Alexander () (d. 330 BC), son of Aeropus of Lyncestis, was a native of the upper Macedonian district called Lyncestis, whence he is usually called Alexander of Lynkestis or Alexander Lyncestes.

Justin Justin may refer to: People and fictional characters * Justin (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Justin (historian), Latin historian who lived under the Roman Empire * Justin I (c. 450–527) ...

makes the singular mistake of calling him Alexander's brother, while in other passages he uses the correct expression.

Background

Alexander was a contemporary of Philip III of Macedon and

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

. He had two brothers, Heromenes and Arrhabaeus; all three were under suspicion of involvement in the

assassination Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

Philip II of Macedon Philip II of Macedon (; 382 BC – October 336 BC) was the king (''basileus'') of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedonia from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty, founders of the ...

, in 336 BC.

, on his accession, put to death all those who had taken part in the murder, and Alexander the Lyncestian was the only one who was

pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...

ed, because he was the first who did homage to Alexander the Great as his king.

Career

Moreover, King Alexander not only pardoned him, but even made him his friend and raised him to high honors. He was first entrusted with the command of an army in

Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...

, and afterwards received the command of the Thessalian cavalry. In this capacity he accompanied Alexander on his eastern expedition. In 334, when Alexander was laying at

Phaselis Phaselis () or Faselis () was a Greek and Roman city on the coast of ancient Lycia. Its ruins are located north of the modern town Tekirova in the Kemer district of Antalya Province in Turkey. It lies between the Bey Mountains and the forests ...

, he was informed that the Lyncestian was carrying on a secret correspondence with King Darius III of Persia, and that a large sum of money was promised, for which he was to murder Alexander. The bearer of the letters from Darius was taken by

Parmenion Parmenion (also Parmenio; ; 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 military lieutenant and Alexander's ...

and brought before Alexander, and the treachery was considered proven. Yet Alexander the Great, dreading to create any hostile feeling in

Antipater Antipater (; ; 400 BC319 BC) was a Macedonian general, regent and statesman under the successive kingships of Philip II of Macedon and his son, Alexander the Great. In the wake of the collapse of the Argead house, his son Cassander ...

, the regent of Macedonia, whose daughter was married to Alexander Lyncestes, thought advisable not to put him to death, and had him merely deposed from his office and kept in custody. In this manner Alexander was dragged about for three years with the army in Asia, until in 330, when, Philotas having been executed for similar crime, the Macedonians, led by the arguments of Atarrhias, demanded that Alexander Lyncestes should likewise be tried and punished accordingly. Alexander the Great gave way, and as the traitor was unable to exculpate himself, he was put to death at Alexandria Prophthasia, the capital of Drangiana.

Diodorus Siculus Diodorus Siculus or Diodorus of Sicily (; 1st century BC) was an ancient Greece, ancient Greek historian from Sicily. He is known for writing the monumental Universal history (genre), universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty ...

, xvii. 32, 80 Alexander's likely motive originally, was to gain possession of the throne of Macedonia, which previous to the reign of Amyntas III of Macedon had for a time belonged to his family.

References

External links

pothos.org
{{authority control 4th-century BC births 330 BC deaths Generals of Alexander the Great Ancient Greek generals Ancient Macedonian generals Executed ancient Macedonian people Ancient Lyncestians Conspirators against Alexander the Great People executed by Alexander the Great

Background

Career

See also

References

External links