Question

Who took the throne in Macedonia after King Philip II was assassinated?

Answer 1

Alexander the Great

Explanation:

Alexander III of Macedon was a son of Philip II. Alexander quickly was declared king after Philip was assassinated (336 BCE).

The question to ask at this point is - who killed Philip II? The man who actually did the deed was Pausanias, who was a member of the King's bodyguards. The murder was committed as Philip attended pubic celebrations for his daughter's marriage and also to kick off Philip's invasion of Asia.

And now we get to the interesting part. Why would a member of Philip's bodyguards assassinate his King? Who was actually behind the assassination?

Alexander, while cleared by the authorities of the day, might have had a hand in it, as might his mother. There are a few things to know:

• The eldest son (who was Alexander) in Macedonia was not guaranteed to rise to the thrown,

• The Kings of Macedon hadn't died of old age in a long time. They tended to be "helped along" by up and comers or had died in battle,

• Philip had just married his 7th wife (named Cleopatra - but not the famous Egyptian one), which upset Alexander's mother, Olympias, (who had been put aside so Philip could remarry),

• Philip's new wife's father was one of Philip's generals, Attalus. At a drunken party, Attalus publicly prayed that Philip and Cleopatra would have a son so that he could be the heir to Macedon (Alexander was only half-Macedonian - his mother having been from another city). Alexander reacted angrily but Philip took Attalus' side,

• A Persian governor (called a satrap) had tried to get his sister married to Alexander's half-brother, which fuelled more fears about the succession,

• In all of this, as Alexander, who was watching as his claim to the thrown was becoming less and less certain, fled Macedon for a time, along with his mother. He did return after six months, thanks to a family friend.

But the damage was done - Philip had dishonoured his ex-wife and had made his eldest son's position tenuous (this same son was an accomplished leader of men, an excellent tactician, and had brought glory to Macedon at a young age).

Did Alexander have his father killed? It's quite possible he did.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_the_Great

https://www.awesomestories.com/asset/view/ASSASSINATION-OF-PHILIP-II-Alexander-the-Great