Phrygia
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Phrygia
Phrygia
in antiquity, a region in northwestern Asia Minor populated by the Phrygians, Indo-European tribes that migrated from Europe (Macedonia or Thrace) in the second millennium B.C.
In the 13th century B.C. the Phrygians aided Troy in its war with the Greeks and, when the war ended in ruin for the Trojans, established their own dominion over the Troas. The Phrygians played a major role in the downfall of the Hittite empire (c. 12th century), much of whose territory subsequently came under their control. From the tenth to eighth centuries, Phrygia was a kingdom; its capital was Gordium, a city named after King Gordius. In the ninth century Phrygia came to dominate the Aegean Sea.
At the end of the eighth century, tribes of Bithynians and Mysians began settling in northern and northwestern Phrygia. In the east, clashes with Assyria became more frequent. In the 670’s Cimmerian tribes seized a considerable portion of Phrygia, and in the sixth century, Phrygia fell under Lydian domination, although it retained some measure of autonomy.
In 546, Phrygia, with nearly all of Asia Minor, was seized by the Persian king Cyrus II. It was conquered by Alexander the Great in the fourth century; after Alexander’s death his successors fought among themselves for control of various parts of the region. In 275 the territory of Phrygia east of the Sangarius River (now Sakarya) was seized by the Galatians. The territory west of the river was ruled by Pergamum. In 133, Phrygia west of the Sangarius was incorporated into the Roman province of Asia. Eastern Phrygia became part of the Roman province of Galatia, which was formed in 25 B.C.