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previous: XVIII.1‑25 This webpage reproduces a portion of The Library of History of Diodorus Siculus published in Vol. IX of the Loeb Classical Library edition, 1947 The text is in the public domain. This page has been carefully proofread and I believe it to be free of errors. If you find a mistake though, please let me know! next: XVIII.48‑75

(Vol. IX) Diodorus Siculus
Library of History

(Book XVIII, continued)

 p87  26 1 When Philocles was archon in Athens, Gaius Sulpicius and Gaius Aelius were elected consuls in Rome.​1 In this year Arrhidaeus, who had been placed in charge of bringing home the body of Alexander,​2 having completed the vehicle on which the royal body was to be carried, was making preparations for the journey. 2 Since the structure that had been made ready, being worthy of the glory of Alexander, not only surpassed all others in cost — it had been constructed at the expense of many talents — but was also famous for the excellence of its workman­ship, I believe that it is well to describe it.3

 p89  3 First they prepared a coffin of the proper size for the body, made of hammered gold, and the space about the body they filled with spices such as could make the body sweet smelling and incorruptible. 4 Upon this chest there had been placed a cover of gold, matching it to a nicety, and fitting about its upper rim. Over this was laid a magnificent purple robe embroidered with gold, beside which they placed the arms of the deceased, wishing the design of the whole to be in harmony with his accomplishments. 5 Then they set up next to it the covered carriage that was to carry it. At the top of the carriage was built a vault of gold, eight cubits wide and twelve long, covered with overlapping scales set with precious stones.​4 Beneath the roof all along the work was a rectangular cornice of gold, from which projected heads of goat-stags in high relief.​5 Gold rings two palms broad were suspended from these, and through the rings there ran a festive garland beautifully decorated in bright colours of all kinds. 6 At the ends there were tassels of network suspending large bells, so that any who were approaching heard the sound from a great distance. On each corner of the vault on each side was a golden figure of Victory holding a trophy. The colonnade that supported the vault was of gold with Ionic capitals. Within the colonnade was a golden net, made of cords the thickness  p91 of a finger, which carried four long painted tablets, their ends adjoining, each equal in length to a side of the colonnade.6

27 1 On the first of these tablets was a chariot ornamented with work in relief, and sitting in it was Alexander holding a very splendid sceptre in his hands. About the king were groups of armed attendants, one of Macedonians, a second of Persians of the bodyguard,​7 and armed soldiers in front of them. The second tablet showed the elephants arrayed for war who followed the bodyguard. They carried Indian mahouts in front with Macedonians fully armed in their regular equipment behind them. The third tablet showed troops of cavalry as if in formation for battle; and the fourth, ships made ready for naval combat. Beside the entrance to the chamber there were golden lions with eyes turned toward those who would enter. 2 There was a golden acanthus stretching little by little up the centre of each column from below to the capital. Above the chamber in the middle of the top under the open sky there was a purple banner blazoned with a golden olive wreath of great size,​8 and when the sun cast upon it its rays, it sent forth such a bright and vibrant gleam that from a great distance it appeared like a flash of lightning.

3 The body of the chariot beneath the covered  p93 chamber had two axles upon which turned four Persian wheels, the naves and spokes of which were gilded, but the part that bore upon the ground was of iron. The projecting parts of the axle were made of gold in the form of lion heads, each holding a spear in its teeth. 4 Along the middle of their length the axles had a bearing​9 ingeniously fitted to the middle of the chamber in such a way that, thanks to it, the chamber could remain undisturbed by shocks from rough places. 5 There were four poles,​10 and to each of them were fastened four teams with four mules harnessed in each team, so that in all there were sixty-four mules, selected for their strength and size. Each of them was crowned with a gilded crown, each had a golden bell hanging by either cheek, and about their necks were collars set with precious stones.

28 1 In this way the carriage was constructed and ornamented, and it appeared more magnificent when seen than when described. Because of its widespread fame it drew together many spectators; for from every city into which it came the whole people went forth to meet it and again escorted it on its way out, not becoming sated with the pleasure of beholding it. 2 To correspond to this magnificence, it was accompanied by a crowd of roadmenders and mechanics, and also by soldiers sent to escort it.

When Arrhidaeus had spent nearly two years in  p95 making ready this work, he brought the body of the king from Babylon to Egypt.​11 3 Ptolemy, moreover, doing honour to Alexander, went to meet it with an army as far as Syria, and, receiving the body, deemed it worthy of the greatest consideration. He decided for the present not to send it to Ammon, but to entomb it in the city that had been founded by Alexander himself,​12 which lacked little of being the most renowned of the cities of the inhabited earth. 4 There he prepared a precinct worthy the glory of Alexander in size and construction. Entombing him in this and honouring him with sacrifices such as are paid to demigods and with magnificent games, he won fair requital not only from men but also from the gods. 5 For men, because of his graciousness and nobility of heart, came together eagerly from all sides to Alexandria and gladly enrolled for the campaign, although the army of the kings was about to fight against that of Ptolemy; and, even though the risks were manifest and great, yet all of them willingly took upon themselves at their personal risk the preservation of Ptolemy's safety. 6 The gods also saved him unexpectedly from the greatest dangers on account of his courage and his honest treatment of all his friends.13

29 1 For Perdiccas, viewing with suspicion Ptolemy's increase in power, decided that he himself and the kings would make a campaign against Egypt with most of the army, but Eumenes he sent to the Hellespont to prevent Antipater and Craterus from crossing  p97 into Asia,​14 giving him a suitable force. 2 He also sent with him enough of the commanders of note, of whom the most prominent were his brother Alcetas and Neoptolemus; and he ordered them to obey Eumenes in all things because of his skill as general and his firm loyalty. 3 Eumenes, with the forces that had been given him, went to the Hellespont; and there, having already prepared a large body of cavalry from his own satrapy, he marshalled his army, which had previously been deficient in that branch.

