Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great: Macedonian King

Intro:

            Alexander the Great was an influential and intelligent military leader. He was also a productive and smart political leader who influenced and conquered critical empires, including the Persians, the Greeks, the Egyptians, and the Indians. Alexander the Great was known as being intently interested in his studies. Alexander the Great was a thoughtful and cunning military leader who took large risks, which allowed him to win important victories decisively. Alexander the Great fought in several major wars, which created one of the greatest empires in history. Alexander the Great was the Greek-born son of King Phillip II. Alexander the Great eventually became the king of Macedon after his father died. Alexander the Great was a world-influencing statesman: politically, culturally, and economically.

Father

King Phillip II was a great general and statesman who created the conditions for Alexander’s success. King Phillip II almost disinherited his son Alexander when he got remarried; his eventual change of heart was world-changing. Phillip II was the father of Alexander the Great; he was eventually assassinated in 336BCE.  King Phillip II became a hostage at a young age, 17, in the Greek city of Thebes.#_ftn1 King Phillip II of Macedon married the daughter of the king of Epirus, creating a key symbolic alliance. King Phillip II of Macedon was the one who started organizing the armies of Macedon to invade southern Greece. Alexander the Great was born to King Phillip II in a prophetic birth.

Birth

Alexander the Great was a Northern Greek leader who started a large campaign with his father’s army and afterward created one of the largest empires in history. He was born in 356BCE, in Pella, Macedonia, to Phillip II (his father) and to Olympias (his mother._ftn2 Alexander the Great was born on the same day that the Temple of Artemis was in Ephesus.  The night before Alexander was born, Alexander’s mother dreamt of a thunderstrike; this shows the mystical revelation of the circumstances of Alexander the Great’s birth. #_ftn3Alexander the Great had an interesting childhood that included getting taught by notable scholars in education and notable fighters in his fighting training.

Childhood

Alexander the Great’s childhood included important things: education, friends, family, military training, and running away. Alexander the Great ran away with his mother to Epirus after Phillip II married someone else; this is because his father may have decided to kill him on a whim. Alexander the Great had a childhood best friend who ended up coming with him to fight all of his battles. A piece of his physical description is that Alexander the Great’s hair was “blonde” like his father. #_ftn4 Alexander the Great’s childhood prepared him to lead through learning from school, military, political, cultural, and tactical training.

Teenage Years

Alexander the Great’s teenage years included: studying, learning, and fighting in battles. From age 13-16, he was taught by the famous Greek teacher and philosopher Aristotle.#_ftn5 Additionally Alex wrote many letters to Aristotle, which were important because they influenced each other through their writing. Alexander's letters influenced Aristotle’s books and his other writings.#_ftn6 He was particularly interested in philosophy, medicine, and scientific investigation. Alexander the Great, during his teenage years, hosted the Persian court on his own and gained great respect from the Persians for his smart questions and his curiosity.#_ftn7 In his teenage years, he fought multiple battles/ wars that led him to his destiny.

Turning into King

Alexander the Great became the king of Macedon when his father, Philip II of Macedon, was assassinated; this led to a dangerous succession that Alex was able to take charge of. Alexander the Great was the king of Macedon between the years of 336-323 BCE. #_ftn8  Alexander took the throne from his father and then was crowned as king of Macedon; this is an important development because Phillip had already started preparing for a military campaign against the Persians when he died. Alexander the Great, at one point, was crowned as a “Living god” in Egypt, which is extremely egotistical; however sometimes happened in the ancient world.

Military Campaigns

Alexander the Great started his military campaign against the Thracians, which started his years-long campaign to conquer the eventual Macedonian kingdom. He first started by trying to invade the Thracians. When he was on the way south to invade the Greek city-states, he invaded the Thracians; the Thracians blocked his pass he later fought them so he could go further. Alexander then crossed the Danube River, a frequently important historical river, and promptly invaded the Celtic Tribe’s lands. Afterward, he set his eyes on invading Athens, then Thebes, and then Sparta. This allowed him to conquer most of Greece, uniting them under the Macedonian Empire. He then led his campaign against the rest of the Greek city-states. Afterward, he led a military campaign against the Persians, then the Egyptians, and finally against India. He died shortly afterward.

Death:

Alexander the Great died in his bed from a horrible disease on June 13, 323 BCE.#_ftn9

Analysis:

Alexander the Great was responsible for a large expansion of European and Greek culture throughout the East. Alexander the Great built the Library of Alexandria, which was one of the wonders of the world; it eventually was destroyed in a fire; however, many important works from the Library of Alexandria survived. Alexander the Great built the gigantic Macedonian Empire by leading key battles that led him to great victories. Alexander the Great died young; his successors broke his empire into four separate nation-states.

Conclusion:

            Alexander the Great was a world-changing leader who changed history by conquering a large empire; he dispersed Greek culture, built new cities, and he spread learning. Alexander the Great was born in the Mid 300’s; before Jesus was born he died in the late 300’s before Jesus was born. He died young, but he built a large empire. Alexander the Great was an outstanding military general.

Bibliography:

Arrian. The Campaigns of Alexander. Translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. Revised by J. R. Hamilton. London: Penguin Books, 1971.

Encyclopaedia Britannica. "Alexander the Great." Accessed July 28, 2026. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alexander-the-Great.

Freeman, Philip. Alexander the Great. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2011.

Goldsworthy, Adrian. Philip and Alexander: Kings and Conquerors. New York: Basic Books, 2020.

Plutarch. Plutarch’s Lives, Volume II. Translated by John Dryden. Revised by Arthur Hugh Clough. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1906.

#_ftnref1 Philip Freeman, Alexander the Great (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2011), [Pg. 5].

#_ftnref2 Encyclopaedia Britannica, s.v. "Alexander the Great," accessed July 28, 2026, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alexander-the-Great.

#_ftnref3  Plutarch, Plutarch’s Lives, Volume II, trans. John Dryden, rev. Arthur Hugh Clough (Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1906), Pg.140

#_ftnref4 Freeman, Alexander the Great, [pg. 30].

#_ftnref5 Britannica, s.v. "Alexander the Great."

#_ftnref6 Plutarch, Lives Pg. 144

#_ftnref7 Plutarch, Lives, pg. 142

#_ftnref8 Britannica, s.v. "Alexander the Great."

#_ftnref9 Britannica, s.v. "Alexander the Great."