Asander or Asandros ( el, Άσανδρoς; lived 4th century BC) was the brother of

Parmenion Parmenion (also Parmenio; grc-gre, Παρμενίων; c. 400 – 330 BC), son of Philotas, was a Macedonian general in the service of Philip II of Macedon and Alexander the Great. A nobleman, Parmenion rose to become Philip's chief milita ...

and

Agathon Agathon (; grc, Ἀγάθων; ) was an Athenian tragic poet whose works have been lost. He is best known for his appearance in Plato's ''Symposium,'' which describes the banquet given to celebrate his obtaining a prize for his first tragedy a ...

, and uncle of

Philotas Philotas ( el, Φιλώτας; 365 BC – October 330 BC) was the eldest son of Parmenion, one of Alexander the Great's most experienced and talented generals. He rose to command the Companion Cavalry, but was accused of conspiring against Alex ...

. He was a Macedonian general under

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...

, and satrap of Lydia from 334 BC as well as satrap of

Caria Caria (; from Greek: Καρία, ''Karia''; tr, Karya) was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid- Ionia (Mycale) south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined ...

after Alexander's death. During Alexander's reign Asander' s position suffered for a period following Parmenion's execution, he was sent to

Media Media may refer to: Communication * Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass e ...

to gather reinforcements during this time, and a year later was sent to

Bactra ), named for its green-tiled ''Gonbad'' ( prs, گُنبَد, dome), in July 2001 , pushpin_map=Afghanistan#Bactria#West Asia , pushpin_relief=yes , pushpin_label_position=bottom , pushpin_mapsize=300 , pushpin_map_caption=Location in Afghanistan ...

Rule

Satrap of Lydia

In 334 BC Alexander appointed him governor of Lydia and the other parts of the satrapy of

Spithridates Spithridates ( Old Persian: ; Ancient Greek: ; fl. 365–334 BC) was a Persian satrap of Lydia and Ionia under the high king Darius III Codomannus. He was one of the Persian commanders at the Battle of the Granicus, in 334 BC. In this engagem ...

, and also placed under his command an army of cavalry and light infantry strong enough to maintain the

Macedon Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an Classical antiquity, ancient monarchy, kingdom on the periphery of Archaic Greece, Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. Th ...

ian authority. At the beginning of 328, Asander and Nearchus led a number of Greek mercenaries to join Alexander, who was then located at

Zariaspa ), named for its green-tiled ''Gonbad'' ( prs, گُنبَد, dome), in July 2001 , pushpin_map=Afghanistan#Bactria#West Asia , pushpin_relief=yes , pushpin_label_position=bottom , pushpin_mapsize=300 , pushpin_map_caption=Location in Afghanistan ...

Satrap of Caria

In the division of the empire after the death of Alexander in 323, Asander obtained

for his satrapy, in which he was afterwards confirmed by Antipater. While acting as satrap of Caria he fought at the command of Antipater against Attalus and

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 ...

, both supporters of

Perdiccas Perdiccas ( el, Περδίκκας, ''Perdikkas''; 355 BC – 321/320 BC) was a general of Alexander the Great. He took part in the Macedonian campaign against the Achaemenid Empire, and, following Alexander's death in 323 BC, rose to beco ...

, but was defeated by them. He also supported the Iranian colonists in Caria by increasing the position of local Zoroastrians. In 317, while Antigonus was campaigning against

Eumenes Eumenes (; grc-gre, Εὐμένης; c. 362316 BC) was a Greek general and satrap. He participated in the Wars of Alexander the Great, serving as both Alexander's personal secretary and as a battlefield commander. He later was a participant in t ...

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

and

, Asander increased his power in

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 ...

, expanding into

Lycia Lycia ( Lycian: 𐊗𐊕𐊐𐊎𐊆𐊖 ''Trm̃mis''; el, Λυκία, ; tr, Likya) was a state or nationality that flourished in Anatolia from 15–14th centuries BC (as Lukka) to 546 BC. It bordered the Mediterranean Sea in what is ...

and

Cappadocia Cappadocia or Capadocia (; tr, Kapadokya), is a historical region in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It largely is in the provinces Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde. According to Herodotus, in the time of the Ionian Re ...

; and was undoubtedly a member of the alliance which was formed by

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importance ...

, ruler of

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

, and

Cassander Cassander ( el, Κάσσανδρος ; c. 355 BC – 297 BC) was king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia from 305 BC until 297 BC, and ''de facto'' ruler of southern Greece from 317 BC until his death. A son of Antipater and a conte ...

, ruler of Macedonia, against Antigonus. In 315, when Antigonus began his operations against the forces allied against him, he sent a general named

, a nephew of his, with an army to relieve Amisus, and to expel from Cappadocia the army loyal to Asander which had invaded that country. However, as Asander was supported by Ptolemy and Cassander, he was able to maintain his control of his territories. In 313 Antigonus decided to march against Asander and forced him to conclude a treaty with him under which he was required to surrender his whole army, to restore the areas he had expanded into back to the satraps who had previously controlled those areas, to regard his satrapy of Caria as subject to the gift of Antigonus, and to surrender his brother

as a hostage. After a few days Asander breached this humiliating treaty. He managed to get his brother out of the hands of Antigonus and sent ambassadors to Ptolemy and Seleucus seeking their assistance. Antigonus was indignant at these acts and immediately sent out an army to restore the territories covered by the treaty by force of arms. Caria also appears to have been conquered and from this time Asander disappears from the historical record.

Coinage

During his tenure in Caria, Asander minted several types of coins at Miletus, in the names of

and

Philip III Arrhidaeus Philip III Arrhidaeus ( grc-gre, Φίλιππος Ἀρριδαῖος ; c. 359 BC – 25 December 317 BC) reigned as king of Macedonia an Ancient Greek Kingdom in northern Greece from after 11 June 323 BC until his death. He was a son of King P ...

. File:KINGS of MACEDON. Philip III Arrhidaios. 323-317 BC. Æ Unit (18mm, 5.23 g, 3h). In the name and types of Alexander III. Miletos mint. Struck under Asandros, circa 323-319 BC.jpg, Coin of Philip III Arrhidaios, Miletos mint. Struck under Asandros, circa 323-319 BC, in the name and types of

. File:KINGS of MACEDON. Philip III Arrhidaios. 323-317 BC. Æ Unit (19mm, 4.95 g, 10h). Miletos mint. Struck under Asandros, circa 323-319 BC.jpg, Coin of Philip III Arrhidaios, Miletos mint. Struck under Asandros, circa 323-319 BC File:KINGS of MACEDON. Philip III Arrhidaios. 323-317 BC. Miletos mint. Struck under Asandros, circa 323-319 BC.jpg, Coin of Philip III Arrhidaios, Miletos mint. Struck under Asandros, circa 323-319 BC File:KINGS of MACEDON. Philip III Arrhidaios. 323-317 BC. Struck under Asandros, circa 323-319 BC.jpg, Coin of Philip III Arrhidaios, Miletos mint. Struck under Asandros, circa 323-319 BC

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Asander Ancient Greek generals Ancient Macedonian generals Generals of Alexander the Great Satraps of the Alexandrian Empire 4th-century BC Macedonians Hellenistic generals Upper Macedonians