Plutarch, Life of Alexander

2. It is agreed on by all hands, that on the father's side, Alexander descended from Hercules by Caranus, and from Aeacus by Neoptolemus on the mother's side. His father Philip, being in Samothrace, when he was quite young, fell in love there with Olympias, in company with whom he was initiated in the religious ceremonies of the country, and her father and mother being both dead, soon after, with the consent of her brother, Arymbas, he married her. The night before the consummation of their marriage, she dreamed that a thunderbolt fell upon her body, which kindled a great fire, whose divided flames dispersed themselves all about, and then were extinguished. And Philip, some time after he was married, dreamt that he sealed up his wife's body with a seal, whose impression, as be fancied, was the figure of a lion. Some of the diviners interpreted this as a warning to Philip to look narrowly to his wife; but Aristander of Telmessus, considering how unusual it was to seal up anything that was empty, assured him the meaning of his dream was that the queen was with child of a boy, who would one day prove as stout and courageous as a lion. Once, moreover, a serpent was found lying by Olympias as she slept, which more than anything else, it is said, abated Philip's passion for her; and whether he feared her as an enchantress, or thought she had commerce with some god, and so looked on himself as excluded, he was ever after less fond of her conversation. Others say, that the women of this country having always been extremely addicted to the enthusiastic Orphic rites, and the wild worship of Bacchus (upon which account they were called Clodones, and Mimallones), imitated in many things the practices of the Edonian and Thracian women about Mount Haemus, from whom the word threskeuein seems to have been derived, as a special term for superfluous and over-curious forms of adoration; and that Olympias, zealously, affecting these fanatical and enthusiastic inspirations, to perform them with more barbaric dread, was wont in the dances proper to these ceremonies to have great tame serpents about her, which sometimes creeping out of the ivy in the mystic fans, sometimes winding themselves about the sacred spears, and the women's chaplets, made a spectacle which men could not look upon without terror.

Philip, after this vision, sent Chaeron of Megalopolis to consult the oracle of Apollo at Delphi, by which he was commanded to perform sacrifice, and henceforth pay particular honour, above all other gods, to Ammon; and was told he should one day lose that eye with which he presumed to peep through that chink of the door, when he saw the god, under the form of a serpent, in the company of his wife. Eratosthenes says that Olympias, when she attended Alexander on his way to the army in his first expedition, told him the secret of his birth, and bade him behave himself with courage suitable to his divine extraction. Others again affirm that she wholly disclaimed any pretensions of the kind, and was wont to say, "When will Alexander leave off slandering me to Juno?"

9. While Philip was making an expedition against Byzantium, Alexander, though only sixteen years of age, was left behind as regent in Macedonia and keeper of the royal seal, and during this time he subdued the rebellious Maedi, and after taking their city, drove out the Barbarians, settled there a mixed population and named the city Alexandropolis. He was also present at Chaeroneia and took part in the battle against the Greeks, and he is said to have the first to break the ranks of the Sacred Band of the Thebans. And even down to our day there shown an ancient oak by the Cephisus, called Alexander's oak, near which at that time he pitched tent; and the general sepulchre of the Macenians is not far away.

In consequence of these exploits, then, as was natural, Philip was excessively fond of his son, so he even rejoiced to hear the Macedonians call Alexander their king, but Philip their general. However, the disorders in his household, due to the fact that his marriages and amours carried into the kingdom the infection, as it were, which reigned in the women's apartments, produced many grounds of offence and great quarrels between father and son, and these the bad temper of Olympias, who was a jealous and sullen woman, made still greater, since she spurred Alexander on. The most open quarrel was brought on by Attalus at the marriage of Cleopatra, a maiden whom Philip was taking to wife, having fallen in love with the girl when he was past the age for it Attalus, now, was the girl's uncle, and being in his cups, be called upon the Macedonians to ask of the gods that from Philip and Cleopatra there might be born a legitimate successor to the kingdom. At this Alexander was 'exasperated, and with the words, "But what of me,base wretch? Dost thou take me for a bastard?" threw a cup at him. Then Philip rose up against him with drawn sword, but, fortunately for both, his anger and his wine made him trip and fall. Then Alexander, mocking over him, said: "Look now, men! here is one who was preparing to cross from Europe into Asia; and he is upset in trying to cross from couch to couch." After this drunken broil Alexander took Olympias and established her in Epirus, while he himself tarried in Illyria.

