Great Change In The Ancient World

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

Nicole Merlino

Ms. S. Wilson

LVV 4U

A "Great" Change in the Ancient World

"Great" they called him, as he single handedly changed the way of the Ancient World in just over a decade. Alexander III of Macedon is considered one of the most extreme and ambitious leaders that Greece had ever seen. Although his success went hand-in-hand with destruction, Alexander rarely ever failed. His intentions as leader were to conquer the world and transform the land to how he envisioned it to be, which was remarkably perfect. One of his main concerns was to get revenge on Persia for the many attacks they held on Greece in the past. He also wanted to uplift the city of Macedon to become a super power, and make a legendary biography. He is most famous for his tactics in war, which lead to his undefeated battle record. He is also known for his style in dictatorship, which kept his soldiers loyal to him, and his role as a leader, the one that made him so successful. Despite the many controversial arguments over the success of Alexander the Great, he used his skill in war, communication, and rule to become one of the most powerful leaders in Ancient History.

It is said that Alexander was involved in many battles where he was effortlessly crowned victorious. There are seven key events that outline his success as the commander of his armies. In order, these significant events are what started Alexander’s triumph and what made him so efficacious. When Alexander’s father, Philip II, announces the battle against Athens and Thebes in 338BC, he assigns his son to lead the Macedonian cavalry throughout the battle of Chaeronea. At the time Alexander was only eighteen years of age, it was his first time leading an army, and from the tremendous defeat he gave a great first impression. This significant victory is what started Alexander’s journey as General of the Macedonian army, and it is what directed him to the next six battles.

Alexander then goes on to lead the Macedonian army through the first of the three battles against the Persian Empire. It was this war where Alexander beats Persia for the first time. His army also crosses the Hellespont and annihilates the Memnon of Rhodes, a force of Greek mercenaries. A year later in 333BC, the army is faced with the battle of Issus, one of the most famous battles in Ancient History. Still out to get revenge, Alexander takes his army to their second battle against the Persians. Glory-seeking much like his father, this was the second attempt to conquer the Persian Empire (Gill, 2008). The Macedonian army was severely outnumbered, but thanks to their general, they were victorious in the bloody battle defeating Darius II, the current King of Persia, and also conquered all of Syria. In 333BC Alexander and his troops also face a battle against the Persian Capital of Persepolis, and conquer Egypt without hesitation. Now on a role, Alexander faces his last battle against Persia in 331BC, "King Alexander III, only 25 years old, his reputation preceding him like thunder before a storm, led his men into Asia" (Porter, 2007). It was Alexander’s tacticians that spared them again resulting in their victory against the advantaged army once and for all, Persia was now in his hands.

The last battle Alexander commands is the battle at Indus River in 326BC; his army is victorious yet again as he defeats King Porus of the Hindu Puarava kingdom. This was the final battle that the Macedonian army fought under Alexander’s command for they refused to continue on. After successfully increasing the Alexandrian Empire, he dies from a fever three years later. These are only some of Alexander’s battles, but they are his most famous because they deal greatly with his success as General of Macedon and impact the way he changed the Ancient World. If Alexander never challenged his opponents the way he did, and conquer the majority of Europe through his battles, he would not be known as the significant leader in history that he is today.

Not only was Alexander famous for his successful battles, he was often known for his strategies in war that made him so victorious. From birth, Alexander was trained to be a fighter considering he was raised in royalty. Since his father was king of Macedon and he was next to the throne, his father wanted him to be ready and equipped for a kingdom. It was obvious at a young age that Alexander would be successful, and that is why his father assigned him in charge of the Macedonian cavalry in the battle of Chaeronea at just eighteen years old. Although the young king knew who his parents were, he believed that he had distant relations to Achilles and Hercules, making his skill in war seem hereditary. He was famous for his quick thinking, considering he would only make his war plan after he witnessed what the opposing team had to offer. He never went into a battle with a plan, yet he was never unprepared or caught off guard. He had the ability to predict the outcome and the next moves of his opponents, demanding his soldiers to attack against them in a specific manner. One of the main strategies the Macedonian army was known for was their mind games. They would trick the opposing team into believing certain things, then attack them when they least expected it. Sources say that Alexander would send large shipments of food to his camp to make it seem like they were resting for a while, he would then make his troops be rowdy and loud to make his opponents think they were attacking, when they really weren’t (R.H, 2000). Due to his military skill, Alexander conquered more than half of the known world at this time and rarely ever lost a battle. He had the ability to put a battle plan together with little to no notice and was very mischievous, making his battles so successful.

