pothos.org

Alexander now fell ill from the toils he had undergone, according to the account of Aristobulus; but other authors say that while he was very hot and in profuse perspiration he leaped into the river Cydnus and swam, being eager to bathe in its water. This river flows through the midst of the city; and as its source is in mount Taurus and it flows through a clean district, it is cold and its water is clear. Alexander therefore was seized with convulsions, accompanied with high fever and continuous sleeplessness. None of the physicians thought he was likely to survive, except Philip, an Acarnanian, a physician in attendance on the king, and very much trusted by him in medical matters, who also enjoyed a great reputation in the army in general affairs. This man wished to administer a purgative draught to Alexander, and the king ordered him to administer it. While Philip was preparing the cup, a letter was given to the king from Parmenio, warning him to beware of Philip; for he heard that the physician had been bribed by Darius to poison Alexander with medicine. But he, having read the letter, and still holding it in his hand, took the cup which contained the medicine and gave Philip the letter to read. While Philip was reading the news from Parmenio, Alexander drank the potion. It was at once evident to the king that the physician was acting honourably in giving the medicine, for he was not alarmed at the letter, but only so much the more exhorted the king to obey all the other prescriptions which he might give, promising that his life would be saved if he obeyed his instructions. Alexander was purged by the draught, and his illness then took a favourable turn. He afterwards proved to Philip that he was a faithful friend to him; and to the rest of those about he proved that he had perfect confidence in his friends by refusing to entertain any suspicion of their fidelity; and at the same time he showed that he could meet death with dauntless courage.
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Anab ... Chapter_IV

The river Cydnus, which was mentioned a short time ago, flows through the middle of Tarsus; it was then summer, the heat of which burns no other shore more than that of Cilicia with the sun's fires, and the hottest time of the day had begun. The clear water of the river tempted the king, who was covered with dust and at the same time with sweat, to bathe his body when it was still heated; accordingly, laying off his clothing in the sight of the army - thinking that it would also be fitting if he should show his men that he was content with attention to his person which was simple and easily attained — he went down into the river. But hardly had he entered it when his limbs began to stiffen with a sudden chill, then he lost his colour, and the vital warmth left almost his entire body. His attendants caught him in their arms, looking like a dying man, and carried him almost unconscious into his tent.

There was great anxiety, and already almost mourning in the camp; with tears they lamented that the most glorious king of any age or time, in the midst of so swift a career of success, had been laid low, not in battle (which would have been bad enough), not by the enemy, but had been taken off and done to death while bathing. Darius (they said) was close at hand, a victor before he had seen his enemy. As for them, they must go back to the same lands through which they had passed victorious, where everything had been laid waste by themselves or by the enemy. Marching through desert wastes, even if no one wished to pursue them, they could be vanquished by hunger and want. Who would direct them in their flight? Who would venture to succeed Alexander? Just suppose that they should reach the Hellespont in their flight, who would prepare a fleet in which to cross it? Then their pity turned again to the king himself and, forgetting themselves, they lamented that such flower of youth, so powerful a mind, at once their king and their fellow-soldier, was torn and wrested away from them.

Meanwhile the king's breath had begun to pass more freely, and he had raised his eyes; and as his senses began to return to him, he recognized his friends who stood about him, and the violence of his illness seemed to have abated for the sole reason that he felt the greatness of the disaster. However, trouble of mind oppressed his body; for it was announced that Darius would be in Cilicia in four days. Therefore he lamented that he was being handed over to him in bonds, that so great a victory was being snatched from his hands, and that he was being blotted out in his tent by an obscure and inglorious death. And so, having admitted his friends, as well as his physicians, he said: 'You see in what a crisis of my affairs Fortune has surprised me. Methinks I hear the din of hostile arms, and I who was the aggressor in war, am now challenged. Thus Darius, when he was writing those haughty letters, had regard to my fortune, but to no purpose, if I am allowed to be treated according to my desire. My exigency cannot wait for slow remedies and dilatory physicians; in my opinion it is better even to die speedily than to recover tardily. Therefore, if there is any help, if there is any skill, in physicians, let them know that I do not so much desire a remedy against death as one that will enable me to make war."

