Alexander The Great: Worthy Or Tragic Hero?

Arrian celebrates the leadership of one who became known as Alexander the Great. According to Arrian, he had become great because of those he conquered; he was a great general and commander, a strategist, but he was not a good politician. Too much power made him arrogant. He inherited all of Greece and Macedonia from his father, and once Darius, King of Persia, was defeated and killed in battle, Alexander was welcomed in Babylon. He took over all of Persia and eventually Egypt, Europe, Western Asia, Phoenicia, although some saw Alexander as great, his character deteriorates through the excess of power.

Alexander the Great is without doubt one of the greatest military leaders of history. Not only did Alexander of Macedon conquer enormous areas of the known world but also he demonstrated dynamic leadership and masterful strategy on a large scale and tactics on the battlefield. During his life, he ruled the largest empire the world had ever seen, which stretched from ancient Greece to India. The son of King Phillip II of Macedon, Alexander was educated by the philosopher Aristotle and first led Macedonian troops at age 18. Many times Alexander was worshipped as a god in some of the countries he ruled. He had a huge impact on world history spreading the seeds of western culture and philosophy across the world and has legends and stories

Alexander the Great the king who took the throne around the age of 20. This young man was the heir of Philip II, since it was his father. After his father was assassinated he took the throne. In 323 BC he was working on plans for new projects, including beginning new cities, when he caught a fever. Not much later on he died at the age of 33 years old. Historians believed that Alexander was a hero for the many lands that he conquered, the Greek culture that was spread and that he has never lost a battle. Although he did have these achievements there is a lot that he has done that composes him to be a villain. Alexander the Great did many terrible things that makes him a villain, he put many people into slavery and also slaughtered people, there was no respect for the citizens, and he did not care about architecture that was made.

Alexander the Great had an amazing political and military mind. With the tutelage of his father, Philip II, and a great education, he became one of the best leaders of all time. And even as a boy, many knew Alexander’s destiny was to rule.

For centuries, Alexander the Great has held an eminent place in history. Arguably one of the greatest men the world has ever known, the Macedonian King accomplished many great feats in his short, but glorious life. During his reign, Alexander played several roles in the process of conquering the Persian empire, and in the assessment of his character, aspects of Alexander's capabilities of both strengths and weaknesses must be explored in him as a person, a statesman and a leader.

Alexander the Great was the king of Macedonia, conqueror of the Persian Empire, and one of the greatest military geniuses of all times. Even at an early age, Alexander had the promise to become a great leader. Through all his victories and conquests, he has become a great hero and has had a large impact on history. That is why I chose he book Alexander the Great, by J.R. Hamilton for my review. Hamilton does a very good job with the story of Alexander the Great.

Alexander the Great was born from King Philip II of Macedonia and Olympias, princess of Epirus in 365 BCE. At a young age Alexander was taught by Aristotle. He taught Alexander politics, sports, warfare, as well as academic subjects. When King Philip was assassinated in 336 BCE, Alexander inherited his father’s army and empire. Using his outstanding knowledge, and his father’s great army, Alexander was able to conquer a great amount of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Alexander was substantially great considering he protected his empire, motivated his troops, and impacted cultural spread(ww).

The difference between a hero and a villain should be obvious, the hero defeats the villain and saves the land, however what happens when someone decides to conquer other lands for the benefit of his own, that is in fact a villainous act. Alexander the Great is an example of this, there are multiple forms of evidence explaining how he conquered lands, and showed no mercy. Not only did he take over ⅓ of the known world, but he gave his enemies no chance for discussion and he forced them to either change or die. he had no intention of stopping, even his main generals had to refuse his orders for him to realize what he’s doing is unnecessary, and he still planned to only postpone it. Alexander could be considered a hero, but in a general aspect, he was a villain.

