Heracles, the forgotten son of Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great still makes the headlines! After the recent speculations around the Tomb of King Philip of Macedonia in Vergina, wondering if this is indeed the tomb of Alexander's father, there have been other new findings of two tombs in that vicinity, one of which might be that of Heracles, the illicit son of Alexander and Barsine. Barsine had been married to Memnon, the Greek mercenary and commander in chief of the Persian army who lost the battle against Alexander at the Granicus in 334 BC. He survived the battlefield and fought back fiercely later on in defending Halicarnassus, the city which Alexander besieged, to die of some illness – not a very glamorous end for a military. Barsine, his widow, was war booty, although she was a Persian royal princess and must have been a rare beauty. Alexander never included her in any wedding plans, but apparently, she did fit his political ambitions, for a relationship with her could be seen as a friendly gesture towards Persia. In any case, she gave him a son, and he was called Heracles.

Recent excavations in Aegae have revealed the remains of a youngster who, according to one expert, could be those of Alexander's murdered son. It is bizarre, however, that these remains unearthed next to those uncovered last year were buried under unusual circumstances. Everything seems to indicate that initially, they were laid to rest at another location before being reburied here, in the heart of the city. Oddly enough, these two large silver vessels were found under the Agora, close to the theater where King Philip was murdered in 336 BC, while it was common practice to entomb the dead outside the city walls.

[photo AP]

According to the article published by Associated Press, Chrysoula Saatsoglou-Paliadeli states that the silver urn looks very much like the one discovered several years ago in the nearby royal tumulus, close to the Tomb of Philip II. Archaeologists also couldn't confirm who occupied the tomb, although many fingers point toward Alexander IV. Chrysoula Saatsoglou-Paliadeli believes this newly found grave dates from the 4th century BC and is clearly of Royal Macedonian origin because of the golden crown on top.

Very little is known about young Heracles. When Alexander the Great died in 323 BC, there was no heir to his throne. He had married Roxane a few years earlier while he was in Bactria, but their son, the later Alexander IV, was not yet born when Alexander expired.

Nobody had expected Alexander to die so young; he was the least of all. His generals now faced the task of appointing a successor. A series of lengthy, bloody, and fanatic quarrels followed in which they fought each other, jealous and envious of whatever share of the empire the other parties could acquire. This fight for power went into history as the Wars of the Diadochi and lasted for about forty years! To give some shape and stature to the royal house of Macedon, they finally decided to crown Arrhidaeus, the simple-minded brother of Alexander the Great, as king, pending the coming of age of Roxane's son, Alexander IV.

Then like today, it was all a matter of political manipulation, and poor Heracles didn't live a happy life. According to Hieronymus, quoted by Diodorus, the boy was probably born in 328 or 327 BC, about five years after Alexander's battle at Issus. There is no way to trace how long Alexander's relationship with Barsine lasted. It is possible that she accompanied him until her father, the old Artabazus, resigned as satrap of Bactria, and she escorted him to Pergamon. Alexander's marriage with Roxane possibly had something to do with her leaving the baggage train. In any case, Barsine and Heracles were residing in Pergamon when Alexander died, and suddenly, the boy was put in the floodlights.

Of course, Heracles was half Persian, but after all, he also was half Macedonian and, what's more, the son of Alexander. The Diadochi will face the same problem later on when Roxane gives birth to a boy who is only half Macedonian too. However, the fact that Heracles was an illegitimate son of Alexander was not a problem for the Macedonians. After all, Alexander's mother was not of Macedonian stock either, as she came from Epirus.

After countless fiery discussions, Perdiccas took charge of the Empire as Regent until he clashed with Ptolemy, who appropriated Egypt. If we believe Strabo (and there is no reason not to), Perdiccas had "the children of Alexander" with him during his Egyptian campaign, which must mean that both Heracles and Alexander IV traveled with him - a way to ensure that neither of them would fall in the hands of the enemies. But then Perdiccas was killed by his own men in 320 BC, and presumably, Heracles returned to Pergamon.

Then it was Antipater's turn to take over the Regency (a task originally entrusted to him by Alexander himself), only to die one year later. New skirmishes exploded, this time between Cassander, Antipater's son, and Polyperchon, one of Alexander's generals. This Second War of the Diadochi ended with a treaty of both men with Antigonus Monophthalmus, another general, and the murder of Eumenes, yet another general of Alexander's and, at one time, his secretary. Truly, this entire succession of Alexander the Great was a never-ending messy quarreling filled with countless murders and manslaughter! Meanwhile, we have entered the year 317 BC, and all scruples have long been obliterated. It then is the turn of the somewhat retarded Arrhidaeus to be eliminated. A year later, even Alexander's clever and manipulative mother, Olympias, can't escape her fate and is murdered.

Cassander, who once pretended to be Alexander's faithful friend, is now entirely intoxicated by wealth, ambition, and greed. In 310 BC, he decided to poison the young prince Alexander IV and his mother, Roxane! Well, he didn't have the guts to do it himself, of course, but instructed the prince's guardian, Glaucias, to clear the job. So much for Cassander's friendship! 

When this news reached the other Diadochi, Cassander's enemies erupted in new speculations and conspiracies, especially Polyperchon, as ruler of the Peloponnesus, and Antigonus Monophthalmus, who ruled Anatolia. Remaining as Alexander's sole heir, it was evident that all attention now focused once again on Heracles in Pergamon. This city was part of Antigonus' empire, and Polyperchon, who was yearning to steal away Cassander's power in Macedonia, conceived all sorts of tricks to achieve his goal. In his report, Diodorus mentions that Polyperchon sent letters to all his friends and Cassander's enemies, pleading to restore the now almost seventeen years old Heracles on the throne of his forefathers. Everything went according to his plans, but while Heracles settled in Polyperchon's camp, Cassander had second thoughts and felt uneasily threatened. He instructed a messenger to carry such attractive promises to Polyperchon to melt their territories together and rule jointly without having to bow to any king. The proposition sounded very attractive, and Polyperchon agreed with Cassander to eliminate Heracles. This happened probably in 309 BC.

In his Moralia, Plutarch mentions that Polyperchon was paid one hundred talents by Cassander to kill Heracles. True or not, the story goes that Polyperchon invited Heracles to dinner, but the young man asked to be excused as he didn't trust him or was scared (rightfully so, as he'll find out afterward). Unhappy with this response, Polyperchon visited the young prince in his quarters and told him, "the first quality of your father you should imitate is his readiness to oblige and attachment to his friends" (Dixit Plutarch) unless the young prince would accuse him of treason? Heracles had no choice but to attend the dinner. His meal was served, and he was strangled. Justinian pretends that upon Cassander's instructions, Barsine was murdered at the same time as her son and that their bodies were secretly hidden in the earth to erase all traces of this crime (meaning there would be no pyre, as was the custom).

Not the prettiest picture of the Macedonian rulers – enough to make Alexander turn in his grave, no doubt! But these facts leave us with several corpses that are not accounted for. We don't know how, where, or when they were disposed of. One general theory is that Alexander IV lies in the tomb next to Philip II's in Vergina, but even that has not been confirmed. And with this new evidence, we have another theory regarding the remains of Heracles that were found in the same area, although not in a tomb. There is still no trace whatsoever of the resting place of Roxane, Barsine, or even Olympias. What a story to investigate further through Unsolved Mysteries!

[the picture of Heracles is of unknown origin]