Foundation of Achaea in Greek Dark Ages

In an event that the ancient historians placed around 1104 BCE, the invading Heraclid army, led by brothers Staminas and Crisphantes, battled the Mycenaean forces of the final Achaean king, Thessamonas. Unlike numerous times in the past, where the Mycenaeans were always able to defeat the Heraclidae and their Dorian allies, this battle proved to be different, with the Achaean force decisively defeated and king Thessamonas killed in action. Following this victory, the Heraclid leaders would split much of the Peloponnesian peninsula into their own spheres of influence. Taminas's younger brother Crisphantes would receive Mycenae from where he would expel the ruling Nalaid dynasty and would found his new capital at the As the third Heraclid brother Aristodemus had previously died over the course of war, his two sons Eurysthenes and Procles received Lacedaemon, which was to be settled under their uncle and regent Theras. Taminas himself, being the eldest of the Heraclidae and their chief commander, received the region of Argolis, where after sacking the royal capital Mycenae, he was to establish Argos as his new seat of power. However, before that was to be accomplished, the Heraclid leaders still had to deal with the surviving Achaean chieftains. As Thessamonas's eldest son Cometes had already left Peloponnese for Asia Minor prior to the war, the Achaean remnants were gathered around the late king's other four sons, Daemenes, Sparton, Thelys and Leontomenes. In addition to the four princes, their first cousin Damasius, son of Thessamonas's brother Pentheus, was also said to have been of equal power and influence among the Achaean population. Taminas therefore entered negotiations with these Achaean leaders in order to allow them to peacefully leave Argolis and avoid further bloodshed on either side. It was thus agreed that the Heraclid forces would allow a safe withdrawal of these chieftains, all their followers, and the Achaean population that was willing to accompany them into the northern parts of Peloponnese. Northern Peloponnese, called Aegealea at the time, was from the ancient times inhabited by the autochthonous population, which although not exactly identical, from the early times came to be associated with the Achaeans. However, as the Aegealians were originally related to the Pelasgians, the old either pre-Greek or proto-Greek inhabitants of Hellas, they were still distinct from the core Achaeans that had traditionally inhabited Argolis and Laconia. Additionally, the Aegealians traced their ancestry to the eponymous king Aegealius, who had ruled over Sicyon several generations before the reign of Aenecus, the first mythological king of Argolis. As the city of Sicyon was also previously taken over by the Heraclidae and Ardorian allies, the Achaean leaders skipped over the famed city and planned to settle on the shore further north, where the most prominent city was that of Heliki. Heliki, together with the surrounding settlements, however, maintained a tradition slightly different from the one existing at Sicyon. While the Sicyonians had kept the lineage of the native Aegealian rulers, Heliki was said to have been built by a prince named Ion, who eventually came to be hailed as one of the mythical founders of the main Hellenic tribes, together with Achaios, Dorus, and Aeolus. According to the mythology, Ion married Heliki, the daughter of an Aegealian ruler Silanus, and thus founded the city which he named after his wife. Ion thus held a special place among the inhabitants of Heliki and the surrounding cities, especially among their aristocracy, who upon hearing the news of the Achaean princess approaching their land, grew worried that the sons of Thessamonus would assert themselves as the masters of the northern Peloponnesian shore. In addition to that, the whole region was until recently ruled by the high kings of Mycenae, with the local nobles pledging loyalty to the Achaean kings. The city of Pelini, to the east, also had an Achaean tradition of its own, being named after Pelin, son of an early Aragive ruler, Phobos. Several other cities had likewise Achaean traditions, which put into question whether the locals would be more loyal to their own aristocracy or the descendants of the great kings of Mycenae. Moreover, the Achaeans carried the body of their king Thessamonus with them, intending to bury it at the very city of Heliki. Upon reaching the area, Daemonus and his relatives received reinforcements from Laconia, consisting of the Laconian-Achaean exiles fleeing the Dorian settlement, led by Priogenes and his son Patreus. The Achaeans then sent messengers to Heliki and the neighboring cities, informing of their intention to settle in the area. It is unknown whether they also asked for loyalty from the local leaders, or it was a general assumption among the Ionian nobles that the incomers would demand subordinance. Either way, the request was denied, putting the Achaean chieftains in a tough position, as their native land was now occupied by the victorious Heraclidae and the Dorian settlers, and there was nowhere else to go. There was no other choice but to get ready for another military conflict, and the Achaeans started preparing to seize the Aegean settlements by force. The local Ionian leaders were encouraged by the recent Achaean defeat by the Heraclidae, and the fact that the Achaean remnants, led by the exiled nobles, presented nowhere near the force that was the Mycenaean army under Thessamonus. However, the Achaeans, especially those coming from Margolis, were still renowned warriors, whose valor and discipline had caused even the Heraclidae to suffer significant losses. Eventually, the Ionian forces would be no match for the sons of Thessamonus, and the Achaean army quickly and decisively defeated the Aegean coalition. Daimenes and his relatives thus entered Helike, and similarly to what the Heraclidae had previously done, gave the option to the Ionian nobility to leave all of Aegealia together with their followers, or likely face death. Therefore, the Aegeanians, including all of their chieftains and much of the population, all left eastwards, where the city of Athens had agreed to accept them as refugees, intending to use many of them in their own colonization campaigns in Asia Minor. In the words of Pausanias, when the Ionians were gone, the Achaeans divided their land among themselves and settled in their cities. These were twelve in number, at least as such were known to all the Greek world. Dimi, the nearest to Elis, after it, Olynus, Pharae, Tritea, Repis, Aegean, Charynea, Bura, Helike also and Aigai, Aigeira and Pelini, the last city on the side of Sechionia. In them, which had previously been inhabited by the Ionians, settled the Achaeans and their princes. Those who held the greatest power among the Achaeans were the sons of Thessamonus, Daimenes, Sparton, Thelys and Leontomenes. His eldest son Cometes had already crossed with a fleet to Asia. These then at the time held sway among the Achaeans, along with Demasius, the son of Pentheus, son of Orestes, who on his father's side was cousin to the sons of Thessamonus. Equally powerful with these chiefs already mentioned, were two Achaeans from Lacedaemon, Priogenes and his son, whose name was Patreus. The Achaeans allowed them to found a city in their territory, and to it was given the name Patrai, from Patreus. The Achaean settlement in northern Peloponnese was thus successfully completed, and the last Mycenaean king, Thessamonus, was thus buried at the site of Helike. From this point on, the region of Aegialea was accordingly renamed Achaea, by which name it was known to the ancient Greeks in the subsequent times. A great number of other colonization campaigns would shortly take place, both by the Achaeans themselves as well as other Greek tribes, many of which would be led by the very descendants of the final Mycenaean dynasty. In future videos, we will talk about the further Greek colonization campaigns of the Dark Ages, so make sure to subscribe and hit the bell button in order to get notified on the upcoming content. Special thanks to History with Cy, Nico, Chris Ernst, Panagiotis Yiannopoulos, Fred Leckie, ABC Shake, Derek Wildstar, Vineyard Illuminations, and The State Care for their continuous support. If you wish to join our Patreon community and partake in the decision making on the future content, feel free to click the link in the description. This was OneXTV, and we'll see you again soon.