Thirty-first Dynasty of Egypt

The Thirty-first Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XXXI, alternatively 31st Dynasty or Dynasty 31), also known as the Second Egyptian Satrapy, was effectively a satrapy of the Achaemenid Persian Empire between 343 BC to 332 BC. It was founded by Artaxerxes III, the King of Persia, after his reconquest of Egypt and subsequent crowning as Pharaoh of Egypt, and was disestablished upon the conquest of Egypt by Alexander the Great.

Thirty-first Dynasty of Egypt
(Achaemenid Egypt)
Satrapy of the Achaemenid Empire
343 BC–332 BC

Standard of Cyrus the Great

Western part of the Achaemenid Empire, with the territories of Egypt.[1][2][3][4]
Government
Pharaoh 
• 343–338 BC
Artaxerxes III (first)
• 336–332 BC
Darius III (last)
Historical eraAchaemenid era
• Conquests of Artaxerxes III
343 BC
• Conquests of Alexander the Great
332 BC
Preceded by		Succeeded by
Thirtieth dynasty of Egypt
Macedonian Empire
Ptolemaic Kingdom

The period of the 31st Dynasty was the second occasion in which Persian pharaohs ruled Egypt, hence the term "Second Egyptian Satrapy". Before the 31st Dynasty was founded, Egypt had enjoyed a brief period of independence, during which three indigenous dynasties reigned (the 28th, 29th, and 30th dynasties). The period before this is referred to as the "First Egyptian Satrapy" or the 27th Dynasty (525–404 BC).

History

First Egyptian Campaign

In around 351 BC, Artaxerxes embarked on a campaign to recover Egypt, which had revolted under his father, Artaxerxes II. At the same time a rebellion had broken out in Asia Minor, which, being supported by Thebes, threatened to become serious.[5] Levying a vast army, Artaxerxes marched into Egypt, and engaged Nectanebo II. After a year of fighting the Egyptian Pharaoh, Nectanebo inflicted a crushing defeat on the Persians with the support of mercenaries led by the Greek generals Diophantus and Lamius.[6] Artaxerxes was compelled to retreat and postpone his plans to reconquer Egypt.

Second Egyptian Campaign
Artaxerxes III as Pharaoh, satrapal coinage of Cilicia.[7]
The Svenigorodsky cylinder seal depicting a Persian king thrusting his lance at an Egyptian pharaoh, while holding four other Egyptian captives on a rope.[8][9][10]

In 343 BC, Artaxerxes, in addition to his 330,000 Persians, had now a force of 14,000 Greeks furnished by the Greek cities of Asia Minor: 4,000 under Mentor, consisting of the troops which he had brought to the aid of Tennes from Egypt; 3,000 sent by Argos; and 1000 from Thebes. He divided these troops into three bodies, and placed at the head of each a Persian and a Greek. The Greek commanders were Lacrates of Thebes, Mentor of Rhodes and Nicostratus of Argos while the Persians were led by Rhossaces, Aristazanes, and Bagoas, the chief of the eunuchs. Nectanebo II resisted with an army of 100,000 of whom 20,000 were Greek mercenaries. Nectanebo II occupied the Nile and its various branches with his large navy. The character of the country, intersected by numerous canals, and full of strongly fortified towns, was in his favour and Nectanebo II might have been expected to offer a prolonged, if not even a successful, resistance. But he lacked good generals, and over-confident in his own powers of command, he found himself out-manoeuvered by the Greek mercenary generals. His forces were eventually defeated by the combined Persian armies at the Battle of Pelusium (343 BC).[11]

Probable portrait of young Artaxerxes IV as Pharaoh, wearing the Pharaonic crown.[7]

After his defeat, Nectanebo hastily fled to Memphis, leaving the fortified towns to be defended by their garrisons. These garrisons consisted of partly Greek and partly Egyptian troops, between whom jealousies and suspicions were easily sown by the Persian leaders. As a result, the Persians were able to rapidly defeat numerous towns across Lower Egypt and were advancing upon Memphis when Nectanebo decided to quit the country and flee southwards to Ethiopia.[11] The Persian army then completely routed the Egyptians and occupied the Lower Delta of the Nile. Following Nectanebo's flight to Ethiopia, all of Egypt submitted to Artaxerxes. The Jews in Egypt were sent either to Babylon or to the south coast of the Caspian Sea, the same location where the Jews of Phoenicia had earlier been sent.

