Editing Macedonia (ancient kingdom) (section)

===Empire<!--'Macedonian Empire' redirects here-->===
{{further|Wars of Alexander the Great|Wars of the Diadochi|Chronology of the expedition of Alexander the Great into Asia}}
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| footer = Left, Bust of [[Alexander the Great]] by the Athenian sculptor [[Leochares]], 330{{nbsp}}BC, [[Acropolis Museum]], Athens. Right, Bust of Alexander the Great, a [[Roman sculpture|Roman copy]] of the [[Roman Empire|Imperial Era]] (1st or 2nd century{{nbsp}}AD) after an original [[bronze sculpture]] made by the [[Ancient Greek sculpture|Greek sculptor]] [[Lysippos]], [[Louvre]], Paris.
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[[File:MacedonEmpire.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Alexander's empire and his route]]

Modern scholars have argued over the possible role of [[Alexander III of Macedon|Alexander{{nbsp}}III "the Great"]] and his mother Olympias in the assassination of Philip{{nbsp}}II, noting the latter's choice to exclude Alexander from his planned invasion of Asia, choosing instead for him to act as regent of Greece and deputy ''hegemon'' of the League of Corinth, and the potential bearing of another male heir between Philip{{nbsp}}II and his new wife, Cleopatra Eurydice.<ref group="note">{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|pp=189–190}}; {{harvnb|Müller|2010|p=183}}. <br />Without implicating [[Alexander III of Macedon]] as a potential suspect in the plot to assassinate [[Philip II of Macedon]], [[N. G. L. Hammond]] and [[F. W. Walbank]] discuss possible Macedonian as well as foreign suspects, such as [[Demosthenes]] and [[Darius III]]: {{harvnb|Hammond|Walbank|2001|pp=8–12}}.</ref> Alexander{{nbsp}}III ({{reign|336|323|era=BC}}) was immediately proclaimed king by [[Popular assembly|an assembly]] of the army and leading aristocrats, chief among them being [[Antipater]] and Parmenion.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=190}}; {{harvnb|Müller|2010|p=183}}; {{harvnb|Renault|2001|pp=61–62}}; {{harvnb|Fox|1980|p=72}}; see also {{harvnb|Hammond|Walbank|2001|pp=3–5}} for further details.</ref> By the end of his reign and military career in 323{{nbsp}}BC, Alexander would rule over an empire consisting of [[mainland Greece]], [[Asia Minor]], the [[Levant]], [[ancient Egypt]], [[Mesopotamia]], [[Persia]], and much of [[Central Asia|Central]] and [[South Asia]] (i.e. modern [[Pakistan]]).<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=186}}.</ref> Among his first acts was the burial of his father at Aigai.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=190}}.</ref> The members of the League of Corinth revolted at the news of Philip{{nbsp}}II's death, but were soon quelled by military force alongside persuasive diplomacy, electing Alexander as ''hegemon'' of the league to carry out the planned invasion of Achaemenid Persia.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|pp=190–191}}; see also {{harvnb|Hammond|Walbank|2001|pp=15–16}} for further details.</ref>

In 335 BC, Alexander [[Alexander's Balkan campaign|fought against the Thracian tribe]] of the [[Triballi]] at [[Haemus Mons]] and along the [[Danube]], forcing their surrender on [[Peuce Island]].<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=191}}; {{harvnb|Hammond|Walbank|2001|pp=34–38}}.</ref> Shortly thereafter, the Illyrian chieftain [[Cleitus (son of Bardylis)|Cleitus]], son of [[Bardylis]], threatened to attack Macedonia with the aid of [[Glaucias of Taulantii|Glaucias]], king of the [[Taulantii]], but Alexander took the initiative and [[Siege of Pelium|besieged the Illyrians]] at [[Pelion (Illyria)|Pelion]] (in modern [[Albania]]).<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=191}}; {{harvnb|Hammond|Walbank|2001|pp=40–47}}.</ref> When Thebes had once again revolted from the League of Corinth and was besieging the Macedonian garrison in the [[Cadmea]], Alexander left the Illyrian front and marched to Thebes, which he [[Battle of Thebes|placed under siege]].<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=191}}; see also {{harvnb|Errington|1990|p=91}} and {{harvnb|Hammond|Walbank|2001|p=47}} for further details.</ref> After breaching the walls, Alexander's forces killed 6,000 Thebans, took 30,000 inhabitants as [[prisoners of war]], and burned the city to the ground as a warning that convinced all other Greek states except Sparta not to challenge Alexander again.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|pp=191–192}}; see also {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=91–92}} for further details.</ref>

