The Pyrrhic Dynasty : A Makedonian AAR
The Pyrrhic Dynasty
Yes, that's right, the Pyrrhic Dynasty of Makedonia. This is a continuation of my last AAR, which can be found here: https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=92870. I'm playing on an internal version of EB that is just pre-v1.0, so there are many things that are v1.0 and some that are still v0.8x. The Pyrrhos in question is not Pyrrhos of Epeiros but another Pyrrhos, Megas Pyrrhos Argeades the Crippled of Makedonia. This AAR starts at 175BC and is about the Makedonian Civil War, where the corrupt decendants of Antigonos fight the family of Pyrrhos, who is a hero to the people and a great leader of the military. Now for a "quick" overview of the situation so far...
Introduction: The Reign of the Antigonids
After the death of Megas Alexandros, the land of Makedonia traded many hands. When Keltic forces attacked Makedonia and looted Hellas, it was Antigonos Gonatas who defeated them and claimed the throne of Makedonia.
The Reign of Antigonos Gonatas (ruled Makedonia 277-241BC)
Antigonos had enough problems controlling Makedonia itself, at first and trouble only increased when Pyrrhos of Epieros returned from his failed campaigns in the west. Looking for money, angry over Antigonos not supporting him, and claiming the Makedonike throne, Pyrrhos invaded Makedonia. By 272BC it looked like the Antigonid line would end and Pyrrhos would take control of Makedonia, but then Pyrrhos became distracted. Before his campaign in Makedonia had ended, he withdrew his forces and began a campaign in Illyria.
This gave Antigonos the chance to take on his other enemy, the city-states of Hellas. Gathering all the forces he could, Antigonos marched on the two greatest of the Hellas polis, Athenai and Sparte. Within two years, the forces Hellas had been all but defeated. Antigonos did not subjugate the cities or occupy them by force. Instead, Antigonos set up Makedonia-friendly tyrants or councils that would run the city with almost entire autonomy. A portion of taxes and trade income was due to Makedonia, but the amount of economic and infrastructure improvements that Antigonos made to Hellas more than made up for this.
Pyrrhos then shifted his attention back to Epeiros. Pyrrhos and the bulk of his army had been lost in Illyria and the little nation of Epeiros was now broke and leaderless. In a quick strike, Antigonos conquered all of Epeiros. Rather than subjugate them, and not feeling like giving them direct autonomy such as in Hellas, Antigonos instead added Epeiros into the greater territory of Makedonia and granted the people the same rights as those that lived in Makedonia. Even though this upset many Makedones, it completely won over the people of Epeiros.
By 260BC, Antigonos had emerged as the only true power in greater Hellas:
Antigonos then rested and shifted his attention to rebuilding the broken economies of Makedonia, Hellas, and Epeiros. The next decade and a half were slow. During this time, Antigonos' third son, Euboulides, was born. Antigonos' second son Demetrios, during this time, was able to raise a second army and use it to consolidate power in Hellas, as well as conquer Crete, Milos, and Rhodos. With the economy then rebuilt, Antigonos left his son Alkoyneus in charge of Makedonia and invaded Thraikia and conquered it. By 250BC, Antigonos and his sons had established a powerful base of power, but to the east their ally in the Arche Seleukeia had lost the Syrian Wars and was now being pushed back ever further:
At this time, Alexandros, nephew of Antigonos led an invasion of Illyria, not only to capture its resources but to put an end to raids and pirate attacks from Illyria.
When Babylonia and Anatolia fell to the armies of Ptolemai, Antigonos assembled his armies and marched eastward. He and his son, Demetrios, then led an invasion of Ptolemai-controlled Anatolia. After taking the city of Sardis, Antigonos fell ill, and died a few months later.
The known world at the death of Antigonos Gonatas, in 241BC:
The Shared Reign of Alkyoneus and Demetrios (241-228BC)
When Antigonos died, he named both his sons as his heirs. The brothers were really close and they both accepted the shared leadership, but there was much competition between them. When Hellenic trade cities along the coast north of Thraikia requested assistance from the Getic Confederation, Alkyoneus quickly responded. Alkyoneus had assumed that this would start a war, in which he could gain territory and fame, but the Getic Confederation simply withdrew and respected their alliance with Makedonia.
