Requiem For Athens

by David Alkek

  "Master Aristotle makes those things so interesting, Father. He knows so much."

  "Yes, my son, which is why I brought him to teach you. Alexander, you will soon put on the robe of manhood, which has responsibilities, as well as its privileges. You must work harder at controlling your temper and your impulsive actions.

  "Someday, if the gods agree, you will be king. If you are to sit on my throne, you must learn how to be a king. Your tutors can teach you how to read and how to think; and those are important, but they can't teach you how to rule men and lead them into battle. That is my duty. Learn from me, not how to drink wine and bed women, any man can do that, but how to be a general and a king. Will you learn from me as your tutor?"

  "Yes, Father, I want to be like you, strong and brave and a leader of men in battle. I want to be king."

  "Good, then come with me tomorrow. I'm leading a party to hunt for lions. Bring your bow and spear and Bucephalus, and be prepared to leave from the courtyard at dawn."

  "Yes, Father." The light of excitement danced in his eyes.

  "Good, I will see you then," Philip said and turned and left.

  "After his father left, it was hard for Alexander to think of anything except lions, so Aristotle said he could spend the rest of the day in the exercise yard.

  * * *

  Aristotle spent four long years preparing Alexander's mind and character for kinghood. He had succeeded in constructing the veneer of civilization over the wild nature this lad had inherited from both parents.

  Aristotle had Alexander read Homer's famous epic, The Iliad, and they discussed it at length. "Before Achilles could decide whether to go to Troy and fight, and possibly to be killed, he asked the advice of his mother, a goddess. She told him that he could decide to stay at home and marry and raise a family and live a long and peaceful life, but no one would remember him. Or he could go to war and do courageous deeds and be covered with glory, even in his death. Then he would be immortal.

  "What do you think Achilles decided?" Aristotle asked the teenager.

  "Why of course he went to Troy and he was killed, but we remember all his glorious deeds."

  "That's right, a man should do what his destiny calls him to do. He should examine his life and live it according to what his true virtue calls for."

  At the end of a year of studying and memorizing passages of the Iliad, Alexander was given Aristotle's copy. "I have written notes in this book and give it to you as your own," he said.

  "Oh, Master Aristotle, I will treasure it." Alexander hugged it to his chest. I will always keep it by my bed." And he did, until the day he died.

  By the time that Alexander was eighteen, he showed love and admiration for his teacher, more so than for his own father. Later he was heard to say, I have received life from one, but the other has taught me the art of living. Aristotle gave me the ancient adage, 'life is the gift of nature, but beautiful living is the gift of wisdom'."

  Toward the end of those years, his father had made an effort to have Alexander spend as much time with him as possible, allowing him to observe the art of ruling, political maneuverings, and military strategy.

  Alexander absorbed the lessons he learned at his father's side with intense interest. He showed his ambition to lead by asking to fight in skirmishes. He avidly listened to messengers, who came from other cities, especially Greek ones. Alexander admired his father and sought to emulate him, but not out of love. He was his mother's son, and he was fiercely loyal to her. She had molded him and formed his ambition, for she shared it with him

  * * *

  Philip liked stalwart and hearty men, who would risk their lives in battle and carouse with him all night. His sexual appetite, moreover, could not be satisfied with only one woman, and he tasted other fare. After a rowdy drinking party, at which some of the dancing girls were passed around, Philip staggered back to his rooms, as the sky was beginning to lighten. He threw off his robe and fell heavily to Olympias' side. He reached and pulled her to his chest, smothering her with rough kisses.

  Olympias pushed him away. "You reek of old wine and young women. Let go of me. Go to your sweaty men and sluts."

  "Oh, come on, my love. We were just having fun. You're my wife, this is our bed. Give your king the love he desires."

  "I don't have to give you anything. I'm the queen. It's all right with me for you to have sex with whores and dancing girls, but I don't have to tolerate your philandering with other nobles' wives and daughters. Now get out of my bed. I want to go back to sleep."

  "Your bed; it's mine too."

