Peucestas ( grc, Πευκέστας, ''Peukéstas''; lived 4th century BC) was a native of the town of Mieza, in

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 ...

ia, and a distinguished officer in the service of

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 ...

. His name is first mentioned as one of those appointed to command a

trireme A trireme( ; derived from Latin: ''trirēmis'' "with three banks of oars"; cf. Greek ''triērēs'', literally "three-rower") was an ancient navies and vessels, ancient vessel and a type of galley that was used by the ancient maritime civilizat ...

on the Hydaspes. Prior to this he must have distinguished himself for his personal valour and prowess, as he was the person selected by Alexander to carry before him in battle the sacred shield, which he had taken down from the temple of

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of v ...

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in present-day Turkey, south-west of Ç ...

. In this capacity he was in close attendance upon the king's person in the assault on the capital city of the

Malavas The Malavas (Brahmi script: 𑀫𑁆𑀫𑀸𑀭𑀯 ''Mmālava'') or Malwas were an ancient Indian tribe. Modern scholars identify them with the Mallian people (Malloi) who were settled in the Punjab region at the time of Alexander's invasion ...

(325 BC); and all authors agreed in attributing the chief share in saving the life of Alexander upon that occasion to Peucestas, while they differed as to almost all the other circumstances and persons concerned. For his services on this occasion he was rewarded by the king with almost every distinction which it was in his power to confer. On the arrival of Alexander at Persepolis, he bestowed upon Peucestas the important

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 cons ...

y of Persis, but, previous to this, he had already raised him to the rank of somatophylax (the king's bodyguard), an honour rendered the more conspicuous in this instance by the number of those select officers being augmented on purpose to make room for his admission. At

Susa Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo- Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...

, also, Peucestas was the first of those rewarded with crowns of gold for their past exploits. After this he proceeded to take possession of his government, where he conciliated the favour of the Persians subject to his rule, as well as that of Alexander himself, by adopting the Persian dress and customs, in exchange for those of Macedonia; whence he is considered a Persophile. In the spring of 323 BC, Peucestas joined the king at

Babylon ''Bābili(m)'' * sux, 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠 * arc, 𐡁𐡁𐡋 ''Bāḇel'' * syc, ܒܒܠ ''Bāḇel'' * grc-gre, Βαβυλών ''Babylṓn'' * he, בָּבֶל ''Bāvel'' * peo, 𐎲𐎠𐎲𐎡𐎽𐎢 ''Bābiru'' * elx, 𒀸𒁀𒉿𒇷 ''Babi ...

, with an army of 20,000 Persian troops; and is mentioned as one of those in attendance upon him during his last illness. It does not appear that he took any leading part in the discussions that ensued upon the death of Alexander, but in the division of the provinces that followed, he obtained the renewal of his government of Persis, which he also retained in the second partition at

Triparadisus Triparadeisos or Triparadisus ( el, Τριπαράδεισος) was a settlement in Lebanon near the sources of the Orontes. A paradeisos was a hunting reserve or pleasure-ground for the nobility of the Achaemenid (Persian) Empire, normally a w ...

, 321 BC. All his attention seems to have been directed to strengthening himself in this position and extending his power and influence as far as possible. In this he so far succeeded, that when he was at length compelled to take an active part in the war between Antigonus and Eumenes (317 BC), he obtained by common consent the chief command of all the forces furnished by the satrapies east of the

Tigris The Tigris () is the easternmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, the other being the Euphrates. The river flows south from the mountains of the Armenian Highlands through the Syrian and Arabian Deserts, and empties into the ...

river; and was with difficulty induced to waive his pretensions to the supreme direction of the war. Eumenes, however, by his dexterous management, soothed the irritation of Peucestas, and retained him firmly in his alliance throughout the two campaigns that followed. The satrap was contented to gratify his pride by feasting the whole of the armies assembled in Persis on a scale of royal magnificence, while Eumenes virtually directed all the operations of the war. But the disaster in the final action at the

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 ...

near Gadamarta (316 BC) which led to the capture of the baggage, and the surrender of Eumenes by the

Argyraspids The Argyraspides ( mkd, Аргираспиди, translation=Silver Shields) were elite Macedonian soldiers who carried silver-plated shields, hence their name. The original unit were hypaspists serving in the army Alexander the Great. During the ...

, appears to have been due to the misconduct and insubordination of Peucestas, who, according to one account, was himself one of the chief advisers of the treaty. His conduct throughout these campaigns shows that he lacked both the ability to command for himself, and the moderation to follow the superior judgment of others. His vain and ambitious character seems to have been appreciated at its just value by Antigonus, who, while he deprived him of his satrapy, and led him away a virtual prisoner, elated him with false hopes and specious promises, which were never fulfilled.

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 ...

''
"Peucestas (2)"

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)

Notes

External links

Livius
by Jona Lendering ---- {{Hellenistic satraps Somatophylakes Ancient Macedonian generals Generals of Alexander the Great 4th-century BC Greek people People from Imathia Ancient Miezans Trierarchs of Nearchus' fleet Satraps of the Alexandrian Empire

See also

References

Notes

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