Demetrios, on the other hand, gained many victories, first against the Ptolemaioi then against the lesser kingdoms of Anatolia. In less than five years since his father's death, Demetrios had securred all of western Anatolia, even making Pergamon a client state. In the next five years, Demetrios pushed eastward, defeating the Ptolemaioi at every encounter. Eventually joined by his son, Aristotelis, Demetrios invaded Syria and liberated the city of Antiocheia in 233BC:
It was then that the Kingdom of Pontos betrayed the Antigonids and attacked her Galatian allies and Makedonike cities in Anatolia. Alkyoneus responded to this while Demetrios secured the borders against Ptolemaioi agression. Taking a newly formed elite army from Makedonia, Alkyoneus countered the Pontic forces, and won many victories, took lands, and restored "autonomy" to the Galatians. All went well until one unfortunate day. Outside the last city of the Kingdom of Pontos, a huge battle was waged. Although the Makedones won, Alkyoneus fell dead on the field.
The known world at the death of Alkyoneus, in 228BC:
The Reign of Megas Demetrios (241-204BC)
Taking the throne at 35 (at first with Alkyoneus), the reign of Demetrios would be the longest and most successful of any Makedonike Basileus, rivalling even the acomplishments of Megas Alexandros. The majority of Demetrios' life was dedicated to the distruction of the Ptolemaic Dynasty and the crushing of its armies. After Demetrios took Anatolia and Syria, he began work rebuilding the city of Antiocheia and the lands of Syria.
When Alkyoneus died, Demetrios left his son, Aristotelis in charge of Syria and sailed to Makedonia to ensure the sons of Alkyoneus didn't divide what was now being called the Arche Makedonia in civil war. Once there, both his brother Euboulides and his nephews Perseus and Chrysoloras accepted him as Basileus. Demetrios then sent Euboulides eastward to finish off the kingdom of Pontos and get revenge for their brother.
Once Pontos fell, what was left of Alkyoneus' elite army returned to Makedonia, where Demetrios rebuilt it. Leaving Makedonia in the hands of Perseus and Chrysoloras, Demetrios sailed south to the Hellenic colony of Kyrene. Taking Kyrene, Demetrios opened up a new front with the Ptolemaioi. From there, Demetrios began taking Lybia from the Ptolemaioi.
During the next decade, Demetrios waged war with the Ptolemaioi, but war also came from the west and the east. Both the city of Kart-Hadast and the Kingdom of Hayasdan attacked the Arche Makedonia. Defences at Kyrene held off the Qarthadastism, while Euboulides fought Hayasdan in the First Armenian War. Back in Makedonia and Illyria, the families of Alkyoneus and Alexandros gained territory to the north and built up a defensive barrier along the Istros River.
220BC:
The next five years gave the Arche Makedonia some of the greatest territorial gains. With forces finally ready, Demetrios began his invasion of Aigyptos. First the great city of Alexandreia fell, then Demetrios worked his way up the Neilos wiping out ever last Ptolemaic soldier. Finally, he turned for the deserts and made a trek to the Oracle at Ammonion, where he received several messages of prophecy. As this happened, his son Aristotelis invade the Ptolemaic holdings in the Levant and established a client state in Ioudaia. Eventually the Ptolemaic Dynasty was isolated to Assyria. Finally the big three powers of the Hellenistic world met and ended all wars between the Arche Makedonia, the Arche Seleukeia, the Ptolemaioi, and the Kingdom of Hayasdan.
215BC:
There would be no peace in the life of Demetrios, however. With only the city of Kart-Hadast remaining as an enemy, Demetrios made plans to invade Sikilia and liberate the Hellenes there. Though as he planned, the Romaioi in Italia made their own plans and betrayed a long standing treaty, invading Illyria. The Romaioi had conquered all of Italia, had failed in an attempt to take Sikilia, and then invaded Gaul. They had established themselves as a power in the west, only rivalled by Kart-Hadast, their ally.
Prior to this time, all wars in the Arche Makedonia had been fought directly by the Basileus or someone close to him. With Demetrios in Sikilia, Euboulides defending against the Kingdom of Hayasdan, and Aristotelis defending to prevent renewed Ptolemaic agression, this war fell to a distant branch of the family. In Illyria, the descendants of Alexandros had seen this war coming for a long time and were ready for it. So, Demetrios gave permission to Nepos and his three sons (Neikolaos, Gelon, and Pyrrhos) to invade Italia. With three large armies, the family of Alexandros brought war back to the Romaioi. Demetrios attacking from the south, Nepos from the north, the Romaioi military was broken by 210BC:
Demetrios established a Syrakousian military force to defend Sikilia and then sailed north. Taking the islands west of Italia, then the city of Massalia, Demetrios arrived in Gaul. With the Romaioi territories cut in half, the Gallic tribes began fighting back and defeating the Romaioi occupation. With help from Nepos' son Neikoloas, Gaul was liberated and the Romaioi there completely defeated.
