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Headword: Alexandros
Adler number: alpha,1121
Translated headword: Alexander, Alexandros
Vetting Status: high
Translation:
The son of Philip and Olympias, who was king of the Macedonians from age 18 and died at 33 years of age.[1]
This man was "very beautiful in body and very devoted to hard work and very acute, very courageous in judgement and very ambitious and very adventurous and very concerned for the divine; also very restrained as regards the pleasures of the body, but very keen on what judgement commended; very clever at discerning what was necessary, even when it was yet unclear, very successful in inferring from observations what was likely to follow, and very skilled at marshalling and equipping an army."[2]
"And he was very suited for every good. In addition he was moderate and god-fearing. For once, after he had become so angry with the Thebans that he enslaved the inhabitants and razed the city [itself] to its foundations, he did not make light of reverence to the gods concerning the capture of the city; no, he took especial care that there should not be an involuntary sin concerning the shrines and the [religious] precincts as a whole."[3]
"The grandiloquence of Alexander did not seem more like a kind of arrogance than confidence in danger."[4]
Alexander fell in love with Roxane, the daughter of Oxyartos the Bactrian, "whom those serving with Alexander say was the most beautiful of the Asian women after the wife of Dareios. And [they say that] when he had seen her Alexander fell in love with her; and [that] although he was in love with her he did want to violate her as if she were a war captive, but did not think her unworthy to take in marriage. And I myself rather approve this action of Alexander and do not censure it. And then this wife of Dareios, who was called the most beautiful of the women in Asia, either he did make an amorous approach to her or he controlled himself, although he was young and at the very height of good fortune, when men do outrageous things. He respected her and spared her, showing much restraint, and at the same time ambition for good repute which was not misplaced. And there is a story going around, that Dareios' eunuch who guarded his wife ran back to him. And Dareios, when he saw him, first asked whether his daughters were alive and his sons and his wife and his mother. He learned they were alive, and that they were called queens, and about the care being taken of them and how his wife was behaving sensibly. At these things Dareios raised his hands to heaven and prayed thus: 'O Zeus, king, to whom it was given to order the affairs of kings among men, guard my rule over the Persians and the Medes as you see fit. But if I myself cannot be king of Asia any more, then give my rule to no one but Alexander'. Thus even enemies are not indifferent to virtuous deeds." Thus says Arrian.[5]
"Nearchos says that [Alexander] was pained by some of his friends, who were carrying him while he was ill, for running a personal risk in advance of his army; for these things were not for a general, but for a soldier. And it seems to me that Alexander was irritated with these words, because he knew they were true and that he had laid himself open to censure. And yet his eagerness in battle and love of glory made him like men overcome by any other form of pleasure, and he was not strong enough to keep away from dangers."[6]