After this victory over the Egyptians, Artaxerxes had the city walls destroyed, started a reign of terror, and set about looting all the temples. Persia gained a significant amount of wealth from this looting. Artaxerxes also imposed high taxes and attempted to weaken Egypt enough that it could never revolt against Persia again. During the 10 years that Persia controlled Egypt, believers in the native religion were persecuted and sacred books were stolen.[12] Before he returned to Persia, he appointed Pherendares as satrap of Egypt. With the wealth gained from his reconquest of Egypt, Artaxerxes was able to amply reward his mercenaries. He then returned to his capital, having successfully completed his invasion and occupation of Egypt.

Satrapal rule in Egypt
Portrait of Sabaces, Achaemenid satrap of Egypt, from his coinage. Circa 340-333 BC. Achaemenid Egypt.

It is not known who served as satrap after Artaxerxes III, but Pherendates II was an early satrap of Egypt. Under Darius III (336–330 BC) there was Sabaces, who fought and died at Issus and was succeeded by Mazaces. Egyptians also fought at Issus, for example, the nobleman Somtutefnekhet of Heracleopolis, who described on the "Naples stele" how he escaped during the battle against the Greeks and how Arsaphes, the god of his city, protected him and allowed him to return home.

In 332 BC, Mazaces handed over the country to Alexander the Great without a fight. The Achaemenid empire had ended, and for a while Egypt was a satrapy in Alexander's empire. Later the Ptolemies and the Romans successively ruled the Nile valley.

Culture
Egyptian man in a Persian costume, c. 343–332 BC, accession number 71.139, Brooklyn Museum.[13]

Occasionally Egyptians wore foreign costumes and jewelry. The taste for non-Egyptian fashion arose during periods of extensive trade or diplomatic contact with distant courts, or when Egypt was controlled by a foreign power. The Persians, who twice invaded the Nile Valley from their Iranian homeland, dominated Egypt during Dynasty 27 (525–404 BC) and Dynasty 31 (342–332 BC). This statue to the left dates to the later period of Persian rule in Egypt.[13]

According to the Brooklyn Museum, "the long skirt shown wrapped around this statue's body and tucked in at the upper edge of the garment is typically Persian. The necklace, called a torque, is decorated with images of ibexes, symbols in ancient Persia of agility and sexual prowess. The depiction of this official in Persian dress may have been a demonstration of loyalty to the new rulers."[13]

Coinage

Achaemenid Egyptian coinage
  • Coin of Satrap Sabakes, in imitation of Athenian coinage. Circa 340-333 BC. Achaemenid Egypt.
  • Coin of Satrap Sabakes. Achaemenid Egypt. Circa 335-333 BC

Cilician coinage with Achaemenid rulers as Pharaohs

Pharaohs of the 31st Dynasty
Name of Pharaoh Image Reign Throne Name Comments
Artaxerxes III 343–338 BC Placed Egypt under Persian rule for a second time
Artaxerxes IV 338–336 BC Only reigned in Lower Egypt
Khababash 338–335 BC Senen-setepu-ni-ptah Led a revolt against Persian rule in Upper Egypt, declared himself Pharaoh
Darius III 336–332 BC Upper Egypt returned to Persian control in 335 BC

Timeline of the 31st Dynasty (Achaemenid Pharaohs only)
Darius IIIArtaxerxes IVArtaxerxes III

