Alexander The Great Military Genius
Alison Fong
Ms. Wetzel
English II Honors, Period 3
20 October 2014
Alexander the Great: The Military Genius Imagine crossing thousands of miles of scorching desert, rugged mountains and endless plains on both foot and horseback while commanding and maneuvering an army. Throughout history, there have been legends of heroes facing impossible trials. Alexander the Great is a legendary figure that did the impossible. Leading thousands of men across a continent is challenging enough on its own, but Alexander the Great took this challenge even further. He took the most demanding and laborious paths possible during his campaign to expand his empire, and he succeeded (Romey). Alexander the Great created the largest empire the ancient world had ever …show more content…
seen (Cantor & Ranieri 1-3). His mother’s influence, his education, and his training shaped Alexander into the military genius who was able to conquer much of the known world, which resulted in the spread of Greek culture, the implementation of a fusion policy, and the destruction of many places and lives. Alexander’s mother, Olympias, convinced him that his father was Zeus, not King Philip, leading him to believe in divine predestination. He believed that since his ‘father’ was Zeus, the god of the heavens, he was destined for greatness - a greatness that had to surpass all other achievements before him, including those of his earthly father, King Philip (Sacks). Trying to live up to the standards created by his mother and what he believed to be his divine birthright, Alexander set out to create the largest empire the ancient world had ever seen. Further cementing his belief of divine greatness was the fact that his mother told him that he was also a direct descendant of both Achilles and Herakles. Achilles, whom he had read about during his studies emerged as the hero of the Trojan War (Cantor & Ranieri 2, 3). According to historians, “Alexander emulated Achilles, the hero of the Trojan War, whom he considered an ancestor on his mother’s side. Symbolically, his first stop toward conquest was in Troy,” (Cantor & Ranieri 32). Achilles is seen as a symbol of strength and power. Alexander wanted to be seen as the invincible demigod, similar to the image of Achilles. It is evident that Alexander tried to imitate Achilles by conquering Troy first. Also encouraging his beliefs, was the Gordian knot. The Gordian was a legend that claimed that whoever could untie the knot on the yoke attached to an ancient cart that once belonged to King Midas, would become ruler of Asia. Alexander simply cut the knot in half, certain that his actions had fulfilled the prophecy, leading him to believe that he would become ruler of Asia. (Sacks). Alexander’s convictions of his divine heritage and predestination from superstitions like the gordian knot demonstrate his faith in his skills. Often, when people believe they can do something, they can. There have been examples of ordinary men and women displaying extraordinary skills that many would deem impossible. However, the absolute belief and strength of mind was there that the impossible tasks were completed. After all, half of the time, everything is a mind game. Many different factors and elements of his mother’s influence helped shaped Alexander’s personal beliefs, which motivated him to conquer much of the world. Alexander was born into a privileged life, the son of Princess Olympias of Epirus and King Philip II of Macedonia; as a result, he received the education and training from the best scholars available at the time. He was tutored by Aristotle, Lysimachus and Leonidas. Although Aristotle had not yet begun his philosophical works and papers for which he is now famous, he was a formidable scholar and teacher (Cantor & Ranieri 42). Under the tutelage of Aristotle, Alexander became enamoured with the works of Homer, specifically the Iliad (“Alexander the Great”). The Illiad details the adventures of Achilles, the hero of the Trojan war (Cantor & Ranieri 2, 3). Aristotle saw that “...Homer's Iliad inspired Alexander to dream of becoming a heroic warrior, Aristotle created an abridged version of the tome for Alexander to carry with him on military campaigns” (“Alexander the Great”). The Illiad, Alexander’s mother also hired her relatives, Lysimachus and Leonidas as tutors for her son. Although not as prestigious as Aristotle, Alexander learned one of his most important lessons from Lysimachus. Lysimachus taught Alexander how to live on the basic necessities; a lesson that served him well on his 13 year