Attalid dynasty

Kingdom of Pergamon
← 282 BC–133 BC →
Coat of arms
Capital		Pergamon
Languages		Greek Lycian, Carian, Lydian
Government		Monarchy
King
•	282–263 BC	Philetaerus
•	263–241 BC	Eumenes I
•	241–197 BC	Attalus I
•	197–159 BC	Eumenes II
•	160–138 BC	Attalus II
•	138–133 BC	Attalus III
•	133–129 BC	Eumenes III
Historical era		Hellenistic period
•	Philetaerus takes control of the city of Pergamon	282 BC
•	Attalus III bequeathed the kingdom to the Roman Republic	133 BC

The Attalid dynasty (/ˈætəlᵻd/; Greek: Δυναστεία των Ατταλιδών) was a Hellenistic dynasty that ruled the city of Pergamon after the death of Lysimachus, a general of Alexander the Great. The Attalid kingdom was the rump state left after the collapse of the Lysimachian Empire. One of Lysimachus' officers, Philetaerus, took control of the city in 282 BC. The later Attalids were descended from his father, and they expanded the city into a kingdom. Attalus I proclaimed himself King in the 230s BC, following his victories over the Galatians. The Attalids ruled Pergamon until Attalus III bequeathed the kingdom to the Roman Republic in 133 BC^[1] to avoid a likely succession crisis. A war with Eumenes III resulted in the creation of Roman province of Asia over much of the territory.

On the interior of the Pergamon Altar is a frieze depicting the life of Telephus, son of Herakles, whom the ruling Attalid dynasty associated with its city and utilized to claim descent from the Olympians. Pergamon, having entered the Greek world much later than its counterparts to the west, could not boast the same divine heritage as older city-states, and retroactively had to cultivate its place in Greek mythology.

Dynasty of Pergamon

• Philetaerus (282–263 BC)
• Eumenes I (263–241 BC)
• Attalus I Soter (241–197 BC)
• Eumenes II (197–159 BC)
• Attalus II Philadelphus (160–138 BC)
• Attalus III (138–133 BC)
• Eumenes III Aristonicus (pretender, 133–129 BC)

Genealogy

Attalus

Boa

Philetaerus

Eumenes

Satyra

Attalus

Eumenes I

Philetaerus (?)

Attalus

Antiochis

Eumenes (?)

Attalus I

Apollonis

Stratonice

Eumenes II

(?)

Attalus II

Philetaerus

Athenaeus

Attalus III

Eumenes III

Namesakes

• Attalea in Lydia, Roman city, former diocese and present Latin Catholic titular bishopric; now Yanantepe
• Attalea in Pamphylia, Roman city, former diocese and present Latin Catholic titular bishopric; now Antalya

Notes

1. Shipley (2000) pp. 318-319.

Sources

• Shipley (2000). The Greek World After Alexander, 323-30 B.C.
• Hansen, Esther V. (1971). The Attalids of Pergamon. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press; London: Cornell University Press Ltd. ISBN 0-8014-0615-3.
• Kosmetatou, Elizabeth (2003) "The Attalids of Pergamon," in Andrew Erskine, ed., A Companion to the Hellenistic World. Oxford: Blackwell: pp. 159–174. ISBN 1-4051-3278-7. text

External links

• Media related to Attalid dynasty at Wikimedia Commons