losthistoryblog

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Danish-Norweigian India: Wait that exists?

When we think colonization in India, we often turn to the British and Portuguese and their exploits in India. Some may think of the Dutch and the French as well. But does the Danish-Norweigian Empire ever come to mind? Probably not.

How were the Danes involved in India though? and why?

For starters, it wasn't JUST Danes like mentioned above, it was under the kingdom of Denmark-Norway. There's a reason no one mentions these colonies however. Because it was not as powerful as the rest obviously to didn't ever threaten India in anyway whatsoever but the Danes and Norwegians managed to hold on to their colonies in Tharangambabi (Tamil Nadu), Serampore (West Bengal) and parts of the Nicobar islands.

Under the monarchy of Christian IV the Danish East India company was created in 1616. They ventured to Ceylon in 1618 (Sri Lanka) and managed to set up trade with the Ceylonese and held territory in 1620s which was a Hindu temple by the name of Koneswaram but this resulted in an altercation with the Portuguese which they lost and endured a few casualties.

Their trade director Robert Crappe engaged in conflict with the Portuguese once again outside of Puducherry and resulted in most of Crappe's crew being captured and 2 being killed then and there.

The Indians took Crappe's men under custody and were sent to Tamil Nadu where Crappe managed to bargain for freedom and setup a trading post by the name of Fort Dansborg.

Fort Dansborg was an utter failure for the first few years, yielding minimal profits. The Thirty Years War further caused the lack of trade at Dansborg.

Their fortune changed in 1625 when they made a factory in present day Andhra Pradesh and gained a lot of power and importance in the area of Masulipatnam. They established a few more but smaller trade establishments in Pipli and Balasore. However, their fleet was rapidly depleting and they were unable to pay taxes for Fort Dansborg to India. This was of much annoyance to the Indians and not to mention the fact that the British and Dutch were less than happy with their presence in the area.

The 1630s don't have a lot of information of note but they did declare war on the Mughal Empire in 1642 and began raiding ships in the Bay of Bengal which lead to significant profits and some of the most money they'd seen in a while. 5 years later, Holland and Sweden end up declaring war on the Danes leading to some problems in the region. The Dutch now had control over Fort Dansborg which eventually lead to its collapse and unrelatedly but the Danish East India Company fell apart as well. The 1640s weren't a great time for the Danes conquest in South Asia.

The Danes ended up abandoning India after this string of misfortune and had only one officer left in the area which was now under Indo-Portuguese rule. The Danes weren't in the area for 19 years and then made a return in 1669.

This time the Danish East India company went more smoothly with the former site of Fort Dansborg being under their control once more and even allowed for further expansion as well. The next century or so had the Danes and Germans travel to India and try to convert the Tamil population to Christianity which worked quite well. There were dictionaries between Tamil and German and the first few bibles in Tamil as well. All of this was done due to a German missionary by the name of Bartholomaüs Ziegenbalg in the early 1700s to the 1720s.

The 1730s saw the creation of the Danish Asiatic Company which was involved in China as well as India. This was a fruitful endeavour for them where they traded fabrics, spices and other goods. They managed to gain a presence in Calicut in order to get pepper and even founded new colonies in Bengal. They even entered the Andamans and took over Austrian and British territory in the area. This ended up fizzling out in 1760s and the islands were sold to the British.

in 1772 the Danish Asiatic Company ended up losing their monopoly in India allowing for other Danish and Norwegian merchants to have their chance and in 1777 the Danish crown took back all of the territory taken by the Asiatic company. Conflict between the British East India Company and the British also lead to massive bouts of money laundering on other European ships in order to prevent the company's fortune from ever reaching its intended destination which added some much needed funding to the Danes operation.

The Napoleonic Wars (specifically the English wars) eventually resulted in the British taking over all of the Danish colonies in the early 1800s, muscling them out of the entire nation.

The Danes didn't have a profound impact on the nation, many highs and lows but they still managed to stay for a good 2 centuries and held the Fort of Dansborg for a significant amount of time despite pressure from the British, Portuguese, Dutch and French.

[losthistoryblog]

Unlikely Sister Cities and How They're Connected Pt.1

I was on a Wikipedia binge recently, every time you see an article about a city you can see a list of its sister cities and they seem to be random but upon closer inspection they are somehow linked.

Kolkata has many sister cities but one that stuck out to me was Thessaloniki in Greece. I've previously written about Greco-Indian connections but this one is much more recent.

