Madates () or Madetas () was a general of
Darius III and was married to a niece of
Sisygambis (the mother of Darius).
A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, Madates
/ref> He was leading the Uxii.
He was supposedly ethnically Persian, but it is not unlikely he was Uxian. The idea that being a Persian ruling a non-Persian tribe "seems strange but has rarely received much attention from scholars."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 ...
and Quintus Curtius Rufus
Quintus Curtius Rufus (; ) was a Ancient Rome, Roman historian, probably of the 1st century, author of his only known and only surviving work, ''Historiae Alexandri Magni'', "Histories of Alexander the Great", or more fully ''Historiarum Alex ...
mention him.
Madates tried to fight 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 ...
, but the Uxians were at first reluctant. He defended a strong mountain fortress of the Uxii against Alexander but he defeated. After the entreaties of Sisygambis, he was pardoned by Alexander.
References
4th-century BC Iranian people
Uxii
Opponents of Alexander the Great
{{Iran-bio-stub