Alexander’s role as leader of Macedon is also very controversial due to the fact that he spent most of his focus on campaign and conquest, rather than on the people and the government. As previously stated, his main intention as the ruler of Macedon was to defeat Persia and succeed in world conquest, where everyone acknowledged him as the ambitious king that he was. Although he directed his main focus to his army, we can tell what type of leader he was from how he treated his soldiers. Despite the fact that it was to an extent, Alexander actually cared about the men in his army. He pushed intermarriage and racial acceptance, and it is said that "he was trying to create a mixed race society with some utopian ideal of social harmony" (Unknown, Alexander the Greats Policies and Intentions). After he defeated the Persians, he encouraged mixed marriages so that his men would not be lonely away from home. He did this so that they would stay loyal to him and forget about the long lengths of their journeys. Alexander would ensure his men were fed, being paid properly, and in shape so that their health was never a factor. They would get rewarded for their actions in war, and this would make them strive to go on. He worked hard to get their loyalty, and tried to make relationships and hold conversations with many of the men in his army. He would spend time with his men and help them relax in times of stress. The affection and care he showed towards his soldiers made him even more admirable than he already was, considering everyone was constantly inspired by his courage, determination, and success.

Since Alexander was constantly on foot preparing for another battle, he was rarely ever at the Macedonian kingdom, so he ruled his empire from a distance wherever he was at the time (Unknown, Alexander the Great). Although he was always travelling, this did not affect his ability to rule a kingdom. Whenever there was a problem, he would treat it just like any other one, no matter the size of the issue. He treated political figures the same as he treated prisoners, and truly wanted the best for Macedon. He was extremely persuasive and never failed to get his way, "He was an adept politician, skilled in the arts of intrigue and manipulation, fluent in many the languages" (Unknown, Alexander the Great). He thought it was important to have diverse communities, and aimed to learn most of the languages spoken at the time to give him an advantage when conquering the cities.

Alexander was such a strong leader because he did what seems merely impossible to most dictators, he balanced out the amount of destruction with the amount of care that he had for his empire. "Upon this a question arises: whether it be better to be loved than feared or feared than loved? It may be answered that one should wish to be both, but, because it is difficult to unite them in one person, it is much safer to be feared than loved, when, of the two, either must be dispensed with" (Machiavelli, 1532). Machiavelli makes a valid point that for the safety of your position, it is better to be feared than loved. This is of course unless you can do both. Alexander had the capability to be dramatically feared by his empire, soldiers, and even his own partners. He took betrayal very seriously, and would not let anyone get away with it. This is proven when Thebes chooses to revolt after agreeing to accept Alexander as leader of the League of Corinth. "Alexander was always sensitive to betrayal, real or imagined. His move south was so rapid that the Thebans knew nothing of it until he was three hours’ march away from the city. When the city resisted it was stormed." (Freeman, 2004), it is told that six thousand Thebans were killed and thirty thousand enslaved from Alexander’s brutal, last minute attack. The Macedonian king made it clear what his expectation were, and there was never any other option but his own. He would make his army walk by foot to every destination, never taking "no" for an answer. Even when his men begged him to go back to Macedon after several years of war, he stuck to his will and went on to conquer what was left of his journey.