There was a rather substantial research paper by Dimitrios Vassiliadis regarding the connection.

Why would there be a Greek diaspora in Kolkata of all place? Well we'll have to pay a visit to 1774 during the Turkish-Russo War. The death and destruction during the war destroyed the properties of many Greek merchants and families in Adrianoupolis and Philippoupolis (modern day Bulgaria). Kolkata at the time was a huge port city and a key hub for the British in Europe. So establishing a post there isn't far fetched for a merchant, especially those looking to expand in brand new territory.

Many immigrants from Greece arrived in Kolkata on the same boats as the British colonists as they made stops along the Ionian Sea on their way to the new colony.

Panagiotes Argyres was seen as the leader of the Greek Mercantile community in Bengal and thusly received the honor of being involved in the creation of the first Orthodox church in the area. The story behind the church was that Panagiotes was onboard a ship to Kolkata. It was caught in a terrible storm and during this time Panagiotes mentioned "If we ever reach Kolkata, I will build a church" but tragically he died in Dhaka before ever making it himself, he did have government support and support from the Greek community to build this church however. If it is any consolation his name was inscribed within the church.

During the Greek Revolution against Ottoman rule. They gathered in that very same church and vowed in 1802 that

" We shall place in custody in Calcutta our spare money and gold and silver and other property for the resurgence of the race of the Greeks.  No one will ever put a hand on them. They will be bestowed to the kingdom of the Greeks so that with the grace of God it will be resurrected"

A priest, Father Constantinos collaborated with the Greek embassy in Delhi and managed to compile 50 thousand documents from Greek community all over the country. These documents were supposed to be shipped to Athens but they ended up getting lost on the way tragically. Father Constantions managed to write whatever he remembered in an Athenian journal called "Nea Estia"

He wrote many more books such as "The Greeks of Pontos in India" which contained his memoirs and some biographies of notable Greeks who lived Bengal.

It is quite clear that the Greeks and Bengalis had a very symbiotic relationship and that the roots of Greek culture are highly embedded within the city. Not only Kolkata but other cities within Bengal such as Darjeeling and Dhaka (where they have a monument in the University of Dhaka).

Kolkata and Greece are HEAVILY intertwined with hundreds of families if not more living in Kolkata alone. There's so much more to write but this is a great starting point.

This post wouldn't be possible without the research paper written by Mr Dimitrios Vassiliadis in the Hellenistic Society for Asian Studies. So please do go through it here

[losthistoryblog]

Aztec Codices: Mesoamerican Literature

How do we know when things happen in history? Not by using time travel. Often from books, or a series of manuscripts (a Codex). Here are some from the Aztec era

The Aztecs have a number of these, 38 major ones at least. But let's discuss three of them and what they have in them

Codex Aubin (1567 - 1608)

Coming in at 81 pages and being established in 1567 and having it's last page dated at 1608 (just at the start of Spanish rule). Essentially it starts by detailing the founding of Tenochtitlan (hopefully I spelled that right). But it also provides the Aztec perspective on what happened during the Spanish conquest of the city including the smallpox epidemic. It does make a reference to the massacre in Tenochtitlan in 1520. James Lockhart got his hands on Aubin and managed to identify a main author of sorts. The author used a combination of older Codices, oral history and some eyewitness testimonials. The Codex is complimentary to the Codex Florentine which discusses similar events from a different angle. This Codex can be found in the British Museum.

Codex Boturini (1530 - 1541)

Weighs in at around 22 pages, it's written in a combination of glyphs and Nahuatl. It talks about the migration of the Aztec people from Atzalán and were one of the tribes of the Azteca. It then talks about the Azteca becoming into the Mexica and how they were chosen by god to form the city of Tenochtitlan. The Codex Aubin picks up the story from here on out.

Codex Mendoza (1541-1552)

It consists of 83 pages or so, it was commissioned by the Viceroy of Spain at the time and named after Don Antonio de Mendoza. It was made by native artists on European paper. It consists of three sections. The first section is a summation of 200 years of Aztec history. The second section was a list of cities invaded by the triple alliance (possibly stolen from a different Codex). The last section was a currency conversion table with European currency. This Codex can be found in the library at Oxford.

[losthistoryblog]

Hadza Art

Hadza Art,it was a style of African Rock Painting in present day Tanzania. It goes back about 2 thousand years ago. The paintings are situated around Northern Tanzania, around Lake Eyasi where some other tribes like the Datoga live.