4 When Craterus and Antipater had brought their forces across from Europe, Neoptolemus, who was jealous of Eumenes and had a considerable number of Macedonians in his following, secretly entered into negotiations with Antipater, came to an agreement with him, and plotted against Eumenes. On being discovered and forced to fight, he himself was in danger of being killed, and he lost almost all his forces; 5 for Eumenes, after he had won the victory and had killed many, won over the remaining soldiers and increased his own power, not only by the victory but also by having acquired a large number of stout Macedonians. 6 But Neoptolemus, who had saved himself from the battle with three hundred horsemen, rode off with them to Antipater. A council of war was held, and it was decided to divide the forces into two parts. Antipater was to take one part and set out for Cilicia to fight against Perdiccas, and Craterus with the other part was to attack Eumenes and, after  p99 defeating him, to join Antipater. In this way, when they had combined their forces and had added Ptolemy to the alliance, they might be able to overmatch the royal armies.

30 1 As soon as Eumenes heard that the enemy was advancing upon him, he collected his forces, particularly his cavalry, from all sides. Since he could not equal the Macedonian phalanx with his foot soldiers, he made ready a noteworthy corps of horsemen, by means of whom he hoped to defeat those opposed to him. 2 When the forces were near each other, Craterus summoned the whole army to an assembly and spurred them to battle with suitable words, saying that, if the soldiers were victorious in battle, he would give them all the baggage of the enemy to plunder. 3 Now that all had become eager for battle, he drew up the army, taking command of the right wing himself, and giving the command of the left to Neoptolemus. 4 He had in all twenty thousand foot soldiers, chiefly Macedonians famed for their courage, on whom in particular he placed his hopes of victory, and more than two thousand horsemen as auxiliaries. 5 Eumenes had twenty thousand foot soldiers, men of every race, and five thousand cavalry, by whom he had resolved to decide the encounter.

After both leaders had disposed their cavalry on the wings and had ridden far in advance of the line of infantry, Craterus was the first to charge upon the enemy with his picked troops, and he fought admirably; but his horse stumbled, and he fell to the  p101 ground, where he was trampled under foot and ended his life ingloriously, unrecognized in the confusion and dense array of the charge. 6 By his death the enemy were so encouraged that they rushed upon the mass from every side, and great slaughter ensued. The right wing, crushed in this way, was compelled to flee to the phalanx of the foot soldiers, overwhelmingly defeated.

31 1 On the left wing, however, where Neoptolemus was arrayed against Eumenes himself, there occurred a great display of ambitious rivalry as the leaders rushed full at each other. 2 For as soon as they recognized one another by their horses and other insignia, they engaged each other in close combat; and they made the victory depend upon the duel between themselves. After the opening exchange of sword strokes they engaged in a strange and most extraordinary duel; for, carried away by their anger and their mutual hatred, they let the reins fall from their left hands and grappled each other. As a result of this, their horses were carried out from under them by their own momentum, and the men themselves fell to the ground. 3 Although it was difficult for either of them to get up because of the suddenness and force of the fall, especially as the armour hampered their bodies, Eumenes rose up first and forestalled Neoptolemus by striking him in the back of the knee. 4 Since the gash proved to be severe and his legs gave way, the stricken man lay disabled, prevented by his wound from rising to his feet. Yet his courage overcame the weakness of his body, and, resting on his knees, he wounded his  p103 opponent with three blows on the arm and the thighs. 5 As none of these blows was fatal and the wounds were still fresh, Eumenes struck Neoptolemus in the neck with a second blow and slew him.

32 1 Meanwhile the rest of the cavalry had joined battle and were making great slaughter. So, while some fell and others were wounded, the battle at first was even, but afterwards, when they became aware of the death of Neoptolemus and of the rout of the other wing, all made off and fled for refuge to the phalanx of their infantry as to a strong fortress. Eumenes, satisfied with his advantage and master of the bodies of both generals, recalled his soldiers with the sound of the trumpet. 2 After he had set up a trophy and buried the dead, he sent to the phalanx of the vanquished, inviting them to unite with him and giving permission to them severally to withdraw to whatever places they wished. 3 When the Macedonians had accepted the terms of surrender and had pledged their faith by oaths, they received permission to go for food to certain villages that lay near. And they deceived Eumenes; for when they had recovered their strength and collected supplies, they set out at night and went off secretly to join Antipater. 4 Eumenes attempted to punish the faithlessness of these men who had broken their oath and to follow at the heels of the phalanx; but, owing to the hardihood of those who were retreating and to the weakness caused by his wounds, he was unable to accomplish anything and gave up the pursuit. So by winning  p105 a notable victory and by slaying two mighty leaders, Eumenes gained great glory.

