Olympias
Title: Olympias of Epirus or Olympias of Macedon
Location: Epirus & Macedonia, Greece
Born: 373 BCE
Died: 316 BCE
Occupation: Queen of Macedonia
Relationships:
- Mother: Unknown
- Father: Neoptolemus I of Epirus
- Sibling(s): Alexander I of Epirus
- Spouse/Lover(s): Philip II of Macedon
- Children: Alexander the Great & Cleopatra of Macedon
Biography:
Olympias of Molossia, who was born around 373 BCE and died in 316 BCE, was the ambitious daughter of the King of Epirus, Neoptolemus I, sister to Alexander I of Epirus, and wife of Philip II, king of Macedonia. Her family claimed ancestry from the Greek hero Achilles through his son, Neoptolemus, and held a certain level of prestige because of it. She was the mother of Alexander the Great and Cleopatra by Philip II and her career spanned the reigns of three kings in her husband, son, and grandson, Alexander IV (Carney 1993, 34). She was reported to have been involved in a snake cult and that Alexander was actually conceived with Zeus in the form of one of the snakes she kept in her bed (Carney 1992, 171). After the death of Alexander in 323 BCE, Olympias became a key figure in the dynastic struggle afterward and even led her own army in defending her grandson’s claim to the Macedonian throne (Carney 2006, 74).
In 357 BCE, Olympias married Philip II as his fifth wife and quickly rose to prominence as their son Alexander, born in 356 BCE, seemed to be the heir apparent to his throne, though he was never explicitly named “Crown Prince” (Carney 2006, xi & Carney 1992, 171). Their marriage marked an alliance between Macedonia and Molossia, which potentially made it the most important of his marriage alliances, though this does not prevent ancient sources from bringing intense emotion and jealousy into their relationship on the part of Olympias (Carney 1992, 170). This perception was expounded with the murder of Philip by his ex-lover, Pausanias, at the marriage of Cleopatra, Philip and Olympias’ daughter, to Alexander I of Epirus, Olympias' brother, in 336 BCE (Carney 1992, 169). Many suggest that Olympias and Alexander were complicit in these events as Pausanias was quickly killed, avoiding interrogation, while Alexander seamlessly became king in his father’s place (Carney 1992, 182).
Some suggest that when Philip married his seventh wife, Cleopatra Eurydice, Olympias grew jealous and inflamed Alexander to rebel against his father, though this is all down to speculation (Carney 1992, 174). Evidence to this is highlighted in Plutarch when Alexander fought with his father during the drinking party after his marriage to Cleopatra Eurydice, which was followed by his flight to Epirus with Olympias (Carney 1992, 174). Philip's marriage to Cleopatra was considered a threat to Alexander’s claim to the throne as she, unlike Olympias, was ethnically Macedonian and more “legitimate” in the eyes of Philip’s peers (Carney 1992, 174). Additionally, following the assassination of Philip, Olympias reportedly killed Cleopatra and their newborn baby to the disappointment of Alexander (Carney 1993, 37). Regardless of her involvement in the death of Philip and the growing distance between Alexander and his father beforehand, with the ascension of Alexander, Olympias had newfound access to power in Macedonia.
With Alexander as king of Macedon, he went on to conquer Persia and expand his power as far as India, leaving Olympias as the powerful Queen-mother, though Antipater, a colleague of Philip, was left as official regent of Macedonia in Alexander’s stead. Upon the death of Alexander in 323 BCE and the dynastic struggle afterward, Olympias’ power only surged. As the Diadochi (“descendants”) fought for the control of Alexander’s fragmented empire, Olympias worked to ensure the ascension of Alexander IV, the son of Alexander the Great and Roxana. Antipater soon died after being named protector of the dual kingship of Philip Arrhidaeus (son of Philip II and half-brother to Alexander the Great) and Alexander IV and, rather than appoint his son, Cassander, as his successor, Antipater named Polyperchon, who soon appointed Olympias as the protector of Alexander IV (Carney 1992, 188).
As regent to Alexander IV and explicit enemy of Cassander for her alliance with Polyperchon, Olympias is faced with the forces of Cassander and his own alliances. Cassander, of course, championed Philip Arrhidaeus as the true king of Alexander the Great’s empire and, by extension, Arrhidaeus’ wife, Adea Eurydice. As such, a confrontation loomed between these two queens and came to a head in 317 BCE (Carney 2006, xi). This conflict had Adea Eurydice, dressed as a soldier, leading her own forces against Olympias, who reportedly commanded her own forces in the attire of a Bacchant (Carney 2006, 74). Upon encountering Olympias, the regal long-standing queen of Macedonia, the forces of Adea Eurydice defected to her side without a fight, leading to the imprisonment and murder of Adea Eurydice and Philip Arrhidaeus (Carney 2006, 74). Some report that Olympias had them executed, while others suggest that she forced Adea Eurydice to kill herself – though this is, once again, speculation and difficult to prove (Carney 1992, 37).
Standing in Macedon as the regent to Alexander IV, Olympias is at the height of her power in 317-316 BCE, but, as Cassander marched his forces to her doorstep, she soon met her end. In 316 BCE Cassander reached Macedonia and forced Olympias to surrender under the belief that she would live (Carney 2006, xii). Soon after she surrendered, though, Cassander had her executed and declared himself protectorate of the rule of Alexander IV, leaving the young boy under his control for the foreseeable future and ending the reign of Olympias (Carney 2006, xii).
Bibliography:
Al-Fuhais, Jena. “Olympias and Infidelity in the Alexander Romances: A Cross-Cultural Study.”
Carney, Elizabeth D. “Olympias and the Image of the Virago.” Phoenix 47 (1993): 29-55.
Carney, Elizabeth. Olympias: Mother of Alexander the Great. Routledge, 2006.
Carney, Elizabeth. “The Politics of Polygamy: Olympias, Alexander and the Murder of Philip.” Historia: Zeitschrift für Alte Geschichte 41 (1992): 169-189.