Meanwhile Demaratus the Corinthian, who was a guest-friend of the house and a man of frank speech, came to see Philip. After the first greetings and welcomes were over, Philip asked him how the Greeks were agreeing with one another, and Demaratus replied: "It is surely very fitting, Philip, that thou shouldst be concerned about Greece, when thou hast filled thine own house with such great dissension and calamities." Thus brought to his senses, Philip sent and fetched Alexander home, having persuaded him to come through the agency of Demaratus.

10. But when Pixodarus, the satrap of Caria, trying by means of a tie of relationship to steal into a military alliance with Philip, wished to give his eldest daughter in marriage to Arrhidaeus the son of Philip, and sent Aristocritus to Macedonia on this errand, once more slanderous stories kept coming to Alexander from his friends and his mother, who said that Philip, by means of a brilliant marriage and a great connection, was trying to settle the kingdom upon Arrhidaeus. Greatly disturbed by these stories, Alexander sent Thessalus, the tragic actor, to Caria, to argue with Pixodarus that he ought to ignore the bastard brother, who was also a fool, and make Alexander his connection by marriage. And this plan was vastly more pleasing to Pixodarus than the former. But Philip, becoming aware of this, went to Alexander's chamber, taking with him one of Alexander's friends and companions, Philotas the son of Parmenio, and upbraided his son severely, and bitterly reviled him as ignoble and unworthy of his high estate, in that he desired to become the son-in-law of a man who was a Carian and a slave to a barbarian king. And as for Thessalus, Philip wrote to the Corinthians that they should send him back to Macedonia in chains. Moreover, of the other companions of Alexander, he banished from Macedonia Harpalus and Nearchus, as well as Erigyius and Ptolemy, men whom Alexander afterwards recalled and had in the highest honours.

And so when Pausanias, who had been outrageously dealt with at the instance of Attalus and Cleopatra and could get no justice at Philip's hands, slew Philip, most of the blame devolved upon Olympias, on the ground that she had added her exhortations to the young man's anger and incited him to the deed; but a certain amount of accusation attached itself to Alexander also. For it is said that when Pausanias, after the outrage that he had suffered, met Alexander, and bewailed his fate, Alexander recited to him the iambic verse of the "Medeia:"

"The giver of the bride, the bridegroom, and the bride."

However, he did seek out the participants in the plot and punished them, and was angry with Olympias for her savage treatment of Cleopatra during his absence.

12. There are always plausible and malicious people ready to start whispering campaigns about Court secrets - and the more secret the better they like it - and to put the worst possible interpretations upon what appear to most of us perfectly straightforward actions. So it was in this matter of Alexander and Antipater. The rumour was, that Alexander was beginning to be influenced by his mother's calumnious statements about Antipater, and for that reason wished to get him out of the country. It may well be, however, that his recall was in no way meant to discredit him, but was merely to prevent the quarrel between him and Olympias from reaching a point beyond Alexander's power to heal. Both of them were constantly writing to Alexander; Antipater's letters were full of the Queen's headstrong character and violent temper and her determination (most unsuitable for Alexander's mother) to have a finger in every pie -- indeed, the stories of her behaviour gave rise to a much-quoted remark of Alexander's, to the effect that she was charging him a high price for his nine months' lodging in her womb. Olympias, for her part, continually complained that Antipater's position and the respect to which it entitled him made him insufferably arrogant; he no longer remembered, she wrote, who had put him where he was, but claimed absolute pre-eminence among his fellow countrymen and the rest of Greece. It cannot be denied that the stories which tended to blacken Antipater's good name did seem to gain more and more influence over Alexander, for such things would naturally alarm anyone in his position.

Diodorus Siculus, The Library of History, book 18

(322 BCE) 23. After the destruction of the cities there came two women to marry Perdiccas, Nicaea, the daughter of Antipater, for whose hand Perdiccas himself had sued, and Cleopatra, who was Alexander's own sister, daughter of Philip son of Amyntas. Perdiccas had formerly planned to work in harmony with Antipater, and for this reason he had pressed his suit when his position was not yet firmly established; but when he had gained control of the royal armies and the guardianship of the kings, he changed his calculations. For since he was now reaching out for the kingship, he was bent upon marrying Cleopatra, believing that he could use her to persuade the Macedonians to help him gain the supreme power. But not wishing as yet to reveal his design, he married Nicaea for the time, so that he might not render Antipater hostile to his own undertakings. Presently, however, Antigonus learned his intentions, and since Antigonus was a friend of Antipater and, moreover, the most energetic of the commanders, Perdiccas decided to put him out of the way. So, by bringing false slanders and unjust charges against him, he clearly revealed his intention of destroying him. Antigonus, however, who excelled in keenness and daring, outwardly let it be known that he wished to defend himself against these charges, but secretly he made arrangements for flight and, with his personal friends and his son Demetrius, boarded the Athenian ships undetected at night. And having been brought to Europe in these, he travelled on to join forces with Antipater.

