Dividing the Spoils: The War for Alexander the Great's Empire (Ancient Warfare and Civilization)

Review "Mass battlefield slaughter, treachery, assassinations, intrigues-ancient Greek politics as usual? Not quite: for this is the Age of the Wars of the Succession to Alexander the Great, on the cusp between eastern and western civilization and the Greek and Roman worlds, and also an epoch of unusual creativity especially in the fields of philosophy, literature, and the visual arts. Dr. Robin Waterfield's coruscating cultural-political narrative does full and equal justice to all the major dimensions of this extraordinary half-century."- Paul Cartledge, AG Leventis Professor of Greek Culture, Cambridge University, and the author of Alexander the Great: The Hunt for a New Past "A gripping and often unsettling account of a formative period of ancient history. As Robin Waterfield points out, it deserves to be far better known than it is-and now, thanks to the author himself, it is as accessible as it has ever been."-Tom Holland, author of Rubicon: The Last Years of the Roman Republic and Persian Fire: The First World Empire and the Battle for the West "Few epochs in history are more action-packed than the Age of the Diadochi, the successors of Alexander the Great. Distinguished translator Robin Waterfield brings to life the vibrant personalities of this event-filled era, revealing as well new trends in philosophy and art that foreshadowed the Hellenistic Age and the coming of Rome." -Lawrence A. Tritle, Professor of History, Loyola Marymount University, and author of A New History of the Peloponnesian War "Waterfield efficiently traces the endlessly shifting military and marital alliances among the great successor families. His spare account manages to serve both as a military and as a cultural history of a great age of transition. Recommended for anybody interested in the classical era." -_Library_ Journal "A superb examination of a critical but often neglected period of ancient history." -_Booklist_ "Politics, warfare, and culture are brilliantly captured in this fascinating account, fully supported by maps, genealogies, and mini-bios of key players, together with black-and-white plates, bibliography, and index. An essential Who's Who for any student of this remarkable transformational period." -_ForeWord_ Product Description Alexander the Great conquered an enormous empire--stretching from Greece to the Indian subcontinent--and his death triggered forty bloody years of world-changing warfare. These were years filled with high adventure, intrigue, passion, assassinations, dynastic marriages, treachery, shifting alliances, and mass slaughter on battlefield after battlefield. And while the men fought on the field, the women, such as Alexander's mother Olympias, schemed from their palaces and pavilions. The story of one of the great forgotten wars of history, Dividing the Spoils serves up a fast-paced narrative that captures this turbulent time as it revives the memory of the Successors of Alexander and their great war over his empire. The Successors, Robin Waterfield shows, were no mere plunderers. Indeed, Alexander left things in great disarray at the time of his death, with no guaranteed succession, no administration in place suitable for such a large realm, and huge untamed areas both bordering and within his empire. It was the Successors--battle-tested companions of Alexander such as Ptolemy, Perdiccas, Seleucus, and Antigonus the One-Eyed--who consolidated Alexander's gains. Their competing ambitions, however, eventually led to the break-up of the empire. To tell their story in full, Waterfield draws upon a wide range of historical materials, providing the first account that makes complete sense of this highly complex period. Astonishingly, this period of brutal, cynical warfare was also characterized by brilliant cultural achievements, especially in the fields of philosophy, literature, and art. A new world emerged from the dust and haze of battle, and, in addition to chronicling political and military events, Waterfield provides ample discussion of the amazing cultural flowering of the early Hellenistic Age. Alexander the Great conquered an enormous empire--stretching from Greece to the Indian subcontinent--and his death triggered forty bloody years of world-changing events. These were years filled with high adventure, intrigue, passion, assassinations, dynastic marriages, treachery, shifting alliances, and mass slaughter on battlefield after battlefield. And while the men fought on the field, the women, such as Alexander's mother Olympias, schemed from their palaces and pavilions. Dividing the Spoils serves up a fast-paced narrative that captures this turbulent time as it revives the memory of the Successors of Alexander and their great contest for his empire. The Successors, Robin Waterfield shows, were no mere plunderers. Indeed, Alexander left things in great disarray at the time of his death, with no guaranteed succession, no administration in place suitable for such a large realm, and huge untamed areas both bordering and within his empire. It was the Successors--battle-tested companions of Alexander such as Ptolemy, Perdiccas, Seleucus, and Antigonus the One-Eyed--who consolidated Alexander's gains. Their competing ambitions, however, eventually led to the break-up of the empire. To tell their story in full, Waterfield draws upon a wide range of historical materials, providing the first account that makes complete sense of this highly complex period. Astonishingly, this period of brutal, cynical warfare was also characterized by brilliant cultural achievements, especially in the fields of philosophy, literature, and art. A new world emerged from the dust and haze of battle, and, in addition to chronicling political and military events, Waterfield provides ample discussion of the amazing cultural flowering of the early Hellenistic Age. "Dividing the spoils" revives the memory of Alexander's Successors, whose fame has been dimmed only because they stand in his enormous shadow. In fact, Alexander left things in a mess at the time of his death, with no guaranteed succession, no administration in place suitable for such an enormous realm, and huge untamed areas both bordering and within his 'empire'. The Successors consolidated the Conqueror's gains. Their competing ambitions, however, meant that consolidation inevitably led to the break-up of the empire. The legacy of Alexander the Great The Babylon conferences Rebellion Perdiccas, Ptolemy, and Alexander's corpse The first War of the Successors Polyperchon's moment The triumph of Cassander Hunting Eumenes in Iran Antigonus, Lord of Asia The restoration of Seleucus Warfare in Greece The end of Antigonus The kingdoms of Ptolemy and Seleucus Demetrius resurgent The fall of Demetrius The last successors Timeline Cast of characters Genealogies.