Alexander the Great

Lore & Background

Alexander was born in Pella, the capital of Macedon, on the sixth day of the ancient Greek month of Hekatombaion, probably corresponding to 20 July 356 BC. He was the son of Philip II and Olympias. Several legends surround his birth, including a dream of Olympias that her womb was struck by a thunderbolt, and a dream of Philip sealing her womb with a lion's seal. On the day of his birth, Philip received news of a military victory, an Olympic victory, and the burning of the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus. Alexander was raised by a nurse, Lanike, and later tutored by Leonidas and Lysimachus. At age ten, he tamed the horse Bucephalas, which carried him as far as India. At age 13, Philip chose Aristotle as his tutor; Aristotle taught him and other Macedonian nobles at Mieza, giving Alexander a passion for Homer's Iliad.

Reader's Guide

Alexander's significance lies in his unprecedented military conquests and the cultural diffusion they caused. After assuming the throne in 336 BC, he campaigned in the Balkans and destroyed Thebes. He then led a pan-Hellenic invasion of the Achaemenid Persian Empire in 334 BC, winning decisive battles at Issus and Gaugamela, overthrowing Darius III, and conquering the entire empire. His empire stretched from the Adriatic Sea to the Indus River. He invaded India in 326 BC, defeating King Porus at the Battle of the Hydaspes, but was forced to turn back at the Beas River due to a mutiny. He died in Babylon in 323 BC, ending plans to invade Arabia. After his death, civil wars led to the empire's disintegration under the Diadochi. His conquests spread Greek culture, leading to Hellenistic civilization, Greco-Buddhism, and Hellenistic Judaism. He founded over twenty cities, most notably Alexandria in Egypt. The Greek language became the lingua franca of the region and the predominant language of the Byzantine Empire until 1453 AD. Alexander became a legendary hero, and his tactics are still studied in military academies. The Alexander Romance, a collection of legends, became one of the most popular works in premodern Europe.

Did You Know?

• Alexander was tutored by the philosopher Aristotle from age 13 until age 16.
• He named his horse Bucephalas, meaning 'ox-head', and later founded a city named Bucephala after the horse's death.
• On the day of his birth, the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, burned down.
• After his death, the Alexander Romance was translated into almost every European vernacular and every language of the Islamic world.

Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)

"For other uses, see Alexander (disambiguation)." — Alexander the Great "What an excellent horse do they lose, for want of address and boldness to manage him! ... I could manage this horse better than others do." — Alexander the Great "Know ye not that the end and object of conquest is to avoid doing the same thing as the conquered?" — Alexander the Great "If I were not Alexander, I should wish to be Diogenes." — Alexander the Great