Alexander the Great was ahead of his time when it came to his battle planning abilities. He was a master strategist who could improvise when he had to. In his conquests he spread the Greek culture in all its Hellenistic glory. Even though he died young, he accomplished something no one had. He is still viewed today as a military genius.
Alexander had many teachers. The best known would be Aristotle. The great philosopher and educator would teach the teenaged Alexander math, philosophy, Greek literature among other subjects. Alexander loved the poet Homer’s writings. His favorite was the Iliad and he may have even likened himself to Achilles. Because the Persians did not think or act like the Greeks they were seen as inferior maybe even savages. Aristotle gifted him a very well done copy of Homer’s poems he carried into battle with him.
He saw those who he was conquering as inferior. His army may have been smaller than his foes but they were far superior. One of his goals in attacking Darius III and his empire was to liberate and bring back under control Greek colonies that had been lost to the Persian Empire. Some of these cities welcomed him with open arms, others he would have to lay siege to. Alexander being a master military planner had no trouble in planning when he had to lay siege to a city or fight on the battle field. He was able to plan ahead and adapt his plans when needed. “He lived, in fact, in an age when great personal and mental powers, had scarcely any other field for their exercise than this.” (Abbott, 1848) During this age those who were like Alexander and wanted glory and fame there were few ways to get it. War and conquering countries were one of those ways. Alexander would even fear that his father wouldn’t leave him anything to conquer. He got lucky when at the age of eighteen his father was murdered at his sister’s wedding. He was crowned king of Macedonia. The one thing he may not have planned on was how Greek culture expanded with his empire. The Persians may have been Alexander’s biggest hurdle in conquering the area. With every victory the boundaries spread until finally the Greeks came in contact with India. He probably would have conquered India had his men been willing too. After ten years of military campaigns his soldiers wanted to go home so he was forced to turn around. The King of India had impressed him and had been impressed they departed on good terms and Greece was now able to set up trade routes. The Greek empire had never reached this far east before.
He was bound and determined that his war be fought on land. Athens was home to Greek fleet at the time. Alexander and Athens regarded each other coldly at best. The City State had to be convinced by force to have Alexander be the head of the Corinthian league. Alexander did not trust Athens or the fleet so he simply didn’t use them. The Persian’s however had the Phoenician fleet and they were formidable foes. Alexander would have to figure out ways to fight on land and avoid the fleet. Finally he convinced some of the Phoenician fleet to join him, but he still relied heavily on land warfare.
Alexander was the type of leader who fought along with his men. He was an accomplished cavalry man by the time he became King of Macedonia. Officers in the Greek army were to lead by example. What good was a leader directing the spears I they couldn’t use a spear themselves. When Alexander was fighting the Persian empire Darius was at the head of his army at a few of the battles. The King of Persia fled in fear of Alexander’s army, afraid of dying. Alexander had to care for several of Darius’s relatives including his mother, Darius had left them behind at the camp. Alexander would proclaim himself the King of Persia before he had even taken the title away from the current ruler, his claim was that he was the legit heir and Darius was a mere usurper. The distrust of his men and the Persians he added to his army becomes evident. He ended up killing several Persian generals to appease his officers. The Greeks had a history of distrust and dislike towards the Persians and vice versa. The army he was facing was large had the best horses and the best weapons and munitions of the time. The soldiers dressed in elegant uniforms and were known to live in splendor. The Greek army of the time was quite the opposite. They were supposed to face hardships, they trained for those hardships. The result was a very well disciplined fighting force. Swords and spears required the wielders to be strong and able to fight. Alexander himself did not have a life of luxury one expects a prince to have when growing up.
When he finally managed to become king of Persia he managed to conquer a people who the Greeks looked down on as barbicans. New doors were open to the people of Persia were still opened to them. They were introduced to the literature and philosophy. This would impact the people greatly and they would start to think in new ways. For the first time the people in this region would come up with their own philosophical thinking.
After Persia came Egypt in the autumn of 332 BC. Alexander wasn’t challenged here. He founded Alexandria, a great city that would become the center of trade with Greece. Alexandria would rise and become an important city in its own right the city would become a center of culture and literature that rivaled even the City States of Greece. The Great Library founded by Ptolemy I was located there. It is uncertain if he proclaimed himself Pharaoh but he did call himself the son of Amun Re the son god and father of the pharaohs. He didn’t change the old political system in Egypt. He did appoint several Greeks to government jobs before leaving, he also appointed Egyptians.
When he invaded India he ran into kingdoms who didn’t unite to stop him. When Alexander invaded he put the kingdoms together making one country for the first time in India’s history. When he invaded he exposed Greece to India he found another country that was rich in philosophy. These new ideas would find the way to Greece, while Greek thinking would find its way to India. Indian artists also incorporated some of the Greeks painting techniques into their art. Coins would change to copy the detail the Greeks had on theirs. Because he left without fully conquering India he made it easily for the Indian king Maurya to conquer much of India.
Alexander was certainly ahead of his time and we can still see the influences his crusade made on the countries he acquired for the Greek empire. Had he not died young from Malaria of all things he might have returned to India and brought it into the empire. Alexander’s wife would not have his heir until two months after his death. His generals had already taken over and carved the massive kingdom up. The Greek Empire was starting to crumble without their leader. The men who took charge were fighting among themselves. City States had problems with other City-States each one thinking they were the better city. There was no unity without Alexander. Even if it was unity by force it was still unity.
Alexander would be a role model for many leaders. Kings aspired to be like him and expand their boarders. Today he is still considered one of the best when it came to military strategy. He was able to take control over a vast area with an army that was always out numbered. They won from being superior warriors and by following the plans of their mighty leader, leaving in their wake exposure of a new culture and exposure to the Greek people far and wide.
Sources
Abbott, J. (1848). History of Alexander the Great [The project Gutenberg ebook].
Impact of Alexander Invasion of India - Important India. (2013). Retrieved February 22, 2016, from http://www.importantindia.com/9185/impact-of-alexander-invasion-of-india/
