Philip and Olympias: A Novel of Ancient Macedon

by Peter Messmore

  Kleopatra-Eurydice gave birth to a girl, continuing Philip's tendency to sire female babies. The birth was the only event that could have eased the tension that for the last months had been simmering between the royal father and son. Life at court settled into predictable routine. Philip visited his army frequently in the field and was pleased with its invasion preparation.

  Alexander brought the cavalry to even higher levels of performance. They worshiped the prince and followed his energetic example.

  Philip's reconciliation ploy had worked. He had rid himself of Olympias, taken a beautiful new wife, and brought his only possible rival back into the fold. Life was good again.

  CHAPTER 25

  Nikesipolis's girlhood friend in Athens was Iphenia. Since her seventeenth year, she had been the mistress of one of the city's most influential boule members, Demosthenes. She was payment to the lawyer for a brilliant legal defense given the young girl's uncle. It had been a defense so effective that it had saved the man's exporting business. Iphenia hadn't opposed the form of payment. Her taste for luxury had been apparent from her earliest teenage years. Bribes to the influential Athenian businessman who was suing her uncle had all but depleted the family fortune. The businessman took these bribes, but they did not stop his legal action. Iphenia no longer wanted to live with an impecunious relative who had lost his affluent life style. She was ripe for Demosthenes.

  He established his beautiful mistress in Athens' central district, with a spectacular view of the acropolis. Each morning when she awoke, the first sight she saw was the gentle, sunbathed pink stone of Athens’s most famous landmark. Inside her apartment, she felt like Athena inside her own Parthenon. She was safe and wanted. There, she lived the life of a kept woman. Iphenia's every wish was granted by the love-stricken legislator. It took only days for her to learn how to pout and refuse sex when she didn't get her way. Demosthenes always came around quickly after these pubescent antics.

  But now she faced her biggest challenge. A priest from Macedonia was giving her enormous sums of money just to keep him informed of what Demosthenes was thinking and doing. The holy man had conditioned her brilliantly. During the recent past, he had been content to get occasional reports of Demosthenes's actions. But lately the real reason she had been recruited became apparent, not so much to her, but to Demosthenes.

  "Who contacted you?" he asked her as they both lay in bed.

  "All I can tell you is that he wore the robes of a priest and said he was from Pella.”

  "How long have you provided him with information about me?"

  "It was only the second time that I ever saw him," Iphenia lied. "The first was in the agora. He came up to me and told me that he knew my relatives in Thessaly. He gave me some money from them and said that we might meet again. Then he left."

  "Tell me his message again. I want details about what he said this time. Details in these matters are everything."

  The vacuous mistress gave her influential lover a puzzled look. Then she retold the story of the encounter. Demosthenes listened intently.

  "I didn't understand it all, but he said you would. It was simple, yet mysterious. The message had two parts. He told me to ask you if a man killed the king of Macedon, could he find protection and support in Athens? That was part one. Part two was shorter: Would you help that man escape to Persia? He made me repeat the two parts back to him."

  Demosthenes furrowed his prominent brow. He was glad that the contact was only her second. He had shared much with this girl and he didn't want Attalus knowing what he was thinking. He decided to review Macedon's recent actions as they related to him, to see whether the girl was telling the truth. She probably was. She wasn't clever enough to sustain a secret relationship with a Macedonian agent and keep it from him very long.

  "That's enough talk, Demosthenes," she said finally. "Come here. Lie down."

  Demosthenes complied, but Iphenia's actions were in vain. He allowed Iphenia’s oral playfulness for a time, then eased her gently aside. He dressed quickly, gave his mistress several Athenian owl coins, and left.

  Iphenia's Macedonian contact was of national importance, and Demosthenes had much to do. He needed to communicate with his agents in Persia and his retainers in Athens. He smiled as he left Iphenia's apartment and entered Athens's busy streets. Philip had humiliated him at Chaeronea, but the final act of this drama had not yet been played.

