The founder of the dynasty was PHILETAERUS (282–262), succeeded by his cousin EUMENES I (262–241), and then by ATTALUS I, his nephew. The latter defeated the Galatians and, having definitively freed Pergamum from the influence of the Seleucids (q.v.), assumed the title of king and established the alliance with Rome that marked the course of all subsequent development of the kingdom. He died in 197 “in the midst of his finest achievements, while fighting for the freedom of the Greeks” (Polybius, XVIII, 41, 9), an example of political wisdom, personal courage, and family virtue.
After a first son, EUMENES II (197–159), there succeeded a second ATTALUS II (159–138), who conducted a very active reign, though often involved in wars, yet did not neglect the arts of peace. To Attalus II (1 Macc. 15:22), the Romans, following the embassy sent to Rome by the high priest Simon, wrote recommending the Jewish people (139 or 138). Attalus III, his successor (son of his brother Eumenes II), lived amid all manner of eccentricities and wickedness, more the result of illness than of depravity. He died in 133 BC, bequeathing his kingdom and all his possessions to the Romans, who made it the province of Asia (q.v.).
The Attalids, with the exception of the last, were wise, enlightened rulers, generous with their legendary wealth, lovers and patrons of letters and the arts. Through their efforts, the city of Pergamum (q.v.), with its great royal library, became one of the beacons of Hellenistic civilization and the driving center of new scientific, literary, and artistic currents.