  "Not anymore. You can sleep in the adjoining room. I'll tell you when you can come into my bed."

  Philip grumbled, angrily grabbed his robe, and stomped into the next room. He collapsed on the bed, and was loudly snoring within minutes.

  Philip's sexual escapades and other marriages caused Olympias' jealousy to rise to a crescendo. Her tirades were heard throughout the palace, as she shrieked and smashed pottery. Her attendants and guards fled in terror from her violent outbursts. Philip lost his patience with her jealousies and violence, and banished her from his palace to a separate house.

  He was spending more time with his favorite son, teaching him skills and tactics. Alexander excelled in sports and military training, and was quick of intellect. Philip allowed him to sit in on the negotiations with other leaders to listen to the messages brought him. He was training him to be king, but Alexander was faithful to his mother.

  One day Alexander went to visit his mother in her house. He was sweaty from his exercise with arms. He stomped into her sitting room and threw down his helmet. Falling exhausted onto a couch, he shouted, "I hate him."

  Olympias looked up from her loom, "Whom do you hate, my son?"

  "My father."

  "What has he done now, Alexander?"

  "He upbraided me for giving the wrong order in a maneuver with the cavalry. He embarrassed me in front of the men."

  "Maybe he thought it was to teach you a lesson, to discipline you to follow his orders."

  "Perhaps, but I have had enough of his ordering me. I am almost eighteen. I'm a man who could lead men, and I will lead armies and conquer cities like him. I'll show him."

  "Calm down, Alexander," Olympias soothed her son. "It will do you no good to openly oppose your father now. He is too powerful. The generals and entire army love him. He has led them from one victory to another and rewards them with gold and women. Bide your time and be patient. His power will come to you."

  "But I'm ready now."

  "You have much to learn, my son. Philip may seem hard and unfeeling, but he is a brilliant military leader. Learn everything you can from him, so that you may also be successful."

  "But how am I to learn, if I hate him?"

  "Hide your hate; bury your resentment; show loyalty, obedience, and the son's love for his father. You must do these things and be patient."

  "But, Mother....."

  "Trust me. The gods and I will help you to become great. You will surpass Philip in conquests and glory.”

  "But Mother, I've never commanded an army; how can I conquer Asia?"

  "Believe me Alexander, it is your destiny. You will become king, and I will help you. Do as I say, and you will succeed."

  "Yes, Mother."

  Alexander showed the natural talent of a leader early, for he had inherited his strong will from both sides. Most of his half-brothers and other youth, accepted his leadership, although some were jealous. He built a coterie of loyal companions, who trusted his leadership. Before Alexander was to accompany his father to the battle of Chaeronea, Olympias sent for him.

  Alexander came at Olympias' bidding, attired in his new armor. She admired it.

  "Isn't it beautiful?" he beamed. "Father has given me the command of The Companions. We are preparing to march to Greece and face the Athenians and their allies. They have chosen war."

  "Yes, I know," Olympias said. As a mother she had mixed feelings about her only
son going to his first war. "I'm proud of you. I know that you will be courageous and lead your men well. You have the blood of Achilles within you, for, as I told you, I am his descendent. But be careful; don't take unnecessary risks."

  "I'll protect myself, Mother." He reached over and kissed her on the cheek.

  "There is something else that I want to tell you before you leave." She reached up and caressed his cheek.

  Alexander sat down, his curiosity aroused. "And what is that?"

  “I have not told you this, but Philip is not really your father."

  Alexander was shocked, "What, am I not legitimate and heir to the throne?"

  "You are not only heir, but the son of divine Zeus. On the night that you were conceived, Zeus struck me as a lightning bolt, catching me a fire. He sired you. You have within you divine blood. As the son of the great god Zeus, he will protect you. You will be the king of our nation and lead a great army in conquest of Asia. The priestess of Dionysus told me that the Oracle at Delphi prophesied it."

  Alexander was overcome with emotion. Was he truly the son of a God? Other noble Greeks in literature were the sons or daughters of gods, even Achilles himself. Whether or not he accepted Olympias' tale of his birth, there was a part of him that wanted to believe it.

