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For this reason, the bodyguards were terribly disturbed. But he, having entered the camp with Alexander, tried to stop the uproar. But when he perceived that a plot was being made against him by the soldiers, he tried to escape, but having been detected, he was killed, and his mother, embracing him, perished with him. Their bodies, stripped naked, they dragged through the middle of the city; then that of Sardanapalus was thrown into the Tiber; for which reason, in addition to his other names, he was also nicknamed Tiberinus. And slain with him were both Hierocles and many others, after he had ruled for three years, nine months, and four days, from when, having defeated Macrinus in battle, he had gained the supreme power. While this one was ruling, Zephyrinus the bishop of the church of the Romans passed away, having governed it for eighteen years; after whom Callistus presided over the faithful there for five years; and Urbanus succeeded him. But when Pseudo-Antoninus was killed, Alexander, 3.120 the son of Mamaea, his cousin—for thus the ancients called first cousins—obtained the supreme power. who immediately proclaimed his own mother Mamaea Augusta, who took into her hands the administration of affairs, and gathered wise men around her son, so that through them his character might be molded, and she chose the best counselors from the senate, communicating with them on everything that was to be done. And when the command of the bodyguards and the administration of public affairs was entrusted to Domitius Ulpianus, many of the things done by Sardanapalus were corrected by him. who, having killed Flavianus and Chrestus so that he might succeed them, was himself also not much later slaughtered by the bodyguards who attacked him at night. And while Ulpianus was still alive, a sedition from some slight pretext arose between the people and the bodyguards, and for three days they fought each other. And with the soldiers being defeated and setting fire to the houses, the people, fearing for the city, were reconciled with them, even unwillingly. And other uprisings that arose were suppressed. But being short of money, Alexander's mother raised funds from every source. And she also brought a wife for her son, whom she did not allow to be proclaimed Augusta, but also after some time, having torn her away from her son, she drove her into Libya, although she was loved by 3.121 him. But he was not able to oppose his mother, who dominated him. Artaxerxes, however, the Persian, who was of obscure and inglorious origin, acquired the kingdom of the Parthians for the Persians and ruled over them. from whom it is said