1 Introduction
In 1750 BC, a great flood occurred in the upper reaches of the Cephisus River, north of Mount Parnassus.
The Ectenes, led by Ogygus, migrated downstream of the Cephisus River and settled southeast of Lake Copais. [1]
In 1580 BC, a group of Ectenes, led by the grandfather of Hellen's father, Deucalion, migrated north from Boeotia due to pressure from other tribes, including the Hyantes. Deucalion founded Pyrrha (later Melitaea) near the source of the Enipeus River, which flows from the south into the Peneius River in northern Thessaly. [2]
Deucalion had two sons, Hellen and Amphictyon. [3]
Hellen had three sons, Aeolus, Xuthus, and Dorus. [4]
Hellen's descendants grew in power, with Aeolus becoming the founder of the Aeolis and Dorus the Dorians. Xuthus had two sons, Achaeus and Ion. Achaeus became the founder of the Achaeans, and Ion became the founder of the Ionians. [5]
After Hellen's death, Aeolus and Dorus exiled their brother Xuthus. [6]
In 1470 BC, Xuthus fled to Athens, where his uncle Amphictyon had once reigned as king. [7]
Xuthus married Creusa, daughter of Erichthonius, the fourth king of Athens. [8]
In 1465 BC, Xuthus founded four towns (Oenoe, Marathon, Probalinthus, and Tricorynthus) in northeastern Attica, gathering residents from the surrounding areas. [9]
In 1442 BC, Xuthus emigrated to Aegialus (later Achaia) in the northern Peloponnesus Peninsula. [10]
2 Achaeus, son of Xuthus
Achaeus was the eldest son of Xuthus, son of Hellen, and Creusa, daughter of Erechtheus, the fourth king of Athens. [11]
Achaeus migrated from Athens to Aegialus with his father and succeeded him. [12]
In 1435 BC, Achaeus led the Achaeans in an invasion of Thessaly and returned to his father's hometown, Melitaea. [13]
In 1420 BC, a large group led by Cadmus passed through Thessaly, causing chaos, and Achaeus again migrated from Melitaea to Aegialus. [14]
It is believed that some Achaeans remained in Thessaly.
During the Persian Wars, Achaeans lived in Phthiotis. [15]
Achaeus had two sons, Archander and Architeles. [16]
2.1 Architeles, son of Achaeus
Architeles married Automate, daughter of Danaus. [17]
Architeles fought alongside his brother Archander against the Sicyonians, but his whereabouts are unknown. [18]
2.2 Archander, son of Achaeus
In 1425 BC, Archander married Cyrene, daughter of Hypseus, who lived near Mount Pelion in eastern Thessaly. [19]
Archander and Cyrene had four sons: Nomius, Aristaeus, Authocus, and Argaeus. [20]
In 1420 BC, Archander emigrated from Melitaea to Aegialus. [21]
Archander married Scaea, daughter of Danaus from Argos, as his second wife, and had a son, Metanastes. [22]
In 1413 BC, Lynceus, who had succeeded Danaus, died, and his infant son, Abas, succeeded him in Argos. [23]
In 1408 BC, Lamedon, son of Gelanor, son of Sthenelas, who had been driven out of Argos by Danaus, led the Sicyonians and occupied the city. [24]
Abas, son of Lynceus, who had also been driven out of Argos, fled to Phocis and founded Abae. [25]
In 1407 BC, Archander fought Lamedon, recaptured Argos, and brought Abas back.
Archander became Abas' guardian and moved to Argos. [26]
Archander's wife, Scaea, was Abas's mother's sister, making Archander Abas's uncle-in-law.
In 1402 BC, when Abas came of age, Archander moved to the Nile Delta in Egypt and founded Cyrene (also known as Archandropolis). Archander was accompanied by his wife Scaea, as well as his first wife Cyrene and her son Aristaeus.[27]
2.2.1 Aristaeus, son of Archander
Many traditions state that Aristaeus' mother was Cyrene, daughter of Hypseus. [28]
However, the name of Aristaeus's father is not mentioned in the traditions.
The following suggests that Aristaeus' father, Cyrene's husband, was Archander, son of Achaeus.
1) When creating a family tree, there is no inconsistency in ages even if Cyrene and Archander were couple.
2) At marriageable age, Cyrene and Archander lived in Thessaly.
3) Both Cyrene and Archander emigrated to Libya. [29]
4) Cyrene was the daughter of Hypseus, son of Aeolus, brother of Xuthus, father of Archander's father, Achaeus. Thus, Cyrene was Archander's second cousin.