33 1 As soon as Antipater had received and enrolled those who escaped from the rout, he went on to Cilicia, making haste to go to the aid of Ptolemy. And Perdiccas, on learning of the victory of Eumenes,​15 became much more confident in regard to the Egyptian campaign;​16 and when he approached the Nile, he camped not far from the city of Pelusium. 2 But when he undertook to clear out an old canal, and the river broke out violently and destroyed his work, many of his friends deserted him and went over to Ptolemy. 3 Perdiccas, indeed, was a man of blood, one who usurped the authority of the other commanders and, in general, wished to rule all by force; but Ptolemy, on the contrary, was generous and fair and granted to all the commanders the right to speak frankly. What is more, he had secured all the most important points in Egypt with garrisons of considerable size, which had been well equipped with every kind of missile as well as with everything else. 4 This explains why he had, as a rule, the advantage in his undertakings, since he had many persons who were well disposed to him and ready to undergo danger gladly for his sake. 5 Still Perdiccas, in an effort to correct his deficiencies, called the commanders together, and by gifts to some, by great promises to others, and by friendly intercourse with all, won them  p107 over to his service and inspired them to meet the coming dangers. After warning them to be ready to break camp, he set out with his army at evening, disclosing to no one the point to which he intended to go. 6 After marching all night at top speed he made camp beside the Nile near a certain fortified post that is called the Fort of Camels. And as day was dawning, he began to send the army across, the elephants in the van, then following them the shield-bearers and the ladder-carriers, and others whom he expected to use in the attack on the fort. Last of all came the bravest of the cavalry, whom he planned to send against the troops of Ptolemy if they happened to appear.

34 1 When they were halfway over, Ptolemy and his troops did appear, coming at a run to the defence of the post. Although these got the start of the attackers, threw themselves into the fort, and made their arrival known by blasts of the trumpet and by shouts, the troops of Perdiccas were not frightened, but boldly assaulted the fortifications. 2 At once the shield-bearers set up the scaling ladders and began to mount them, while the elephant-borne troops were tearing the palisades to pieces and throwing down the parapets. Ptolemy, however, who had the best soldiers near himself and wished to encourage the other commanders and friends to face the dangers, taking his long spear and posting himself on the top of the outwork, put out the eyes of the leading elephant, since he occupied a higher position, and wounded its Indian mahout. Then, with utter contempt  p109 of the danger, striking and disabling those who were coming up the ladders, he sent them rolling down, in their armour, into the river. 3 Following his example, his friends fought boldly and made the beast next in line entirely useless by shooting down the Indian who was directing it. 4 The battle for the wall lasted a long time, as the troops of Perdiccas, attacking in relays, bent every effort to take the stronghold by storm, while many heroic conflicts were occasioned by the personal prowess of Ptolemy and by his exhortations to his friends to display both their loyalty and their courage. 5 Many men were killed on both sides, such was the surpassing rivalry of the commanders, the soldiers of Ptolemy having the advantage of the higher ground and those of Perdiccas being superior in number. Finally, when both sides had spent the whole day in the engagement, Perdiccas gave up the siege and went back to his own camp.

6 Breaking camp at night, he marched secretly and came to the place that lies opposite Memphis, where it happens that the Nile is divided and makes an island large enough to hold with safety a camp of a very large army. 7 To this island he began to transfer his men, the soldiers crossing with difficulty because of the depth of the river; for the water, which came up to the chins of those who were crossing, buffeted their bodies, especially as they were impeded by their equipment.

35 1 But Perdiccas, seeing the difficulty caused by the current, in an effort to break the downward rush  p111 of the river, placed the elephants in line on the left, thus mitigating the strength of the current, and placed on the right side the horsemen, through whose agency he kept catching the men who were being carried away by the river and bringing them safe to the other side. 2 A peculiar and surprising thing took place during the crossing of this army, namely, that after the first men had crossed in safety, those who tried to cross afterwards fell into great danger. For although there was no visible cause, the river became much deeper, and, their bodies being totally submerged, they would one and all become completely helpless. 3 When they sought the cause of this rise, the truth could not be found by reasoning. Some said thatº somewhere upstream a canal that had been closed had been opened and, joining with the river, had made the ford deeper; others said that rain falling in the regions above had increased the volume of the Nile. 4 It was, however, neither of these things, but what happened was that the first crossing of the ford had been freer from danger because the sand at the crossing had been undisturbed, but in the course of the other crossings by the horses and elephants which had gone over before and then by the infantry, the sand, trodden by their feet and set in motion by the current, was carried down stream, and the place of crossing being hollowed out in this way, the ford became deeper in the middle of the river.

5 Since the rest of his army was unable to cross the river for this reason, Perdiccas was in great difficulty;  p113 and, as those who had crossed were not strong enough to fight the enemy and those on the nearer bank were not able to go to the aid of their fellows, he ordered all to come back again. 6 When all were thus forced to cross the stream, those who knew how to swim well and were strongest of body succeeded in swimming across the Nile with great distress, after throwing away a good deal of their equipment; but of the rest, because of their lack of skill some were swallowed by the river, and others were cast up on the shore toward the enemy, but most of them, carried along for some time, were devoured by the animals in the river.17

36 1 Since more than two thousand men were lost, among them some of the prominent commanders, the rank and file of the army became ill disposed toward Perdiccas. Ptolemy, however, burned the bodies of those who were cast up on his side of the river and, having bestowed on them a proper funeral, sent the bones to the relatives and friends of the dead.

