Was Alexander the Great Involved in His Father’s Death?

Alexander the Great, a young and dashing general who led his army from northern Greece to what is now Pakistan, led from the front, slaughtering foes with sword and spear, ordering executions and massacres, and even stabbing one old friend to death in a drunken frenzy. He killed a lot of people, but did he start his reign as king by assassinating his own father, the very wealthy Philip II?

Alexander’s conquests were a success because of Philips’s career. He saved Macedonia from extinction by defeating powerful neighbors and expanding until he ruled Greece and the Balkans. In the process, he developed an army that was unlike any other, integrating a variety of warriors into a fearsome, fast-moving force. This was Alexander’s army against the Persian Empire, made up of Philip’s warriors who had been battling for more than 20 years.

Assassination Steered by Personal Grievances

The facts surrounding Philip’s assassination in 336 BC are clear and undisputed. The assassin struck in the theater in Aegae (modern Vergina), in front of a crowd of Macedonians and Greeks who had gathered to show their support for the king. One of Philip’s bodyguards, a young man named Pausanias, ran toward him as he made his entrance, limping from an old wound but still energetic in his 47th year. He stabbed Philip in the ribs with a hidden blade from beneath his cloak and fled. As Pausanias dashed towards the waiting horses, he tripped over a vine root and was quickly slain by his fellow bodyguards.

Pausanias’ personal motive for the assassination was well-known. He was the king’s favorite and a lover when he was a teenager. Philip was infamous for his numerous affairs with ladies and young men, as were all the Macedonian rulers. Philip’s gaze strayed, and he replaced Pausanias with another young man. Pausanias was enraged, and he humiliated his new lover, accusing him of being effeminate and a simple conquest. Stung by the jokes, the new lover attempted to prove his manhood in war by fighting rashly and was murdered.

Attalus, whose niece was taken as a bride by Philip in 335 BC, was one of the slain youth’s high-ranking friends and relations. Attalus, now at court, resolved to exact vengeance on Pausanias by inviting him to a feast and intoxicating him. The aristocrat and his companions thrashed Pausanias and may have even raped him. The battered youth was then given to Attalus’ muleteers, who began to violate him one after another.

Pausanias rushed to Philip, demanding justice, as word of the humiliation spread. Philip, ever the astute politician, sought to appease everyone by dispatching Attalus to lead one of two advance guard commanders dispatched to Asia Minor at the opening of the great war against Persia. Pausanias was given one of his seven personal bodyguards as a prize.

While this was a significant distinction for someone so young, it did nothing to erase the fury, and Attalus’ relatives and supporters at court no doubt made sure there were plenty of reminders. Pausanias was enraged by Philip’s failure to treat him with the respect he believed he deserved as a former lover and, more broadly, as a member of the Macedonian aristocracy who fought beside him in combat and feasted with him in peacetime.

Aristotle, who knew Philip and spent several years at his court, highlighted the assassination as an example of personal grievance-driven assassination.

Was the assailant a pawn in a larger scheme?

However, concerns have arisen both then and now as to whether there was more to the story—whether Pausanias acted alone or whether this frightened young man was used as a pawn in a greater game. Pausanias had brought more than one horse for his planned escape, which some believed was odd. Others speculate if the other bodyguards quickly dispatched the assassin in order to silence him before he could expose anyone else.

Alexander later accused the Persian monarch of orchestrating the assassination in order to reduce the threat of Macedonian enmity, unaware of Philip’s son’s aggressiveness and success.

According to some versions, Alexander’s mother, Olympias, was to blame. Olympias was the most famous of Philip’s seven or eight wives because she was the mother of the heir to the throne, although it was commonly assumed that she and her husband despised one another. She was suspected of hating Philip’s new wife and was thought to be responsible for Attalus’ niece and her newborn infant deaths shortly after the assassination.

Olympias later led armies and assassinated competitors in an attempt to control the succession after Alexander’s death. She was undeniably a formidable figure, as astute, capable, and vicious as her husband and son.

Why is Alexander still Suspected for Murderer?

Many people suspected Alexander, the kingdom’s heir apparent, of orchestrating his father’s assassination. However, the obvious motive is the desire to rule.

Within hours following Philip’s assassination, Alexander, then 21 years old, was proclaimed King of Macedonia. To cement his position, he had two prospective rivals executed and dispatched instructions to Asia Minor to have Attalus killed. Over the next year or so, his swift military campaigns secured his control of Southern Greece and the Balkans. None of this proves that anyone was involved in or knew about Philip’s murder.

Once Philip was dead, these were vital safeguards, as any other course of action would have almost certainly resulted in Alexander’s own murder. Moreover, Alexander had never shown hesitation in his life, no matter how old he was.

At the very least, Philip’s death was fortuitous for Alexander because it put him in control of a restored, united, and prospering Macedonia, as well as its great army, just as the major campaign against Persia was getting underway. Alexander took advantage of this chance, as history demonstrates. Perhaps he was simply fortunate, and, like so many other legendary leaders, he was a natural opportunist.

There isn’t enough information about his inner nature to say if he could have orchestrated his father’s death, and no evidence suggests he did. This adds to the many mysteries surrounding Alexander of Macedon’s illustrious and tragic career.