In 1420 BC, Aristaeus accompanied his father on a migration from Melitaea to Aegialus. [30]
In 1402 BC, Aristaeus migrated with his father to the Nile Delta in Egypt and founded Cyrene (also known as Archandropolis). [31]
In 1390 BC, Aristaeus migrated to Ceos. [32]
The Parrhasians, descendants of Lycaon, participated in this migration. [33]
Although Aristaeus is said to have been king of Arcadia, his connection to Arcadia is unclear. [34]
2.2.1.4 Migration to Sardinia
In 1372 BC, Aristaeus returned from Ceos to Egypt and again led a colony to Sardinia on the western side of the Italian peninsula. [35]
Before Aristaeus, Sardus, son of Maceris, led a colony to Sardinia from Canopus, Egypt. [36]
2.2.2 Archander's Sons, Nomius and Argaeus
Nomius and Argaeus inherited the territory of their grandfather Hypseus near Mount Pelion in Thessaly. [37]
2.2.3 Authocus (or Belus), son of Archander
2.2.3.1 Also known as Belus
Authocus seems to have had another name, Belus.
That is, Belus, father of Cepheus and Phineus. [38]
Belus lived in Egypt. [39]
Phineus, the son of Belus, married Idaea, the daughter of Dardanus, the founder of the Trojan Empire. [40]
Andromeda, the daughter of Cepheus, the son of Belus, married Perseus, the son of Danae, the daughter of Acrisius. [41]
Considering the spouses of Phineus, the son of Belus, and Andromeda, Belus's granddaughter, Belus is likely a descendant of Greeks who migrated to Egypt.
Archander's wife was Scaea, the daughter of Danaus. During Belus's time, no descendants of Danaus or Cadmus lived in Egypt. The only Greeks living in Egypt were the family of Archander, who migrated from Argos to the Nile Delta and founded Archandropolis. [42]
In other words, Belus is presumably another name for Authocus, the son of Archander.
2.2.3.2 Migration to Ethiopia
In 1390 BC, Belus led a group of people affected by a tsunami from Egypt to Greece, where he joined a colony led by Aeetes, son of Sisyphus, of Corinth. [43]
Corinth, which had just been founded by Sisyphus, son of Aeolus, had also been hit by a tsunami. Aeetes and Belus were of the same race, sharing a common ancestor, Hellen, son of Deucalion.
Their colony traveled north across the Aegean Sea, passing through the Hellespontos and entering the Propontis Sea.
Belus found a suitable site near the mouth of the Aesepus River, just before Cyzicus, and settled there.
Belus's settlement came to be called Ethiopia.
The Ethiopians, descended from Belus, were likely so named because their physique and appearance resembled those of the Ethiopians who lived south of Egypt.
2.2.3.3 Cepheus, son of Belus
Cepheus had no sons to succeed him, so his grandson Perses succeeded him. [44]
The Ethiopians likely came under Troy's control, and their lineage after Perses is unknown.
During the Trojan War, the Ethiopians were ruled by Memnon, son of Tithonus, son of Laomedon.
2.2.3.4 Phineus, son of Belus
Phineus married Idaea, daughter of Dardanus. [45]
In 1380 BC, Phineus migrated to the southwestern shore of the Black Sea and founded Salmydessus. [46]
In 1350 BC, the Achaeans, who had lived in Salmydessus, migrated eastward across the Bosporus Strait under the leadership of Phineus's sons, Mariandynus, Bithynus, Paphlagon (or Paphlagonus), and Thynus. [47]
The Achaeans changed their name to Mariandynians, Bithynians, Paphlagonians, and Thynians. [48]
In 1345 BC, Phineus' sons, Clytius and Polymedes (or Plexippus, Pandion), emigrated from Salmydessus to Tauric Chersonese (present-day Crimea). [49]
2.2.4 Metanastes, son of Archander
Metanastes, accompanied by his father, Archander, emigrated from Argos to the Nile Delta in Egypt.