Throughout his military career, Alexander won every battle that he personally commanded.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|pp=192–193}}.</ref> His first victory against the Persians in Asia Minor at the [[Battle of the Granicus]] in 334{{nbsp}}BC used a small cavalry contingent as a distraction to allow his infantry to cross the river followed by a [[cavalry charge]] from his [[companion cavalry]].<ref name="gilley worthington 2010 193">{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=193}}.</ref> Alexander led the cavalry charge at the [[Battle of Issus]] in 333{{nbsp}}BC, forcing the Persian king [[Darius III]] and his army to flee.<ref name="gilley worthington 2010 193"/> Darius{{nbsp}}III, despite having superior numbers, was again forced to flee the [[Battle of Gaugamela]] in 331{{nbsp}}BC.<ref name="gilley worthington 2010 193"/> The Persian king was later captured and executed by his own satrap of [[Bactria]] and kinsman, [[Bessus]], in 330{{nbsp}}BC. The Macedonian king subsequently hunted down and executed Bessus in what is now [[Afghanistan]], securing the region of [[Sogdia]] in the process.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|pp=193–194}}; {{harvnb|Holt|2012|pp=27–41}}.</ref> At the 326{{nbsp}}BC [[Battle of the Hydaspes]] (modern-day [[Punjab]]), when the [[war elephant]]s of [[King Porus]] of the [[Pauravas]] threatened Alexander's troops, he had them form open ranks to surround the elephants and dislodge their handlers by using their ''sarissa'' pikes.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|pp=193–194}}.</ref> When his Macedonian troops threatened [[mutiny]] in 324{{nbsp}}BC at [[Opis]], [[Babylonia]] (near modern [[Baghdad]], [[Iraq]]), Alexander offered Macedonian military titles and greater responsibilities to Persian officers and units instead, forcing his troops to seek forgiveness at a staged banquet of reconciliation between Persians and Macedonians.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=194}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|p=113}}.</ref>

[[File:Stag hunt mosaic, Pella.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Stag Hunt Mosaic]], c.{{nbsp}}300{{nbsp}}BC, from [[Pella]]; the figure on the right is possibly [[Alexander the Great]] due to the date of the [[mosaic]] along with the depicted upsweep of his centrally-parted hair (''anastole''); the figure on the left wielding a double-edged axe (associated with [[Hephaistos]]) is perhaps [[Hephaestion]], one of Alexander's loyal companions.]]
Alexander perhaps undercut his own rule by demonstrating signs of [[wiktionary:megalomania|megalomania]].<ref name="gilley worthington 2010 195"/> While utilizing effective propaganda such as the cutting of the [[Gordian Knot]], he also attempted to portray himself as a [[Sacred king|living god]] and son of Zeus following his visit to the [[oracle]] at [[Siwah]] in the [[Libyan Desert]] (in modern-day Egypt) in 331{{nbsp}}BC.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|pp=194–195}}.</ref> His attempt in 327{{nbsp}}BC to have his men prostrate before him in [[Bactra]] in an act of ''[[proskynesis]]'' borrowed from the Persian kings was rejected as religious blasphemy by his Macedonian and Greek subjects after his court historian [[Callisthenes]] refused to perform this ritual.<ref name="gilley worthington 2010 195">{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=195}}.</ref> When Alexander had Parmenion murdered at [[Ecbatana]] (near modern [[Hamadan]], [[Iran]]) in 330{{nbsp}}BC, this was "symptomatic of the growing gulf between the king's interests and those of his country and people", according to Errington.<ref>{{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=105–106}}.</ref> His murder of [[Cleitus the Black]] in 328{{nbsp}}BC is described as "vengeful and reckless" by Dawn L. Gilley and Ian Worthington.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=198}}.</ref> Continuing the polygamous habits of his father, Alexander encouraged his men to marry native women in Asia, leading by example when he wed [[Roxana]], a Sogdian princess of Bactria.<ref>{{harvnb|Holt|1989|pp=67–68}}.</ref> He then married [[Stateira II]], eldest daughter of Darius{{nbsp}}III, and [[Parysatis II]], youngest daughter of [[Artaxerxes III]], at the [[Susa weddings]] in 324{{nbsp}}BC.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=196}}.</ref>