2 These things having been done, the Macedonians with Perdiccas became much more exasperated with him, but they turned with favour toward Ptolemy. 3 When night had come, the encampment was filled with lamentations and mourning, so many men having been senselessly lost without a blow from an enemy, and of these no fewer than a thousand having become food for beasts. 4 Therefore many of the commanders joined together and accused Perdiccas, and all the  p115 phalanx of the infantry, now alienated from him, made clear their own hostility with threatening shouts. 5 Consequently about a hundred of the commanders were the first to revolt from him, of whom the most illustrious was Pithon, who had suppressed the rebellious Greeks, a man second to none of the Companions of Alexander in courage and reputation; next, some also of the cavalry conspired together and went to the tent of Perdiccas, where they fell on him in a body and stabbed him to death.

6 On the next day when there was an assembly of the soldiers, Ptolemy came, greeted the Macedonians, and spoke in defence of his own attitude; and as their supplies had run short, he provided at his own expense grain in abundance for the armies and filled the camp with the other needful things. Although he gained great applause and was in position to assume the guardian­ship of the kings through the favour of the rank and file, he did not grasp at this, but rather, since he owed a debt of gratitude to Pithon and Arrhidaeus, he used his influence to give them the supreme command. 7 For the Macedonians, when the question of the primacy was raised in the assembly and Ptolemy advocated this course, without a dissenting voice enthusiastically elected as guardians of the kings and regents Pithon and that Arrhidaeus who had conveyed the body of Alexander. So Perdiccas, after he had ruled for three years, lost both his command and his life in the manner described.

37 1 Immediately after the death of Perdiccas there came men announcing that, in a battle fought near Cappadocia, Eumenes had been victorious and Craterus and Neoptolemus had been defeated and killed.18  p117 If this had become known two days before the death of Perdiccas, no one would have dared raise a hand against him because of his great good fortune. 2 Now, however, the Macedonians, on learning the news about Eumenes, passed sentence of death upon him and upon fifty of the chief men of his following, among whom was Alcetas, the brother of Perdiccas. They also slew the most faithful of Perdiccas' friends and his sister Atalantê, the wife of Attalus, the man who had received command of the fleet.

3 After the murder of Perdiccas, Attalus, who had the command of the fleet, was waiting at Pelusium; but when he learned of the murder of his wife and of Perdiccas, he set sail and came to Tyre with the fleet. 4 The commandant of the garrison of that city, Archelaüs, who was a Macedonian by race, welcomed Attalus and surrendered the city to him and also the funds that had been given him by Perdiccas for safe-keeping and had now been honourably repaid, being in amount eight hundred talents. Attalus remained in Tyre, receiving those of the friends of Perdiccas who escaped in safety from the camp before Memphis.19

38 1 After the departure of Antipater for Asia,​20 the Aetolians, in accordance with their compact with Perdiccas, made a campaign into Thessaly for the purpose of diverting Antipater. They had twelve thousand foot soldiers and four hundred horsemen, and their general was Alexander, an Aetolian. 2 On the march they besieged the city of the Amphissian  p119 Locrians, overran their country, and captured some of the neighbouring towns. They defeated Antipater's general Polycles in battle, killing him and no small number of his soldiers. Some of those who were taken captive they sold, others they released on receiving ransoms. 3 Invading Thessaly next, they persuaded most of the Thessalians to join them in the war against Antipater, and a force was quickly gathered, numbering in all twenty-five thousand infantry and fifteen hundred cavalry. 4 While they were gaining the cities, however, the Acarnanians, who were hostile to the Aetolians, invaded Aetolia, where they began to plunder the land and to besiege the cities. 5 When the Aetolians learned that their own country was in danger, they left the other troops in Thessaly, putting Menon of Pharsalus in command, while they themselves with the citizen soldiers went swiftly into Aetolia and, by striking fear into the Acarnanians, freed their native cities from danger. 6 While, however, they were engaged in these matters, Polyperchon, who had been left in Macedonia as general, came into Thessaly with a considerable army and, by defeating the enemy in a battle in which he killed the general Menon and cut most of his army to pieces, recovered Thessaly.

39 1 In Asia Arrhidaeus and Pithon, the guardians of the kings, setting out from the Nile with the kings and the army, came to Triparadeisus in upper Syria.21  p121 2 There Eurydicê,​22 the queen, was interfering in many matters and working against the efforts of the guardians. Pithon and his colleague were distressed by this, and when they saw that the Macedonians were paying more and more attention to her commands, they summoned a meeting of the assembly and resigned the guardian­ship; whereupon the Macedonians elected Antipater guardian with full power. 3 When Antipater arrived at Triparadeisus a few days later, he found Eurydicê stirring up discord and turning the Macedonians away from him. 4 There was great disorder in the army; but a general assembly was called together, and Antipater put an end to the tumult by addressing the crowd, and by thoroughly frightening Eurydicê he persuaded her to keep quiet.23