Not a lot is known about the art, it's commonly accepted that these are a form of recording stories. Similar to the Chauvet Cave Paintings which have been covered on this blog.

It bears a similarity to other paintings in Southern Africa, such as the San paintings found in Zimbabwe. However it's completely foreign compared to artwork found in Sub-Saharan Africa

[losthistoryblog]

Candombe: a little bit of Africa in Uruguay

It's been a while since the blog has been updated. So anyway, back on schedule now and here's the first post of the year

Candombe is a folk dance hailing from Uruguay, it's often performed by Uruguayans of African ancestry. It's also found in other South American nations like Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil but to a significantly lesser extent.

It's based of cultures found in Angola and the Congo. The Portuguese Empire engaged in the slave trade and many were sent to Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay. So the cultural ties to Africa were rather strong. The music for this dance comes from three distinct kinds of drum. The chico, piano and repique drums

The dance is often performed on special occasions, like New Years, Christmas, Saint Baltasar's, Rosary Virgin and Saint Benito. Some Afro-Uruguayan's took it a step further and performed the dance every sunday which was seen in certain neighborhoods in Montevideo.

They'd even go as far as to light fires in order to heat the drums up, which must've added to the spectacle. They often had characters in parades mocking and poking fun at their white oppressors, this served as a testament to their rebellious spirit and African heritage.

The word Candombe itself comes from the Kikongo language, spoken by the Bantu people (the ancestors of the Afro-Uruguayans). The word in Kikongo means "pertaining to the blacks" further concreting which ethnicity practices this dance. The dance itself is extremely rhythmic and energetic.

In the 1960s there was a rise of Candombe in pop culture. Utilized by Uruguayan artists such as Eduardo Mateo and Jorge Galemire. Later on it was adapted by more contemporary artists like Diego Jannsen and Miguel Del Aguila.

in 2009, Candombe was given a place on the intangible cultural heritage list by UNESCO.

The history of Candombe is facinating, there's a lot more on it such as the parades and it's influence in other places such as Argentina and certain provinces of Brazil where the Bantu culture is strong and to an extent it still lingers today in Montevideo and Buenos Aires.

[losthistoryblog]

Dastangoi: The Art of Storytelling

Dastangoi is an Urdu storytelling art. Derived from Persia. Dastangoi is performed by one person who's referred to as a Dastango, the word for storyteller. Stories are referred to as Dastans. Dastan means, tale or story and the suffix -goi makes it a verb. Hence, Dastangoi translates to "to tell a story"

Dastangoi had it's origins in pre-Islamic Arabia and moved onto Iran and then the North Indian cities of Delhi and Lucknow in the 18th century.

It was very popular in Lucknow, across all classes of people and in public and private. It was done in the streets, in homes and even opium dens. Many people saw Dastans as a key part of the the experience in an opium den

Some people, who were particularly rich would hire Dastangos to entertain their clients and friends. These stories would come under themes such as, war, pleasure, beauty, love and deception.

Dastangoi enjoyed a revitalisation in India in 2005, which seemed to have stemmed from Mahmood Farooqui

[losthistoryblog]

The Orang Asli: Malaysia's first people

The name Orang Asli roughly translates to "the native people" in Malay. They make up about .7% of Malaysia's population and are the earliest inhabitants of peninsular Malaysia.

While I do refer to them as one "tribe" there are many groups within The Orang Asli with distinct languages, cultures and customs. So there are a few subdivisions.

Such as the

Semang, the Semang (also known as Pangan) are the real earliest inhabitants of the Malay peninsula and reside in the north of the country. They are direct descendants of the Hoabinhian people.

the Semang have tribes within them as well (too many to fully do it justice but just trust me on this one) and they were hunter gatherer like civilizations beforehand. As per the 2010 census there are about 4,800 people who fall under the label of Semang

Senoi, the Senoi are the largest subdivision of the Orang Asli and commonly reside in the north and central parts of the peninsula. Many people in the Senoi tribe after the colonial era now follow Islam and Christianity (not all but there's a sizable amount. Senoi makes up about 53% of the Orang Asli which is a sizable number. They mostly work in agriculture and farm rubber, cocoa and palm oil.

