Attalus (

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

: Ἄτταλος; c. 390 BC – 336 BC), a Macedonian from Lower Macedonia, was an important courtier and soldier of Philip II of Macedonia.

Family connections to Philip II of Macedon

Attalus was born in Lower Macedonia in 390 BC. In 338 BC, Attalus's adopted niece Cleopatra Eurydice married king Philip II of Macedonia. It is said that at the wedding, Attalus made a prayer that Cleopatra may give birth to a legitimate male heir to Philip. This was seen as a direct insult to

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 ...

. In the spring of 336 BC, Philip II appointed Attalus and

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 ...

as commanders of the advance force that would invade the

Persian Empire The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire, also known as the Persian Empire or First Persian Empire (; , , ), was an Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty in 550 BC. Based in modern-day Iran, it was the larg ...

Asia Minor Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

Revenge-rape of Pausanias of Orestis

According to a story of

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

's, lengthened by Cleitarchus and

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 ...

, Attalus sexually assaulted Pausanias of Orestis in retribution for besmirching the reputation of Attalus's friend (possibly relation), also named Pausanias, an event that led to the death of Pausanias, the beloved of Philip, while attempting to prove his honour after

public humiliation Public humiliation or public shaming is a form of punishment whose main feature is dishonoring or disgracing a person, usually an offender or a prisoner, especially in a public place. It was regularly used as a form of judicially sanctioned puni ...

by Pausanias of Orestis.

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 ...

's later assassination by Pausanias of Orestis has been tied to this affair as Pausanias of Orestis was upset that Phillip had not punished Attalus.

Execution by Alexander

After Philip II had been assassinated and Alexander became king (October 336 BC), his adopted niece Cleopatra Eurydice and her two children were all killed (Cleopatra Eurydice may have died by her own hand after the murders of her children). At the time of the assassination of Phillip and accession of

to the Macedonian throne, Attalus was stationed with

and the Macedonian advance army in

. In the wake of Phillip II's death, it is alleged by hostile sources that

Demosthenes Demosthenes (; ; ; 384 – 12 October 322 BC) was a Greek statesman and orator in ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prowess and provide insight into the politics and cu ...

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

wrote a letter to Attalus promising Athens' support if the two made war on Alexander. Attalus submitted Demosthenes' letters to Alexander and pledged his support to the king. Despite Attalus attempting to appease him, Alexander had sent an officer to Asia Minor to either kill or arrest Attalus. Even without the resentment between the two men that had occurred after the marriage of Cleopatra Eurydice, Alexander probably felt Attalus was too ambitious and popular with the Asian forces to remain alive, and would have good reason for revenge after the deaths of Cleopatra Eurydice and her children. Attalus was executed in 336 BC.

In popular media

*In the 1956

Richard Burton Richard Burton (; born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. Noted for his mellifluous baritone voice, Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s and gave a memor ...

film ''

'', he was played by Stanley Baker. *In the 1990 and 1991 historical fiction books '' Lion of Macedon'' and ''Dark Prince'' by David Gemmell. Attalus is portrayed as an assassin, swordsman and later general of Philip II of Macedonia. *In the 2004 film ''

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

'', Attalus was portrayed by actor Nick Dunning. *In the 2024

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

miniseries '' Alexander: The Making of a God'', Attalus was portrayed by actor James Oliver Wheatley.

References

External links

Attalus
by Jona Lendering on Livius {{DEFAULTSORT:Attalus Ancient Greek generals Ancient Macedonian generals Generals of Philip II of Macedon 390s BC births 336 BC deaths People executed by Alexander the Great Lower Macedonians