"Alexander the Macedonian lived a marvelous life. His handling of conflicts lent a guaranteed trustworthiness to what he said. For you cannot find a man in this whole orb of the world having the advantage in such great achievements. For he spent time with the best men, and in written accounts is found not inferior to those who are praised to the skies; and in matters of war he accomplished things that were more marvelous than believable. And having gone to war against Dareios, he prevailed victorious over him. And that man begged him to come to a reconciliation, and even gave him his daughter Roxane in a covenant of marriage. Having subdued all races he lost his mind and succumbed to the pleasures of the body, putting on Persian dress and being attended by myriad youths, and using 300 concubines, so that he changed the entire Macedonian royal way of life into Persian ways and annulled those of his own people. Later, arriving in India, he was caught by queen Kandake in the clothes of a private individual and she said to him: 'Alexander, king: you took the world and you are overcome by a woman?' And he made peace with her and kept her country from harm."[7]
"The same [Alexander] encountered men who had been captured long ago by the Persians in Greece and had had their hands cut off, and he showed them kindness with great gifts and cheered them. Arriving at the lake in Alexandria he threw away his diadem, and with so much water crashing down only scarcely swam safe across to land. And he was given poison by his own general Cas[s]ander and was convulsed; and thus, at [a time of] such great successes, ended his life."[8]
Greek Original:
Alexandros, ho Philippou kai Olumpiados, basileusas Makedonôn apo eniautôn iê#, teleutêsas de etôn lg#. houtos ên to te sôma kallistos kai philoponôtatos kai oxutatos, tên gnômên andreiotatos kai philotimotatos kai philokindunotatos kai tou theiou epimelestatos, hêdonôn te tôn men tou sômatos enkratestatos, tôn de tês gnômês epainoumenôn haploustatos: xunidein de to deon, eti en tôi aphanei on, deinotatos kai ek tôn phainomenôn to eikos xumbalein epituchestatos kai taxai stratian kai hoplisai daêmonestatos. kai pros pan kalon epitêdeiotatos. pros toutois ên epieikês kai theosebês. orgistheis gar pote Thêbaiois epi tosouton, hôste tous men oikêtoras exandrapodisasthai, tên de polin es edaphos kataskapsai, tês ge pros tous theous eusebeias ouk ôligôrêse peri tên katalêpsin tês poleôs: alla pleistên epoiêsato pronoian huper tou mê d' akousion hamartêma genesthai peri ta hiera kai katholou ta temenê. hoti to megalêgoron tou Alexandrou ouch huperonkon mallon ti ê eutharses en tois kindunois ephaineto. Rhôxanês de êrasthê ho Alexandros tês Oxuartou tou Baktrianou, hên dê kallistên tôn Asianôn gunaikôn legousin ophthênai hoi xun Alexandrôi strateusantes meta ge tên Dareiou gunaika. kai tautên idonta Alexandron eis erôta elthein autês: erasthenta de ouk ethelêsai hubrisai kathaper aichmalôton, alla gêmai gar ouk apaxiôsai. kai touto egô Alexandrou epainô mallon ti ê memphomai. kaitoi tês ge Dareiou gunaikos, hê kallistê dê elegeto tôn en têi Asiai gunaikôn, ê ouk êlthen es epithumian ê karteros hautou egeneto, neos te ôn kai ta malista en akmêi tês eutuchias, hopote hubrizousin anthrôpoi. ho de katêidesthê te kai epheisato sôphrosunêi te pollêi diachrômenos, kai doxês hama agathês ouk atopôi ephesei. kai toinun kai logos katechei, apodranta elthein para Dareion ton eunouchon ton phulaka autôi tês gunaikos. kai touton hôs eiden ho Dareios, prôta men puthesthai, ei zôsin autôi hai paides kai hoi huioi kai hê gunê kai hê mêtêr. hôs de zôsas te eputheto, kai basilissai hoti kalountai, kai peri tês therapeias, kai hôs sôphronei hê gunê autou: epi toutois anateinai ton Dareion es ton ouranon tas cheiras kai euxasthai hôde: all' ô Zeu basileu, hotôi epitetraptai ta basileôn pragmata nemein en anthrôpois, su nun malista men emoi phulaxon Persôn te kai Mêdôn tên archên, hôsper oun kai edôkas: ei de dê egô ouk eti soi basileus tês Asias, su de mêdeni allôi hoti mê Alexandrôi paradounai to emon kratos. houtôs oude pros tôn polemiôn ara ameleitai hosa sôphrona erga. houtô phêsin Arrianos. Nearchos de phêsin, hoti chalepoi autôi tôn philôn egenonto, hosoi ekomizon auton arrôstounta, hoti autos pro tês stratias kinduneuoi: ou gar stratêgou tauta, alla