Artavasdes I of Armenia in the context of "Artaxiad dynasty of Iberia"

Tigranes II, more commonly known as Tigranes the Great (Tigran Mets in Armenian; 140–55 BC), was a king of Armenia. A member of the Artaxiad dynasty, he ruled from 95 BC to 55 BC. Under his reign, the Armenian kingdom expanded beyond its traditional boundaries and reached its peak, allowing Tigranes to claim the title Great King or King of Kings. His empire for a short time was the most powerful state to the east of the Roman Republic.

Either the son or nephew of Artavasdes I, Tigranes was given as a hostage to Mithridates II of Parthia after Armenia came under Parthian suzerainty. After ascending to the Armenian throne, he rapidly expanded his kingdom by invading or annexing Roman and Parthian client-kingdoms. Tigran decided to ally with Mithridates VI of Pontus by marrying his daughter Cleopatra. At its height, Tigranes' empire stretched from the Pontic Alps to Mesopotamia and from the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean. With captured vassals, his lands even reached the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf. Many of the inhabitants of conquered cities were forcibly relocated to his new capital, Tigranocerta. An admirer of the Greek culture, Tigranes invited many Greek rhetoricians and philosophers to his court, and his capital was noted for its Hellenistic architecture.

Artaxias I, of the Artaxiad dynasty, was a king (mepe) of Iberia (modern-day Georgia) from 90 to 78 BC. He is known exclusively from the medieval Georgian chronicles which gives his name as Arshak (Georgian: არშაკი).

A son of the king of Armenia, purportedly of Artavasdes I (r. c. 161–post 123 BC), he is reported to have been installed following the nobles’ revolt against the Iberian king P’arnajom of the Pharnabazid dynasty. The rebels justified their choice by emphasizing that he was married to a Pharnabazid princess, probably a sister of P’arnajom. The account of his reign is remarkably short, stating only that his reign was without any major trouble and that he further fortified the city of Tsunda in Javakheti.

Artaxias I (from Ancient Greek: Άρταξίας) was the founder of the Artaxiad dynasty of Armenia, ruling from 189 BC to 160 BC. Artaxias was a member of a branch of the Orontid dynasty, the earlier ruling dynasty of Armenia. He expanded his kingdom on all sides, consolidating the territory of Greater Armenia. He enacted a number of administrative reforms to order his expanded realm. He also founded a new capital in the central valley of the Araxes River called Artaxata (Artashat), which quickly grew into a major urban and commercial center. He was succeeded by his son Artavasdes I. Modern scholars regard him as the founder of independent Armenian statehood.