2.2.4.1 Pilumnus, son of Metanastes
Metanastes had a son, Pilumnus, who married Danae, daughter of Acrisius. [50]
In 1341 BC, the ships carrying Danae's colony were blown by a strong southerly wind en route to Sardinia and washed ashore on the west coast of central Italy. [51]
After Danae's husband, Pilumnus, died, Danae, daughter of the king of Argos, founded Ardea, about 30 kilometers southeast of Rome. [52]
At the time, the Sicels were scattered across Latium, where Danae founded her city. Shortly thereafter, descendants of Sabus arrived from the mountains and founded Saturnia and Janiculum. [53]
Danae's colony consisted of Achaeans and Pelasgians who had migrated from Argos to Egypt. Their language and customs were similar to those of Sabus's descendants. It was the people who migrated with Danae from Egypt who taught Saturnus of Saturnia how to cultivate wheat. [54]
Danae's son Daunus inherited Ardea. [55]
The Achaeans, who migrated with Danae to the Italian peninsula, changed their name to the Rutulians. [56]
Turnus, the leader of the Rutulians who died fighting Aeneas, was a descendant of Daunus. [57]
Danae had a son, Perseus.
2.2.5 Migration from Argos to Messenia
In 1405 BC, the Achaeans, who migrated to Argos with Archander, participated in the founding of Andania in Messenia. [58]
Andania was founded by Polycaon, son of Lelex of Lacedaemon, whose wife, Messene, was from Argos.
In 1310 BC, when Polycaon's heirs died out, the inhabitants of Andania adopted Perieres, son of Aeolus, from Thessaly. [59]
Aeolus was the son of Lapithes, son of Aeolus, son of Hippotes, and Perieres was Lapiths.
In 1280 BC, Aphareus, son of Perieres, migrated to the west coast of Messenia and founded Arene. [60]
The inhabitants of Arene were Achaeans, Lapiths, and Lacedaemonians.
3 Perseus, son of Pilumnus
In 1360 BC, Perseus, the son of Pilumnus and Danae, was born in Chemmis, Nile Delta, Egypt. [61]
3.1 Migration to Argos
In 1349 BC, Perseus emigrated from Egypt to Argos to succeed his grandfather, Acrisius. [62]
In 1343 BC, Perseus killed Acrisius' brother, Proetus, and left Argos. [63]
3.2 Perseus' Marriage
In 1342 BC, Perseus traveled to the land of the Ethiopians to visit Cepheus, son of Belus, and married his daughter, Andromeda. [64]
Andromeda's birthplace, Ethiopia, was not south of Egypt but in the northwestern Anatolia Peninsula, near the mouth of the Aesepus River. [65]
Ethiopia was located in the Adrasteia Plain, which was the territory of Pelops' father, Tantalus, at the time of Perseus' marriage to Andromeda. [66]
The marriages between Perseus' sons and Pelops' daughters were the result of a friendship between Tantalus and Perseus.
Perseus' mother, Danae, and Evarete, the mother of Pelops' wife, Hippodamia, were sisters.
Thus the sons of Perseus and the daughters of Pelops were second cousins. [67]
3.3 Perseus's Campaign
There is a tradition that tells of Perseus' expedition to Iconium (Konya) in Lycaonia. [68]
Perseus's whereabouts in the ten years between his marriage and the return of Peloponnesus are unknown, so the campaign is presumed to have occurred during this period.
Hittite texts indicate that Arzawa king Tarhuntaradu invaded deep into Hittite territory and occupied Tuwanuwa (Tyana). [69]
Iconium is located approximately 185 km west of Tuwanuwa.
Tarhuntaradu was a contemporary of Perseus' mother, Danae, and Perseus likely participated in Tarhuntaradu's campaign with the Ahhiyawa army.
The temple of the citadel of Mycenae, founded by Perseus, housed a scarab of Tiye, wife of Amenhotep III of Egypt. [70]
The scarab was supposedly given to Perseus by Tarhuntaradu, who had connections with Amenhotep III, and Perseus placed it in his temple.
3.4 Founding of Mycenae
After the death of Acrisius, son of Abas, Megapenthes, son of Proetus, who lived in Tiryns, moved to Argos. [71]
In 1332 BC, Perseus returned to Peloponnesus from the land of the Ethiopians and occupied Tiryns with the Achaeans, who had been expelled from Argos. [72]
In 1330 BC, Perseus founded Mycenae and surrounded it with fortified walls. [73]
The Achaeans who lived in Mycenae changed their name to Mycenaeans.
3.5 Sons of Perseus
Perses and Andromeda had sons: Perses, Electryon, Alcaeus, Sthenelus, Cynurus, Mestor, and Helius (or Heleus).
Perses was born in Ethiopia and left there to succeed his mother Andromeda's father, Cepheus. [74]
Alcaeus married Hipponome, daughter of Menoeceus of Thebes, and had a son, Amphitryon, who would later become the father of Heracles. [75]
Alcaeus lived in Tiryns, and the Achaeans changed their name to Tirynthians.