24. At this time Antipater and Craterus had taken the field against the Aetolians with thirty thousand infantry and twenty-five hundred cavalry; for of those who had taken part in the Lamian War, the Aetolians alone were left unconquered. Although such great forces were sent against them, they were in no panic-stricken mood, but gathering together all who were in the full vigour of manhood to the number of ten thousand, they retired to the mountainous and rough places, in which they placed the children, the women, and the old, together with the greater part of their wealth. The cities that could not be defended they abandoned, but those that were particularly strong they secured, each with a considerable garrison, and boldly awaited the approach of the enemy.

25. Antipater and Craterus, coming into Aetolia and finding that the cities which were easy to capture were deserted, moved against the men who had withdrawn into the difficult regions. At first, then, the Macedonians, violently attacking positions that were strongly fortified and in broken terrain, lost many of their soldiers; for the hardihood of the Aetolians joined with the strength of their positions easily turned back men who rushed headlong into dangers beyond reach of succour. Afterward, however, when Craterus had built shelters and was forcing the enemy to stay through the winter and to hold out in regions that were covered with snow and lacking in food, the Aetolians were brought into the greatest dangers I; for they had either to come down from their mountains and fight against forces numbering many times their own and against famous generals, or to remain and be utterly destroyed by want and cold. When they were already giving up hope of salvation, relief from their troubles appeared of its own accord, just as if one of the gods had been moved to pity by their high courage. For Antigonus, he who had fled from Asia, joined Antipater and told him the whole plot of Perdiccas, and that Perdiccas, after marrying Cleopatra, would come at once with his army to Macedonia as king and deprive Antipater of the supreme command. Craterus and Antipater, dumbfounded by the unexpected news, met in council with their commanders. When the situation had been presented for deliberation, it was unanimously decided to make peace with the Aetolians on whatever terms were possible, to transport the armies with all speed to Asia, to assign the command of Asia to Craterus and that of Europe to Antipater, and also to send an embassy to Ptolemy to discuss concerted action, since he was utterly hostile to Perdiccas, but friendly to them, and he in common with them was an object of the plot. Therefore they at once made a treaty with the Aetolians, firmly resolved to conquer them later and to move them all - men, women, and children - to the most distant desert of Asia. When they had recorded a decree embodying these plans, they made preparations for the campaign. Perdiccas, gathering his friends and generals, referred to them for consideration the question whether it was better to march against Macedonia or first to take the field against Ptolemy. When all favoured defeating Ptolemy first in order that there might be no obstacle in the way of their Macedonian campaign, he sent Eumenes off with a considerable army, ordering him to watch over the region of the Hellespont and prevent a crossing; and he himself, taking the army from Pisidia, proceeded against Egypt. Such, then, were the events of this year.

(318 BCE) 65. At this time a letter came to Nicanor from Olympias, in which she ordered him to restore Munychia and the Piraeus to the Athenians. Since Nicanor had heard that the kings and Polyperchon were going to bring Olympias back to Macedonia, entrust to her the upbringing of the boy, and re-establish her in the state and honour that she had enjoyed during the lifetime of Alxander, he was frightened and promised to make restoration, but he avoided the fulfillment of the promise by constantly making excuses.

