Alexander, commonly known as “Alexandros III Philippou Makedonon” and “Alexander the Great” lived from 356-323 B.C. was the son of Phillip II of Macedon and Olympias. The combination of his bravery and negotiation skills paved the way for his success and numerous victories. His conquests and interactions with people throughout his life left a mark on the everyday world we live in today. Alexander’s first conquest was in Persia in 334 B.C. He invaded Persia with a large army filled with dedicated men in hopes of obtaining money and restoring Greek cities that had been dominated by the Persians. He knew his chance of victory was higher since the Persian empire was starting to grow weak. He also wanted victory in honor of his late father who …show more content…
The army was being led by three satraps who were waiting for him at the Granicus river. The Persians were confident they were going to defeat Alexander and did not take any precautions to factor in the possibility of loss. Though they appeared to come close to victory by luring Alexander towards them, Alexander did not cave and the Persians lost. Alexander was victorious. It was the start of the decline of Persian power. This caused cities in Asia Minor to became less closed off. Democracies became prevalent and Greek cities were freed from Persian ruling. Most cities were ecstatic to be ruled under a different power. He took control of the old Lydian capital Sardis without struggle. Some cities, such as Miletus, struggled to let go of their prior government ruling which caused him use force to open their …show more content…
Surprisingly, he did not have to fight for Marathus and Aradus because the cities willing gave themselves to be ruled under his power. While trying to conquer Tyre, he endured many barriers which frustrated Alexander. They did not allow him on the island and the people of the islands hid themselves from him in an act of rebellion. Alexander then built a land bridge to have access to the island. The people revolted and tried to fight his army with fail. Alexander was victorious again in July of 332. He raided the island violently and punished the people for not being obedient by selling them into slavery. Alexander conquered Eygpt and was welcomed as their ruler by the Persian satrap and people of Eygpt in November 332. He was viewed in a pharaoh-like way, and he was presented a crown to illustrate the power he now had in the region. He spent the winter of 332-331 in Eygpt. During that time, he discovered the city Alexandria and his supposed origins. Alexandria was located by the Nile and grew to be a successful and well respected city. Alexander also claimed to be the son of Zeus. He told his followers that a well-known oracle told
Over the years, Alexander had suffered severe wounds that weakened his health. Alexander was born on 356 BCE in Macedonia and his father was King Philip II. He was 20 years old when he first launched his invasion of the Persian Empire. He wanted to conquer India, but his army refused to go any farther. Jesus was born 300 years after Alexander died. How great was Alexander the Great? Alexander the Great not only spread Greek culture, but was also an inspiring leader.
In document C it states “In the end, however, the causeway was completed and Alexander’s army smashed into the city.”, this is saying that even if the fight was 7 months he would never quit (Doc C). While on the move back to Greece Alexander’s followers wanted to quit and didn’t want to go on, so some stayed behind while he went on and “conquered the world” (Doc F). “At the time, Persia was probably the most powerful kingdom in the world. This mattered little to Alexander. Using his disciplined cavalry and infantry in both ways, Alexander fought his way through lands controlled by Persia - across Asia Minor, down the Mediterranean coast, into Egypt, and then to Mesopotamia. There he defeated a huge Persian army at Gaugamela.” (BGE). This quote is saying that even though Persia may be strong and powerful Alexander would still get his way wherever he went. This evidence helps explain why Alexander was great because when going through the difficult parts of his battles he would always stay strong and brave through it all despite the hard
Alexander conquered 10 places in his 11 years of being a soldier. Alexander forced his troops to marry the women in Persia because he wanted to join cultures with Persia. The background essay states that "At the time, Persia was probably the most powerful kingdom in the world. This mattered little to Alexander. Alexander returned to the Persian city of Susa, where he tried to unify his huge empire by taking Darius's daughter as his second wife and ordering his officers to marry Persian women." Alexander wants the cultures, and the two races to mix. That is why Alexander is great for spreading the Greek
Was Alexander the great truly great? Alexander was born in 356 BCE in Macedonia which was on the edge of Northern Greece. Alexander’s father Philip; was the ruler of Macedonia. He ruled up until his death in 336 BCE. Alexander took over his position as ruler of Macedonia.