campaign (Cantor & Ranieri 36). From the age of five, Alexander was encouraged to be a soldier (Cantor & Ranieri 39-41). Presumably because his father, was a military man and had plans to expand his empire into the surrounding areas. He was expected to take over his his father’s kingdom one day (Phillips, Charles & Alan). Legend claims the at the young age of thirteen, Alexander saddled one of the most majestic and specially bred, yet wild horse of the land. He carefully tamed the horse, named Bucephalus. Bucephalus would remain one of his constant companions throughout his 13 year campaign (Cantor & Ranieri 39-41). King Philip, carefully cultivated and prepared his army to invade other nations. Alexander inherited a great military. His father had spent years cultivating a majestic image of the army to increase the number of ranks (Sacks). King Philip made the cavalry the attacking the force of the army, they trained with special weapons, armor and formations. He also did away with the heavy shields and short spears that the infantry used and replaced them with a lighter shield and a longer spear. Both the cavalry and the infantry used a formation known as the Macedonian phalanx, a different version of the Greek phalanx; the key to Alexander’s success (Pothos.org). Alexander was not just a great strategic planner, his personality was one of a leader. He did not put himself above his soldiers or attempt to act superior although it became his right as he was their king and above them in rank. While camping out in the desert, a soldier ran up to Alexander, presenting him with a helmet filled with water. The soldier cried out that he had brought Alexander some of the only fresh and clean water the nearby town had to offer. In response, Alexander simply turned the helmet over and let the water spill out. Alexander told the soldier that if his people could not drink, neither would he (Garland 150). His actions exemplify his integrity as a leader. Not only did Alexander try to live the life of all his soldiers he listened to them. For example, once he crossed into India, his soldiers demanded he turn back after 13 years (Brown). Alexander listened to his soldiers because he knew once his soldiers did not want to fight, their heart wouldn’t be in it. This is a testament to his military personality. He knew that in order to continue his journey across India, he would need an army that wanted to conquer too. Alexander crossed thousands of miles to reach many different destinations. Historians, looking at a map, traced his path across the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern area (Romey). It seems that Alexander purposefully hard and challenging paths to push himself to the limit, while there were less strenuating and better suited terrain to travel thousands of miles, is a testament to his personality of an ambitious man, willing to push himself to the limit.
Alexander’s conquests and victories across the Middle East and Mediterranean area spread Greek Culture all the way to Egypt, Persia, and to the Khyber Pass (Gascoigne).
David Sacks wrote, “...he [Alexander] had carved out the largest empire the world had ever seen, stretching 3,000 miles from the Adriatic Sea to the Indus River.” He started outposts in large expanses of land. They were dotted throughout 3,000 miles, intermixing with thousands of other cultures. At the beginning of the Nile river, Alexander founded the city of Alexandria (Garland 27). The city of Alexandria is one of the most known cities that Alexander had founded. Since it was at the beginning of the Nile, many people flowed into and out of the city each day. Rivers were one of the fastest ways to travel and trade. After conquering Persia, he was named the King of Asia and King of Persia. He was also named Pharoh and King of Macedonia (Larson). His spread of Greek culture across much of the world created the Hellenistic Age, which would extend to until Cleopatra’s (Garland 30). The Hellenistic Age was anything of or pertaining to Greek Culture. The military outposts that he created, started pockets of Hellenism throughout his newly conquered lands. In many parts, aspects of Greek culture were taken into the already pre existing cultures (Garland 30). Importantly, Greek culture did not take over or destroy already standing customs and traditions. In other parts of his kingdom, mostly rural areas, Greek …show more content…
influence did not reach the areas at all (Garland 30). Hellenistic Greek replaced Aramaic as the language spoken by merchants, government officials and scholars (Garland 153).
