The Wars of Alexander the Great 336-323 BC The book I have chosen to preview is The Wars of Alexander the Great by Waldemar Heckel. The purpose of this essay is to inform the reader of the value of this book. I would like the reader to understand if this book would be a good “go to” book for an assignment about Alexander the Great. The purpose of this book is to give more information about Alexander the Great’s life during his war time and also what transpired before his reign. This essay will explain how well the book does this and the writing style of the author. Waldemar Heckel, the author of this book, has written numerous published articles based on the history of Alexander the Great. He has worked on a few articles with J. C. Yardley, …show more content…
The author does a good job detailing the items that come prior to Alexander’s birth, and also what came after his reign began. Dr. Heckel explains what wars occurred prior to Phillip II’s reign and leading up to Alexander’s birth and succession. Some of the examples he gives are, Cyrus the Great overthrowing modern Hamadan. Cyrus then waged war against the Lydians during a time that war wasn’t supposed to happen (the winter months), and put Croesus to death. Darius I sent his general, Datis, to destroy the city of the Eretrians. Their descendants fought Alexander at Guagamela. Ten years later, after the Athenians defeated the Persians, Darius’ son, Xerxes, got very close to defeating them. The Greece victory at Salamis sent Xerxes away with the bulk of his army. After this, the Peloponnesian War was started. When it ended, The Athenian Empire was no more and the emergence of the kingdom of Macedon started along with Alexander the Great’s father’s reign, Phillip II. In 336 BC, Phillip II died, leaving Alexander to reign. Alexander used his father’s weapons and tactics and expanded them to make them work better. By doing this, he was able to win many wars. Just a few are defeating Darius III at Issus and again at Guagamela in northern Mesopotamia, Capturing Babylon, Susa, Persepolis, and Ecbatana, moving to …show more content…
When explaining what wars are taking place and what areas are being taken over, Dr. Heckel uses maps to show the areas in detail. These are helpful to give an idea exactly where these wars took place, as well as how close they were in relation to each other. He also quotes Demosthenes in a portion of the introduction. It is a quote from Demosthenes’s thoughts on Persia. This gives insight into what some may have been thinking during their darkest times of war. I do believe more evidence would be helpful in this book. The chronology is helpful and breaks down some great
Bury, J. B.; Russell Meiggs (2000). A History of Greece to the Death of Alexander the Great
Life of Alexander the Great of Macedonia is one of the most remarkable Ancient Greece stories that prevail even in this present era. The ancient Greek sources clearly identify the life of Alexander as the one which broaden our understanding about the heroes of the Ancient times. Plutarch parallel lives are one of the sources that equip classical study and any other studies with necessary details of how Alexander manifested his life as an Ancient Greek hero. However the invention of motion pictures (cinema) had created another dimension in analysing Life of Alexander. Firstly Robert Rossen released a life of Alexander a nearly half century ago, which did not make much effort addition to what literature has far reached, and it was argued that his film consist some inaccuracies. Oliver Stone, a screenwriter also wrote a Life of Alexander (2004-2005) and it reached its hype as a cinematic presentation and it also depicts nearly accurate historical information about the life of Alexander the great. Oliver Stone’s Life of Alexander remains the controversial presentation when studying the Life of Alexander. This short essay will critically investigate how Stone went about constructing his ‘biopic’ of Alexander, including a consideration of which episodes were included as well as those which were excluded.
There are many reasons why Alexander decided to invade Persia. Some say that he inherited the cause from his father, while it is said he was pre-destined to conquer Persia. Alexander did explain, in a letter, to Darius his reasons for invading Persia. This essay will explore briefly Phillip 's idea to invade Persia in the hope of understanding why Alexander invaded. In addition to this, one will look at his ancestral heritage as a possible means that may have further encouraged Alexander to act. Moreover, was he pre-destined by fate, through the omens and signs that accompanied his birth, and finally the letter that Alexander wrote to Darius explaining why he decided to invaded Persia. Furthermore, did all these events have a bearing on Alexander
Fuller, J.F.C. The Generalship of Alexander the Great. New Jersey: Quinn & Boden Company, Inc., 1960.