Meanwhile, in Greece, the [[Spartan king]] [[Agis III]] attempted to lead a rebellion of the Greeks against Macedonia.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=199}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|p=93}}.</ref> He was defeated in 331{{nbsp}}BC at the [[Battle of Megalopolis]] by Antipater, who was serving as regent of Macedonia and deputy ''hegemon'' of the League of Corinth in Alexander's stead.<ref group="note">{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|pp=199–200}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=44, 93}}. <br />Gilley and Worthington discuss the ambiguity surrounding the exact title of [[Antipater]] aside from deputy ''[[hegemon]]'' of the [[League of Corinth]], with some sources calling him a regent, others a governor, others a simple general.<br />[[N. G. L. Hammond]] and [[F. W. Walbank]] state that Alexander the Great left "Macedonia under the command of Antipater, in case there was a rising in Greece." {{harvnb|Hammond|Walbank|2001|p=32}}.</ref> Before Antipater embarked on his campaign in the [[Peloponnese]], Memnon, the governor of Thrace, was dissuaded from rebellion by use of diplomacy.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|pp=200–201}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|p=58}}.</ref> Antipater deferred the punishment of Sparta to the League of Corinth headed by Alexander, who ultimately pardoned the Spartans on the condition that they submit fifty nobles as hostages.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=201}}.</ref> Antipater's hegemony was somewhat unpopular in Greece due to his practice (perhaps by order of Alexander) of exiling malcontents and garrisoning cities with Macedonian troops, yet in 330{{nbsp}}BC, Alexander declared that the [[tyrannies]] installed in Greece were to be abolished and Greek freedom was to be restored.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|pp=201–203}}.</ref>

[[File:Diadochi LA.svg|thumb|upright=1.2|Kingdoms of the [[Diadochi]] c.{{nbsp}}301{{nbsp}}BC, after the [[Battle of Ipsus]]
{{legend|#787CAD|Kingdom of [[Ptolemy I Soter]]}}
{{legend|#50A249|Kingdom of [[Cassander]]}}
{{legend|#C38833|Kingdom of [[Lysimachus]]}}
{{legend|#C3B933|Kingdom of [[Seleucus I Nicator]]}}
{{legend|#AF3662|[[Epirus]]}}
Other
{{legend|#A361BD|[[Carthage]]}}
{{legend|#70A9BE|[[Roman Republic]]}}
{{legend|#85AB54|[[Ancient Greece|Greek States]]}}]]
[[File:Coins of Philip III Arrhidaeus. 323-317 BC.jpg|thumb|A golden ''[[stater]]'' of [[Philip III Arrhidaeus]] ({{reign|323|317|era=BC}}) bearing images of [[Athena]] (left) and [[Nike (mythology)|Nike]] (right)]]
When [[Death of Alexander the Great|Alexander the Great died]] at [[Babylon]] in 323{{nbsp}}BC, his mother Olympias immediately accused Antipater and his faction of poisoning him, although there is no evidence to confirm this.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=204}}; see also {{harvnb|Errington|1990|p=44}} for further details.</ref> With no official [[heir apparent]], the Macedonian military command split, with one side proclaiming Alexander's half-brother Philip{{nbsp}}III Arrhidaeus ({{reign|323|317|era=BC}}) as king and the other siding with the infant son of Alexander and Roxana, [[Alexander IV of Macedon|Alexander{{nbsp}}IV]] ({{reign|323|309|era=BC}}).<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=204}}; see also {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=115–117}} for further details.</ref> Except for the Euboeans and Boeotians, the Greeks also immediately rose up in a rebellion against Antipater known as the [[Lamian War]] (323–322{{nbsp}}BC).<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=204}}; {{harvnb|Adams|2010|p=209}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=69–70, 119}}.</ref> When Antipater was defeated at the 323{{nbsp}}BC [[Battle of Thermopylae (323 BC)|Battle of Thermopylae]], he fled to [[Lamia (city)|Lamia]] where he was besieged by the Athenian commander [[Leosthenes]]. A Macedonian army led by [[Leonnatus]] rescued Antipater by lifting the siege.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|pp=204–205}}; {{harvnb|Adams|2010|pp=209–210}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=69, 119}}.</ref> Antipater defeated the rebellion, yet his death in 319{{nbsp}}BC left a power vacuum wherein the two proclaimed kings of Macedonia became pawns in [[Wars of the Diadochi|a power struggle]] between the ''[[diadochi]]'', the former generals of Alexander's army.<ref>{{harvnb|Gilley|Worthington|2010|p=205}}; see also {{harvnb|Errington|1990|p=118}} for further details.</ref>

