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EUMENES

Volume 7 · 774 words · 1797 Edition

a Greek officer in the army of Alexander, son of a charioteer. He was the most worthy of all the officers of Alexander to succeed after the death of his master. He conquered Paphlagonia, and Cappadocia, of which he obtained the government till the power and jealousy of Antigonus obliged him to retire. He joined his forces to those of Perdiccas, and defeated Craterus and Neoptolemus. Neoptolemus perished by the hands of Eumenes. When Craterus had been killed during the war, his remains received an honourable funeral from the hand of the conqueror; and Eumenes, after weeping over the ashes of a man who once was his dearest friend, sent his remains to his relations in Macedonia. Eumenes fought against Antipater and conquered him; and after the death of Perdiccas his ally, his arms were directed against Antigonus, by whom his was conquered A. U. C. 433, chiefly by the treacherous conduct of his officers. This fatal battle obliged him to disband the greatest part of his army to secure himself a retreat; and he fled only with 700 faithful attendants to a fortified place on the confines of Cappadocia, called Nora, where he was soon besieged by the conqueror. He supported the siege for a year with courage and resolution, but some disadvantageous skirmishes reduced him, that his soldiers, grown desperate, and bribed by the offers of the enemy, had the infidelity to betray him into the hands of Antigonus. The conqueror, from shame or remorse, had not the courage to visit Eumenes; but when he was asked by his officers, in what manner he wished him to be kept, he answered, keep him as carefully as you would keep a lion. This severe command was obeyed; but the alacrity of Antigonus vanished in a few days, and Eumenes, delivered from the weight of chains, was permitted to enjoy the company of his friends. Even Antigonus hesitated whether he should not restore to his liberty a man with whom he had lived in the greatest intimacy while both subservient to the command of Alexander; and these secret emotions of pity and humanity were not a little increased by the petitions of his son Demetrius for the release of Eumenes. But the calls of ambition prevailed; and when Antigonus recollected what an active enemy he had in his power, he ordered Eumenes to be put to death in the prison. His bloody commands were executed 315 years before the Christian era. Such was the end of a man who raised himself to power by merit alone. His skill in public exercises first recommended him to the notice of Philip; and under Alexander, his attachment and fidelity to the royal person, and particularly his military accomplishments, promoted him to the rank of a general. Even his enemies revered him; and Antigonus, by whose orders he perished, honoured his remains with a splendid funeral, and conveyed his ashes to his wife and family in Cappadocia. It has been observed, that Eumenes had such an universal influence over the successors of Alexander, that none during his lifetime dared to assume the title of king.

EUMENES I. king of Pergamus, who succeeded his uncle Philetærus about 264 years before Christ. He made war against Antiochus the son of Seleucus, and enlarged his possessions by seizing upon many of the cities of the kings of Syria. He lived in alliance with the Romans, and made war against Prusias king of Bithynia. EUMENES Bithynia. He was a great patron of learning; but being much given to wine, he died of an excess in drinking, after a reign of 22 years. He was succeeded by Attalus.

EUMENES II. succeeded his father Attalus on the throne of Asia and Pergamus. His kingdom was small and poor, but he rendered it powerful and opulent; and his alliance with the Romans did not a little contribute to the encrease of his dominions after the victories obtained over Antiochus the Great. He carried his arms against Prusias and Antigonus; and died 160 years before Christ, after a reign of 40 years, leaving the kingdom to his son Attalus II. He has been admired for his benevolence and magnanimity; and his love of learning greatly enriched the famous library of Pergamus, which had been founded by his predecessors in imitation of the Alexandrian collection of the Ptolemies. His brothers were so attached to him and devoted to his interests, that they enlisted among his body-guards to show their fraternal fidelity.

a celebrated orator of Athens about the beginning of the fourth century. Some of his harangues and orations are extant. An historical writer in Alexander's army.