A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

122 ALEXANDER.
where he lost his great favourite Hephaestion; and
his grief for his loss knew no bounds. From Ecbatana he marched to Babylon, subduing in his way
the Cossaei, a mountain tribe; and before he reached Babylon, he was met by ambassadors from
almost every part of the known world, who had
come to do homage to the new conqueror of Asia.
Alexander reached Babylon in the spring of B. c.
324, about a year before his death, notwithstanding the warnings of the Chaldeans, who predicted
evil to him if he entered the city at that time. He
intended to make Babylon the capital of his empire,
as the best point of communication between his
eastern and western dominions. His schemes were
numerous and gigantic. His first object was the
conquest of Arabia, which was to be followed, it
was said, by the subjugation of Italy, Carthage,
and the west. But his views were not confined
merely to conquest. He sent Heracleides to build
a fleet on the Caspian, and to explore that sea,
which was said to be connected with the northern
ocean. He also intended to improve the distribution of waters in the Babylonian plain, and for
that purpose sailed down the Euphrates to inspect
the canal called Pallacopas. On his return to
Babylon, he found the preparations for the Arabian
expedition nearly complete; but almost immediately afterwards he was attacked by a fever, probably brought on by his recent exertions in the
marshy districts around Babylon, and aggravated by the quantity of wine he had drunk
at a banquet given to his principal officers. He
died after an illness of eleven days, in the month
of May or June, B. c. 323. He died at the age of
thirty-two, after a reign of twelve years and eight
months. He appointed no one as his successor,
but just before his death he gave his ring to Perdiccas. Roxana was with child at the time of his
death, and afterwards bore a son, who is known by
the name of Alexander Aegus.
The history of Alexander forms an important
epoch in the history of mankind. Unlike other
Asiatic conquerors, his progress was marked by
something more than devastation and ruin; at
every step of his course the Greek language and
civilization took root and flourished; and after his
death Greek kingdoms were formed in all parts of
Asia, which continued to exist for centuries. By
his conquests the knowledge of mankind was increased; the sciences of geography, natural history
and others, received vast additions; and it was
through him that a road was opened to India, and
that Europeans became acquainted with the products of the remote East.
No contemporary author of the campaigns of
Alexander survives. Our best account comes from
Arrian, who lived in the second century of the
Christian aera, but who drew up his history from
the accounts of Ptolemy, the son of Lagus, and
Aristobulus of Cassandria. The history of Quintus
Curtius, Plutarch's life of Alexander, and the

ALEXANDER.
epitomes of Justin and Diodorus Siculus, were also
compiled from earlier writers. The best modern
writers on the subject are: St. Croix, E,xamnen
critique des anciens Historiens d' A lexandre le Grand,
Droysen, Geschichte Alexanders des Grossen; Williams, Life of Alexander; Thirlwall, History of
Greece, vols. vi. and vii.
ALEXANDER IV. ('ANAeav8pos), king of
MACEDONIA, the son of Alexander the Great and
Roxana, was born shortly after the death of his
father, in B. c. 323. He was acknowledged as the
partner of Philip Arrhidaeus in the empire, and was
under the guardianship of Perdiccas, the regent,
till the death of the latter in B. c. 321. He was
then for a short time placed under the guardianship
of Pithon and the general Arrhidaeus, and subsequently under that of Antipater, who conveyed
him with his mother Roxana, and the king Philip
Arrhidaeus and his wife to Macedonia in 320.
(Diod. xviii. 36, 39.) On the death of Antipater
in 319, the government fell into the hands of
Polysperchon; but Eurydice, the wife of Philip
Arrhidaeus, began to form a powerful party in
Macedonia in opposition to Polysperchon; and
Roxana, dreading her influence, fled with her son
Alexander into Epeirus, where Olympias had lived
for a long time. At the instigation of Olympias,
Aeacides, king of Epeirus, made common cause
with Polysperchon, and restored the young Alexander to Macedonia in 317. [AEACIDES.] Eurydice and her husband were put to death, and the
supreme power fell into the hands of Olympias,
(xix. 11; Justin, xiv. 5.) But in the following
year Cassander obtained possession of Macedonia,
put Olympias to death, and imprisoned Alexandei
and his mother. They remained in prison till th(e
general peace made in 311, when Alexander's titl(
to the crown was recognized. Many of his par
tizans demanded that he should be immediately
released from prison and placed upon the throne
Cassander therefore resolved to get rid of so dan
gerous a rival, and caused him and his mothe:
Roxana to be murdered secretly in prison. (B.C
311. Diod. xix. 51, 52, 61, 105; Justin, xv. 2
Paus. ix. 7. ~ 2.)
ALEXANDER ('AAEiav8pos), a MEGALOPO
LITAN. He was originally a Macedonian, but hai
received the franchise and was settled at Megalc
polis about B. c. 190. He pretended to be a dc
scendant of Alexander the Great, and accordingl
called his two sons Philip and Alexander. Hi
daughter Apama was married to Amynande;
king of the Athamanians. Her eldest brothe:
Philip, followed her to her court, and being of
vain character, he allowed himself to be tempte
with the prospect of gaining possession of tl
throne of Macedonia. (Liv. xxxv. 47; Appian, Sy:
13; comp. PHILIP, son of ALEXANDER.) [L. S,
ALEXANDER ('AAELxvpos), brother of MOL,
On the accession of Antiochus III., afterwar(
called the Great, in B. c. 224, he entrusted Ale:
ander with the government of the satrapy of Persi
and Molo received Media. Antiochus was the
only fifteen years of age, and this circumstanc
together with the fact that Hermeias, a base fla
terer and crafty intriguer, whom every one had
fear, was all-powerful at his court, induced the tv
brothers to form the plan of causing the upp
satrapies of the kingdom to revolt. It was t]
secret wish of Hermeias to see the king involved
as many difficulties as possible, and it was on l