  Iphenia had watched Demosthenes carefully as he had left her apartment. Then she prepared her morning bath. She would soon be fresh and beautiful for a day of shopping at the agora. Lounging in a large marble tub of water, she prayed to the gods that Demosthenes believed her. She would become a very rich woman if she carried out her assignment. If her lover discovered that she had long been working for the Macedonian priest, he would drop her immediately. She also knew that her regular payments from the Macedonian would end. She must carry out her assignment, or all would be lost.

  The people of Pella weren't surprised when the king announced that Kleopatra-Eurydice was pregnant again. Imprudently, Philip began telling everyone that the child would be a boy this time. The foolish bragging gave those who opposed him an additional eight months to make their plans.

  Months passed, and Prince Alexander was frantic. He fell into deep depression and had difficulty riding with his cavalry. Something told him that the new queen's child would be a son this time. Again, his accession was threatened. Finally, an offer from a satrap of Caria gave him an opening. He leaped at it, although he might have thought better of it were he not so threatened.

  A prince of Caria, in extreme southwest Asia Minor, sought a royal marriage between his daughter and a son of Macedon. Through an actor intermediary, he asked whether his daughter could marry Philip's half-witted son, Aridaios. The mentally defective son of Philip’s concubine, Philinna, was one year older than Alexander. Alexander learned of the inquiry and inserted himself into the marriage offer. The prince was so desperate and insecure that he thought he could establish himself in far-off Caria.

  However Philip, through Attalus, learned of the marriage plans. Alexander's liaisons with the Carian were discovered and the desperate action stopped. The marriage brokers had been five of Alexander's closest friends and confidants: Harpalus, Ptolemy, Nearchus, and the brothers Erigyius and Laomedon. Philip banished them all from Macedonia. They would not return until there had been a death in the royal court.

  Only Alexander remained. He was isolated and, except for Hephaestion, friendless. It is just such political and emotional loners that the fates often embrace and force to desperate action. His only high-ranking contact was Antipater, who was also cut off from the king. It was from Antipater that Alexander learned of the sordid Pausanius affair. The former king's lover was the main topic of conversation when the two met on an isolated road outside Pella.

  "He burns with revenge, Alexander," Antipater said. "He appeals to Philip constantly to punish Attalus for his rape. But the king takes no action."

  "It's worse than that," Alexander replied. "Philip just appointed Attalus co-commander of the Persian invasion expedition. Parmenio and he will leave in a few days. Philip not only refuses to punish his new son-in-law, he rewards his actions with the joint Persian command."

  "Would you talk with Pausanius?"

  "I might. What does he want from me?"

  "A sympathetic ear. His wrong is great. You could give him hope for justice, when you become king."

  "An unlikely event, now that Kleopatra-Eurydice nears the end of her pregnancy.” He walked away from Antipater toward a small stream. He allowed Bucephalas to drink, then lifted his horse's head and looked back at Antipater. "I know what's going on. I know that you and my mother are in regular contact. Her Passaron conspirator comes to me before he sees you. I know of your plans for Pausanius. I know that you want me to help convince him that action is needed soon. I've agonized over this for a long time."

  "I know your anguish, Alexander. I suffer with you. Unders
tand that you are slowly being reduced to little more than a good cavalry general. If our new queen delivers a son, you may not be needed in that role. Philip needs a successor of his liking before invading Persia. Every warrior king demands that. They know that they can be killed in battle anytime. Your position is eroding. You may have no other choice but to support Pausanius."

  "You underestimate me. I'm the son of Zeus-Ammon. Philip has only his army. I'm the god's offspring. Great things will come of me yet."

  "I'm confident they will. The question is whether you will rule as king of Macedon or in some other kingdom. Time for your decision draws near."