His purpose was not to strip kingdoms of their wealth or power, but to simply just rule; resulting in his fusion policy (Sacks). Persia was integrated into his Empire without the people losing their cultural identity (Sacks). After conquering Persia and its territories, Mesopotamia and Egypt, he married two Persian princesses, and encouraged his generals to marry Persian women too (Sacks). He did this to integrate Persia into his empire, and Persians into his government and to encourage men to join his army (Sacks). His fusion policy also helped Greek and Persian cultures mix. In Greek cities, he overturned Persian taxes and set up democratic governments (Sacks). He was able to spread Greek culture without destroying local traditions and customs. The two cultures were able to mix because he peacefully integrated the Persians into his kingdom. If he violently treated all the Persians, Greek culture would have become the most dominant. In addition, Alexander integrated Greek culture into his kingdom by setting up Greek outposts (Garland 30). His cities and outposts that he created did not completely reach all the cultures of the land. The cities often only influenced the areas around them, the rural areas usually did not see any influence of Greek culture at all (Garland 70). This created many different cultures, some original and untouched and some new cultures that had blended with the Greek culture. The different cultures were able to coexist peacefully (Garland 30).
Besides bringing Greek culture to the Mediterranean and Middle Easter area, he also brought an army that wrecked towns and left a trail of destruction. Despite, being on of this best military minds the world had ever seen, he is also seen as violent man, with no regards to others. Karasev said, "Alexander the Great" but simply "Aleksandr Makedonskii," was first in a long line of invaders to sweep through the region.... [he was] an oppressor who stood in line along with Genghis Khan, Napoleon, and even Hitler,” (qtd. In Romey). Not many people put Alexander on the same footing with Hitler and Napoleon. He brought about a new world to thousands of people. Yet, to the people of Uzbekistan, he was simple and oppressor. He introduced other cultures and ideas into a culture that did not want the new ideas. Also, Alexander the Great’s army had a high mortality rate (Garland 148). It is estimated that 50% of his army had perished during Alexander’s struggle for power (Garland 148). He may have tried to introduce newly conquered lands into his kingdom peacefully, but his treatment of women and children were anything but peaceful. He sold hundreds of thousands of women and children into slavery (Garland 148). Today, Alexander is regarded as a military genius, that conquered much of the known world (Brown). In Uzbekistan, Alexander was an invader and an oppressor, not a highly regarded man. He was not the first nor the last to sweep through the area to conquer (Romey).
Alexander the Great’s upbringing by his mother, tutors and his personality contributed to his widespread campaigns across the ancient world that spread Greek culture, that integrated many kingdoms into his own and that left a trail of destruction wherever he went.
Alexander the Great in little more than a decade, redefined the ancient world. He proved that no matter how rigid and how permanent great civilizations seems to be, that everything is malleable, culture and languages will change. Today, over two thousand years later, the effects of his achievements can be seen in everyday life, not just while walking through a
museum.
Works Cited
"Alexander the Great." Bio. A&E Television Networks, 2014. Web. 27 Sep. 2014.
Cantor, Norman F., and Dee Ranieri. Alexander the Great: Journey to the End of the Earth. New York: HarperCollins, 2005. Print.
Garland, Robert. Ancient Greece: Everyday Life in the Birthplace of Western Civilization. Santa Barbara: Sterling, 2008. Print.
Gascoigne, Bamber. "HISTORY OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT." HISTORY OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT. History World, n.d. Web. 26 Sept. 2014.
Larsen, Torben. "Siwa: Oasis Extraordinary." Saudi Aramco World. Sept./Oct. 1988: 2-7. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 25 Sep. 2014.
Melikian, Souren. "Macedonia's Riches Before Alexander." The New York Times. The New York Times, 22 Oct. 2011. Web. 28 Sept. 2014.
Phillips, Charles, and Alan Axelrod. "Alexander's Persian Campaign."Encyclopedia of Wars. Vol. 1. New York: n.p., n.d. Facts on File. Web. 26 Sept. 2014.
"Pothos.org." - About Alexander's Army. CMS Made Simple, n.d. Web. 09 Oct. 2014.
Romey, Kristin M. "The Forgotten Realm of Alexander." Archaeology Nov./Dec. 2004: 18-25. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 25 Sep. 2014.
Sacks, David. "Alexander the Great." Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World, Revised Edition. Ed. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Ancient and Medieval History Online. Web. 24 Sept. 2014.
