Menander ( grc-gre, Μένανδρος; fl. 4th century BC) was an officer in the service of

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 ...

. He was one of those called '' etairoi'', but he held the command of a body of mercenaries. He was appointed by Alexander to the government of Lydia, during the settlement of the affairs of Asia made by Alexander when at Tyre (331 BC). Menander appears to have remained at that post until the year 323 BC, when he was commissioned to lead a reinforcement of troops to Alexander at Babylon — he arrived there just before the king's last illness. In the division of the provinces, after the death of Alexander, Menander received his former government of Lydia, of which he was quick to take possession. He appears soon to have attached himself to the party of Antigonus and was the first to give Antigonus information about the ambitious schemes of Perdiccas for marrying Cleopatra. In the new distribution of the provinces at

Triparadisus Triparadeisos or Triparadisus ( el, Τριπαράδεισος) was a settlement in Lebanon near the sources of the Orontes. A paradeisos was a hunting reserve or pleasure-ground for the nobility of the Achaemenid (Persian) Empire, normally a w ...

(321 BC) he lost the government of Lydia, which was given to Cleitus; but this was probably only in order that he might liaise more easily with Antigonus, as illustrated by him commanding a part of Antigonus's army in the first campaign against

Eumenes Eumenes (; grc-gre, Εὐμένης; c. 362316 BC) was a Greek general and satrap. He participated in the Wars of Alexander the Great, serving as both Alexander's personal secretary and as a battlefield commander. He later was a participant in t ...

(320 BC). The following year, Menander learnt of the escape of Eumenes from Nora, and advanced with an army into

Cappadocia Cappadocia or Capadocia (; tr, Kapadokya), is a historical region in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It largely is in the provinces Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde. According to Herodotus, in the time of the Ionian Re ...

to attack him, forcing him to take refuge in

Cilicia Cilicia (); el, Κιλικία, ''Kilikía''; Middle Persian: ''klkyʾy'' (''Klikiyā''); Parthian: ''kylkyʾ'' (''Kilikiyā''); tr, Kilikya). is a geographical region in southern Anatolia in Turkey, extending inland from the northeastern coa ...

. After this, there is no further records about Menander.

Notes

References

* Smith, William (editor); ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' (1849, originally published 1844 under a slightly different title) is an encyclopedia/biographical dictionary. Edited by William Smith, the dictionary spans three volumes and 3,700 ...

''
"Menander (1)"

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, (1867) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Menander (General) Ancient Macedonian generals Generals of Alexander the Great Satraps of the Alexandrian Empire 4th-century BC rulers 4th-century BC Macedonians Generals of Antigonus I Monophthalmus