Pediccas and Hephaestion

[jan]

I have noticed that Hephaestion is paired with Perdiccas a lot late in the campaigns. Looking up main characters on this site, I found nothing pertaining to either one. Is there anything that can explain why they are paired so much? What they are like together? ETC. Thanks, anyone.

[Manny E]

Had Hephaistion not die first before Alexander, it would have been him(Heph)whom Alexander have given the signet ring of Macedon (to protect whoever would the heir would turn out to be---most likely his unborn son) but instead it was Perdicas. Whether it was because he was physically closest (and Alexander already too far gone to choose by sight anyoneelse more than five feet away)or because Perdiccas was the ablest general in Alexander's estimation, nobody knows. Or, more accurately, I don't know. But Alexander was a genius at identifying people's core skills---Hephaistion was a master at logistics and Perdiccas among his bravest and skillful generals---and the fact that Hephaistion and Perdiccas together was more "productive" even than, say, Heph and Ptolemy, another trusted childhood ally. It's frustrating---there's more primary-source material on Perdiccas than Hephaistion (I think).Sorry I've not much to contribute to this duo's dynamic,Manny

[ruthaki]

Perdikkas was first in command when Krateros left to return to Macedon with the veterans after the Opis. Hephaestion was already dead for about a year there. When Alexander died, there is a debate over who he meant to leave in charge. Allegedly his dyin words were 'Hoti to Krateros" (to Krateros) however this could have been misinterpreted.= as "to the srongest". As Krateros was not there, Perdikkas seized the moment and took command of the army.
A lot of the men disagreed and it all ended up with Perikkas being assassinated later. How will we ever know what Alexander really meant?

[susan]

Krateros left for Macedonia soon after Opis, in late summer-early autumn 324. Hephaestion didn't die until late autumn-winter 324 - so Hephaestion was still second in command.Susan

[jan]

Thanks so much. I noticed that when Alexander had sent them together to build a bridge that when he arrived it was accomplished. That impressed me a lot. And as you have noted, it was Perdiccas who did seize the moment, and took charge, reminding me of Alexander Haig when President Ronald Reagan had been shot. However, it does appear that as Manny noted, Alexander is great at knowing an individual's core skills, and Perdiccas is certainly mentioned more often as I agree with that also than even Hephaestion in the histories. I noted that Arrian ( I think it was Arrian) commented that while he had been an excellent commander, it was due to killing Alexander's half sister that he was considered cruel. It struck me also that he is who is credited with saving Alexander's life by taking the arrow out of his lung when nobody else could. It seems peculiar that both men who save Alexander's life (Kleitos and Perdiccas) are later assassinated.I noticed that Hephaestion and Perdiccas were both given high commands and acted together, but after the bridge building, it seems that Alexander takes Perdiccas with him also.Well, I find that combination so interesting as wasn't Perdiccas the name of one of Phillip's brothers also? He is an excellent study in himself, and I wish that there were more information but I realize now that there is only just so much available.Again, thanks.Jan

[ruthaki]

I don't know what 'half-sister' of Alexander that Perdikas was supposed to have killed. I believe he planned to marry Kleopatra (Alexander's sister) but was assassinated before the marriage took place. She ended up being left in exile in Syria where she was later murdered (perhaps by Kassandros's orders)
I believe Perdikas had made some very serious errors in his career. One was at Thebes when the Macedonian garrison commanders were killed. And there were others. He was forgiven this by Alexander it seems but a lot of the Successors didn't forget and resented him taking charge of the army.