5 Thereafter he distributed the satrapies anew. To Ptolemy he assigned what was already his, for it was impossible to displace him, since he seemed to be holding Egypt by virtue of his own prowess as if it were a prize of war. 6 He gave Syria to Laomedon of Mitylenê and Cilicia to Philoxenus. Of the upper satrapies Mesopotamia and Arbelitis​24 were given to Amphimachus, Babylonia to Seleucus, Susianê to Antigenes because he had been foremost in making  p123 the attack on Perdiccas, Persia to Peucestes, Carmania to Tlepolemus, Media to Pithon, Parthia to Philip,​25 Aria and Drangenê to Stasander of Cyprus, Bactrianê and Sogdianê to Stasanor of Soli, who was from that same island.​26 He added Paropanisadae to the domain of Oxyartes, father of Alexander's wife Roxanê, and the part of India bordering on Paropanisadae to Pithon son of Agenor. Of the two neighbouring kingdoms, the one along the Indus River was assigned to Porus and that along the Hydaspes to Taxiles, for it was not possible to remove these kings without employing a royal army and an outstanding general. Of the satrapies that face the north, Cappadocia was assigned to Nicanor,​27 Great Phrygia and Lycia to Antigonus as before, Caria to Asander, Lydia to Cleitus, and Hellespontine Phrygia to Arrhidaeus. 7 As general of the royal army he appointed Antigonus, assigning him the task of finishing the war against Eumenes and Alcetas; but he attached his own son Cassander to Antigonus as chiliarch​28 so that the latter might not be able to pursue his own ambitions undetected. Antipater himself with the kings and his own army went on  p125 into Macedonia in order to restore the kings to their native land.29

40 1 Antigonus, who had been designated general of Asia for the purpose of finishing the war with Eumenes, collected his troops from their winter quarters.​30 After making preparations for the battle, he set out against Eumenes, who was still in Cappadocia. 2 Now one of Eumenes' distinguished commanders named Perdiccas had deserted him and was encamped at a distance of three days' march with the soldiers who had joined him in the mutiny, three thousand infantry and five hundred cavalry. Eumenes, accordingly, sent against him Phoenix of Tenedos with four thousand picked foot-soldiers and a thousand horsemen. 3 After a forced night march Phoenix fell unexpectedly on the deserters at about the second watch of the night, and catching them asleep, took Perdiccas alive and secured control of his troops. 4 Eumenes put to death the leaders who had been most responsible for the desertion, but by distributing the common soldiers among the other troops and treating them with kindness, he secured them as loyal supporters.

5 Thereafter Antigonus sent messages to a certain Apollonides, who commanded the cavalry in the army of Eumenes, and by great promises secretly persuaded  p127 him to become a traitor and to desert during the battle. 6 While Eumenes was encamped in a plain of Cappadocia well suited for cavalry fighting, Antigonus fell upon him with all his men and took the foothills that commanded the plain. 7 Antigonus at that time had more than ten thousand foot soldiers, half of whom were Macedonians admirable for their hardihood, two thousand mounted troops, and thirty elephants; while Eumenes commanded not less than twenty thousand infantry and five thousand cavalry. 8 But when the battle became hot and Apollonides with his cavalry unexpectedly deserted his own side, Antigonus won the day and slew about eight thousand of the enemy. He also became master of the entire supply train, so that Eumenes' soldiers were both dismayed by the defeat and despondent at the loss of their supplies.

41 1 After this Eumenes undertook to escape into Armenia and to bring over to his alliance some of the inhabitants of that land; but as he was being overtaken and saw that his soldiers were going over to Antigonus, he occupied a stronghold called Nora.​31 2 This fortress was very small with a circuit of not more than two stades,​32 but of wonderful strength, for its buildings had been constructed close together on the top of a lofty crag, and it had been marvellously fortified, partly by nature, partly by the work of men's hands. 3 Furthermore, it contained a stock of grain,  p129 firewood, and salt, ample to supply for many years all the needs of those who took refuge there. Eumenes was accompanied in his flight by those of his friends who were exceptionally loyal and had determined to die along with him if it came to the worst straits. In all, counting both cavalry and infantry, there were about six hundred souls.33

4 Now that Antigonus had taken over the army that had been with Eumenes, had become master of Eumenes' satrapies together with their revenues, and had seized a great sum of money besides, he aspired to greater things; for there was no longer any commander in all Asia who had an army strong enough to compete with him for supremacy. 5 Therefore, although maintaining for the time being a pretence of being well disposed toward Antipater, he had decided that, as soon as he had made his own position secure, he would no longer take orders either from the kings or from Antipater. 6 Accordingly he first surrounded those who had fled to the stronghold with double walls, ditches, and amazing palisades; but then he parleyed with Eumenes, renewed the former friendship, and tried to persuade him to cast his lot with him. Eumenes, however, being well aware that Fortune changes quickly, insisted upon greater concessions than his existing circumstances justified; 7 in fact, he thought that he ought to be given back the satrapies that had been originally assigned to him and be cleared of all the charges. But Antigonus referred these matters to Antipater, and then, after placing a sufficient guard about the fortress, he set out to meet those commanders of the enemy who  p131 survived and had troops, namely Alcetas, who was brother of Perdiccas, and Attalus, who commanded the whole fleet.34

42 1 Eumenes later sent envoys to Antipater to discuss the terms of surrender. Their leader was Hieronymus, who has written the history of the Successors.​35 Eumenes himself, who had experienced many and various changes in the circumstances of his life, was not cast down in spirit, since he knew well that Fortune makes sudden changes in both directions. 2 He saw, on the one hand, that the kings of the Macedonians held an empty pretence of royalty, and on the other, that many men of lofty ambitions were succeeding to the positions of command, and that each of them wished to act in his own interests. He hoped, therefore, as truly happened, that many would have need of him because of his judgement and his experience in warfare, and even more because of his unusual steadfastness to any pledge.