Aboriginal Malays, they are the second largest group within the Orang Asli (around 43%) and are also referred to as the Proto-Malays. They live in the southern portion of the peninsula and are ethnically similar to the average modern day Malaysian. They mostly work in agriculture, fishing and trade. A major distinction between the Aboriginal Malays and the Modern Malays is the the fact that the Aboriginal Malays are usually not muslim (despite some tribes within them adopting the religion as a result of trade)

Like I said before, there are a LOT of tribes to mention here and countless subtribes each with their own story. I don't think I could learn about them all just yet but this is quite an interesting look at Malaysia. It goes to show that their past is very much alive and well

[losthistoryblog]

Revisit: Greco Bactrian Empire

My second ever post on the account was about the Greco-Bactrian empire (scroll to read it)

But the reason I'm bringing it up again after two months is because I visited a museum recently with featured an exhibit on coins in ancient India

and look what came along

As you can see, they're kind of similar to coins of the Mughal era, the square ones Eucratides I and Hippostraus I which is an interesting parallel. I'm certainly considering writing about the Scythians and Parthians as well since I kinda skipped over them.

Anyways yes, I have a few more pictures from a few other exhibits from the museum (which I could discuss )

[losthistoryblog]

Chauvet Cave Paintings

These are ancient cave paintings, made in modern day France.

These date back to 13,000 to 15,000 B.C.E.

These paintings were physically carved INTO the wall and made using dried charcoal rather than paint which they didn't have the time. They had brushes made of hair and moss

These paintings are often connected to religion and Shamanism. Some people in ancient society saw animals tied to a higher power rather than a source of food so they're often associated with power and fertility

So this art work is more so a record of what these ancient homo sapiens believed at the time

[losthistoryblog]

Silbo Gomero: The whistling language from the Canary Islands

Yes, whistling can be a language... somehow?

Made by the original Guanche people of the Canary Islands. The time of origin is a bit unsure but Silbo Gomero was spoken before the Spanish settled the region. This was also spoken on the islands of El Hierro, Tenerife and Gran Canaria. In the late 1800s this language was booming in popularity in the region but then faced a sharp decline due to Francisco Franco banning the language in the 1950s.

The language was always associated with farmers and rural communities as they communicated and these whistles could be heard from 5 kilometers away so this made inter-community communication rather efficient. Since the language had connections with farmers, as society moved away from the language so did the general public, it was seen as "peasant speak" so not many people learn this language as time progressed.

However, after the 80s ended and the 1990s came around there were efforts to conserve the language and incorporate it in education and it's now a bit more popular with the younger generation (those who learnt to speak it after 1999) and popular with the generation born before the ban in the 50s. The language is now protected as a piece of oral and cultural heritage and was added to an official list by UNESCO in 2009

Silbo Gomero is used in traditional Guanche festivals and even has a day dedicated to it, which is 15th March. The whistle language has had a positive impact on the islands tourism and is seen as a big draw as well.

The reason this whistle language came to be might be due to geography and culture. Communicating public announcements is certainly part of the culture, and since Guanche is presumed to be a simple langauge, translating it into whistles was an easy task.

It's one of the most odd and fascinating aspects of linguistics and history, there's a lot you could read up on this.

[losthistoryblog]

The Inishowen Peninsula: Ancient Ring Forts

Ancient Ring Fort: Pictured here

If the place/name sounds sort of familiar to you, it might be because this is place where they filmed Star Wars: The Last Jedi

The Inishowen Peninsula, located in the north of Ireland is home to something rather interesting. Ring forts.

One of them is called Grianan of Aileach (Greenan Ely) and it stands at 5 meters (that's almost two Irish Giant Elk stacked on each other).

Grinan was established in the 6th or 7th century CE by the medieval irish dynasty of Uí Néill and used by the kingdom of Aileach Kingdom in the 12th century during the Norman conquest.

It was destroyed by king Muirchertach Ua Briain who ruled over Munster. Anyway it was restored in 1870 and is now a national monument.

Grinan of Aileach is one of the revered ringforts in all of Ireland, majority of ringforts are in Ireland, Wales and England as they're a part of Gaelic culture

[losthistoryblog]

The Hellfire Club: Not the D&D kind

No, this is not a Stranger Things reference. It is a lodge located on a place called Montpellier Hill in Dublin. It's now used for people to go on nature hikes and just short forest trails.

What about the lodge? Well the lodge was made in 1725 and was built by a man named William "Speaker" Connolly, the house was built over an ancient grave, naturally leading to myths and tales surrounding the mysterious location.

