Alexander the Great

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Alexander the Great
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Outline

• Introduction
• Part I. His life
• a. His family
• b. Accession to the throne
• Part II. His conquests
• a. His empire
• b. Administration of the empire
• Conclusion
• References

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Introduction

• Alexander one of the greatest military geniuses
• He ascended to the Macedonian throne and
  reestablished his position in Greece
• Campaign against the Persians
• Greeted as a deliverer in Egypt, he founded the
  city of Alexandria and became pharaoh
• As a statesman and ruler he had grandiose plans
  but the order was largely nullified by his death

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Part I. His life

• Alexander the Great (356-323 BC)

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a. His family

• Alexander, born in Pella, the ancient capital of
  Macedonia
• Son of Philip II, king of Macedonia, and of
  Olympias, a princess of Epirus
• Aristotle was Alexander's tutor training in
  rhetoric and literature and stimulated his
  interest in science, medicine, and philosophy
• Alexander read and learned the Iliad, taking
  Achilles as his role model
• Died at the age of 33, without designating a
  successor
• His best friend Hephaestion died eight months
  before him Alexander's horse, Bucephalus

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b. Accession to the throne

• In 336 BC, King Philip was assassinated
• Alexander ascended to the Macedonian throne
• Surrounded by enemies at home and threatened by
  rebellion abroad
• Execution of his enemies, restored Macedonian
  rule in Thessalia
• Reestablished his position in Greece and was
  elected by a congress of states at Corinth

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Part II. His conquests

• Alexander's Empire at its height

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a. His empire

• In 335 BC, Alexander campaigned toward the
  Danube, to secure Macedonia's northern frontier
• In the fall of 335 BC, Alexander marched up to
  Thebes
• He took the city by storm and razed it
• Alexander's promptness in crushing the revolt of
  Thebes brought the other Greek states into
  submission
• Alexander began his war against Persia in the
  spring of 334 BC by crossing the Hellespont with
  an army of 35,000 Macedonian and Greek troops
• After the battle all the states of Asia Minor
  submitted to him
• King Darius III of Persia fled, abandoning his
  mother, wife, and children

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b. Administration of the empire

• In 332 he city of Alexandria, Egypt, which later
  became the literary, scientific, and commercial
  center of the Greek world
• In 331, Alexander made a pilgrimage to the great
  temple and oracle of Amon-Ra
• He governed as a pharaoh, not just like a Greek
  leader
• Considered to be the richest man in history
• His domain, from Europe to India, from Greece to
  Egypt
• When he died in 323 BC, the throne of Egypt fell
  to Ptolemy I, a veteran soldier and trusted
  commander
• He started the Ptolemaic Dynasty, which lasted
  300 years
• Brave and generous, Alexander could be cruel and
  ruthless when politics demanded

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Conclusion

• Alexander founded a number of cities, most of
  them named Alexandria, well located, well paved,
  and provided with good water supplies
• Young men, traders, merchants, and scholars were
  attracted to them Greek culture was introduced
• Alexander vastly extended the influence of Greek
  civilization and prepared the way for the
  kingdoms of the Hellenistic period and the
  conquests of the Roman Empire

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References

• http//encarta.msn.com
• http//faq.macedonia.org/history/alexander.the.gre
  at.html
• http//www.touregypt.net/32dyn01.htm
• http//www.touregypt.net/featurestories/alexandert
  hegreat.htm
• http//touregypt.net/alexandria
• http//historyoftheworld.com/anc/oegypt.htm