3 Seeing that the horses, unable to exercise themselves because of the rough and confined space, would become unfit for use in mounted battle, Eumenes devised a certain strange and extraordinary exercise for them.​36 4 Attaching their heads by ropes to beams or pegs and lifting them two or three double palms,​37 he forced them to rest their weight upon their hind  p133 feet with their forefeet just clearing the ground. At once each horse, in effort to find footing for its forefeet, began to struggle with its whole body and with its legs, all its members sharing in the exertion. At such activity sweat poured freely from the body and thus kept the animals in top condition through their excessive labours. 5 He gave the same rations to all the soldiers, sharing in their simple food himself; and by his unchanging affability he gained great goodwill for himself and secured harmony among all his fellow refugees. Such was the situation of Eumenes and of those who had fled to the rock with him.38

43 1 As for Egypt,​39 Ptolemy, after he had unexpectedly rid himself of Perdiccas and the royal forces, was holding that land as if it were a prize of war. Seeing that Phoenicia and Coelê Syria, as it was called, were conveniently situated for an offensive against Egypt, he set about in earnest to become master of those regions.​40 2 Accordingly he dispatched an adequate army with Nicanor as general, a man selected from among his friends. The latter marched into Syria, took the satrap Laomedon captive, and subdued the whole land. After he had likewise secured the allegiance of the cities of Phoenicia and placed garrisons in them, he returned to Egypt, having made a short and effective campaign.

44 1 When Apollodorus was archon at Athens, the  p135 Romans elected Quintus Popillius and Quintus Poplius to the consul­ship.​41 During their term Antigonus, who had defeated Eumenes, decided to make war against Alcetas and Attalus; for these two remained from the friends and household of Perdiccas, noteworthy generals with soldiers enough to make a bid for power.​42 Therefore Antigonus set out with all his forces from Cappadocia and pushed on toward Pisidia, where Alcetas and his army were staying. 2 Making a forced march that strained the endurance of his men to the utmost, he traversed two thousand five hundred stades in seven days and the same number of nights,​43 reaching Cretopolis, as it is called. He escaped the notice of the enemy because of the rapidity of his march, and drawing close to them while they were still ignorant of his coming, he stole a march on them by occupying certain rugged ridges. 3 As soon as Alcetas learned that the enemy was at hand, he drew up his phalanx at top speed and with a mounted force attacked the troops that were holding the ridge, trying with all his might to get the best of them by force and hurl them from the hill. 4 A stubborn battle was waged and many fell on both sides; then Antigonus led six thousand horsemen in a violent charge against the phalanx of the enemy in order to cut Alcetas' line of retreat to it. 5 When this manoeuvre had been successfully completed, the forces on the ridge, who were far superior in number  p137 and also had an advantage from the difficulty of the terrain, routed the attackers. Alcetas, whose retreat to the infantry had been cut off and who was caught in a trap by the superior numbers of the enemy, faced imminent destruction. Therefore now that survival itself was difficult, he abandoned many of his men and hardly escaped to the phalanx of the footmen.

45 1 Antigonus, however, led his elephants and his whole army down from a higher position and struck panic into his opponents, who were far inferior to him in number; for they were in all sixteen thousand foot and nine hundred horse, while Antigonus, in addition to the elephants, had more than forty thousand foot soldiers and above seven thousand horsemen. 2 The elephants were now attacking the army of Alcetas from the front, and at the same time the horsemen because of superior numbers were pouring about them on all sides, while a force of infantry, which far outnumbered them and also surpassed them in valour, was holding a position above them. At this, tumult and panic began to grip Alcetas' soldiers; and because of the great rapidity and force of the attack, he was unable to draw up the phalanx properly. 3 The rout was complete. Attalus, Docimus, Polemon, and many of the more important officers were taken captive;​44 but Alcetas, accompanied by his own guards and attendants, escaped with his Pisidian allies to a city of Pisidia called Termessus. 4 Antigonus  p139 obtained the surrender of all the rest by negotiation and enrolled them in his own ranks; by his kind treatment of them he brought no small addition to his forces. 5 The Pisidians, however, who numbered six thousand and were of outstanding prowess, bade Alcetas be of good courage, promising that they would in no way fail him; for they were exceedingly well disposed to him for the following reasons.

46 1 Since Alcetas had had no supporters in Asia after the death of Perdiccas, he had decided to show kindness to the Pisidians, thinking that he would thus secure as allies men who were warlike and who possessed a country difficult to invade and well supplied with strongholds. 2 For this reason during the campaigns he honoured them exceedingly above all the allies and distributed to them spoils from the hostile territory, assigning them half the booty. By employing the most friendly language in his conversation with them, by each day inviting the most important of them in turn to his table at banquets, and finally by honouring many of them with gifts of considerable value, he secured them as loyal supporters. 3 Therefore even at this time Alcetas placed his hopes upon them, and they did not disappoint his hopes. For when Antigonus encamped near Termessus with all his army and demanded Alcetas, and even when the older men advised that he be surrendered, the younger, forming a compact group in opposition to their parents, voted to meet every danger in the interest of his safety.

