61 Facts About Perdiccas

Perdiccas was a Macedonian general, successor of Alexander the Great, and regent of Alexander's empire after his death.

Perdiccas gained supreme power but inherited the problems of Alexander's quickly conquered and unstable empire.

Perdiccas had a brother called Alcetas and a sister, Atalante, who married Attalus.

An anecdote reports that Perdiccas once went into the cave of a lioness who had recently gave birth, and stole two of its cubs.

Perdiccas led a contingent which stormed the rear gate of the city, and was heavily wounded during the fighting.

Sources generally agree that Perdiccas was a loyal soldier of Alexander.

Perdiccas led his battalion at the battles of Granicus, Issus, and Gaugamela, where he again distinguished himself and was wounded.

When Philotas, the son of Parmenion and an important general in Alexander's army, was held in suspicion by the king, Perdiccas was among the close companions who joined Alexander in discussing what should be done.

Perdiccas later plundered around Sangala, and assaulted and sacked the Mallian towns.

Alexander was wounded in this campaign, having been shot in the chest with an arrow that penetrated his armor; some traditions say Perdiccas was the one who cut the arrow out with a sword and saved the king's life.

When Hephaestion unexpectedly died the same year, Perdiccas was appointed his successor as commander of the Companion cavalry and chiliarch, effectively becoming Alexander's second-in-command.

Perdiccas was entrusted with the responsibility of transferring Hephaestion's corpse to Babylon for burning and burial.

Perdiccas was very influential at this point, as a close friend of Alexander, his second-in-command, and possessing the signet ring Alexander gave him.

Perdiccas, having placed the ring he received from Alexander on the throne, along with the royal robes and diadem, proposed that a final decision wait until Alexander's wife Roxana, who was pregnant, had given birth; if the unborn child was a boy, then Perdiccas proposed that the child be chosen as the new king.

Perdiccas joined the generals outside of Babylon and put the city to siege, cutting off the supply lines.

Perdiccas announced Philip III and the unborn child of Alexander's wife Roxana would be recognized as joint kings to placate Meleager.

Perdiccas then sent Philip III to order the capture the rebellious leaders of the infantry, except for Meleager.

Perdiccas had these 300 men killed by trampling from his war elephants.

Perdiccas soon showed himself intolerant of any rivals and, acting in the name of the two kings, sought to hold the empire together under his own hand.

Perdiccas oversaw the distribution of satrapies to the other generals, sending away officers who threatened his authority.

Perdiccas attached Cleomenes of Naucratis to Ptolemy in Egypt as a lieutenant.

The men who remained at court with Perdiccas were probably those he could trust: his brother Alcetas, his brother-in-law Attalus, Seleucus, and Aristonous.

Perdiccas procured Alexander's "Last Plans" through the help of Eumenes, read the plans out before the army, and rejected them.

Alexander's wife Roxana gave birth and Perdiccas took guardianship over Alexander IV.

Perdiccas thus used his authority as regent of the joint kings to order Leonnatus and Antigonus to aid Eumenes in securing his satrapy.

Perdiccas probably gave Eumenes 5000 talents of gold for the reconquest of Cappadocia, allowing Eumenes to hire mercenaries.

Leonnatus told Eumenes of his plan to head west, attempting to convince him to join him; Eumenes refused and departed to Perdiccas' court, informing him of Leonnatus' intentions.

Perdiccas ordered Leonnatus to appear before him to stand trial for disobedience, but Leonnatus died during the Lamian War before the order reached him.

At some time during the first year of his reign, Perdiccas crowned Alexander IV, Roxana and Alexander's child, as king alongside Philip III.

Eumenes urged Perdiccas to marry Cleopatra, while Perdiccas' brother Alcetas advised marriage to Nicaea.

Alcetas' faction believed that Perdiccas, in control of the royals, imperial army, and treasuries, could afford to wait for Antipater's death instead of incurring his wrath; Eumenes' faction argued Perdiccas ought to begin to formally rule and that the dual kingship of Philip III and Alexander IV was a sham.

