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21 he still drew water:Details from Plutarch, Phocion18.2.
22 and perhaps could not:Much remains unclear about Phocion’s collaboration with the Macedonian generals, since our principal source, Plutarch, was inclined to clear him of all misdeeds and to frame his story as a tragedy (see Lamberton, “Plutarch’s Phocion”).
23 Teutamus was an unknown quantity:There is no evidence at all about the history of this man prior to his appearance as co-captain of the Silver Shields in 318.
24 “I have no need”:The indirect statement found in Diodorus (18.60.2) appears to represent the precise words used by Eumenes. It should again be stressed that Hieronymus of Cardia, Diodorus’ principal source for events of this period, was an eyewitness to most of Eumenes’ activities. The words quoted on the following page represent a direct quotation in Diodorus.
25 Eumenes told his officers:The dream and the resulting erection of the tent are described, somewhat differently, by no fewer than four sources: Diodorus 18.60–61; Plutarch Eumenes13.3–4; Nepos Eumenes7.2–3; and Polyaenus 4.8.2. The version given here is based most closely on Polyaenus.
26 Alexander’s diadem, scepter, and armor:There has been debate as to how these came to be at Cyinda with Eumenes. Perhaps the Greek had kept them after somehow getting control of them in Babylon; perhaps they were stored in the Cyinda fortress as part of the imperial treasure. It seems likely that more than one set of these royal objects existed.
27 The hearing started:Details taken from Plutarch’s Phocion, from here to the end of the chapter.
28 for exhibition to the mob:My interpretation of Plutarch’s comment ( Phocion34.2) that Phocion’s return to Athens was shameful because he was carried on a cart. Others interpret the remark to mean that Phocion had become too infirm to walk.
29 in large part as a scapegoat:The motives behind Socrates’ indictment and conviction are of course more complex than I can deal with here. But among them was certainly the fact that two political leaders who had, at various times, collaborated with the Spartans were former students of Socrates.
30 one expert has proposed:See Palagia, “Impact of Ares Macedon,” cited under “Archaeological and Material Evidence” in the bibliography.
31 Long-standing rivals:In a famous analysis of an earlier war, Thucydides makes the same point about the struggle for supremacy between liberal Athens and conservative Sparta. Passions of rival political parties in every Greek city were inflamed due to the fact that each could call on a superpower for support.
Chapter 9: Duels to the Death
1 an older man:There is no evidence about the early life of Aristonous, and it is not known at what point he became a Bodyguard, but Heckel ( Who’s Who) supposes he was inherited by Alexander from Philip’s day.
2 no doubt ceased to matter:An important dividing line among historians of the Alexander period concerns the degree of constitutionality they assign to the Macedonians. Some regard this nation as lawful and observant of strict political conventions; others see them engaging in a might-makes-right free-for-all. The debate plays out in interesting ways where the succession to Alexander is concerned. I have here adhered to a moderate constitutionalist position, which I think is supported by the evidence: the impetus to install and obey a legitimate king was paramount throughout the first six years after Alexander’s death, until all hope was lost that such a king could be found. The opposing position is summed up by Carney ( Olympias, p. 86): “Legality was never a major issue in Macedonian society generally. After the death of Alexander and certainly after that of Perdiccas, legitimacy is simply not a useful concept for historians to apply.”
3 four Bodyguards to Alexander’s three:See Heckel, “IGii2 561,” cited under “Rhoxane, Alexander IV, Barsine, and Heracles” in the bibliography.
4 the first of their species:Aristotle has such detailed information about elephants in his biological treatises that it has been thought he observed them firsthand, leading to the fanciful supposition that Alexander shipped one specimen back to Athens from Asia for him to examine (the premise of L. Sprague de Camp’s novel An Elephant for Aristotle). However, the more likely explanation is that Aristotle received written reports about the beasts through Ctesias, a Greek physician serving at the court of the Persian kings.
5 bringing with him many tales:Lawrence Tritle has even claimed that Damis published a treatise about elephant handling, though I have found no evidence that confirms this. See “Alexander and the Greeks,” pp. 121–40 of Alexander the Great: A New History, Waldemar Heckel and Lawrence A. Tritle, eds. (Malden, Mass. 2009).
6 causing a time-delayed collapse:This is my hypothesis for the goal of the sapping method described by Diodorus (18.70.5), in which the wooden props of the mine are set on fire.
7 to cross over into Asia:According to Diodorus (18.63.6), the goal of Eumenes’ naval strategy was to permit Polyperchon to invade Asia, though one wonders whether Eumenes would not have considered it more urgent that he himself cross into Europe.
8 At last Eumenes’ fleet was ready:Story related by Polyaenus 4.6.9.
9 a crushing setback:Described in slightly varying versions by Diodorus 18.72 and Polyaenus 4.6.8.
10 on restoring the oligarchy:Cassander granted the Athenians a less stringent property restriction than his father had done, limiting citizenship to those with estates of a thousand drachmas.
11 A new leader:This was Demetrius of Phaleron, whose story, though it falls outside the scope of this book, is as fascinating as any in the post-Alexander world.
12 a brief, defiant visit:This first return to Macedonia of Cassander is mentioned only briefly by Diodorus at 18.75.1 and 19.35.7, and is often overlooked, even by scholars. Cassander returned to test his political support, then set out for Greece again to further shore up his position there. Adams gives a good account of Cassander’s movements in “Antipater and Cassander.”
13 foiled in an attempt:Apparently, Eumenes learned of a disused canal in the area and reopened it, causing the water to be carried away again.
14 no doubt sensationalized report:The description of the battle is attributed to Duris of Samos by the writer who quotes it, Athenaeus (13.560f). Duris wrote a narrative history, now lost, of events in the Greek world from the mid-fourth to the early third century. He is not regarded as a very reliable source, though Plutarch sometimes made use of him.
15 Perhaps she thought:Carney ( Olympias, p. 76) offers a different explanation for the walling up of the monarchs, that Olympias hoped to force Philip to abdicate the throne.
16 opening his grave:See Diodorus 19.11.8 and Plutarch Alexander77.1. It is curious Olympias did not do likewise to the tomb of Antipater; evidently, she still observed some limits out of respect for Macedonian public opinion.
17 imperious and solitary:Attested by Plutarch Demetrius28.5, where the anecdote that follows can also be found.
18 Inside the Susa cache:Its contents were later inventoried by Antigonus and recorded by Diodorus (19.48.6–8). Chares of Mytilene attests to the use of the “Climbing Vine” as a royal bedchamber adornment (Athenaeus 12.514f).
19 a hard road into Media:The story of Antigonus’ difficult passage through Media is told by Diodorus at 19.19. Antigonus chose a mountainous route to escape the heat, but refused to bribe the tribesmen who lived along it and was therefore constantly harassed and blocked as he made his way north.