Aristippus by Larisa

Aristippos of Larissa ( Greek  Ἀρίστιππος Arístippos ; also Aristippos of Larissa ) was a Greek politician of the late 5th century BC. And pupil of the rhetoric teacher Gorgias . He came from the city of Larisa in Thessaly and belonged to the aristocratic family of the Aleuads . The Aleuads traditionally exercised power in Larisa and from there influenced the politics of Thessaly significantly, but had to fend off strong opposition. Already at the time of the Persian Wars they had good relations with the Persians , from whom they hoped for support in the conflicts with their internal adversaries. For Aristippus too, the relationship to the Persian Empire was a core element of his politics. Two contemporary sources provide information about his life: the Anabasis Xenophons and Plato's Dialog Menon .

Political activity

Aristippus is not expressly attested as the head of the Aleuads, but at least held a leading position on their side towards the end of the 5th century. However, his power was threatened by rival forces. Lycophron , the ruler of the important Thessalian city of Pherai , tried to bring all of Thessaly under his rule. In September 404 BC He defeated his opponents, which included the Aleuads of Larisa, and inflicted heavy losses on them in battle. In research it is controversial whether Lycophron was already allied with the Spartans , who had prevailed in the Peloponnesian War and now exercised the supremacy in Greece. The Aleuads, weakened by the military defeat, may also have been harassed by internal enemies in Larissa. Maybe they had to go into temporary exile. Some researchers suspect that leading Aleuads, including Aristippus, were sent into exile, but this is not clear from the statements of the sources.

In search of help, Aristippus went to his Persian host Cyrus , the younger brother of the great king Artaxerxes, who had ruled the Persian Empire since 404 . At that time Cyrus was satrap (provincial governor) of Lydia , Greater Phrygia and Cappadocia as well as commander in chief of the troops of Asia Minor of the Persian Empire. Aristippus asked him to pay two thousand mercenaries for three months. In his opinion, this sum was sufficient for a decisive victory. Cyrus was planning an uprising against his brother, from whom he wanted to wrest the rule. The situation in Thessaly gave him an opportunity to recruit mercenaries without arousing suspicion from Artaxerxes. For this purpose he gave Aristippus the pay of four thousand mercenaries for six months on the condition not to make peace with the opposing side for the time being, but to keep the army ready for the time being.

With the help of the mercenaries, whom he paid with the Persian money, Aristippus 402/401 was able to prevail in his homeland, at least for the time being. The final phase of Cyrus' preparations for civil war began. He gave Aristippus the instruction to make peace in Thessaly and put the mercenaries at his disposal. Thereupon Aristippus sent him a mercenary army in 401 under the command of his young confidante Menon of Pharsalus . Menon arrived with a thousand hoplites (heavily armed) and five hundred peltasts (lightly armed) in the city of Kolossai in Phrygia , where Cyrus was staying. From there, the rebels, who were joined by other Greek troops, went to war against Artaxerxes II. The small size of Menon's armed forces suggests that Aristippus still needed some of the mercenaries in Thessaly, so that he had not achieved a decisive victory there.

The uprising against the great king failed, however, as Cyrus was killed in the battle of Kunaxa . Menon was initially spared by the victors, but later killed on the orders of the great king. With the defeat of the rebels, Aristippus lost his Persian ally. Nevertheless, the Aleuads managed to secure their rule in Larisa with the help of the Macedonian king Archelaos I. At this point at the latest, the Spartans took Lycophron's side because they saw the Macedonian reach into Thessaly as a threat.

Nothing is known about the end of Aristippus' political power. In 395, a politician and general named Medios exercised power in Larisa and organized the ongoing fight against Lycophron. Aristippus is not mentioned in connection with the events of that time, which the historian Diodorus describes; he was apparently dead or no longer relevant.

Cultural interests and relationship with Menon

Aristippus was an admirer of the famous rhetoric teacher Gorgias, who stayed in Larissa for some time. He was one of the nobles who took part in the lessons of this Sicilian teacher. Gorgias spread his persuasive rhetoric with great success and won numerous followers in Thessaly.

Plato mentions Aristippus in his dialogue Menon as a friend of the still young Menon. According to Plato's account, Aristippus had an erotic relationship with Meno. Xenophon also presupposes this; According to his description, Aristippus appointed the young (thus inexperienced) Menon as the commander of the mercenaries, since he was his lover. However, it must be taken into account that Xenophon represents Menon in a very unfavorable light.

