Argaeus ( gr, Ἀργαῖος, Argaios) or Araeus, was according to 5th-century BC Greek writer

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 ...

one of six predecessors of his contemporary, King

Alexander I of Macedon 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 ...

(r. 498–454). Alexander I's predecessors, starting from the nearest, were according to Herodotus: Amyntas,

Alcetas Alcetas ( Greek Ἀλκέτας; died 320 BC), was the brother of Perdiccas and the son of Orontes from Orestis. He is first mentioned as one of Alexander the Great's generals in his Indian expedition. On the death of Alexander, Alcetas was a ...

, Aëropus,

Philip I Philip(p) I may refer to: * Philip I of Macedon (7th century BC) * Philip I Philadelphus (between 124 and 109 BC–83 or 75 BC) * Philip the Arab (c. 204–249), Roman Emperor * Philip I of France (1052–1108) * Philip I (archbishop of Cologne) (1 ...

, Argaeus, and

Perdiccas I Perdiccas I ( gr, Περδίκκας, Perdíkkas) was king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia. He ruled somewhere between 650 BC and 620 BC. Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from ...

. A rival tradition is held by

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...

Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to: *Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium'' *Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC * Pausanias of Sicily, physician of t ...

, Suidas and

Junianus Justinus Justin ( la, Marcus Junianus Justinus Frontinus; century) was a Latin writer who lived under the Roman Empire. Life Almost nothing is known of Justin's personal history, his name appearing only in the title of his work. He must have lived af ...

, with Caranus as the first

Macedonian Macedonian most often refers to someone or something from or related to Macedonia. Macedonian(s) may specifically refer to: People Modern * Macedonians (ethnic group), a nation and a South Slavic ethnic group primarily associated with North Ma ...

king.

Biography

Argaeus was according to 2nd-century AD Macedonian writer

Polyaenus Polyaenus or Polyenus ( ; see ae (æ) vs. e; grc-gre, Πoλύαινoς, Polyainos, "much-praised") was a 2nd-century CE Greek author, known best for his ''Stratagems in War'' ( grc-gre, Στρατηγήματα, Strategemata), which has been pr ...

the first king of the ancient kingdom of Macedon, who tricked and won over his superior enemies (the

Taulantii Taulantii or Taulantians ('swallow-men'; Ancient Greek: , or , ; la, Taulantii) were an Illyrian people that lived on the Adriatic coast of southern Illyria (modern Albania). They dominated at various times much of the plain between the rivers ...

king Galaurus) with women dressed as men with

wreath A wreath () is an assortment of flowers, leaves, fruits, twigs, or various materials that is constructed to form a circle . In English-speaking countries, wreaths are used typically as household ornaments, most commonly as an Advent and Chri ...

s and ''

thyrsi A thyrsus /ˈθɜːrsəs/ or thyrsos /ˈθɜːrˌsɒs/ ( Ancient Greek: θύρσος) was a wand or staff of giant fennel (''Ferula communis'') covered with ivy vines and leaves, sometimes wound with taeniae and topped with a pine cone, art ...

'' (staffs), closely related to the cult of

Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...

. After the victory, Argaeus founded a temple dedicated to ''

Pseudanor ''Pseudanor'' ( GreekΨευδάνωρ pseudo- + anēr "false man", metaphorically an "effeminate man") was a Macedonian epithet applied to Dionysus. Other Macedonian appellations to the god were ''Agrios'' (Ἄγριος) "wild" (as god of the co ...

'' (Fake-man). Only Alexander I's father, Amyntas, is firmly established in historical record. The eponym Argaeus for the dynasty (the '' Argead dynasty'') was used to maintain the myth of origin from Argos. Nevertheless,

regnal year A regnal year is a year of the reign of a sovereign, from the Latin ''regnum'' meaning kingdom, rule. Regnal years considered the date as an ordinal, not a cardinal number. For example, a monarch could have a first year of rule, a second year ...

s have been applied to these legendary predecessors in modern literature; Argaeus has been claimed to have ruled in 678 BC.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Argaeus 01 Of Macedon 7th-century BC Macedonian monarchs Argead kings of Macedonia Mythology of Macedonia (ancient kingdom) Old Macedonian kingdom People whose existence is disputed Year of birth unknown