Alexander and athletics or How (not) to use a traditional field of monarchic legitimation (original) (raw)

The considerations outlined in this article are divided into four sections. First, a general description will be given of how ancient rulers engaged in agones to legitimise their leadership. It is only against this background that Alexander’s dealings with athletics can be put into perspective – the peculiarity, not noticed in previous scholarship, is that he did not apply the usual strategies of Greek rulers, but instead excessively relied on a different form of athletic and musical contests, for which I propose the category of ‘campaign agones’. A description of these campaign agones, their disciplines and participants will follow, and, finally, an interpretation of Alexander’s relationship to athletics with regard to the volume’s general aim, a better understanding of the king’s strategies to legitimise his power.