This headlong rashness of the king had smitten all with great anxiety. Hence each man individually began to entreat him not to increase his danger by haste but to submit to the control of his physicians; that they had good reason to suspect untried remedies, since his enemy was bribing someone to destroy him even from among his own intimates. And in fact Darius had ordered it to be proclaimed that he would give a thousand talents to the slayer of Alexander. Hence they thought that no one would venture even to try a remedy which on account of its novelty could be suspected.

Among the famous physicians who had followed the king from Macedonia was Philip, a native of Acarnania, most loyal to Alexander; made the king's comrade and the guardian of his health from boyhood, he loved him with extreme affection, not only as his king, but even as a foster-child. He promised to apply a remedy that was not sudden but effective, and to allay the violence of his illness, great as it was, with a medicated draught. His promise pleased no one except the very one at whose peril it was made. For the king could endure anything except delay; arms and armies were before his eyes, and he thought that victory depended merely upon his ability to take his place before the standards, impatient only because he was not to take the draught until the third day should have come - for so the physician had directed.

In the meantime he received a letter from Parmenion, the most faithful of his generals, in which he strongly warned the king not to trust his life to Philip; that he had been bribed by Darius with a thousand talents and the hope of marriage with the king's sister. This letter had filled Alexander's mind with great anxiety, and whatever fear or hope cast into either scale he weighed in secret calculation. Should I resolve to take the draught, with the result that if poison shall have been given me, it may seem that I deserved whatever shall have happened? Shall I distrust the loyalty of my physician? Shall I then allow myself to be overwhelmed in my tent? But it is better for me to die of another's crime than of my own fear." After having turned his thoughts in various directions for a long time, he revealed to no one what had been written, but impressed the seal of his ring upon the letter and put it under the pillow on which he was lying.

After he had spent two days in such thoughts as these, the day designated by the physician dawned, and Philip entered with the cup in which he had mixed the drug. On seeing him Alexander raised himself in bed and, holding the letter sent by Parmenion in his left hand, took the cup and drank fearlessly; then he bade Philip read the letter, and he did not turn his eyes from the physician's face as he read, thinking that he would be able to detect any signs of guilt in his very expression. But Philip, when he had read the letter through, showed more indignation than fear, and throwing his cloak and the letter before the couch: "My king," said he, "the breath of my life has always depended upon you, but now, I verily believe that it is drawn by your sacred and revered lips. The accusation of murder with which I have been charged your recovery will refute; when saved by me you will have given me life. I beg and beseech you, cease your fear; allow the remedy to be taken into your veins; free for a time your mind, which your friends, faithful indeed but, alas, officious, are disturbing by their ill-timed solicitude."

These words made the king, not only free from care, but even joyful and full of good hope. Accordingly he said: "If the gods, Philip, had granted you to test my feelings in the manner which you most desired, you would surely have chosen a different way, but you could not even have wished for a surer one than you experienced, since after receiving this letter I nevertheless drank the mixture you had prepared. And now, believe me, I am not less anxious to prove your loyalty than I am for my recovery." Having said this, he offered Philip his right hand. But so great was the strength of the drug that what followed seemed to support the calumny of Parmenion. The king's breath was impeded and passed with difficulty. But Philip left nothing untried; it was he that applied hot lotions to the king's body, he that roused him from languor by the odour now of food, now of wine. As soon as he perceived that Alexander was conscious, he did not cease to remind him, at one time of his mother and sisters, again of his approaching great victory. But as the drug spread into the king's veins and gradually its healing power could be felt in his whole body, at first his mind regained its vigour and then his body also, more speedily than could have been expected; for after the third day which he had spent in that condition, he appeared in sight of the soldiers.

