Peithon ( grc, Πείθων) (died 312 BC), son of Agenor (Αγήνωρ) was an officer in the expedition of Alexander the Great to India, who became satrap of the Indus from 325 to 316 BC, and then satrap of Babylon, from 316 to 312 BC, until he died at the Battle of Gaza in 312 BC.

Officer

Peithon was very successful in his Indian campaigns, first mentioned as the commander of a phalanx battalion in January 325 in the Mallian Campaign (Indian Mâlava) in the southern Punjab.

Satrap of the Indus (325–316 BC)

After these deeds, Alexander named him viceroy of the Indus area, around 325 BC, to the east of the territory held in the Paropamisadae by the satrap Oxyartes and to the south of the territories where

Philip, son of Machatas Philip ( el, Φίλιππoς; died 325 BC), son of Machatas and brother of Harpalus, was an officer in the service of Alexander the Great, who in 327 BC was appointed by Alexander as satrap of India, including the provinces westward of the Hyd ...

was satrap: :"He (Alexander) appointed Peithon viceroy of the land extending from the confluence of the

Indus The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmir, ...

and

Acesines The Chenab River () is a major river that flows in India and Pakistan, and is one of the 5 major rivers of the Punjab region. It is formed by the union of two headwaters, Chandra and Bhaga, which rise in the upper Himalayas in the Lahaul regi ...

as far as the sea, together with all the coast-land of India" Arrian Anabasis Book 6b Arrian Anabasis Book 6b
/ref> Later, Peithon managed putting down the revolt of king

Musicanus The Indian campaign of Alexander the Great began in 327 BC. After conquering the Achaemenid Empire of Persia, the Macedonian king Alexander launched a campaign into the north-western regions of the Indian subcontinent (precisely in present-day ...

(Indian: Mûshika) at the head of the Indus: :"Meantime he was informed that Musicanus had revolted. He dispatched the viceroy, Peithon, son of Agenor, with a sufficient army against him, while he himself marched against the cities which had been put under the rule of Musicanus. Some of these he razed to the ground, reducing the inhabitants to slavery; and into others he introduced garrisons and fortified the citadels. After accomplishing this, he returned to the camp and fleet. By this time Musicanus had been captured by Peithon, who was bringing him to Alexander." Arrian Anabasis Book 6b Peithon was confirmed in his position at the

Partition of Babylon The Partition of Babylon was the first of the conferences and ensuing agreements that divided the territories of Alexander the Great. It was held at Babylon in June 323 BC. Alexander’s death at the age of 32 had left an empire that stretched fro ...

following the death of Alexander in 323 BC: :"To the colonies settled in India, Python, the son of Agenor, was sent." Justin XIII.4 According to the text of the Partition of Triparadisus in 321 BC, Peithon was again confirmed in his dominion over the area beyond the

Hindu-Kush The Hindu Kush is an mountain range in Central and South Asia to the west of the Himalayas. It stretches from central and western Afghanistan, Quote: "The Hindu Kush mountains run along the Afghan border with the North-West Frontier Province ...

: :"The country of the Parapamisians was bestowed upon Oxyartes, the father of Roxane; and the skirts of India adjacent to Mount Parapamisus, on Peithon the son of Agenor. As to the countries beyond that, those on the river

, with the city Patala (the capital of that part of India) were assigned to Porus. Those upon the Hydaspes, to Taxiles the Indian." Arrian "Anabasis, the Events after Alexander" According to other sources, he was also at one point satrap of the Punjab. In 317 BC, another Peithon, the satrap of Media, tried to control the eastern rulers of the Empire. Macedonians troops from India were sent west to combat him, weakening the Greek positions in India. Peithon, son of Agenor, left India in 316 BC for Babylon (Diod. XIX, 56, 4). About that time,

Chandragupta Maurya Chandragupta Maurya (350-295 BCE) was a ruler in Ancient India who expanded a geographically-extensive kingdom based in Magadha and founded the Maurya dynasty. He reigned from 320 BCE to 298 BCE. The Maurya kingdom expanded to become an empi ...

began reconquering the northwestern territories held by the Greeks.

Satrap of Babylon (315–312 BC)

In 315 BC, Peithon, son of Agenor, was named satrap of

Babylonia Babylonia (; Akkadian: , ''māt Akkadī'') was an ancient Akkadian-speaking state and cultural area based in the city of Babylon in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq and parts of Syria). It emerged as an Amorite-ruled state c. ...

Antigonus Monophthalmus Antigonus I Monophthalmus ( grc-gre, Ἀντίγονος Μονόφθαλμος , 'the One-Eyed'; 382 – 301 BC), son of Philip from Elimeia, was a Macedonian Greek nobleman, general, satrap, and king. During the first half of his life he serv ...

, and participated on his side in his fight against Cassander and Ptolemy in 314 BC. Peithon was together with

Nearchus Nearchus or Nearchos ( el, Νέαρχος; – 300 BC) was one of the Greek officers, a navarch, in the army of Alexander the Great. He is known for his celebrated expeditionary voyage starting from the Indus River, through the Persian Gulf and e ...

, a former admiral of Alexander, assisting Demetrius, the son of Antigonus. At the Battle of Gaza in autumn 312 BC, the Egyptian side under Ptolemy won, and Peithon was killed in action. It is unknown what happened in India right after his departure, but ancient sources reported that the prefects of Greek territories were assassinated in the Indian uprisings led by

: :"India, after the death of Alexander, had assassinated his prefects, as if shaking the burden of servitude. The author of this liberation was Sandracottos (Chandragupta), but he had transformed liberation in servitude after victory, since, after taking the throne, he himself oppressed the very people he has liberated from foreign domination" Justin XV.4.12-13 "(Transitum deinde in Indiam fecit), quae post mortem Alexandri, ueluti ceruicibus iugo seruitutis excusso, praefectos eius occiderat. Auctor libertatis Sandrocottus fuerat, sed titulum libertatis post uictoriam in seruitutem uerterat ; 14 siquidem occupato regno populum quem ab externa dominatione uindicauerat ipse seruitio premebat.
Justin XV.4.12-13
/ref>

Notes

External links

livius.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Peithon 312 BC deaths Generals of Alexander the Great Satraps of the Alexandrian Empire Year of birth unknown