  Olympias saw the shock on Alexander's face. "As the son of Zeus, and descendent of Achilles, you are destined to do great things."

  "But how can I," protested Alexander, "if my fath... if Philip conquers all of Greece and Asia and accumulates all the honor. I don't want to inherit a kingdom and sit on a throne and be bored. I don't want a peaceful rule. I want to lead armies, and conquer cities, and gain glory and honor."

  "And you will, my son; you will become a great king." Olympias would help him to fulfill that ambition.

  IV Allies and Enemies

  Chapter 17

  Old Isocrates was the respected founder of the most successful school of rhetoric in Athens, which predated Plato's Academy by eight years. Political influence in the public affairs of the city depended on a man's ability to speak well before the Assembly and the courts. The art of speech and argument was the goal of public men, and Isocrates school had trained many of the leaders of Athens. He taught his students how to use language effectively to win their arguments and sway their listeners.

  No great orator or statesman himself, Isocrates influenced public opinion through his talent of writing and distributing pamphlets. He addressed his long speeches in the form of an essay, which he sent to the Assembly, and later to Philip and the Pan-Hellenic games. His reputation as a sound thinker with high ethics, and the teacher of many of the political leaders of his day, gained him a respectful audience.

  Before the Second Sacred War in which Macedon established its power in Greece, Isocrates rose in the Assembly and read part of a pamphlet that he had circulated in Athens, praising the city for its leadership in learning and culture. "So far has our city distanced the rest of mankind in thought and speech, that her pupils have become the teachers of all the world. But all around our culture are barbarians. It saddens me that the barbarians are becoming stronger, and Persia is lord over all the Ionian Greeks, while our Greek states consume themselves in incessant wars.

  "For as many as there are evils that are common to the nature of man, we have invented even more than those by engendering wars and factions among ourselves. Greeks do not weep over the calamities of others, and view with complacency the many terrible sufferings that result from our state of war. They are so far from pity that they even rejoice more in each other's sorrows than in their own blessings.

  "If Greeks must fight, why not fight the real enemy? Why not drive the Persians back to their homeland? I predict that a relatively small army of disciplined and determined Greeks can defeat the Persian hordes. Our soldiers have proven their prowess and courage so valiantly that even the Persians hire them as mercenaries. Why should Greeks fight for the Persians when they can fight for Greece? It is a war that will be blessed by the gods, a war that at last will give unity to Greece, and a choice between Greek unity or triumphant barbarism."

  He was interrupted by a thunderous applause. Old heads nodded knowingly to each other. They had seen too much of Greeks fighting one another.

  Isocrates raised his hands for quiet. "I also want to stress another point, we are proud of our Greek culture and heritage. We have seen it spread with our commerce and settlements to the far reaches of the inland sea. Other peoples, who were not Greek, have adopted Greek language, arts, learning, and ways of doing things. Greek identity therefore is no longer merely the race of Greeks. Non-Greeks who have taken on Greek institutions can also become Greeks. Thus, the people of Asia outside the Ionian cities, of Sicily and Italy, and even further west, may be called Greeks. Our ideals of the city-state can then be exported further to the east beyond Asia."

  Applause again congratulated his speech, for Greeks saw this again as an excuse to export their Greek influence by war as well as by trade. No one yet could name a potential leader for a possible invasion of Asia to face the Persians. Some in the audience fervently hoped for one. Others reported the speech to the Great King of Persia, who was always wary of Greek designs on his territory.

  * * *

  Athens had been urged by Philocrates and Aeschines to conclude a treaty, recognizing Philip's conquests in the north. This had allowed Philip easily to defeat the Phocians and their allies in the Second Sacred War without the threat of Athens intervening.

  Philip sat at a table littered with maps and letters from cities throughout Greece. His view from this room in his palace overlooked the city that his architects were creating. It would be a Greek city to rival Thebes or Corinth. He noted that the ionic columns of the Temple of Apollo, God of learning and the arts, were ready to receive its roof.