Nor did the army look with more eagerness upon the king himself than upon Philip; each man individually grasped the physician's right hand and returned thanks, as if to an all-powerful god. For it is not easily expressed how great, apart from the native reverence of the Macedonians for their kings, was their admiring devotion to this particular king, or, I may say, their burning affection for him. For first of all, he seemed to undertake nothing without divine help; for since good fortune everywhere attended him, his very rashness had resulted in glory. His years too, which seemed hardly ripe for such great deeds, but had proved amply sufficient, enhanced all his exploits. Also things which are commonly regarded as trifling, are usually more pleasing to a crowd of soldiers: bodily exercise in their company, dress and bearing differing but little from those of a man in private station, a soldier's vigour; by these, whether they were natural gifts or consciously acquired, he had made himself alike beloved and worthy of deep respect.

But Darius, after having received news of Alexander's illness, with all the speed of which so heavy an army was capable hastened to the Euphrates, spanned it with a pontoon bridge, but still got his army across within five days, in his haste to obtain possession of Cilicia. Already Alexander had recovered his physical vigour and had arrived at the city of Soli; having taken possession of this, he exacted, by way of a fine, two hundred talents and placed a garrison of soldiers in the citadel. Then with sport and holiday he paid the vows that had been pledged for his safety, thus showing with what great confidence he scorned the barbarians; for he celebrated games in honour of Aesculapius and Minerva.
https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id= ... 15&seq=135

As to Alexander, he had been watching how, prior to his death, Memnon had won over Chios and the cities in Lesbos and had taken Mitylenê by storm. He learned that Memnon planned to carry the war into Macedonia with three hundred ships of war and a land army also, while the greater part of the Greeks were ready to revolt. This caused him no little anxiety, but when persons came with the news of Memnon's death, he was relieved of this fear; but shortly thereafter he became seriously ill, and afflicted by severe pain, sent for his physicians. All the rest were hesitant to treat him, but Philip the Acarnanian offered to employ risky but quick-acting remedies and by the use of drugs to break the hold of the disease. This proposal the king accepted gladly, for he had heard that Dareius had already left Babylon with his army. The physician gave him a drug to drink and, aided by the natural strength of the sufferer as well as by Fortune, promptly relieved Alexander of the trouble. Making an astonishing recovery, the king honoured the physician with magnificent gifts and assigned him to the most loyal category of Friends.
https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/ ... B*.html#31

Arriving at Tarsus, and being charmed with the pleasantness of the river Cydnus, which flows through the midst of the city, he threw off his armour, and, covered as he was with dust and sweat, plunged himself into the water, which was then excessively cold; when, on a sudden, such a numbness seized his nerves, that his voice was lost, and not only was there no hope of saving his life, but not even a means of delaying death could be found. One of his physicians, named Philippus, was the only person that promised a cure; but a letter from Parmenion, which arrived the day before from Cappadocia, rendered him an object of suspicion; for Parmenion, knowing nothing of Alexander's illness, had written to caution him against trusting Philippus, as he had been bribed by Darius with a large sum of money. Alexander, however, thought it better to trust the doubtful faith of the physician, than to perish of certain disease. Taking the cup from Philippus, therefore, he gave him Parmenion's letter to read, and, as he drank, fixed his eyes upon the physician's countenance while he was reading. Seeing him unmoved, he became more cheerful, and recovered his health on the fourth day after.
https://www.attalus.org/translate/justin11.html#11.8

Dareius was still more encouraged by Alexander's long delay in Cilicia, which he attributed to cowardice. The delay was due, however, to a sickness, which assailed him in consequence of fatigues, according to some, but according to others, because he took a bath in the river Cydnus, whose waters were icy cold. Be that as it may, none of the other physicians had the courage to administer remedies, but thinking that the danger was too great to be overcome by any remedy whatever, they were afraid of the charges which would be made against them by the Macedonians in consequence of their failure; but Philip the Acarnanian, who saw that the king was in an evil plight, put confidence in his friendship, and thinking it a shameful thing not to share his peril by exhausting the resources of art in trying to help him even at great risk, prepared a medicine and persuaded him to drink it boldly, if he was anxious to regain his strength for the war. Meanwhile, however, Parmenio sent a letter to Alexander from the camp, urging him to be on his guard against Philip, for the reason that he had been persuaded by Dareius, with the promise of large gifts and a marriage with his daughter, to kill Alexander. Alexander read the letter and placed it under his pillow, without showing it to any one of his friends. When the time appointed was at hand, and Philip came in with the king's companions, carrying the medicine in a cup, Alexander handed him the letter, while he himself took the medicine from him with readiness and no sign of suspicion. It was an amazing sight, then, and one worthy of the stage, — the one reading the letter, the other drinking the medicine, and then both together turning their eyes upon one another, but not with the same expression; for Alexander, by his glad and open countenance, showed his good will towards Philip and his trust in him, while Philip was beside himself at the calumny, now lifting up his hands towards heaven and calling upon the gods to witness his innocence, and now falling upon the couch on which Alexander lay and beseeching him to be of good courage and obey his physician. For at first the medicine mastered the patient, and as it were drove back and buried deep his bodily powers, so that his voice failed, he fell into a swoon, and became almost wholly unconscious. However, he was speedily restored to his senses by Philip, and when he had recovered strength he showed himself to the Macedonians, who refused to be comforted until they had seen Alexander.
https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/ ... /3.html#19

