Alexander II (Macedonia)

Alexander II. († 368 BC ), the son of Amyntas III. and Eurydice , was born after the death of his father from 370 to 368 BC. King of Macedonia .

Alexander was grown up but very young when he ascended the throne, which resulted in enemies of the dynasty raging war on the land. Alexander faced both an attack from the east by the pretender Pausanias and an Illyrian invasion from the northwest. Pausanias quickly conquered several cities and threatened Eurydice, the king's mother, who lived with her younger sons in the palace in Pella . Alexander defeated his enemies with the help of the Athenian general Iphicrates, who sailed to Macedonia and recaptured Amphipolis for him.

At the request of the Aleuadai , Alexander intervened in the Thessalian civil war. He gained control of Larisa and various other cities and - contrary to a promise - garrisoned them, which brought him hostility from Thebes , the leading Greek military power of the time. The Theban general Pelopidas drove the Macedonians out of Thessaly, then neutralized Alexander with the support of his brother-in-law Ptolemaios of Aloros and forced him to give up his alliance with Athens in favor of Thebes. He also had to take a number of hostages, including his brother Philip .

Alexander was instigated by Ptolemy in 368 BC. Murdered at a festival. Alexander's brother Perdiccas III. became the next king, but Ptolemy was assigned as regent. However, he managed to eliminate Ptolemy and take over the government himself.

swell

• Junianus Justinus , 7, 4 - 5.
• Diodorus Siculus , 15, 60-61 ; 15, 67; 15, 71.

literature

• Julius Kaerst : Alexandros 9 . In: Paulys Realencyclopadie der classischen Antiquity Science (RE). Volume I, 1, Stuttgart 1893, Col. 1412.

Web links

• The ancestors of Alexander II

predecessor	Office	successor
Amyntas III.	King of Macedonia 370–368 BC Chr.	Ptolemy of Aloros