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Cassander › Who Was
Definition and Origins
Cassander (c. 355-297 BCE, r. 305-297 BCE) was self-proclaimed king of Macedon during the political turmoil following Alexander 's death. Born in Greece as the son of Antipater, the regent of Macedon and Greece in the absence of Alexander the Great, he ruled beside his father eventually battling against the commander Polyperchon for supremacy in Greece. His alliance with Seleucos I and Ptolemy I against Antigonus I brought him into the Wars of Succession, the battle over the remnants of Alexander's domain. His murder of Alexander's mother and son ended any hope for an heir to the king's empire.Cassander's death in 297 BCE would, for a time, bring stability, but without an heir, his beloved Macedon would fall into the hands of others.
EARLY LIFE
Throughout his campaign against the Persians, Alexander the Great remained aware of the many troubles plaguing his homeland of Macedon. Although the regent Antipater was able to suppress a rebellion staged by Agis II of Sparta, he was unable to prevent Alexander's mother, Olympias, from constantly complaining to his son about the regent's supposed abuse of power. She despised Antipater, and he referred to her as a "sharp-tongued shrew." Finally, Alexander opted to listen to his mother and summon Antipater to Babylon. Believing it to be a death sentence, he chose instead to send his son Cassander.Alexander was not pleased, and the conflict that ensued may have brought about the king's early death.
Cassander and Alexander were not strangers; however, it became obvious many years later that they were not close friends.They were both about the same age and, along with Ptolemy and Hephaestion, students of the great Athenian philosopher Aristotle. Now, the year was 323 BCE, and as Cassander stood before his king intending to make a valiant plea on his father's behalf, he witnessed several Persians prostrating themselves before Alexander - an old Persian custom called proskynesis. His immediate reaction was to laugh. The historian Plutarch in his Greek Lives wrote, "… he could not stop himself laughing, because he had been brought up in the Greek manner and had never seen anything like that before."Alexander grew irate and "grabbed hold of Cassander's hair violently with both hands and pounded his head against the wall " (378). The image of this brutal attack would remain with Cassander for years to come and whenever he would see a statue or painting of the king, he would faint. Plutarch wrote of this malady,
… when he was king of Macedonia and master of Greece, he was walking around Delphi looking at the statues, when he suddenly glimpsed a statue of Alexander and became so terrified that his body shuddered and trembled, he nearly fainted at the sight and it took a long time for him to recover. (379)
ALEXANDER'S DEATH
On June 10, 323 BCE Alexander the Great died. Since that time, arguments and rumors have persisted concerning the possible cause - malaria, an old wound, his alcoholism, or even poisoning. This latter cause was something Olympias wholeheartedly believed. However, the rumor of poisoning, regardless of any direct evidence, brought into the conversation the names of Cassander, his brother Iolaus, Antipater, and even Aristotle. Supposedly, according to rumor, Aristotle, on the orders of Antipater, obtained the poison from a spring that flowed into the River Styx; Cassander carried it to Babylon in the hoof of a mule; and it was delivered to the king by Iolaus, Alexander's cupbearer. Plutarch did not give credence to the poison rumor.Later, Antipater made every attempt to defend himself against the rumors in order to win the hearts of the Greek people.
Alexander the Great
After Alexander's death, the empire he had so fearlessly built fell into chaos. And, while the commander Perdiccas possessed both the king's signet ring and body - the commander Ptolemy would later kidnap the body - no one had been named as either the successor or heir; however, it was accepted that Alexander's child by Roxanne, the future Alexander IV, would one day rule. Alexander's half-brother Arrhidaeus, son of Philip II and Philinna, was named Philip III and chosen to rule as co-regent until young Alexander was old enough to rule alone. Meanwhile, although there was no child to consider, Roxanne, to affirm her status as Alexander's only wife, poisoned Darius ’s daughter (and Alexander's wife) Stateira and threw her body into a well - she also killed the sister Drypetis for no apparent reason. Since the future Alexander IV was yet to come of age, the commanders resorted to arguing among themselves, concerned more with gaining regency over a portion of the empire than appointing a successor.