(Philip was induced?) to try a medicine. When he was about to give it, Parmenion, who had a quarrel with Philip, wrote to Alexander bidding him beware of Philip to whom he heard Darius was offering a thousand talents and his own sister in marriage as the price of the king’s destruction. Alexander received the letter, and suppressing it drank the medicine...'
https://archive.org/details/oxyrhynchus ... 2/mode/2up

But there was a report that Darius tried to poison him. And this is what I think happened. He was poisoned but not by Philip the Acarnanian. He was probably poisoned by Parmenion. I'd rather make a new thread about this.

Alexias wrote: ↑Fri May 31, 2024 9:53 am

But there was a report that Darius tried to poison him. And this is what I think happened. He was poisoned but not by Philip the Acarnanian. He was probably poisoned by Parmenion. I'd rather make a new thread about this.

I think we need to see some detailed reasoning behind this to believe a further conspiracy theory. Quoting and accepting the sources at face value isn't convincing as it has long been accepted that the anti-Parmenion bias in the sources was the result of Alexander's court attempting to blackened his memory and justify his elimination. Yes, there were tensions between the older generation - who seem to have favoured a smash 'n' grab raid on Persia, or at this stage, consolidation of Anatolia - and the younger, more ambitious generation.

But would Parmenion have chosen this point in time to eliminate Alexander? They knew Darius was mobilising and heading towards them, so after Issus when Alexander decided to keep going south would make more sense, even though after Issus the men were mad for the wealth within their grasp. Yes, Alexander's illness was a useful cover for getting rid of him, but why at this point and why Parmenion?

Alexias wrote: ↑Fri May 31, 2024 2:22 pm Alexander trusted Parmenion completely. While he was in Bactria/Sogdiana, he left Parmenion in Ecbatana in control of his supply lines, with the Treasury, and 10,000 troops. The worry was, what would Parmenion do when Philotas was executed. Philotas had 6,000 cavalry in his command, and if Parmenion had decided to make a stand against Alexander, if Philotas's cavalry switched their allegiance to his father, Alexander could have been in serious trouble.

As for the generational tension, it probably was exaggerated by Alexander's court historians to emphasise Alexander's daring as opposed to more conservative tactics. And there probably was a bit of "my father and his generation wouldn't have done it this way, but look how successful my way is."
But the traditionalists versus the 'new men' does seem to have become an issue by the time of the Craterus/Hephaestion quarrel in India, though this also seems to have had a strong element of personal rivalry too.

If Parmenion had wanted to get rid of Alexander, he would have had plenty of opportunities after Issus - the desert trip to Siwah attacked by bandits, bribing Barsine to slip him something, when he was wounded at Gaza?

And finally, did Alexander have pneumonia at Tarsus? I don't think so. According to Arrian, Alexander had convulsions and pneumonia doesn't cause convulsions. According to Curtius, it was an obscure illness and there is no report that anybody else was affected, only Alexander.

marcus wrote: ↑Fri May 31, 2024 7:44 pm Well, apparently pneumonia *does* cause shaking chills (convulsions):
https://www.lung.org/lung-health-diseas ... -diagnosis
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/ ... cal%20exam.

