Alexander the Great - Military genius or power-crazed megalomaniac?
Man or Myth?
Alexander was born the son of one of the most powerful men in the world; he was taught by Aristotle and was trained in the arts of war. When his father died he was to inherit one of the most powerful military machines the world had ever seen. With these beginnings and immense tactical skill, Alexander carved a name for himself in history that would last over 2,000 years.
But what is the real history of one of the world's greatest generals?
Securing power
Alexander was born in the northern Greek kingdom of Macedonia in 356 BC to Philip II and Queen Olympias. He succeeded to the throne in 365 BC after witnessing his father’s assassination (killed by a jealous male lover, according to some sources). With his father's death the Macedonian hegemony over Greece was in jeopardy. The young man's first test would be to secure this power base. He immediately showed his talent for leadership by quieting the restive Greek cities, while putting down uprisings in Thrace and Illyria.
However, after a false rumour that Alexander was dead, the city-state of Thebes revolted. The young king rushed south and sacked the city, sparing only the temples and Pindar's house. The ancient and once-powerful city was utterly destroyed; Alexander had sent a clear message to the watching world.
Conquest
After conquering the Greek city states, Alexander set his sights on the Persian empire. He crossed the Hellespont (now the Dardanelles) in 334BC at the head of an allied Greek army; the march he had begun was to be one of the greatest in history.
At the Granicus River (near the Hellespont) he met and defeated a Persian force that had been sent to stop him. He moved quickly to take Miletus and Halicarnassus and began the liberation of the coastal Greek cities. For the Persian Empire the threat could no longer be dismissed, for the first time they faced a united Greece, and, in Alexander, one of the most brilliant generals of the ancient world.
Having taken most of Asia Minor, in 333BC he entered Northern Syria and there in the battle of Issus met and routed the hosts of Darius III of Persia, who fled before him.
Alexander, triumphant, now envisioned the conquest of the whole of the Persian Empire. It took him nearly a year to reduce Tyre and Gaza, and in 332BC, in full command of Syria, he entered Egypt. There he met no resistance. When he went to the oasis of Amon he was acknowledged as the son of Amon-Ra, and this may have contributed to a conviction of his own divinity. In the winter he founded Alexandria, perhaps the greatest monument to his name, and in the spring of 331BC he headed for Mesopotamia where he met Darius again in the battle of Guagamela. Vastly outnumbered, the Macedonians claimed victory due to their superior weaponry, training and tactics and due to Alexander’s aggressive, decisive command. He marched south to Babylon, then to Susa and on to Persepolis, where he burned the palaces of the Persians and looted the city.
In less than five years, with breathtaking courage and an almost reckless self-belief, Alexander had led his troops to victory in Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt and Mesopotamia without a single defeat. The 25-year-old Macedonian was now Great King of Persia, Pharaoh of Egypt and leader of all the Greek city states.
The edge of the world
Alexander pushed on. He sought the unknown, the great eastern ocean, the truth behind the legends of the east. The Macedonians continued moving east over the next eight years, travelling over 11,000 miles to found 70 cities and create an empire that covered three continents and two million square miles. The epic journey saw them battling mountain tribes and Indian princes and conquering all in their path.
Alexander seized control of Bactria and Sogdiana after hard fighting and then went on from what is today Afghanistan into northern India. Some of the princes there received him favorably, but at the Hydaspes (the present-day Jhelum River) he met and defeated an army under Porus. He overran the Punjab, but there his men would go no farther. The brutal journey had taken its toll, and eventually Alexander’s army begged to return to their homeland.
He built a fleet, and after going down the Indus to its delta, he sent his admiral, Nearchus, with the fleet to take it across the unknown route to the head of the Persian Gulf, a daring undertaking. He himself led his men through the desert regions of modern Baluchistan, south Afghanistan, and southern Iran. The march, accomplished with great suffering, finally ended at Susa in 324.
Discord and death
At Susa Alexander found that many of the officials he had chosen to govern the conquered lands had indulged in corruption and misrule. Meanwhile certain antagonisms had developed against Alexander; in Greece, for instance, many decried his execution of Aristotle's nephew, the historian Callisthenes, and the Greek cities resented his request that they treat him as a god. Alexander's Macedonian officers balked at his attempt to force them to intermarry with the Persians (he had himself married Roxana, a Bactrian princess, as one of his several wives), and they resisted his Eastern ways and his vision of an empire governed by tolerance. There was a mutiny, but it was put down.
In 323BC, as Alexander planned a voyage by sea around Arabia, he caught a fever and died, aged just 33. Some believed he was poisoned but the real cause was probably a malarial fever or typhoid caught on account of the many wounds he received in battle.
After his demise, there followed a bloody power struggle as his generals carved up the empire between them.
Legacy
Whether or not Alexander had plans for a world empire cannot be determined. He had accomplished greater conquests than any before him, but he did not have time to mold the government of the lands he had taken. Incontestably, he was one of the greatest generals of all time and one of the most powerful personalities of antiquity. He influenced the spread of Hellenism throughout the Middle East and into Asia, establishing city-states modeled on Greek institutions that flourished long after his death.