Diodorus Siculus, The Library of History, book 19

(317 BCE) 11. In Macedonia, when Eurydice,3 who had assumed the administration of the regency, heard that Olympias was making preparations for a return, she sent a courier into the Peloponnesus to Cassander, begging him to come to her aid as soon as possible and, by plying the most active of the Macedonians with gifts and great promises, she was trying to make them personally loyal to herself. But Polyperchon, with Aeacides of Epirus as his ally, collected an army and restored Olympias and the son of Alexander to the throne. So, as soon as he heard that Eurydice was at Euia in Macedonia with her army, he hastened against her with the intention of deciding the campaign in a single battle. When, however, the armies were drawn up facing each other, the Macedonians, out of respect for the position of Olympias and remembering the benefits that they had received from Alexander, changed their allegiance. King Philip with his court was captured at once, while Eurydicê was taken as she was making her way to Amphipolis with Polycles, one of her counsellors. But after Olympias had thus captured the royal persons and had seized the kingdom without a fight, she did not carry her good fortune as a human being should, but first she placed Eurydice and her husband Philip under guard and began to maltreat them. Indeed she walled them up in a small space and supplied them with what was necessary through a single narrow opening. But after she had for many days unlawfully treated the unfortunate captives, since she was thereby losing favour with the Macedonians because of their pity for the sufferers, she ordered certain Thracians to stab Philip [Arrhidaeus] to death, who had been king for six years and four months; but she judged that Eurydice, who was expressing herself without restraint and declaring that the kingdom belonged to herself rather than to Olympias, was worthy of greater punishment. She therefore sent to her a sword, a noose, and some hemlock, and ordered her to employ whichever of these, she pleased as a means of death, neither displaying any respect whatever for the former dignity of the victim whom she was unlawfully treating, nor moved to pity for the fate that is common to all. Accordingly, when she herself met with a similar reversal, she experienced a death that was worthy of her cruelty. Eurydice, indeed, in the presence of the attendant prayed that like gifts might fall to the lot of Olympias. She next laid out the body of her husband, cleansing its wounds
as well as circumstances permitted, then ended her life by hanging herself with her girdle, neither weeping for her own fate nor humbled by the weight of her misfortunes. After these two had been made away with, Olympias killed Nicanor, Cassander's brother, and overturned the tomb of Iollas, avenging, as she said, the death of Alexander. She also selected the hundred most prominent Macedonians from among the friends of Cassander and slaughtered them all. But by glutting her rage with such atrocities, she soon caused many of the Macedonians to hate her ruthlessness; for all of them remembered the words of Antipater, who, as if uttering a prophecy on his death bed, advised them never to permit a woman to hold first place in the kingdom.

This situation, then, in the internal affairs of Macedonia gave clear indication of the impending revolution.

35. In Europe when Cassander, who was besieging Tegea in the Peloponnesus, learned of the return of Olympias to Macedonia and of (the murder of Eurydice and King Philip, and moreover what had befallen the tomb of his brother Iollus, he came to terms with the people of Tegea and set out for Macedonia with his army, leaving his allies in complete confusion; for Polyperchon's son Alexander with an army was waiting to attack the cities of the Peloponnesus. The Aetolians, who wished to please Olympias and Polyperchon, had occupied the pass at Thermopylae and barred Cassander from the passage. Cassander decided against forcing his way through this region, which was difficult to attack, but he secured boats and barges from Euboea and Locris and transported his army to Thessaly. Hearing that Polyperchon and his army were in position in Perrhaebia, he dispatched his general Callas with an army, ordering him to carry on the war with Polyperchon. Deinias, however, in order to occupy the passes, went to meet 317 B.C. the soldiers who had been sent out by Olympias and gained control of the defiles ahead of them. But Olympias, on learning that Cassander and a large army were near Macedonia, designated Aristonous general, ordering him to fight Cassander, and she herself went to Pydna accompanied by the following: Alexander's son, his mother Roxane", and Thessalonice, daughter?of Philip son of Amyntas; also Deidameia, daughter of Aeacides king of the Epirotes and sister of that Pyrrhus who later fought against the Romans, the daughters of Attalus, and finally the kinsfolk of Olympias' other more important friends. Thus there were gathered about her a large number of persons, but persons for the most part useless in war; and there was not a sufficient supply of food for people who were about to endure a very long siege. Although the risk involved in all these circumstances was clear, nonetheless she decided to remain there, hoping that many Greeks and Macedonians would come to her aid by sea. She had with her some of the Ambracian horse and most of the soldiers who were accustomed to serve about the court, also those of Polyperchon's elephants that remained, for Cassander had gained possession of the rest of the elephants in his previous expedition into Macedonia.