  He turned to Antipater, his friend and advisor, "I am satisfied. I have secured the alliance of many Greek cities, and I have peace with Athens. Sparta and Thebes aren't threats."

  Antipater nodded, "Athens should be satisfied also. The treaty preserves her grain supply from the Black Sea." Athens had been worried that Macedon's conquests in the northern Aegean could block those grain shipments that she relied on.

  The king looked down at a map. "We can withdraw our forces from Greece and prepare for our next step."

  "I don't think we're ready to invade Asia," said Antipater.

  "You're right, my friend. I have designs on expanding our kingdom north beyond Thrace. Then we can plan for Asia."

  Antipater got up and walked to the window. "You don't have a navy. You must have one if you're to free the Ionian Greeks and supply your army." He turned to face Philip, as if he expected an answer.

  Philip replied, "That's why the treaty with Athens is so important. Athens has the navy that I need. I'll persuade her to join me and the rest of the Greek cities in a war with Persia. I'll send emissaries to all the city-states, urging them to help me free the Greeks of Ionia from Persian rule. They need a leader to unify them. Surely they'll see the wisdom in following me."

  Philip had no sympathy with hardheaded Greeks like Demosthenes, who insisted on their independence. Philip saw these cities as led by corrupt politicians or greedy merchants and bankers.

  Antipater reflected his thoughts, "Not all the Greeks oppose your leadership. The smaller cities welcome your protection against Athens, Thebes, and Sparta."

  "I know," said Philip, "but there are voices in Athens, especially that of Demosthenes, that oppose me and the war with Persia. He probably receives Persian gold for his support."

  "We have friends in Athens, also, Sire. We can rely on them to oppose Demosthenes."

  Philip nodded. "See that they receive any aid that's necessary.

  Antipater said with a smile, "I'll see to it." He bowed slightly and left.

  * * *

  In Athens Demosthenes continued his series of speeches against Philip, known to history as his "philippics". He denounced Philip, as the tyran
t of the north, bent on crushing all Greece under his heel. A talented orator, he urged the people against any accommodation with Macedon. He and Hyperiedes led the party of war in Athens against Philip's ambitions.

  Aeschines and Phocion, the leaders of the party urging peace with Philip, were talking in Phocion’s spacious villa outside the gates of Athens. "Not all of Athens agrees with Demosthenes," Aeschines was saying. "Many will listen to your sound advice, for they hold you in high esteem."

  Phocion was known to be the most honest public citizen in Athens. He had been chosen strategos, military leader, forty-five times, more than even the great Pericles. Even though he had served in many wars, he was an advocate of peace. He had studied philosophy in Plato's Academy, and was a capable orator.

  Phocion replied, "It's obvious to me and to any man who is reasonable, that Athens does not have the military strength to fight a war with Philip. We no longer have our empire or allies that we can draw men and money from."

  "We have our navy still," Aeschines admitted.

  " Yes, but it is not as large or ably led as in the past. Besides, what can it do against Philip's war machine? No, we must make peace with him."

  "Who else supports us?"

  "Philocrates of course, who brokered the peace and alliance between Athens and Macedon."

  "Demosthenes has branded him a traitor because of that peace. He has been quiet of late."

  "Then there is also good old Isocrates who continues to plead for Greek unity against the Persians. Perhaps Athens will listen to his seasoned voice," Aeschines said.

  "The old man's logic is drowned by the torrent from the mouth of Demosthenes," Phocion said with a tone of sadness.

  He rose and paced across the room to look out onto his courtyard as if in thought. He turned and said, "The merchants and bankers don't want war of course; it would ruin their trade. The wealthier classes realize that we don't have tribute from an empire to support a war. It would have to be paid for with increased taxes. The Assembly might even vote to confiscate some of their property."

  "What of the Assembly, Phocion? They must vote for war or peace. I'm afraid that if the masses vote for war, we will be very unpopular, and even our lives may be at risk."