the Carians and Leleges and founded Ephesus. [142]
Among the settlers was a native of Pyllus in Messenia, who resided in the Smyrna district of Ephesus. Later, the residents of the Smyrna district built Smyrna on the north side of the Meles River. [143]
3.2.13.3 State before the foundation of Smyrna
Before the Trojan War, the region was inhabited by the Pelasgians, led by the two sons of Lethus, Pylaeus and Hippothous.
In 1126 BC, Agamemnon's great-grandson Malaus led the Aeolis who lived around Mount Phricius in the Epicnemidian Locris to colonize Mysia. [144]
They conquered the Pelasgians, who ruled a vast area around Larissa in the Hermus River basin, and founded Cyme (Phryconian Cyme, Cyme Phriconis). [145]
The Pelasgians are said to have ruled as far as the Mycale peninsula on the opposite coast of Samos, and are thought to have lived together with the Carians and Leleges. [146]
Herodotus may have recognized Smyrna as a town founded by the Aeolis, since the Cyme people who had driven out the Pelasgians extended as far as the Meles River. [147]
3.2.13.4 Founding Date of Smyrna
It is estimated that Smyrna was founded around the time that Phocaea joined the Ionian League.
In 826 BC, Cyme levied port fees later than other towns. [148]
It is thought that before that, shipping became popular and the number of ships using the port increased.
It is assumed that the reason they migrated from Ephesus and built Smyrna was because it had a good port and was convenient for shipping to the north. In order to travel by boat from Ephesus to Aeolis, it was necessary to make a major detour around the Mimas Peninsula. Alexander the Great also tried to build a canal at the base of the Mimas Peninsula, but was unsuccessful. [149]
Also, as shipping became more popular, conflicts arose between Phocaea, which had a good port, and the nearby Cyme, and Phocaea joined the Ionian League. [150]
3.2.13.5 Battle with Cyme
Until then, the Cymaeans, who had considered the area up to the Meles River their own, could not allow Smyrna to flourish.
The Cymaeans attacked Smyrna and drove out the inhabitants. The expelled people took refuge in Colophon, just before the mother city of Ephesus. Later, with the help of the people of that town, they recaptured Smyrna. [151]
At this time Melesigenes, the son of Maion, who had emigrated from Cyme and lived in Smyrna, was taken as a hostage to live in Colophon. He was an epic poet later called Homer. [152]
3.2.13.6 Membership in the Ionian League
Herodotus tells us that Smyrna, first founded as a city of Aeolis, was taken by Colophon, but he seems to have known only the latter part of the sequence of events. [153]
Around 733 BC, Smyrna was destroyed in an attack by the Lydians (probably during the reign of Ardys, son of Alyattes), and remained a village ever since.
About 400 years later, Antigonus built a new Smyrna on the south side of the Meles River by order of Alexander the Great. [154]
In 688 BC, athletes from Smyrna participated in the Olympic Games. [155]
Pausanias notes that at that time Smyrna was an Ionian town. [156]
Smyrna was the last Ionian town to join the Ionian League, becoming the 13th Ionian town. [157]
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