Introduction
History is an important aspect for any one’s life as history matters a lot. In the past, many conquerors and kings marked their names due to their achievements, power, bravery, and glory. As a result, it is important to uncover the history and learn more about people such as Alexander III of Macedonia referred to as “Alexander the great” known as the most genius and intellectual military leader. Alexander takes the credit of conquering various territories that extend from Greece to Egypt. In addition to that, being a king of Macedonia he also conquered the entire from Balkans to modern day Pakistan. A member of the Argead dynasty was born on 20 or 21 July 356 BC (the accurate date is unknown) in Pella Macedon and succeeded when his father Philip II died and Alexander at the age twenty took the throne as a king (Sullivan, pp. 515-537). He spent ten years of ruling by conquering various largest empires, proving to be the victorious military commander who was hardly undefeated in any battle. Alexander was a person who was God Gifted by having natural abilities to become a skilled leader and commander. He had the courage and intelligence to get victory in any battle that was fought for right. In the 4th century BC, he conquered most of the western world and in a period of 12 years, he brought Greece under his control, defeated Persian army, conquered Egypt, and took control of Babylonia, Susa, and Persia. In addition to that, Alexander brought positive impacts upon eastern and western culture.
Discussion
Alexander spent his youth under and around people who were intelligent and passed the cleverness to Alexander. His father Philip used to be incredibly busy in conquering the empires and territories and suppressing rebellions. Alexander’s accomplishments and his ability to fight was inherited from his brave father Philip of Macedon who is hold to be responsible for conquering and invading the Greek city in 338 B.C.E , uniting the entire Greece. Getting the victory of Greece, he progressed to attack Persia, which was in the east of Greece. Persistently threatened by the empire of Persia, Philip could not achieve his mission to conquer Persia and some of his bodyguard assassinated him (Hasnas, pp. 183-195). Philip during his reign created huge number of enemies and it was the case with his son Alexander as well. Alexander was born in an era that was full of brutality and notorious for little oppressors.
Since childhood, he was taught to bear the hardships with the ways to ride and fight. The man behind his learning, related to military skills, was the only relative of Alexander’s mother named as “Leonidas.” His father wanted him to enjoy a successful future and a s a result, arranged Lysimachus of Acarnania who was responsible to make Alexander read, write and play the lyre (Liebert, pp. 533-560). Learning these things since childhood Alexander got a deep interest in reading and music that these interests continued until his death. He developed the habit of exploring and knowing more and more about his surroundings. At the age of fourteen, father Philip decided to hire a good tutor for Alexander who could give a private tuition so he appointed Aristotle. Until the age of sixteen, Alexander was under the intellectual and prominent Greek philosopher tutor Aristotle, spending valuable year s of learning. Spending three years of learning and corresponding with Aristotle proved effective, as Aristotle would guide him in campaigns against enemies. Aristotle’s teachings had a great influence upon Alexander’s dealings and interaction with the people as he adopted the same ways and cultures that Aristotle taught him to pursue. Aristotle was a man who allowed and made men aware of exploring and discovering the wonders of world. Aristotle’s teachings to understand the Greek culture and systems of universe brought passion in Alexander to know the natural world and determine the world according to his own will. Aristotle teachings also led Alexander to conquer each empire that would come on his way. The influence of his early childhood teacher and relative Leonidas was evidenced in Alexander physical stamina and his skills to deal with horses. Great tutors, who were exceptional in their own, had great and profound effects upon Alexander life and achievements as since childhood he was taught to become strong, powerful in intentions, and destined for greatness and success. He studied the aspects of cultures and became knowledgeable by having grip of mathematics, philosophy, and science.
When his father was assassinated and his mother was expelled to Epirus, Alexander was to hold a well- built Kingdom and extremely experienced and skilled military Army made by his father. Alexander as having an authority was controlling the generalship of Greece and deciding the ways to extend the plans of his father that were left unachievable. He used his power and authority to start a series of various campaigns and invaded the empire of Achaemenid. The campaigns continued for almost ten years that included the control of Tigris River and Persia, controlling the armies (Heinze, pp. 63-89). The victory became historical as Alexander made the mission of his father possible and same time became capable of controlling the huge empire of Persia and the city of Babylon. At the age of just 25, Alexander was doing wonders with his abilities and intellectuals and adopting the attributes of his role models Achilles and Herakles and he fulfilled his goals and made his origin extremely strong. He linked his bloodline to these two mentioned heroes to whom he followed, achieving exceptional successes but still he was neither happy nor satisfied. He wanted to go beyond his limits and that was happening in reality. While fighting over Persia and gaining its access, he brought under control Egypt and a city Alexandria near Nile River. He named that city after his name and made it an attraction and a center where arts, trade, and ideas emerged.