In 207BC, the Ptolemaioi, having rebuilt their military, betrayed the cease-fire and invaded Syria. Aristotelis was ready, however, and within a year the Ptolemaic Dynasty had been put to an end. Or so it was thought. It turned out some Ptolemaioi had survived and had escaped to Nubia when Demetrios had invaded the Neilos valley. They then lived in Nubia, in exile.
As 204BC came along, Nepos was growing too old to fight and the command of the Romaioi War was given to his youngest son, Pyrrhos. Pyrrhos renewed the war by invading southern Italia with a new army of Pezhetairoi from Epeiros.
Dispite success across the Arche Makedonia, the year 204BC was a sad one. Having stayed in Massalia for half a decade, Demetrios fought sickness and finally succome to illness. As the Oracle of Ammonion predicted, he died quitely with only his grandson, Neokles, at his side. Demetrios had done what no man had done since Megas Alexandros. But unlike Alexandros, Demetrios had ensured security for his conquered regions and successfully handed them off to his heir.
The known world at the death of Megas Demetrios, in 204BC:
The Reign of Aristotelis (204-183BC)
Aristotelis had grown up in Makedonia, attended the Spartan Agoge, and been educated in Athenai. When he was in his early twenties, he made a trip to Thraikia, Dacia, and into the Getic Alliance. There, he assembled and army of Thraikioi and defeated many brigands. When his father invaded Syria, he quickly followed with his mercenaries. Before taking command of Antiocheia, Arisotelis personally conquered Kypros and established the short-lived client state of Sophene. Later he ruled Syria, conquered the Levant, established the client kingdom of Ioudaia, and defeated the Ptolemaioi in Assyria.
As Aristotelis came to throne, there was no real enemies left for the Arche Makedonia. There was the city of Kart-Hadast to the southwest, but those distant arid lands would have to be completely conquered and subjugated to put an end to the menace, and that task was a large unwanted one. To the east there was the Arche Seleukeia. The two Arche had long been allies, which worked well when there was an enemy between them, but now the Arche Seleukeia was looking westward at the territories they once held and the Arche Makedonia was looking eastward to reuniting the empire of Alexandros. Aristotelis had long dreamed of recreating Alexandros and hostilities with the Arche Seleukeia would give him that chance.
In Bosphoria, Euboulides began taking control slowly, but in the first few years of the reign of Aristotelis, the only true military successes were those of Pyrrhos over the Romaioi. By 200BC, the Romaioi had lost all of their conquered territories and all of her allies had fallen:
Urged by Aristotelis, Lysippos (son in-law of Euboulides) invades Armenia and brings an end to the Kingdom of Hayasdan. The war is quick and the rich lands of Armenia quickly fall into the hands of the Arche Makedonia.
The Arche Seleukeia then suffers a series of setbacks that encourage Aristotelis. To the south, the Seleukid army is crushed and the Kingdom of Sab'yn retakes lands conquered by the Arche Seleukeia. In the east, the Indians invade Seleukid Iran and push all the way to Persis. And in the north, territories rebel and a renewed Median Empire declares itself free of Hellenistic control.
While Aritotelis and his second born son, Bykoli, perpare for an invasion of Babylonia, Aristotelis' first born son, Neokles, fights in Iberia. With an alliance with the Iberian Confederacy, Neokles fights to push all influence of the city of Kart-Hadast from these lands.
194BC:
War is finally declared with the Arche Seleukeia, when the Seleukids lay claim to land in Assyria. Aristotelis uses this opertunity to invade. Over the next few years, most of Babylonia falls into the hands of the Arche Makedonia. Most of the fighting, however, is done by Bykoli, his friend / son-in-law Pefkolaos, and their army. Seeking a fight, Aristotelis takes his army and marches deep into Seleukid territory. At this point, his two sons are cut off from him and forced to run the Arche on their own from opposite sides of the know world.
190BC:
Aristotelis eventually arrived at the city of Sousa and took it by force. Retreating into the palace of Sousa, Aristotelis became a recluse while his army ran the city and the land of Elymais.
