Greco-Bactrian Kingdom Discussion

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Diodotus founded the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom when he seceded from the Seleucid Empire around 250 BC and became King Diodotus I of Bactria. The Greco-Bactrian Kingdom was, along with the Indo-Greek Kingdom, the easternmost part of the Hellenistic world and was centered on the north of present-day Afghanistan. The new kingdom was highly urbanized and considered one of the richest in the Orient. The Greek historian Strabo wrote that the Greco-Bactrians extended the empire even as far as China. Statues of Greek soldiers have been found from this time period in China and may have influenced the manufacture of the famous Teracotta army. The Indian emperor Chandragupta who founded the Mauryan dynasty ensured each Mauryan emperor had a Greek ambassador at his court. Some of the Greek populations remained in northwestern India and convereted to Buddhism. The Greco-Bactrian city of Ai-Khanoum interacted closely with the Indian subcontinent and shared the rich Hellenistic culture of the time. The Greco-Bactrians were involved in fighting the Parthians and Scythians with a multi-ethnic force of Greek colonists armed with pike phalanxes and mercenary javelin-wielding Thrueophoroi. The cavalry would also incorporate Indo-Iranian light horsemen. Greco-Bactrians were known for high level of Hellenic sophistication and kept regular contact with both the Mediterranean and India.