The death of Alexander #9 - Arrian

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Alexias
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The death of Alexander #9 - Arrian

Post by Alexias »

Arrian - The Campaigns of Alexander Translated by Aubrey de Selincourt ©1958
On his march to Babylon, Alexander ….was met by some Wise Men of the Chaldeans, who ... begged him to go no further, because their god Bel had foretold that if he entered the city at that time it would prove fatal to him. Alexander replied to them by quoting the line of Euripides:
'Prophets are best who make the trues guess.'

'My lord,' said the Chaldeans, 'look not to the West … but turn about and go eastward.' But this was not easy for Alexander to do, as the country to the east was impracticable for troops.

The truth was that fate was leading him to the spot where it was already written that he should die.

Who knows? Perhaps it was better for him to make his end while his fame was unimpaired and the world most grieved for his loss, and before he was overtaken by the ill fortune which, at one time or another, is the lot of all men. …Even in Alexander's case, Hephaestion's death had neem no small calamity, and I believe he would rather have been the first to go than live to suffer that pain, like Achilles, who surely would rather have died before Patroclus than have lived to avenge his death.

Alexander had some suspicion that the Chaldeans' attempt to prevent him from marching to Babylon … might well be to secure their own advantage. In Babylon stood the great temple of Bel, a huge edifice of baked bricks, set in bitumen. Like the other shrines in the city, it had been destroyed by Xerxes on his return from Greece and Alexander had proposed to restore it. … The workmen, however, once he was out of the way, dawdled over their job, so he proposed to set all his own troops to work upon it…. But at the time of which I am speaking the Chaldeans themselves had the disposal of the god's property, as there was nothing upon which the income could be spent. For these reasons it had occurred to Alexander that they might not want him to enter the city, lest the rebuilding of the temple might be rapidly completed and they …. Lose the benefit of the money.

Nevertheless, Aristobulous tells us that Alexander was ready to yield to their wishes; on the first day he halted his men on the Euphrates, and on the next advanced, keeping the Euphrates on his right hand, with the intention of … then wheeling to the eastward. But it turned out that by this route … is bound to get bogged down in swampy land. The result was that Alexander disobeyed the divine command - half deliberately, and half because he could not help it.

In Aristobulous' accounts we find the following story about Apollodorus of Amphipolis, .. one of the Companions … who was in command of the force which had been left with Mazaeus, the governor of Babylon. After Alexander's return from India, … he observed the severity with which he was punishing the various provincial governors. He accordingly wrote a letter to his brother Peithagoras, a seer … asking him to use his art to foretell whether or not any danger threatened himself. Peithagoras asked in reply who was the principal cause of the foreboding ... he said that it was the King and Hephaestion. Peithagoras the proceeded .. to secure a prophecy in the case of Hephaestion; and, as no lobe could be found on the victim's liver, he sent a sealed message to Apollodorus in Ecbatana, assuring him that Hephaestion would soon be out of the way and that there was, therefore, nothing to fear from him. Aristobulous declares that Apollodorus received this communication the day before Hephaestion's death. Peithagorus then offered a second sacrifice, .. about Alexander; once again the victim's liver had no lobe, and Peithagorus wrote another letter to his brother … Apollodorus made no attempt at concealment, but told Alexander … Alexander thanked him, and on his arrival in Babylon asked Peithagorus the nature of the warning

"Something," Peithagorus replied, "of the utmost gravity."

… There is a similar story of Calanus, the Indian Wise Man. .. he made his farewells … but refused to speak any work of the sort to Alexander himself, saying that he would give him his greetings when they met in Babylon. …

In Babylon, Alexander was visited by delegations from Greece …

Aristobulous writes that the fleet was in Babylon when Alexander arrived there…

While the new warships were under construction and the dredging of the harbour proceeded, Alexander sailed from Babylon down the Euphrates to the river known as Pallocopas, about 100 miles downstream from the city. … its waters are diverted along the Pallocopas into the marshes and lakes which continue from that point almost into Arabia …

… Happening to observe a good site, he built and fortified a new town and settled some of the Greek mercenaries…

It now seemed that he had proved the Chaldeans' prophecy to be nonsense. … with renewed confidence he sailed again for the lakes, proceeding to the southward. Some of his ships went astray among the narrow channels…, and he had to send them a pilot…

The greater number of the tombs of the Assyrian kings were built in the lakes and marshland, and the story goes that Alexander, while his vessel with himself at the helm was passing through, was wearing a sun hat, bound with the diadem or band, signifying royalty. Suddenly a strong gust of wind blew the hat off, which fell into the water, but the light band went flying away and caught on a reed ... near one of the ancient royal tombs. This in itself was a presage, but …: one of the sailors swam off after the hat-band and … could not bring it back in his hands without wetting it as he swam, he bound it round his head. Most historians state that Alexander gave the man a talent by way of reward ... and then had him beheaded in obedience to the prophecy which warned him not to leave untouched the head which had worn the diadem. Aristobulous … says the punishment was only a flogging. He adds that the man concerned was one of the Phoenician sailors. Some writers say it was Seleucus, and declare that the incident portended Alexander's death and Seleucus' inheritance of his vast empire - and Seleucus was, in actual fact, the greatest king among Alexander's successors….

Returning to Babylon, Alexander found Peucestas back from Persia with 20,000 Persian troops …

… The Persians were then enrolled in the various Macedonian units …

Fleet exercises were constantly held at this time ….