  Alexander pulled Bucephalas's head away from the clear stream and returned to where Antipater was seated on a large flat rock. He tied Bucephalas' reins to a tree branch, and then sat beside the man who was slowly becoming his co-conspirator. The prince put his head down, rubbed his eyes, and stood before his companion. "I give you my decision now, Antipater. Everything I say from now on is contingent on the sex of the queen's unborn child. If it's a girl, I'll oppose any action against Philip. If the child's a boy, everything changes. If that occurs, something repugnant to civilized men will happen. I'll not take part directly in it, for that is beneath me. I know that it must be done if a male is born, but I'll not do it. Nor will I do it with someone else. If Pausanius can be manipulated to kill the king, continue. I'll take no action to stop it. It's one thing to have knowledge of regicide and do nothing. It's another to participate in the murder of your earthly father."

  Prince Alexander had made his decision—the words were delivered aloud. If the queen's issue were a boy, nothing would be the same again. Only two months remained before the queen's delivery; much had to be done.

  "I ride alone now into the mountains,” Alexander said. “Return to Pella by yourself. I don't want to be seen with you again. Tell Pausanius to contact me secretly if he wants assurances. I'll tell him what I've told you. Make your plans, do your worst, but don't underestimate Philip. Although Attalus is in Thrace with the expeditionary force, his spies still function. I'll send word to mother of my decision."

  Alexander mounted Bucephalas and rode off at a full gallop, away from the man he was growing to hate. Antipater was correct in what needed to be done. If Kleopatra-Eurydice presented a male successor, Philip's life had to end. But he didn't have to like the man who was the plot's prime mover. Allow Olympias to use the isolated general, he thought as he rode into the countryside. What was left of his youthful idealism disappeared with him. It mingled with his horse-generated dust and settled on the beautiful Macedonian countryside.

  Antipater visited several small villages outside Pella before riding north through the swampy land surrounding Lake Loudias. It was a circuitous way back to Pella. He entered the capital a day after his meeting with Alexander in darkness. Alone in his home, he completed his plans. An agent was dispatched to Passaron with the message that Alexander had agreed to Olympias's plan. The agent was to tell the queen that her son didn't know that she was the plan's instigator.

  Then, in the middle of the night, he met with Perthian, Olympias's former chief priest, recently deposed by Philip. Perthian was told of Alexander's reaction and was pleased. Antipater learned from Perthian of Iphenia's actions in Athens. Demosthenes apparently was cooperating with the conspirators. He even agreed to provide a letter for the assassin at the right time, assuring him of ship transportation out of Piraeus.

  Two days later, Antipater met with Pausanius, again in the middle of the night. The former king-lover was pleased with everything that Antipater told him. His final demand had also been anticipated. A hoard of gold, most of Olympias' personal fortune, was shown to him. He was assured that it would follow him into exile. The captain of Philip's personal bodyguard was committed. If Philip's new queen delivered a boy, he was guaranteed a life of opulence in a secure Persian province.

  Kleopatra-Eurydice gave birth to a son. The boy's thrilled father named him Caranus, an ominous reference to the founder of Philip's family line. The king wanted to ride through Pella's streets with the infant, just as he had with baby Alexander, but his crippled legs prevented it. Instead, he toured the city in an open litter with his wife and new son.

  Pella's citizens cheered the new royal issue, but each understood the grave crisis that the baby's birth created. In Pella's back-street brothels and drinking inns, bets were made by drunken commoners about how long it would take either Philip or Alexander to act. Most bets favored Philip eliminating Alexander. A few wagered on the fiery prince winning out. Throughout the city, a conspiratorial mood hung in the air like the summer stench of a horse stable. Everyone felt it, but it was not discussed openly, except by the lowest of the king's subjects.

  Philip knew what everyone else knew, only more. Unlike Pella's citizens, he was convinced that his information was accurate, not the product of Pella's notorious rumor mill. Alexander could do nothing. Five of his son's supporters, whose actions had probably represented the beginning of an assassination plot, were in exile. The king had recently placed one of his most trusted generals in joint command of Alexander's cavalry. The crack, mounted force could never be used to overthrow him now. With smug self-assurance, Philip played with his new son and made occasional visits to his army encampment. Plans were complete for the Persian invasion and his army was nearly ready.

