Attalos (general)

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Attalus († 336 BC ) was a Macedonian general during the reign of Philip II , the father of Alexander the Great .

When King Philip II of Macedon gained hegemony over Greece , Attalus was one of his most important generals. He was married to a daughter of Parmenion , another important general at the Macedonian court.

The relationship between Attalus and the heir to the throne Alexander was extremely tense. At the wedding celebration of his niece Cleopatra with Philip II, Attalus publicly questioned the legitimacy of Alexander's claim to the Macedonian throne. In the dispute that broke out over this, Alexander's father Philip took the side of his general, which resulted in his son's six-month exile.

Attalus is said to have been complicit - albeit unconsciously - in the death of his ruler: According to tradition, Attalus is said to have insulted Pausanias , who was the bodyguard of Philip II, so that Pausanias wanted to kill Attalus for it. But because Philip II did not want to tolerate an attack on his important general, Pausanias murdered the king instead. However, it is by no means certain whether this was actually the decisive motive for the murder.

Philip's death also meant the downfall of Attalus: he was just with part of the Macedonian army in Asia Minor to prepare a campaign planned there. He shared the command with his father-in-law Parmenion. The latter knew about the intolerable relationship between the new king Alexander and the general Attalus. In order to consolidate Alexander's claim to the throne and to prove his loyalty, Parmenion had his son-in-law Attalus murdered.

literature

See above all the literature listed in the articles Philip II and Alexander the Great .

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Attalus
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Macedonian general
DATE OF BIRTH 4th century BC Chr.
DATE OF DEATH 336 BC Chr.
Place of death Asia Minor