Some time before this Alexander had sent special envoys to the shrine of Ammon to inquire what honours he might with propriety pay to the dead Hephaestion. The envoys now returned with the news that Ammon permitted sacrifice to be offered to him as a 'hero' or demi-god. Alexander was much pleased ….

About this time he wrote a letter to Cleomenes, an official with a bad criminal record in Egypt. … "If," the letter went on, "I find that everything connected with Hephaestion's shrines in Egypt is in proper order, I will grant you free pardon for your former crimes, and henceforward you will suffer no punishment at my hands for anything you may do, however heinous." A remark of this kind … is, to my mind, shocking.

Alexander's end was now rapidly approaching. Another portent .. is mentioned by Aristobulous: while the King was engaged in incorporating in the various Macedonian units the troops which had come from Persia with Peucestas and from the coast with Philoxenus and Menander, he happened to feel thirsty, and getting up from where he was sitting moved away and left the royal throne empty. … Now some fellow or other - some say a prisoner under open arrest - seeing the throne and the couches unoccupied, made his way up through the eunuchs and sat down on the throne. The eunuchs, according to some Persian custom, did not turn him off, but began to tear their clothes and beat their breasts and faces as if something dreadful had happened. Alexander was told at once, and ordered the man put to the torture in an endeavour to find out if what he had done was part of a prearranged plot. However, all they could get out of him was, that he acted as he did merely upon impulse. This served to strengthen the seers' forebodings of disaster.

A few days later Alexander was sitting at dinner with his friends and drinking far into the night. He had previously celebrated the customary sacrificial rites with a view to his success… According to some accounts, when he wished to leave his friends at their drinking and retire to his bedroom, he happened to meet Medius, who at that time was the Companion most closely in his confidence, and Medius asked him to come and continue drinking at his own table, adding that the party would be a merry one.

The royal Diaries confirm the fact that he drank with Medius after his first carouse. Then (they continue) he left the table, bathed, and went to sleep, after which he supped with Medius and again set to drinking, continuing till late at night. (1) Then, once more, he took a bath, ate a little, and went straight to sleep, with the fever already on him.

(2) Next day he was carried out on his bed to perform his daily religious duties as usual, and after the ceremony lay in the men's quarters till dark. He continued to issue orders to his officers, … those who were to march by land to be ready to start in three days and those who were going with himself by sea to sail one day later. From there he was carried on his bed to the river, .. to the park on the further side, where he took another bath and rested. (3) Next day he bathed again and offered sacrifice as usual, after which he went to lie down in his room, where he chatted to Medius and gave orders to his officers to report to him early next morning. Then he took a little food, returned to his room, and lay all night in a fever. (4) The following morning he bathed and offered sacrifice, and then issued to Nearchus and the other officers detailed instructions about the voyage …(5) Next day he bathed again, went through his regular religious duties, and was afterwards in constant fever. None the less he sent for his staff as usual and gave them further instructions on their preparations for sailing. In the evening, after another bath, his condition was grave, and (6) the following morning he was moved to the building near the swimming pool. He offered sacrifice, and, in spite of his increasing weakness, sent for his senior officers and repeated his orders for the expedition. (7) The day after he just managed to have himself carried to his place of prayer, and after the ceremony still continued, in spite of his weakness, to issue instructions to his staff. (8) Another day passed. Now very seriously ill, he still refused to neglect his religious duties; he gave orders, however, that his senior officers should wait in the court, and the battalion and company commanders outside his door. Then his condition already desperate, he was moved from the park back to the palace. He recognised his officers when they entered his room but could no longer speak to them. From that moment until the end he uttered no word. (9) That night and the following day, and (10) for the next twenty four hours, he remained in a high fever.

These details are all to be found in the Diaries. It is further recorded in these documents that the soldiers were passionately eager to see him … and the motive in almost every heart was grief and a sort of helpless bewilderment at the thought of losing their king. Lying speechless as the men filed by, he yet struggled to raise his head, and in his eyes was a look of recognition for each individual as he passed. The Diaries say that Peitho, Attalus, Demophon, and Peucestas, together with Cleomenes, Menidas, and Seleucus, spent the (11) night in the temple of Serapis and asked the God if it would be better for Alexander to be carried into the temple…; but the God forbade it, and declared it would be better for him if he stayed where he was. The God's command was made public, and soon afterwards Alexander died ….

… much else has been written about Alexander's death: for instance, that Antipater sent him some medicine which had been tampered with and that he took it, with fatal results. Aristotle is supposed to have made up this drug, because he was already afraid of Alexander on account of Callisthenes' death, and Antipater's son Cassander is said to have brought it. Some accounts declare that he brought it in a mule's hoof, and that it was given Alexander by Cassander's younger brother Iollas, who was his cup-bearer and had been hurt by him in some way shortly before his death; others state that Medius, who was Iollas' lover, had a hand in it, and support that view by the fact that it was Medius who invited Alexander to the drinking-party - felt a sharp pain after drinking the cup, and left the party in consequence of it. One writer has even had the face to declare that when he knew his death was imminent he went out with the intention of throwing himself into the Euphrates, in order to disappear without trace and make it easier for posterity to believe that one of the gods was his father and he had gone away to join them. His wife Roxane, this writer continues, happened to see him as he left the building, and stopped him, whereupon he gave a great cry and bitterly reproached her for grudging him the eternal fame of divine birth. I do not wish to appear ignorant of these stories; but stories they are - I put them down as such and do not expect them to be believed.
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