Alexander The Great

Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great was king of the Macedonians and one of the greatest generals in history. As a student of the Greek philosopher Aristotle, Alexander was embedded with lasting interests in philosophy, politics and warfare. As king, he settled problems by immediate action, making quick decisions and taking great risks. His armies overcame these risks by sheer force and by the ingenious tactics instilled in them by Alexander. He and his armies conquered the Persian Empire, which stretched from the Mediterranean Sea to India and formed much of what was then considered the civilized world. Through his conquests, Alexander helped spread Greek ideas, customs and laws throughout Asia and Egypt and adopted a uniform currency system to promote trade and commerce. He thus spread the rich Hellenistic culture enjoyed by the Greeks throughout the world. Alexander had a dream of the brotherhood of mankind where every person shared a common language, currency and loyalty, but he was unable to see his dream through due to an illness that claimed his life at the young age of 33.

Alexander was born in 356 B.C. He was born in Pella, the ancient capital of Macedonia. He was the son of Philip II, king of Macedonia, and of Olympias, a princess of Epirus. At the age of 13, Aristotle was hired to be Alexander’s private tutor. Aristotle inspired interests of politics, other races of people and countries, plants and animals, and a great love for literature in Alexander (“Overview of Alexander the Great.'; 1). He was an outstanding athlete and excelled in every sport of his time (Durant 538). In 338 B.C., at the age of 18, Alexander led the cavalry of his father’s army in the Battle of Chaeronea, which brought Greece under Macedonian control. At the age of 20, Alexander’s father was murdered by one of his bodyguards, and Alexander succeeded the throne as king of Macedonia.

After Alexander’s father died, some Greek cities under Macedonian rule revolted. In 335 B.C. Alexander attacked the city of Thebes, storming its walls and destroying every building, except the temples and the house of the poet Pindar. His army sold the 30,000 inhabitants of Thebes into slavery or killed them. Alexander’s actions against Thebes discouraged rebellion by the o...

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...me seriously ill again. This time, the disease plus the effects of several battle wounds would be enough to claim his life at the age of 32 on June 10.

Alexander and his armies conquered the Persian Empire, which stretched from the Mediterranean Sea to India and formed much of what was then considered the civilized world. Through his conquests, Alexander helped spread Greek ideas, customs and laws throughout Asia and Egypt and adopted a uniform currency system to promote trade and commerce. He established cities like Alexandria everywhere he went to help maintain rule and reduce corruption, as well as to promote learning and to encourage commerce and trade throughout the world. He established Greek as the uniform language and brought different cultures together through marriages of his own and others just like his. He brought the world together to promote his idea of the brotherhood of mankind and had plans to reorganize his government and explore the seas around his empire. Alexander the Great accomplished all of this in just 33 years. After his death, the cities of his empire were split between his leading generals who mostly fought amongst themselves for control of the empire.