The Life of Alexander the Great The brilliant, the devious, and the greatest successor in all of history, was Alexander the Great. With the risk taking, and quick decision making, Alexander the Great defeated the Persians and the Greeks, conquered Egypt and Asia Minor, and he secured the Mediterranean Sea.
History’s greatest successor was born July 356 BC to the king of Macedon, Phillip II and the princess of Albania, Olympias. Phillip had already claimed that Alexander would be the next to reign when the time was right. A roman writer, Justin, pointed out the difference between the father son duo. The differences were that Alexander had an open mind to war and had a greater vision for the kingdom (Cantor). Phillip was loved by many, but
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There were many battles between Darius and Alexander, in which Darius would usually flee, leaving victory for Alexander. The battles that Alexander fought usually had high death tolls and his tactics were seen as harsh (Behnke). In a message to Darius, Alexander says, “It is war that will determine the boundaries of our respective empired and each shall have what fortunes of tomorrow assign to us,” (Behnke). The last battle was at Gaugamela. As a result for the battle of Gaugamela, king Darius fled. The Persians lost about fifty thousand soldiers, and the Macedonians lost one thousand. Alexander then took his troop and marched into Persepolis and declared himself the new king, which then led to the downfall of the Persian Empire …show more content…
For Alexander the Great, his downfall was his death, June 10, 323 BC. Alexander suffered mania, paranoia and could have been clinically insane. The cause of his death is still unknown, but it was said that he was partying and drank all day and night. He developed a fever, and then after he drank a glass of wine, he was dead. It was set that his cause was alcohol poisoning with the account of malaria. Alexander did not just follow up with what his dad left him, he defeated the enemies, and took control of many other cities, and while doing so, he was the most successful leader. Alexander had the reputation that not many rulers had, and he gained this reputation by being a kind leader and his strategies and tactics to fight were unique. “The age of Alexander had the good fortune to produce both many artistic achievements and many men of great talent,” (Behnke) was stated by Plutarch to sum up the reign of
Alexander the Great has been considered for centuries as a military genius and influenced conquerors such as Hannibal the Carthaginian, the Romans Pompey, Caesar and Napoleon. Although, he inherited a strong kingdom and an experienced army, Alexander was capable to display his leadership and military capabilities. In 338 B.C., his father, King Phillip II, gave Alexander a commanding post among the senior generals as the Ma...
The first matter to consider is what constitutes “greatness”. There are no set standards no checklist, to apply to a person, to determine it they are “great.” The simplest way that I could conceive to decide whether this title should apply to Alexander was to determine if he was, in some way, superior to the rulers that came before or after his reign. The most obvious place for me to start my consideration is with Alexander’s vast accomplishments as a conquerer.
Alexander the great is known as one of the most ruthless and greatest leaders the world has ever seen. In less than ten years, Alexander conquered cities from Greece all the way to modern day India. Not only did he defeat and conquer cities throughout the known world, but Alexander would also leave his mark spreading and influencing Greek society wherever he went. His leadership and conquests united the East and the West as a whole like no one up to that point had done before. His impact on culture and society when meshing his Greek background with his conquered cities became something truly unique. In 323 B.C. when Alexander passed away, he not only left behind a vast thriving empire, but also a legacy that would be remembered throughout history.
Alexander the Great was only 20 years when his father Philip of Macedon died. Even though he was a young man, he had an unusual talent for politics and military tactics. After his father’s death, Alexander moved to continue Philip’s invasion of Persia. In the ten years of his war campaigns, Alexander conquered a large portion of the then-known world. (Judge & Langdon, 2012.)
