Eumenes of Cardia a Greek Among Macedonians

Eumenes of Cardia Mnemosyne Supplements history and archaeology of classical antiquity Series Editor Hans van Wees (University College London) Associate Editors Jan Paul Crielaard (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam) Benet Salway (University College London) VOLUME 383 The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/mns-haca Eumenes of Cardia A Greek among Macedonians By Edward M. Anson LEIDEN | BOSTON Cover illustration: Left coin: silver tetradrachm depicting Ptolemy I Soter, issued by Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285–246 BC); right coin: silver tetradrachm depicting Zeus, issued in the reign of Philip II, King of Macedonia (359–336 BC). Courtesy of the author. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Anson, Edward. Eumenes of Cardia : a Greek among Macedonians / by Edward M. Anson. — Second edition. pages cm — (Mnemosyne Supplements, History and Archaeology of Classical Antiquity, ISSN 2352-8656 ; volume 383) Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn 978-90-04-29715-9 (hardback : alk. paper) — isbn 978-90-04-29717-3 (e-book) 1. Eumenes, of Cardia, 362 B.C. or 361 B.C.–316 B.C. or 315 B.C. 2. Greece—History—Macedonian Hegemony, 323–281 B.C. 3. Macedonia—History—Diadochi, 323-276 B.C. 4. Generals—Greece—Biography. i. Title. DF235.48.E96A57 2015 938’.07092—dc23 [B] 2015017742 This publication has been typeset in the multilingual “Brill” typeface. With over 5,100 characters covering Latin, IPA, Greek, and Cyrillic, this typeface is especially suitable for use in the humanities. For more information, please see www.brill.com/brill-typeface. The first edition of this title was published as volume 3 in the Brill series Studies in Philo of Alexandria, under ISBN 978-03-91-04209-4. issn 2352-8656 isbn 978-90-04-29715-9 (hardback) isbn 978-90-04-29717-3 (e-book) Copyright 2015 by Koninklijke Brill nv, Leiden, The Netherlands. Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Brill Hes & De Graaf, Brill Nijhoff, Brill Rodopi and Hotei Publishing. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Koninklijke Brill nv provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, ma 01923, usa. Fees are subject to change. This book is printed on acid-free paper. In Memoriam Lucy Dorothy Meyer Anson ∵ Contents Preface viii Abbreviations xi Chronology xiv Maps Greece and the Aegean Area xvii The Ancient Near East xviii Introduction 1 1 The Sources 4 2 From Cardia to Babylon 41 3 From Babylon to Cappadocia 58 4 From Cappadocia to Triparadeisus 88 Appendix: Low or High Chronology? 128 5 “The Fickleness of Fortune” 132 6 The Reckoning with Antigonus 163 Appendix: The Chronology from Nora to Eumenes’ Death 206 7 Greeks and Macedonians 213 8 “A Greek among Macedonians” 241 Bibliography 263 Index 286 Preface I feel I’ve known Eumenes for most of my life. When I first encountered the Cardian in the Fall of 1968, he was a figure who had received little attention from modern biographers. The only book length work then was August Vezin’s Eumenes von Karia Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte der Diadochenzeit, published in 1907. Since then Eumenes has received quite a bit more attention, with two biographies, one in English (Anson: 1975; 2004B) and another in German (Schäfer: 2002), having appeared. Indeed, given that I am here introducing a second, revised, corrected, and updated version of my original Brill biography, shows clearly that Eumenes along with the Hellenistic Era itself has under- gone a considerable surge of interest. This new edition reflects ten years of very profitable research on the Hellenistic Age. As you will note in the bibliography, there are references to more than 80 works cited in this new edition produced since the appearance of the first edition. While the discovery of datable papyri from Nabataea and additional cuneiform tablets from Babylonia have added much to our information concerning the period, they have also given cause for further controversy, especially concerning the chronology of the early Hellenistic Age. Much of the new scholarship has concentrated on the oth- ers who made up Alexander’s empire, those non Greek and Macedonian ele- ments. As will be noted in the text, the army that was present in Babylon when Alexander died was primarily Asian in its composition. Moreover, with respect to the Successors, the Diadochs, themselves, the old view that there were those whose rapacity was grand, but also those whose ambitions were more circum- spect has been seriously challenged, with the current prevailing assessment suggesting that all were similar in their desire to control as much of Alexander’s old empire as they possibly could. The