Before Eumenes had his famous confrontations and battles with Antigonus in Persia proper, he initially raised forces in Phoenicia, acquired treasure from Cyinda, and won the allegiance of the Silver Shields, the famed veterans of Philip II and Alexander's campaigns, setting up a shrine to Alexander's throne and body, by appealing to their memory of him, and also winning them over with bribes and land grants. His defeat marked the last chance of any of the Argeads ever surviving, or of Alexander's empire being kept together under the progeny of Alexander, and saw the territories divided up, though Antigonus would also attempt to reunite it for himself. Also, it enabled Antigonus, formerly satrap of Phrygia and now charged to bring Eumenes to justice for killing Craterus, to become vastly more powerful, effectively gaining control over huge swathes of Persia, and most of the Upper Satrapies, and later on, Anatolia and Syria. I was wondering how the wars of the Diadochi would be affected if Seleucus, satrap of Babylonia, had managed to defeat Eumenes before he had the chance to gain more forces, and to deny a great victory and a great amount of control to Antigonus. Suppose that he had managed to kill Amphimachus, satrap of Mesopotamia, and install one of his relatives in the position, and that he had opened the floodgates and dams of Mesopotamia and Babylonia, that had managed to devastate Eumenes' army, before proceeding, with a small force of Macedonian veterans augumented by native levies, to ambush and kill him. What would be the effect? If Antigonus doesn't do battle with Eumenes, he never gets the chance to become as powerful as he did IOTL. Seleucus might not even have to flee, and there would certainly still be figures like Peithon and Peucestas still around. With all of this considered, how differently does the Third War of the Diadochi go? Does Peithon attempt a coup against Antigonus, to assume command of his army, like he was apparently planning to do so IOTL until Antigonus executed him? How would the theatre of war in Macedonia and Europe change? How would Ptolemy react? And who do the silver shields and remnants of Eumenes' army join?
WI: Seleucus defeats Eumenes?
- Thread starter SunKing105
- Start date
Very importantly Antigonus has not marginalized the satraps of the region yet, men like Peucestas, Peithon, and others are still around. They would present a powerful challenge to both Antigonus' and Seleucus' authority. And that's not even getting into the possibility of the loyalist cause in Asia not having been utterly exhausted IOTL, and someone continues Eumenes' work.
Eumenes was a clever one and the floods seemed to have troubled him little OTL. Otoh Seleucus did win a similar battle against Evagoras so I suppose its not impossible.
Assuming Eumenes dies from misfortune in battle or revolt by his troops afterwards. The question for Antigonus is whether he wants to take the time to continue east and sort out the situation with the satraps, or return to consolidate west Asia where his allies of convenience are fighting in Europe and Ptolemy is eyeing Syria.
Assuming Eumenes dies from misfortune in battle or revolt by his troops afterwards. The question for Antigonus is whether he wants to take the time to continue east and sort out the situation with the satraps, or return to consolidate west Asia where his allies of convenience are fighting in Europe and Ptolemy is eyeing Syria.
That would give Seleucus crucial time to organize, both from absorbing the remnants of Eumenes' army, and from capturing the treasuries at Susa, meaning he may not flee Babylon. Antigonus would have to subjugate Babylon from the get-go, which could either result in his ultimate victory without Seleucus undermining him, or ultimate defeat, with a smaller Seleucid empire than OTL. And if Seleucus can link up with Ptolemy in Syria, then all bets are off.