The Cambridge History of India, Vol. I: Ancient India v1.c26.279

v1.c26.279

The very success of Demetrius appears to have proved his undoing. As a direct consequence of his victories, the centre of gravity of his dominions was shifted beyond the borders of Bactria proper. The home-land, however, was not content to degenerate into a mere dependency. A revolt ended in the establishment of a separate kingdom under Eucratides, a leader of great vigour and ability, about whose rise written history has little or nothing to say. Justin (XLI, 6) tells us that his recognition as king took place almost simultaneously with the accession of Mithradates I to the throne of Parthia. As Mithradates succeeded his brother Phraates I about 171 B.C., we may accept von Gutschmid's date of 175 as approximately correct for Eucratides. The beginning of his reign was stormy. He had to face attacks from several sides, and on at least one occasion he was hard put to it to escape with his life. Demetrius, who was now king of India—that is, of the country of the Indus,—not of Bactria, and who was naturally one of his most determined foes, had reduced him to such straits that he was driven to take refuge in a fort with only 300 followers. Here, if we may believe Justin (*loc. cit.*), he was blockaded by a force of 60,000 men under the personal command of his rival. The odds were tremendous. But his resourcefulness carried him safely through; for more than four months he harassed the enemy by perpetual sallies, demoralising them so thoroughly in the end that the siege had to be raised. This is the last we hear of Demetrius. It is uncertain whether he died a natural death as king of India, or whether he fell defending his territory against Eucratides, into whose possession a considerable portion of it ultimately passed. The close of his reign is sometimes given as *circa* 160, but the date is a purely arbitrary one. As we shall see presently (*infra*, p. 457), there is good ground for believing that the conquest of the Punjab by Eucratides was earlier than 162.