Seuthes II

Seuthes II

Seuthes II (Ancient Greek: Σεύθης, Seuthēs) was a ruler in the Odrysian kingdom of Thrace, attested from 405 to 387 BC. While he looms large in the historical narrative thanks to his close collaboration with Xenophon, most scholars consider Seuthes II to have been a subordinate regional ruler (paradynast) and later claimant to kingship, but never the supreme king of the Odrysian state. Seuthes II was the son of Maesades (Maisadēs), and a descendant of Teres I. Maesades had ruled as paradynast over several tribes in southeastern Thrace (the Melanditi, Thyni, and the Tranipsi) west of Byzantium, but he had been expelled in unclear circumstances. His young son Seuthes then became the ward of Medocus/Amadocus I, who eventually restored him in parts of his father's lands, including Bisanthe, although others remained in the possession of another paradynast, a certain Teres II. Amadocus I and Seuthes II appear to have been ruling by 405 BC, when the exiled Athenian commander Alcibiades boasted of his friendship with them to his fellow Athenians. Xenophon, whom Seuthes II hired as a mercenary commander in the winter of 401/400 BC, describes Seuthes as the subordinate of Amadocus I. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Seuthes II has received more than 28,326 page views. His biography is available in 15 different languages on Wikipedia. Seuthes II is the 16,061st most popular politician (down from 13,608th in 2019).