The
Athenian orator and diplomat,
Demades, is sent to the
Macedonian court, but either the Macedonian regent
Antipater or his son
Cassander, learning that Demades has intrigued with the former regent
Perdiccas, puts him to death.
Antipater becomes ill and dies shortly after, leaving the regency of the Macedonian Empire to the aged
Polyperchon, passing over his son Cassander, a measure which gives rise to much confusion and ill-feeling.
Polyperchon's authority is challenged by Antipater's son Cassander, who refuses to acknowledge the new regent. With the aid of
Antigonus, ruler of
Phrygia, and with the support of
Ptolemy and
Lysimachus, Cassander seizes most of
Greece including
Macedonia.
Eumenes allies himself with the regent Polyperchon. He manages to escape from the siege of Nora, and his forces soon threaten
Syria and
Phoenicia. Polyperchon recognises Eumenes as the royal general in
Asia Minor.
Antigonus resolves to become lord of all Asia, and in conjunction with
Cassander and
Ptolemy. He enters into negotiations with
Eumenes; but Eumenes remains faithful to the royal house. He raises an army and forms a coalition with the
satraps of the eastern provinces. He then captures
Babylon from Antigonus.
Antigonus marches against Eumenes, so Eumenes withdraws east to join the satraps of the provinces beyond the
Tigris River.
Cassander, who has allied himself with Ptolemy and Antigonus, declares war on the regent,
Polyperchon. Most of the
Greek states support him, including
Athens. Cassander further effects an alliance with
Eurydice, the ambitious wife of King
Philip III Arrhidaeus of Macedon.
Although Polyperchon is initially successful in securing control of the Greek cities, whose freedom he proclaims, his fleet is destroyed by Antigonus.
Greece
In a power struggle in
Athens after the death of
Antipater,
Phocion is deposed as the ruler of Athens, convicted of treason, and executed by those Athenians hoping to restore
democracy to the city. Shortly afterward, the Athenians decree a public burial and a statue in his honor.
China
The state of
Qin moves into the
Sichuan basin, giving them control of that great food-producing plain.
By topic
Music
Aristoxenus, a Greek
peripateticphilosopher, and writer on music and rhythm, and a pupil of
Aristotle, writes a
treatise on music called the "Elements of Harmony".
Battle of Paraitacene: The first battle of Western armies each with an
elephant corps who fight for control over
Alexander's empire. The armies of Antigonus and Eumenes fight each other near today's
Isfahan in Persia with no clear victor.
After twice being banished for attempting to overthrow the oligarchical party,
Agathocles returns with an army and banishes or murders about 10,000 citizens (including the oligarchs), and sets himself up as tyrant of
Syracuse. Acestorides is banished from the city.
By topic
Art
Private funeral monuments are banned in Athenian cemeteries.
Eumenes and
Antigonus, rivals to Cassander for control of Macedonia, meet in the
Battle of Gabiene in
Media to the northeast of
Susa. Antigonus defeats Eumenes, with the aid of
Seleucus and
Peithon (the satraps of
Babylonia and Media, respectively). The result is inconclusive. However, some of Eumenes' soldiers take matters into their own hands. Learning that Antigonus has captured many of their wives, children and the cumulative plunder of nearly 40 years of continuous warfare, they secretly open negotiations with Antigonus for their safe return. They hand over Eumenes and his senior officers to Antigonus in return for their baggage and families. Eumenes is put to death by Antigonus after a week's captivity.
Olympias is condemned to death by
Cassander, but his soldiers refuse to carry out the sentence. She is eventually killed by relatives of those she has previously had executed.
King Hui of
Qin decides, on the advice of General Sima Cuo, to invade and annex the ancient states of
Ba and
Shu in Sichuan, in order to increase Qin's agricultural output and obtain a strategic platform from which to defeat the state of
Chu.
Antigonus claims authority over most of Asia, seizes the treasury at
Susa and enters
Babylon, where
Seleucus is governor. Seleucus flees to Ptolemy in
Egypt and enters into a league with him,
Lysimachus (the ruler of
Thrace) and Cassander, against Antigonus. This leads to the First Coalition War.
Peithon consolidates his power base in the eastern part of the Empire.
Antigonus drives out
Cassander's
Macedonian forces of occupation from the Greek islands and forms the island cities in the
Aegean into the "League of the Islanders", preparatory to his invasion of
Greece. His ally, the city of
Rhodes, furnishes him with the necessary fleet.
Greece
The King of
Epirus,
Aeacides, faces a revolt from his people and they drive him from the kingdom. His son,
Phyrrhus, who is then only two years old, is saved from being killed by some faithful servants. Cassander takes control of Epirus.
The
Romans take
Ferentum, a city of Apulia, and this pushes the citizens of
Nuceria to end their friendship with Rome.[6]
India
The Indian king
Porus, ally of
Alexander The Great, is killed by
Eudemus, another general of Alexander. The son of Porus, Malayketu, seizes his territory back by killing Eudemus.
Antigonus does not trust
Peithon's growing power. So Antigonus tricks Peithon to come to his court, where Antigonus has him executed.
Antigonus invades
Syria, then under Ptolemy's control, and besieges and captures
Tyre. Antigonus then occupies Syria, proclaiming himself regent.
