Miletus, held by Achaemenid forces, required a delicate siege operation, with Persian naval forces nearby. In 333 BC Alexander was challenged to untie the knot. [103], In 329 BC, Spitamenes, who held an undefined position in the satrapy of Sogdiana, betrayed Bessus to Ptolemy, one of Alexander's trusted companions, and Bessus was executed. Alexander the Great is central to identity in Greece and Macedonia, which are quarreling over Macedonia's name and bragging rights to the 4th century B.C. [262], In 334 BC, Alexander the Great donated funds for the completion of the new temple of Athena Polias in Priene, in modern-day western Turkey. Athens sued for peace and Alexander pardoned the rebels. Ancient Greek Macedonian Symbol. [264] An inscription from the temple, now housed in the British Museum, declares: "King Alexander dedicated [this temple] to Athena Polias. Aristotle taught Alexander and his companions about medicine, philosophy, morals, religion, logic, and art. The cosmopolitan art and mythology of Gandhara (a region spanning the upper confluence of the Indus, Swat and Kabul rivers in modern Pakistan) of the ~3rd century BC to the ~5th century AD are most evident of the direct contact between Hellenistic civilization and South Asia, as are the Edicts of Ashoka, which directly mention the Greeks within Ashoka's dominion as converting to Buddhism and the reception of Buddhist emissaries by Ashoka's contemporaries in the Hellenistic world. There was. Alexander the Great was apparently fascinated with everything that could be seen as a symbol of power. [148] In the second account, Diodorus recounts that Alexander was struck with pain after downing a large bowl of unmixed wine in honour of Heracles followed by 11 days of weakness; he did not develop a fever, instead dying after some agony. [143], Afterwards, Alexander travelled to Ecbatana to retrieve the bulk of the Persian treasure. Alexander and his exploits were admired by many Romans, especially generals, who wanted to associate themselves with his achievements. [312] In medieval India, Turkic and Afghan sovereigns from the Iranian-cultured region of Central Asia brought positive cultural connotations of Alexander to the Indian subcontinent, resulting in the efflorescence of Sikandernameh (Alexander Romances) written by Indo-Persian poets such as Amir Khusrow and the prominence of Alexander the Great as a popular subject in Mughal-era Persian miniatures. In 333 bc, Alexander the Great, on his march through Anatolia, reached Gordium, the capital of Phrygia. Among Alexander's family, "the king or ruler who ended up dying in his bed was rare," says Philip Freeman, a biographer of Alexander the Great and a classical historian at Luther College in . [169] Perhaps more likely, the successors may have seen possession of the body as a symbol of legitimacy, since burying the prior king was a royal prerogative. [20], Mieza was like a boarding school for Alexander and the children of Macedonian nobles, such as Ptolemy, Hephaistion, and Cassander. The Smyrnaeans sent ambassadors to the oracle at Clarus to ask about this, and after the response from the oracle they decided to move to the "new" city. The first refers merely to the Roman battle line and does not specifically mean that the men were armed with pikes, and the second bears similarity to the 'Marian Mules' of the late Roman Republic who carried their equipment suspended from a long pole, which were in use until at least the 2nd century AD. [7], Alexander III was born in Pella, the capital of the Kingdom of Macedon,[8] on the sixth day of the ancient Greek month of Hekatombaion, which probably corresponds to 20 July 356 BC (although the exact date is uncertain). [79] To legitimize taking power and be recognized as the descendant of the long line of pharaohs, Alexander made sacrifices to the gods at Memphis and went to consult the famous oracle of Amun-Ra at the Siwa Oasis. ISBN 978-0-300-16426-8. Geoff W. Adams, The Roman Emperor Gaius "Caligula" and His Hellenistic Aspirations, pp 46. [108], Later, in the Central Asian campaign, a second plot against his life was revealed, this one instigated by his own royal pages. p. 75. [225] His delusions of grandeur are readily visible in his will and in his desire to conquer the world,[153] in as much as he is by various sources described as having boundless ambition,[226][227] an epithet, the meaning of which has descended into a historical clich. Darius fled the battle, causing his army to collapse, and left behind his wife, his two daughters, his mother Sisygambis, and a fabulous treasure. Apelles, however, in painting him as wielder of the thunder-bolt, did not reproduce his complexion, but made it too dark and swarthy. Alexander the Great, also known as Alexander III or Alexander of Macedonia, (born 356 bce, Pella, Macedonia [northwest of