What if … Alexander had died a few months later, after his son with Roxane was born and Craterus had replaced Antipater in Macedonia?

It is obvious that there would have been a successor and one recognized by Alexander himself, although it remains to be seen whether the boy would have lived long enough to succeed his father. It would have been logical and more practical to rule Alexander’s empire from Babylon, but I doubt any of his generals saw it that way. For them Macedonia was still their homeland with Pella was its heart.

With Craterus as Regent of Macedonia instead of Antipater, there were two centers of power: one in Pella where the army of some 10,000 was reinforced by the 10,000 veterans Craterus had taken back home, and one in Babylon where the bulk of Alexander’s army was waiting for new orders. Yet again, all generals were present in Babylon, except Craterus who as second-in-command to Alexander could not be ignored. More than 2,000 km separated both camps and Craterus could hardly leave Greece for Babylon, unless Polyperchon would or could replace him properly. It all would depend on how stable the situation in Greece was when the news of Alexander’s death reached the Palace of Pella. But could or would the other generals wait for Craterus’ arrival?

At least Arrhidaeus was redundant. But how safe would Roxane and her young son have been? She is accused of having murdered Alexander’s latest wives, the two daughters of King Darius, poisoned apparently with the help of Perdiccas. Next question is, would Perdiccas have dared to assist Roxane if Craterus had been controlling Macedonia? Would or could Roxane have murdered the two princesses on her own? Nothing is certain, of course.

Another important factor is that with Craterus firmly installed in Macedonia, Cassander had little or no chance to spread his wings. This means that the murders of Alexander IV, Roxane, Heracles, Barsine, and Olympias would not have taken place. Even Arrhidaeus may have come out alive of the Successors’ War and there would have been no need for him to marry Adea/Eurydice either.

In the end, and to cut my speculations short, the Successors would have been fighting all the same, although the odds were slightly different since Cassander had not come to power and Alexander IV might have lived long enough to become the next Great King of Asia – who knows…