WARS OF SUCCESSION
At a meeting held in Triparadeisus presided by Antipater in 321 BCE, the vast empire was divided among the various commanders. The more notable assignments confirmed in the agreement were: Ptolemy had Egypt, Seleucus Babylonia, Lysimachus had Thrace, while Antigonus ruled much of Asia Minor. Lastly, Antipater retained his regency over Macedonia and Greece. Alliances were made, and alliances were broken. Over the next three decades, the Wars of Succession brought nothing but chaos and confusion. In the end, Alexander IV, his mother, and even Olympias would be dead, and the once great empire of Alexander would die with them.
Map of the Successor Kingdoms, c. 303 BCE
Antipater and Cassander realized that their tenuous hold on Greece and Macedonia was not safe. With little recourse, they looked to the other commanders for support eventually forming an alliance with Antigonus the One-eyed. Antigonus has sought Antipater's help after he and Perdiccas argued - Antigonus had refused to help the Perdiccas' ally Eumenes in a fight to retain his territory. Eumenes had been declared an enemy of the state at Triparadeisus and condemned to death. However, Cassander wisely grew to be suspicious of the old commander's intentions. Antipater acknowledged his son's concern, and the two met with Antigonus. According to their agreement, Antigonus lost control of much of his veteran army; they were replaced by newer recruits. When Antipater and Cassander returned to Macedon, Antigonus gathered his forces and defeated Eumenes in 321 BCE. In the same year, Perdiccas would be defeated in a battle against Ptolemy and killed by his own men. Several years later, when Cassander gained control over Macedon and most of Greece, the cagey commander and old veteran would clash. For now, however, he stayed cautious.
CASSANDER AS CHILARCH
Cassander remained loyal to his father to the very end, but when Antipater died in 319 BCE, he failed to name his son as his heir. He felt Cassander too young and inexperienced to rule alone and defend against the other regents. Instead, Antipater named the capable commander Polyperchon. Cassander was named chilarch or second in command. Of course, the two would immediately clash. Something that may have influenced Antipater's decision comes from Cassander's childhood. He had always been a sickly child, and it was a Macedonian custom that a boy had to kill a wild boar without a net to gain the privilege of reclining at a table as an adult. Cassander never did and had to sit upright on his couch even as an adult. Despite his new role as chilarch, Cassander would not remain idle long and sought alliances elsewhere. Eventually, despite his misgivings, he looked across the Hellespont and allied himself with Antigonus.
DESPITE HIS NEW ROLE AS CHILARCH, CASSANDER WOULD NOT REMAIN IDLE LONG AND SOUGHT ALLIANCES ELSEWHERE. EVENTUALLY, DESPITE HIS MISGIVINGS, HE ALLIED HIMSELF WITH ANTIGONUS.
Fearing this alliance, Polyperchon looked southward to the Greek city -states for support, promising them their independence from Macedonian rule; however, they had to promise not to wage war against Macedon. The struggle between the two escalated, centering on the city-state of Athens. Wisely, at the time of Antipater, Cassander had sent an emissary to Athens to ensure the city's loyalty. Later, in 318 BCE, when tensions with Polyperchon escalated, Cassander negotiated with the city, restoring its old oligarchy. To win favor with the city-states, he even rebuilt the old city of Thebes which had been destroyed by Alexander. In 317 BCE, to ensure his hold on the region, the confident Cassander established a base at Pegeus, southwest of Athens. Suffering a major defeat at Megalopolis, Polyperchon became entrapped in the Peloponnese. All the while, he continued to insist that Antipater had given him the regency, not Cassander.
With little hopes of achieving success in the city-states, Polyperchon turned northward, seeking the support of Olympias in Epirus, eventually hoping to march on Macedon, overthrow Philip II and install Alexander IV as king. Regrettably, Philip III and his wife Eurydice (also known as Adea), who had sided with Cassander and appointed him regent, were captured - and, on the orders of Olympias, he would be murdered in 317 BCE - Eurydice would commit suicide.
Despising Cassander as she had his father, Olympias quickly joined with not only Polyperchon but Eumenes as well. However, realizing the inevitable, soldiers once loyal to Polyperchon soon wavered in their support and chose to surrender and join Cassander. Added to the defeat of Eumenes, this abandonment did not help Olympias, Roxanne, and the young Alexander who were now isolated at Pydna. Polyperchon's attempts to contact her by letter or aid in an escape failed, leaving the old queen both hungry and in despair. However, Cassander, although seeking a fair trial stated that he would not harm her, in the end he received the death sentence he had always sought.
