Alexander the Great vs. Cyrus the Great
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Abigail Wheatley
Northwood High School
Mark Hagy
Western Civilization
March 4, 2014
Alexander or Cyrus? In our past, we have had many leaders. Some were better than others, but what must a leader do to acquire the label “great”? Of course, one could simply go by the definition of the word and deem the leader “above average”. Did the great ones of ancient times exceed these standards or were they just above average like a standard dictionary would have us believe. Let us focus on two “great” leaders of our past by the names of Alexander and Cyrus. Both of these kings were famous for the way they ran their empires but were they both, so called, great? Cyrus the Great was the first king of the Achaemenid Empire. While he was king, he freed 4,000 Jews from Babylon. He also founded a new capital, invented the first postal system, and was mentioned 22 times in the old testament. Not only did he build one of the most powerful empires in ancient times, but he made its glory last by organizing it and expressing his tolerance of different races and religions. Alexander the Great lost his father and became a king at the age of 20. While he was king, he expanded Macedonian territory. He did this through conquest and was never defeated in battle. In fact, he conquered half of what was known in the world at the time. He also founded a city in Egypt and named it “Alexandria” (after himself, of course) and
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discovered trade routes in Asia. But, because of the excellent battle strategies he was known for, he is often called the greatest military leader of all time. These great leaders were very different in the ways that they ran their kingdoms, but they did have some things in common. For one, they both had large and exceptional empires. Also, they were both born princes and became kings of small kingdoms and sought through conquest to enlarge them. But the biggest comparison I found was that it was said Cyrus had an influence on Alexander. In
Abigail Wheatley
Northwood High School
Mark Hagy
Western Civilization
March 4, 2014
Alexander or Cyrus? In our past, we have had many leaders. Some were better than others, but what must a leader do to acquire the label “great”? Of course, one could simply go by the definition of the word and deem the leader “above average”. Did the great ones of ancient times exceed these standards or were they just above average like a standard dictionary would have us believe. Let us focus on two “great” leaders of our past by the names of Alexander and Cyrus. Both of these kings were famous for the way they ran their empires but were they both, so called, great? Cyrus the Great was the first king of the Achaemenid Empire. While he was king, he freed 4,000 Jews from Babylon. He also founded a new capital, invented the first postal system, and was mentioned 22 times in the old testament. Not only did he build one of the most powerful empires in ancient times, but he made its glory last by organizing it and expressing his tolerance of different races and religions. Alexander the Great lost his father and became a king at the age of 20. While he was king, he expanded Macedonian territory. He did this through conquest and was never defeated in battle. In fact, he conquered half of what was known in the world at the time. He also founded a city in Egypt and named it “Alexandria” (after himself, of course) and
Wheatley2
discovered trade routes in Asia. But, because of the excellent battle strategies he was known for, he is often called the greatest military leader of all time. These great leaders were very different in the ways that they ran their kingdoms, but they did have some things in common. For one, they both had large and exceptional empires. Also, they were both born princes and became kings of small kingdoms and sought through conquest to enlarge them. But the biggest comparison I found was that it was said Cyrus had an influence on Alexander. In
Cited: Spielvogel, J. Jackson “Western Civilization” Chapter 4, Chapter 2 February 5, 2014