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Alexander I of Macedon ( el, Ἀλέξανδρος ὁ Μακεδών), known with the title Philhellene (Greek: φιλέλλην, literally "fond/lover of the Greeks", and in this context "Greek patriot"), was the ruler of the ancient Kingdom of
Macedon Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled ...
from c. 498 BC until his death in 454 BC. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Alcetas II.


Biography

Alexander was the son of
Amyntas I Amyntas I (Greek: Ἀμύντας Aʹ; 498 BC) was king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (c. 547 – 512 / 511 BC) and then a vassal of Darius I from 512/511 to his death 498 BC, at the time of Achaemenid Macedonia. He was a son of Alce ...
and Queen Eurydice ( el, Εὐρυδίκη). He had a sister named Gygaea ( el, Γυγαίη).Herodotus, Book 5: Terpsichore, 21
/ref> He gave his sister in marriage to the Persian general
Bubares Bubares ( el, Βουβάρης, died after 480 BC) was a Persian nobleman and engineer in the service of the Achaemenid Empire of the 5th century BC. He was one of the sons of Megabazus, and a second-degree cousin of Xerxes I. Marriage to the ...
, in the late 6th century BC who was in Macedon at the time, in order to stop him from searching for Persian soldiers who had been killed by Alexander's men following his commands. Alexander I came to the throne during the era of the kingdom's vassalage to
Achaemenid Persia The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire (; peo, 𐎧𐏁𐏂, , ), also called the First Persian Empire, was an ancient Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC. Based in Western Asia, it was contemporarily the largest emp ...
, dating back to the time of his father,
Amyntas I Amyntas I (Greek: Ἀμύντας Aʹ; 498 BC) was king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (c. 547 – 512 / 511 BC) and then a vassal of Darius I from 512/511 to his death 498 BC, at the time of Achaemenid Macedonia. He was a son of Alce ...
, although Macedon retained a broad scope of autonomy. In 492 BC it was made a fully subordinate part of the Persian Empire by Mardonius' campaign. Alexander acted as a representative of the Persian governor Mardonius during peace negotiations after the Persian defeat at the
Battle of Salamis The Battle of Salamis ( ) was a naval battle fought between an alliance of Greek city-states under Themistocles and the Persian Empire under King Xerxes in 480 BC. It resulted in a decisive victory for the outnumbered Greeks. The battle was ...
in 480 BC. In later events, Herodotus several times mentions Alexander as a man who was on Xerxes' side and followed his orders.Joseph Roisman,Ian Worthington
"A Companion to Ancient Macedonia"
p138
From the time of Mardonius' conquest of Macedon,
Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria (Italy). He is known fo ...
refers to Alexander I as ''hyparchos'', meaning viceroy. Despite his cooperation with Persia, Alexander I frequently gave supplies and advice to the Greek city states, and warned them of Mardonius' plans before the
Battle of Plataea The Battle of Plataea was the final land battle during the second Persian invasion of Greece. It took place in 479 BC near the city of Plataea in Boeotia, and was fought between an alliance of the Greek city-states (including Sparta, Athens, ...
in 479 BC. For example, Alexander I warned the Greeks in Tempe to leave before the arrival of Xerxes' troops, and notified them of an alternate route into Thessaly through upper Macedonia. After their defeat in Plataea, the Persian army under the command of Artabazus tried to retreat all the way back to
Asia Minor Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
. Most of the 43,000 survivors were attacked and killed by the forces of Alexander at the estuary of the Strymon river. Alexander eventually regained Macedonian independence after the end of the
Persian Wars The Greco-Persian Wars (also often called the Persian Wars) were a series of conflicts between the Achaemenid Empire and Greek city-states that started in 499 BC and lasted until 449 BC. The collision between the fractious political world of the ...
. This information was mostly taken from a copy of The Histories, with the earliest example dating to the 10th century C.E., which means it could easily have been altered to fit certain agendas. Alexander claimed descent from Argive Greeks and
Heracles Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptiv ...
. After a court of
Elean Elis () or Eleia ( el, Ήλιδα, Ilida, grc-att, Ἦλις, Ēlis ; Elean: , ethnonym: ) is an ancient district in Greece that corresponds to the modern regional unit of Elis. Elis is in southern Greece on the Peloponnese, bounded ...
hellanodikai The ''Hellanodikai'' ( grc, , literally meaning ''Judges of the Greeks''; sing. Ἑλλανοδίκας Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a multi ...
possibly in 504 BC, a right reserved only for Greeks. He modelled his court after
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...
and was a patron of the poets
Pindar Pindar (; grc-gre, Πίνδαρος , ; la, Pindarus; ) was an Ancient Greek lyric poet from Thebes. Of the canonical nine lyric poets of ancient Greece, his work is the best preserved. Quintilian wrote, "Of the nine lyric poets, Pindar ...
and
Bacchylides Bacchylides (; grc-gre, Βακχυλίδης; – ) was a Greek lyric poet. Later Greeks included him in the canonical list of Nine Lyric Poets, which included his uncle Simonides. The elegance and polished style of his lyrics have been noted ...
, both of whom dedicated poems to Alexander. The earliest reference to an Athenian
proxenos Proxeny or ( grc-gre, προξενία) in ancient Greece was an arrangement whereby a citizen (chosen by the city) hosted foreign ambassadors at his own expense, in return for honorary titles from the state. The citizen was called (; plural: o ...
, who lived during the time of the Persian wars (c. 490 BC), is that of Alexander I. Alexander I was given the title "philhellene" (Greek: "φιλέλλην", ''fond of the Greeks'', ''lover of the Greeks''), a title used for Greek patriots.