His battles such as Gaugamela and Issus marked the history of ancient world and proved exemplary for the world to follow. The battle of Issus was fought in 333 BC near to the very old town of Issus in Turkey. The battle proved historical as Darius III was controlling it himself and was leading it with 60000 troops, using his power and trying to be efficient as much as possible (Thomas, pp. 61-83). As a result, Darius III the Persian king lost his power completely, fled away from the battlefield, which was overtaken by Alexander who conquered Persia and became the first to rule the Persian Empire. The island city of Tyre was also included in his missions but while conquering he could not succeed in its victory. Alexander was so much determined to take a control of this place and for this achievement, he even decided to build causeway. He proved to be an achiever however; the inhabitants of Tyre showed resistance but had to pay a huge cost in terms of slaughters and being sold as slaves. Alexander got a victory due to his determination and military skills, but he also marked in the history an example of his brutal attempts and cruel policy. Then again, Alexander encountered Darius III at Gaugamela where Darius fled and Alexander with massive army could succeed. However, Alexander encountered million of troops by Darius III that were spread all over his empire. Alexander was along with his huge army strong enough to bring terrors to Darius, who fled away from the situation. Darius was later assassinated by his own troops and Alexander became the king of Asia. Following such defeats, he invaded the city of Susa where he faced no resistance but a complete surrender by the inhabitants.
In addition to that, the killing of Parmerio and Cleitus show a witness that people associated with Alexander were becoming sick of his campaigns. Alexander’s attitude was becoming unreasonable and mistrustful that his fellow companions were not able to accept at all. The alleged plot by the son of Parmerio has everything to do with the killing of Pamerio (Bosman, pp. 91-106). As far as the murder of Cleitus a close friend of Alexander was concerned, it shows an example of how brutally and promptly Alexander would kill when someone would come against his will. In reality, Alexander’s life was being threatened due to his killing plots. As a result, he tried not to trust anyone and a result, his relationship with his close generals was deteriorating. A close friend Cleitus was against the customs, traditions, practices, and Persian dress of Alexander, as he wanted Alexander to follow Macedonia and not Persia. Alexander also wanted people to kneel before him. The practice was unacceptable to people as according to their beliefs they were just required to kneel before their gods. Alexander on the other hand, was not happy with the argument, as he wanted to adopt the way that suited him. Both were drunk and while arguing with each other, Alexander got infuriated and the result was the ultimate murder of Cleitus. However, the occurrence brought negative impacts upon the life of Alexander who blamed himself the murderer of his own dear friend. Due to his own terrible attitude, Alexander got cruel to himself and went on hunger strike, neglecting himself completely. He was unhappy with himself and thus the days were gloomy.
Each victory would give him a new energy and will to move on. By that time, Alexander’s defeats had reached from Adriatic Sea to the river of Indus. Alexander’s plan to invade certain places also included India to control in 326 BC but unfortunately, he had to return from there on the request of his troops who were not supported any further. His troops were tired of fighting over number of years and thus Alexander decided to go back to Babylon and return to India after some time. Impressed by the use of elephants in battles by Indian army, Alexander also ordered to include elephants in his attacks to the enemies that would have horses and that proved successful. In the particular battle, he also lost his favorite companion and horse named as Bucephalus.
