Close companion & personal bodyguard of
Alexander the Great who
played a pivotal role in molding the Hellenistic kingdoms into which Alexander's
empire was partitioned after his death. It was Ptolemy's arguments that convinced
other Macedonian generals that they should divide the
newly conquered sprawling territory among themselves to make it more
governable.
Ptolemy himself took control of Egypt,
which he sought to give symbolic preeminence by intercepting Alexander's body as
it was being transported to Macedonia from Babylon
& diverting it to Memphis. Instead of vying for supreme power with other
generals, however, he
concentrated on developing Alexandria into the most important city on the
Mediterranean, founding the Museion & great library there &
starting construction of the Pharos, the lighthouse that became
one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. An effective administrator,
Ptolemy won the support of
the native Egyptian populace by restoring ancient Egyptian temples
destroyed by the Persians & establishing the syncretistic cult of
Serapis, which blended Egyptian & Greek religious elements. After his
own death his subjects worshipped him as a god.
The successful strategic coalitions Ptolemy
formed in the wars among Alexander's successors are evidence of
his diplomatic skills. A cautious, defensive strategist, his compromise with Seleucus
I, the Macedonian ruler of Babylon, split greater Syria, giving
Egypt control of Judea & the rest of Palestine (301
BCE) for almost a century. Though
he occupied Jerusalem on a Sabbath & took hostages to Egypt, later
Hellenized Jews recalled him as a benefactor, since he granted rights
& privileges to Jews in Alexandria.
Like Alexander's other generals Ptolemy
assumed the title of "king" (basileus) to counter Antigonus' use of that title (305
BCE). His success in defending Rhodes
against Antigonus' assault (304
BCE) earned him the by-name
"Savior" (Soter). Assuming the role of protector of the
league of islands in the Aegean, Ptolemy used his superior navy to
liberate Athens from Macedonian occupation in the last coalition war
among Alexander's successors (288-286
BCE). The dynasty he founded lasted
about 300 years, almost a century longer than that of any of Alexander's
other generals. Yet perhaps Ptolemy's most lasting historical legacy was his
memoirs detailing Alexander's campaigns, which-- though no longer extant--
were the source of the detailed account written by the later (2nd c.
CE)
Hellenistic historian, Arrian.
References:
Josephus,
Antiquities 12.2-11.
______, Against Apion 1.183-186, 210; 2.37, 44.
Pausanias,
Description
of Greece
1.6.2-8.
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