As stated in document A, “in 334 BCE, Alexander crossed from Macedonia to Asia with an army of 40,000.” That sounds like he is going to try to take over land and will not give up until he gets that land. According to document C, because the city Tyre, did not surrender, he built a bridge to get to the island. The city held out for 7 months but Alexander continued to destroy it, and the city’s people because he was so angry they were up for the battle. Alexander the great also took over 70 cities as said in document E. As you can tell, he was very greedy and seemed as if he could not help it but to keep destroying cities and taking over land. In conclusion, Alexander was overall very greedy and decided to take over land for no purpose other than he wanted
Alexander had been taught many things from a very young age such as academic subjects, politics, sports, and warfare which made him think very highly of himself. His father Philip of Macedonia made an extremely strong army and took over many Greek polises and wanted to take over the Persian Empire. This struck Alexander’s aspiration to take over the Persian Empire as well. Alexander then inherited his father’s kingdom at the age of 18 after his father
In the fourth century BC, rapid cultural, economic, social, and political changes were occurring in the Mediterranean and Asia Minor as a result of the conquests of Alexander the Great. In 337 BC, Alexander the Third inherited the Macedonian kingdom after his father, Philip the Second, died. Philip the Second has already taken control over all of Greece, and Alexander used the manpower and money from this to expand even further, into Persia. Beginning in 334 BC, Alexander started an intense campaign through Persia, concurring city after city. Eventually, Alexander had conquered all of Persia and forced the Persian king Darius the third to the city of Ecbatana, where he was killed. Instead of returning to Greece after his victory over the Persian
Alexander went to Corinth for the assembly of the Greek league and was named the supreme commander of all Greece. At that time the Thebans’ revolted; he destroyed everything in their city except the temples. This served as a reminder to the other communities and tribes in Macedonia respected and honored Alexander. He proceeded to conquer the Asia Minor, and used his knowledge to plan and organize the army. During the Persian expedition Alexander had in his army more than 100 000 but only a few fought. Alexander honored veterans; he left them in charge of cities. He was a military genius and could change his army within seconds and used to make decisions as fast as possible. He could even change his plan of action if the enemy changed plans. To him it was not about numbers but leadership and plan in battle. The first commander to have backup reserves was Alexander; this affected the way wars were staged and fought in the coming years. Alexander defeated the Persians; he was an unwavering fighter and fought with his soldiers. He conquered the Phoenician coast, Syria and Egypt (Louis, W. R, 1984).
Alexander the Great was the King of Macedonia. He is considered one of the greatest military geniuses of all times. He inspired later conquerors such as Hannibal the Carthaginian, the Romans Pompey, Caesar, and Napoleon. Alexander was born in 356 B.C. in Pella, the ancient capital of Macedonia. He was the son of Phillip II, King of Macedonia, and Olympia’s, the princess of neighboring Epirus. Olympias told Alexander that
Alexander and his men now set forth to conquer Egypt. Upon arriving, he was welcomed as a “...divinely sent liberator from Persian rule'; and was crowned
Later on in his life, Alexander continued to show his ability to accomplish many difficult tasks. "After three grueling years of warfare and three decisive battles, Alexander smashed the Persian armies at the Tigris River and conquered the mighty Persian Empire, including the legendary city of Babylon" (“Alexander the Great” ushistory.org). This was a great victory that proved Alexander had what it took to be a great leader. Defeating the Persians was something many leaders could never do, but Alexander
Alexander III of Macedon or Alexander The Great was born on 20/21 July 356 BC in Pella, Macedon. He was the son of the king of Macedon. Alexander was many things, he was a prince, a king, a general, and much more.
During the course of his life and reign, Alexander had fought and won many battles and wars, defeating many kings and warlords throughout the ancient world. Perhaps his most recognized conquest was of the Achaemenid Empire of Persia and its ‘King of Kings’ Darius III during the Battle of Issus 1. After defeating the Persians at the Battle
Alexander grew up to conquer the world regardless the cost. Alexander’s military successes was beyond believe, because he conquered Asian minor and Egypt in a decade. The size of the army led by Alexander it vary in different books but according to Arrian (Ptolemy) , there was 32,000 infantry and 5100 cavalry, agree by Diodorus (17.17)(page 34). Even though with this small army Alexander the Great smashed the Persian with less difficulty. ”Alexander, therefore, while the enemy’s attention was engaged by the siege engines and the attempted assault within their sector , order the Guards, the archer, the Agrianes, and his personal guard to hold themselves in readiness, and himself, with a few men only, crept unobserved by the dried-up water-course, under the wall, into the town. Once inside he broke open the nearest gates and admitted the rest of the troops without difficulty” (Page 204). First, Alexander order to his siege engine was to build batter defense and force an entrance through the breaches, soon something has changed his tactics. There were a stream, under the bed, Alexander soldiers pass under the town and opened the gate. While the Cyropolis were engaged in the front. Alexander the great took the town and killed about 8,000, the rest surrounded. Alexander brought down the greatest empire in the world at that period, without difficulty and most
Throughout his life, he conquered many places, including the empire of Persia, Egypt, Mesopotamia, etc. He went on and on conquering many lands along with his troops. In fact, he travelled with builders, engineers, poets, scientists, etc. These specialized workers were one of the reasons he was successful in battles. Alexander brought them along for entertainment, and they also supported the army with carriages, supplies, built camps, and support for wounded soldiers. When attacking, his army led battles from the front which define their courage, and he ensured that his men were well-fed and rewarded them so that they were motivated. Alexander may be cruel at times. For instance, he killed lots and lots of men who were traitors in his army. Along with that, he treated his adversaries with respect while conquered people were freed when he’s generous, but killed when he’s disrespected. Alexander the Great defeated the powerful empire of Persia and extended his empire from Greece to India, making it the largest empire of the ancient