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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 08 May 2015
The purpose of this article is to review the evidence upon the chronology of the Greek attempt under the leadership of King Agis of Sparta to throw off Macedonian domination, on which two totally different views have recently been stated. The date of the war must form the basis of any consideration of the strategic soundness of Agis’ campaign and Alexander’s reaction to it and it is therefore important in any evaluation of Agis and Alexander as generals and statesmen. It is necessary to begin by setting out the evidence in full.
1 Badian, E. ‘Agis III’, Hermes 95 (1967), 170–92, especially 190–2;Google ScholarCawkwell, G.L. ‘The crowning of Demosthenes’, CQ 19 (1969), 163–80, especially 169–73, with bibliography 170.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
2 For discussion of this evidence on the length of Agis’ reign, see n. 48.
3 On the Athenian archon years see Tod, M.N.Greek Historical Inscriptions, Vol.2 (Oxford, 1948). P. 316.Google Scholar
4 Darius was killed in July 330 according to Arrian iii 22.2.
5 For a useful summary of the literature on the date see Hamilton, J.R.Commentary on Plutarch’s Life of Alexander (Oxford, 1969), p. 81.Google Scholar The dates suggested are 27 Sept., 30 Sept., 1 Oct. Hamilton favours the last.
6 Ibid. pp. 98 f. I have allowed a month for Alexander’s march over the mountains to Bactra.
7 Cawkwell argues that this does not refer to the Agis war, but see below. On dating see also below.
8 τά δέ έν Πελοποννήσω δτι αύτφ νενεωτερίσθαι άπήγγελτο. Contra Robson, E.Arrian, History of Alexander and Indica (London, 1929), Vol.1, p. 239,Google Scholar ‘Learning that things in the Peloponnese had taken a turn towards revolt in his favour’. For the dative after νεωτερίζειν cf. Thuc. iv 41.3.
9 See below n. 50.
10 Λακεδαιμόνιοι δ'οί ταλαίπωροι, … νυν όμηρεύσοντες καί της συμφοράς έπίδειξιν ποιησόμενοι μέλλουσιν ώς Άλέξανδρον άναπέμπεσθαι, τούτο πεισόμενοι καΐ αύτοί καΐ ή πατρίς 8 τι αν έκείνω δόξη, καί έν τη του κρατούντος καΐ προηδικημένου μετριότητι κριθήσονται.
11 The Pythian games were due soon (Aeschines iii 254) : they were held in the late summer or early autumn.
12 Λακεδαιμόνιοι μέν καί το ξενικόν έπέτυχον μάχη καί διέφθειραν τούς περί Κόρραγον στρατιώτας, Ηλείοι δ’ αύτοΐς συμμετεβάλοντο καί Αχαιοί πάντες πλην Πελληναίων καί Αρκαδία πδσα πλήν Μεγάλης πόλεως, αΰτη δέ έπολιορκεϊτο καί καθ' έκάστην ήμέραν έπίδοξος ήν άλώναι, ó δ’ Αλέξανδρος έξω της άρκτου καί της οικουμένης όλίγου δεΐν πάσης μεθειστήκει, ó δέ Αντίπατρος πολύν χρόνον συνήγε στρατόπεδον, τό 8' έσόμενον αδηλον ήν.
13 δτε Λακεδαιμόνιοι μεν άπαντες έξεστράτευσαν, Αχαιοί δέ καί Ηλείοι τών πραγμάτων έκοινώνουν, ύπήρχον δέ ξένοι μύριοι, Αλέξανδρος δέ (ώς οι λέγοντες) έν Ίνδοΐς ήν, ή δέ Ελλάς άπασα διά τούς έν έκάστη τών πόλεων προδότας άχθομένη τοις παροϋοΊ πράγμασιν ήσμένει μεταβολήν τινα τών κακών τών παρεστηκότων.
14 Op. cit. 190–2.
15 Op. cit. 173.
16 Ibid, 171.
17 Arrian iii 19. 5. Probably in June, about a month before Darius’ death. See Milns, R.D. ‘Alexander’s pursuit of Darius through Iran’, Historia 15 (1966), 256 on the dating.Google Scholar
18 The date of the death of Alexander of Epirus cannot be exactly determined. Livy (viii 24) says that he was killed in the same year as Alexandria was founded, that is April 331; this may be taken as supporting Justin, but it will depend on what year Livy, or his source, was using for computation. More decisive is a passage of Aeschines (iii 242), which mentions that Ctesiphon had recently been elected to go with condolences to Cleopatra, the widow of Alexander. This speech was delivered in July/August 330 and therefore this may corroborate a date of late 331 /early 330 for the death of Alexander. Cf. Hammond, N.G.L.Epirus (Oxford, 1967), p. 558,Google ScholarBerve, H.Das Alexanderreich (Munich, 1926), Vol.2 (= Berve ii), no. 38.Google Scholar
19 Justin may be using Pontus to designate the Black Sea area in general. This is made more likely by a reference in Curtius (x 10. 4) to the Pontic nations adjoining Thrace, which were allotted to Lysimachus along with Thrace after Alexander’s death. There is no evidence that they ever formed a separate district under Alexander.