Ms. Wetzel
English II Honors, Period 3
20 October 2014
Alexander the Great: The Military Genius Imagine crossing thousands of miles of scorching desert, rugged mountains and endless plains on both foot and horseback while commanding and maneuvering an army. Throughout history, there have been legends of heroes facing impossible trials. Alexander the Great is a legendary figure that did the impossible. Leading thousands of men across a continent is challenging enough on its own, but Alexander the Great took this challenge even further. He took the most demanding and laborious paths possible during his campaign to expand his empire, and he succeeded (Romey). Alexander the Great created the largest empire the ancient world had ever …show more content…
seen (Cantor & Ranieri 1-3). His mother’s influence, his education, and his training shaped Alexander into the military genius who was able to conquer much of the known world, which resulted in the spread of Greek culture, the implementation of a fusion policy, and the destruction of many places and lives. Alexander’s mother, Olympias, convinced him that his father was Zeus, not King Philip, leading him to believe in divine predestination. He believed that since his ‘father’ was Zeus, the god of the heavens, he was destined for greatness - a greatness that had to surpass all other achievements before him, including those of his earthly father, King Philip (Sacks). Trying to live up to the standards created by his mother and what he believed to be his divine birthright, Alexander set out to create the largest empire the ancient world had ever seen. Further cementing his belief of divine greatness was the fact that his mother told him that he was also a direct descendant of both Achilles and Herakles. Achilles, whom he had read about during his studies emerged as the hero of the Trojan War (Cantor & Ranieri 2, 3). According to historians, “Alexander emulated Achilles, the hero of the Trojan War, whom he considered an ancestor on his mother’s side. Symbolically, his first stop toward conquest was in Troy,” (Cantor & Ranieri 32). Achilles is seen as a symbol of strength and power. Alexander wanted to be seen as the invincible demigod, similar to the image of Achilles. It is evident that Alexander tried to imitate Achilles by conquering Troy first. Also encouraging his beliefs, was the Gordian knot. The Gordian was a legend that claimed that whoever could untie the knot on the yoke attached to an ancient cart that once belonged to King Midas, would become ruler of Asia. Alexander simply cut the knot in half, certain that his actions had fulfilled the prophecy, leading him to believe that he would become ruler of Asia. (Sacks). Alexander’s convictions of his divine heritage and predestination from superstitions like the gordian knot demonstrate his faith in his skills. Often, when people believe they can do something, they can. There have been examples of ordinary men and women displaying extraordinary skills that many would deem impossible. However, the absolute belief and strength of mind was there that the impossible tasks were completed. After all, half of the time, everything is a mind game. Many different factors and elements of his mother’s influence helped shaped Alexander’s personal beliefs, which motivated him to conquer much of the world. Alexander was born into a privileged life, the son of Princess Olympias of Epirus and King Philip II of Macedonia; as a result, he received the education and training from the best scholars available at the time. He was tutored by Aristotle, Lysimachus and Leonidas. Although Aristotle had not yet begun his philosophical works and papers for which he is now famous, he was a formidable scholar and teacher (Cantor & Ranieri 42). Under the tutelage of Aristotle, Alexander became enamoured with the works of Homer, specifically the Iliad (“Alexander the Great”). The Illiad details the adventures of Achilles, the hero of the Trojan war (Cantor & Ranieri 2, 3). Aristotle saw that “...Homer's Iliad inspired Alexander to dream of becoming a heroic warrior, Aristotle created an abridged version of the tome for Alexander to carry with him on military campaigns” (“Alexander the Great”). The Illiad, Alexander’s mother also hired her relatives, Lysimachus and Leonidas as tutors for her son. Although not as prestigious as Aristotle, Alexander learned one of his most important lessons from Lysimachus. Lysimachus taught Alexander how to live on the basic necessities; a lesson that served him well on his 13 year campaign (Cantor & Ranieri 