Although Alexander was very intimidating, he was also very admired and worshipped. On his journey across the Libyan Desert to the oracle of Ammon at Siwah, a god commonly equated to Zeus, he told Alexander that Zeus had called him his own son (Freeman, 2004). As Alexander started to believe he was sent from Olympus, his people did too, making him more loved than ever before. His style in dictatorship was outstanding because it appeared to be that he could handle everything on his own. He was able to speak in front of thousands of people, encouraging them to have faith and stay under his rule. When Alexander had defeated Persia, he wanted to stay in his conquered land for a longer period than other times, while his army wanted to return to Macedon. He ended up giving a speech and manipulating his soldiers to stay, proving his skill in communication and persuasion to be unstoppable. Alexander did a great job at making himself appear as a God, since many of the people in the ancient world believed he was the greatest hero of all time. He was extremely powerful, and apart from his success he was known as "…an elite leader who possessed such courage, perseverance, and leadership" (Unknown, The Empire of Alexander the Great).

One of the hardest things to do once one gets to power, is to stay there. In fact, this is what most leaders who have ever successfully ruled an empire struggle with most. Many leaders fear the thought of losing their power because they worked so hard to get there. Dictators especially feel this way since the reason they turned to dictatorship in the first place is because they abused the power they had received. All rulers go through a time where they are extremely fearful of their downfall, except some are like Alexander and refuse to show it. Alexander succeeded in his conquests in many ways, his personality, style in dictatorship, and skill in war got him quite far in a very short period of time. All of these factors are what kept his position safe as the ruler of Macedon, and what kept in power for exactly twelve years.

Alexander was very ambitious, and although he was extremely lucrative, he faced many problems as a dictator. His biggest concern was to free the Greek cities of Asia Minor and the Persian Empire (McQuade, 2006). The problem that aroused with defeating the Persian Empire was that the Macedonian army was extremely outnumbered. At this time it was a terrifying threat, but since Alexander and his men were more militarily advanced, they defeated the Persians all three battles. Alexander also had strong, underlying issues with his father. This was a problem while he was growing up because he constantly feared that he would never be as successful. "Whenever he heard Philip had taken any town of importance, or won any signal victory, instead of rejoicing at it altogether, he would tell his companions that his father would anticipate everything, and leave him and them no opportunities of performing great and illustrious actions." (Plutarch, --) like most relationships between a royal father and son in ancient history, there was always an unnecessary competition between the two. Once Alexander’s father died the issues faded away, and he was finally able to conquer the world and outshine Philip II.

In a matter of twelve years, Alexander managed to conquer more than half of the world known to Greece at the time. He is considered one of the most successful leaders of all time because he was able to complete his goals in such a short and impressive time. The reason it is clear that Alexander is such a great leader is because his empire only died once he did, in fact it even lasted a couple decades longer. That shows that he was so in control that even with the pressure of his empire failing, he kept it alive as long as he could. Alexander changed the way the ancient world was, he showed civilizations how to conquer the world, and taught kings how to rule their empires. One of the most admirable traits of Alexander was his will to go on; he fought in several battles and was never once defeated. Although he never lost, he came close to death several times due to serious injuries from a battle, this made his determination even greater to succeed. Despite the many factors that contribute to a king’s downfall, Alexander faced each one with the intention of any other battle, the tenacity to win.

Granting all this, the personal views directed towards Alexander III of Macedon have no affect, because there can be no objection regarding his success as a king. Alexander may have used brutality and force to get his way, but without his intimidating way of rule he would have never been able to conquer the way he did. He took advantage of his skill in war, communication, and leadership to show the ancient civilizations that he could take over the world if he pleased. Alexander succeeded his goals in revenging against the Persian Empire and overthrowing his father’s level of success. Due to the fact that the Macedonian army was undefeated in every battle they fought, it is safe to say that Alexander was one of the most powerful generals in Ancient History. In conclusion, when it comes down to his leadership, Alexander was in fact great.