ABSTRACT
Alexander had had his favourites - his excessive grief over the death of Hephaistion became legendary - but at his death he had no designated successor. The group of able commanders on whom he had relied for his military success were all keen to step into his shoes. Antipater, who had been left by Alexander in charge in Macedon proved an able general, and there was enough Macedonian solidarity for him to be able to summon help from other veteran generals of Alexander. It is hard to overestimate the effect on Athens - which remains the city about which we know most - and other Greek cities of needing to conduct politics with half an eye on what, by 300, had become the Hellenistic kingdoms, as one by one the dynasties established by Alexander's successors styled themselves 'king'. Relations with kings could not be maintained by any of the ever-changing committees by which classical Athens had run itself.
