 |
HeraclesThe son of the Macedonian king Alexander the Great from his mistress Barsina.
Country:
 Greece |
Content:
Biography of Heracles
Heracles (Latin: Heracles, Hercules, 327-309 BC) was the son of the Macedonian king Alexander the Great and his mistress Barsine.
Parentage and Early Life
Heracles' mother, Barsine, came from a noble Persian family, and her father Artabaz ruled as a satrap in Asia Minor. She was married to a Greek named Mentor, who became the commander of the Persian army in the West. After Mentor's death, Barsine remarried her late husband's brother, Memnon. Memnon fought against Alexander the Great when he invaded Asia in 334 BC, and Barsine was kept at the court of Persian King Darius to prevent her from defecting to the Macedonian king. In 333 BC, Memnon died, and the same year, the Battle of Issus took place, where Darius suffered a crushing defeat and fled. The entire court, including Barsine, was captured in Damascus as a war trophy.
Life with Alexander the Great
Barsine was around 30 years old and had received a Greek education during her 10-year stay at the court of Philip, the father of Alexander the Great. Alexander, who was generally indifferent towards women, took her as a concubine. In 327 BC, at the age of 36, Barsine gave birth to Heracles, Alexander's first child, although she already had children from her first husband. After Alexander married the Bactrian princess Roxana, Barsine took Heracles to Pergamum, where they lived quietly until Alexander's death in 323 BC.
Rejection and Tragic End
The illegitimate son of Alexander the Great was remembered during the search for a new king, who had to be a male descendant of royal blood. Justin writes that the phalanx commander Meleager offered two options: "...if they [the military leaders] desire a boy, then Alexander's son by Barsine, named Heracles, is in Pergamum, or if they prefer a man, Aridaeus, Alexander's brother, is in the camp." The proposal for Heracles was not accepted, and Barsine and her son continued to live peacefully in Pergamum until 309 BC. By this time, when Heracles was 17 years old, there were no other surviving direct male heirs to the Macedonian throne. Diadochus Polyperchon decided to reclaim Macedonia, tired of the endless wars of the Diadochi, by deploying Heracles at the forefront of his army. With an army of 20,000 infantry, 1,000 cavalry, and Heracles, the son of Alexander the Great, he approached the borders of Macedonia, ruled at that time by Cassander, who did not dare to call himself king. Cassander entered into negotiations with Polyperchon and promised to support him in the Peloponnese in exchange for the life of the Macedonian heir. The deal was sealed. In 309 BC, after a lavish banquet, Heracles and his mother were killed by order of Polyperchon. From this time on, there were no heirs or successors of the Argead dynasty, which had ruled Macedonia for over four centuries.