Alexander is the son of King Philip of Macedonia and Queen Olympias. We see Alexander's daily life and the strained relationship between his parents. Alexander grows up with his mother Olympias and his tutor Aristotle, where he finds interest in love, honor, music, exploration, poetry, and military combat. Young Alexander impresses his father by taming an intractable horse, but both mother and son are banished from the kingdom, Olympias advising her son to seize the throne before Philip has him murdered. As things work out, Philip is murdered, and Alexander rules Macedonia. (BBC)
In conclusion, Alexander the Great wasn’t great because he didn’t care for other people, didn’t show leadership or any smarts. Many may say that he was an amazing person who did incredible things with the support of the people. However, if you look closely at his actions you could clearly see his reasoning of greed and power. He killed many innocent people to make his dream of controlling the world come true. Before giving someone a title or name it’s important that we make sure it makes sense and fits their
The ancient Greek historian Diodorus Siculus said “During the twenty-four years of his [Phillip II] reign as King of Macedonia, Phillip built his own kingdom up into the greatest power in Europe … he bequeathed a military establishment of such size and quality that his son Alexander was enabled to overthrow the Persian empire … these achievements were not the work of fortune but of his own force of character, for this king stands out above others for his military acumen, personal courage, and intellectual brilliance.” Despite this, Alexander believed that his success was the work of divine forces. He called himself the son of Zeus, and likened his bloodline to that of Achilles and Heracles, modeling his behavior after them. Alexander’s success was also due to the methods
The son of Philip II, Alexander the Great, will become the conqueror of the western world. Alexander received the Macedonian empire when his father passed, he was only twenty at the time. As soon as he had the power of the Macedonian army, several lightning fast campaigns led them into the west and north. Next, he compelled the city-states that rebelled against the League of Corinth. This action demonstrated how Alexander punished disloyalty [Martin 244]. Alexander was able to keep his rule on the territories he conquered by rewarded the cities who recognized his powers and punished the individuals that betrayed his trust or ambitions. The power he possessed depended on his superior force and his unwillingly desire to use it [Martin 245]. The
Although several people may disagree, these achievements and intelligence lead to great success. For example, against Porus and his army, Alexander puzzled the elephants causing them to stampede and kill Porus’s army. Also, in eleven years Alexander conquered 2,200,000 square miles of land at the age of twenty. Nobody can do this any day and Alexander showed his ability to persevere through tough times. Ultimately, when thinking of great names in history, remember Alexander the Great and all his great accomplishments because nobody has been able to conquer so much land in such a short amount of time with little rest and so much confidence in any
Alexander the Great is hailed, by most historians, as “The Great Conqueror” of the world in the days of ancient Mesopotamia. “Alexander III of Macedon, better known as Alexander the Great, single-handedly changed the nature of the ancient world in little more than a decade. Alexander was born in Pella, the ancient capital of Macedonia in July 356 BCE. His parents were Philip II of Macedon and his wife Olympias. Philip was assassinated in 336 BCE and Alexander inherited a powerful yet volatile kingdom. He quickly dealt with his enemies at home and reasserted Macedonian power within Greece. He then set out to conquer the massive Persian Empire” (Web, BBC History). It is important to note, which will maybe explain his brutal actions, that Alexander was only twenty years old when he became the king of Macedonia. “When he was 13, Philip hired the Greek philosopher Aristotle to be Alexander’s personal tutor. During the next three years Aristotle gave Alexander training in rhetoric and literature and stimulated his interest in science, medicine, and philosophy, all of which became of importance in Alexander’s later life” (Web, Project of History of Macedonia). “In, 340, when Philip assembled a large Macedonian army and invaded Thrace, he left his 16 years old son with the power to rule Macedonia in his absence as regent, but as the Macedonian army advanced deep into Thrace, the Thracian tribe of Maedi bordering north-eastern Macedonia rebelled and posed a danger to the country. Alexander assembled an army, led it against the rebels, and with swift action defeated the Maedi, captured their stronghold, and renamed it after himself to Alexandropolis. Two years later in 338 BC, Philip gave his son a commanding post among the senior gener...
Alexander was born in Pella, the capital of Macedon, on July 20, 356 B.C. He was the son of King Philip II and his fourth wife Olympias, an Epirote princess. Alexander was bred to be a warrior; his father was a great commander and king, and his mom’s second cousin, Pyrrhus of Epirus, was a celebrated general. So there were noteworthy examples of military genius on both sides of his family. As a child, Alexander’s mother would tell him stories of how he was a descendant to Achilles and Hercules. Achilles was his favorite hero growing up, as he read of his adventures in Homer’s Iliad. From an early age Alexander was practically raised by everyone but his parents. He was originally educated by a strict teacher named Leonidas. Alexander’s father wanted Alexander to become a great man, so he acquired the famous philosopher Aristotle to become his tutor. Aristotle trained him in rhetoric and literature, and stimulated his interest in medicine, science, and philosophy. Aristotle is credited for Alexander’s fasci...
Alexander II has been considered “a great historical figure without being a great man, that what he did was more important than what he was.” ( W.E Mosse) For 26 years, Czar Alexander II ruled russia. During his reign, he made his mark on history by stepping outside of the box and going to extreme measures to help his people. He has been labeled as the “Liberator of tsar” for the ending of serfdom. Czar Alexander II of Russia has made an impact on history because of his interesting background, fatal assassination, and the changes made after his assassination.
...than Julius Caesar. The two leaders were very good and powerful leaders of their time and place; it is just Alexander the Great’s rule that stands out the most as being more successful.
There are many leaders in the world, but a great ruler is passionate, honorable and one who can inspire even in the most hopeless circumstances. Alexander the Great was a great ruler. Alexander the Great was a ruler that was not only inspiring, but he was fearless, smart, bold and courageous. Alexander the Great inspired his soldiers to crave more. He has inspired people since the day he started ruling. What is inspirational about Alexander the Great is that he inspired his troops to the point that they did not question him when they were outnumbered three to one in a battle, they trusted him with their lives and were willing to die for him (Alexander the Great: man behind the legend).
In conclusion, I believe Alexander is one of the best political leader and the best general in the history. He managed to conquer and govern a huge territory with his wisdom. He didn’t win wars with soldiers, he won with strategy. Without a question, he was the most successful leader in the history. He knew how t rule and how to make people obedient and it is the main reason that he was very influential. These qualities made him live forever in stories, epics, and