Sthenelus inherited Mycenae from his father Perseus. [76]
In 1300 BC, Cynurus, seeking a new land, migrated to the border with Laconia and founded Cynuria. [77]
The Achaeans who lived in Cynuria changed their name to Cynurians.
Mestor married Lysidice, daughter of Pelops, and had a daughter, Hippothoe. [78]
In 1290 BC, Helius founded Helos on the coast of Laconia. [79]
Helius married Hippothoe, daughter of Mestor, and had a son, Taphius. [80]
In 1277 BC, Helius and his brothers invaded northwestern Greece and settled in Echinades. [81]
Electryon died during this expedition, along with his sons, leaving his youngest son, Lycymnius, and his daughter, Alcmena, in Mideia. [82]
3.6 Migration after the Death of Eurystheus
Sthenelus' son, Eurystheus, inherited Mycenae from his father. [83]
In 1217 BC, Eurystheus died after Heracles' death, defeated in battle by Heracles' sons. [84]
In 1213 BC, the Tirynthians joined the migration of Heracles' son Tlepolemus and migrated to Rhodes. [85]
Tlepolemus's migration included Eurystheus' daughter Admete and the Mycenaean Lebes. [86]
Lebes settled in Crete. [87]
In 1200 BC, Lebes' son Rhacius traveled from Crete to Asia Minor and founded Colophon. [88]
Admete joined Rhacius' migration and migrated from Crete to Samos. [89]
4 Mycenae's prosperity
After the death of Eurystheus, Pelops' son Atreus inherited Mycenae. [90]
During the reign of Atreus' grandson Agamemnon, Mycenae enjoyed its second golden age, following that of Argus' son Messapus in the mid-16th century BC.
In 1200 BC, Agamemnon annexed Laconia to Mycenae, and his brother Menelaus took possession of Laconia. [91]
Agamemnon established a sanctuary for Athena on the Onugnathus Peninsula near Cape Maleae in Laconia. [92]
In 1190 BC, Agamemnon's son Halaesus emigrated from Mycenae to Falerii in central Italian peninsula. [93]
In 1341 BC, Danae, mother of Perseus, founder of Mycenae, migrated to the Italian peninsula and founded Ardea, about 30 km southeast of Rome. [94]
The area around Falerii was ruled by the Rutulians, based in Ardea in Latium. Their king, Turnus, was a descendant of Danae. [95]
The Rutulians likely invited Halaesus to join forces with them against the surrounding rivals.
In 1182 BC, a battle broke out between Aeneas, son of Anchises, and the Rutulians. Halaesus sided with the Rutulians and was killed by Pallas, son of Evander. [96]
After Halaesus' death, the Mycenaeans who had lived in Falerii likely returned to Mycenae. Recent archaeological excavations have unearthed artifacts that indicate trade between Mycenae and Italy in the 12th century BC.
5 Dorian Invasion
5.1 Battle with Cleodaeus
In 1173 BC, Cleodaeus, son of Hyllus, led the Dorians in an attack on Mycenae and destroyed the city. [97]
Recent archaeological findings have revealed evidence of destruction at Mycenae in the 12th century BC. [98]
The Achaeans expelled the Dorians from Peloponnesus, but the land was devastated.
Penthilus, son of Orestes, son of Agamemnon, led the dispossessed people in an expedition to Lesbos and colonized it. [99]
The Achaeans who lived in Amyclae, led by Peisander, colonized Tenedos. [100]
The Achaeans who lived in Epidaurus, led by Perinthus, migrated elsewhere. [101]
5.2 Battle with Temenus
In 1112 BC, the Dorians, led by Temenus, son of Aristomachus, invaded Peloponnesus. [102]
The Achaeans, led by Tisamenus, son of Orestes, were attacked by the Dorians and surrendered Argos to Sparta. [103]
In 1104 BC, the Achaeans, who had been besieged in Sparta, surrendered their city to the Dorians and migrated to Achaia. [104]
Some Achaeans remained in Laconia.