[marcus]

Hi Ruth,It is debatable whether Perdikkas did actually make a 'mistake' at Thebes. There is also a story at the siege of Halikarnassos where some of his men were supposed to have got drunk and into a fight with the defenders, which might easily have turned out badly for the Macedonians. But there is a theory that these were not 'errors' in fact, but were turned into anti-Perdikkas propaganda by Ptolemy during the early fighting following Alexander's death.All the bestMarcus

[ruthaki]

Hi Marcus, wasn't there also something about him having killed Pausanias (Philip's assassin) before they had chance to question him? ruthaki

[adean557@hotmail.com]

Hello,The story that Perdicas got drunk and tried to show his worth has popped up in recent books such as Valerio Manfredi's work and just thinking about it I suppose that Ptolemy could have used it as anti propaganda and yet something that sprang to mind was that Ptolemy wrote well into his retirment and with one foot in the grave so to speak.Would Ptolemy have maintained such slurs on Perdicas character, if they weren't true,- with so little to gain while writing his memoirs, otherwise such stories wouldn't have got to us via Plutarch or Arrian.Actually come to think of it, he was the one who used Alexander's body as a kind of tourist attraction so I don't suppose we could put it past him.Best regards,
Dean-

[ruthaki]

Hi Janice, I think you mean the episode when Perdikkas allegedly sent his brother out with armed men to stop Alexander's half-sister Kynane who was on her way to Sardis with her daughter Adaeia (later Queen Eurydike). Kynane was Philip's daughter by an Illyrian wife and wife of his nephew Amnytas who was executed as a traitor in the assassination plot of Philip. She was killed in the skirmish.

[marcus]

Hi Ruth,Indeed. Perdikkas, Attalos son of Andromenes and Leonnatos were the chaps who chased down Pausanias and speared him to death (with a bit of help from a protruding vine root).All the bestMarcus

[marcus]

Hi Dean,I don't think Perdikkas himself was ever accused of being drunk. The story about Halikarnassos says that two soldiers from his battalion got drunk.If it's true (or even if it isn't), the charge against Perdikkas would be his inability to control his troops, thereby putting the army (or at least his battalion) as a whole in danger.Your point about Ptolemy is fair. There seems to be a lot of discussion about whether it is anti-P propaganda, *if* Ptolemy did write his memoirs so late in life. However, just because Perdikkas was long dead and buried, it doesn't necessarily mean that Ptolemy wouldn't still blacken his name - it might even be that he had spent such energy blackening his rival's name in the late 320s that, by the time he came to write his memoirs, he didn't remember the truth...All the bestMarcus

[jan]

Hi Ruth,That must be it. It was a kind of paraphrasing statement that included the reasons that his own men had turned on him. So apparently, it was an accumulation of grievances over time that finally erupted, meaning that once Alexander is gone, even Perdiccas is no longer safe. It seems that both Kleitos and Perdiccas had been bodyguards to Alexander, and it is strange that each dies in the manner that they do. It reveals the malcontents within the army who had been obviously suppressed. It enhances Alexander's importance to the success of the entire mission, as all his key players diminish soon after his death.His empire begins to disintegrate, and I can't wait to read your book on that. How is it coming?

[marcus]

Hi Jan,Kleitos was never one of Alexander's bodyguard. That isn't to say that he didn't perform the duty to an extent, though, considering he saved Al's life at the Granicus.I think I'm right in saying that he led the Agema (Royal Squadron) of the Companion Cavalry, which is why he would have been so close to Al in the battle; and after Philotas' death he became co-commander (with Hephaistion) of the Companions... before Alexander appointed him satrap of Sogdia in place of Artabazos (a post he never took up because Al killed him before he could do so).All the bestMarcus

[ruthaki]

Hi Jan and Marcus,
First, have you ever seen the site of the ancient theatre of Aigai where Philip was killed, and the surrounding terrain? I've sat there twice (most recently last summer) and tried to visualize the scene, wondering how the heck Pausanias figured he could get away at all. Re Perdikkas: I had a lot of fun writing his character in my novel as he is a predominant character in all the first part so I had to get right into his head. I actually 'found' him working at a post office in Asprovalta (a small beach resort east of Thessaloniki) one summer. No kidding...the guy was the image of what I imaged Perdikkas to look like, exactly as I'd described him. I made a lot of trips to mail post cards just to watch him, study his gestures etc.
I'm on the last part of the novel now. Coming along slow but sure. Weaving in some important political intrigue just now so it's a bit slow-going til I get it just right. But soon...I hope! ruthaki