Harpalus

For other uses, see Harpalus (disambiguation).

Harpalus (Greek: Ἅρπαλος), son of Machatas, was a Macedonian aristocrat and childhood friend of Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC.[1] Harpalus was repeatedly entrusted with official duties by Alexander and absconded with large sums of money on three occasions.[2] Alexander appointed him treasurer of his empire in Babylon in 330 BC. In 324 BC he fled from Babylon to Athens with a large sum of money. The resulting political controversy in Athens ("the Harpalus Affair") was a contributing factor in the Lamian War.

  1. ^ Badian, E. (1961). "Harpalus". The Journal of Hellenic Studies. 81: 22. doi:10.2307/628074. JSTOR 628074. S2CID 250245906.
  2. ^ Kingsley, Bonnie M. (1986). "Harpalos in the Megarid (333-331 B.C.) and the Grain Shipments from Cyrene (S.E.G. IX 2 + = Tod, Greek Hist. Inscr. II No. 196)". Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik. 66: 165.