36). From the age of five, Alexander was encouraged to be a soldier (Cantor & Ranieri 39-41). Presumably because his father, was a military man and had plans to expand his empire into the surrounding areas. He was expected to take over his his father’s kingdom one day (Phillips, Charles & Alan). Legend claims the at the young age of thirteen, Alexander saddled one of the most majestic and specially bred, yet wild horse of the land. He carefully tamed the horse, named Bucephalus. Bucephalus would remain one of his constant companions throughout his 13 year campaign (Cantor & Ranieri 39-41). King Philip, carefully cultivated and prepared his army to invade other nations. Alexander inherited a great military. His father had spent years cultivating a majestic image of the army to increase the number of ranks (Sacks). King Philip made the cavalry the attacking the force of the army, they trained with special weapons, armor and formations. He also did away with the heavy shields and short spears that the infantry used and replaced them with a lighter shield and a longer spear. Both the cavalry and the infantry used a formation known as the Macedonian phalanx, a different version of the Greek phalanx; the key to Alexander’s success (Pothos.org). Alexander was not just a great strategic planner, his personality was one of a leader. He did not put himself above his soldiers or attempt to act superior although it became his right as he was their king and above them in rank. While camping out in the desert, a soldier ran up to Alexander, presenting him with a helmet filled with water. The soldier cried out that he had brought Alexander some of the only fresh and clean water the nearby town had to offer. In response, Alexander simply turned the helmet over and let the water spill out. Alexander told the soldier that if his people could not drink, neither would he (Garland 150). His actions exemplify his integrity as a leader. Not only did Alexander try to live the life of all his soldiers he listened to them. For example, once he crossed into India, his soldiers demanded he turn back after 13 years (Brown). Alexander listened to his soldiers because he knew once his soldiers did not want to fight, their heart wouldn’t be in it. This is a testament to his military personality. He knew that in order to continue his journey across India, he would need an army that wanted to conquer too. Alexander crossed thousands of miles to reach many different destinations. Historians, looking at a map, traced his path across the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern area (Romey). It seems that Alexander purposefully hard and challenging paths to push himself to the limit, while there were less strenuating and better suited terrain to travel thousands of miles, is a testament to his personality of an ambitious man, willing to push himself to the limit.
Alexander’s conquests and victories across the Middle East and Mediterranean area spread Greek Culture all the way to Egypt, Persia, and to the Khyber Pass (Gascoigne).
David Sacks wrote, “...he [Alexander] had carved out the largest empire the world had ever seen, stretching 3,000 miles from the Adriatic Sea to the Indus River.” He started outposts in large expanses of land. They were dotted throughout 3,000 miles, intermixing with thousands of other cultures. At the beginning of the Nile river, Alexander founded the city of Alexandria (Garland 27). The city of Alexandria is one of the most known cities that Alexander had founded. Since it was at the beginning of the Nile, many people flowed into and out of the city each day. Rivers were one of the fastest ways to travel and trade. After conquering Persia, he was named the King of Asia and King of Persia. He was also named Pharoh and King of Macedonia (Larson). His spread of Greek culture across much of the world created the Hellenistic Age, which would extend to until Cleopatra’s (Garland 30). The Hellenistic Age was anything of or pertaining to Greek Culture. The military outposts that he created, started pockets of Hellenism throughout his newly conquered lands. In many parts, aspects of Greek culture were taken into the already pre existing cultures (Garland 30). Importantly, Greek culture did not take over or destroy already standing customs and traditions. In other parts of his kingdom, mostly rural areas, Greek …show more content…
influence did not reach the areas at all (Garland 30). Hellenistic Greek replaced Aramaic as the language spoken by merchants, government officials and scholars (Garland 153).
