Agathocles ( el, Ἀγαθοκλῆς, flourished 4th century BC) was a

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

nobleman who was a contemporary to King

Philip II of Macedon Philip II of Macedon ( grc-gre, Φίλιππος ; 382 – 21 October 336 BC) was the king ('' basileus'') of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty, founders of the ...

(reigned 359 BC–336 BC). Agathocles was a

Thessalian Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thess ...

serf Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism, and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery, which developed ...

from Crannon.Heckel, ''Who’s who in the age of Alexander the Great: prosopography of Alexander’s empire'', p.153 His father’s name may have been Alcimachus. It was through his flattery that Agathocles became an intimate friend of Philip II,Lund, ''Lysimachus: A Study in Early Hellenistic Kingship'', p.2 who raised him to high rank. Agathocles was granted Macedonian citizenship for himself and his family. Agathocles shared in Philip II’s councils and Phillip II sent him to deal with the

Perrhaebi The Perrhaebi () were an ancient Greek people who lived on the western slopes of Olympus, on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia. They took part in the Trojan War under Guneus and also fought in the Battle of Thermopylae. History Still i ...

and Agathocles took charge of affairs in that area. There is a possibility that Phillip II rewarded Agathocles for his services with estates in

Pella Pella ( el, Πέλλα) is an ancient city located in Central Macedonia, Greece. It is best-known for serving as the capital city of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon, and was the birthplace of Alexander the Great. On site of the ancient cit ...

. Agathocles became a favorite in the Argead court in Pella and his family assimilated into Macedonian society. Agathocles married an unnamed Greek woman, a local Thessalian, perhaps a woman called Arsinoe. With his wife they had four sons: * AlcimachusLund, ''Lysimachus: A Study in Early Hellenistic Kingship'', p.3 *

Lysimachus Lysimachus (; Greek: Λυσίμαχος, ''Lysimachos''; c. 360 BC – 281 BC) was a Thessalian officer and successor of Alexander the Great, who in 306 BC, became King of Thrace, Asia Minor and Macedon. Early life and career Lysimachus wa ...

, one of the

Diadochi The Diadochi (; singular: Diadochus; from grc-gre, Διάδοχοι, Diádochoi, Successors, ) were the rival generals, families, and friends of Alexander the Great who fought for control over his empire after his death in 323 BC. The War ...

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...

Lysimachus’ article at Livius.org
/ref> * Autodicus *

Philip Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who populariz ...

References

{{reflist

Sources

Ancient Library Article: Agathocles no.1

* H.S. Lund, ''Lysimachus: A Study in Early Hellenistic Kingship'', Routledge, 2002 * W. Heckel, ''Who’s who in the age of Alexander the Great: prosopography of Alexander’s empire'', Wiley-Blackwell, 2006 4th-century BC Macedonians Ancient Thessalians Ancient Pellaeans