324 BC
Encyclopedia
Year 324 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar
. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Dictatorship of Cursor (or, less frequently, year 430 Ab urbe condita
). The denomination 324 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
calendar era
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Roman calendar
The Roman calendar changed its form several times in the time between the founding of Rome and the fall of the Roman Empire. This article generally discusses the early Roman or pre-Julian calendars...
. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Dictatorship of Cursor (or, less frequently, year 430 Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita is Latin for "from the founding of the City ", traditionally set in 753 BC. AUC is a year-numbering system used by some ancient Roman historians to identify particular Roman years...
). The denomination 324 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
Anno Domini
and Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....
calendar era
Calendar era
A calendar era is the year numbering system used by a calendar. For example, the Gregorian calendar numbers its years in the Western Christian era . The instant, date, or year from which time is marked is called the epoch of the era...
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Macedonian Empire
- On returning to SusaSusaSusa was an ancient city of the Elamite, Persian and Parthian empires of Iran. It is located in the lower Zagros Mountains about east of the Tigris River, between the Karkheh and Dez Rivers....
, PersiaAchaemenid EmpireThe Achaemenid Empire , sometimes known as First Persian Empire and/or Persian Empire, was founded in the 6th century BCE by Cyrus the Great who overthrew the Median confederation...
, Alexander the Great punishes those who he considers to have failed in their duties in his absence in IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, particularly those who have plundered tombs and temples. Alexander continues his policy of replacing senior officials and executing defaulting governors. Over a third of his satrapSatrapSatrap was the name given to the governors of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as the Sassanid Empire and the Hellenistic empires....
s are replaced and six are put to death. Three generals in MediaMedesThe MedesThe Medes...
, including Cleander, the brother of CoenusCoenusCoenus , a son of Polemocrates and son-in-law of Parmenion, was one of the ablest and most faithful generals of Alexander the Great in his eastern expedition...
(who has died in 326 BC326 BCYear 326 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Visolus and Cursor...
), are accused of extortion and are arrested, tried and executed. - While at Susa, Alexander holds a feast to celebrate his capture of the Persian EmpireAchaemenid EmpireThe Achaemenid Empire , sometimes known as First Persian Empire and/or Persian Empire, was founded in the 6th century BCE by Cyrus the Great who overthrew the Median confederation...
. - To further his policy of integrating the MacedonMacedonMacedonia or Macedon was an ancient kingdom, centered in the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, bordered by Epirus to the west, Paeonia to the north, the region of Thrace to the east and Thessaly to the south....
ians and Persians, Alexander and 80 of his officers take Persian wives. He and HephaestionHephaestionHephaestion , son of Amyntor, was a Macedonian nobleman and a general in the army of Alexander the Great...
marry Darius III's daughters BarsineBarsineBarsine was daughter of Artabazus, satrap of Hellespontine Phrygia, and wife of Mentor of Rhodes and after his death, Mentor's brother, Memnon...
(also called StateiraStateiraStateira or Statira may refer to:Names* Stateira * Stateira I, wife of Darius III of Persia* Stateira II, daughter of Stateira I and Darius III of PersiaOperas* La Statira , opera by Tomaso Albioni...
) and DrypteisDrypteisDrypetis or Drypteis , is a princess of the Achaemenid dynasty in Persia.Drypteis was born between 350 and 345 BCE, the daughter of Stateira I and Darius III of Persia. When her father began a military campaign against the invading army of Alexander the Great, he was accompanied by Drypteis, along...
, respectively, and 10,000 of his soldiers with native wives are given generous dowriesDowryA dowry is the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings forth to the marriage. It contrasts with bride price, which is paid to the bride's parents, and dower, which is property settled on the bride herself by the groom at the time of marriage. The same culture may simultaneously practice both...
. His determination to incorporate Persians on equal terms into his army and into the administration of the provinces is bitterly resented by the Macedonians. - Alexander the Great spends the summer and autumn at the Median capital, EcbatanaEcbatanaEcbatana is supposed to be the capital of Astyages , which was taken by the Persian emperor Cyrus the Great in the sixth year of Nabonidus...