There are many legends about him, such as his feats on his horse Bucephalus and his cutting of the Gordian knot.
Yet, whatever the truth of the individual tales, Alexander would forever go down in history as one of the most successful conquerors of all time.
A gay icon?
According to historian Robin Lane Fox, Alexander was a "man who was believed to have slept with at least one man, four mistresses, three wives, a eunuch, and so gossip believed, an Amazon." However, Alexander was better known for his exploits on the battlefield than in the bedroom. According to one ancient source Athenaeus, Alexander's parents King Philip and Queen Olympias were so concerned about young Alexander's lack of libido that they arranged for the Thessalian prostitute Callixena to seduce him. But apparently, nothing happened. "Olympias often begged him to have sex with Callixena", says Athenaeus.
Another ancient source, Plutarch wrote: "He showed little interest in the pleasures of the senses and indulged in them only with great moderation." Plutarch also added that Alexander "thought it more worthy of a king to subdue his passions than to conquer his enemies."
Alexander himself is supposed to have said that "it was sleep and sexual intercourse which more than anything else, reminded him that he was mortal."
Of Hephaestion, his boyhood friend and companion on campaigns for 19 years, Arrian wrote that Alexander loved him "better than all the world." On Hephaestion’s death in 324 BC in Ecbatana, Alexander was so distraught that he "lay stretched on the corpse all day and the whole night too," says Arrian. According to Plutarch, Alexander's grief was "uncontrollable". In a bout of fury, Alexander had Hephaestion's doctor killed, perhaps suspecting foul play.
Another well-documented love interest was Bagoas, the Persian eunuch. He was presented to Alexander by a Persian nobleman, Nabarzanes who was one of the three murderers of King Darius III. The sources describe Bagoas as "an exceptionally good looking eunuch in the flower of his youth. Darius had had a sexual relationship with him and presently Alexander did, too," says Quintus Curtius.
Plutarch also notes Alexander's relationship with the eunuch "whose lover he was" and tells us about one event in Gedrosia in late 325 BC when both of them were cheered by the army. "The Macedonians clapped in applause and loudly called for Alexander to kiss him, until eventually the king took him in his arms and gave him a kiss.”
Key moments
356 Born to King Phillip II and Queen Olympias in Macedonia
336 Crowned King of Macedon
333 Wins Battle of Issus
331 Victor in the Battle of Gaugamela
326 Alexander’s troops mutiny at Hyphasis river
323 Dies in Babylon
This article is featured at History Channel UK
Alexander was born the son of one of the most powerful men in the world; he was taught by Aristotle and was trained in the arts of war. When his father died he was to inherit one of the most powerful military machines the world had ever seen. With these beginnings and immense tactical skill, Alexander carved a name for himself in history that would last over 2,000 years.
But what is the real history of one of the world's greatest generals?
Securing power
Alexander was born in the northern Greek kingdom of Macedonia in 356 BC to Philip II and Queen Olympias. He succeeded to the throne in 365 BC after witnessing his father’s assassination (killed by a jealous male lover, according to some sources). With his father's death the Macedonian hegemony over Greece was in jeopardy. The young man's first test would be to secure this power base. He immediately showed his talent for leadership by quieting the restive Greek cities, while putting down uprisings in Thrace and Illyria.
However, after a false rumour that Alexander was dead, the city-state of Thebes revolted. The young king rushed south and sacked the city, sparing only the temples and Pindar's house. The ancient and once-powerful city was utterly destroyed; Alexander had sent a clear message to the watching world.
Conquest
After conquering the Greek city states, Alexander set his sights on the Persian empire. He crossed the Hellespont (now the Dardanelles) in 334BC at the head of an allied Greek army; the march he had begun was to be one of the greatest in history.
At the Granicus River (near the Hellespont) he met and defeated a Persian force that had been sent to stop him. He moved quickly to take Miletus and Halicarnassus and began the liberation of the coastal Greek cities. For the Persian Empire the threat could no longer be dismissed, for the first time they faced a united Greece, and, in Alexander, one of the most brilliant generals of the ancient world.
Having taken most of Asia Minor, in 333BC he entered Northern Syria and there in the battle of Issus met and routed the hosts of Darius III of Persia, who fled before him.
Alexander, triumphant, now envisioned the conquest of the whole of the Persian Empire. It took him nearly a year to reduce Tyre and Gaza, and in 332BC, in full command of Syria, he entered Egypt. There he met no resistance. When he went to the oasis of Amon he was acknowledged as the son of Amon-Ra, and this may have contributed to a conviction of his own divinity. In the winter he founded Alexandria, perhaps the greatest monument to his name, and in the spring of 331BC he headed for Mesopotamia where he met Darius again in the battle of Guagamela. Vastly outnumbered, the Macedonians claimed victory due to their superior weaponry, training and tactics and due to Alexander’s aggressive, decisive command. He marched south to Babylon, then to Susa and on to Persepolis, where he burned the palaces of the Persians and looted the city.
