After Alexander

Here at After Alexander, we go through the narrative of the Hellenistic Era chronologically without a focus on individual stories. However, if you feel like listening to a funny, well-sourced show which focuses on individual monarchs' stories, feel free to listen to the Alexander Standard. Taking after the Rex Factor started in 2010, the Alexander Standard ranks all the successors to Alexander III of Macedon from Perdiccas to Cleopatra VII. If you want a different take on the same story, feel free to give them a listen!

They can be found on:

This week, I thought we'd try a mathematical way to assess how stable the Seleucid dynasty has been so far. To do so, we're going to compare average reign length and longest reign length with other dynasties from history. Prepare for some well known names- including a cameo from the Sun King himself, Louis XIV of France...

Sources for this episode:

• The Editors, Encyclopedia Britannica (2022), Constantine VIII (online) (Accessed 02/08/2023).
• Goldsworth, A. (2016), Pax Romana: War, Peace and Conquest in the Roman World. London: Weidenfeld & Nicholson.
• Hussey, J. M., Encyclopedia Britannica (2023), Basil II (online) (Accessed 02/08/2023).
• Jones, D. (2013); The Plantagenets: The Kings Who Made England. London: William Collins (eBook accessed 03/08/2023).
• Littlewood, I. (2002), The Rough Guide Chronicle: France. London: Penguin Group Ltd.
• Norwich, J. J. (2013), A Short History of Byzantium. London: Penguin Books Ltd.
• Van Loo, B. (translated by Forest-Flier, N.) (2019, translated 2021), The Burgundians, A Vanished Empire- A History of 1111 Years and One Day. Head of Zeus Ltd.
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Constantine VIII (online) (Accessed 02/08/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Elizabeth II (online) (Accessed 02/08/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), House of Valois-Burgundy (online) (Accessed 03/08/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), List of longest-reigning monarchs (online) (Accessed 03/08/2023).

Hello everyone, just a quick note that the YouTube comments are active on all videos and in the community tab. Feel free to drop me a line there as an alternative to the show's email address and stay tuned for extra features such as polls in future!

This week, we're going to witness some of the fallout from the death of Antiochus II in 248 BCE. We don't just have one new monarch Seleucus II, but we have three- his full brother Antiochus Hierax will come to claim the crown from Anatolia and there is his half-brother Antiochus the Younger (the son of Berenice Syra) to contend with as well. Seleucus II will have to deal with the chaos of multiple people claiming the crown, as well as the stage being set for the Third Syrian War...

Sources for this episode:

• Bevan, E. R. (1902), The House of Seleucus (Vol. I). London: Edward Arthur.
• The Editors, Encyclopedia Britannica (2019), Antiochus II Theos (online) (Accessed c.22/01/2022).
• Grainger, J. D., (2014), The Rise of the Seleukid Empire (323- 223 BCE), Seleukos I to Seleukos III. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Books Ltd. (eBook) (Accessed 22/01/2022).
• Lendering, J., Livius (created 2006, last modified 2020), Berenice Phernophorus (online) (Accessed c.22/01/2022).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Antiochus II Theos (online) (Accessed c.22/01/2022).
• Authors unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Berenice Syra (online) (Accessed c.22/01/2022).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Laodice I (online) (Accessed c.22/01/2022).

It's time for another mini-series! This time, we're going to look ahead to some scattered stories from Greek history in the centuries and millennia after the fall of the Hellenistic kingdoms. Today, we're jumping forward to the 1860s CE to witness how a Danish prince was chosen to be King of the Hellenes as Georgios I. His family ruled over Greek- with some intermissions- until Konstantinos II was deposed in 1973...

Sources for this episode:

• Chisholm, H. (1911), 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica (A-M).
• The Editors, Encyclopedia Britannica (2023), George I (online) (Accessed 18/06/2023).
• Herrin, J. (2008), Byzantium: The Surprising Life of a Medieval Empire. London: Penguin Books Ltd.
• Norwich, J. J. (2013), A Short History of Byzantium. London: The Penguin Group.
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Constantine I of Greece (online) (Accessed 20/06/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Frederick VIII of Denmark (online) (Accessed 20/06/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), George I of Greece (online) (Accessed 18/06 and 20/06/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Greek royal family (online) (Accessed 18/06/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Henri d'Orléans, Duke of Aumale (online) (Accessed 20/06/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Seleucid empire (online) (Accessed 20/06/2023).

Hello everyone, Vince here with a quick update on how the podcast schedule is probably going to work from now on. I'm likely as not going to try out a monthly schedule- meaning that a new After Alexander will show up on the first Saturday of every month and a Biopedia on the third Sunday- although that may vary depending if I have more or less time for it in a given month. Who knows, there may well be more than one episode a month if I'm lucky!

There may also be some extra content in the 'Community' tab of the podcasts' YouTube pages as well. I'm trying this new schedule in order to walk the line between not releasing any content at all and burning out due to trying to juggle everything at once. I'm also releasing this update on Biopedia's feed.