Alexander the Great is a villain because he killed many people and he destroyed other cultures.
Have you heard of a man named Alexander the Great, the famous historical figure? There are many amazing stories about him explaining the courageous things he had accomplished. However, if you learn more about him and his accomplishments you will soon realized the real person Alexander was. Alexander the Great, ruler of his empire was in fact not great as his title states. The definition of great is a person who shows concern for others, has leadership and shows intelligence. Alexander didn’t show any of these characteristics therefore he doesn’t deserve the title of “great”.
In the countries who believed Alexander was the son of the devil or the devil himself, will say he is not ‘great’ but a demon who did evil. The countries who were on his side would say he was the greatest conqueror to live. He began as a Macedonian cavalry commander at eighteen, king of Macedonia at twenty, conqueror of Persia at twenty-six and explorer of India at thirty [Foner and Garraty]. The amount of large scale accomplishments he managed to finish in a span of six years is astonishing. Alexander’s tomb was the largest tourist attraction in the ancient world. The tomb was even visited by Julius Caesar, Pompey, Caligula, and Augustus. Alexander the Great’s accomplishments set a bar in which provided a standard that all other leaders would match their careers too. Many leaders after Alexander could not reach the standard left by him [Foner and
on this idea with his thoughts on how even Alexander the Great or " Imperious
Jarus, Owen. "Alexander the Great: Facts, Biography, and Accomplishments." 27 September 2013. livescience. Document. 27 October 2013.
Few historical figures stand out in the same degree as that of Alexander the Great. He was a warrior by 16, a commander at age 18, and was crowned King of Macedon by the time he was 20 years old. He did things in his lifetime that others could only dream about. Alexander single-handedly changed the nature of the ancient world in just over a decade. There were many attributes that made Alexander “Great.” He was a brilliant strategist and an inspired leader; he led by example and was a conqueror at heart. In looking at his early childhood, accession to the throne, conquests, marriage, and death one can see why Alexander the Great is revered in historical contexts as one of the greatest figures of all time.
Alexander The Great is a Hero because, Of the Great decisions he made, Alexander was a strong/ Brave military leader to his people, and because of how his people perceived him
The relevancy of Alexander II prior to the Russian Revolution is overlooked due to the more prominent successors, such as Alexander III and Nicholas I. That very fact made the method of research unique compared to traditional methods. Since the topic refers to the aftermath of the Russian Revolution, it requires a historian to analyze not only the person of topic, but others who are significant to that same topic. The research primarily focused on the ramifications of Alexander II’s liberalizing actions, but as more research was conducted, the information was leading towards the decisions made by Alexander III and Nicholas I. Finding research pertaining to Alexander II was difficult because Alexander III and, most notably, Nicholas I were
Mosse, W.E. "Alexander II (Emperor of Russia)." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 13 May 2014.I
This letter from Alexander is a critique of Alexander’s character and methods, along with the misconception that his goal in this journey was to conquer. Prior knowledge of Alexander would make one believe he is a strong leader on the hunt for conquering more and ruling the world, but this letter debunks that belief. The Old English translator manipulates aspects of the letter, emphasizing events that highlight Alexander’s negative qualities, and makes Alexander’s quest for knowledge and discovery appear more prominent and important to him than his quest to conquer and
This investigation attempts to answer the question “What are the similarities and differences between the leadership traits of Darius I and Alexander?” This question is important because it went on to impact the leadership of other rulers and the way that the people under their rulings lived. The issues that will be addressed are in what ways they were successful, and what their biggest failure in their power was. This investigation will focus on the time period of 550-486 and 356-323 BCE, as this is the time period of Darius I and Alexander’s lives. The places investigated will include Greece, the Persian Empire, Macedonia, Syria, and Egypt because these are the central places of ruling for Darius I and Alexander. This will be accomplished through a thorough examination of what led to the fame and what led to the end of power for Alexander and Darius I by looking at biographies of both Darius I and Alexander’s lives, as well as books that are secondary sources.