Alexander was a famous tactician in the battlefield and in the rule. The huge success he enjoyed over his short-lived life is a proof itself. His courage was immense and in battles, he led his troops from the front. One tactic in battle that Alexander mostly used was a formation of his troops like the Ancient Greek army. This formation known as phalanx, utilized spears for the length of the troop in an upward directed way (Kets de Vries, pp. 370-375). The movement of the troops would make a kind of wall of spikes, which was fatal for approaching enemies. This phalanx was defended by a cavalry; furthermore, the soldiers in the phalanx were also equipped with swords that in case an enemy escapes from phalanx, swords could be utilized. Heavy cavalry was a part of Alexander’s powerful army. In addition to that, Alexander himself was defended by elite bodyguards, who ensured his security and safety. The utilization of phalanx strategy was useful in a way that it allowed his army to travel quickly. This helped Alexander to conquer lands at a rapid pace. This strategy made Alexander’s army one of the greatest in history. As a master of tactics, he knew how to take control of battlefield strategically. He inherited from his father an already established army. His actions and decision-making ability was quick, as he did not fear to take a decision immediately. His quick thinking led him to innovative techniques during the battles, which helped his army in achieving success. As a true leader, he never feared to be on the front. While watching their king fighting against enemies his soldiers used to get boost in morale. A boost in morale is an effective ingredient for army to fight against enemies. Furthermore, he was a leader that knew the importance of his followers, especially during wartimes his army. He looked after those soldiers and followers more keenly who were fiercely loyal towards him. As a ruler, he was ruthless against all those who opposed him. One of the major reason behind his success as a ruler was his willingness to solve the problems of his people. He had a diverse and vast empire, and he controlled it well. He did that because he knew the importance of unity. Alexander looked upon to befriend with the people from his conquered land too, but he ensured that Macedonians were well in charge of all affairs.
When Alexander was born, there were various beliefs that his mother Olympias had. He was nourished with the belief that his birth was divine and he would be a descendant of gods and heroes. He considered himself a son of Zeus and that was the belief put by his mother. He spent and devoted thirteen years of his life to rule and conquer the largest number of territories to become the hero in an ancient world. Without taking any help of technology and modern techniques, he won the battles and covered 3000 miles of empire, an achievement that was exceptional. His troops would only move through foots and there would be face-to-face communication with the enemies. Due to his remarkable performances, diplomatic skills with which he could control plenty of regions and places, military genius he was given the title of “Great” with which no king or emperor is ever blessed. However, his beliefs were based upon his own superiority. His mind was arrogant and he believed himself to be right for everything.
Alexander saw huge successes but was not lucky enough to see his heir. After his death, the empire was divided in to various divisions led by the heads of Egypt, Pergamum, and Syria. His son did not see his adulthood and murdered at a very young age. In a very short life, Alexander experienced every aspect of life (Phillips, pp. 328-329). His life was full of grief, love, hatred, conspiracy, and even loyalty. However, he was happy to bring revolution and change the lives of number of tribes. He was able to accomplish his ambitions, spread Greek culture, change the history of territories that flourished and made good name in the world. He imposed and encouraged the use of Greek language that resulted in fostering the culture and expansion of common language. His best skills never allowed him to defeat and lose in any battle that he fought. By his accomplishment, the world was closer and open which were the experiences no one had seen before. The combination of wrath, fear, genius, and determination made him a leader. Alexander was clear in his mission and vision, and the same his army adopted. He played an important part in the history as he emerged the part of Greek culture to the other parts of world. His techniques of battles and political views were only obvious in his empire. During his empire and after that the world witnessed various changes related to art, culture, mathematics, language, technology, religion, trade, science, astronomy. The Greek warrior’s mission was not to destroy any culture but to merge them with Greek one.
Conclusion
Alexander was considered as the powerful commander and liberator. He developed a New Greek culture not by force but by fusing the Asian elements with Greek culture, finding almost Greek 70 cities. Most important among them was the city of Alexandria in Egypt. After his persistent conquests, Greek language became so important and dominant that even the Romans were hugely influenced by it. He made Greek civilization so important and thus Greek culture became so powerful to bring good effects upon the western civilization. His victories were dependent upon each other and their positive impacts are still felt to be too important. After his invasions and conquests, trade also boomed that allowed easy exchanges between east and west. The cultures and religions were acceptable and exchanges were remarkable. This change was only followed by the work and contribution of “Alexander the Great.”
Work Cited
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Sullivan, Vickie. "Alexander The Great As “Lord Of Asia” And Rome As His Successor In Machiavelli's Prince." Review Of Politics 75.4 (2013): pp. 515-537.
Thomas, Carol G. "“What You Seek Is Here”: Alexander The Great." Journal Of The Historical Society 7.1 (2007): pp. 61-83.