A [[Partition of Babylon|council of the army convened in Babylon]] immediately after Alexander's death, naming Philip{{nbsp}}III as king and the [[chiliarch]] [[Perdiccas]] as his regent.<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|pp=208–209}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|p=117}}.</ref> Antipater, [[Antigonus Monophthalmus]], [[Craterus]], and Ptolemy formed a coalition against Perdiccas in a civil war initiated by Ptolemy's [[Tomb of Alexander the Great|seizure of the hearse of Alexander the Great]].<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|pp=210–211}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=119–120}}.</ref> Perdiccas was assassinated in 321{{nbsp}}BC by his own officers during a failed campaign in Egypt against Ptolemy, where his march along the [[Nile River]] resulted in the drowning of 2,000 of his men.<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|p=211}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=120–121}}.</ref> Although [[Eumenes of Cardia]] managed to kill Craterus in battle, this had little to no effect on the outcome of the 321{{nbsp}}BC [[Partition of Triparadisus]] in [[Syria (region)|Syria]] where the victorious coalition settled the issue of a new regency and territorial rights.<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|pp=211–212}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=121–122}}.</ref> Antipater was appointed as regent over the two kings. Before Antipater died in 319{{nbsp}}BC, he named the staunch Argead loyalist [[Polyperchon]] as his successor, passing over his own son [[Cassander]] and ignoring the right of the king to choose a new regent (since Philip{{nbsp}}III was considered mentally unstable), in effect bypassing the council of the army as well.<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|pp=207 n. #1, 212}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=122–123}}.</ref>

Forming an alliance with Ptolemy, Antigonus, and [[Lysimachus]], Cassander had his officer [[Nicanor (Antipatrid general)|Nicanor]] capture the [[Munichia]] fortress of Athens' port town [[Piraeus]] in defiance of Polyperchon's decree that Greek cities should be free of Macedonian garrisons, sparking the [[Second War of the Diadochi]] (319–315{{nbsp}}BC).<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|pp=212–213}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=124–126}}.</ref> Given a string of military failures by Polyperchon, in 317{{nbsp}}BC, Philip{{nbsp}}III, by way of his politically engaged wife [[Eurydice II of Macedon]], officially replaced him as regent with Cassander.<ref name="adams 213 errington 126–127"/> Afterwards, Polyperchon desperately sought the aid of Olympias in Epirus.<ref name="adams 213 errington 126–127">{{harvnb|Adams|2010|p=213}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=126–127}}.</ref> A joint force of Epirotes, Aetolians, and Polyperchon's troops invaded Macedonia and forced the surrender of Philip{{nbsp}}III and Eurydice's army, allowing Olympias to execute the king and force his queen to commit suicide.<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|pp=213–214}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=127–128}}.</ref> Olympias then had Nicanor and dozens of other Macedonian nobles killed, but by the spring of 316{{nbsp}}BC, Cassander had defeated her forces, captured her, and placed her on trial for murder before sentencing her to death.<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|p=214}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|pp=128–129}}.</ref>

Cassander married Philip II's daughter [[Thessalonike of Macedon|Thessalonike]] and briefly extended Macedonian control into Illyria as far as [[Epidamnos]] (modern [[Durrës]], Albania). By 313{{nbsp}}BC, it was retaken by the Illyrian king [[Glaucias of Taulantii]].<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|pp=214–215}}.</ref> By 316{{nbsp}}BC, Antigonus had taken the territory of Eumenes and managed to eject [[Seleucus Nicator]] from his Babylonian satrapy, leading Cassander, Ptolemy, and Lysimachus to issue a joint ultimatum to Antigonus in 315{{nbsp}}BC for him to surrender various territories in Asia.<ref name="Adams 2010 215"/> Antigonus promptly allied with Polyperchon, now based in Corinth, and issued an ultimatum of his own to Cassander, charging him with murder for executing Olympias and demanding that he hand over the royal family, King Alexander{{nbsp}}IV and the [[queen mother]] Roxana.<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|pp=215–216}}.</ref> The conflict that followed lasted until the winter of 312/311{{nbsp}}BC, when a new peace settlement recognized Cassander as general of Europe, Antigonus as "first in Asia", Ptolemy as general of Egypt, and Lysimachus as general of Thrace.<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|p=216}}.</ref> Cassander had Alexander{{nbsp}}IV and Roxana put to death in the winter of 311/310{{nbsp}}BC, and between 306 and 305{{nbsp}}BC the ''diadochi'' were declared kings of their respective territories.<ref>{{harvnb|Adams|2010|pp=216–217}}; {{harvnb|Errington|1990|p=129}}.</ref>