The Battle of Zela was fought in 47 BC between Julius Caesar and Pharnaces II of the Kingdom of Pontus. The battle took place near Zela (modern Zile), which is now a small hilltop town in the Tokat province of northern Turkey. The battle ended the ambitions of king Pharnaces who wanted to expand his rule over Asia Minor.
Following his swift victory, Caesar famously declared, Veni, Vidi, Vici ("I came, I saw, I conquered"), emphasizing the speed and decisiveness of his triumph.
The Mithridatic dynasty, also known as the Pontic dynasty, was a hereditary dynasty of Persian origin, founded by Mithridates I Ktistes (Mithridates III of Cius) in 281 BC. The origins of the dynasty were located in the highest circles of the ruling Persian nobility in Cius. Mithridates III of Cius fled to Paphlagonia after the murder of his father and his predecessor Mithridates II of Cius, eventually proclaiming the Kingdom of Pontus, and adopting the epithet of "Ktistes" (literally, Builder). The dynasty reached its greatest extent under the rule of Mithridates VI, who is considered the greatest ruler of the Kingdom of Pontus.
They were prominent enemies of the Roman Republic during the Mithridatic Wars during the reign of Mithridates VI until the late 60s BC. In 48 BC, the Roman client king of the Crimea, Pharnaces II, attempted to press his claim on Pontus, but was decisively defeated by Julius Caesar at the Battle of Zela.
Veni, vidi, vici (Classical Latin: [ˈu̯eːniː ˈu̯iːd̪iː ˈu̯iː.kiː], Ecclesiastical Latin: [ˈveːni ˈviːd̪i ˈviː.t͡ʃi]; "I came; I saw; I conquered") is a Latin phrase used to refer to a swift, conclusive victory. The phrase is popularly attributed to Julius Caesar who, according to Appian, used the phrase in a letter to the Roman Senate around 47 BC after he had achieved a quick victory in his short war against Pharnaces II of Pontus at the Battle of Zela (modern-day Zile, Turkey).
The phrase is attributed in Plutarch's Life of Caesar and Suetonius's Lives of the Twelve Caesars: Julius. Plutarch writes that Caesar used it in a report to Amantius, a friend of his in Rome. Suetonius states that Caesar displayed the three words as an inscription during his Pontic triumph.