Ariston (pioneer)

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Ariston ( Greek  Ἀρίστων ) was a Paionic officer of Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC.

Tetradrachms of the Paionier King Patraos. National Museum of Bulgaria , Sofia .

In order to guarantee the loyalty of the peoples who settled north and east of Macedonia , Alexander obliged them not only to provide troops for his campaign in Asia , but also to members of the royal families. On the one hand, they were supposed to take on tasks as troop leaders, but at the same time they were supposed to serve as hostages. Ariston was probably a member of the royal house of the Paionier, perhaps a brother or son of King Patraos .

As the leader of the Paionic cavalry, Ariston fought in the battles of Granikos in 334 BC. Chr. And v Issos 333rd Chr. , Respectively on the right wing of the order of battle. During the advance into Mesopotamia in 331 BC. In BC he and his troops secured a crossing of the Tigris by defeating a Persian cavalry troop of 1,000 men stationed there. In this fight Ariston killed the opposing leader Satropates and brought his severed head to Alexander. The depictions of a duel between a mounted warrior and his defeated opponent on some coins of Patraos (see picture) probably relate to this fight.

At the Battle of Gaugamela , Ariston and his Paionians were stationed on the right wing alongside the mounted mercenaries of the Menidas , who gave them crucial support. After that, nothing more is reported about Ariston and his troops, presumably because they were incorporated into the lancer unit.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Frontin , Strategemata 2, 11, 3.
  2. ↑ Arrian , Anabasis 1, 14, 1 and 2, 9, 2.
  3. ↑ Curtius Rufus 4, 9, 24-25; Plutarch , Alexander 39, 2. See Atkinson, p. 384.
  4. ↑ Arrian, Anabasis 3, 12, 3 and 13, 3-4.

literature

personal data
SURNAME Ariston
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Paionic officer of Alexander the Great
DATE OF BIRTH 4th century BC Chr.
DATE OF DEATH after 331 BC Chr.