I must say that information around this place is a mix of fact and fiction so take a lot of these things with a grain of salt.

in 1735, Connolly died and then the Irish Hellfire Club started using the lodge as a meeting place. The Hellfire club was founded by a man named Richard Parsons and they frequently dabbled in black magic and the occult.

The club was often a place for degeneracy and debauchery, I'm sure you can tell what goes on in there. Many people said the club was dedicated to the worship of the devil with people dressing up as Satan and the president of the club being referred to as the "king of hell". They'd keep cats as servants (allegedly) and then sacrifice them to the devil.

It was also claimed that people deliberately set the lodge on fire to give it a hellish atmosphere (which is a WILD claim to make).

There is a legend, the most well known story regarding the club and that was the day the day the devil came,

According to the story, a strange man came into the club and it was noticed during a game of cards that he had hooves instead of feet. (that sounds like a huge reach)

Another story goes like this, a farmer visited and was invited by the local members. People claim he was too terrified to talk afterwards.

There are a few more tales, one involving a man who visited the club and then found violently murdered the next day. So this club may be secret but there certainly aren't a shortage of these tales.

The club was burnt down several times in it's lineage and even had it's lease taken away but these activities went on until the early 1800s when it came to an end.

You can still access the lodge on Montpellier Hill today, via a hiking trail. There's even a carpark nearby the area called the "Hell Fire Wood car park" which is hilarious

That's all, this topic is rather mysterious and drenched in uncertainty but man was it interesting and wild to read about

[losthistoryblog]

The Irish Elk

Here are some cool facts about the giant Irish Elk

Stands at a whopping 6 feet and 7 inches (2 meters)

Biggest ever Irish Elk was 11 feet (3.5 meters)

The heaviest Irish Elk was 700 kgs (1,540 lbs)

Could run 80 kph( 50 mph) for more than 15 minutes

The antlers alone weighed 20 kgs (44 lbs)

Irish Elk were hunted by predators like the Cave Lion

Not only found in Ireland but also the UK and Germany and as far as Eastern Russia

[losthistoryblog]

Hinterkaifeck Murders

Yes, I am aware Buzzfeed Unsolved covered this topic. But screw it it's my blog I can write whatever I want

in farm in Bavaria there lived a family. Called the Gruber Family and there were six of them. Andreas, Cäzilla, Viktoria, Cäzilla (different one), Josef and their maid Maria who were all vicitims of the murders

Some strange things were going on at the household. Their previous maid quit 6 months before the killings because she was convinced the noises coming from the attic were due to the house being haunted (she was on to something eh?)

On the night of the murder, 31st March 1922. There were more noises stemming from the attic which Andreas investigated but found no one. Some other strange occurrences within the home were the lock of the machine room being broken (this will make sense later)

Based on what was seen, it seems as if Andreas, Viktoria and both of the Cäzillas (one being Andreas's wife, other being Viktoria's daughter) were lured through their stable into the barn and then were killed with a mattock (an axe kinda weapon)

The killer(s) went through the living quarters, murdered Josef in his sleep and then went to Maria's room and killed her as well with the very same mattock.

What I find shocking is that, this area of Germany is so remote that no one discovered the bodies until 4 days later. Which is uh, a yikes moment to say the least. A few merchants and mechanics showed up to the house to work on small jobs around the house but they weren't aware what happened to the Gruber family. The bodies remained undiscovered until a few people connected with the family, Johann and Josef Schlittenbauer along with Micheal Pöll and Jakob Sigl found the bodies of the Gruber family to their absolute horror.

Some suspects included a man named Karl Gabriel who was Viktoria's daughter and had reportedly died in the World War I in France. Many suspect that he wasn't actually dead because after the second world war ended in 1945 a German speaking Soviet soldier had claimed responsibility of the murders and then left. People suspect that the solider was Karl (what??)

Another suspect was rumored to be a lover of Viktoria and went by the name of Lorenz Schlittenbauer. He's a huge suspect in this case as he's rumored to be the father of Josef. After the bodies were discovered he and his friend broke into the farm and Lorenz used a key to enter the house, which damning as the key had been missing for some time. It's also accepted that while Lorenz was in the house to investigate he tampered with the bodies. When he was questioned as to why he was in the house, his reasoning was that he wanted to check up on Josef.