In 1101 BC, Oxylus of Elis summoned Agorius, great-grandson of Orestes, from Helice in Achaia and made him co-ruler. [105]
In 930 BC, most of the Achaeans who lived in Pharis, led by Patreus, son of Preugenes, migrated to Achaia and founded Patrae. [106]
In 780 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Amyclae, Pharis, and Geranthrae migrated from Peloponnesus after being attacked by the Dorians. [107]
6 Colonization to Aeolis
In 1100 BC, Archelaus (or Echelas), son of Penthilus, led a group of Achaean settlers to the area around Dascylium in northwestern Anatolia. [108]
In 1055 BC, Archelaus' son Gras marched to the Granicus River, recaptured Lesbos, and took possession of Aeolis between Mysia and Ionia. [109]
7 Migration from Laconia to Eleia
In 1070 BC, the Pelasgians, who lived in Lemnos, migrated to Laconia and were accepted by the Dorians. However, conflict subsequently arose between the two groups. The Pelasgians, instigating the Achaeans living in Laconia, rebelled against the Dorians. The Dorians concluded a treaty with them and expelled them from Laconia. [110]
The Pelasgians and Achaeans migrated to various places.
Herodotus writes that the Minyans, who did not join the Theran migration, migrated from Lacedaemon to southern Eleia and founded Lepreum, Macistus, Phryxae, Pyrgus, Epium, and Nudium. [111]
However, it was the Pelasgians who were expelled from Athens who drove the Minyans out of Lemnos. [112]
It is unlikely that the Minyans, fewer in number than the Pelasgians, could have founded six towns.
The founders of these towns were likely Achaeans who had rebelled and been expelled from Laconia, most of whom were Achaeans who had lived in Laconia and opposed the Dorians.
8 Ahhiyawa in Hittite Texts
The term Ahhiyawa in Hittite texts is generally interpreted as referring to the Achaeans. [113]
Ahhiyawa is first mentioned in the Indictment of Madduwatta (CTH 147), written during the reign of Arnuwanda I (1390–80 BC). [114]
The text records that Madduwatta was attacked by Attarsiya of Ahhiyawa and fled to the Hittite king Tudhaliya I. [115]
Ahhiyawa must have existed at the time the text was composed.
At that time In 1380 BC, the Achaeans (descendants of Achaeus, son of Xuthus) inhabited Argolis, the Nile Delta in Egypt, and northwestern Anatolia.
However, no connection with Madduwatta has been found within these areas.
The Ahhiyawa that appear in Hittite texts are not likely to be Achaeans.
9 Spread of Achaeans Settlements
In 1435 BC, the Achaeans were born in Aegialus, north of the Peloponnesus.
In 1435 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Aegialus migrated to Thessaly.
In 1420 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Thessaly migrated to Aegialus.
In 1407 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Aegialus migrated to Argos.
In 1405 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Argos migrated to Andania in Messenia.
In 1402 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Argos migrated to the Nile Delta in Egypt.
In 1390 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Egypt migrated to the mouth of the Aesepus River in northwestern Anatolia and changed their name to Ethiopians.
In 1380 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Ethiopia migrated to the southwestern coast of the Black Sea and founded Salmydessus.
In 1350 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Salmydessus migrated to the southern coast of the Black Sea and changed their name to Mariandynians, Bithynians, Paphlagonians, and Thynians.
In 1345 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Salmydessus migrated to Tauric Chersonese.
In 1341 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Egypt migrated to the Italian peninsula and founded Ardea.
In 1330 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Ethiopia migrated to the Peloponnesus and founded Mycenae.
In 1280 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Andania migrated to Arene in Messenia.
In 1213 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Tiryns and Mycenae migrated to Rhodes and Crete.
In 1200 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Crete migrated to Samos and Colophon in Ionia.
In 1200 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Mycenae annexed Laconia. Later, the Achaeans also gained control of Messenia.
In 1190 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Mycenae migrated to the Italian peninsula.
In 1173 BC, the Dorian invasion of the Peloponnesus devastated the land, causing the Achaeans to migrate to Tenedos and Lesbos.
In 1104 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Argolis and Laconia migrated to Achaia in the northern Peloponnesus.
In 1100 BC, the Achaeans who lived in Achaia migrated to the area around Dascylium in northwestern Anatolia.
In 1070 BC, the Achaeans who remained in Laconia also migrated to Eleia and founded six towns there.
In 1055 BC, the Achaeans who lived in northwestern Anatolia migrated to Lesbos.
10 Greek Dark Ages
The majority of Achaeans lived in Achaia in the northern Peloponnesus.
Achaeans also lived in Eleia, Thessaly, Mycenae, Tiryns, and Cynuria.
Ardea in Italy was inhabited by the Rutulians, who changed their name from Achaeans.
Achaeans also inhabited the Anatolian peninsula around Dascylium, Tenedos, and Lesbos.
On the southern coast of the Black Sea lived the Mariandynians, Bithynians, Paphlagonians, and Thynians, who changed their names from Achaeans.
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