Greece
As
Cassander fights to retain control over central
Greece,
Antigonus promises freedom to the Greek cities in a bid to gain support from them against Cassander.[8]
Success seems to be going the
Samnites' way in their ongoing battles against the
Romans.
Campania is on the verge of deserting Rome. Peace is established between Rome and some Samnite towns.
Ptolemy, whose
Egyptian kingdom includes
Cyprus, puts down a revolt there. A revolt in
Cyrene is also crushed.
Greece
Becoming tired of the
Macedonian rule, the people of
Epirus recall their former king
Aeacides.
Cassander immediately sends an army against him under his brother,
Philip, who is diverted from invading
Aetolia.[9]
Philip defeats Aeacides in a battle. Aeacides, with the remnant of his forces, joins the Aetolians. A second battle takes place, in which Philip is again victorious, and Aeacides is killed. The remaining Aetolian army takes refuge in the surrounding mountains.[9]
Seleucus ceases his service to Ptolemy and returns to his former province, Babylonia. This event takes place on October 1 and becomes the starting point of the
Seleucid era.[14]
Greece/Macedon/Thrace
Telesphorus enters
Elis and fortifies the citadel, and enslaves the city.[15]
Cassander sails against the city of
Oreus on
Euboea with a fleet of 30 ships. He blockades its port trying to force the city's surrender.
Telesphorus comes to the aid of Oreus from the
Peloponnese with 1,000 soldiers and 20 ships, while
Antigonid admiral
Medius sails to relieve Oreus with a 100 ships from
Asia Minor; they break Cassander's blockade.
Cassander recieves reinforcements from Athens (under Thymochares the Sphettian, descendant of
Thymochares) and defeats Telesphoros' squadron.[16]
Antigonus sends his nephew
Ptolemy, whom he has made
Strategos of Greece, with 5,000 infantry, 500 cavalry and 150 warships (he had recalled and reinforced Medius' fleet) to take command of all Antigonid forces in Greece.[17]
Cassander abandons the siege of Oreus, concentrating his forces at
Chalcis to counter
Ptolemy who has landed in
Boeotia. Antigonus himself now marches his main army to the
Hellespontine region threatening to invade Europe and attack Macedon, forcing Cassander to retreat to Macedon to prepare its defences.[18]
Antigonus arrives at the
Propontis and tries to negotiate an alliance with
Byzantium, but the city, at the urging of
Lysimachus, remaines neutral; without it Antigonus gives up on the idea of crossing over into Europe.[19]
Ptolemy captures
Chalcis, removes Cassander's garrison, but does not install a garrison of his own.
Eretria and
Carystus, both on
Euboea as well, join Antigonus' alliance. Ptolemy crosses over to mainland Greece and captures
Oropos, again removing Cassander's garrison, he then hands it over to, Antiochus' ally, the
Boeotian League. After Oropos he invades
Attica putting pressure on
Athens to negotiate a truce. From Attica he marches on
Thebes, captures it and removes Cassander's garrison. He moves on to
Phocis drives out Cassander's garrisons in that region as well, and moves into
Opuntian Locris, where he besieges
Opus.[20]
Telesphorus , who had been subordinated to Antigonus' other nephew
Ptolemy considered this an insult and ends his friendship with
Antigonus through betrayal.[15]
Ptolemy soon restores the situation and persuades
Telesphorus to give up his revolt.[21]
The
Roman censor,
Appius Claudius Caecus, a
patrician, enters office and begins construction of the
Appian Way (the
Via Appia) between
Rome and
Capua. He also embarks on a program of political reform, including the distribution of the landless citizens of Rome among the tribes, which at this time constitute basic political units. Appius also admits sons of freedmen into the
Roman Senate. He also asserts the right of freed slaves to hold office.
Rome gets its first pure drinking water as engineers complete the first aqueduct into the city, the
Aqua Appia.
Ptolemy tries to occupy
Syria. However,
Demetrius Poliorcetes wins a battle over Ptolemy's forces and
Antigonus enters Syria in force. So, after only a few months, Ptolemy evacuates his forces from Syria.[22]
In view of the threat by Seleucus to his control of the East, Antigonus decides to make peace with all of his adversaries, except Seleucus, who now holds Babylon. All of the
diadochi confirm the existing boundaries and the freedom of the Greek cities. Ptolemy and
Lysimachus are confirmed as satraps of
Egypt and
Thrace, respectively, and Antigonus and
Cassander are confirmed as commanders of the army in Asia and Europe. Antigonus, no longer regent but now titled the
strategos (officer in charge) of the whole of Asia, rules in Syria from the
Hellespont to the
Euphrates, including
Asia Minor.[22]
The peace agreement between the diadochi is soon violated. On the pretext that garrisons have been placed in some of the free Greek cities by Antigonus. Ptolemy and Cassander renew hostilities against him.[22]
Antigonus orders
Nicanor, one of his generals, to invade
Babylonia from the east and his son
Demetrius Poliorcetes to attack it from the west. Nicanor assembles a large force but it is surprised and defeated by
Seleucus at the river
Tigris, and his troops are either cut to pieces or defect to the enemy. Similarly, Demetrius Poliorcetes fails to oust Seleucus.