Perdiccas decided that he wished to win the Macedonian throne, and had designed a plan for this; marriage to Cleopatra, and the return of Alexander's body, son, and brother to Macedonia with Olympias' approval which, combined, would have made him "invincible" and virtually guaranteed the kingship.

Perdiccas, knowing this marriage would undermine his control over Philip III, sent an army under his brother Alcetas to order Cynane to return to Macedon.

Whether Perdiccas ordered this killing or not is debated, but it initiated a reversal of his ascendancy; "His officers grew increasingly suspicious of his aspirations, the common soldier was alienated by his acts of barbarity".

Perdiccas' army was furious at Cynane's murder and effectively mutinied.

Perdiccas had, in the meantime, ordered Antigonus to stand trial for insubordination and other charges.

Antigonus was an entrenched and powerful satrap in Asia Minor; his refusal of Perdiccas' order undermined the authority of his government and Perdiccas wanted to rectify this.

Perdiccas had informed Arrhidaeus of his plans, but Arrhidaeus began conveying Alexander's body to Egypt instead of Macedon, and met no resistance as he did so.

Perdiccas, enraged by this news, sent an army to recover the body, but Ptolemy defeated this force and successfully brought Alexander's remains back to Egypt, where they were housed in the city of Memphis.

Perdiccas' strategy was for his supporters to hold Asia Minor against Antipater and Craterus while he brought the royal army, and kings, south to eliminate Ptolemy.

Perdiccas gave Eumenes of Cardia supreme command to hold the Hellespont, and ordered Alcetas and Neoptolemus to obey Eumenes.

Perdiccas probably expected to be able to defeat Ptolemy and then turn to combat Antipater and Craterus.

Perdiccas prepared a fleet there while sending Docimus to Babylon to supplant the satrap Archon for collusion with Ptolemy.

Perdiccas prepared another fleet, led by Sosigenes of Rhodes and Aristonous, to conquer Cyprus and the Cypriot kings who had allied themselves to Ptolemy.

Docimus conquered Babylon and killed Archon in battle, while Perdiccas reached Damascus and deposed Laomedon, satrap of Syria for Ptolemaic sympathies.

Ptolemy had been fortifying his satrapy for two years, believing war with Perdiccas was highly likely, and this greatly contributed to Perdiccas' difficulties and ultimate defeat.

Perdiccas reached the most easterly tributary of the Nile near Pelusium, and discovered that the opposite side was garrisoned.

Perdiccas had his troops construct a dam, probably intending to lower the water levels to ease a crossing, but the force of the river broke it apart.

Perdiccas travelled swiftly upstream to find a suitable point to cross, soon coming across a ford which led to the cities of Tanis and Avaris on the other side of the Nile.

Perdiccas then ordered his army to attack, leading a "daring" assault on the fortress at dawn.

Perdiccas' deployed his war elephants first, then the hypaspists and Silver Shields, leading the cavalry in the rear in case Ptolemy arrived.

Perdiccas's infantry attempted to escalade the walls while his elephants destroyed Ptolemaic defenses.

Perdiccas had no choice but to return with his men.

Anson notes that "if the news of Eumenes' victory over Craterus had arrived sooner, the entire history of the post-Alexander era might have been dramatically altered; Perdiccas might have emerged supreme, the successor of Alexander and the ruler of the vast Macedonian empire, with the inauguration of a new royal family".

The ancient accounts are largely negative toward Perdiccas, claiming that, though "outstanding on the battlefield", he was arrogant, high-handed, and imperious.

Perdiccas's rule was authoritarian and abrasive, winning him little love from the rank and file, and his punishments were often brutal.

Anson believes that Perdiccas "was not a man to be crossed" and that "most acceded to his demands in his presence rather than incur his wrath".

Waterfield believes that since Perdiccas represented direct succession from Alexander himself, his assassination was a "momentous step".

Perdiccas' motives are debated, though he is typically held to have acted from ambition.

Whether for ambition or loyalty, it is agreed that Perdiccas sought to "hold Alexander's legacy intact".

The regime that succeeded Perdiccas following the Partition of Triparadisus lasted only a few years, shorter than Perdiccas' regency.