The Ptolemaic, Seleucid, and Antigonid kingdoms
The Ptolemaic, Seleucid, and Antigonid kingdoms
Alexander, son of king Philip II and Olympias was born in 356 B.C.E, and at age 19, became king of Macedon. With a great army at his disposal and his brilliant military mind, he started his conquest. From 337-323 B.C.E Alexander conquered Greece, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and a large part of Asia. Alexander ruled from Macedonia to the northern part of India. He defeated the Persians numerous times with his incredible military strategies, even when his armies were outnumbered by almost 200,000 Persian soldiers. The sheer size of his empire was unlike anything ever seen before but when he died in 323 B.C.E, the three main areas he conquered (Greece/Macedonia, Egypt, and Mesopotamia/ Asia) were split up and became their own kingdoms. The area that was once Greece and Macedonia became the Antigonid Kingdom, the Egyptian are became the Ptolemaic Kingdom and the Asia/ Mesopotamia area became the Seleucid Kingdom. The Ptolemaic Kingdom came about when one of Alexander’s cavalry companions, Ptolemy, took his loyal troops to the Egyptian area to take over the wealthy land. Once there, Ptolemy diverted Alexander’s body to Egypt, which was originally being sent to Macedonia for burial. Once in Alexandria, Ptolemy took Alexander’s body and built a massive and imposing tomb for his late king. After defending Egypt from some of Alexander’s other generals who wanted Egypt, the Ptolemies ruled Egypt as their god/kings. This only took place after they struck up a bargain with the Egyptian priests and in which the Egyptians could continue living under the same Egyptian god belief system while the Ptolemies ruled as kings. Along with that agreement, the Ptolemies promised to allow the priests to maintain the up keeping of their temples and deceased pharaohs.
The Ptolemies departed from the beliefs and rules set forth by Philip and Alexander by allowing the Queens of the rulers more power then they ever had
Alexander, son of king Philip II and Olympias was born in 356 B.C.E, and at age 19, became king of Macedon. With a great army at his disposal and his brilliant military mind, he started his conquest. From 337-323 B.C.E Alexander conquered Greece, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and a large part of Asia. Alexander ruled from Macedonia to the northern part of India. He defeated the Persians numerous times with his incredible military strategies, even when his armies were outnumbered by almost 200,000 Persian soldiers. The sheer size of his empire was unlike anything ever seen before but when he died in 323 B.C.E, the three main areas he conquered (Greece/Macedonia, Egypt, and Mesopotamia/ Asia) were split up and became their own kingdoms. The area that was once Greece and Macedonia became the Antigonid Kingdom, the Egyptian are became the Ptolemaic Kingdom and the Asia/ Mesopotamia area became the Seleucid Kingdom. The Ptolemaic Kingdom came about when one of Alexander’s cavalry companions, Ptolemy, took his loyal troops to the Egyptian area to take over the wealthy land. Once there, Ptolemy diverted Alexander’s body to Egypt, which was originally being sent to Macedonia for burial. Once in Alexandria, Ptolemy took Alexander’s body and built a massive and imposing tomb for his late king. After defending Egypt from some of Alexander’s other generals who wanted Egypt, the Ptolemies ruled Egypt as their god/kings. This only took place after they struck up a bargain with the Egyptian priests and in which the Egyptians could continue living under the same Egyptian god belief system while the Ptolemies ruled as kings. Along with that agreement, the Ptolemies promised to allow the priests to maintain the up keeping of their temples and deceased pharaohs.
The Ptolemies departed from the beliefs and rules set forth by Philip and Alexander by allowing the Queens of the rulers more power then they ever had
Bibliography: -Sherman, Dennis, and Joyce E. Salisbury. The West in the World. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 2011. Print.