Editing Mithridatic Wars (section)

===First===
The [[First Mithridatic War]] (89–85 BC) resulted from Mithridates sending an army into Cappadocia, a Roman ally, to remove its senate-supported king. Rome was busy with the [[Social War (91–87 BC)|Social War]] and was slow to direct forces eastward to stop Mithridates. One of the consuls for the year, Sulla, was dispatched with five legions after 18 months of preparations in 87 BC, the first major force sent by Rome since the start of the war.

In 89 BC, Mithridates continued after his occupation of Cappadocia into Bithynia where he defeated Nicomedes IV and occupied the kingdom.<ref>Florus, ''Epitome of Roman History,'' 40; Appian, ''Mithridatic Wars,'' 17–18</ref> Following this, Roman forces in the region marshalled an army to force Mithridates out under the direction of Manius Aquillius who was still in Anatolia. Mithridates defeated this force and continued his advance throughout Anatolia unchecked. <ref>Mayor, ''The Poison King'', pp. 154–156; Golden, ''Crisis Management During the Roman Republic'', p. 185</ref> In 88 BC, along with the occupation of Cappadocia, Mithridates fully controlled the Roman provinces of Asia and Cilicia.

In spring of 88 BC, Mithridates's forces enacted the [[Asiatic Vespers]] which saw the systematic killing of Roman and Latin-speaking people in these provinces to remove any Roman influences from his conquered lands.<ref>Appian, ''Mithridatic Wars'', 22 & 23; Plutarch, ''Life of Sulla,'' 24; Mayor, ''The Poison King'', p. 171</ref> The death toll of these massacres have been estimated at 80,000 or more.<ref>Mayor, ''The Poison King'', p. 174</ref> [[Aristion]], an Athenian philosopher was originally sent to Mithridates as ambassador but became close friends with the king and entered into his service. In 88 BC, Mithridates sent Aristion back to [[Athens]], where Aristion convinced its citizens to revolt and declare him Tyrant of Athens.<ref>Mayor, ''The Poison King'', pp. 177–179; Appian, ''Mithridatic wars'', 28</ref> Mithridates also sent Archelaus, one of his generals, with a sizeable Pontic force to aid Aristion against the Romans.<ref>Florus, ''Epitome of Roman History'', 14; Appian, ''Mithridatic Wars'', 28–29</ref> The city revolted against Roman rule with support from Mithridates with several other cities joining Athens. Aristion sent [[Apellicon of Teos]] with a force to seize the sacred treasury stored at [[Delos]] which was still loyal to Rome. Apellicon sacked the island of [[Delos]], killing approximately 100,000 of its inhabitants before enslaving any left alive.<ref>Mayor, ''The Poison King'', p. 190</ref> Apellicon seized the wealth kept on the island, particularly the sacred Treasury of the temple of [[Apollo]] that the island was famous for before returning to Athens.<ref>Appian, ''Mithridatic Wars'', 28; Mayor, ''The Poison King'', p. 190</ref>

Sulla landed in [[Epirus]] in 87 BC, before marching on Athens which was the leader of the revolt in Greece. In the summer of that year he besieged Athens; the siege lasted until early 86 when Roman forces broke through the defenses to storm Athens.<ref>Plutarch, ''Life of Sulla'', 14</ref> Aristion and some of his followers retreated onto the Acropolis where they were besieged by the Romans until late spring, after which Aristion was killed.

In 86 BC, a Roman force under [[Lucius Valerius Flaccus (consul 86 BC)|Lucius Valerius Flaccus]] was dispatched to apprehend Sulla and defeat Mithridates. Flaccus chose to deal with Mithridates before Sulla, crossing the Hellespont into Pontic-occupied territory. Flaccus was killed by a mutiny within his forces led by [[Gaius Flavius Fimbria (cavalry prefect)|Gaius Flavius Fimbria]] who took control of the Roman force.<ref>Brennan, ''The Praetorship in the Roman Republic'', p. 557</ref> Flaccus besieged and took the city of [[Pergamon]] where Mithridates was at the time; however, he was unable to stop Mithridates from fleeing to safety by sea.

Archelaus escaped the city with his forces and engaged Sulla in the [[Battle of Chaeronea (86 BC)|Battle of Chaeronea]] in central [[Boeotia]]. Mithridates sent another of his generals, [[Taxiles (Pontic army officer)|Taxiles]], with reinforcements for Archelaus. The Pontic force outnumbered the Roman one; however, the Romans won the battle, capturing Taxiles and forcing Archelaus to flee with the survivors to [[Chalcis]].<ref>Appian, ''Mithridatic Wars'', 42–43; Plutarch, ''Life of Sulla'', 15</ref> While there, Archelaus received reinforcements and returned to mainland Greece where he engaged Sulla again in 85 BC at the [[Battle of Orchomenus]]. Archelaus's force outnumbered the Romans once again, but the Roman force emerged victorious.<ref>Appian, Mithridatic Wars, 43–45, Florus, Epitome of Roman History, 10; Mayor, The Poison King, pp. 205–208</ref> Archelaus managed to flee the battlefield, returning to Mithridates. Mithridates did not launch another invasion of Greece and withdrew his forces back to Anatolia.

Later in 85 BC, Mithridates and Archelaus met with Sulla at Dardanos to discuss a peace treaty. The war ended with the [[Treaty of Dardanos]]. It stipulated that the Kingdoms of Bithynia and Cappadocia would be restored to the Roman-supported kings, but Mithridates would maintain his own kingdom of Pontus. After ending the war, Sulla quickly withdrew back to Rome as a power struggle was developing into a civil war between factions within the senate.