Egypt’s first Greek pharaoh – Ptolemy I Soter I

Ptolemy I Soter I – Πτολεμαῖος Σωτήρ,

also known as Ptolemy the Savior or Ptolemy Lagides (c. 367 BC – c. 283 BC), was a Macedonian general under Alexander the Great. After Alexander’s death, Ptolemy became the ruler of Egypt (323–283 BC) and established the Ptolemaic Kingdom and the Ptolemaic Dynasty. In 305/4 BC, he assumed the title of pharaoh.

Ptolemy served with Alexander from his first campaigns, playing a significant role in the later campaigns in Afghanistan and India. He participated in the Battle of Issus and accompanied Alexander to the Siwa Oasis, where Alexander was proclaimed a son of Zeus.

Upon Alexander’s death in 323 BC, Ptolemy is said to have influenced the redistribution of the empire at Babylon. Through the Partition of Babylon, he was appointed satrap of Egypt, serving under the nominal kings Philip III Arrhidaeus and the infant Alexander IV. Despite not having formal authorization, Ptolemy swiftly subjugated Cyrenaica.

In 289 BC, Ptolemy designated his son by Berenice, Ptolemy II Philadelphus, as his co-regent. His eldest legitimate son, Ptolemy Keraunos, fled to the court of Lysimachus after Ptolemy rejected his mother, Eurydice, the daughter of Antipater. Ptolemy also had a consort in Thaïs, an Athenian hetaera and one of Alexander’s companions during his conquest of the ancient world. Ptolemy I Soter died in 283 BC at the age of 84. Known for his shrewdness and caution, he left behind a compact and well-ordered realm after forty years of warfare. His reputation for generosity won the allegiance of the Macedonian and Greek soldier classes, and he made efforts to win over the natives. He was an avid patron of literature and founded the Great Library of Alexandria.

Ptolemy himself authored a history of Alexander’s campaigns that unfortunately has not survived. His work was long considered an objective account, noted for its honesty and sobriety. Arrian of Nicomedia, the author of the most widely read account of Alexander the Great, indicated that he relied heavily on Ptolemy’s history because “as he himself was a king, mendacity would have been more dishonorable for him than for anyone else.”

However, A.B. Bosworth, a scholar of Greek history, has suggested that Ptolemy may have amplified his own role and had propagandist intentions when writing his history.