tition of the several governments of Alexander's empire; and it was expressly stipulated by the treaty, that Leonatus and Antigonus should march with a great body of troops to establish Eumenes in the government of those dominions, and dispossess king Ariarthes of the sovereignty. This general resolution of sending troops and experienced commanders into the several provinces of the empire, was formed with great judgment; and the intention of it was, that all those conquered territories should continue under the dominion of the Macedonians, and that the inhabitants, being no longer governed by their own sovereigns, should have no future inclination to recover their former liberty, nor be in a condition to set each other the example of throwing off the new yoke of the Greeks.

But neither Leonatus nor Antigonus were very solicitous to execute this article of the treaty: and, as they were entirely attentive to their own particular interest and aggrandisement, they took other measures. Eumenes, seeing himself thus abandoned by those who ought to have established him in his government, set out with all his equipage, which consisted of 300 horse and 200 of his domestics well armed, with all his riches, which amounted to about 5000 talents of gold, and retired to Perdiccas, who gave him a favourable reception. As he was much esteemed by that commander, he was admitted into a participation of all his counsels. Eumenes was indeed a man of great solidity and resolution, and the most able of all the captains of Alexander.

Within a short time after this event, he was conducted into Cappadocia by a great army which Perdiccas thought fit to command in person. Ariarthes had made the neces sary preparations for a vigorous defence, and had raised 20,000 foot and a great body of horse: but he was defeated and taken prisoner by Perdiccas, who destroyed his whole family, and invested Eumenes with the government of his dominions. He intended, by this instance of severity, to intimidate the people, and extinguish all seditions: and this conduct is very judicious, and absolutely necessary in the conjuncture of a new government, when the state is in a general ferment, and all things are usually disposed for commo tions. Perdiccas, after this transaction, advanced with his troops to chastise Isaura and Laranda, cities of Pisidia, which had massacred their governors, and revolted from the Macedonians. The last of these cities was destroyed in a very surprising manner; for the inhabitants finding themselves in no condition to defend it, and despairing of any quarter from the conqueror, shut themselves up in their houses, with

their wives, children, and parents, and all their gold and sil ver, set fire to their several habitations, and, after they had fought with the fury of lions, threw themselves into the flames, The city was abandoned to plunder; and the soldiers, after they had extinguished the fire, found a very great booty, for the place was filled with riches.

Perdiccas, after this expedition, marched into Cilicia, where he passed the winter season. During his residence in that country, he formed the resolution to divorce Nicea, the daughter of Antipater, whom he had espoused at a time when he thought that marriage subservient to his interest, But when the regency of the empire had given him a supe rior credit, and given birth to more exalted hopes, his thoughts took a different turn, and he was desirous of espousing Cleopatra, the sister of Alexander the Great. She had been married to Alexander king of Epirus; and, having lost her husband in the wars of Italy, she had continued in a state of widowhood, and was then at Sardis in Lydia. Per. diccas dispatched Eumenes thither, to propose his marriage. to that princess, and employ his endeavours to render it agreeable to her. This alliance with a lady who was the sister of Alexander by the same father and mother, and ex ceedingly beloved by the Macedonians, opened him a way to the empire through the favour of that people, which he might naturally expect from his marriage with Cleopatra.

Antigonus penetrated into his design, and evidently fore saw that his own destruction was to be the foundation of the intended success. He therefore passed into Greece with the greatest expedition, in order to find Antipater and Craterus, who were then engaged in a war with the Ætolians, and disclosed to them the whole plan that Perdiccas had formed. Upon this intelligence, they immediately came to an accom modation with the Ætolians, and advanced towards the Hel lespont, to observe the motions of the new enemy; and, in order to strengthen their own party, they engaged Ptolemy, governor of Egypt, in their interest,

Craterus, one of the greatest of Alexander's captains, had the largest share of the affection and esteem of the Macedonians. Alexander, a little before his death, had ordered him to conduct into Macedonia the 10,000 veteran troops he intended to send thither, on account of their age, wounds, or other infirmities, which rendered them incapable of the ser vice. The king had likewise conferred upon him at the same time the government of Macedonia in the room of Antipater, whom he recalled to Babylon. These provinces

*A. M. 3683. Ant. J. C. 321. Diud. p. 606-609.

having been consigned to Craterus and Antipater after the death of Alexander, they governed them in concert, and Craterus always conducted himself like a good and faithful as sociate; especially in the operations of this war, in which they were unavoidably engaged by the discovery of the designs Perdiccas was forming.

Perdiccas sent Eumenes back to his province, not only to regulate the state of affairs in that country, but more particularly to keep a watchful eye on the motions of Neoptolemus his next neighbour, who was governor of Armenia, and whose conduct was suspected by Perdiccas, but not without sufficient reason, as will be evident in the sequel.

*This Neoptolemus was a man remarkable for his stupid pride, and the insupportable arrogance he had contracted, from the vain hopes with which he fed his imagination. Eumenes endeavoured to reduce him to reason by gentle measures; and when he saw that the troops of the Macedonian phalanx, who were commanded by Neoptolemus, were grown very insolent and audacious, he made it his care to assemble a body of horse strong enough to oppose their designs, and keep them within the bounds of respect and obedience. With this view he granted all sorts of immunities and exemptions from imposts, to those of the inhabitants who were in a condition to appear on horseback. He likewise purchased a great number of horses, and bestowed them on those of his court in whom he confided the most; and inflamed their courage by the honours and rewards he conferred upon them. He disciplined and habituated them to labour and fatigue by reviews, exercises, and continual movements. Every body was surprised to see him assemble, in so short a time, a body of 6000 horse, capable of good service in the field.