Plato's literary dialogue is named after Meno, because he appears there as a conversation partner of Plato's teacher Socrates . The philosophical conversation with Socrates is said to have taken place during Menon's stay in Athens. At the beginning of the dialogue, Plato has Socrates praise the love of wisdom of the Thessalians and especially of Aristippus. This is meant ironically, however, because Socrates describes Gorgias as the originator of the Thessalian educational endeavors, whose influence he regards as fatal.

literature

• Richard Goulet: Aristippe de Larisse . In: Richard Goulet (ed.): Dictionnaire des philosophes antiques , Vol. 1, CNRS, Paris 1989, ISBN 2-222-04042-6 , p. 376
• Debra Nails: The People of Plato. A Prosopography of Plato and Other Socratics . Hackett, Indianapolis 2002, ISBN 0-87220-564-9 , p. 50

Remarks

1. ^ Against this argues Truesdell S. Brown: Menon of Thessaly . In: Historia 35, 1986, pp. 387-404, here: 403. John S. Morrison has a different opinion: Meno of Pharsalus, Polycrates, and Ismenias . In: The Classical Quarterly 36, 1942, pp. 57-78, here: 66f.
2. ↑ Slawomir Sprawski: Were Lycophron and Jason Tyrants of Pherae? Xenophon on the History of Thessaly . In: Christopher Tuplin (Ed.): Xenophon and his World , Wiesbaden 2004, pp. 437–452, here: 446f .; John S. Morrison: Meno of Pharsalus, Polycrates, and Ismenias . In: The Classical Quarterly 36, 1942, pp. 57-78, here: 66f.
3. ↑ Hans Beck : Polis and Koinon , Stuttgart 1997, p. 127; Hans-Joachim Gehrke : Stasis. Investigations into the internal wars in the Greek states of the 5th and 4th centuries BC Chr. , Munich 1985, p. 189f.
4. ↑ Xenophon, Anabasis 1,1,10. Cf. Otto Lendle : Commentary on Xenophons Anabasis (books 1–7) , Darmstadt 1995, p. 11f .; John S. Morrison: Meno of Pharsalus, Polycrates, and Ismenias . In: The Classical Quarterly 36, 1942, pp. 57-78, here: 66f.
5. ↑ Xenophon, Anabasis 1,2,1; 1,2,6; 2,6,28. Cf. Otto Lendle: Commentary on Xenophons Anabasis (books 1-7) , Darmstadt 1995, pp. 12-13, 16.
6. ^ John S. Morrison: Meno of Pharsalus, Polycrates, and Ismenias . In: The Classical Quarterly 36, 1942, pp. 57-78, here: 66f. and note 3; Truesdell S. Brown: Menon of Thessaly . In: Historia 35, 1986, pp. 387-404, here: 404.
7. ^ On Spartan politics, see Peter Funke : Homónoia and Arché , Wiesbaden 1980, p. 39; Slawomir Sprawski: Were Lycophron and Jason Tyrants of Pherae? Xenophon on the History of Thessaly . In: Christopher Tuplin (Ed.): Xenophon and his World , Wiesbaden 2004, pp. 437–452, here: 447.
8. ↑ Slawomir Sprawski: Were Lycophron and Jason Tyrants of Pherae? Xenophon on the History of Thessaly . In: Christopher Tuplin (Ed.): Xenophon and his World , Wiesbaden 2004, pp. 437–452, here: 447.
9. ↑ Plato, Meno 70a-b. See Michel Narcy, Marie-Christine Hellmann : Gorgias de Leontinoi. In: Dictionnaire des philosophes antiques , Vol. 3, Paris 2000, pp. 486–491, here: 487.
10. ↑ Xenophon, Anabasis 2,6,28. See John S. Morrison: Meno of Pharsalus, Polycrates, and Ismenias . In: The Classical Quarterly 36, 1942, pp. 57-78, here: 57f.
11. ↑ See Otto Lendle: Commentary on Xenophons Anabasis (books 1–7) , Darmstadt 1995, pp. 139–145, on the erotic aspect, pp. 142f .; Jens Holzhausen : Menon in Plato's 'Menon' . In: Würzburg Yearbooks for Classical Studies , New Series Vol. 20, 1994/1995, pp. 129–149, here: 129f.
12. ↑ Plato, Meno 70a-b. Cf. Jens Holzhausen: Menon in Plato's 'Menon' . In: Würzburg Yearbooks for Classical Studies , New Series Vol. 20, 1994/1995, pp. 129–149, here: 147.