India, Persia &
Greek Hellenisation
Nanda Empire · Mahabharata · Vasco da Gama · Ptolemaic Egypt · Seleucid Empire
India's long history of warfare has a important series of colonisations recently with the Portuguese (1505–1961) and Britain (1612–1947). European occupation started with the Macedonian army of Alexander the Great however in 327–326 BC, with which he assimilated a part temporarily within the satrapies of his Maced-Persian Empire (begun under Cyrus the Great, 530 BCE). Seeking to reach the "ends of the world and the Great Outer Sea" Alexanders army was trumped by the Nanda empire and returned west only for Alex to die suspiciously in Babylon in 323 BC on return. Initially having proposed a march further east to conquer the old empire of Magadha and Gangaridai, which would have brought him to the doorstep of Burma and Thailand; however though across the Ganga the Kings of the Ganderites and Praesii were awaiting his army with eighty thousand horsemen, two hundred thousand footmen, eight thousand chariots, and six thousand war elephants. General Coenus masterminded the retreat, with further victories on return, but affixing Alexanders duty mostly in placating the Persian leaders with the Macedonian veterans.
As far as historical records tell this, its unknown, though of oral traditions, however dramatised, Indias mighty history of warfare stems with closely assimilated trading and inter-cultural traditions from Burma and SE Asia all the way west to Persia. The Indian history is the most long and complex of any in the world starting before 3102 BCE with Arjuna and the Pandavas. Most likely mythic Arjuna was a confluence of the first military general, and a mixing of personas from a historical Arjuna. Probably he was the most gallant suitor of a young lady ever remembered, and capture of her priest-King father. Arjuna is the shining one or famous like silver, born into the royal family of Hastinapura. He was acknowledged as a son of Pandu by his first wife Kunti, Arjuna was the third son, after Yudhishthira and Bhima. Younger to him were the twin sons. Receiving tutelage from Drona, in homage Arjuna and his brothers, attacked Panchal and captured King Drupada, who was so impressed by Arjuna he bid he marry his daughter, Draupadi (beginning the epic of the Mahabharata). Likely in fact just a trick knowing Arjunas' real fondness; after courtship of Draupadi he went off for a twelve year pilgrimage. Having met his cousin Krishna then, Arjuna and Subhadra would elope, Subhadra giving birth to a son: Abhimanyu. Perhaps by another account (and into the epic of Bhagavad Gita), Arjuna was actually sent into exile (perhaps both happened consequentially). Later Arjuna, considered powerful enough to be an emperor; subjugated the kingdoms of Indraprastha in the Kurukshetra war.
Called "the jewel in the British crown" Britain claimed a significant fortune from the Spice and Gem rich subcontinent out of Bombay, and alongside the Portuguese based in Goa. Riches in spice trade between India and Europe was the main inspiration for the discovery of the Americas by Christopher Columbus in 1492 in fact. Portuguese sailor Vasco da Gama became the first European to re-establish direct trade links with India since Roman times by being the first to arrive by circumnavigating Africa (1497–1499). Having arrived in Calicut, which by then was one of the major trading ports of the eastern world, he obtained permission to trade in the city from Saamoothiri Rajah. Roman and Greek traders frequented the ancient Tamil country (present day Southern India and Sri Lanka) securing trade with the seafaring Tamil states of the Pandyan, Chola and Chera dynasties, and establishing trading settlements which secured trade with South Asia by the Greco-Roman world, lost since the time of the Ptolemaic dynasty.
The Ptolemaic Dynasty — Egypt to Cleopatra
Ptolemy, one of the six somatophylakes (bodyguards) who served as Alexander the Great's generals and deputies, was appointed satrap of Egypt after Alexander's death in 323 BC. In 305 BC, he declared himself King Ptolemy I, later known as "Soter" (saviour). The Egyptians soon accepted the Ptolemies as the successors to the pharaohs of independent Egypt. Ptolemy's family ruled Egypt until the Roman conquest of 30 BC. All the male rulers of the dynasty took the name Ptolemy. Ptolemaic queens, some of whom were the sisters of their husbands, were usually called Cleopatra, Arsinoe or Berenice. Cleopatra VII co ruled with her son by Julius Ceasar; Ptolemy Caesar who only had rulership for 11 days before he was executed by Octavian, brought an end to Ptolemaic rule of Egypt.
The Seleucid Empire & HellenisationThe Greeks, Armenians, Persians, Medes, Assyrians, Jews and Indians were privileged with Hellenization which was a term for the historical spread of ancient Greek culture and, to a lesser extent, language, over foreign peoples conquered by Greece or brought into its sphere of influence.
The lands Alexander had subjugated became the Seleucid empire thereafter and though there are four ancient sources that describe the Partition of Babylon, the only complete account is Diodorus Siculus's Bibliotheca historica; the first to be written, c. 40 BC. The Greeks, Armenians, Persians, Medes, Assyrians, Jews and Indians were privileged with Hellenization which was a term for the historical spread of ancient Greek culture and, to a lesser extent, language, over foreign peoples conquered by Greece or brought into its sphere of influence. Attributed to the reign of Emperor Heraclius (r. 610–641) in the 7th century (Hellenization can also refer to the medieval Byzantine Empire and Constantine's founding of Constantinople - Eastern Roman Empire that was Hellenized), the practice didn't become commonplace until the fusion of Platonic and Aristotelian theology with Christianity.
Artwork by Midjourney.
Written by Jason Steven Jowett. Sourced from historical fact. This blog may not be reproduced in whole without the author's express permission. Copyright © 2024. greatbrittania.blogspot.com