Atlas of Battles

siege, notable, ancient

Siege of Athens

Siege of Athens was a siege conducted in September 87 BC at Athens, in what is now Greece; it ran into the following year. It was part of First Mithridatic War, which ran from 89 BC to 85 BC. The recorded result: Roman victory. Recorded strength: Total: 37,000–44,000; ----5 Roman legions (17,000–24,000 legionaires); 20,000 auxiliaries against Unknown.

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Siege of Athens
Wikimedia Commons, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
FoughtSeptember 87 BCran into the following year
WhereAthens, Greece37.979N, 23.716E
OutcomeRoman victory
BelligerentsRoman RepublicagainstKingdom of Pontus; Athenian City-State
Casualties and lossesLowand400,000200,000 dead
Part ofFirst Mithridatic War89 BC to 85 BC

Where it sits in First Mithridatic War

Battle of the River Amnias, 89 BCBattle of Protopachium, 89 BCBattle of Mount Scorobas, 88 BCSiege of Rhodes, 88 BCBattle of Delos, 88 BCBattle of Chaeronea, 87 BCSiege of Athens, 87 BCBattle of Chaeronea, 86 BCBattle of Orchomenus, 86 BCBattle of Tenedos, 86 BC89 BC86 BCSiege of Athens, 87 BC
10 placed engagements of First Mithridatic War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

DateSeptember 87 BC (month precision)
to 1 March 86 BC
PlaceAthens, Greece
37.979N, 23.716E
KindSiege, ancient
StrengthTotal: 37,000–44,000; ----5 Roman legions (17,000–24,000 legionaires); 20,000 auxiliariesUnknown
Casualties and lossesLow400,000200,000 dead
Commanders
  • Sulla
  • Lucullus
  • Gaius Scribonius Curio (consul 76 BC)
  • Lucius Licinius Murena (triumphator)
  • Aristion
Siege of AthensSiege of AthensSiege of the AcropolisSiege of AthensSiege of the AcropolisSiege of the AcropolisSiege of AthensSiege of the AcropolisPatraKalamataChalkidaTripoliErmoupoliLamia100 km37.979N, 23.716E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 12 times between 404 BC and 1944.

In the same war

Siege of Athens is one of 166 engagements of the 1st century BC in the atlas and one of 529 in present-day Greece.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q815117, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Siege of Athens and Piraeus (87–86 BC), revision 1382211393, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.