Croesus (pronounced CREE-sus, IPA , the Latin transliteration of the Greek Κροίσος, in Arabic and Persian قارون Qârun), who was legendary for his enormous wealth, was king of Lydia from 560/561 BC until his defeat by the Persians in about 547 BC. Born in 626 BC, he was the son of Alyattes and continued his father's policy of conquering the Ionian cities of Asia Minor, but was friendlier to the Greeks than his father had been, giving refuge at one point to the Athenian statesman Solon. It was said that Adrastus exiled himself to Lydia after accidentally killing his brother. King Croesus welcomed him but then Adrastus accidentally killed Croesus' son, Atys. He then committed suicide.

Croesus' uneasy relations with the Greeks obscures the larger fact that he was their last bastion of the Ionian Greeks against the increasing Persian power in Anatolia. Croesus allied himself with Amasis II of Egypt and Nabonidus of Babylonia, while preparing a campaign against Cyrus the Great of Persia in 547 BC. Before starting his campaign he turned to the Oracle of Delphi to ask about the fate of his campaign, the Pythia answered, with typical Delphic ambiguity: "If Croesus crossed the Halys, a great empire shall be brought down". Croesus, now feeling secure, launched his campaign into the Persian Empire. He was intercepted near the river Halys in central Anatolia and an undecided battle was fought. As was usual in those days, the armies would disband for winter and Croesus did accordingly. Unfortunately for him Cyrus didn't and he attacked Croesus in Sardis and captured him. It became painfully clear that the powerful empire Croesus was about to destroy was his own.

According to Herodotus, Croesus was placed upon a great pyre by Cyrus' orders, for Cyrus wanted to see if any of the heavenly powers would appear to save him from being burned alive. The pile was set ablaze, then Cyrus hearing from the interpreters that Croesus relented and bethinking himself that he too was a man, and one who once been as blessed by fortune, bade them to quench the blazing fire as quickly as they could. They tried to do this, but the flames were not to be mastered. According to the story, Croesus called out to Apollo and prayed to him. The sky had been clear and the day without a breath of wind, but soon dark clouds gathered and a storm with rain of such violence that the flames were speedily extinguished. Cyrus, convinced by this that Croesus was a good man, made Croesus an advisor who served Cyrus well and later Cyrus's son Cambyses, his son by Cassandane.

It is not known when exactly Croesus died, although it is traditionally dated 546 BC, after Cyrus' conquest. In the Nabonidus Chronicle it is said that Cyrus "marched against the country Lydia, killed its king (Croesus), took his possessions, put there a garrison of his own." However, it should be noted that the cuneiform word that is thought to represent "Lydia" is damaged, and its interpretation is doubtful.

In Greek language and Persian literature, the word "Croesus" became a synonym for a very rich man, and in English, expressions such as "rich as Croesus" or "richer than Croesus" are used to indicate great wealth.

See also: Qarun Treasure

External links

• Herodotus' account of Croesus (from the Perseus Project): see 1.6-94; contains links to both English and Greek versions
• An in-depth account of Croesus' life, by Carlos Parada
• Livius, Croesus by Jona Lendering

Kings of Lydia

Krøsus | Krösus | Creso | Krezo | Kroisos | Crésus | Creso | קרויסוס | Croesus | Krøsus | Krezus | Крёз (царь Лидии) | Krez | Krösus