Olympias
In 316 BCE he sent soldiers to kill her, and in fine Olympias fashion, she bled to death while preparing her hair and clothes.With Olympias dead, the young Alexander had no protector. To Cassander he and his mother represented a mixture of races and cultures, and though he considered keeping them as hostages for future possible negotiations, he soon changed his mind.Both Roxanne and Alexander ended their days at Amphipolis in Thrace where they were purportedly poisoned in 310 BCE.He was 13 (possibly 14) and she was only 30.
KING OF MACEDON
By 316 BCE Cassander would be master of Macedon. To ensure his right to the throne Cassander married the half-sister of Alexander, Thessalonica. They would have three children, Philip, Alexander, and Antipater; none of them would survive to follow in their father's footsteps. The disagreement with Polyperchon would finally come to an end. Oddly, it would center on another possible claimant to the throne. The two men met on the borders of Macedon, and before the battle could begin, reached a compromise. Although never honestly considered by any regent, Alexander had a second son, Heracles, by his Persian mistress Barsine. Polyperchon, who would die in 302 BCE, agreed to kill Heracles and, as a reward, was named a major-general in the Peloponnese.
Cassander continued his fight against Antigonus from 315 to 311 BCE, finally reaching a tenuous peace agreement. In 305 he became the self-proclaimed king of the Macedonians, but at the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BCE Cassander, Ptolemy I, Seleucus ( Seleucos I), and Lysimachus would again battle Antigonus I and his son Demetrius I of Macedon. The latter two would be defeated, and the old commander Antigonus would die in battle. Cassander, himself, would die in 297 BCE, and for a while, Macedon was left stable. Unfortunately, without a surviving heir to carry on, his beloved Macedon fell to an enemy, Demetrius.
Nabu › Who Was
Definition and Origins
Nabu (sometimes known as Tutu) is the Babylonian god of wisdom, learning, prophecy, scribes, and writing and was also responsible for the abundant harvest and all growing things. His name means "the Announcer" which refers to his prophetic and creative powers in calling forth words, the harvest and other plant life, and the visions of prophecies. His wife was Tashmit (also known as Tasmetu) and, later, Nanaya who was originally the divine consort of the Sumerian god Muati who became syncretized with Nabu.
Nabu himself was developed from the earlier Sumerian goddess of writing and accounts, Nisaba (also known as Nidaba, Nissaba), who is attested to in the Early Dynastic Period (c. 3150-2686 BCE). Sumerian hymns and other compositions, which concluded with the ritual phrase "Praise be to Nisaba!" became the paradigm for later Babylonian works ending with "Praise be to Nabu!" From these early Sumerian origins, Nabu became increasingly popular during the Old Babylonian Period (2000-1600 BCE) and, particularly, in the reign of King Hammurabi (1792-1750 BCE) when, generally, male deities were elevated in Mesopotamia at the expense of older goddesses. In some myths, Nisaba is Nabu's wife and divine assistant in keeping the records and maintaining the library of the gods (much in the same way as the goddess Seshat worked with Thothin Egypt ). Originally regarded as the vizier and scribe of the god Marduk, following the Kassite Period (c. 1595 BCE) Nabu was regularly depicted as Marduk's son and almost equal to him in power.
His symbol was a wedge-shaped cuneiform mark or a stylus at rest upon a writing tablet, but he was also depicted as a bearded man in royal garb, holding a stylus, standing on the back of a snake-dragon (known as the Mushussu Dragon, a powerful protective spirit associated with Marduk and other gods and included in images on the Ishtar Gate ). Nabu was honored as the son of Marduk, king of the gods and patron of Babylon, and grandson of Enki (also known as Ea), the god of wisdom.
AFTER MARDUK, NABU WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT GOD OF THE BABYLONIANS. AMONG HIS MANY IMPORTANT DUTIES WAS TRAVELING FROM BORSIPPA TO BABYLON TO VISIT HIS FATHER DURING THE AKITU FESTIVAL MARKING THE BEGINNING OF THE NEW YEAR.
