| Ardys of Lydia | |
|---|---|
| King ofLydia | |
| Reign | 644-637 BC |
| Predecessor | Gyges |
| Successor | Sadyattes |
| Died | 637 BC (?) |
| Issue | Sadyattes Lyde |
| Dynasty | Mermnad dynasty |
| Father | Gyges |
Ardys (Ancient Greek:Αρδυς,romanized: Ardus, alsoΑρδυσοςArdusos;Latin:Ardys,Ardysus; reigned 644–637 BC[1][2]) was the son ofGyges ofLydia, whom he succeeded as the second king of theMermnad dynasty.
The nameArdys is the Latin form ofArdus (Αρδυς), which is itself the Hellenised form of aLydian language name which was a cognate of either theHittite bird-nameardus[3] or of the Hittite word for descendant,ḫardu- (𒄩𒅈𒁺).[4]
During the 7th century BC, theCimmerians, a nomadic people from theEurasian Steppe who had invadedWestern Asia, attacked Lydia several times but had been repelled by Ardys's father, Gyges. In 644 BC, the Cimmerians attacked Lydia for the third time, led by their kingLygdamis. TheLydians were defeated, Sardis was sacked, and Ardys's father Gyges was killed, following which Ardys became the king of Lydia.[1]
On assuming kingship, Ardys resumed the diplomatic activity with theNeo-Assyrian Empire which Gyges had ended.[1] Ardys attacked theIonian Greek city ofMiletus and succeeded in capturing the city ofPriene, after which Priene would remain under direct rule of the Lydian kingdom until its end.[5][6]
Ardys's reign was short-lived, likely due to the period of severe crisis Lydia was facing because of the Cimmerian invasions.[2] In 637 BC, that is in Ardys's seventh regnal year, theThracianTreres tribe who had migrated across theThracian Bosporus and invadedAnatolia,[7] under their king Kobos, and in alliance with theCimmerians and theLycians, attacked Lydia.[1] They defeated the Lydians again and for a second time sacked the Lydian capital ofSardis, except for its citadel. It is probable that Ardys was killed during this Cimmerian attack, or that he was deposed because he was unable to successfully defend Lydia from the Cimmerian invasions.[2][8]
Ardys's son and successorSadyattes might have also been killed during another Cimmerian attack in 635 BC or deposed that year for being unable to protect Lydia from the Cimmerian attacks.[2]
Soon after 635 BC, with Assyrian approval[9] and in alliance with the Lydians,[10] theScythians under their kingMadyes entered Anatolia, expelled the Treres from Asia Minor, and defeated the Cimmerians so that they no longer constituted a threat again, following which the Scythians extended their domination to Central Anatolia[11] until they were themselves expelled by the Medes from Western Asia in the 600s BC.[1] This final defeat of the Cimmerians was carried out by the joint forces of Madyes, whomStrabo credits with expelling the Treres and Cimmerians from Asia Minor, and of Sadyattes’s son and Ardys’s grandson, the kingAlyattes of Lydia, whomHerodotus of Halicarnassus andPolyaenus claim finally defeated the Cimmerians.[12][13]
A Scythian army, acting in conformity with Assyrian policy, entered Pontis to crush the last of the Cimmerians
Mermnad dynasty Died: 637 BC | ||
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | King ofLydia 644–637 BC | Succeeded by |