We've left Antiochus II behind, but that doesn't mean we can't explore the family tree in more detail in the meantime! This week, we head back down memory lane to remind ourselves about the existence of Achaeus the Elder, younger brother of our founder Seleucus I. Achaeus was the progenitor of a family who will become more prominent in our story in future decades, and as such deserve some attention. So, get ready for an episode with far too many people called Laodice...

Sources for this episode:

• Bevan, E. R. (1902), The House of Seleucus (Vol. I). London: Edward Arthur.
• Grainger, J. D., (2014), The Rise of the Seleukid Empire (323- 223 BCE), Seleukos I to Seleukos III. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Books Ltd. (eBook) (Accessed 12/03/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Achaeus (son of Seleucus I Nicator) (online) (Accessed 15/01/2022).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Alexander (grandson of Seleucus I Nicator) (online) (Accessed 05/03/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Andromachus (son of Achaeus) (online) (Accessed 15/01/2022 and 05/03/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Antiochis (online) (Accessed 05/03/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Berenice Syra (online) (Accessed 25/05/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Laodice I (online) (Accessed 05/03/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Laodice II (online) (Accessed 05/03/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Seleucid dynasty (online) (Accessed 05/03/2023).
• Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Seleucid empire (online) (Accessed 05/03/2023).

With Antiochus II's death, it's time for a recap episode! For the third time in our series, we're sat around the metaphorical campfire, just as we did when we said our goodbyes to Seleucus I and Antiochus I. The empire may be transitioning from the third generation of Seleucid royalty to the fourth, but that doesn't mean we can't take a minute to reflect on the last fifteen years...

We're going to have to say goodbye to two rulers in this episode- first Ptolemy II and then Antiochus II will meet their ends and pass on the mantle to the next generation. In Egypt the crown passes to Ptolemy III who seems ready for another fight over Syria. However, the situation in the Seleucid realm is far murkier, with the peace agreement from a few years ago disinheriting Laodice's sons- at least theoretically- and cause of death differing between sources. All of this culminates in the two wives of Antiochus II declaring two of his sons king...

Sources for this episode: 1) Bevan, E. R. (1927), The House of Ptolemy, London: Methuen Publishing. Available at: LascusCurtis [Accessed 08/02/2021]. 2) Bevan, E. R. (1902), The House of Seleucus (Vol. I). London: Edward Arthur. 3) The Editors, Encyclopaedia Britannica (2019), Antiochus II Theos (online) [Accessed c.22/01 and 15/07/2022]. 4) Grainger, J. D., (2014), The Rise of the Seleukid Empire (323- 223 BCE), Seleukos I to Seleukos III. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Books Ltd. (eBook) [Accessed 22/01, 06/06 and 15/07/2022]. 5) Lendering, J., Livius (2006, last altered 2020), Berenice Phernophorus (online) [Accessed c.22/01 and 15/07/2022]. 6) Rawlinson, G. (1869) A manual of ancient history from the earliest times to the fall of the Western Empire, comprising the history of Chaldea, Assyria, Media, Babylonia, Lydia, Phoenicia, Syria, Judea, Egypt, Carthage, Persia, Greece, Macedonia, Rome, and Parthia. Oxford: Clarendon Press. (eBook) [Accessed 22/01/2022]. 7) Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Antiochus II Theos (online) [Accessed c.22/01 and 15/07/2022]. 8) Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Laodice I (online) [Accessed c.22/01/2022].

We return to the narrative with the introduction of Berenice Phernophorus, the daughter of Ptolemy II and the younger sister of Ptolemy III. Our story today takes us through the disagreements surrounding the details of the end of the Second Syrian War, the birth of yet another prince called Antiochus- and sets the stage for the last chapter in the reign of Antiochus II...

Sources for this episode: 1) Bevan, E. R. (1902), The House of Seleucus (Vol. I). London: Edward Arthur. 2) Bevan, E. R. (1927), The House of Ptolemy, London: Methuen Publishing. Available at: LascusCurtis [Accessed 08/02/2021]. 3) The Editors, Encyclopaedia Britannica (2019), Antiochus II Theos (online) [Date of access uncertain, possibly c.18/01/2022]. 4) Grainger, J. D., (2014), The Rise of the Seleukid Empire (323- 223 BCE), Seleukos I to Seleukos III. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Books Ltd. (eBook) [Accessed 16/01/2022]. 5) Heinen, H., Encyclopaedia Britannica (2019), Ptolemy II Philadelphus (online) [Accessed 03/08/2021]. 6) Lendering, J., Livius (2006, last altered 2020), Berenice Phernophorus (online) [Accessed 15/01/2022]. 7) Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Antiochus II Theos (online) [Accessed c.21/04/2021]. 8) Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Berenice (Seleucid queen) (online) [Accessed 23/12/2021]. 9) Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Laodice I (online) [Date of access uncertain, possibly c.21/04/2022]. 10) Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Ptolemy II Philadelphus (online) [Accessed 23/12/2021].