Alexander (grandson of Seleucus I Nicator)
Encyclopedia
Alexander was an Anatolia
n nobleman of Greek Macedonian
and Persian descent
who was a Seleucid official.
Alexander was the first son born to Achaeus
by an unnamed Greek
mother. His father Achaeus was a wealthy nobleman who owned estates in Anatolia. His family had power in Anatolia with strong royal connections. Alexander had three siblings, two sisters, Antiochis
and Laodice I
, and a brother Andromachus
. His father Achaeus was the second son of King Seleucus I Nicator
and his first wife Apama I
.
According to surviving inscriptions, Alexander was already active and held high positions under his paternal uncle Antiochus I Soter
. A surviving decree at Bargylia
honoring a judge from Teos
mentions Alexander as having been ‘left in charge’ by Antiochus I Soter, meaning that Alexander was some sort of governor in the Caria
region. The surviving decree at Bargylia dates from 270 BC-261 BC.
During the reign of his paternal cousin and brother-in-law Antiochus II Theos
, Alexander was a very powerful figure in Anatolia. Between 261 BC-244 BC in Magnesia ad Sipylum
, he is noted in writing a letter about land allotments granted to soldiers and he was honored at Tralles
.
In the year 240 BC Alexander was still loyal to his nephew Seleucus II Callinicus
, as he was the governor of Lydia
, based at Sardis
. In the civil war between Seleucus II Callinicus and his brother Antiochus Hierax
, Alexander supported his second nephew, and held Sardis against attacks by Seleucus II.
After the end of the civil war, nothing is known on Alexander. His namesake was his great-nephew Seleucus III Ceraunus
, whose name was Alexander until he succeeded his father Seleucus II Callinicus as King in 225 BC.
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
n nobleman of Greek Macedonian
Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...
and Persian descent
Persian people
The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...
who was a Seleucid official.
Alexander was the first son born to Achaeus
Achaeus (son of Seleucus I Nicator)
Achaeus was a Greek Macedonian nobleman and was the second son born to King and founder of the Seleucid Empire Seleucus I Nicator and Persian noblewoman Apama I. Achaeus was of Greek and Persian descent. He had three siblings: one brother the Seleucid King Antiochus I Soter and two sisters: Apama...
by an unnamed Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
mother. His father Achaeus was a wealthy nobleman who owned estates in Anatolia. His family had power in Anatolia with strong royal connections. Alexander had three siblings, two sisters, Antiochis
Antiochis
The name Antiochis, in Greek Ἀντιoχίς is the female name of Antiochus. Antiochis in Greek antiquity may refer to:-Hellenistic queens consort:*Antiochis, daughter of Achaeus, married to Attalus, and the mother of Attalus I, king of Pergamon...
and Laodice I
Laodice I
Laodice I was an Anatolian noblewoman who was a close relative of the early Seleucid Dynasty and was the first wife of the Seleucid Greek King Antiochus II Theos. -Family Background:...
, and a brother Andromachus
Andromachus
Andromachus was an Anatolian nobleman of Greek Macedonian and Persian descent. Andromachus’ father was a wealthy nobleman who owned estates in Anatolia and his family had power in Anatolia with strong royal connections. Andromachus was the second son of Achaeus by an unnamed Greek mother and a...
. His father Achaeus was the second son of King Seleucus I Nicator
Seleucus I Nicator
Seleucus I was a Macedonian officer of Alexander the Great and one of the Diadochi. In the Wars of the Diadochi that took place after Alexander's death, Seleucus established the Seleucid dynasty and the Seleucid Empire...
and his first wife Apama I
Apama
Apama , sometimes known as Apama I or Apame I was the wife of the first ruler of the Seleucid Empire, Seleucus I Nicator. They married at Susa in 324 BC...
.
According to surviving inscriptions, Alexander was already active and held high positions under his paternal uncle Antiochus I Soter
Antiochus I Soter
Antiochus I Soter , was a king of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire. He reigned from 281 BC - 261 BC....
. A surviving decree at Bargylia
Bogaziçi
Boğaziçi is the general term, specific to İstanbul and overlapping administrative divisions, used to denote those parts of the city with view of the Bosphorus...
honoring a judge from Teos
Teos
Teos or Teo was a maritime city of Ionia, on a peninsula between Chytrium and Myonnesus, colonized by Orchomenian Minyans, Ionians, and Boeotians. The city is situated on a low hilly narrow strip of land connecting two larger areas of land . Teos ranked among twelve cities comprising the Ionian...
mentions Alexander as having been ‘left in charge’ by Antiochus I Soter, meaning that Alexander was some sort of governor in the Caria
Caria
Caria was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined the Carian population in forming Greek-dominated states there...
region. The surviving decree at Bargylia dates from 270 BC-261 BC.
During the reign of his paternal cousin and brother-in-law Antiochus II Theos
Antiochus II Theos
Antiochus II Theos was a king of the Hellenistic Seleucid Kingdom who reigned 261 BC – 246 BC). He succeeded his father Antiochus I Soter in the winter of 262–61 BC...
, Alexander was a very powerful figure in Anatolia. Between 261 BC-244 BC in Magnesia ad Sipylum
Magnesia ad Sipylum
Magnesia ad Sipylum , was a city of Lydia, situated about 65 km northeast of Smyrna on the river Hermus at the foot of Mount Sipylus...
, he is noted in writing a letter about land allotments granted to soldiers and he was honored at Tralles
Aydin
Aydın is a city in and the seat of Aydın Province in Turkey's Aegean Region. The city is located at the heart of the lower valley of Büyük Menderes River at a commanding position for the region extending from the uplands of the valley down to the seacoast...
.
In the year 240 BC Alexander was still loyal to his nephew Seleucus II Callinicus
Seleucus II Callinicus
Seleucus II Callinicus or Pogon , was a ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire, who reigned from 246 to 225 BC...
, as he was the governor of Lydia
Lydia
Lydia was an Iron Age kingdom of western Asia Minor located generally east of ancient Ionia in the modern Turkish provinces of Manisa and inland İzmir. Its population spoke an Anatolian language known as Lydian....
, based at Sardis
Sardis
Sardis or Sardes was an ancient city at the location of modern Sart in Turkey's Manisa Province...
. In the civil war between Seleucus II Callinicus and his brother Antiochus Hierax
Antiochus Hierax
Antiochus Hierax , or Antiochus III, , so called from his grasping and ambitious character, was the younger son of Antiochus II and Laodice I and separatist leader in the Hellenistic Seleucid kingdom, who ruled as king of Syria during his brother's reign.On the death of his father, in 246 BCE,...
, Alexander supported his second nephew, and held Sardis against attacks by Seleucus II.
After the end of the civil war, nothing is known on Alexander. His namesake was his great-nephew Seleucus III Ceraunus
Seleucus III Ceraunus
Seleucus III Soter, called Seleucus Ceraunus , was a ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Kingdom, the eldest son of Seleucus II Callinicus and Laodice II. His birth name was Alexander and was named after his great uncle the Seleucid official Alexander...
, whose name was Alexander until he succeeded his father Seleucus II Callinicus as King in 225 BC.
Sources
- R.A. Billows, Kings and colonists: aspects of Macedonian imperialism, BRILL, 1995
- J.D. Grainger, A Seleukid prosopography and gazetteer, BRILL, 1997
- Seleucid genealogy
- Seleucus I Nicator article at Livius.org