The Greek Colonists’ Uprising in Bactria in 325 B.C.: Some Problems of Political History
Abstract
The article investigates several controversial issues of the “internal” history of the first Greek colonists’ uprising which took place in Bactria in 325 B.C. The author shares the opinion that the principal cause of the revolt was Alexander’s eastern policy (especially his city-founding practice) which came into conf lict with the traditional Greek polis values. The rebellion was Greek and anti- Macedonian, but rebels’ relationship with the native population of Bactria is uncertain. The author concedes the existence of a tactical alliance between the Greeks and the Bactrians. The main attention is paid to the political life and the internal struggle of the rioters. All important questions were approved and sanctioned by a certain assembly of the Greeks, but the details are unknown. The author assumes the possibility of regeneration of the poliсe structures among the insurgents. The assumption of the royal title by the leader of rebels, Athenodorus, is considered both as a probable heritage of regional traditions (Peloponnesian etc.) and also as a sign of the change which took place in the political mentality of the Greeks in the 4th century B.C. In the final part of the article the author critically estimates F. Holt’s hypothesis about Athenodorus and his rival Biton as representatives of two different political factions of the rebellious Greeks. DOI 10.14258/izvasu(2016)4-37Downloads
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