Alexander+the+Great

The Legacy of Alexander the Great By: Peter

In the ancient world there were many great leaders, they lead their armies to victory and their empires to greatness. A long time ago in ancient Greece a young solider took control of the powerful state of Macedonia, he would later conquer some of Egypt and some of western Asia; his name is Alexander the Great. Alexander the Great was born into a wealthy family, his mother was Queen Olympias and his father was King Philip II of Macedonia. Alexander was born in 356 B.C, because Alexander was born into a royal family it was hard not to see that he was destined for greatness. He was given all the tools to achieve it too; he had a powerful father, and his father’s soldiers who would obey his every command. Also he received the best education his Father could get, for several years he was taught by the famous philosopher Aristotle. His father being a king and commander of the army was able to give Alexander a military education at a young age which will come in handy in his life. ([]) Alexander’s key to success was his military ingenuity; he always went into battle with a strategy and he won 100% of the time. By the end of his life he had never lost a battle, and that was probably one of his greatest achievements of all. His enemies feared to go into battle against him because they believed that there was no hope of victory. Alexander was decisive in battle, he led every charge and it was said that he was the first person to scale the enemy’s defenses. Although he was a key part of the battles the true secret of his success were his loyal soldiers. ( Knox, Ellis L ) Alexander’s army consisted of many different units, such as the Phalanx, cavalry and foot soldiers. The basic Greek soldier had to buy their own armor, although they did not carry it. When the army left on its long marches slaves would carry the armor for the soldiers, the other kind of infantry in the Greek army was the Phalanx. (Senker pg. 16-17) The reason why the Phalanx was so effective in battle was because it was modified by Alexander even though it was originally made by Phillip. The phalanx units usually consisted of 256 soldiers in each group the reason the main cause of their success was the fact that they can change their formation effectively and quickly. The phalanx in battle was usually deployed in the center of Alexander’s forces between the infantry and cavalry. All of these things would later help Alexander with his success in Asia. (Waldemar Heckel and Ryan Jones pg. 44-45) In the year 336 B.C. Alexander inherited his Father’s kingdom after he was murdered at a theater; along with inheriting his father’s kingdom he also received the war in Asia. Alexander launched his campaign in the spring of 334, he first went to Troy and other Greek cities to free from other countries control, then he marched on to Asia Minor were he fought the Persians to get control of their empire. The first decisive victory he had was against the Persians at Granicus, it was not an important battle but I was the first of many victories to come, but like all people his life must come to an end. ( Knox, Ellis L) After five years of brutal fighting through Egypt, Afghanistan, India and several other different countries Alexander’s army finally slowed down in India. His troops were tired they wanted to go home and no matter what Alexander did he could not convince his troops to go on so they were forced to turn back. They fought their way down to the ocean were they could sail back to Persia. Unfortunately on the voyage home he suffered from a severe fever and died at Babylon, it was the unfortunate ending of a great man. After he died his generals divided up the conquered land a ruled over it by themselves. ( The Metropolitan Museum of Art ) Alexander the great accomplished amazing feats in his lifetime, he is one of the only people to have been able to conquer land up into India. He is probably one of the greatest people who have lived, and has made a huge impact on our world. He was an impressive general who showed his courage and skill many different times in battle, he proved it over and over again but one of the most important things he did with his army was improve the phalanx they were a key part to his success. He was a confident leader and the world might not see another person like him again for awhile.

Work Cites The Rise of Macedonia and the Conquests of Alexander the Great | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art." //The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Home//.Web. 30 Nov. 2011.[].

Knox, Ellis L. "Ancient Europe Alexander the Great." //Ancient Europe Alexander the Great//. Boise State. Web. 30 Nov. 2011. .

Heckel, Waldemar, Ryan Jones, and Christa Hook. //Macedonian Warrior: Alexander's Elite Infantryman//. Oxford: Osprey, 2006. Print.

Senker, Cath, and Manuela Cappon. //Everyday Life in Ancient Greece//. North Mankato, MN: Smart Apple Media, 2004. Print.

The Ten-horned Beast: Alexander the Great." //Livius. Articles on Ancient History//. Web. 16 Dec. 2011. .