Editing Antiochus XII Dionysus (section)

===Military campaigns===
[[File:Syria under the Seleucids 87 BC.png|alt= A map depicting Syria and its neighbours in 87 BC, showing the limits of Antiochus XII and his opponents' territories|300px|thumb|Syria in 87 BC]]
Early in his reign, Antiochus XII attacked the Nabataeans and the Judaeans, whose territories both lay south of his own. This conflict was recorded by Josephus, although he made no mention of the name of the Nabataean king.{{sfn|Roschinski|1980|p=143}} Josephus mentioned two campaigns against the Nabataeans, but did not explain the motives leading the Syrian King to attack them. Modern scholars presented several theories. In the view of Israel Shatzman, Antiochus XII may have feared the growing power of the Nabataeans, who were expanding into southern Syria.{{sfn|Shatzman|1991|p=119}} Zayn Bilkadi suggested that Antiochus XII wanted to take control over the Nabataeans' [[Petroleum|crude oil]] industry,{{sfn|Bilkadi|1996|p=107}} while Alexander Fantalkin and Oren Tal suggested that the Nabataeans actively supported Philip I in his attempts to take control over Antiochus XII's realm.{{sfn|Fantalkin|Tal|2003|p=109}}

====First Nabataean campaign and the incursions of Philip I====
Antiochus XII's first Nabataean campaign was launched in 87 BC,{{sfn|Roschinski|1980|p=144}} and might have included a battle near Motho, modern [[Imtan]] in the region of Hauran, as proposed by the historian Hans Peter Roschinski, who drew on the writings of [[Stephanus of Byzantium]].{{sfn|Shatzman|1991|p=119}} The Byzantine historian preserved in his book, ''Ethica'', fragments from a lost work by the historian Uranius of Apamea, who wrote a book titled ''Arabica'', which has been dated to 300 AD.{{sfn|Retso|2003|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=pUepRuQO8ZkC&pg=PA491 491]}}{{sfn|Sartre|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9y7nTpFcN3AC&pg=PA19 19]}} In the account of Uranius, King [[Antigonus I Monophthalmus|Antigonus I]] ({{reign|306|301|era=BC}}) is killed at Motho by a king of the Arabs named Rabbel.{{sfn|Sartre|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9y7nTpFcN3AC&pg=PA19 19]}} The name Motho could refer to a northern city in [[Hauran]] or a southern city in [[Moab]].{{#tag:ref|In the ''[[Notitia Dignitatum]]'', Motho is where the [[Roman Empire|Roman]] ''[[Cohort (military unit)|Cohors]] I Augusta Thracum Equitata'' was stationed. The city of [[Mu'tah]] in Moab, where the ''Equites Scutarii Illyriciani'' was stationed, is named Motha in the ''Notitia Dignitatum''.{{sfn|Chaniotis|Corsten|Stroud|Tybout|2007|p=551}}|group=note}}{{sfn|Chaniotis|Corsten|Stroud|Tybout|2007|p=551}} The name of Antigonus was regularly "corrected" to Antiochus by different scholars who believed that Uranius was referring to Antiochus XII.{{#tag:ref|The historian [[Józef Milik]] rejected the practice of correcting Uranius's work. Milik believed that instead of Antigonus I or Antiochus XII, the passage refers to [[Antigonid–Nabataean confrontations|Athenaeus]], an official of Antigonus who fought the Nabataeans.{{sfn|Bowersock|1971|p=226}}|group=note}}{{sfn|Bowersock|1971|p=226}} Roschinski considered it conceivable that Stephanus was conflating two events taking place during the reign of the Nabataean King Rabbel I: a battle of Antiochus XII's first Nabataean campaign at Motho in the north, and the battle from the second Nabataean campaign in which Antiochus XII was killed.{{sfn|Roschinski|1980|p=144}} Shatzman, on the other hand, noted that nowhere in his work did Stephanus indicate that the battle of Motho took place in the north.{{sfn|Shatzman|1991|p=119}}