Meanwhile, his first born son, Neokles had planned an invasion of Africa and the holdings of Kart-Hadast. While Neokles landed in the west, Pyrrhos and his sons landed to the south of Kart-Hadast and Antisthenes Gortynois came by land from Kyrene. City after city fell to the Arche Makedonia with most battles being fought by Pyrrhos. Eventually Neokles marched against the great city of Kart-Hadast itself, but was unable to seige it due to its massive walls. Before the city fell, he received word that his father had died and he was now Basileus.
The known world at the death of Aristotelis, 183BC:
The Reign of Neokles (183-177BC)
In the first years of the reign of Neokles, both conflicts on either side of the Arche were quickly consolidated. The city of Kart-Hadast eventually surrendered and Neokles marched in victoriously. Leaving the city and region in the hands of Pyrrhos, Neokles then sailed for Makedonia. In the east, Bykoli and Pefkolaos conquered the last Seleukid hold-outs in Babylonia and secured the eastern front. Bykoli and Pefkolaos then began an invasion of the new Median Empire and strove eastward to finish Aristotelis' dream of reuniting the empire of Alexandros.
In Makedonia, Neokles began his reign. Seeking to establish an era of peace, Neokles negotiated peace with his neighbors in Numidia, Mauretania, Nubia, and with the Arche Seleukeia. Neokles then lowered taxes, decreased the military, and attempted to reform the government.
What had started as a dream of a new era quickly turned, however. Old wars started up again, new wars began with allies betraying agreements, natural disasters struck, and a great plague his Makedonia and Hellas. Overworked and tired, the plague eventually took Neokles and his reign ended short.
The Arche Makedonia's greatest extent under Neokles, 177BC:
Civil War (177BC- )
When Neokles died, the whole Arche was shaken. Neokles and Bykoli were the last of the line of Megas Demetrios and only they and the line of Euboulides remained of the descendants of Antigonos Gonatas. Neither Neokles or Bykoli had a son. Neokles had not been a great man, but Bykoli was far worse. The council of nobles in Pella had long disliked Bykoli, for he was stupid, decadent, and was easily manipulated by his friend / son-in-law Pefkolaos. Bykoli had also been accused of hiring assassins to kill ruling members of the council and even some in the royal family, including Pyrrhos' elder brother. Fearing Bykoli's control of the Arche, the council of nobles turned to Pyrrhos to lead them. With this, Pyrrhos had to act, for even if he had turned them down, it meant that he would be seen as an ememy to Bykoli's and he and his family would be in danger of retribution.
So in 177BC, three men set out on a trek to Pella, with their armies, to get the support of the council. To the north, there was Herakleon, first born son of Euboulides, who should have been next in line after Bykoli. Herakleon did not live long, however, as he died from poisoning while being visited by "envoys" from Bykoli. Second was Pyrrhos, who quickly gained support from subjugated Kart-Hadast, the nobles of Sikilia, and the Romani client-state. With his own family ruling northern Italia, southern Gaul, the Iberian holdings, Illyria, and Epeiros, his movement for support was quick. Then there was Bykoli, who travelled slowly across Babylonia, Assyria, Armenia, and Syria to ensure support for his cause. During his withdraw from the east, Lysippos negotiated a ceasefire with Media in exchange for the return of all Median lands.
When Pyrrhos arrived in Pella first, it appeared that Bykoli had lost. Bykoli considered retreating to Babylonia, but Pefkolaos urged him forward, to confront Pyrrhos in battle. Bykoli died, however, when one of his own men stabbed him while he walked through their camp. The assassin died quickly and nobody was sure why he did it or if anyone hired him. It seemed Pyrrhos was left the only option for Basileus, but Pefkolaos did not give up. Claiming his own son, grandson of Bykoli, was the rightful heir, Pefkolaos pushed forward and met Pyrrhos. So, in Thraikia, the two men met with their massive armies...
The division of the Arche Makedonia at the end of 176BC:
Other Noteworthy Men of the Arche Makedonia
Perseus and Chrysoloras: The two sons of Alkyoneus, who did not challenge Megas Demetrios in his claim as Basileus. They were left to administer Makedonia, Thraikia, and Hellas. During their lifetimes, not only did the improve infrastructure and the economy, but added to the Arche Makedonia just to the north by annexing all lands south of the Istros. These two brothers also brought an end to autonomy in Hellas, removing tyrants, kings, councils, and puppet-rulers and replacing them with direct control from Makedonia. There were some rebellions and rioting during this time but the direct control greatly improved the region for all people. Neither of the brothers had any sons and they both died quietly, ending the line of Alkyoneus.
