Memnon of Rhodes

Memnon
Memnon
	Coinage of Memnon of Rhodes, Mysia. Mid 4th century BC
Native name	Μέμνων
Born	c. 380 BC; Rhodes
Died	summer, 333 BC (aged c. 47)
Allegiance	Achaemenid Empire
Years of service	339 - 333 BC
Battles/wars	Battle of the Granicus ; Siege of Halicarnassus
Spouse(s)	Barsine (c. 340 BC)

Memnon of Rhodes (Greek: Μέμνων ὁ Ῥόδιος; c. 380 – 333 BC) was a prominent

Artabazus II, together with his brother Mentor he served the Persian king for most of his life, and played an important role during the invasion of Alexander the Great and the decades before that.^[1]

Carl Otis Schuster notes that though often inaccurately described as "simply a mercenary", Memnon was arguably the toughest defender of the Persian Empire Alexander had to face, and was nearly successful in putting a halt to him.[1]

Biography

Under the governor of Phrygia

Not much is known about Memnon's early life.

Artaxerxes II (r. 404–358), with Memnon and Mentor as his generals.^[2] When the revolt failed, Memnon and Artabazos II fled to Pella, the capital of Macedonia, whereas Memnon's brother Mentor fled to Egypt. Eventually, Mentor returned to Persian service around 343 BC.^[2]

In Macedon

During his visit in Macedon, Memnon became acquainted with Philip II and the young prince Alexander (later Alexander the Great), who was seven years old at the time. According to Plutarch, Memnon and Alexander had lengthy discussions, with Alexander reportedly having keen interest in Persia's military strength and tactics, amongst others.^[2] Though Schuster notes that the details of the conversations between Memnon and Alexander are difficult to verify, he does add that Memnon managed to get a proper impression of Philip II as a ruler, military leader and diplomat during his time in Pella.^[2] Moreover, it convinced him of Philip II's intentions to invade Persia, and he got a proper realization of the deep-seated Greek dissatisfaction vis-a-vis the Macedonian hegemony over Greece, including the political issues that came along with it for the Macedonians.^[2]

Through the "influence" of his brother, after a stay of about three to four years in Macedon, Memnon re-entered the Persian service, "with a clear understanding of Macedonia's military capabilities".^[2]

Defense of the Achaemenid Empire

Campaigns against Philip II

Lampsakos, Mysia. Mid 4th century BC. Obv: Youthful head of Helios

, with radiate solar disk. Rev: Rose with buds to either side, letter M-E on either sides.

When Mentor died c. 340 BC, Memnon married his widow

Magnesia by the Achaemenids under the command of Memnon of Rhodes.^[4]^[3]

Campaigns against Alexander the Great

When Philip II's son Alexander invaded the Achaemenid Empire in 334 BC, Memnon, aware of the political issues the Macedonians dealt with, urged king

Pharnabazus. Memnon's widow Barsine, according to Plutarch and Justin, later became Alexander's mistress and allegedly bore him a son, Heracles.^[2] After Alexander's death, Heracles contended for the throne with Nearchus' initial support (who himself had married Barsine's daughter by Mentor). Their bid met insufficient support, and Barsine and Heracles were murdered in 309 BC by Polyperchon.^[2]

Assessment

Many scholars maintain that had Memnon's campaign been successful, Alexander would have had difficulty in continuing his campaign in Asia, and might have soon been defeated. Memnon's naval campaigns and the uprising he orchestrated in Sparta posed the greatest danger to Alexander since he had become king.

Achaemenid Phoenicia before he moved into the empire's interior.^[2] It was not until after the major Persian defeat at the Battle of Issus

that Memnon's strategy was revitalised and finally put into action, but by then, the advantage had been lost, and Alexander showed himself willing to forfeit Greece, if necessary, for his greater goals.

In fiction

In the 1956
historical film Alexander the Great Memnon was portrayed by Peter Cushing
.

Memnon appears as an antagonist in the Japanese manga Historie, by Hitoshi Iwaaki.
Memnon is portrayed by Steven Hartley in Netflix's 2024 drama docuseries Alexander: The Making of a God.

References

^ ^a ^b Schuster 2016, pp. 366–367.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s Schuster 2016, p. 367.
^
ISBN 9781575061207
.

^
ISBN 9781405154697
.

^ Mixter, John R. (December 1997). "Wars of Alexander the Great: Battle of the Granicus". Military History Magazine.

Sources

Schuster, Carl Otis (2016). "Memnon and Mentor of Rhodes (ca. 380–333, ca. 385–340)". In Phang, Sara E.; Spence, Iain; Kelly, Douglas; Londey, Peter (eds.). Conflict in Ancient Greece and Rome: The Definitive Political, Social, and Military Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO.
ISBN 978-1610690201
.

External links

Memnon of Rhodes from Livius.org, by Jona Lendering
Memnon (1) from Smith, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography
Wiki Classical Dictionary: Memnon of Rhodes

[FOOTNOTESchuster2016366–367-1] Schuster 2016, pp. 366–367.

[FOOTNOTESchuster2016367-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s Schuster 2016, p. 367.

[PB-3] 
ISBN 9781575061207
.

[WH-4] 
ISBN 9781405154697
.

[5] Mixter, John R. (December 1997). "Wars of Alexander the Great: Battle of the Granicus". Military History Magazine.

[1]

[2]

[4]

[3]

Authority control databases
International	VIAF
National	United States