His purpose was not to strip kingdoms of their wealth or power, but to simply just rule; resulting in his fusion policy (Sacks). Persia was integrated into his Empire without the people losing their cultural identity (Sacks). After conquering Persia and its territories, Mesopotamia and Egypt, he married two Persian princesses, and encouraged his generals to marry Persian women too (Sacks). He did this to integrate Persia into his empire, and Persians into his government and to encourage men to join his army (Sacks). His fusion policy also helped Greek and Persian cultures mix. In Greek cities, he overturned Persian taxes and set up democratic governments (Sacks). He was able to spread Greek culture without destroying local traditions and customs. The two cultures were able to mix because he peacefully integrated the Persians into his kingdom. If he violently treated all the Persians, Greek culture would have become the most dominant. In addition, Alexander integrated Greek culture into his kingdom by setting up Greek outposts (Garland 30). His cities and outposts that he created did not completely reach all the cultures of the land. The cities often only influenced the areas around them, the rural areas usually did not see any influence of Greek culture at all (Garland 70). This created many different cultures, some original and untouched and some new cultures that had blended with the Greek culture. The different cultures were able to coexist peacefully (Garland 30).
Besides bringing Greek culture to the Mediterranean and Middle Easter area, he also brought an army that wrecked towns and left a trail of destruction. Despite, being on of this best military minds the world had ever seen, he is also seen as violent man, with no regards to others. Karasev said, "Alexander the Great" but simply "Aleksandr Makedonskii," was first in a long line of invaders to sweep through the region.... [he was] an oppressor who stood in line along with Genghis Khan, Napoleon, and even Hitler,” (qtd. In Romey). Not many people put Alexander on the same footing with Hitler and Napoleon. He brought about a new world to thousands of people. Yet, to the people of Uzbekistan, he was simple and oppressor. He introduced other cultures and ideas into a culture that did not want the new ideas. Also, Alexander the Great’s army had a high mortality rate (Garland 148). It is estimated that 50% of his army had perished during Alexander’s struggle for power (Garland 148). He may have tried to introduce newly conquered lands into his kingdom peacefully, but his treatment of women and children were anything but peaceful. He sold hundreds of thousands of women and children into slavery (Garland 148). Today, Alexander is regarded as a military genius, that conquered much of the known world (Brown). In Uzbekistan, Alexander was an invader and an oppressor, not a highly regarded man. He was not the first nor the last to sweep through the area to conquer (Romey).
Alexander the Great’s upbringing by his mother, tutors and his personality contributed to his widespread campaigns across the ancient world that spread Greek culture, that integrated many kingdoms into his own and that left a trail of destruction wherever he went.
Alexander the Great in little more than a decade, redefined the ancient world. He proved that no matter how rigid and how permanent great civilizations seems to be, that everything is malleable, culture and languages will change. Today, over two thousand years later, the effects of his achievements can be seen in everyday life, not just while walking through a
museum.
Works Cited
"Alexander the Great." Bio. A&E Television Networks, 2014. Web. 27 Sep. 2014.
Cantor, Norman F., and Dee Ranieri. Alexander the Great: Journey to the End of the Earth. New York: HarperCollins, 2005. Print.
Garland, Robert. Ancient Greece: Everyday Life in the Birthplace of Western Civilization. Santa Barbara: Sterling, 2008. Print.
Gascoigne, Bamber. "HISTORY OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT." HISTORY OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT. History World, n.d. Web. 26 Sept. 2014.
Larsen, Torben. "Siwa: Oasis Extraordinary." Saudi Aramco World. Sept./Oct. 1988: 2-7. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 25 Sep. 2014.
Melikian, Souren. "Macedonia's Riches Before Alexander." The New York Times. The New York Times, 22 Oct. 2011. Web. 28 Sept. 2014.
Phillips, Charles, and Alan Axelrod. "Alexander's Persian Campaign."Encyclopedia of Wars. Vol. 1. New York: n.p., n.d. Facts on File. Web. 26 Sept. 2014.
"Pothos.org." - About Alexander's Army. CMS Made Simple, n.d. Web. 09 Oct. 2014.
Romey, Kristin M. "The Forgotten Realm of Alexander." Archaeology Nov./Dec. 2004: 18-25. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 25 Sep. 2014.
Sacks, David. "Alexander the Great." Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World, Revised Edition. Ed. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Ancient and Medieval History Online. Web. 24 Sept. 2014.