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Gyges Founds the Kingdom of Lydia

Type Event Region Lydia Time c. -685–-675

Around 680 BCE, Gyges overthrew the Heraclid dynasty and founded the Mermnad dynasty, ushering Lydia into a new era of unification, early coinage, an…

Timeline

  1. c. -680Sardis · LydiaAccording to Herodotus, Gyges, a palace guard, murdered the king and seized the throne, ending Heraclid rule and becoming Lydia's new monarch, provoking widespread debate in the Greek world about the legitimacy of his reign.
  2. c. -675–-650Lydia · LydiaGyges and his successors consolidated control over Lydia's heartland and gradually expanded eastward; the kingdom's political structure stabilized, laying the groundwork for the later unification of western Asia Minor and commercial prosperity.

Sources