4 The older men at first tried to persuade the younger not to permit their native land to become the spoil of  p141 war for the sake of a single Macedonian; but when they saw the young men's determination was not to be shaken, after taking counsel in secret, they sent an embassy to Antigonus by night, promising to surrender Alcetas either alive or dead. 5 They asked him to attack the city for a number of days and, drawing the defenders forward by light skirmishing, to withdraw as if in flight. They said that, when this had happened and the young men were engaged in the battle at a distance from the city, they would seize a suitable occasion for their own undertaking. 6 Antigonus, prevailed on by them, shifted his camp a long way from the city, and by skirmishing with the young men kept drawing them into battle outside the city. 7 When the older men saw that Alcetas had been left alone, selecting the most trustworthy of the slaves and those of the citizens in the prime of life who were not working in his behalf, they made their attempt while the young men were still away. They could not, it is true, take him alive, for he laid hands on himself first in order not to come into the power of his enemies while still living; but his body, laid on a bier and covered with a coarse cloak, they carried out through the gates and delivered to Antigonus without attracting the attention of the skirmishers.

47 1 By thus delivering their state from danger by their own devices, they averted the war, but they could not escape the disaffection of the younger men; for as soon as these on their return from the fighting heard what had happened, they became enraged at their kinsfolk on account of their own excessive devotion  p143 to Alcetas. 2 At first they gained possession of part of the town and voted to set the buildings on fire and then, rushing from the town under arms and keeping to the mountains, to plunder the country that was subject to Antigonus; later, however, they changed their minds and refrained from burning the city, but they devoted themselves to brigandage and guerrilla warfare, ravaging much of the hostile territory. 3 As for Antigonus, he took the body of Alcetas and maltreated it for three days; then, as the corpse began to decay, he threw it out unburied and departed from Pisidia. But the young men of Termessus, still preserving their goodwill for the victim, recovered the body and honoured it with splendid obsequies. Thus kindness in its very nature possesses the peculiar power of a love charm in behalf of benefactors, preserving unchanged men's goodwill toward them. 4 Be that as it may, Antigonus set out from Pisidia and marched toward Phrygia with all his forces. When he had come to Cretopolis, Aristodemus of Miletus met him with the news that Antipater had died, and that the supreme command and the guardian­ship of the kings had fallen to Polyperchon the Macedonian. 5 Being delighted at what had happened, he was carried away by hope and made up his mind to maintain a firm grip upon the government of Asia and to yield the rule of that continent to no one.

This was the situation in regard to Antigonus.45

---

The Loeb Editor's Notes:

1 Philocles was archon in 322/1. Livy (8.37.1‑3) calls these consuls C. Sulpicius Longus and Q. Aemilius Cerretanus (adding that some gave the nomen of the latter as Aulius) and assigns them to the year following the consuls mentioned in chap. 2.1 above; but the Fasti insert a "dictator year" between the two sets of consuls, and the traditional chronology assigns Sulpicius and his colleague to 323 B.C. See H. Stuart Jones in Cambridge Ancient History, 7.321‑322.

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2 Cp. chap. 3.5.

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3 For a discussion of this funeral car cp. Kurt F. Müller, Der Leichenwagen Alexanders des Grossen (Leipzig, 1905), and H. Bulle, "Der Leichenwagen Alexanders," Jahrbuch der Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts, 21 (1906), 53‑73.

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4 The chamber was, in round numbers, •twelve by eighteen feet. For the roof of scales compare that of the Monument of Lysicrates in Athens.

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5 Or, reading θρᾶνος for θριγκός, "Beneath the roof and covering the entire chamber there was a rectangular ceiling (?) of gold, from the edges of which projected heads of goat-stags in high relief."

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6 The chamber resembled a peripteral Ionic temple. Architrave and frieze are not mentioned and may have been omitted. The goat-stag masks correspond to the water spouts of the temple; but, since they are found on all four sides, we must suppose a hip roof or a cloister vault. The cella walls are lacking, but their place is taken by the gold net, which permits the sarcophagus within to be seen. The four tablets correspond in position to the Ionic frieze of the Parthenon.

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7 Literally "apple-bearers." The men of the Great King's bodyguard had golden apples in place of ferrules or spikes at the butts of their spears (Herodotus, 7.41).

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8 Or, reading χοινικίς, "There was a base upon which rested a golden olive wreath."

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9 There seems to be no satisfactory explanation of this device.

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10 The use of several poles on the same vehicle is Persian (Xenophon, Education of Cyrus, 6.1.51‑52, 6.4.2). Bulle (pp71‑73) suggests that the poles were placed one in front of the other.

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11 Cp. Arrian, FGrH, 156.9.25, 10.1; Pausanias, 1.6.3; Strabo, 17.1.8.

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12 According to Pausanias, the body was buried at Memphis.

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13 Cp. chaps. 14.1 and 33.3.

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14 Cp. chap. 25. For this campaign cp. Arrian, FGrH, 156.9.26‑27; Justin, 13.8.1‑9; Plutarch, Eumenes, 4‑7; Nepos, Eumenes, 3‑4. It is dated 321/0 by the Parian Marble, and probably took place early in the summer of 321.

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15 According to chap. 37.1, news of the defeat of Craterus and Neoptolemus did not reach the army until after the death of Perdiccas. Diodorus is probably using and confusing two different sources, unless by "the victory of Eumenes" he means the unimportant defeat of Neoptolemus, which is hardly possible in the context. Cp. R. Schubert, Die Quellen zur Geschichte der Diadochenzeit (Leipzig, 1914), 196.

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16 For this campaign and the death of Perdiccas cp. Arrian, FGrH, 156.9.28‑29; Justin, 13.8.10; Pausanias, 1.6.3; Strabo, 17.1.8.