Alexander had remarkable ability, and so was great in many different ways. On top of doing great things, Alexander was a great leader, and a political and military genius. His goal to conquer Persia was one that he would let nothing stand in the way of. As leader of his troops, he suffered their same wounds, being one of the last great leaders to personally take the risk of death in battle. Alexander listened to every man he had, and so became very close to his men. Some argue his ability in motivating and inspiring his men was in fact the greatest ever seen, half-defeating the opposition in nerves before a battle began. He was also remarkable with military tactics, employing strategies still used today. As the Encarta Encyclopedia put it: "Alexander was one of the greatest generals of all time, noted for his brilliance as a tactician and troop leader and for the rapidity with which he could traverse great expanses..." He succeeded politically as well, earning respect from many people. Alexander's charisma and adoption of Persian customs gave him strong loyalty needed in order to control his massive empire. However, the greatness in his work here is questionable: often he used brutal force, sometimes killing thousands of civilians, or selling them into slavery. But overall, Alexander must be seen as great man in terms of a leader and a military commander.

When a rebellion took place, he gave the rebels a chance. When they didn’t want a peaceful ending, he made them pay for it. Even after the people defied him, he still gave them a chance. He gave a woman a pardon for showing courage. That shows that he admired his people. Also, he gave respect to persian beliefs. He let Persian governors rule, if they stayed loyal to Alexander. He was very smart. He let the local people rule because he couldn’t do it on his own. He did admire the culture and beliefs of other empires. He loved learning about the Indian people. Buddhism and Hinduism had fascinated him and how the Indian people wanted peace. Alexander was able to spread peace and influence and that’s why the word “great” can be associated with him.

Alexander III of Macedon, also known as Alexander the Great, was the son of King Philip And After the death of his his father (336 BCE) he became king of Macedonia. He later went out to conquer most of the known world of his day. He was Great because he was kind and respectful of his followers, and left a legacy that lasted more than 9 centuries after his death, and because of the many regions he conquered in short life time.

Occasionally history shows that the world does not have many people that could be entered in the history. And Alexander the Great was one of these people. During his childhood Alexander had great teachers who taught him how to use and how to choose great politics, diplomacy and, how to win the war if that day would come. For many years Alexander the Great studied how to control everything and how to be ready to do anything that might be needed. At the age of sixteen he had to become a king of big kingdom, because his father, Philip, was in the war with Byzantium. Many people believed in Alexander because they knew that he was different from other children in his age, he did not care about bodily pleasures or anything like that, however, he had infinitely ambition which created him a good leader. Alexander strengthened his position in the power, he tamed people that were trying to make a revolution to take power in their hands. To get support from wealthy and other people in Alexander’s kingdom, he canceled taxes, and killed other people that might claim for the king’s position. Alexander was a great leader, and had plans to enter the war not only with some kingdoms, but to capture and control all kingdoms and all lands, to have the great power without a trace.

Alexander the Great is dead. In his life time, his Macedonian Kingdom was the biggest empire humanity had seen up at that time. With his death however, this empire would never be the same as many family and friends became worst enemies. These are the war of his successors. On June 11 323 B.C., Alexander the Great passed away in Babylon. He had a left a formidable empire, stretching from Greece to India. Yet its fate was far from certain. Alexander’s only living child was deemed illegitimate. His half brother Aridarus was mentally ill and though one of his wives Roxana was pregnant, there was no guarantee the child would be a boy. A clash with the authority began and one of Alexander’s greatest generals, Perdiccas emerged as the victor. Aridarus became king as Phillip

Alexander III of Macedon, commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a King of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon and a member of the Argead dynasty, an ancient Greek royal house. Also, he was a king of conqueror of the Persian Empire is considered one of the greatest military geniuses of all times. He was inspiration for later conquerors such as Napoleon, Hannibal the Carthaginian, and the Romans Pompey and Caesar (Brand). He was born on July 356 BC, Pella and died on June 323 BC, Babylon. He was the son of King Philip II and queen Olympia.

Alexander III of Macedon or commonly known as Alexander the Great was the conqueror and king of the Persian Empire which is the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He was born on the 20/21st July 356 BC in Pella, the ancient capital of Macedonia. While in reign from 336 to 323 B.C, he united the Greek city-states and led the Corinthian League. He also became the king of Persia, Babylon and Asia as well as created Macedonian colonies in the region and was a member of the argead dynasty. Unfortunately he died around the 10/11th June 323 BC in Babylon at 32 years of age which was classified as middle aged back then.