Eudemus ( grc, Εὔδημος; died 316 BC) was one of

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

's generals. In 326 BC he was appointed by Alexander as one of the commanders of the troops in India along with

Peithon Peithon or Pithon (Greek: ''Πείθων'' or ''Πίθων'', 355 – 314 BC) was the son of Crateuas, a nobleman from Eordaia in western Macedonia. He was famous for being one of the bodyguards of Alexander the Great, becoming the later ...

Porus Porus or Poros ( grc, Πῶρος ; 326–321 BC) was an ancient Indian king whose territory spanned the region between the Jhelum River (Hydaspes) and Chenab River (Acesines), in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent. He is only ment ...

and

Taxiles Taxiles (in Greek Tαξίλης or Ταξίλας; lived 4th century BC) was the Greek chroniclers' name for the ruler who reigned over the tract between the Indus and the Jhelum (Hydaspes) Rivers in the Punjab region at the time of Alexand ...

. After Alexander's death, Eudemus assassinated Porus (Some Historians say that it is false) and effectively controlled Alexander's northern Indian territories until he became involved in the

Wars of the Diadochi The Wars of the Diadochi ( grc, Πόλεμοι τῶν Διαδόχων, '), or Wars of Alexander's Successors, were a series of conflicts that were fought between the generals of Alexander the Great, known as the Diadochi, over who would rule h ...

during which he was captured and killed by Antigonus.

Biography

In 326 BC Eudemus was appointed by Alexander the Great to the command of the troops left in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, after the murder of the Alexander-appointed

satrap A satrap () was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic empires. The satrap served as viceroy to the king, though with consid ...

Philip (son of Machatas) Philip ( el, Φίλιππoς; died 325 BC), son of Machatas and brother of Harpalus, was an officer in the service of Alexander the Great, who in 327 BC was appointed by Alexander as satrap of India, including the provinces westward of the Hyd ...

by his own mercenary troops in 326 BC. Alexander dispatched letters to India to Eudemus and also to Taxilas telling them to take charge of the district formerly under Philip, until Alexander could send a satrap to govern the district. According to

Diodorus Siculus Diodorus Siculus, or Diodorus of Sicily ( grc-gre, Διόδωρος ; 1st century BC), was an ancient Greek historian. He is known for writing the monumental universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty books, fifteen of which su ...

after Alexander's unexpected death in 323 BC, Eudemus assassinated the Indian king

. As a result, Eudemus became very powerful and in 317 BC he was able to support

Eumenes of Cardia Eumenes (; grc-gre, Εὐμένης; c. 362316 BC) was a Ancient Greece, Greek general and satrap. He participated in the Wars of Alexander the Great, serving as both Alexander the Great, Alexander's personal secretary and as a battlefield comman ...

in his war against Antigonus by providing a force of 500 horsemen, 300 footmen, and 120 elephants. Eudemus and his troops saw active service in the first

Battle of Gabiene Battle of Gabiene was the second great battle (the third battle in total; see: the battles of Orkynia and Paraitakene) between Antigonus Monophthalmus and Eumenes, two of Alexander the Great's successors (the so-called Diadochi). The battle wa ...

, although his troops suffered considerably from an attack by Antigonus: :"On his left wing Eumenes stationed Eudemus, who had brought the elephants from India" Diodorus Siculus, XIX-27 :"Antigonus, now that a break was thus caused in the line of the enemy, charged through with a detachment of cavalry, striking on the flank the troops who had been stationed with Eudemus on the left wing. Because the attack was unexpected, he quickly put to flight those who faced him, destroying many of them". Diodorus Siculus XIX-30 Ceteus, the general of Eudemus' Indian troops, died in the action. It seems nevertheless that Eudemus was jealous of Eumenes and joined in the conspiracy of Antigenes and

Teutamus :''Teutamus (spider), Teutamus'' is also a spider genus (Liocranidae) Teutamus ( grc, Tεύταμoς; lived 4th century BC) was a Macedonian officer, who, in 319 BC, shared with Antigenes (general), Antigenes the command of the select troops calle ...

against him. As a result, Eumenes was betrayed to Antigonus by these officers under his command. Eumenes lost control of his army's baggage camp which included all the loot of the most decorated Macedonian veterans (called the ''Argyraspides,'' or Silver Shields). This treasure had been accumulated over 30 years of successful warfare. Antigonus responded to a request for the return of the baggage train sent by Teutamus, one of their commanders, by demanding they give him Eumenes. The Silver Shields agreed to this. Following the surrender of Eumenes, Eudemus was put to death by order of Antigonus, to whom Eudemus had always shown a marked hostility:Diodorus, xix. 15, 27, 44;

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...

, ''

Parallel Lives Plutarch's ''Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans'', commonly called ''Parallel Lives'' or ''Plutarch's Lives'', is a series of 48 biographies of famous men, arranged in pairs to illuminate their common moral virtues or failings, probably writt ...

'', "Eumenes"
16
/ref> :"Now that Antigonus had unexpectedly mastered Eumenes and all the army that had been opposing him, he seized Antigenes, the commander of the Silver Shields, put him into a pit, and burned him alive. He slew Eudemus, who had brought the elephants from India." Diodorus Siculus, XIX-44

Notes

References

* Smith, William (editor); ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' (1849, originally published 1844 under a slightly different title) is an encyclopedia/biographical dictionary. Edited by William Smith, the dictionary spans three volumes and 3,700 p ...

''
"Eudemus (1)"
,

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, (1867) {{DEFAULTSORT:Eudemus Generals of Alexander the Great Generals of Eumenes 316 BC deaths Year of birth unknown