| Phraortes | |
|---|---|
| King of the Medes | |
| Reign | 675 – 653 BC[2][3] |
| Predecessor | Deioces |
| Successor | Cyaxares |
| Died | 653 BC |
| Dynasty | Median dynasty |
| Father | Deioces |
| Religion | Ancient Iranian religion |
Phraortes,[a] son ofDeioces, was the second king of theMedian kingdom.
Like his father Deioces, Phraortes started wars againstAssyria, but was defeated and killed by the Assyrian king, probablyAshurbanipal (r. 669-631 BC).
All ancient information about him is fromHerodotus. According to him (1.102), Phraortes was the son of Deioces and united all Median tribes into a single state. He also subjugated thePersians andParthians and other nations ofancient Iran. He ruled for twenty-two years (c. 675 – c. 653 BC)[7] Media was then ruled by Scythians, allies of Assyria, for 28 years before Phraortes's son,Cyaxeres, overthrew Scythian domination and became king in 625.[7] Phraortes is commonly identified withKashtariti, a chieftain in Media, although some scholars consider such an identification doubtful.
Various scholars have identified Phraortes with the "Arphaxad, king of the Medes" in theBook of Judith.Fulcran Vigouroux identified the battle between "Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians" and "Arphaxad, the king of the Medes" as the battle that occurred between Ashurbanipal and Phraortes.[8] This battle occurred during the seventeenth year of Ashurbanipal's reign, and the book of Judith states that this battle occurred in the seventeenth year of "Nebuchadnezzar's" reign.Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet expressed a similar view regarding this.[9] As argued by Vigouroux, the two battles mentioned in theSeptuagint version of the Book of Judith are a reference to the clash of the two empires in 658–657 and to Phraortes' death in battle in 653, after which Ashurbanipal continued his military actions with a large campaign starting with theBattle of the Ulai River the same year.
