Bubares (, died after 480 BC) was a

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

nobleman and engineer in the service of the

Achaemenid Empire The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire, also known as the Persian Empire or First Persian Empire (; , , ), was an Iranian peoples, Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty in 550 BC. Based in modern-day Iran, i ...

of the 5th century BC. He was one of the sons of

Megabazus Megabazus (Old Persian: ''Bagavazdā'' or ''Bagabāzu'', ), son of Megabates, was a highly regarded Persian general under Darius, to whom he was a first-degree cousin. Most of the information about Megabazus comes from '' The Histories'' by H ...

, and a second-degree

cousin A cousin is a relative who is the child of a parent's sibling; this is more specifically referred to as a first cousin. A parent of a first cousin is an aunt or uncle. More generally, in the kinship system used in the English-speaking world, ...

Xerxes I Xerxes I ( – August 465 BC), commonly known as Xerxes the Great, was a List of monarchs of Persia, Persian ruler who served as the fourth King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, reigning from 486 BC until his assassination in 465 BC. He was ...

Marriage to the sister of Alexander I of Macedon

Bubares was sent to

Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...

in order to settle a diplomatic conflict with King

Alexander I Alexander I may refer to: * Alexander I of Macedon, king of Macedon from 495 to 454 BC * Alexander I of Epirus (370–331 BC), king of Epirus * Alexander I Theopator Euergetes, surnamed Balas, ruler of the Seleucid Empire 150-145 BC * Pope Alex ...

. Alexander had been held responsible (as crown prince) for the murder of several members of a Persian delegation a few years earlier. The Persians had taken liberties with the Macedonian women of the Palace, and therefore had all been killed with their assistants by the king Alexander and his men. General Bubares was sent with a contingent of troops to investigate the matter. Alexander resolved the situation by surrendering a large sum of money and marrying his sister Gygaia to Bubares: The couple had a son Amyntas named after their maternal grandfather. Amyntas was later officiated in

Caria Caria (; from Greek language, Greek: Καρία, ''Karia''; ) was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia (Mycale) south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Carians were described by Herodotus as being Anatolian main ...

as a tyrant of the city of Alabanda. After staying a few years in Macedonia, possibly guarding the Axios valley, Bubares left circa 499-498 BC, possibly to attend to the matters of the

Ionian revolt The Ionian Revolt, and associated revolts in Aeolis, Doris (Asia Minor), Doris, Ancient history of Cyprus, Cyprus and Caria, were military rebellions by several Greek regions of Asia Minor against Achaemenid Empire, Persian rule, lasting from 499 ...

. Amyntas I of Macedon is said to have died soon after his departure.

Xerxes canal

From around 483 BC,

commissioned Bubares together with Artachaies to lead the construction of what is now known as the Xerxes Canal through the isthmus of the eastern foothills of the Chalkidike peninsula (near

Ierissos Ierissos () is a small town on the east coast of the Akti peninsula in Chalkidiki, Greece. It is located 115 km from Thessaloniki, and 10 km from the border of the Autonomous Monastic State of the Holy Mountain, or Mount Athos. It is th ...

). There, almost ten years before, the great Persian fleet of Mardonius had been shattered amidst the uneven waves off

Mount Athos Mount Athos (; ) is a mountain on the Athos peninsula in northeastern Greece directly on the Aegean Sea. It is an important center of Eastern Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox monasticism. The mountain and most of the Athos peninsula are governed ...

. The canal avoided the possibility of a repetition of this disaster. The construction of the canal was one of the most elaborate projects of antiquity and lasted three years, as workers were forcibly recruited from various peoples including the inhabitants of Athos.

Strymon bridge

Persian fort at Eion seen from Amphipolis

According to Herodotus "the same men who were charged with the digging were also charged to join the banks of the river Strymon by a bridge." The bridge on the

Strymon river The Struma or Strymonas (, ; , ) is a river in Bulgaria and Greece. Its Ancient Greek, ancient name was Strymon (, ). Its drainage area is , of which in Bulgaria, in Greece and the remaining in North Macedonia and Serbia. It takes its source fr ...

would also facilitate the progression of the Achaemenid invasion force.

Sources

Herodotus Herodotus (; BC) was a Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus (now Bodrum, Turkey), under Persian control in the 5th century BC, and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria, Italy. He wrote the '' Histori ...

, ''History'' 5, 18–20; 7, 22; 8, 136 * Marcus Iunianus Iustinus 7, 3–4

References

{{reflist 5th-century BC Iranian people Achaemenid Macedon Officials of Darius the Great Xerxes I