Alexander's succesor

[karla]

Hi all, I was just wondering as to why Alexander didn't
name a specific succesor when he died.
Granting that the "to the strongest" quote is
accurate, why did he not want to just choose
someone himself? Was it because of his
delirium caused by the illness that he couldn't
think straight? Or did he just basically want
them to fight for it? Also, what does appointing
Perdikas as regent indicate exactly? Did that
mean that he knew that either of his wives were
pregnant, so he is appointing a regent until his
heir is old enough to rule? I suppose figuring the answers can indicate as
to what his original goals were from the
beginning. If he wanted to create a kingdom,
and have it remain intact, wouldn't the existence
os that kindgom be more secure if he just
appointed a succesor? On the other hand, if
what drove him to do all that he did was the
great desire for discovery, adventure, glory
(pothos, if you will), then I suppose it mattered
less who took over the kingdom since he
wouldn't be there to enjoy what was to come......Thanks for any feedback
-karla

[marcus]

Hi Karla,This is always going to be one of the great imponderables, unfortunately.Yes, Alexander almost certainly knew that Roxane was pregnant, which would of course account for appointing a regent.However, there's considerable doubt that the business about "to the strongest" ever happened. As one of the 'symptoms' of his illness is clearly stated as being loss of speech, it would be quite remarkable if he suddenly roused himself sufficiently to speak...All the bestMarcus

[beausefaless]

MarcusIskander_32 made a very good point when he said it's very strange, through speculation, that there's no written record of any of the other solders obtaining them pesky little parasites that cause malaria except for maybe Hephaistion. During the time period of Alexander's death there's a good amount of people in this forum that will comprehend what they want to hear, (the malaria theory) including an incubation period, I could be guilty of the same (the poison theory). So its safe to say there's a broad array of symptoms that may be seen with the deadliest species of malaria. Why do the ancient historians care to mention stories of poison only to denounce them in the same paragraph? How much fiction did they incorporate to keep the readers from falling asleep? What type of malaria did Alexander die from? Why did Aristobulus tells us, that in the rage of his fever and a violent thirst, he took a draught of wine, upon which he fell into delirium, and died on the thirtieth day of the month Daesius. Too many questions with no definite answers.All the bestAndrew

[yiannis]

What about the alleged least words of Alexander? They were purposively able to be interpreted as: to "kratistos" (in Greek: the strongest) or: to "Krateros" (no need to explain!).

[marcus]

Hi Andrew,I think you're saying that loss of speech was not necessarily a 'true' symptom of whatever it was that killed Alexander? You're not wrong, of course. While I don't subscribe to the poison theory myself, I certainly can't say what *did* kill Alexander, and so I can't vouch for the validity of the reported loss of speech.On the other hand, my instinct tells me that loss of speech is more likely than the "kratistos" story - partly because I don't think Alexander would have been so cavalier about the fate of his empire; and partly because he had already given Perdikkas his ring, which doesn't make sense if he then announced an open tag-team event for control of the empire.All the bestMarcus

[smittysmitty]

It is a very interesting point, why did he not nominate a successor?
Off the top of my head, I don't recall any Argead monarch nominating a successor., as each king died, who-ever put their hand up and was strong enough (with assembly/partisan backing) to stake their claim became king., and in the event they were not King they were Regent, not that I can see much difference between the titles.Perhaps, thats where the 'best/strongest man' concept originates? In any event, their was a successor, and with the division of the empire we end up with multiple successors :)cheers!

[marcus]

Hi Smitty,I suppose you're right, to some extent, inasmuch as we don't know whether Philip ever said "I leave my kingdom to Alexander". But the difference, perhaps, is that the way Alexander had been groomed, and as Philip's son, suggested at least very strongly that he was the designated heir.That's the problem when you get assassinated, isn't it? (Or die of malaria, or West Nile Fever, or whatever)... you don't get much time to sort out your affairs :-)MArcus

[tino]

According to the book on Philip II by George Cawkwell it is very likely that Alexander indeed did nominate 'the strongest' as he knew the traditional method of acclaiming the Macedonian king lay in the army in the final instanst anyways, just as his father had supplanted the son of Perdiccas to the throne.

[marcus]

There has been some argument over whether the army really did have any power as far as the nomination of a successor was concerned. There is a difference between "proclaiming" and "acclaiming" a king, and it remains unclear whether a nominated successor who was not "acclaimed" by the Assembly was effectively able to take up the reins of government.However, there are two issues, really - first, if Alexander had lost the power of speech then he could only have replied to the question if he wrote it down (which is possible); and second, the question whether he would have acted so "irresponsibly".All the bestMarcus

[smittysmitty]

I think you misunderstand the point being made , irrespective of whether ATG had/had not been able to communicate, his wish would have no place in determining who would be the next in line. It would entirely be up to the person staking the claim and his ability to convince 1) the king makers 2)the assembly and3) finally the populace as to whether he would be king. This is the pattern that the previous two Kings, Alexander and his father Philip,had to go through and it would be no different with the next in line.cheers!