After Marduk, Nabu was the most important god of the Babylonians and became so popular he was adopted by the Assyrians and known as the son of their god Ashur. Even after the fall of the Assyrian Empire in 612 BCE, Nabu - unlike many of the other Assyrian gods - continued to be worshiped until at least the 2nd century CE. His cult center was at Borsippa, near Babylon, and among his many important duties was traveling to the latter city to visit his father during the Akitu Festival marking the beginning of the New Year. Nabu was associated with the goddess Nisaba by the Sumerians, and the god Thoth by the Egyptians, Apollo by the Greeks, and Mercury by the Romans. He is referred to as Nebo in the Bible, where he is mentioned with Marduk (called "Bel") in Isaiah 46:1-2. Mount Nebo, the site from which Moses looked down upon the promised land and where, according to legend, he is buried, takes its name from Nabu. Among the many gods of Mesopotamia, Nabu became the most prominent, outlasting even the great Marduk in the memory of the people.
THE POWER OF NABU
Writing was invented in Mesopotamia by the Sumerians c. 3500-3000 BCE, known as cuneiform, and consisting of wedge-shaped marks made in wet clay which was then set to dry. Although this writing system most likely developed due to trade, and the need to send messages over long distances, it was considered (as it was in Egypt) a gift of the gods and, primarily, of Nabu. Scholar EA Wallis Budge writes:
He was endowed with great wisdom, like his father; and he acted as scribe to the gods; he had charge of the Tablet of Fate of the gods and had the power of prolonging the days of men. Like the Egyptian Thoth, his eyes travelled over the circuit of the heavens and over all the earth. He was the personification of knowledge and, as a god of vegetation, he caused the earth to produce abundant crops. (85)
Nabu's cult center at Borsippa (referred to as a Second Babylon) was almost as important as the Esagila, the temple of Marduk at Babylon. Priests of Nabu cared for the god's statue there, operated the temple complex, and were highly respected.The written word was held in such high esteem that, naturally, the patron god of writing was regarded in the same way and so were his representatives. Nabu was so important to the Babylonians that he featured dramatically in their Akitu Festival, arguably the most important the city celebrated, to honor the gods and the harvest at the beginning of each new year.
Ziggurat and Temple of God Nabu, Borsippa
NABU & THE AKITU FESTIVAL
The Mesopotamians celebrated many festivals in honor of their gods, but the most important was the Akitu Festival. The celebration was observed, with varying rituals, all over the region. Scholar Stephen Bertman notes:
In some communities, like Babylon, the ceremonies were conducted once a year immediately after the barley harvest in March at the time of the spring equinox (barley was Mesopotamian's chief grain). In other communities, like Ur, there were two celebrations a year, one at the time of the harvest and the other in September when new seed was sown. Because the Mesopotamians looked upon the spring equinox as the beginning of their year, the Harvest Akitu was also a New Year's holiday and a time of added celebration. (130)
The festival lasted for twelve days, with the first six devoted to religious observances by the priests of Marduk at Babylon, and the last a grand public event involving the procession which carried Marduk's statue through the streets of Babylon to a sanctuary outside the city's walls. The Akitu Festival followed, roughly, the following order, and Nabu played a pivotal role in the observances:
Day One: The priests prepared Marduk's sanctuary at Babylon while others did the same for Nabu's temple at Borsippa. Little information is available on the specifics of what this would have entailed.
Day Two: The high priest of Marduk dedicated himself to the god in a renewal ceremony and prayed for Marduk's continued protection of the city while simultaneously thanking him for his gifts.
Day Three: The high priest at Babylon presided over a ceremony in which two dolls were made out of wood which represented the human worshippers of Nabu. These figures were probably fashioned as male and female, although details of the actual figures are not known.
Day Four: While the high priest and lesser clergy prayed to Marduk, the king of the city left for Borsippa to accompany the statue of Nabu to Babylon. While the king was on his journey, the high priest paid respect to Marduk and his divine consort Sarpanitum and blessed the temple and the city. Toward evening, the priest would recite the Enuma Elish, the story of creation which relates how Marduk became the king of the gods, defeated the forces of chaos, and created human beings.