20 Berve ii, nos 340 and 499. Memnon brought 5,000 cavalry from Thrace to Alexander at the River Hydaspes late in 326 (Curtius ix 3. 21 : he mistakenly says the River Acesines). It is logical to suppose from this that Memnon remained governor of Thrace until asked to recruit a force of cavalry from his province and bring them to Alexander.
21 See below, n. 49.
22 Op. cit. 191.
23 Op. cit 172.
24 An anecdote in Plutarch (Mor. 818 e) refers to an occasion when the Athenian people were eager to send triremes to those revolting from Alexander. They were urging that money be made available for this purpose, but Demades explained that if this were done there would be no money for distribution at the Choes festival. It has been disputed whether this is historical or not (cf. Cawkwell, op. cit. 173, n. 2) but I agree with Cawkwell that the setting of the story may be right. There is no indication of the date of the incident, except that the Choes festival, which took place in February, was presumably fairly close. Demades was in charge of the war funds from 334 to 331 (Berve ii, no. 252) and the time referred to could be winter 333/2, 332/1, or, if Cawkwell's dating is accepted, 331/0. There is nothing in Plutarch to help a decision. Berve assumes it belongs to 331, Thalheim (REIV 2. 2703) dates it to 330. It could also refer to winter 333/2, when Agis was mounting an offensive. On this see Badián, op. cit. 176. The anecdote is really no help in dating the beginning of the war. Agis must have been working continuously, through agents at Athens, to secure Athenian support against Alexander and no doubt made several direct appeals, but it is not possible to date them. It is not necessary to assume that Agis made an appeal at the beginning of the revolt.
25 I agree with Badian that there is no good reason to detach the revolt of Memnon from the beginning of the Agis war (op. cit. 191). Diodorus is our only source for the war and he is quite definite that it occurred just before the outbreak of the Agis uprising (xvii 62. 4; 63. 1). Cf. Berve ii, no. 499.
26 Op. cit. 182 f.
27 Diodorus and Curtius are clearly drawing upon a common ultimate source here. In chronological differences Arrian should almost always be preferred. On this see Berve ii, no. 507.
28 It is the first item in this year in Diodorus’ narrative, which should strictly mean that it started not earlier than summer (July) 330, but perhaps not much later than this. However, Diodorus is quite confused about his divisions into years and little significance can perhaps be attached to them. But some explanation of why Diodorus changed years at this point is needed. Badian (op. cit. 170 and 191) suggests that Diodorus may have been confused by a change of scene from Asia to Europe in his source and thought there was also a change of year. Fontana, M. ‘Sulla cronologia del XVII libro di Diodoro’, Kokalos 2 (1956), 37–49,Google Scholar argues that Diodorus was confused by the difference between the Attic year, starting in July/August, and the Macedonian year, starting in September/October. This theory, however, seems to require that Diodorus used more than one source, which is unlikely, see note 34. The problem remains unresolved. See also note 38.
29 On the date of Alexander’s arrival at Susa see n. 50. It is difficult to calculate with any accuracy how fast communications between Greece and the expeditionary force of Alexander were. Badián may be right that it varied a lot (op. cit., 189). It is unlikely that Alexander had communications as well organized as the Persians (Herod, v 52; viii 98), but six weeks seems to allow plenty of time; the road from Sardis to Susa was good.
30 See note 28. Even if no significance is attached to the year division in Diodorus, his statement that the Greeks were moved to revolt by news of the battle at Gaugamela would suggest that the revolt would not have started until well into 330 B.c., allowing time for the news to travel and preparations to be made.
31 Most recently Bradford Welles, C.Diodorus Siculus, Vol.8 (London, 1963), p.8 n. 1.Google Scholar
32 Badian, op. cit. 191, Cawkwell, op. cit. 171.
33 See n. 32.
34 Diodorus probably used only one source (Welles, op. cit. p. 10) and is therefore not likely to have been persuaded to move the account.
35 As Badian suggested, op. cit. 170 f.
36 Niese, B.Geschichte der griechischen und makedonischen Staaten (Gotha, 1893), Vol. 1, p. 497.Google Scholar
37 On Diodorus’ methods see Welles, op. cit., Introduction with bibliography.
38 The question whether it was Diodorus or his source who was responsible for placing the narrative of the war in the Attic year 330/329 remains open, see note 28. If Diodorus used only one source, then it seems possible that it was the source that was responsible. As a tradition seems to have been established which made the Agis war take place while Alexander was approaching India, it is not unlikely that it came to be dated 330/329 B.C. See further below, esp. note 43.
