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Leukon I of Bosporus (Leucon of Bosporus)
(lived c. 410-349) also known as Leucon, and Leuco, was a Spartocid ruler of
the Hellenistic Bosporan Kingdom who ruled from 389 to 349. He is arguably the
greatest ruler of the Bosporan Kingdom. He was the son of Satyros I (432 -
389), and was the grandson of Spartokos I, the first Spartocid ruler of the
Bosporan Kingdom. Leukon ruled his kingdom jointly with his brother Gorgippos,
who situated himself on the Asiatic side and ruled from Gorgippia, which he may
have named after himself. Leukon was succeeded by his sons Spartokos II (349 -
342) and Paerisades I (349-309). He was noted in antiquity as a strategist and
a disciplinarian. In the writings of Aeneas Tacticus, How to Survive under
Siege, he dismissed his guards who owed gambling debts, because their loyalty
could be doubted during a city siege. He continued the war of his father
against Theodosia and Chersonesus with the goal of annexing all the Greek
colonies in the Bosporus. He also made Sindike his vassal upon defeating
Oktamasades, and in an inscription (see Epigraphy) from Nymphaion he is
described as "archon of the Bosporus, Theodosia, all Sindike". Leukon
had a pivotal role in the Bosporan wars of expansion, a series of conflicts and
sieges started by his grandfather, Spartokos and then continued by his father,
Satyros. Throughout Leukon's reign, he conquered many cities and tribes, making
his reign one which expanded the Bosporan Kingdom, and created a foreign and
trade policy outside the Black Sea, significantly with Athens, a commercial
friend of the Spartocids.
Early Life and Reign:
Leukon was born to Satyros I, a ruler of the Bosporan Kingdom who had become
king after the death of his father, Spartokos I, a man of Thracian descent with
possible ties to the Odrysian royal dynasty, who usurped the former Greek
Archaeanactid dynasty. Leukon may have been taught by Isocrates.To his Greek
subjects, Leukon was merely an "Archon", but to the tribes in his
dominions, he was "king". Nonetheless, the Athenians viewed him as a
tyrant but nonetheless a friend of Athens. He was present during his father's
unsuccessful war against the barbarian queen Tirgatao of the Ixomatae, where
his brother Metrodoros died as a hostage. He became king with his brother
Gorgippos after their father died during the unsuccessful first siege of
Theodosia. Upon becoming king, he attacked the city of Theodosia at first
without success, but continued to attack it until the city was defeated, both
times being aided by Heraclea Pontica, probably to finish what his father began
prior to his own death. At some point during his reign, he married a woman
named Theodosia, who may have been the daughter of a powerful Bosporan diplomat
named Sopaios. She bore him 3 sons named Spartokos II, Apollonios, and
Paerisades I. Leukon also initiated a semi-fraudulent coinage reform in which
he recalled all coins from the region to be minted into new coins with double
the face value. Leukon also faced early problems with his subjects; he had to
enlist the aid of merchants to successfully put down a rebellion fomented by
some members of his court and even trusted friends.
Military Campaigns:
Leukon had inherited several wars from his father, including one against the
Ixomatae, led by queen Tirgatao, ending with the unsuccessful siege to
Theodosia that claimed his father's life. Leukon was a leading figure of the
wars of expansion, winning many battles and successfully laying siege to
Theodosia. He and his brother Gorgippos made peace with the Ixomatae and
focused their attentions to the west.
Siege of Theodosia (c.365:
Main article: Siege of Theodosia (c. 365):
The cities of Theodosia and Chersonesus. After his father's death and his
ascendance to the throne, Leukon laid siege the city of Theodosia twice. The
first siege ended in a Bosporan defeat due to Tynnichus, a general sent by
Heraclea Pontica, to relieve the city, which he accomplished, despite inferior
numbers, due to trickery.
Siege of Theodosia (c.360)
Main article: Siege of Theodosia (c. 360)
Leukon besieged Theodosia again 5 years later in a surprise attack, before the
city could receive relief aid from the Heracleotes. It is possible that the
Heracleotes withdrew before Leukon attacked due to a change of government from
oligarchy to tyranny under Clearchus. He was then attacked by the Heracleotes
in his own territory. Leukon, noticing that his own troops could be routed
easily, positioned his Scythian soldiers in the rear and gave clear
instructions that his men were to be struck down if they fled. This precaution
helped his army defeat the Heracleotes. Shortly after his victory, Leukon made
a peace treaty with the Heracleotes, ending the war.
Annexation of the Sindike Kingdom:
Leukon then turned his eye to the Sindike Kingdom, where there had been a
dynastic dispute between Hekataios, the king of Sindoi, and his son,
Oktamasades who had taken power from his father. Before the Battle of Labrytai,
Leukon said he “made a vow to erect a victory monument, but not to the
local Apollo of Labrys, but to the supreme deity and patron of all the
Bosporans, Apollo the Healer”.[16] After defeating Oktamasades, it is
possible Leukon persuaded Hekataios to give the kingship over to him, as Leukon
was proclaimed "king of all the Sindike" shortly thereafter.
Later Reign:
Conflict with Memnon of Rhodes:
During the probable last years of Leukon's reign, it is possible that Heraclea
Pontica had hired Memnon of Rhodes, the famous guerrilla fighter who had fought
Alexander. Heraclea Pontica sent envoys to Leukon to learn the size of his
army. Upon hearing that there were not many soldiers, Memnon went to battle
Leukon, and used trickery to gain an easy victory against the Bosporan army.
Memnon had his army march over to a hill, leaving only half of his men visible,
as if to show that there was desertion amongst his troops. He then dispatched a
"deserter" to inform the Bosporan army that there had been a mutiny
in the Heracleote army. The Bosporan forces marched out to Memnon's forces,
believing that they had been split in half, but were defeated as in reality the
army was completely intact.
Relations with Athens:
Leukon was well regarded by the Athenians, as the Bosporan Kingdom exported a
large portion of their grain primarily to Athens. On one occasion, when Athens
could not make do on their payment because of restrictions Sparta had placed on
them during the Peloponnesian War, he gave them 400,000 medinmoi of grain which
is around 16,380 t, free of charge in 356. For this, Leukon was praised in
Athens and was both given citizenship and statues of him and his sons erected
in Athens. His descendants such as Spartokos III, who gave Athens 15,000
medimnoi of grain (ca 590) as a gift. They would continue to follow this
diplomatic friendship with the Athenians. Leukon also gave Athenian ships
privileges at his ports and did not have them taxed when they docked.
Death and Legacy:
Leukon died in 349, after a reign of around 40 years, he was at least 60 years
old during the time of his death, placing his birth prior to or around 410. His
body is thought to have been placed in the Royal Kurgan, a burial mound where
the previous Bosporan rulers had been placed in, in the outskirts of
Panticapaeum. Leukon's actions mirrored those of his grandfather, Spartokos I,
who usurped the former Greek dynasty of the Bosporan state, as well as those of
his father Satyros, whom he often credited with transforming Panticapaeum from
a mere hegemony into an expansive kingdom on the Black Sea which would go on to
be the longest-lasting Roman client-state for another 800 years. Leukon's
descendants would rule the Bosporus for another two centuries—the last of
whom, Paerisades V, would die during a Scythian uprising.
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