Family

Alexander had five sons and a daughter: * Alcetas II, future king of Macedon. *
Perdiccas II Perdiccas II ( gr, Περδίκκας, Perdíkkas) was a king of Macedonia from c. 448 BC to c. 413 BC. During the Peloponnesian War, he frequently switched sides between Sparta and Athens. Family Perdiccas II was the son of Alexander I, he ...
, future king of Macedon. * Philip, father of
Amyntas II Amyntas II ( grc, Ἀμύντας) or Amyntas the Little, was the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia for a short time, ''circa'' 393 BC. Thucydides describes him as a son of Philip, the brother of king Perdiccas II. He first succe ...
* Menelaus. * Amyntas, whose son Arrhidaeus was the father of
Amyntas III Amyntas III (Greek: Αμύντας Γ΄ της Μακεδονίας) (420 – 370 BC) was king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia in 393 BC and again from 392 to 370 BC. He was the son of Arrhidaeus and grandson of Amyntas, one of the sons ...
. He was thought to be the father of Balacrus, father of Meleager and grandfather of
Arsinoe of Macedon Arsinoe grc, Ἀρσινόη, Arsinoë, pronounced Arsinoi in modern Greek, may refer to: People * Arsinoe of Macedon, mother of Ptolemy I Soter * Apama II or Arsinoe (c. 292 BC–after 249 BC), wife of Magas of Cyrene and mother of Berenice II ...
Satyrus the Peripatetic Satyrus ( grc-gre, Σάτυρος) of Callatis was a distinguished Peripatetic philosopher and historian, whose biographies of famous people are frequently referred to by Diogenes Laërtius and Athenaeus. He came from Callatis Pontica, as was learn ...
, FGrH 631 fr 2
* Stratonice, married by her brother Perdiccas II to Seuthes II of Thrace.


See also

*
Ancient Macedonians The Macedonians ( el, Μακεδόνες, ''Makedónes'') were an ancient tribe that lived on the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axios in the northeastern part of mainland Greece. Essentially an ancient Greek people ...
*
List of ancient Macedonians This is a list of ancient Macedonians, an ancient Greek tribe inhabiting the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula. Mythology * Makednos Kings Military personnel High generals * Parmenion – Strategos of Philip and Alexander and commander ...


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander 01 Of Macedon 6th-century BC births 454 BC deaths 5th-century BC Macedonian monarchs Argead kings of Macedonia Ancient Olympic competitors Ancient Macedonian athletes 5th-century BC rulers 6th-century BC Macedonians Proxenoi Achaemenid Macedon Battle of Plataea Rulers in the Achaemenid Empire