39 Op. cit. p. 498.
40 Most recently on Curtius, see McQueen, E.I. ‘Quintus Curtius Rufus’, in Latin Biography (ed. Dorey, T.A.London, 1967).Google Scholar
41 He seems to have read Ptolemy, who is probably Arrian’s source (ix 5. 21).
42 It was an event which attracted anecdotes. For another see Plutarch, Ages. 15. 4 εΌικεν, ώ άνδρες, δτε Δαρεΐον ήμεϊς ένικώμεν ένταυθα, έκεί τις έν Αρκαδία γεγονέναι μυομαχία. ‘It appears, my friends, that while we were conquering Darius here, there in Arcadia, a battle of mice has occurred.’
43 It is difficult not to see a direct connection between the dating of the war in Diodorus to the archon year 330/329 and this passage of Curtius. The one so clearly leads on to the other; if the war happened in this year then Alexander would have heard of it in this year. Curtius connects the news of the Agis war with the expedition in the territory of the Arii and it is quite certain that a common source lies behind the accounts of Curtius and Diodorus on this incident (Curtius vii 4. 33, Diodorus xvii 83. 4). Although Diodorus makes no mention of the Agis war here, the character of the story which it introduces is not consistent with the character of Diodorus’ work and he would certainly have omitted it even had he found it in his source. But whatever the direct connection between the two references to the war, it seems certain that they are connected with a common tradition.
44 Milns, R.D. ‘Alexander’s pursuit of Darius through Iran’, Historia 15 (1966), 256,Google Scholar has calculated that Cyrus with his force averaged eleven miles a day when moving as quickly as possible (Xen. Anab. i 4. 19–i 8. 1).
45 Dudley, L.Stamp, Afrka (New York, 1953), p. 205,Google Scholar states that there cannot be said to be a spring or autumn in Egypt. Winter goes from November to April and summer from May to October. Corn is harvested in February and other crops in April or May. There does not seem to be any basis for a decision upon when spring could be said to be making its appearance. The opening of the sailing season was celebrated on 5 March by the ceremony of the navigium Isidis (Merkelbach, R.Isisfeste in griechisch-römischer Zeit. Daten und Riten [Meisenheim, 1963], p. 39),Google Scholar but it is unlikely that Arrian was thinking of this. Most probably Arrian did not know when Alexander left Egypt and he simply made a rough estimate.
46 Welles, C.B. ‘The discovery of Sarapis and the foundation of Alexandria’, Historia 11 (1962), 271–98, especially 284.Google ScholarGoukowsky, P. ‘Clitarque seul? Remarques sur les sources du livre XVII de Diodore de Sicile’, REA 71 (1969), 320–37, esp. 322–6,CrossRefGoogle Scholar argues for a return to a date of 20 January 331 B.C., following Wilcken, U. ‘Alexanders Zug in die Oase Siwa’, Sitzungsberkhte der Berliner Akademie (1928), 579 n. 3, andGoogle ScholarJouguet, P. ‘La date alexandrine de la fondation d’Alexandrie’, REA 42 (1940), 192–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar But his case does not seem convincing.
47 Arrian (iii 5) makes it clear that Memphis was Alexander’s base in Egypt.
48 Op. cit. p. 498. Diodorus’ information that Agis reigned for nine years cannot be used as any indication of the year in which the battle of Megalopolis was fought. There is too much uncertainty about Diodorus’ (or his source’s) method of counting. See Badian, op. cit. 170.
49 Aeschines (iii 254) states that the Pythian games and a Council meeting were imminent. Curtius (iv 5. 11 ) states that a meeting of the Council coincided with the Isthmian games in 332. On the dates of the meetings of the Council see most recently Ryder, T.T.B.Koine Eirene (London, 1965), p. 162.Google Scholar On the date of the Isthmian games, RE IX 2. 2249.
50 Badian, op. cit. 185, calculates that the march from Gaugamela to Susa took about ten weeks : from Gaugamela to Babylon two weeks (Curtius v 1. 39), thirty-four days at Babylon (Curtius v 1. 39), twenty days from Babylon to Susa (Arrian iii 16. 7). This may be an underestimation and perhaps another week or so should be allowed, making Alexander’s arrival at Susa some time towards the end of December.
51 Op. cit. 187.
52 Badian, op. cit. 179, suggests that Memnon knew of Agis’ plans and that this encouraged him to revolt. This is possible but there is no way of deciding upon the nature of the connection.
