I. Historical Background All processes must be considered and understood within the context in which they occur. To fully recognize how the Celtic peoples who migrated eastward became Hellenized by their Greek and Phrygian neighbors and later Romanized by their conquerors, a brief history must be provided. According to Pausanias, who was writing in the second century BCE, under the command of Brennus, the Celts began moving southward and attacked the Greek city-states (REF). Most notably in 279 BCE the Celtic tribes attacked Delphi, which the Greeks believed to be the omphalos, center of the world. Leaving the Greeks in dismay over their most sacred center, the three remaining Celtic tribes (Tectosages, Trocmi, and Tolistobogii) continued …show more content…
The three tribes separated and each settled in its own area, specifically the Tectosages in Ancyra, Tolistobogii in Pessinus, and the Trocmi around Tavium. Problematically, some of this new territory was overlaid with areas of Phrygia and Cappadocia, which were already settled by other inhabitants. Word began to travel around about the new residents of Anatolia. The Greeks city-states, located along the western coast of Ionia, were particularly afraid, and the Galatians took advantage of this situation by demanding tribute in exchange for not wreaking havoc on their city-states. Although the Galatians and Celtic peoples, from which they originated from, are known for pillaging, these tribes were more interested in securing land in order to settle down. They probably did have other objectives as well, such as working as mercenaries, gaining booty from plundering, and extorting money for protection. Until about 189 BC, the Galatians remained in Anatolia without any upscale negative interactions. For it was during this year that the Roman armies under the command of Gnaeus Manlius Vulso entered modern day Turkey with the intentions of putting down Anatolian entities, namely the Galatians. Vulso and his soldiers fought against the Galatians at the Battle of Olympus near the city of Pessinus. …show more content…
In 29 BCE Octavin, who was later known as Augustus, commanded the various residents of Asia and Bithyania to construct temples and sanctuaries in their cities. For example, the cities of Ephesus and Nicaea built the cult of Roma and the glorified Julius Caesar, while Pergamum and Nicomedia constructed the cult of Augustus (Mitchell 1995: 100). These construction projects can be noted in both the archaeological and historical records. For instance, Nicolaus of Damascus wrote that the creation of this new imperial cult caused the spread and formation of further cults and temples for Augustus (FGrH cited by Mitchell 1995: 100). Much like other ancient Greek and Latin writers, it is questionable to what extent Nicolaus of Damascus was telling the truth. For example, he states that the inhabitants of Asia and Bithyania “match[ed] the greatness of his virtue and the scale of his benefactions towards them” when creating these new cults (FGrH cited by Mitchell 1995: 100). From this record, it sounds like the people living in Asia and Bithyania viewed Augustus in a positive way and willingly started cults, erected buildings on his behalf, and worshipped him. It is a possibility that these people could have been behaving in such a way solely to not be harmed by Augustus and his