36. Cassander, going through the passes of Perrhaebia and arriving near Pydna, surrounded the city from sea to sea with a stockade and requisitioned, ships, missile weapons of all sorts, and engines of war from those who wished to become his allies, with the intention of laying siege to Olympias by land and sea. Being informed that Aeacides king of the Epirotes was about to come to the aid of Olympias with an army, he sent out Atarrhias as general, giving him an army and ordering him to meet the Epirotes. Atarrhias carried out his orders quickly and by occupying the passes from Epirus succeeded in holding Aeacides inactive. Indeed, most of the Epirotes set out for Macedonia against their will and were mutinying in the camp; and Aeacides, who wished at all costs to aid Olympias, by releasing from the army those who were disaffected and taking those who wished to share the fortunes of war with him, although he showed his zeal for a fight to a finish, was not a match for his opponents because few of his army remained. Those of the Epirotes who went back to their native land rebelled against their absent king, condemned him to exile by a public decree, and made an alliance with Cassander. This was something that had never happened in Epirus from the time when Neoptolemus the son of Achilles was king of the land; for sons had always succeeded to their fathers' authority and had died on the throne up to this time. Cassander received Epirus in his alliance and sent Lyciscus to it as regent and general, at which the people throughout Macedonia who had previously held apart from the alliance abandoned the fortunes of Olympias in despair and joined themselves to Cassander. Her only hope of aid was from Polyperchon, and this was also unexpectedly crushed; for when Callas, who had been sent by Cassander as general, drew near Polyperchon in Perrhaebia and camped there, he corrupted most of Polyperchon's soldiers by bribes so that there remained only a few and these the most faithful. Thus Olympias' hopes were humbled in a brief time.

(316 BCE) 49. Now that we have completed the account of events in Asia, We shall turn our attention to Europe and set forth what took place there following the events previously described. Although Cassander had shut Olympias into Pydna in Macedonia, he was not able to assault the walls because of the winter storms, but by encamping about the city, throwing up a palisade from sea to sea, and blockading the port, he prevented any who might wish to aid the queen, from doing so. And as the supplies were rapidly exhausted, he created such famine among those within that they were completely incapacitated. In truth, they were brought to such extreme need that they gave each soldier five choenices of grain per month [avg. ration had been one choenix per day], sawed up wood and fed the sawdust to the imprisoned elephants, and slaughtered the pack animals and horses for food. While the situation of the city was so serious and while Olympias was still clinging to hopes of rescue from outside, the elephants died from lack of nourishment, the horsemen that were not in the ranks and did not receive any food whatever nearly all perished, and no small number of the soldiers also met the same fate. Some of the non?Greeks, their natural needs overcoming their scruples, found flesh to eat by collecting the bodies of the dead. Since the city was being quickly filled with corpses, those in charge of the queen's company, though they buried some of the bodies, threw others over the city wall. The sight of these was horrible, and their stench was unbearable, not merely to ladies who were of the queen's court and addicted to luxury, but also to those of the soldiers who were habituated to hardship.

50. As spring came on and their want increased from day to day, many of the soldiers gathered together and appealed to Olympias to let them go because of the lack of supplies. Since she could neither issue any food at all nor break the siege, she permitted them to withdraw. Cassander, after welcoming all the deserters and treating them in most friendly fashion, sent them to the various cities; for he hoped that when the Macedonians learned from them how weak Olympias was, they would despair of her cause. And he was not mistaken in his surmise about what would happen: those who had resolved to fight on the side of the besieged forces changed their minds and went over to Cassander; and the only men in Macedonia to preserve their loyalty were Aristonous and Monimus, of whom Aristonous was ruler of Amphipolis and Monimus of Pella. But Olympias, when she saw that most of her friends had gone over to Cassander and that those who remained were not strong enough to come to her aid, attempted to launch a quinquereme and by this means to save herself and her friends. When, however, a deserter brought news of this attempt to the enemy and Cassander sailed up and took the ship, Olympias, recognizing that her situation was beyond hope, sent envoys to treat of terms. When Cassander gave his opinion that she must put all her interests into his hands, she with difficulty persuaded him to grant the single exception that he guarantee her personal safety. As soon as he had gained possession of the city, he sent men to take over Pella and Amphipolis. Now Monimus, the ruler of Pella, on hearing the fate of Olympias, surrendered his city; but Aristonous at first was minded to cling to his position, since he had many soldiers and had recently enjoyed a success. That is, a few days before this in a battle against Cassander's general Cratevas he had killed most of those who faced him, and when Cratevas himself with two thousand men had fled to Bedyndia in Bisaltia, he invested him, took him by siege, and dismissed him on terms after taking away his arms. Aristonous, encouraged by this and ignorant of the death of Eumenes, believing, moreover, that Alexander and Polyperchon would support him, refused to surrender Amphipolis. But when Olympias wrote to him demanding his loyalty and ordering him to surrender, he perceived that it was necessary to do as ordered and delivered the city to Cassander, receiving pledges for his own safety.