Perdiccas having caused all his troops to file off the next spring towards Cappadocia, held a council with his friends on the operations of the intended war. The subject of their deliberations was, whether they should march first into Macedonia against Antipater and Craterus, or into Egypt against Ptolemy. The majority of voices declared in favour of the last; and it was concluded, at the same time, that Eumenes, with part of the army, should guard the Asiatic provinces against Antipater and Craterus and, in order to engage him more effectually to espouse the common cause, Perdiccas added the provinces of Carira, Lycia, and Phrygia to his government. He likewise declared him generalissimo of all the troops in Cappadocia and Armenia, and ordered all the governors to obey him. Perdiccas, after this, advanced to

Plut, in Eumen. p. 585.

wards Egypt through Damascene and Palestine. He also took the two minor kings with him in this expedition, in order to cover his designs with the royal authority.

* Eumenes spared no pains to have a good army on foot, in order to oppose Antipater and Craterus, who had already passed the Hellespont, and were marching against him, They left nothing unattempted to disengage him from the party he had espoused, and promised him the addition of new provinces to those he already possessed: but he was too steady † to be shaken by those offers, in breach of his engagements to Perdiccas. They succeeded better with Alcetas and Neoptolemus, for they engaged the former to observe a neutrality, though the brother of Perdiccas, and the other declared in their favour. Eumenes attacked and defeated the latter at a narrow pass, and even took all his baggage. This victory was owing to his cavalry, whom he had formed with so much care. Neoptolemus saved himself with 300 horse, and joined Antipater and Craterus ; but the rest of his troops went over to Eumenes,

Antipater entered Cilicia with an intention to advance into Egypt, in order to assist Ptolemy, if his affairs should require his aid; and he detached Craterus and Neoptolemus with the rest of his army against Eumenes, who was then in Cappadocia. A great battle was fought there, the success of which was entirely to be ascribed to the wise and vigilant precaution of Eumenes, which Plutarch justly considers as the master piece of a great commander. The reputation of Craterus was very great, and the generality of the Macedonians were desirous of him for their leader after the death of Alexander, remembering that his affection for them, and his desire to support their interest, had caused him to incur the displeasure of that prince. Neoptolemus had flattered him, that as soon as he should appear in the field, all the Macedonians of the opposite party would list themselves under his banners, and Eumenes himself was very apprehensive of that event. But, in order to avoid this misfortune, which would have occasioned his inevitable ruin, he caused the avenues and narrow passes to be so carefully guarded, that his army was entirely ignorant of the enemy against whom he was leading them, having caused a report to be spread, that it was only Neoptolemus, who was preparing to attack him a second time. In the dispositions he made for the bat

* Plut. in Eumen. p. 585-587. Diod. xviii. §. 610-613+ Quem (Perdiccam) etsi infirmum videbat, quod unus omnibus resistere cogebatur, amicum non deseruit, neque salutis quam fideį fuit cupidior, Cor, Nep. in Eumen. c. 3.

tle, he was careful not to oppose any Macedonian against Craterus, and issued an order, with very severe penalties, that no herald from the enemy should be received on any account whatever.

The first charge was very rude; the lances were soon shivered on both sides, and the two armies attacked sword in hand. Craterus acted nothing to the dishonour of Alexander on this last day of his life, for he killed several of the enemy with his own hand, and frequently bore down all who opposed him; till at last a Thracian wounded him in the flank, when he fell from his horse. All the enemy's cavalry rode over him without knowing who he was, and did not discover him till he was breathing his last.

As to the other wing, Neoptolemus and Eumenes, who personally hated each other, having met in the battle, and their horses charging with a violent shock, they seized each other; and their horses springing from under them, they both fell on the earth, where they struggled like two impla cable wrestlers, and fought for a considerable time with the utmost fury and rage, till at last Neoptolemus received a mortal wound, and immediately expired.

Eumenes then remounted his horse, and pushed his left wing to that part of the field where he believed the enemy's troops still continued unbroken. There, when he was informed that Craterus was killed, he spurred his horse to the place where he lay, and found him expiring. When he beheld this melancholy spectacle, he could not refuse his tears to the death of an ancient friend, whom he had always esteemed; and he caused the last honours to be paid him with all possible magnificence. He likewise ordered his bones to be conveyed to Macedonia, in order to be given to his wife and children. Eumenes gained this second victory ten days after the first.

* In the mean time Perdiccas had advanced into Egypt, and began the war with Ptolemy, though with very different success. Ptolemy, from the time he was constituted governor of that country, had conducted himself with so much justice and humanity, that he had entirely gained the hearts of all the Egyptians. An infinite number of people charmed with the lenity of so wise an administration, came thither from Greece and other parts to enter into his service. This additional advantage rendered him extremely powerful; and even the army of Perdiccas had so much esteem for Ptolemy, that they marched with reluctance against him,

Diod. 1. xviii, p. 613-616. Plut. in Eumen, p. 587. Cor, Nep. c. 5.