CHAPTER II. CASSANDER

B.C. 320-316

Antipater’s difficulties–Trouble with Olympias and Eurydice.–Character of Eurydice.–Her dictatorial and overbearing demeanor.–The convention of Triparadeisus.–Violence of Eurydice.–Antipater’s life in danger.–Eurydice forced to submit.–Antipater is dangerously sick.–The arrangements made by him.–Antipater’s arrangements for the succession.–Polysperchon.–Polysperchon invites Olympias to return to Macedon.–Cassander plans a rebellion.–His pretended hunting party.–Cassander explains his designs to his friends.–They agree to join him.–Olympias is afraid to return to Macedon.–War between Cassander and Polysperchon.–Curious incident.–Polysperchon’s mine.–Success of it.–The conflict.–Consternation produced by the elephants.–Plan of defense against them.–The iron spikes.–Olympias finally concludes to go to Macedon.–Eurydice’s troops desert her.–Olympias in her chariot.–Eurydice is captured.–She is sent to a dungeon.–Death of Philip.–Eurydice’s despair.–he cell.–Eurydice’s dreadful end.–Cassander’s movements.–Olympias acts in the most energetic manner.–The siege of Pydna.–Movement of Cassander.–The carrying away of Pyrrhus.–Olympias resorts to a stratagem.–Olympias in prison.–Her end.

ALTHOUGH Antipater, on his return to Macedon, came back loaded with honors, and in the full and triumphant possession of power, his situation was still not without its difficulties. He had for enemies, in Macedon, two of the most violent and unmanageable women that ever lived–Olympias and Eurydice–who quarreled with him incessantly, and who hated each other even more than they hated him.

Olympias was at this time in Epirus. She remained there, because she did not choose to put herself under Antipater’s power by residing in Macedon. She succeeded, however, by her maneuvers and intrigues, in giving Antipater a great deal of trouble. Her ancient animosity against him had been very much increased and aggravated by the failure of her plan for marrying her daughter Cleopatra to Perdiccas, through the advances which Antipater made in behalf of his daughter Nicæa; and though Nicæa and Perdiccas were now dead, yet the transaction was an offense which such a woman as Olympias never could forgive.

Eurydice was a still greater source of annoyance and embarrassment to Antipater than Olympias herself. She was a woman of very masculin