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17 i.e. by the crocodiles. Frontinus (Strategematica,º4.7.20) adds a picturesque and probably fictitious detail: Ptolemy frightened Perdiccas into withdrawing by a cloud of dust raised by cattle dragging bundles of brush. Strabo (17.1.8) implies that Perdiccas succeeded in getting his army across to the island.

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18 Cp. chaps. 30‑31 and footnote on chap. 33.1.

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19 According to Arrian (FGrH, 156.11.39), he gathered a force of ten thousand foot and eight hundred horse with which he made an unsuccessful attack on Rhodes.

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20 Cp. chaps. 25.5, 29.4.

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21 The exact location of Triparadeisus (Three Parks) is unknown. For the disorder there and the subsequent settlement, including the redistribution of the satrapies, cp. Arrian, FGrH, 156.9.31‑38, Polyaenus, 4.6.4.

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22 i.e. Eurydicê Adeia, whose father was a son of Perdiccas III and whose mother was an illegitimate daughter of Philip II. She was betrothed or married to Philip Arrhidaeus (who is not to be confused with the Arrhidaeus of the paragraph).

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23 According to Arrian (FGrH, 156.9.33), Antipater narrowly escaped being mobbed by the troops of Perdiccas' army, and only made his way to his own men when Antigonus and Seleucus came to his aid and diverted the angry soldiers at the risk of their own lives.

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24 The country about Arbela in the upper Tigris valley.

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25 A little later we find a Philotas governing Parthia, cp.  Book 19.14.1.

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26 Mention of the reappointment of Sibyrtius as satrap of Arachosia seems to have been omitted or lost at this point (Arrian, FGrH, 156.9.36; cp. chap. 3.3, and Book 19.14.6).

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27 Four men of this name are mentioned in this period: this satrap of Cappadocia, who remained true to Antigonus and was finally defeated by Seleucus (Book 19.92); the friend and general of Ptolemy (chap. 43.2); Cassander's supporter, who commanded the garrison in Munychia (chap. 64.1, etc): and Cassander's brother (Book 19.11.8). Cp. Droysen, Geschichte des Hellenismus, 2.145, note 2.

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28 A chiliarch was, properly speaking, a commander of a thousand, but the Greeks used the term to designate the very influential official who had commanded the bodyguard of the Persian king. Alexander gave this title first to Hephaestion and later to Perdiccas (Arrian, FGrH, 156.1.3, cp. chap. 48.4‑5 below).

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29 There appears to be a lacuna of considerable length at about this point. Cassander convinced Antipater that his suspicions of Antigonus were ill founded. Antipater accordingly left to Antigonus for use in the war against Eumenes a large part of the army that he himself had brought from Europe. He then returned to Macedonia, accompanied by the kings and probably by Cassander. Eumenes meantime tried in vain to secure the moral aid of Cleopatra, Alexander's sister, who was then in Sardes; and his efforts toward effective co-operation with Alcetas were also unavailing. In spite of this he was too strong for Antigonus to attack, and an army sent by Antigonus against Alcetas was defeated. Eumenes spent the winter (321/0) in Greater Phrygia, and then withdrew to Cappadocia. Cp. Arrian, FGrH, 156.11.40‑45; Justin, 14.1; Plutarch, Eumenes, 8.3‑7. For the continuation of the narrative cp. chap. 48.1.

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30 This is the winter of 321/0. For the following campaign cp. Plutarch, Eumenes, 9; Justin, 14.2.1‑3.

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31 For the retirement to Nora and the defence of the fortress cp. Plutarch, Eumenes, 9‑11; Nepos, Eumenes, 5.3‑7; Justin, 14.2.1‑4; Strabo, 12.2.6. The exact location of Nora is not known; it was probably in the northern part of the Taurus (Hassan Dagh). Eumenes seems to have spent the winter of 320/19 in the fortress.

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32 •About 1200 feet.

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33 In chap. 53.7 the number who survived the siege is given as five hundred.

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34 Cp. chap. 37.2‑3.

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35 Diodorus' account of the Successors of Alexander is based chiefly on the work of Hieronymus. Cp. the Introduction to this volume.

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36 Cp. Plutarch, Eumenes, 11.3‑5; Nepos, Eumenes, 5.4‑6.

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37 The beams and pegs seem to have been part of the framework of the stable roof. The dichas or double palm was a measure of •about six inches.

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38 Continued in chap. 53.1.

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39 Continued from chap. 36.7.

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40 For Ptolemy's campaign in Syria cp. Marmor Parium for 319/18; Appian, Syrian History, 52; and chap. 73.2, below.

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41 Apollodorus was archon in 319/18. Livy (9.7.15) gives the consuls for 320 as Q. Publilius Philo for the third time and L. Papirius Cursor for the second time. Diodorus' "Poplius" is certainly due to dittography. Somewhere in chaps. 26‑43 two sets of annual magistrates and some of the events belonging to their years of office have been lost (cp. note on chap. 39.7).

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42 Cp. chaps. 37.2‑3 and 41.7.

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43 •About 287 miles, or 41 miles in each 24 hours. The exact site of the "City of the Cretans," like the significance of its name, is unknown, but it seems to have been somewhere in Cabalia or northern Lycia.

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44 For their fate cp. Book 19.16.

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45 Continued in chap. 50.

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