stratiôtou einai. kai moi dokei achthesthai Alexandros toisde tois logois, hoti alêtheis te ontas eginôske kai hauton hupaition têi epitimêsei. kai homôs hupo menous te tou en tais machais kai tou erôtos tês doxês, kathaper hoi allês tinos hêdonês exêttômenoi, ou karteros ên apechesthai tôn kindunôn. hoti Alexandros ho Makedôn thaumaston bion ebiôse: pistin de tois eirêmenois echenguon hê tôn agônôn paresche praxis. oude gar estin heurein en panti tôi tou kosmou kuklôi hena andra, tosoutois katorthômasi pleonektounta. tois te gar aristois sumphoitêsas andrasin, eis te logous ou meiôn tôn eis akron epainoumenôn heurethê: pros te ta polemia dielthôn, thaumasta mallon ê peithous axia diepraxato. kai pros Dareion ton Persôn basilea sunapsas polemon, touton katakratos nikai. kakeinos aiteitai eis diallagas elthein, kai dounai autôi kai tên thugatera Rhôxanên pros gamou koinônian. ho autos panta ta ethnê katastrepsamenos diephtharê ton noun kai pros tas tou sômatos hêdonas diôlisthêse, Persikên te stolên endusamenos, muriois de neois doruphoroumenos, t# te pallakais chrômenos, hôs tên Makedonikên pasan tôn basileôn sunêtheian eis Persas metaruthmisai, kai tôn idiôn tinas diablêthentas anelein. husteron de eis Indian aphikomenos hupo Kandakês tês basilissês sunelêphthê en idiôtou schêmati. kai eipen autôi, Alexandre basileu, ton kosmon parelabes kai hupo gunaikos suneschethês; kai eirênên pros autên epoiêsato kai tên chôran autês ablabê diephulaxen. hoti ho autos andrasin enetuchen hupo Persôn palai en Helladi lêphtheisin, êkrôtêriasmenois tas cheiras, hous megalais dôreais ephilophronêsato kai paremuthêsato. eis de tên limnên tên en Alexandreiai aphikomenos to diadêma apebalen, ombrou pollou katarragentos kai molis epi tên gên dienêxato. kai hupo Kasandrou tou idiou stratêgou pharmakon dexamenos esparachthê: kai houtôs epi tosoutois katorthômasi ton bion metêllaxen.
Notes:
Alexander III ("the Great") of Macedon, reigned 336-323 BCE. See also alpha 1122, alpha 1123, and generally Brian Bosworth in OCD(4) pp.56-58. The present entry on him, after the introductory statement, brings together extracts from Arrian and other sources.
[1] A rounded-up version of the 32 years and 8 months given by Arrian, Anabasis 7.28.1 (from Aristoboulos).
[2] Arrian, Anabasis 7.28.1-2.
[3] Quotation (on this celebrated episode of 335 BCE) unidentifiable.
[4] Arrian, Anabasis 3.10.2.
[5] Arrian, Anabasis 4.19.5-20.3. Dr Nick Nicholas reports: The Rime of Alexander (AD 1519), a vernacular Greek version of the Alexander Romance, cites this anecdote directly from the Suda (epilogue, vv. 27-55): "that's what I've read; for I have seen it written in a fine book, in the historian Souidas" (vv. 31-32).
[6] Arrian, Anabasis 6.13.4.
[7] John of Antioch fr. 41 FHG (4.555), now 74 Roberto; cf. delta 74.
[8] John of Antioch fr. 42 FHG (4.555), now 77 Roberto.
Keywords: biography; chronology; clothing; ethics; gender and sexuality; geography; historiography; history; medicine; military affairs; religion; women
Translated by: Jennifer Benedict on 8 May 2000@11:22:51.
Vetted by:
David Whitehead (modified translation and notes; added bibliography and keywords; cosmetics) on 27 January 2001@10:02:16.
David Whitehead (added note) on 27 January 2001@10:08:57.
David Whitehead (added keyword) on 12 June 2002@05:25:09.
Catharine Roth (addition to note 5 from Nick Nicholas; another keyword) on 15 October 2008@12:02:22.
Catharine Roth (cosmetics) on 17 October 2008@00:39:55.
David Whitehead (added primary note and more keywords; tweaks and cosmetics) on 3 February 2012@06:48:15.
David Whitehead (updated a ref) on 30 July 2014@04:13:46.
David Whitehead (updated 2 more refs; x-ref) on 29 January 2015@03:05:42.
David Whitehead (another keyword; tweaks) on 29 May 2015@11:13:20.
Catharine Roth (coding) on 30 March 2019@23:52:16.

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