Arses (Old Persian: *R̥šā; Greek: Ἀρσής), also known by his regnal name Artaxerxes IV (/ˌɑːrtəˈzɜːrksiːz/; Old Persian: 𐎠𐎼𐎫𐎧𐏁𐏂𐎠 Artaxšaçāʰ; Greek: Ἀρταξέρξης), was the twelfth Achaemenid King of Kings from 338 to 336 BC.
Arses ascended the throne after his father, Artaxerxes III—who had caused a resurgence of the Persian Empire—was poisoned by the eunuch Bagoas. The latter put Arses on the throne with the expectation of being able to control him. With the weakening of the Achaemenid Empire from the assassination of Artaxerxes III and the succession of this king, the Greek league sent troops into Asia in 336.
Arses, in an attempt to free himself from Bagoas’ influences, tried to have the eunuch poisoned; but did not succeed, instead succumbing to poison himself at the orders of Bagoas. Bagoas put the king’s cousin Darius III on the throne after him.
Name
He is known as Arses in Greek sources, which seems to have been his real name, but the Xanthus trilingual and potsherds from Samaria report that he took the royal name of Artaxerxes IV, following his father and grandfather.
Arses is the Greek form of the Old Persian R̥šā, which is also attested in the Avestan form Aršan- and is used in multiple Old Persian compound names, such as Aršaka, Aršāma, and Xšayaaršan. The term is linguistically related to the Greek arsēn, meaning “male, manly”.
Biography of Arses
Arses was the youngest son of Artaxerxes III and his wife, Atossa. Arses had several brothers, only one whose name is attested, a certain Bisthanes. Persia was experiencing a resurgence under Artaxerxes III, who reorganized his empire, and suppressed revolts throughout the country. However, the fortunes of Persia came to an abrupt end in the autumn of 338, when Artaxerxes III was murdered by the ambitious eunuch and chiliarch Bagoas, who had the king poisoned. Artaxerxes III’s early death proved to be a problematic issue for Persia and may have played a role in weakening the country. Most of Artaxerxes III’s sons, except Arses and Bisthanes, were also murdered by Bagoas. Bagoas, who wanted to be kingmaker, put the young Arses on the throne.
Arses most likely assumed the regnal name of Artaxerxes IV on his ascension to the throne. He was put on the throne by Bagoas due to his youth, which the latter sought to take advantage of to control him. Around the same period, most Greek city-states had joined the Greek league under the leadership of the Macedonian king Philip II, who took advantage of the events in Persia by demanding compensation from the country for helping the town of Perinthus during the reign of Artaxerxes III. Arses declined, and as a result, a Greek expedition was started with Philip II as general, who sent 10,000 Macedonian soldiers into Asia in 336 BC. At the same time, however, Arses was determined to try to free himself from Bagoas’ authority and influence; he made an unsuccessful effort to have the latter poisoned, only to be poisoned himself along with the rest of his family by Bagoas, who put Arses’ cousin Darius III on the throne. Macedonian propaganda, made to legitimize the conquests of Alexander the Great a few years later, accused Darius III of playing a vital role in the murder of Arses, who was portrayed as the last king of the Achaemenid royal house.