the family of Chosroes also descends. For after the death of Alexander the Macedonian, his successors, the Macedonians, ruled for a very long time over the Persians and Parthians and the other nations, but having proceeded against each other, they destroyed each other. And when they had been thus weakened, Arsaces the Parthian was the first to attempt a revolt from them, and he gained control of the Parthians, and left the rule to his own descendants; of whom the last was Artabanus. And the aforesaid Artaxerxes, having defeated him in three battles, captured and killed him. Then, having also marched against Armenia, he was defeated by the Armenians and Medes who attacked him with the sons of Artabanus. But having recovered himself again with a greater force, he lay in wait for Mesopotamia and Syria, and threatened to recover everything as belonging to the Persians from their ancestors. Then this Artaxerxes with the Persians overran Cappadocia, and was besieging Nisibis. This Alexander, however, sent ambassadors to him asking for peace. But the barbarian did not receive the embassy, but sent to Alexander four hundred very large men, dressed in magnificent robes and mounted on choice horses and adorned with splendid weapons, thinking thus to strike terror into him and the Romans. Who having arrived and come into Alexander's presence, 3.122 said, "The great king Artaxerxes commands the Romans to withdraw from Syria and all of Asia opposite Europe, and to cede

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δορυφόροι διὰ τοῦτο δεινῶς ἐθορύβησαν. ἐκεῖνος δὲ σὺν τῷ ̓Αλεξάνδρῳ εἰς τὸ στρατόπεδον εἰσελθὼν ἐπειρᾶτο καταπαῦσαι τὸν θόρυβον. ὡς δ' ῃσθετο παρὰ τῶν στρατιωτῶν ἐπιβουλευόμενος, ωρμησε μὲν ἐκδρᾶναι, φωραθεὶς δὲ ἀνῃρέθη, καὶ ἡ μήτηρ περιπλακεῖσα αὐτῷ συναπώλετο. ων ἀμφοῖν γυμνωθέντα τὰ σώματα ἐσύρησαν διὰ μέσης τῆς πόλεως· ειτα τὸ τοῦ Σαρδαναπάλου εἰς τὸν Τίβεριν ἐνεβλήθη· διὸ πρὸς τοῖς αλλοις καὶ Τιβερῖνος ἐπωνομάσθη. συγκατεσφάγη δ' αὐτῷ καὶ ὁ ̔Ιεροκλῆς καὶ αλλοι πολλοί, αρξαντι ετη τρία ἐπὶ μησὶν ἐννέα ἡμέραις τε τέσσαρσιν, ἐξ οτου τὸν Μακρῖνον νικήσας ἐν τῇ μάχῃ τῆς αὐταρχίας τετύχηκε. Τούτου κρατοῦντος Ζεφυρῖνος ὁ τῆς ̔Ρωμαίων ἐκκλησίας ἐπίσκοπος μεταλλάττει τὸν βίον, ἰθύνας ταύτην ετεσιν ὀκτωκαίδεκα· μεθ' ον Κάλλιστος προέστη τῶν ἐκεῖσε πιστῶν ἐπὶ πέντε ἐνιαυτούς· καὶ τοῦτον Οὐρβανὸς διαδέχεται. Τοῦ δὲ Ψευδαντωνίνου ἀναιρεθέντος ̓Αλέξαν3.120 δρος ὁ Μαμαίας ὁ ἐκείνου ἀνεψιός, ουτω γὰρ οἱ παλαιοὶ τοὺς ἐξαδέλφους ὠνόμαζον, τὴν αὐταρχίαν ἀπεκληρώσατο. ος αὐτίκα τὴν οἰκείαν μητέρα Μαμαίαν Αὐγούσταν ἀνεῖπεν, η τὴν τῶν πραγμάτων οἰκονομίαν μετεκεχείριστο, καὶ περὶ τὸν υἱὸν σοφοὺς ανδρας συνήγαγεν, ινα δι' ἐκείνων αὐτῷ τὰ ηθη ῥυθμίζοιτο, κἀκ τῆς