Taking advantage of his brother's absence, Philip I seized Damascus,{{sfn|Hoover|Houghton|Veselý|2008|p= 214}} aided by the governor of the city's citadel, Milesius, who opened the gates to him. According to Josephus, Milesius received no reward from Philip I, who attributed the betrayal to the general's fear, leading Milesius to betray Philip I, who had left the city to attend an event in the nearby [[hippodrome]]. The general closed the gates, locking Philip I out, and awaited the return of Antiochus XII, who had hastily ended his campaign when he heard of his brother's occupation of the city.{{#tag:ref|The citadel is called "akra" by Josephus; a word that indicates a garrisoned fortified camp located in the outskirts of a city. Josephus also implied that the citadel was close to the hippodrome of Damascus, whose remains are located under the {{ill|Dahdah cemetery|ar|مقبرة الدحداح}} just outside the [[Ancient City of Damascus|ancient city]].{{sfn|Dąbrowa|2003|p=51}}|group=note}}{{sfn|Josephus|1833|p= [https://books.google.com/books?id=9sA5AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA422 422]}} Modern scholars noted that Seleucid currency, struck during campaigns against a rival (or usurper), portrayed the King sporting a beard.{{sfn|Lorber|Iossif|2009|p= 112}} During his first two years, Antiochus XII's visage appeared beardless, but this changed in 228 SE (85/84 BC). This is possibly related to Philip I's attack on Damascus, but this supposition has little support, as Antiochus XII failed to take any action against his brother.{{sfn|Lorber|Iossif|2009|p= 104}} No coins were minted during the period that Philip I held Damascus, indicating only a brief occupation of the city.{{sfn|Hoover|Houghton|Veselý|2008|p= 214}}

====Second Nabataean campaign, war in Judea and death====
Although his territory directly abutted Nabataean territory, for his second Nabataean campaign Antiochus XII instead chose to march his forces through Judaea along the coast,{{sfn|Roschinski|1980|p=143}} probably to attack the Nabataean-dominated [[Negev]], which would have cut off the port city of [[Gaza City|Gaza]], threatened Nabataean Mediterranean trade, and curbed Nabataean ambitions in the [[Transjordan (region)|Transjordan]]. This route would have allowed Antiochus XII to keep Alexander Jannaeus at bay.{{sfn|Mittmann|2006|p=31}} According to Josephus, the Judaean King feared Antiochus XII's intentions and ordered the "Yannai Line" to be built, which consisted of a trench that fronted a defensive wall dotted with wooden towers. The trench stretched {{convert|28|km|mi|sp=us}} from [[Kfar Saba|Caphersaba]] to the sea near [[Jaffa|Joppa]].{{sfn|Fantalkin|Tal|2003|p=109}} Antiochus XII leveled the trench, burned the fortifications, and continued his march into Nabataean territory.{{sfn|Fantalkin|Tal|2003|p=108}}

