Alexander the Great Outline

Alexander the Great (356 – 323 BCE) A. Early Life 1. The temple of Diana at Ephesus burned down the day Alexander was born, an omen most that meant that the force that would destroy Asia was born. 2. There was/is a rumor about Alexander’s parentage. Shortly before Olympias, Alexander’s mom, announced she was pregnant (with Alexander), King Philip saw her in bed with a snake. Zeus was commonly known to disguise himself as a snake when he slept with mortal women. Therefore, there was/is a possibility that Alexander was only half-mortal, and that he was not Philip’s son. 3. Alexander tamed the horse Bucephalus, who no other man could tame, when he was a boy. This horse became his, and he rode Bucephalus for most of his life. 4. Shortly after Alexander tamed Bucephalus, King Philip sent for Aristotle, who became Alexander’s tutor. Alexander and Aristotle developed a father-son relationship. B. Early Battles 1. When Alexander was 16, he defeated the Maedi, and renamed their largest city “Alexandropolis.” 2. He led the charge at the Battle of Chaeronea not long after. 3. Alexander marched to Danube and crushed all rebellion from the tribes in that area shortly after becoming king, at about age 20. 4. He killed 6,000 Thebans, demolished their city, and sold all surviving Thebans as slaves after they rebelled against Alexander and sent him an insulting reply to his offer of a full pardon (to their rebellion). C. Defeating Persia 1. In 334 BCE, Alexander and his army crossed the Hellespont into Asia and went into Troy. 2. The Persians army had camped on the other side of the Granicus River, which was very deep and had high muddy banks. 3. Alexander led his cavalry across Granicus River under a shower of arrows, followed shortly after by the rest of his army. 4. The Persian army couldn’t stand up against the Macedonian army, and soon the whole Persian army was running for their lives.