, where his best friend, Hephaistion, dies during the autumn. Alexander indulges in extravagant mourning for his closest friend. - Winter – Alexander carries out a savage punitive expeditionPunitive expeditionA punitive expedition is a military journey undertaken to punish a state or any group of persons outside the borders of the punishing state. It is usually undertaken in response to perceived disobedient or morally wrong behavior, but may be also be a covered revenge...
against the CossaeansKassitesThe Kassites were an ancient Near Eastern people who gained control of Babylonia after the fall of the Old Babylonian Empire after ca. 1531 BC to ca. 1155 BC...
in the hills of Luristan.
Greece
- Alexander the Great's treasurer, HarpalusHarpalusFor other uses, see Harpalus Harpalus son of Machatas was an aristocrat of Macedon and boyhood friend of Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC. Being lame in a leg, and therefore exempt from military service, Harpalus did not follow Alexander in his advance within the Persian Empire but...
, fearing arrest, flees from SusaSusaSusa was an ancient city of the Elamite, Persian and Parthian empires of Iran. It is located in the lower Zagros Mountains about east of the Tigris River, between the Karkheh and Dez Rivers....
to AthensAthensAthens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
. On arriving in Athens, he is imprisoned by the Athenians after a proposal of DemosthenesDemosthenesDemosthenes was a prominent Greek statesman and orator of ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prowess and provide an insight into the politics and culture of ancient Greece during the 4th century BC. Demosthenes learned rhetoric by...
and PhocionPhocionPhocion was an Athenian statesman and strategos, and the subject of one of Plutarch's Parallel Lives....
, despite HypereidesHypereidesHypereides or Hyperides was a logographer in Ancient Greece...
' opposition, who wanted an immediate uprising against Alexander. Harpalus brings with him considerable wealth collected from the spoils of Alexander's conquest of Asia. This money is entrusted to a committee led by DemosthenesDemosthenesDemosthenes was a prominent Greek statesman and orator of ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prowess and provide an insight into the politics and culture of ancient Greece during the 4th century BC. Demosthenes learned rhetoric by...
. - DinarchusDinarchusDinarchus or Dinarch was a logographer in Ancient Greece. He was the last of the ten Attic orators included in the "Alexandrian Canon" compiled by Aristophanes of Byzantium and Aristarchus of Samothrace in the third century BC.A son of Sostratus , Dinarchus settled at Athens early in life, and...
, a professional speech writer in Athens, comes to prominence in the scandal that follows the flight to Athens of Alexander the Great's treasurer, Harpalus. When Harpalus escapes and flees to CreteCreteCrete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
, Dinarchus writes the prosecution speeches against Demosthenes, DemadesDemades-Background and early life:He was born into a poor family of ancient Paeania and was employed at one time as a common sailor, but he rose partly by his eloquence and partly by his unscrupulous character to a prominent position at Athens...
, Aristogiton, Philocles and other well-known politicians accused of misappropriating some of this money. - Demosthenes is convicted and imprisoned after being found guilty of misappropriating some of the funds that Alexander's treasurer, Harpalus, has brought with him. He escapes into exile, although his sentence is soon repealed. Although HypereidesHypereidesHypereides or Hyperides was a logographer in Ancient Greece...
has supported Demosthenes in his struggle against the Macedonians, that support is withdrawn after the Harpalus affair. After Demosthenes' exile, Hypereides becomes the head of the patriotic party in Athens. - Greek colonists found the city of Akra LeukaAlicante (province)Alicante or Alacant is a province of eastern Spain, in the southern part of the Valencian Community. It is bordered by the provinces of Murcia on the southwest, Albacete on the west, Valencia on the north, and the Mediterranean Sea on the east...
(modern AlicanteAlicante (province)Alicante or Alacant is a province of eastern Spain, in the southern part of the Valencian Community. It is bordered by the provinces of Murcia on the southwest, Albacete on the west, Valencia on the north, and the Mediterranean Sea on the east...
, SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
) on the Mediterranean coast of the Iberian peninsulaIberian PeninsulaThe Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
.
Deaths
- HephaestionHephaestionHephaestion , son of Amyntor, was a Macedonian nobleman and a general in the army of Alexander the Great...
, son of Amyntor, a Macedonian general, soldier, aristocrat, and possibly lover of Alexander the Great (b. c. 356 BC356 BCYear 356 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Ambustus and Laenas...
)