Page 119 - Western Civilization A Brief History, Volume I To 1715 9th - Jackson J. Spielvogel

was among Alexander’s political contributions to the Hellenistic world. His vision of empire no doubt inspired the Romans, who were the ultimate heirs of Alexander’s legacy.
But Alexander also left a cultural legacy. As a result of his conquests, Greek language, art, architecture, and literature spread throughout the Near East. The urban centers of the Hellenistic Age, many founded by Alexander and his successors, became springboards for the diffusion of Greek culture. During his campaigns, Alexander had established a number of cities and mili- tary colonies named Alexandria to guard strategic points and supervise wide areas. Most of the settlers were Greek mercenaries. It has been estimated that in the course of his campaigns, Alexander summoned 60,000 to 65,000 additional mercenaries from Greece, at least 36,000 of whom took up residence in the garri- sons and new cities. Finally, while the Greeks spread their culture in the East, they were also inevitably influenced by Eastern ways. Thus, Alexander’s legacy became one of the hallmarks of the Hellenistic world: the clash and fusion of different cultures.
The World of the Hellenistic Kingdoms
Q FOCUS QUESTIONS: What were the main features of the political and military organization of the Hellenistic kingdoms, and how did the new political systems differ from those of the Greek city-states? What were the main social developments in the Hellenistic world?
The united empire that Alexander created by his con- quests disintegrated after his death. All too soon, Mac- edonian military leaders were engaged in a struggle for power. By 300 B.C.E., any hope of unity was dead.
Hellenistic Monarchies
Eventually, four Hellenistic kingdoms emerged as the successors to Alexander (see Map 4.2). In Macedonia, the struggles for power led to the extermination of Alexander’s dynasty. Not until 276 B.C.E. did Antigonus Gonatus (an-TIG-oh-nuss guh-NAH-tuss), the grandson of one of Alexander’s generals, succeed in establishing the Antigonid (an-TIG-uh-nid) dynasty as rulers of Macedonia. The Antigonids viewed control of Greece as essential to their power but did not see outright conquest as necessary.
Another Hellenistic monarchy was founded by the general Seleucus (suh-LOO-kuss), who established the Seleucid (suh-LOO-sid) dynasty of Syria. This was the largest of the Hellenistic kingdoms and controlled much of the old Persian Empire from Turkey in the west to India in the east, although the Seleucids found it increasingly difficult to maintain control of the eastern territories. In fact, an Indian ruler named Chandragupta Maurya (chun-druh-GOOP-tuh MOWR-yuh) (324–301 B.C.E.) created a new Indian state, the Mauryan Empire, and drove out the Seleucid forces. The Seleucid rulers maintained relations with the Mauryan Empire, how- ever. Trade was fostered, especially in such luxuries as spices and jewels.
A third Hellenistic kingdom came into being by free- ing itself from the Seleucids. This was the kingdom of Pergamum (PURR-guh-mum) in western Asia Minor under the Attalid (AT-uh-lid) dynasty. In 133 B.C.E., the last member of the Attalid dynasty bequeathed his kingdom to Rome in his will.
The fourth Hellenistic monarchy was Egypt, which had come under the control of Ptolemy (TAHL-uh- mee), another Macedonian general. Named governor of Egypt after Alexander’s death, Ptolemy had estab- lished himself as king by 305 B.C.E., founding the Ptolemaic (tahl-uh-MAY-ik) dynasty of pharaohs. Hel- lenistic Egypt lasted longer than all the other Hellenis- tic monarchies; it was not until the reign of Cleopatra VII, who allied herself with the wrong side in the Roman civil wars (see Chapter 5), that Egypt fell to the Romans in 30 B.C.E.
The Threat from the Celts
The Celts, also known as the Gauls, were a people who had occupied large areas of Europe north of the Alps during the early Iron Age (ca. 800–500 B.C.E.), especially the region to the south and west of the Rhine River, west of the Alps, and north of the Pyrenees (a region known as Gaul).
At the end of the fifth century B.C.E., possibly as the result of overpopulation, Celtic peoples began to migrate south and east. One group sacked the city of Rome in 390 B.C.E. (see Chapter 5). After the death of Alexander the Great, other groups of Celts began to threaten the Hellenistic world. As one ancient writer reported, Celts attacked Macedonia early in the third century B.C.E.: “When the defeated Macedonians had fixed themselves within the walls of their cities, the victorious Brennus ravaged the fields of the whole of Macedonia with no one to oppose him.”2 Brennus also led a group of thirty
The World of the Hellenistic Kingdoms 81
Copyright 2017 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s). Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.