Euboulides: The third born son of Antigonos Gonatas. Euboulides was born when Antigonos was already an old man and saw little of his father. Educated in Makedonia, Euboulides did little noteworthy until he took control of the leaderless war against Pontos. Pontos was already all but defeated and Euboulides only finished it off. Euboulides then took control of Pontos and later defended the region in the First Armenian War, taking Egrisi in that war. After another long stretch of administration, Euboulides took his three sons and invaded Bosphoria, claiming it for the Arche Makedonia. He died not too long after and left his sons to run the newly conquered region.
Lysippos: Lysippos was son-in-law to Euboulides and the only member of the Euboulides branch of the family that did not participate in the Bosphorian invasion. When the Second Armenian War started, it was left up to Lysippos to defend Egrisi and during the Third Armenian War it was Lysippos who conquered all of Armenia and defeated the Kingdom of Hayasdan. Later Lysippos assisted in Aristotelis' war with the Arche Seleukeia and Bykoli's war with Media. When civil war seemed all but unavoidable, Lysippos made peace with Media for the Arche and withdrew to Egrisi with two large armies. His loyalty is definately to his brothers-in-law in Bosphoria who ended up siding with Pyrrhos.
The Family of Pyrrhos: Descended from Antigonos Gonatas' nephew Alexandros, the "Illyrian Branch" of the royal family lacked much power for a long time. When the Romaioi War came, however, the head of the family, Nepos and his son led the war. The eldest son, Neikolaos, took an army of Keltic mercenaries and went northward, liberationg Gaul. Nepos and his second born son, Gelon, took the Makedones and went for the center and conquered northern Italia. Pyrrhos, a man crippled since birth, took an army of Illyrians and struck center Italy, then an army of Pezhetairoi and worked his way up from the south. Pyrrhos conquered the city of Roma, but did not kill and loot. He restored the Romani Senate and relinquished central Italia to their control. For this, the Romani hesitantly loved him, especially those he raised to power in the reformed Senate. When Nepos died, Gelon took over administration of nothern Italia, Neikolaos took over control of the holdings in southern Gallia, and Pyrrhos moved to Sikilia. When war with Kart-Hadast began again, Pyrrhos and his first-born son, Sotades joined in on the invasion and fought the majority of the battles. Pyrrhos then gained control of newly conquered Africa when Neokles ascended to the throne. Pyrrhos had planned an invasion of Numidia, but it was cut short when Neokles died.
Philippos: Second son of Pyrrhos, Philippos was just too young to join in on the war in Africa. While his father and brother fought, Pyrrhos trained in the Agoge with the Spartans and learned from the greatest minds of Athenai. When was in his early twenties, Philippos gathered an army and began his military career fighting random rebels, pirates, brigands, and thieves. While in Aigyptos, Philippos assisted in the defense from Nubians sent by the young king of Meroe, Ptolemai. Having grown up in Italia and trained with Spartans, Philippos had a different outlook on military composition. He experimented with different army compositions and attempted to form a more flexible army without pikemen. When his father requested he go to Iberia to fight the Iberian Confederacy, who had betrayed the alliance, Philippos assembled an army of Thorakitai. After several battles in Iberia, Philippos began to change his army yet again. When the civil war started, Pyrrhos ordered his son to stay in Iberia. Not only did he not want the Iberian front to fall, but he wanted at least one of his sons to stay out of the dirty politics that were about to come. When the council of Pella declared Pyrrhos Basileus, Pyrrhos declared Philippos his heir.
Antisthenes Gortynois: Son-in-law to Megas Demetrios, Antisthenes was the governor of Kyrene for decades. During his time there, he fended off dozens of invasion attempts from Kart-Hadast. Dispite his poor military skills, he gained the support of his armies and the peoples of Kyrenaia and Lybia. Dispite having closer family connections with Bykoli, Antisthenes Gortynois sided with Pyrrhos in the civil war due to Pyrrhos' ability to defeat the armies of Kart-Hadast. The support of Antisthenes gained Pyrrhos the coast of Lybia from nearly Kart-Hadast to Alexandreia, where he had their loyalty.
The Delphikos Family: An unimportant family of nobles that were given the job of defending the Makedonike colony at Bostra. When the Kingdom of Sab'yn invaded, it was this family, led by Eulandros, who defended the borders of the Arche. Since Aristotelis and Bykoli gave them no support in the war, they decided to support Pyrrhos once forced to join sides. Now isolated passed the client-state of Ioudaia, they don't expect to hold out long.
Next: Chapter 52 : The Battle of Thraikia
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I can't wait for the battle...
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