Day Five: While the priests of Marduk and Nabu ritually cleansed the temple, temple complex, and shrine of Nabu, the high priest conferred with the statues of Marduk and Sarpanitum, honoring both in prayer and meditation. When the temples were cleansed, the shrine of Nabu was covered with a canopy of gold and the populace awaited the return of their king with the statue of Nabu. At this point, as Bertman writes:
Then followed a dramatic ceremony: the high priest divested the king of his royal insignia, slapped his face, and forced him to kneel before the god's holy image - an act of humbling debasement that asserted the power of church over state, of god over man. On his knees, the king made confession, swearing that he had not abused the authority entrusted to him and had not sinfully forsaken the interests of Babylon, its people, and its god. In its negative formulation ("I have not...") this confession is reminiscent of the "Negative Confession" found in the Egyptian Book of the Dead by which souls sought to gain entry into paradise, and also of the biblical Ten Commandments, where were also cast in negative terms ("Thou shalt not..."). At the conclusion of the royal confession, the high priest again slapped the face of the king until tears flowed from his eyes, a sign of his genuine contrition. (131)
Stela from Babylonian Marduk Temple
Days Seven and Eight: The king "took the hand" of the statue of Marduk, thus dedicating himself to the god's will, and led him out of his temple into the city. This act began the best-known aspect of the Akitu Festival as people thronged the streets and followed the statue of the god as it processed through the avenues and over to the Shrine of Destinies near Nabu's sanctuary.Nabu was then called upon to give his prophecy concerning the king and the coming year, and this was recorded by the priests. The statues of Marduk, Nabu, and all the other gods were positioned to honor the king, and at this point, the sacred marriage ritual may have been observed in which the king had sex with a priestess representing the goddess Inanna.Whether the sacred marriage was observed by the actual act of sexual intercourse or simply a ritual simulation is unclear.Following the ritual, the procession began again carrying Marduk out of the city to his shrine at the temple known as bit-Akitu, which was filled with flowers and other plants and ringed by a large public park.
Days Nine and Ten: The great banquet of the Akitu Festival was held in the park with the state providing food, drink, and entertainment.
Day Eleven: The statue of Marduk, accompanied by the other gods, was brought back into the city and stopped at Nabu's shrine. Here the prophecy which had been given on Day Seven was read aloud to the people, and afterwards, a closing ceremony was observed by the priests and nobility, including the dignitaries from other cities.
Day Twelve: Public closing ceremonies were observed surrounding Nabu. His statue was then taken from its shrine and began the short trip back to Borsippa by ship. As Nabu left the city, the statues of the other gods left for their respective homes.
The festival could not be observed if the statue of Marduk was not present in the city, which happened a number of times when it was taken after conquest by the Hittites, Assyrians, and Elamites. Marduk's 'travels' outside the city during these times are recorded in the document known as The Marduk Prophecy. The statue of Nabu, however, was equally important, and the Akitu Chronicles note the years that Nabu remained in Borsippa because Marduk was not in Babylon.
NABU'S LEGACY
Although closely tied to the city of Babylon, Nabu became so popular in Mesopotamia that he was adopted by the Assyrians as the son of their supreme god Ashur. Ashur was considered so powerful, and his worship became so widespread, that it became a kind of monotheism. Ashur and his son Nabu were available to all the people of the Assyrian Empire everywhere, and this established Nabu as an important deity outside of Mesopotamia.
The Assyrians were regarded as harsh overlords by their non-Assyrian subjects, but still, their gods were honored in all the territories and by many different ethnicities. Marduk had also been adopted by the Assyrians but retained the political associations with Babylon he had acquired over the years; no such connection attached itself to Nabu.
When the Assyrian Empire fell in 612 BCE, the statues of the gods, especially Ashur and Marduk who were closely associated with the empire, were pulled down by the forces of the Medes, Babylonians, Persians, and others, but Nabu's statue was honored. Scholar Gwendolyn Leick writes how Nabu "endured when other gods, who had been more closely identified with political power (eg Marduk) had lost popularity" (123). The cities of Assyria, their temples, and the statues of their gods were razed after the empire fell, but worship of Nabu continued throughout Mesopotamia and spread to Egypt, Anatolia, and Syria.
By the time of the rule of Augustus Caesar (27 BCE-14 CE), Nabu was known in Greece and Rome, where he was identified with Apollo and Mercury and continued his traditional duties in presiding over the written word and encouraging the work of poets and writers. Whether he inspired the images of the later literary gods of other cultures is debated, but, since he came first, it is probable that he did. The worship of a deity dedicated to knowledge and writing highlighted the value of the written word and encouraged writers to consider their work a holy calling by their patron god. Veneration of Nabu established writing as more than simply a utilitarian craft for communication but as an art form which helped to preserve the present for the future.
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