Antigonus I Monophthalmus
Antigonus I Monophthalmos ("the One-eyed") (382 BC - 301 BC) was a Macedonian nobleman, general, and governor under Alexander the Great. He was a major figure in the Wars of the Diadochi, the factional conflicts that followed Alexander's death.
Upon the death of Alexander in 323 BC, he established himself and his family as one of the successor dynasties, the Antigonid dynasty, along with the Seleucids and Ptolemies. He declared himself King in 306 BC. Although widely believed to have claimed authority over the whole of Alexander's empire, this is likely not the case. The most powerful satraps of the empire, Cassander, Seleucus I Nicator, Ptolemy I of Egypt and Lysimachus, answered by proclaiming themselves kings and their territories kingdoms. Antigonus soon found himself at war with all four, largely because his territory shared borders with all. With Antigonus's death in battle against them at Ipsus in 301 BC, his plans of reuniting Alexander's Empire, if he in fact had them, came to an end. The victors did not claim power over each other, but instead accepted their kingdoms as separate. Antigonus's former kingdom was divided up, with most ending up in the hands of Seleucus I Nicator.
Antigonus's son Demetrius I Poliorcetes took control of Macedon, which the family held, off and on, until it was conquered by the Roman Republic at the Battle of Pydna in 168 BC.
| Preceded by: Antipater II of Macedon (Antipatrid dynasty) | King of Macedon | Succeeded by: Demetrius I of Macedon |
External link
- A genealogical tree of Antigonus (http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~jamesdow/s020/f139756.htm)
nl:Antigonus Monophthalmus de:Antigonos I. Monophthalmos es:Antígono Monoftalmos fr:Antigone le Borgne hr:Antigon I. Monoftalmos
Categories: Ancient Greeks