Alexanders Successors and the Creation of Hellenistic Kingship

What happened to Alexander the Great''s empire when he died, and to the generals and companions that had conquered that empire with him? How did they begin to develop their own power and positions after his death? Alexander''s Successors and the Creation of Hellenistic Kingship reconstructs how the development of royal ideologies led to five powerful new kingships after Alexander''s death. It reveals how ideological performances and ongoing competition among the post-Alexander elite created the reality of the long-lasting institution of Hellenistic kingship, which would last for generations and even centuries as the model for autocratic power in the ancient world. A parallel study, Royal Traditions and the Consolidation of Power by Alexander''s Successors , then examines the innovative new traditions of royal ideology that were developed in the consolidation of the new Hellenistic kingships. Ranging from the early regencies and civil wars after Alexander''s death to the formation of multiple independent kingdoms and beyond, the generation of Alexander''s successors (323-276 BC) is comprehensively investigated. With a comparative perspective and detailed studies of diverse evidence, this is the first dedicated study of the beginnings of Hellenistic kingship and the first to put these beginnings in an international context.>

Préface
This book reconstructs the early ideological development of Hellenistic kingship in the competitive international world of Alexander the Great's successors (323-276 BC).

Auteur
John Holton is Senior Lecturer in Ancient History at Newcastle University, UK. His primary research expertise and publication record is in Hellenistic history and intellectual history, including the study of Alexander the Great and his successors (the diadochoi), ancient monarchies, and universal historiography.

Texte du rabat

What happened to Alexander the Great's empire when he died? How did his generals and companions, who had once conquered that empire with him, shape the political landscape after his death? John Holton reconstructs how the development of royal ideologies by Alexander's Successors led to the emergence of five powerful new kingships across the former Macedonian empire. He demonstrates the creation of Hellenistic kingship as a unified phenomenon and shows how ideas of superior status were articulated in the earliest post-Alexander years, including through monumental display and heroic imagery. He also explores the power of symbolism in the form of the royal diadem and the drama of staged royal accessions, plus the value of concepts like 'spear-won land' in the shared ideological environment of this period.

Ranging from the early regencies and civil wars after Alexander's death to the formation of multiple independent kingdoms and beyond, Holton reveals how the competitive and performative development of royal ideology in the generation of Alexander's Successors (323-276 BC) created the reality of the long-lasting institution of Hellenistic kingship, which would stand for centuries, as the model for autocratic power in the ancient world. With a comparative perspective and detailed studies of diverse evidence, this is the first dedicated study of the beginnings of Hellenistic kingship at the hands of Alexander's Successors that puts these beginnings into an international context and draws the main actors into a joint analysis.

Contenu

List of Figures
List of Maps
Preface
Acknowledgements
List of Abbreviations
Chronology

Chapter 1. Approaching the World of Early Hellenistic Kingship, 323-276 BC
Chapter 2. The Performance of Status in the Early Hellenistic World: Craterus at Delphi
Chapter 3. Heroic Paradigms of Rulership and the Politics of imitatio
Chapter 4. Diadem and basileia: A Zelotypic Model
Chapter 5. Spear-won Land in Hellenistic Imperial Discourse
Conclusions

Notes
Bibliography
Index