γερουσίας τοὺς ἀμείνονας συμβούλους προσείλετο, απαν πρακτέον κοινουμένη αὐτοῖς. ∆ομιτίῳ δέ γε Οὐλπιανῷ τῆς τῶν δορυφόρων ἀνατεθείσης ἀρχῆς καὶ τῆς τῶν κοινῶν διοικήσεως, πολλὰ τῶν ὑπὸ Σαρδαναπάλου πραχθέντων παρ' ἐκείνου ἐπηνωρθώθη. ος τὸν Φλαβιανὸν καὶ τὸν Χρῆστον ἀποκτείνας, ιν' αὐτοὺς διαδέξηται, καὶ αὐτὸς οὐ πολλῷ υστερον ὑπὸ τῶν δορυφόρων νυκτὸς ἐπιθεμένων αὐτῷ κατεσφάγη. ζῶντος δ' ετι τοῦ Οὐλπιανοῦ στάσις εκ τινος βραχείας λαβῆς μέσον τοῦ δήμου καὶ τῶν δορυφόρων ἐγένετο, καὶ ἐπὶ τρεῖς ἡμέρας ἀλλήλοις ἐμάχοντο. ἡττωμένων δὲ τῶν στρατιωτῶν καὶ πῦρ ταῖς οἰκίαις ὑποβαλλόντων, δείσας ὁ δῆμος περὶ τῆς πόλεως κατηλλάγη καὶ ακων αὐτοῖς. καὶ αλλαι δ' ἐπαναστάσεις γενόμεναι κατεπαύθησαν. Ηττων δ' ουσα χρημάτων ἡ ̓Αλεξάνδρου μήτηρ ἐχρηματίζετο πάντοθεν. ἠγάγετο δὲ καὶ τῷ υἱῷ γαμετήν, ην οὐ συνεχώρησεν ἀναρρηθῆναι Αὐγούσταν, ἀλλὰ καὶ μετά τινα χρόνον τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτὴν ἀποσπάσασα εἰς Λιβύην ἀπήλασε, καίτοι στεργομένην παρ' 3.121 ἐκείνου. ὁ δὲ ἀντειπεῖν τῇ μητρὶ οὐκ ἠδύνατο, καταρχούσῃ αὐτοῦ. ̓Αρταξέρξης μέντοι ὁ Πέρσης, ος ἐξ ἀφανῶν καὶ ἀδόξων ην, τὴν τῶν Πάρθων βασιλείαν Πέρσαις περιεποιήσατο καὶ αὐτῶν ἐβασίλευσεν. ἀφ' ου λέγεται καὶ τὸ Χοσρόου κατάγεσθαι γένος. μετὰ γὰρ τὴν ̓Αλεξάνδρου τοῦ Μακεδόνος τελευτὴν οἱ ἐκείνου διάδοχοι Μακεδόνες ἐπὶ πλεῖστον μὲν Περσῶν τε καὶ Παρθυαίων ηρχον καὶ τῶν αλλων ἐθνῶν, κατ' ἀλλήλων δέ γε χωρήσαντες ἀλλήλους κατέλυσαν. ἐκείνων δ' ουτως ἠσθενηκότων πρῶτος ̓Αρσακίδης Παρθυαῖος τῇ ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀποστασίᾳ ἐπικεχείρηκε, καὶ Παρθυαίων ἐκράτησε, καὶ τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ ἀπογόνοις κατέλιπε τὴν ἀρχήν· ων τελευταῖος γέγονεν ὁ ̓Αρτάβανος. τὸν δὲ ὁ ῥηθεὶς ̓Αρταξέρξης μάχαις νικήσας τρισὶ συνέλαβε καὶ ἀπέκτεινεν. ειτα καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν ̓Αρμενίαν ἐλάσας ἡττήθη τῶν ̓Αρμενίων καὶ Μήδων μετὰ τῶν παίδων τοῦ ̓Αρταβάνου προσβαλόντων αὐτῷ. ὁ δὲ αυθις ἀνακτησάμενος ἑαυτὸν μετὰ δυνάμεως μείζονος τῇ Μεσοποταμίᾳ καὶ τῇ Συρίᾳ ἐφήδρευε, καὶ ἠπείλει ἀνακτήσασθαι πάντα ὡς Πέρσαις ἐκ προγόνων προσήκοντα. ειτα Καππαδοκίαν ὁ ̓Αρταξέρξης ουτος σὺν τοῖς Πέρσαις κατέτρεχε, καὶ ἐπολιόρκει τὴν Νίσιβιν. ὁ μέντοι ̓Αλέξανδρος ουτος πρέσβεις επεμψε πρὸς αὐτὸν εἰρήνην αἰτῶν. ὁ δὲ βάρβαρος τὴν πρεσβείαν μὲν οὐ προσήκατο, ανδρας δὲ μεγίστους τετρακοσίους πολυτελέσιν ἀμφιέσας στολαῖς καὶ ιπποις τῶν ἐκκρίτων ἐπιβιβάσας καὶ οπλοις κοσμήσας λαμπροῖς επεμψε πρὸς τὸν ̓Αλέξανδρον, ουτω καταπλήξειν αὐτόν τε καὶ τοὺς ̔Ρωμαίους οἰόμενος. οι ἀφικόμενοι καὶ εἰς οψιν ἐλθόντες τῷ ̓Αλεξάνδρῳ "κελεύει ὁ μέγας βασιλεὺς ̓Αρταξέρξης" 3.122 ειπον "ἀφίστασθαι ̔Ρωμαίους Συρίας καὶ τῆς ἀντικειμένης τῇ Εὐρώπῃ ̓Ασίας πάσης, καὶ παραχωρῆσαι