So yes, quite a few suspects are there but these two seem to be the most interesting. I am not sure who the Hinterkaifeck murderer is but Lorenz Schlittenbauer has a really interesting story in this case let's leave it at that.

[losthistoryblog]

Traditional Instruments from Kashgar (and other Uighur/Central Asian cities)

I'm basically going to just write a small list of some cool instruments from this area. Hope you like it

Tembur, this instrument is absolutely massive. It's 1.5 meters (that's almost a midget's height) it's basically the godfather of Uighur instruments. There are other Turkic and Mesopotamian names like Tanbur and Tamboor. There are quite a few iterations of these but these things go back to the Akkadian era of Mesopotamia. That should give you an idea of how old it is. It's what the Sitar, Pipa and Domra are based off of.

2. Dutar, this instrument is rather big as well. This one has two strings (a lot like an Ehru) this one has a very warm and bright sound. This is the only instrument on this list played with the fingers. This is played at family gatherings. When this instrument is played in Xinjiang (home of Uighur culture) it's plucked with the fingers but among Uzbeks, Tajiks and Turkmen it's strummed. This instrument is also found in provinces of Iran and Afghanistan

3. Rawap, In a shocking twist of events, this instrument is not huge. But it's really interesting. It's made of goat horns and covered in snakeskin (this may only apply to Uighur culture). It was seven strings making it similar to a Lute. This has it's origins in Iran, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan but the Kaxgar-Rawap (from Kashgar) is different in size (slightly bigger), it is tuned in fourths and fifths. Compared to the Tajik Rubob which is smaller and made from the wood of an apricot tree.

Lots of interesting ones from Central Asia, I'll post some videos of what they sound and look like

[losthistoryblog]

Bujang Valley Archaelogical Site (Kedah, Malaysia)

This right here is the oldest South East Asian civilisation.

It was referred to as Qalah (now Kedah) and was a proper civilization with a history of trade with Mesopotamia, India, and China.

The archaeological discoveries are rumored to stretch from the border with Thailand all the way to Penang.

There was a history of iron smelting as well and a presence of Hindu temples and Buddhist temples.

Malaysia aims to make this a tourist site on par with Angkor Wat and Borobudur. It's still shrouded in mystery. According the Malaysian archaeologists there seems to be more left to discover

[losthistoryblog]

Greco-Bactrian Empire: Greeks in Afghanistan?

Since the times of Xerxes I, Greek prisoners and other outcasts would be banished to Bactria, long before the conquests of Alexander the Great.

When the great Macedonian empire split and had West Asia under the Seleucid Empire (which included Bactria) they had a king in place for Bactria who went by Diodotus I managed to gain independence for Bactria, they were VERY prosperous and it was described as the land of a thousand gold cities (that's a bit much no?) Anyway after doing all of this they eventually got cut off from the Greek world by the Parthians. Anyway Diodotus died and his son took over.

After his son took over they were shortly overthrown by Euthydemus who was a Greek king of a small kingdom to the north before taking over Bactria. In his reign he had a "small" tussle with the Seleucids again who laid siege to Bactra for a while, which was certainly a bit rough.

Euthydemus ended up having a son, Demetrius and Demetrius was a bit of a go getter and decided to invade the Indian subcontinent because the Shunga dynasty managed to defeat the Mauryan Empire. Believe it or not but they did this to provide a safe haven for Buddhism and stop the Shunga from suppressing Buddhists so that's neat The Indo-Greek Empire is a whole other story which I can talk about later but it is very interesting.

The Greco-Bactrians can't really catch a break , they fought like 5 wars at the time and won most of them, until the Parthians came back lead by Mithridates I and since the Bactrians came back from the conquest of India they were exhausted so they got whacked by the Parthians.

No one in Bactria liked the Parthians (shocker) so Demetrius II tried to do something about it, which he tried and failed after a false peace treaty. The last Bactrian king was Heliocles I and Bactria was pretty much falling apart at this rate so nothing much happened really. A few nomads, the Yuezhi came in and slowly gained control over the land.

The Yuezhi became Hellenized slowly and then lead to the creation of the Kushans

(The Greeks still had a presence in North India for a while since the descendants of Heliocles I crossed the Hindu Kush and continued the Indo-Greek kingdom until 70 B.C)

This was a really long topic, and since it's ancient history it's a pain to research but this is one of the coolest Hellenic Empires I've seen.

Thanks for reading everyone :)