Threats to the Throne
Contenders for the Throne
There were many contenders for the throne following the murder of King Philip. One group of contenders were the Lyncestian brothers who were officially blamed for Philip's murder and whose suggested motive was to ensure the succession of a king who was favourable to Lyncestis (in Upper Macedonia) after the rise of rival Attalus from Lower Macedonia. They were executed at Philip's funeral as some of a number of culprits, some days after the murder (the brother Alexander was spared and absolved of responsibility of death). Amyntas, Philip's nephew and the son of previous Macedonian King Perdiccas III, was accused of conspiring against Alexander and was killed. Alexander sent Hecataeus to arrest or assassinate Attalus and his family who were competition as Attalus' daughter, and Philip's new wife, Cleopatra had just given birth to a male heir. Hecataeus assassinated them. Alexander also faced competition from his brother Arrhidaeus, however, he was "mentally incapacitated" so no threat to Alexander.