Persia in Defense, the Athenian Connection, and the Family of Pharnabazos

Abstract

The family of Pharnabazos was affected by the Macedonian conquest of the Achaemenid Empire in several ways that mirrored the political changes in these times. The female members were captured while their male relatives participated in the efforts of Dareios III to fight the invaders back. Pharnabazos was a key figure of the Persian resistance to the Macedonians in the Aegean. His family, in particular his father Artabazos and uncle Memnon of Rhodes were connected with Athenian political actors who supported the resistance. In this Athenian-Persian network, the mercenary generals Chares and Charidemos, and also Demosthenes, played an important role. These personal links were a kind of legacy of Athens’ former supremacy in the Aegean. For the Macedonians, it was a challenge.