51. Cassander, seeing that Aristonous was respected because of the preferment he had received from Alexander, and being anxious to put out of the way any who were able to lead a revolt, caused his death through the agency of the kinsfolk of Cratevas. He also urged the relatives of those whom Olympias had slain to accuse the aforesaid woman in the general assembly of the Macedonians. They did as he had ordered; and, although Olympias was not present, and had none to speak in her defence, the Macedonians condemned her to death. Cassander, however, sent some of his friends to Olympias advising her to escape secretly, promising to provide a ship for her and to carry her to Athens. He acted thus, not for the purpose of securing her safety, but in order that she, condemning herself to exile and meeting death on the voyage, might seem to have met a punishment that was deserved; for he was acting with caution both because of her rank and because of the fickleness of the Macedonians. As Olympias, however, refused to flee but on the contrary was ready to be judged before all the Macedonians, Cassander, fearing that the crowd might change its mind if it heard the queen defend herself and was reminded of all the benefits conferred on the entire nation by Alexander and Philip, sent to her two hundred soldiers who were best fitted for such a task, ordering them to slay her as soon as possible. They, accordingly, broke into the royal house, but when they beheld Olympias, overawed by her exalted rank, they withdrew with their task unfulfilled. But the relatives of her victims, wishing to curry favour with Cassander as well as to avenge their dead, murdered the queen, who uttered no ignoble or womanish plea.

Such was the end of Olympias, who had attained to the highest dignity of the women of her day, having been daughter of Neoptolemus, king of the Epirotes, sister of the Alexander who made a campaign into Italy, and also wife of Philip, who was the mightiest of all who down to this time had ruled in Europe, and mother of Alexander, whose deeds were the greatest and most glorious.

52. As for Cassander, now that his affairs had succeeded according to his intentions, he began to embrace in his hopes the Macedonian kingdom. For this reason he married Thessalonice, who was Philip's daughter and Alexander's half?sister, since he desired to establish a connection with the royal house. He also founded on Pallene a city called Cassandreia after his own name, uniting with it as one city the cities of the peninsula, Potidaea, and a considerable number of the neighbouring towns. He also settled in this city those of the Olynthians who survived, not few in number. Since a great deal of land, and good land?too, was included within the boundaries of Cassandreia, and since Cassander was very ambitious for the city's increase, it quickly made great progress and became the strongest of the cities of Macedonia. Cassander had determined to do away with Alexander's son and the son's mother, Roxane, so that there might be no successor to the kingdom ? but for the present, since he wished to observe what the common people would say about the slaying of Olympias and since he had no news of Antigonus' success, he placed Roxane and the child in custody, transferring them to the citadel of Amphipolis, in command of which he placed Glaucias, one of his most, trusted henchmen. Also he took away the pages who, according to custom, were being brought up as companions of the boy, and he ordered that he should no longer have royal treatment but only such as was proper for any ordinary person of private station. After this, already conducting himself as a king in administering the affairs of the realm, he buried Eurydice and Philip, the queen and king, and also Cynna, whom Alcetas had slain, in Aegae as was the royal custom. After honouring the dead with funeral games, he enrolled those of the Macedonians who were fit for military service, for he had decided to make a campaign into the Peloponnesus. While Cassander was engaged with these matters, Polyperchon was being besieged in Azorius in Perrhaebia, but on hearing of the death of Olympias he finally, despairing of success in Macedonia, escaped from the city with a few followers. Leaving Thessaly and taking over the troops led by Aeacides, he withdrew into Aetolia, believing that he could wait there with greatest safety and observe the changes in the situation; for as it chanced he was on friendly terms with this people.

Diodorus Siculus, The Library of History, book 20

(308 BCE) 37. … Meanwhile Cleopatra quarrelled with Antigonus and, inclining to cast her lot with Ptolemy, she started from Sardis in order to cross over to him. She was the sister of Alexander the conqueror of Persia and daughter of Philip, son of Amyntas, and had been the wife of the Alexander who made an expedition into Italy. Because of the distinction of her descent Cassander and Lysimachus, as well as Antigonus and Ptolemy and in general all the leaders who were most important after Alexander's death, sought her hand; for each of them, hoping that the Macedonians would follow the lead of this marriage, was seeking alliance with the royal house in order thus to gain supreme power for himself. The governor of Sardis, who had orders from Antigonus to watch Cleopatra, prevented her departure; but later, as commanded by the prince, he treacherously brought about her death through the agency of certain women. But Antigonus, not wishing the murder to be laid at his door, punished some of the women for having plotted against her, and took care that the funeral should be conducted in royal fashion. Thus Cleopatra, after having been the prize in a contest among the most eminent leaders, met this fate before her marriage was brought to pass.