In less than five years, with breathtaking courage and an almost reckless self-belief, Alexander had led his troops to victory in Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt and Mesopotamia without a single defeat. The 25-year-old Macedonian was now Great King of Persia, Pharaoh of Egypt and leader of all the Greek city states.
The edge of the world
Alexander pushed on. He sought the unknown, the great eastern ocean, the truth behind the legends of the east. The Macedonians continued moving east over the next eight years, travelling over 11,000 miles to found 70 cities and create an empire that covered three continents and two million square miles. The epic journey saw them battling mountain tribes and Indian princes and conquering all in their path.
Alexander seized control of Bactria and Sogdiana after hard fighting and then went on from what is today Afghanistan into northern India. Some of the princes there received him favorably, but at the Hydaspes (the present-day Jhelum River) he met and defeated an army under Porus. He overran the Punjab, but there his men would go no farther. The brutal journey had taken its toll, and eventually Alexander’s army begged to return to their homeland.
He built a fleet, and after going down the Indus to its delta, he sent his admiral, Nearchus, with the fleet to take it across the unknown route to the head of the Persian Gulf, a daring undertaking. He himself led his men through the desert regions of modern Baluchistan, south Afghanistan, and southern Iran. The march, accomplished with great suffering, finally ended at Susa in 324.
Discord and death
At Susa Alexander found that many of the officials he had chosen to govern the conquered lands had indulged in corruption and misrule. Meanwhile certain antagonisms had developed against Alexander; in Greece, for instance, many decried his execution of Aristotle's nephew, the historian Callisthenes, and the Greek cities resented his request that they treat him as a god. Alexander's Macedonian officers balked at his attempt to force them to intermarry with the Persians (he had himself married Roxana, a Bactrian princess, as one of his several wives), and they resisted his Eastern ways and his vision of an empire governed by tolerance. There was a mutiny, but it was put down.
In 323BC, as Alexander planned a voyage by sea around Arabia, he caught a fever and died, aged just 33. Some believed he was poisoned but the real cause was probably a malarial fever or typhoid caught on account of the many wounds he received in battle.
After his demise, there followed a bloody power struggle as his generals carved up the empire between them.
Legacy
Whether or not Alexander had plans for a world empire cannot be determined. He had accomplished greater conquests than any before him, but he did not have time to mold the government of the lands he had taken. Incontestably, he was one of the greatest generals of all time and one of the most powerful personalities of antiquity. He influenced the spread of Hellenism throughout the Middle East and into Asia, establishing city-states modeled on Greek institutions that flourished long after his death.
There are many legends about him, such as his feats on his horse Bucephalus and his cutting of the Gordian knot.
Yet, whatever the truth of the individual tales, Alexander would forever go down in history as one of the most successful conquerors of all time.
A gay icon?
According to historian Robin Lane Fox, Alexander was a "man who was believed to have slept with at least one man, four mistresses, three wives, a eunuch, and so gossip believed, an Amazon." However, Alexander was better known for his exploits on the battlefield than in the bedroom. According to one ancient source Athenaeus, Alexander's parents King Philip and Queen Olympias were so concerned about young Alexander's lack of libido that they arranged for the Thessalian prostitute Callixena to seduce him. But apparently, nothing happened. "Olympias often begged him to have sex with Callixena", says Athenaeus.
Another ancient source, Plutarch wrote: "He showed little interest in the pleasures of the senses and indulged in them only with great moderation." Plutarch also added that Alexander "thought it more worthy of a king to subdue his passions than to conquer his enemies."
Alexander himself is supposed to have said that "it was sleep and sexual intercourse which more than anything else, reminded him that he was mortal."
Of Hephaestion, his boyhood friend and companion on campaigns for 19 years, Arrian wrote that Alexander loved him "better than all the world." On Hephaestion’s death in 324 BC in Ecbatana, Alexander was so distraught that he "lay stretched on the corpse all day and the whole night too," says Arrian. According to Plutarch, Alexander's grief was "uncontrollable". In a bout of fury, Alexander had Hephaestion's doctor killed, perhaps suspecting foul play.
Another well-documented love interest was Bagoas, the Persian eunuch. He was presented to Alexander by a Persian nobleman, Nabarzanes who was one of the three murderers of King Darius III. The sources describe Bagoas as "an exceptionally good looking eunuch in the flower of his youth. Darius had had a sexual relationship with him and presently Alexander did, too," says Quintus Curtius.
Plutarch also notes Alexander's relationship with the eunuch "whose lover he was" and tells us about one event in Gedrosia in late 325 BC when both of them were cheered by the army. "The Macedonians clapped in applause and loudly called for Alexander to kiss him, until eventually the king took him in his arms and gave him a kiss.”
Key moments
356 Born to King Phillip II and Queen Olympias in Macedonia
336 Crowned King of Macedon
333 Wins Battle of Issus
331 Victor in the Battle of Gaugamela
326 Alexander’s troops mutiny at Hyphasis river
323 Dies in Babylon
This article is featured at History Channel UK