  Yet, deep inside he feared a plot; a plot that would end his life. Macedonians, like most Greeks, believed that when one's ears rang it meant that someone was talking about you. If the left ear rang, it meant they were speaking well. Ringing in the right ear meant they were speaking ill. Philip's right ear had been ringing for months. He decided that a gesture was needed to show magnanimity toward his son. He knew that Alexander loved his sister, Kleopatra. The striking young woman, now nineteen, had shown a liking for Alexander of Epirus. She had either fallen in love with him or she wanted to be the queen of Philip's minion in Passaron. Only the princess knew her true feelings and she had told no one. The Epirote Alexander currently held Olympias in protective custody.

  After he considered his options, Philip arranged a wedding. His daughter, Kleopatra, would marry King Alexander of Epirus. The wedding would be held in Aigai. Alexander's smoldering hurt would be assuaged for a time as he honored his sister. Philip even considered bringing Olympias back to Macedonia for the wedding of their daughter. Of course, she would have to return to her exile immediately after the ceremony. These acts would show Alexander, Pella, and Greece that he was secure in his throne.

  After all, what monarch would bring these potentially threatening forces together if he were not secure? The action was something the gods themselves might do.

  The marriage scheme was hatched while Philip boiled in his private bath one day. The king ruminated on the plan, testing its shortcomings, but could find none. He regretted briefly that Parmenio and Attalus were not there to give him counsel; but he didn't need them. Alexander would be pleased to see his mother again and happy for his sister. It was the only thing that Philip could think of to placate his oldest son. It was worth a try. Philip then called for his newest boy-lover to join him in the steaming water. While he caressed the youth, he knew that his decision was a good one. He even decided to announce his near divinity to the world at the wedding. Representatives from anywhere important would be invited. It would be his crowning moment before the Persian invasion. The gods were looking after him.

  Caranus's birth put the conspiracy plan of Olympias and Antipater into operation. Prince Alexander was kept out of it, but three of his closest friends were not. They were Perdiccas, Leonnatus, and young Attalus. None of these young men were related to Philip’s distant relatives, his present army officers, or friends. Each had asked Alexander if he had any objection to them meeting with Antipater. The prince had told them that he didn't want to know anything they were doing and that they were free agents. They, of course, took this as approval of their participation in the plot. For days, most of their nigh
ts had been spent meeting with Antipater and Perthian.

  "The wedding is set for early Hekatombaion in Aigai," Perthian told the small group. "My contacts just learned the date from the king's priest. They were ordered yesterday to prepare the religious part of the ceremony."

  "What's the agenda?" Antipater asked the priest.

  "There will be a great celebration before the event. Plans are being made for athletic contests, theatrical productions, and poetry readings," Perthian explained. "But there’s more. Philip intends to have himself crowned as the thirteenth god. He commissioned sculptors two days ago to carve likenesses of the twelve Olympian gods and himself."

  Philip's sacrilege was all that Antipater needed to spur the plot forward. He had been aware of the king's pretensions to divinity since Chaeronea. But he doubted that Philip would order his own enshrinement. Antipater looked at Alexander's three friends after Perthian described Philip's intentions. Two just shook their heads.

  One of them, Perdiccas, spoke. "Has he gone mad?" he shouted in the quiet night. "Macedonians will never tolerate this blasphemy. He pushes the fates too far."

  Perdiccas's companions nodded agreement. If any of them had doubts, they were dispelled. The king must be removed.

  "Who will kill him?" asked young Attalus. "One of us?"

  "No, Attalus, the three of you will be there, but you'll have another mission. I've nearly convinced Pausanius to remove Philip. We've brought him along carefully and he's almost ready. His fears diminish daily, now that proof of his escape and relocation have been provided. Our Athenian contact sent a letter of assurance three days ago. I'll show it to Pausanius tomorrow. That will be all he needs. He'll kill Philip. His dreams have been shattered in Macedonia. He thinks only of life as a wealthy potentate."