Alexander died on June 11, 323 BC, in the early hours of the morning. He had given his
signet ring to his second-in-command,
Perdiccas, on the previous day, according to the main account, that of
Quintus Curtius Rufus, in
History of Alexander, which is summarized here. Curtius claims that Alexander predicted his own death, as well as the chaos resulting from it. Modern authorities disagree on whether or not this report is true, but if it is, Alexander's prediction would not have required the gift of clairvoyance and would have been largely stating the obvious; he had been dealing with mutiny among the Macedonian troops since before the expedition to India. At that time he formed a special unit of Persian young men, the Epigoni, to be armed and trained in Macedonian ways. On his return from India he hired them exclusively as his bodyguards. The handful of Macedonian generals officially titled bodyguards he used as senior staff officers. He was covered with old wounds from head to foot. He was seriously ill days before his death.
Council in Babylon On the day of his death the
Somatophylakes announced a council, to which they invited the main
Hetairoi (officers of the cavalry) and the line officers of the infantry, to be held at the royal quarters. Disobeying orders and ignoring the invitation list, the common soldiers pushed their way in, displacing many officers. Yielding to the inevitable, the
somatophylakes allowed them to stay and to vote at the council. Voting was by voice, except for beating on the shield with the spear, which signified "nay". Perdiccas opened by exposing (the manner is not stated) Alexander's "chair", from which he rendered official decisions. On it were his diadem, robe, cuirass and signet ring, which he was accustomed to wear when he spoke
ex cathedra. At the sight of them the crowd grieved volubly. Perdiccas addressed the grief, saying that the gods had given them Alexander for an appointed time, and now that it was over, they had taken him back. He pointed out their position as conquerors among the conquered. It was vital to their continuance, he said, that they have a "head". Whether it is one or many is in your "power". He thus raised the main issue, the question of "one" or "many".
Roxana, Alexander's Bactrian wife, was six months into her pregnancy. He suggested that they choose someone to rule. The floor was open for discussion.
Proposals Nearchus, the fleet commander, proposed
Heracles, the illegitimate son of Alexander by his Persian mistress
Barsine, be made king. The vote was "nay". Ptolemy took the floor to say that selecting Heracles would be a disgrace (
piget), because his mothers was a "captive" (
captivi), and what would be the good of conquest if the conquered ruled the conquerors?
Aristonous of Pella proposed the ring be restored to Perdiccas as Alexander's choice. The vote was "aye". For whatever reason, Perdiccas stood for some time without reply. Then he moved behind the
somatophylakes. Curtius is of the opinion that he wished to be begged to take the position. His behavior was taken as a refusal. His enemies took advantage of the opening.
Meleager saw in the confusion a chance to attack Perdiccas. There was no difference, he said, in voting for either Perdiccas or Heracles, as the former would rule anyway as "guardian" (
tutela). The implication is that Perdiccas had some sort of legal guardianship of Alexander's children that would automatically apply even if they were voted kings. If the soldiers really were the deciding authority, he said, then why should they not enrich themselves by plundering the treasury? Amidst the uproar he gave the appearance of leading away an armed party to do just that, "the assembly having turned to sedition and discord". An ordinary soldier saved the day by standing forward to shout that there was no need for civil war when
Arrhidaeus, Alexander's half-brother, was the legal heir. They would never find another Alexander. Why should his heir be defrauded of his inheritance? The crowd became suddenly silent, to be followed by a loud positive voice vote. Too late,
Peithon began to speak in opposition – Arrhidaeus was mentally disabled – but was shouted down.
Development of factions The soldiers, though allowed a vote, were not officially part of the council. Peithon proposed that it appoint
Perdiccas and
Leonnatus "Guardians" of Heracles, while
Craterus and
Antipater were to "administer" Europe. The appointments were adopted without consulting Arrhidaeus. Meleager left and returned with Arrhidaeus, shouting for assistance from the soldiers. Two factions had now developed, one for Perdiccas, and one for the Arrhidaeans, supported by Meleager. In the uproar; Arrhidaeus escaped in fear. The crowd called him back, placing Alexander's robe around him. Meleager put on his armor in public view, preparing to defend Arrhidaeus. The soldiers threatened bodily harm to the Bodyguards. They rejoiced that the "empire" would remain in the same family. According to
Peter Green, "
xenophobia played its part here: the Macedonian rank and file did not relish the prospect of kowtowing to a half-Oriental monarch." According to Curtius, the assembly sacrificed "the old view of the kingship". They sent emissaries to Perdiccas asking to set up a triumvirate of "chiefs": Arrhidaeus, Perdiccas and Meleager. Perdiccas accepted, explains Curtius, hoping to divide Meleager from Arrhidaeus. Arrhidaeus was made king and renamed
Philip III, while Alexander's and Roxana's child, who would indeed be a son, would become
Alexander IV. Initially Meleager was spared and was appointed Perdiccas's deputy (
hyparchos), but after the crisis had passed and the situation was again under control, Meleager, who saw them coming for him, took refuge in a temple, where he was murdered. The army meanwhile mingled and the schism was healed.
Another council in Babylon Perdiccas, as
epimelētēs (guardian or regent) and with the authority conferred by Alexander's
seal ring, summoned a new council, in the language of ancient legislators, "to which it was pleasing to divide the empire". Most of the great marshals were present, but three were not. Antipater, who had been in charge of Macedonia, was in
Pella. Alexander had summoned Antipater to Babylon a few months before his death, but Antipater, suspecting he would be killed if he went, sent his son
Cassander instead. Craterus, whom Alexander had appointed to replace Antipater, was on his way to Europe with
Polyperchon and ten thousand veterans. They had reached
Cilicia, when they learned of Alexander's death, and decided to stay there until they received further news.
Antigonus One-Eye, who was commander of central
Phrygia and responsible for keeping the route to Europe open, stayed where he was, in the fortress at
Celaenae. Europe had not yet been divided into satrapies. There was no need to replace any eastern satraps. Perdiccas believed he was carrying out Alexander's plans, extending the modified Persian Empire into Greece, western Asia and Africa. He insisted on the supreme authority in the name of the king. Shortly that fiction was to be assaulted, ending in the second of the three partitions, which was an overt one manifestly to all. After the partition the council turned to the business of disposing of Alexander's body, which had lain unburied for seven days. The date of the partition was therefore June 18, 323 BC, or near it. ==Ancient sources==