Alexias wrote: ↑Fri May 31, 2024 9:53 am I think we need to see some detailed reasoning behind this to believe a further conspiracy theory.

Alexias wrote: ↑Fri May 31, 2024 9:53 am ... as it has long been accepted that the anti-Parmenion bias in the sources was the result of Alexander's court attempting to blackened his memory and justify his elimination.

AdamKvanta wrote: ↑Sat Jun 01, 2024 3:59 pm Interesting. It's possible but on what arguments has it been long accepted? Was his memory blackened in all sources? I'm skeptical...

AdamKvanta wrote: ↑Sat Jun 01, 2024 3:07 pm Still, I wonder why it was called obscure in Curtius. Didn't Alexander's physicians know about pneumonia and shaking chills?

marcus wrote: ↑Sat Jun 01, 2024 6:44 pm

AdamKvanta wrote: ↑Sat Jun 01, 2024 3:07 pm Still, I wonder why it was called obscure in Curtius. Didn't Alexander's physicians know about pneumonia and shaking chills?

Now that I cannot tell you!

Alexias wrote: ↑Fri May 31, 2024 9:53 am Yes, there were tensions between the older generation - who seem to have favoured a smash 'n' grab raid on Persia, or at this stage, consolidation of Anatolia - and the younger, more ambitious generation.

But would Parmenion have chosen this point in time to eliminate Alexander? They knew Darius was mobilising and heading towards them, so after Issus when Alexander decided to keep going south would make more sense, even though after Issus the men were mad for the wealth within their grasp. Yes, Alexander's illness was a useful cover for getting rid of him, but why at this point and why Parmenion?

... when Parmenio, on the ground that it was too late in the day, objected to their risking the passage, he declared that the Hellespont would blush for shame, if, after having crossed that strait, he should be afraid of the Granicus, and plunged into the stream with thirteen troops of horsemen.

And since he was charging against hostile missiles and precipitous positions covered with infantry and cavalry, and through a stream that swept men off their feet and surged about them, he seemed to be acting like a frenzied and foolish commander rather than a wise one.
https://topostext.org/work/172#Alex.16.3

When Dareius sent to him a letter and friends, begging him to accept ten thousand talents as ransom for the captives, to hold all the territory this side of the Euphrates, to take one of his daughters in marriage, and on these terms to be his ally and friend, Alexander imparted the matter to his companions.

"If I were Alexander," said Parmenio, "I would accept these terms." "And so indeed would I," said Alexander, "were I Parmenio."
https://topostext.org/work/172#Alex.29.7

... Parmenio is said to have told Alexander that if he were Alexander he would be glad to put an end to the war on these terms, and incur no further hazard of success.
https://topostext.org/work/205#2.25.1

However, it is thought that [Darius] would not then have made his escape, had not fresh horsemen come from Parmenio summoning Alexander to his aid, on the ground that a large force of the enemy still held together there and would not give ground. For there is general complaint that in that battle Parmenio was sluggish and inefficient, either because old age was now impairing somewhat his courage, or because he was made envious and resentful by the arrogance and pomp, to use the words of Callisthenes, of Alexander's power.
https://topostext.org/work/172#Alex.33.9

... Parmenio was put to death, perhaps because Alexander deemed it incredible that Philotas should conspire against him and Parmenio not participate in his son's plan; ...
https://topostext.org/work/205#3.26

After many arguments had been heard, the Macedonians condemned Philotas and the other accused persons to death. Among these was Parmenion, he who seemed to be the first of Alexander's Friends; he was not with the army, but it was thought that he had contrived the conspiracy by means of his son Philotas.
https://topostext.org/work/134#17.80.1

marcus wrote: ↑Sat Jun 01, 2024 6:43 pm

AdamKvanta wrote: ↑Sat Jun 01, 2024 3:59 pm Interesting. It's possible but on what arguments has it been long accepted? Was his memory blackened in all sources? I'm skeptical...

