It scarcely needs saying that few men, if any, have so dominated the history of their own times as has Alexander the Great; his is a curious hybrid of history and biography. In 1925/26 Helmut Berve took the first step in "decentralising" the history of Alexander by publishing his all-embracing study, Das Alexanderreieh auf prosopographisoher Grundlage, in two volumes, perhaps the most workable and thorough such study in the field of ancient Greek history. But we have not advanced far beyond that first step in the intervening fifty-one years; rather than a stimulus for further study, Berve's work - possibly on account of its thoroughness - has become a crutch for Alexander-scholars, a convenient catalogue of names and facts, too often a substitute for the testimony of the original sources. When we consider minor individuals, about whom little is known and less has been written, we shall not go far wrong by consulting Berve's reference work; though, it should be noted, even here his interpretations are often marred by poor judgment (see footnotes passim). But for the most important figures, the most powerful men in Alexander's empire, we must ask if their careers and characters can be adequately summarised in a mere three to five pages. Clearly they cannot be. In the cases of the four individuals with whom this study is concerned, Berve's vitae are particularly unsatisfactory. Only Hephaistion, who died in 324 B.C., is treated from beginning to end; Leonnatos, Krateros and Perdikkas, who outlived the King, leave much to be commented on. This is especially true of Perdikkas, whose role in the events of 323-321 B.C. was far more brilliant and controversial than his career up to Alexander's death. There are of course the articles of G. Plaumann (RE VIII.1 [1912] 291-296, s.v. "Hephaistion [3]") and Fr. Geyer (RE XII.2 [1925] 2035-2038, s.v. "Leonnatos [1]"; XIX.1 [1937] 604-614, s.v. "Perdikkas [4]"; and Supplbd IV [1924] 1038-1048, s.v. Krateros [la]"), but these are more compressed and, consequently, less inclined toward interpretation; they are also more prone to error than Berve's incomplete entries. Other modern scholars shed more light on the "marshals of the Alexonderreich" - most notably E. Badian, F. Schachermeyr, A.B. Bosworth, R.M. Errington and G. Wirth -, but their works often rely heavily on the material adduced by Berve. Many others are content with mere generalisations: hence Hephaistion is at one time Alexander's foremost commander, at another his incompetent minion; Perdikkas is both middle-aged and in the bloom of youth; Krateros high in Alexander's esteem or a man neglected by Alexander, the generals, even the troops. Only a fresh study of the primary evidence will help to unravel the mysteries of these men who laboured in the shadow of Alexander and continue to do so in the pages of his historians. I focus attention on the marshals of Alexander's empire: Hephaistion, Leonnatos, Krateros and Perdikkas. The evidence, subjected to careful scrutiny, yields many new interpretations; often it is baffling. Not all new interpretations are significant, nor every re-interpretation original. But, if I have produced four biographical studies that are internally consistent and - what is more important - based on the evidence rather than on misleading preconceptions, then I have shed new light on Alexander himself. / Arts, Faculty of / Classical, Near Eastern and Religious Studies, Department of / Graduate

Thesis (PhD)--Macquarie University, Division of Humanities, Department of Ancient History, 2002. / Bibliography: leaves 411-439. / Athenian politics and politicians -- Athenian political ideology -- A prosopographical study of the leading Athenian politicians -- Conclusion. / This thesis is a revisionist history of Athens during the much-neglected period between the Lamian and Chremonidean wars. It draws upon all the available literary and epigraphical evidence to provide a reinterpretation of Athenian politics in this confused period. -- Rather than providing a narrative of Athens in the early Hellenistic period (a task which has been admirably completed by Professor Christian Habicht), this thesis seeks to provide a review of Athenian politics and politicians. It seeks to identify who participated in the governing of Athens and their motivations for doing so, to determine what constituted a politician in democratic Athens, and to redefine political ideology. The purpose of this research is to allow a clearer understanding of the Athenian political arena in the early Hellenistic period. -- This thesis is comprised of three sections: -The first provides a definition of what constituted a politician in democratic Athens and how Athenian politicians interacted with each other. -The second discusses Athenian political ideology, and seeks to demonstrate that the Athenian politicians of the early Hellenistic period were just as ideologically motivated as their predecessors in the fifth and fourth centuries. This section seeks to show that the much-maligned Hellenistic democracies were little different from the so-called "true" democracies of the Classical period. The only real difference between these regimes was the fact that whereas Classical Athens was militarily strong and independent, Hellenistic Athens lacked the military capacity to remain free and independent, and was incapable of competing with the Macedonian dynasts as an equal partner. -The third section consists of a series of detailed prosopographical studies of leading Athenian politicians including Demades, Phokion, Demetrios of Phaleron, Stratokles, and Demochares. The purpose of this section is to evaluate the careers of these politicians who played a pivotal role in Athenian politics in order to enable us to better understand the nature of Athenian politics and political ideology in this period. -This thesis also includes an appended list of all the Athenians who meet my definition of a "politician" in democratic Athens. -- The overall aim of this thesis is to demonstrate that there was no real qualitative difference between Athenian democracy in the period between the Lamian and Chremonidean wars and the fifth and fourth century democracies. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / viii, 439 leaves ill

This dissertation examines the different interpretations of the secondary sources for Alexander the Great by three modern historians, Nicholas Hammond, Peter Green and Mary Renault. The Introduction looks briefly at the lost primary Alexander-histories, the extant works of Diodorus Siculus, Quintus Curtius, Plutarch and Arrian and includes an abbreviated curriculum vltae of each modern author. Chapter X concerns modern interpretations of the controversial circumstances surrounding the accession of Alexander and the assassination of Philip. Chapter II covers the elimination of possible rivals, Attalus, Alexander Lyncestes and Amyntas son of Perdiccas, two major conspiracies - the Philotas Affair and the death of Parmenio, the conspiracy of the Royal Pages and death of Callisthenes - and the killing of Cleitus the Black. Chapter III deals with modern explanations of the death of Alexander. The Conclusion highlights significant theories and trends presented by the modern historians, which influence their interpretations of the ancient sources. / History / M.A. (Ancient History)

This dissertation examines the different interpretations of the secondary sources for Alexander the Great by three modern historians, Nicholas Hammond, Peter Green and Mary Renault. The Introduction looks briefly at the lost primary Alexander-histories, the extant works of Diodorus Siculus, Quintus Curtius, Plutarch and Arrian and includes an abbreviated curriculum vltae of each modern author. Chapter X concerns modern interpretations of the controversial circumstances surrounding the accession of Alexander and the assassination of Philip. Chapter II covers the elimination of possible rivals, Attalus, Alexander Lyncestes and Amyntas son of Perdiccas, two major conspiracies - the Philotas Affair and the death of Parmenio, the conspiracy of the Royal Pages and death of Callisthenes - and the killing of Cleitus the Black. Chapter III deals with modern explanations of the death of Alexander. The Conclusion highlights significant theories and trends presented by the modern historians, which influence their interpretations of the ancient sources. / History / M.A. (Ancient History)