Alexander at Chaeronea

[Kit]

Hello all,A thought struck me the other day- What a tremendous risk Phillip took at Chaeronea by including both himself & heir apparent in the line of battle. Macedon could have lost it's king and heir in a single day; probably plunging it into civil war.Was this a normal occurence? I've never really questioned Alexander's participation in the battle before, but I wonder if there was a precedent for this? Does anyone know of any previous macedonian battles in which both the king & heir participated?regardsKit

[susan]

I don't think that they really considered issues like this. To be good in battle was what mattered to a Macedonian king and his subjects; they wouldn't have appreciated taking the safe and prudent course. To do any less would be to invite strong rivals to compete. Alexander was particularly reckless - after the battle with the Malli, his generals confronted him about the risks he took, but I don't think it deterred him.RegardsSusan

[ruthaki]

Have any of you seen the actual battle site? It is simply amazing...like an immense natural amphitheatre ringed by mountains. Impressive. When you are there you can imagine the whole scene!

[marcus]

I agree. Also, I imagine it would have been just as dangerous *not* to include Alexander - it just wouldn't do to keep the heir apparent out of danger, unable to prove himself. The message it would have sent to the troops, and to Alexander himself, might have caused similar problems to those had P & A both been killed there.All the bestMArcus

[smittysmitty]

Hi Kit,
I think we shouldn't underestimate the soldiers surrounding Alexander at Chaeronea, and I'm more inclined to believe his role played there was more of a token nature, (that sounds harsh!)than what actually was!Justin makes this point clear, that Alexander was supported by some of the best Generals Macedon had!Phil wasn't taking chances with an inexperienced commander.
just my thoughtsCheers!

[Kit]

Hi Smitty,I suspect that you're right. But I wonder if anyone knows of any previous macedonian battles where both King & Heir were present? I realise that the sources for the period prior to Phillip are sketchy at best, but I would be interested in any info?thanksKit

[marcus]

Hi Kit,I don't think there is any such information - at least not pre-Alexander. Then again, how many kings lasted long enough to have an heir old enough to fight alongside them? :-)All the bestMarcus

[smittysmitty]

Unfortunately, minimal information available on such matters, but I suspect it would have been common pratice for heirs to participate in battle as long as they were of age. There is an account of a sixth century king, Aeropus, who as an infant is brought onthe battle field against the Illyrians, presumably a case of Regent and king there!can't give you any specifics on other accounts.cheers!

[alejandro]

As mentioned by someone else (Marcus?), the main problem is that the Makedonian royal house had a record of kings that died/were killed before their heirs came of age, so I think the Philip-Alexander participation in battle together was a rather unusual situation (though I have no hard evidence to support my claim), and so we cannot talk about a GÇ£traditionGÇ¥, in either way: we cannot say that kings and heirs used to fight together nor that they didn't. We simply have no sufficient observations (as an statistician would say it). On the other hand, we do have Antigonos and Demetrios being GÇ£joint-kingsGÇ¥, but I donGÇÖt remember whether they actually fought any battle together or rather had separate armies that worked mainly independently (mind you, they had the resources to afford two big armies!). If I remember it well, Antigonos was defeated in Ipsos because Demetrios didnGÇÖt make it on time, wasnGÇÖt it? Kind regards Alejandro

[ruthaki]

Don't you think the master strategsit (Philip) would want his heir (Alexander) to come along, this being I believe his first major battle, to see how it was done? I think Philip had uttmost confidence in his son. After all, he was the best teacher!

[dio]

Hello, I believe Antigonos and Demetrius fought together (albeit leading the army and navy seperately) during the Egyptian campaign against Ptolemy.As for the battle of Ipsos, Demetrius commanded the cavalry there. It was Demetrius charging the oppositions cavalry off the field and not returning in time while Antigonos infantry was defeated that cost them the battle.A momentus mistake as Alexanders united Empire would certainly have continued with an Antigonid victory over the combined kings there!

[jan]

HI,I have just read the Curtius version of the struggle between Alexander and Cleitus. It describes the situation at Charonea explicitly.It explains Alexander's side fully as well as Cleitus's views.

[marcus]

Ruth,I can well believe that. Where else was Alexander to learn his craft, if not under the command of the superlative military leader of his day? All the bestMarcus