The ancient Lydian kingdom was located in the center of the western part of the peninsula of Asia Minor. At the turn of the II and I millennia, it was part of another powerful state - Phrygia. After the weakening and collapse of the latter, Lydia became an independent entity. Its capital was the city of Sardis, located on the banks of the river Paktol.
Economy
The prosperity of the economy of the Lydian kingdom was due to the developed agricultural economy. The rivers of Asia Minor fertilized its soil with silt and made it extremely fertile. On the slopes of the mountains, the inhabitants of the country planted fig trees, grapes and other valuable crops. Grain cultivation flourished in the river valleys.
The geographical position of the Lydian kingdom was also favorable for cattle breeding and horse breeding, which were practiced on vast pastures. Another important area of the economy of the ancient state is metallurgy. Significant reserves of silver, iron, zinc and copper were stored in the mines of Asia Minor. The Paktol River was even called “gold-bearing” (valuable nuggets were found in abundance on its banks). The Lydians were not just the owners of a rich land. They learned how to extract gold from rocks and refine it using the most advanced techniques and devices at that time.
Trade and crafts
The Lydians knew how to make magnificent clothes, luxurious hats and shoes. Their ceramics were famous throughout the Mediterranean (especially the facing tiles and painted vessels). Strong bricks, the famous ocher and other paints of various colors were produced in Sardis.
Located at the crossroads of the ancient Eastern and Greek worlds, the Lydian kingdom led an active and profitable trade. Its merchants were famous for their we alth, which was repeatedly mentioned by ancient writers. Foreign merchants also came to Lydia - comfortable hotels were built for them. It is this country that is traditionally considered the birthplace of the coin - a new convenient way of trading circulation. Money was minted from a variety of metals. For example, during the time of King Gyges, coins appeared from a natural alloy of silver and gold - electrum. The monetary system of the Lydians spread to all neighboring countries. It was used even in the Greek cities of Ionia.
Society
The most influential layer of Lydian society were slave owners, which included the priestly and military elite, we althy landowners, rich merchants. For example, Herodotus mentioned a certain aristocrat Pythia. He was so rich that he gave the Persian ruler Darius I a golden vine and a plane tree. The same nobleman organized a magnificent reception for Xerxes, who was marching with the army to the Greek policies.
The Lydian kingdom earned from taxes paid to the royal treasury and temples. They paid inmostly shepherds, small landowners, artisans. At the bottom of the social ladder were slaves - privately owned, temple, etc.
State system
Lydia was the classical monarchy of the Ancient World. The state was ruled by a king. He relied on the army and loyal bodyguards. In the Lydian army, chariots and cavalry were especially famous. Sometimes the kings resorted to the servants of mercenaries from among the neighbors: Ionians, Carians, Lycians. At first, the people's assembly played an important role in the life of the country. However, over time, power was centralized, and the kings stopped paying attention to the opinion of society.
The Lydian kingdom in antiquity has not yet got rid of archaic social and political remnants: the customs of ancestors, division according to tribal characteristics, ancient tribal legal norms, etc. But even these shortcomings did not prevent the country from entering its golden age in VII - VI centuries BC. e. At this time, the kingdom was ruled by the Mermnad dynasty. Gyges was its founder. He ruled in the first half of the 7th century. BC e.
King Gyges
Gyges came from a noble, but not royal dynasty. He seized power in a successful palace coup. This king of the kingdom of Lydia was the most powerful of all the rulers of the country: both his predecessors and his successors. Gyges annexed Mysia, Troad, as well as part of Caria and Phrygia to his power. Thanks to this, the Lydians began to control the exit to important tradingsea routes and the Black Sea straits.
However, even the initial successes of Gyges remained inferior without further conquests. For the sake of developing trade, the Lydian kingdom, whose history spanned several centuries, had to get access to the Aegean Sea. The first attempts to conquer the Greek policies of Smyrna and Miletus in this direction failed. But Gyges managed to subjugate Magnesia and Colophon, which was part of the Ionian Union. Although the Lydian king fought with some policies, he was not the enemy of all Greeks. It is known that Gyges sent generous offerings to Delphi, and also maintained friendly relations with the priests of the Hellenic god Apollo.