The short answer is "no", it wasn't blackened in all sources. The sources we have which paint Parmenion in a negative light are generally considered to have come originally from Callisthenes, but we do know that Chares was hostile towards Parmenion ... although we don't know exactly why. The Chares issue is interesting, because none of the fragments we have of Chares' work gives any indication of this. There is, however, a fragment of another work, in one of the Oxyrhynchus papyri (P.Oxy. LXXI 4808.i.1–9), that specifically mentions that Chares was hostile towards Parmenion. I have not been able to locate a translation of the papyrus, but it is discussed in:

Chrysanthou, C.S. (2015) 'P.Oxy.LXXI 4808: 'Bios', Character, and Literary Criticism', Zeitschrift fur Papyrologie und Epigraphik 193: 25-38; and
O'Sullivan, L. (2019) 'Court Intrigue and the Death of Callisthenes', GRBS 59: 596-620.

There's quite a lot of academic discussion about the whole issue of Callisthenes and the anti-Parmenion tradition. One very useful paper deals specifically with the "advice theme" anecdotes (which is where the anti-Parmenion view has been most commonly seen, although perhaps not as obviously as has been made out), is:

Carney, E. (2000) 'Artifice and Alexander History', in Bosworth/Baynham (2000), Alexander the Great in Fact and Fiction, Oxford: 263-285.

AdamKvanta wrote: ↑Sun Jun 02, 2024 8:18 am Very interesting, thanks. I found the translation of Oxyrhynchus LXXI 4808 here: https://archive.org/details/oxyrhynchus ... 6/mode/2up

AdamKvanta wrote: ↑Sun Jun 02, 2024 8:05 am So I hypothesize that Parmenion wanted to kill Alexander before Issus because he wasn't sure who was stronger, the Persians or the Macedonians. Also, Parmenion probably didn't like Alexander's risky tactics which might have endangered his sons Philotas and Nicanor.

Parmenion probably made a secret deal with Darius.

Later Parmenio probably conspired against Alexander with his son Philotas:

Arrian 3.10.1
[1] These and other such brief exhortations brought in return assurances from the commanders that he could rely on them. So he ordered his army to take their meal and rest. They say that Parmenio went to him in his tent and advised him to attack the Persians at night; they would be surprised, confused and more prone to panic in a night attack.

Plutarch, Alexander, 49.7
[7] After Philotas had been put to death, Alexander sent at once into Media and dispatched Parmenio also, a man whose achievements with Philip had been many, and who was the only one of Alexander's older friends, or the principal one, to urge his crossing into Asia, and who, of the three sons that were his, had seen two killed on the expedition before this, and was now put to death along with the third.

Diodorus 17.5.2
[2] Hecataeus, however, following the instructions of the king literally, had him killed by treachery, and thereafter the Macedonian forces in Asia were free from any incitement to revolution, Attalus being dead and Parmenion completely devoted to Alexander.

Diodorus 17.60.5-8
[5] At this time Mazaeus, the commander of the Persian right wing, with the most and the best of the cavalry, was pressing hard on those opposing him, but Parmenion with the Thessalian cavalry and the rest of his forces put up a stout resistance. [6] For a time, fighting brilliantly, he even seemed to have the upper hand thanks to the fighting qualities of the Thessalians, but the weight and numbers of Mazaeus's command brought the Macedonian cavalry into difficulties. [7] A great slaughter took place, and despairing of withstanding the Persian power, Parmenion sent off some of his horsemen to Alexander, begging him to come to their support quickly. They carried out their orders with dispatch, but finding that Alexander was already in full pursuit at a great distance from the battlefield they returned without accomplishing their mission. [8] Nevertheless Parmenion handled the Thessalian squadrons with the utmost skill and finally, killing many of the enemy, routed the Persians who were by now much disheartened by the withdrawal of Dareius.4

Curtius 3.6.4
[4] Meanwhile he received a letter from the most faithful of his officers, Parmenion, in which he was told not to trust his life to Philip who, according to Parmenion, had been bribed by Darius with one thousand talents and the prospect of marrying the king's sister.

Plutarch, Moralia 183b
Antipater, hearing of the death of Parmenio at the hands of Alexander said, “If Parmenio plotted against Alexander, who is to be trusted? And if he did not, what is to be done?”