Satraps of the 31st Dynasty
Periods and Dynasties of Ancient Egypt
All years are BC
Early
Pre-dynastic period
First Dynasty I c. 3150–2890
Second Dynasty II 2890–2686
Old Kingdom
Third Dynasty III 2686–2613
Fourth Dynasty IV 2613–2498
Fifth Dynasty V 2498–2345
Sixth Dynasty VI 2345–2181
First Intermediate
Seventh Dynasty VII spurious
Eighth Dynasty VIII 2181–2160
Ninth Dynasty IX 2160–2130
Tenth Dynasty X 2130–2040
Early Eleventh Dynasty XI 2134–2061
Middle Kingdom
Late Eleventh Dynasty XI 2061–1991
Twelfth Dynasty XII 1991–1803
Thirteenth Dynasty XIII 1803–1649
Fourteenth Dynasty XIV 1705–1690
Second Intermediate
Fifteenth Dynasty XV 1674–1535
Sixteenth Dynasty XVI 1660–1600
Abydos Dynasty 1650–1600
Seventeenth Dynasty XVII 1580–1549
New Kingdom
Eighteenth Dynasty XVIII 1549–1292
Nineteenth Dynasty XIX 1292–1189
Twentieth Dynasty XX 1189–1077
Third Intermediate
Twenty-first Dynasty XXI 1069–945
Twenty-second Dynasty XXII 945–720
Twenty-third Dynasty XXIII 837–728
Twenty-fourth Dynasty XXIV 732–720
Twenty-fifth Dynasty XXV 732–653
Late Period
Twenty-sixth Dynasty XXVI 672–525
XXVII 525–404
Twenty-eighth Dynasty XXVIII 404–398
Twenty-ninth Dynasty XXIX 398–380
Thirtieth Dynasty XXX 380–343
XXXI 343–332
Ptolemaic (Hellenistic)
Argead Dynasty 332–305
Ptolemaic Kingdom 305–30
See also: List of Pharaohs by Period and Dynasty
Periodization of Ancient Egypt
Name of satrap Rule Reigning monarch Comments
Pherendates II c.343–before 333 BC Artaxerxes III
Sabaces † 333 BC Darius III Killed in the battle of Issus
Mazaces c.333–332 BC Darius III

Sources

See also

References
  1. O'Brien, Patrick Karl (2002). Atlas of World History. Oxford University Press. pp. 42–43. ISBN 9780195219210.
  2. Philip's Atlas of World History. 1999.
  3. Davidson, Peter (2018). Atlas of Empires: The World's Great Powers from Ancient Times to Today. i5 Publishing LLC. ISBN 9781620082881.
  4. Barraclough, Geoffrey (1989). The Times Atlas of World History. Times Books. p. 79. ISBN 0723003041.
  5. Artaxerxes III PersianEmpire.info History of the Persian Empire
  6. Miller, James M. (1986). A History of Ancient Israel and Judah. John Haralson Hayes (photographer). Westminster John Knox Press. pp. 465. ISBN 0-664-21262-X.
  7. Kovacs, Frank L. (2002). "Two Persian Pharaonic Portraits". Jahrbuch für Numismatik und Geldgeschichte. R. Pflaum. pp. 55–60.
  8. "a Persian hero slaughtering an Egyptian pharaoh while leading four other Egyptian captives" Hartley, Charles W.; Yazicioğlu, G. Bike; Smith, Adam T. (2012). The Archaeology of Power and Politics in Eurasia: Regimes and Revolutions. Cambridge University Press. p. ix, photograph 4.6. ISBN 9781139789387.
  9. "Victor, apparently wearing the tall Persian headdress rather than a crown, leads four bareheaded Egyptian captives by a rope tied to his belt. Victor spears a figure wearing Egyptian type crown." in Root, Margaret Cool (1979). The king and kingship in Achaemenid art: essays on the creation of an iconography of empire. Diffusion, E.J. Brill. p. 182. ISBN 9789004039025.
  10. "Another seal, also from Egypt, shows a Persian king, his left hand grasping an Egyptian with an Egyptian hairdo (pschent), whom he thrusts through with his lance while holding four prisoners with a rope around their necks." Briant, Pierre (2002). From Cyrus to Alexander: A History of the Persian Empire. Eisenbrauns. p. 215. ISBN 9781575061207.
  11. "Artaxerxes III Ochus ( 358 BC to 338 BC )". Retrieved March 2, 2008.
  12. "Persian Period II". Archived from the original on February 17, 2008. Retrieved March 6, 2008.
  13. "The long skirt shown wrapped around this statue’s body and tucked in at the upper edge of the garment is typically Persian. The necklace, called a torque, is decorated with images of ibexes, symbols in ancient Persia of agility and sexual prowess. The depiction of this official in Persian dress may have been a demonstration of loyalty to the new rulers." "Egyptian Man in a Persian Costume". www.brooklynmuseum.org. Brooklyn Museum.
  14. CNG: CILICIA, Myriandros. Mazaios. Satrap of Cilicia, 361/0-334 BC. AR Obol (10mm, 0.64 g).
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