Relations with Assyria
Lydia's Western foreign policy has been successful. But in the east it was pursued by failures. In this direction, the country was threatened by the hordes of Cimmerians who lived in Cappadocia. Gyges unsuccessfully tried to subjugate Cilicia and reach the shores of the eastern Mediterranean.
Realizing that he could not cope with a formidable enemy alone, the king enlisted the support of Assyria. However, he soon changed his mind. Gyges found new allies - Babylonia and Egypt. These states sought to get rid of the hegemony of neighboring Assyria. Lydia entered into a coalition against the empire. The war, however, was lost. The Cimmerians became allies of the Assyrians and attacked the possessions of Gyges. In one of the battles he was killed. The nomads captured Sardis, the main city of the Lydian kingdom. The entire capital (except for the impregnable acropolis) was burned. It was in this citadel that the successor satGigosa - Ardis. In the future, he got rid of the Cimmerian threat. The price for security was high - Lydia became dependent on the powerful Assyria.
War with Media
In the east, Ardis, unlike Gigos, pursued a cautious and balanced foreign policy. But he continued to advance in the western direction. In the second half of the 7th century BC. e. Lydia fought with Miletus and Priene, but to no avail. Every time the Greek policies managed to defend their independence.
Meanwhile, the Assyrian Empire fell under pressure from its neighbors. The Lydian kings tried to take advantage of this to spread their power in the eastern provinces of Asia Minor. Here they have a new competitor - Midia. The most bitter war between the two kingdoms occurred in 590-585. BC e. The legend of the last battle of that campaign says that right during the battle, a solar eclipse began. Both the Lydians and the Medes were superstitious people. They regarded the astronomical phenomenon as a bad omen and threw down their weapons in horror.
Soon a peace treaty was concluded, restoring the status quo (the Galis River became the border between the two powers). The agreement was sealed by a dynastic marriage. Median heir and future king Astyages married Princess Lydia. Around the same time, the Cimmerians were finally expelled from Asia Minor.
Kingdom Fall
Another period of prosperity and stability of Lydia fell on the reign of King Croesus in 562-547. BC e. He completed the work of his predecessors and subjugated the Greeklands in western Asia Minor. However, by the end of the reign of this monarch, Lydia found herself in the way of Persia, which continued its successful expansion. On the eve of the inevitable war with a formidable opponent, Croesus made an alliance with Athens, Sparta, Babylon and Egypt.
Believing in his own strength, Croesus himself invaded Cappadocia, which belonged to Persia. However, he failed to establish control over the province. The Lydians retreated and returned to their homeland. The king of Persia, Cyrus II the Great, decided not to stop the war, but he himself invaded a neighboring country. He captured Croesus, and the capital of the Lydian kingdom fell, this time completely.
In 547 B. C. e. Lydia lost its independence and became part of the new Persian Empire. The former kingdom was declared a satrapy. The Lydian people gradually lost their identity and merged with other ethnic groups of Asia Minor.
Culture, art, religion
Lydian culture was one of the most advanced of its time. Its people created their own alphabet. This writing had much in common with Greek. Nevertheless, only archaeologists of the New Age managed to decipher it.
The inhabitants of Sardis and other cities of the ancient kingdom loved military dances, military gymnastic games, as well as games of ball, cubes and dice. Lydian music was famous, including folk songs, and Lydian instruments included cymbals, tympans, pipes, flutes, rattles and multi-stringed lyres. For an ancient civilization, this was a significant cultural progress. The Lydians not only had knowledge of art, but also had outstandingdoctors.
The rulers of the ancient kingdom were buried in tombs. At the same time, the art of building well-defended fortresses was developed. The inhabitants of the country built entire reservoirs. Lydian art gave the then world talented jewelers who worked with both precious metals and crystal. It was it that gave Greek culture some traditions of the East.
The Lydian pantheon consisted of many deities. Those who led the cults of death and resurrection (Attis, Sandan, Sabaziy) were especially revered. Believers arranged sacrifices in honor of them. The most popular was the Great Mother, or the Mother of the Gods, with whom the cult of fertility and war was associated.