argument over the governmental traditions of Macedonia and their effect on the Age created by Alexander’s con- quests has not abated. My current view and the one expressed in this new edition is that apart from the tradition of monarchy and Argead rule, there were virtually no true political traditions. With respect to the Cardian com- mander himself, my general assessment has remained in the main unchanged, but it has been placed in a clearer context that suggests that his problems were neither unique nor insurmountable. That he failed to survive the first decade of the Hellenistic Age remains the result of his divided command coupled with a clever, opportunistic, and highly skilled opponent. One aspect of this career, or, perhaps, more accurately his death, however, was not emphasized enough pre- viously. His death along with that of Alexander’s mother at roughly the same time marked the effective end of the Argead monarchy. While Eumenes, as will Preface ix be shown, may have been a very disingenuous supporter of Alexander’s offi- cial heirs, the “Kings,” finding this “loyalty” to be very politically useful in his final campaign, his death closely followed by that of Olympias, changed the dynamic of conflict for the rest of the Hellenistic Age. Those who survived this Second War of the Successors moved increasingly towards kingship in their own right. While the actual proclamations do not begin until 306, this second war saw the death of the elder member of this dual monarchy, Alexander’s brother Arrhidaeus or Philip III, and the imprisonment of Alexander’s son Alexander IV. For all intents and purposes the dual monarchy was now openly a farce. Eumenes’ career, rather paradoxically, also witnessed the last great instance of a Macedonian army unit exercising its authority. Unfortunately for Eumenes, that last action resulted in this death, but also saw the end of the central importance of Alexander’s old Macedonian forces in the conflict. The Cardian’s career, in fact, parallels the rise and fall of the political power of the Macedonian troops as a major player in the political strife. Beginning with the chaos that followed Alexander’s death, these Macedonians meeting in assembly had an independent and powerful, yet fleeting, impact on the early years of this new age. Beginning shortly after the Conqueror’s death these troops meeting in assembly created a king, condemned prominent leaders, and became an active player in the course of events. With Eumenes’ defeat and death, these assemblies declined in their frequency and in their independence, becoming, as they had been during the reign of Alexander himself, ad hoc affairs, assemblages summoned for the primary purpose of stirring troops to action (Errington 1978: 77–133; Anson 1985: 303–16; 1991: 230–47; 2008B: 135–49; 2013A: 21–5, 26–42). There are many who have aided in the production of this new edition, but I would especially like to acknowledge my indebtedness to the staff of our University’s Ottenheimer Library, and in particular those in the interlibrary loan and acquisitions departments, not just for their help in securing materials for this work, but for their efforts over our long association. Without these individuals my research would have been greatly handicapped. From my first visit to the Library back, well, a long time ago, they have been more than helpful. Our library is not a major research library, but I have never believed myself berift of the materials that I needed to do my work. In particular, I wish to thank Mr. John Hill, Director of Public Services; Ms. Maureen James, Collections Development; Ms. Emily Ray, Mr. Mark Pellegrini, Mr. John Warrick, Acquisitions; and Ms. Kayle Cossey, Ms. Marissa Spencer, Interlibrary Loan. Along these same lines, there is another group connected to the University that I would also like specially to thank. The University History Institute is a town-and-gown collaboration founded in 1988. The Institute is made up of x Preface subscribers who pay an annual fee or obtain life memberships to hear a series of talks presented by members of the History Department and invited guests in a convivial setting. The money raised from the subscriptions is donated to the Library, which then matches these funds, for the purchase of research materials for the History faculty. As one of those who over the years has benefitted significantly, I do wish to thank them specially. The original impetus for this organization came from two of my colleagues, Professors Carl H. Moneyhon and the late T. Harri Baker. As with my other works, I would be remiss not to thank my wife Jeanne for again reading and commenting on various drafts of the current work.

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