The account of the campaign, written by Josephus, is subject to some debate; the historian wrote that Antiochus XII's forces defeated those of Alexander Jannaeus, but the eighth-century historian [[George Syncellus]] mentioned a defeat suffered by Antiochus XII at the hands of the Judaean king.{{#tag:ref|It seems that Syncellus did not rely only on Josephus and had access to other sources; [[Heinrich Gelzer]] suggested that Syncellus used the account of [[Justus of Tiberias]].{{sfn|Stern|1981|p=44}} It is possible that Josephus deliberately ignored the victories of Alexander Jannaeus; this can be explained by Josephus's reliance on the first century BC historian [[Nicolaus of Damascus]], whose treatment of the Hasmonean dynasty is hostile due to the latter's role in destroying many Hellenistic centers.{{sfn|Stern|1987|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=DPzZTN74jAcC&pg=PA113 113]}}|group=note}}{{sfn|Stern|1981|p=44}} The existence of the Yannai Line has been questioned by several historians,{{#tag:ref|The trench of Alexander Jannaeus was named the "Yannai Line" by Jacob Kaplan in the 1950s. Kaplan interpreted archeological remains from [[Bnei Brak]] and [[Tel Aviv]] as parts of that line and his conclusions were generally accepted by the majority of scholars.{{sfn|Fantalkin|Tal|2003|p=108}} Bezalel Bar-Kochva raised questions regarding the line, noting that it would have taken Antiochus XII ten to fifteen days to march from Damascus to the [[Sharon plain]] where the line purportedly stood, which would not be sufficient time for such a project to be constructed.{{sfn|Fantalkin|Tal|2003|p=109}} Kenneth Atkinson suggested that Alexander Jannaeus constructed the Yannai Line after defeating Antiochus XII, in anticipation of Antiochus XII's return.{{sfn|Atkinson|2012|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=mFZsgugWF_UC&pg=PA150 150]}} Bar-Kochva suggested that the line was erected earlier than Antiochus XII's invasion, perhaps to fend off a different enemy. He suggested that the plain stretching {{convert|4|km|mi|sp=us}} between western [[Samaria]] and [[Tel Afek]] east of the Yarkon River's source was the location of the line.{{sfn|Fantalkin|Tal|2003|p=109}} The archeological remains interpreted by Kaplan as evidence for the line do not fit the time frame of Antiochus XII's invasion and may belong to non-military civilian establishments.{{sfn|Fantalkin|Tal|2003|p=119}}|group=note}}{{sfn|Fantalkin|Tal|2003|p=108}} and Josephus's explanation of Alexander Jannaeus's attempt to stop the march of Antiochus XII, because of his fears of the latter's intentions, is unsatisfactory. Both the Nabataeans and Syrians were enemies of Judea and it would have been to Alexander Jannaeus's benefit if those two powers were in conflict.{{sfn|Atkinson|2011|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=Gg41SrMJSoEC&pg=PA19 19]}} Syncellus may have been referring to an earlier confrontation between the Syrian king and Alexander Jannaeus.{{sfn|Stern|1981|p=44}} Thus the statement of Syncellus supports the notion that Antiochus XII's second Nabataean campaign was also aimed at Judea; perhaps Antiochus XII sought to annex the coastal cities of Alexander Jannaeus as retribution for the defeat mentioned by Syncellus.{{sfn|Atkinson|2011|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=Gg41SrMJSoEC&pg=PA19 19]}} Another objective would be subduing the Judaeans to keep them from attacking Syria while Antiochus XII was busy in Nabataea.{{sfn|Atkinson|2012|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=mFZsgugWF_UC&pg=PA150 150]}}

The final engagement between the forces of Antiochus XII and the Nabataeans occurred near the village of [[Battle of Cana|Cana]],{{#tag:ref|If the account of Uranius is accepted, and if he meant Antiochus XII instead of Antigonus I, then the last battle took place near Motho in Moab.{{sfn|Sartre|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9y7nTpFcN3AC&pg=PA19 19]}}|group=note}}{{sfn|Leeming|Leeming|2003|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=gu5HI-4gyXgC&pg=PA122 122]}} the location of which is unknown, but is generally assumed by modern scholars to be southwest of the [[Dead Sea]].{{sfn|Shatzman|1991|p=119}} Historian Siegfried Mittmann considered it to be synonymous with ''Qina'', modern-day [[Horvat Uza]], as mentioned by Josephus in Book 15 of his ''Antiquities''.{{sfn|Mittmann|2006|p=32}} Details of the battle, as written by Josephus, spoke of the Nabataeans employing a [[feigned retreat]],{{sfn|Shatzman|1991|p=124}} then counterattacking the Syrian forces before their ranks could be ordered. Antiochus XII managed to rally his troops and weathered the attack, but he fought in the front lines, jeopardizing his life, and he eventually fell.{{sfn|Leeming|Leeming|2003|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=gu5HI-4gyXgC&pg=PA122 122]}} The year of Antiochus XII's death is debated,{{sfn|Shatzman|1991|p=120}} but his last coins struck in Damascus are dated to 230 SE (83/82 BC).{{sfn|Hoover|Houghton|Veselý|2008|p=214}}