ABSTRACT
During the reign of her son (336-323), Olympias managed to play a significant role in in the public life of Macedonia, her homeland Molossia, and the Greek peninsula in general. The contrast to her comparative obscurity during her husband’s reign is striking. Assessing the degree of her power during this period presents many difficulties, only some the result of the prejudices and omissions of the sources. Whatever her personal mix of feelings at the time of her son’s departure for the Asian campaign, Olympias’ actions imply that she regarded his absence as an opportunity to exercise greater authority than would have been possible if Alexander had remained in Macedonia.1