Thessalonki, Greece]died June 13, 323 bce, Babylon [near Al-illah, Iraq]), king of Macedonia (336-323 bce ), who overthrew the Persian empire, carried Macedonian arms to India, and laid the foundations for the Hellenistic . The satrapies handed out by Perdiccas at the Partition of Babylon became power bases each general used to bid for power. [181] According to Diodorus, Alexander's companions asked him on his deathbed to whom he bequeathed his kingdom; his laconic reply was "ti kratisti""to the strongest". [153] Olympias always insisted to him that he was the son of Zeus,[230] a theory apparently confirmed to him by the oracle of Amun at Siwa. AR Tetradrachm (25mm, 17.15 g, 1h). In the area of architecture, a few examples of the Ionic order can be found as far as Pakistan with the Jandial temple near Taxila. [305] Firdausi's Shahnameh ("The Book of Kings") includes Alexander in a line of legitimate Persian shahs, a mythical figure who explored the far reaches of the world in search of the Fountain of Youth. The so-called "Alexander Sarcophagus", discovered near Sidon and now in the Istanbul Archaeology Museum, is so named not because it was thought to have contained Alexander's remains, but because its bas-reliefs depict Alexander and his companions fighting the Persians and hunting. [275] The process of Hellenization also spurred trade between the east and west. [110], When Alexander set out for Asia, he left his general Antipater, an experienced military and political leader and part of Philip II's "Old Guard", in charge of Macedon. His military achievements and unprecedented enduring successes in battle made him the measure against which many later military leaders would compare themselves,[c] and his tactics remain a significant subject of study in military academies worldwide. Alexander III of Macedon (Ancient Greek: , romanized:Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great,[a] was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. [36][37], When Philip returned to Pella, he fell in love with and married Cleopatra Eurydice in 338 BC,[38] the niece of his general Attalus. This would fit with the intended destination of Alexander's funeral cortege. Alexander not only returned Ambhi his title and the gifts but he also presented him with a wardrobe of "Persian robes, gold and silver ornaments, 30 horses and 1,000 talents in gold". [39] The marriage made Alexander's position as heir less secure, since any son of Cleopatra Eurydice would be a fully Macedonian heir, while Alexander was only half-Macedonian. In return for teaching Alexander, Philip agreed to rebuild Aristotle's hometown of Stageira, which Philip had razed, and to repopulate it by buying and freeing the ex-citizens who were slaves, or pardoning those who were in exile. [75], When Alexander destroyed Tyre, most of the towns on the route to Egypt quickly capitulated. [286], Emperor Julian in his satire called "The Caesars", describes a contest between the previous Roman emperors, with Alexander the Great called in as an extra contestant, in the presence of the assembled gods. [212][213] Reconstruction of the original polychromy of the relief with Alexander on the sarcophagus shows him with brown eyes and chestnut brown hair. He developed a life-long love of reading and music. [287], The Itinerarium Alexandri is a 4th-century Latin Itinerarium which describes Alexander the Great's campaigns. [62] The one exception was a call to arms by Spartan king Agis III in 331BC, whom Antipater defeated and killed in the battle of Megalopolis. [63][64], Taking over the invasion project of Philip II, Alexander's army crossed the Hellespont in 334BC with approximately 48,100 soldiers, 6,100 cavalry and a fleet of 120 ships with crews numbering 38,000,[61] drawn from Macedon and various Greek city-states, mercenaries, and feudally raised soldiers from Thrace, Paionia, and Illyria. [144] Hephaestion's death devastated Alexander and he ordered the preparation of an expensive funeral pyre in Babylon along with a decree for public mourning. None of Alexander's contemporaries, however, are known to have explicitly described Alexander's relationship with Hephaestion as sexual, though the pair was often compared to Achilles and Patroclus, whom classical Greek culture painted as a couple. [171] The recent discovery of an enormous tomb in northern Greece, at Amphipolis, dating from the time of Alexander the Great[172] has given rise to speculation that its original intent was to be the burial place of Alexander. [114] However, Alexander's constant demands for troops and the migration of Macedonians throughout his empire depleted Macedon's strength, greatly weakening it in the years after Alexander, and ultimately led to its subjugation by Rome after the Third Macedonian War (171168 BC). Julius Caesar, Cleopatra and Augustus, among others, are noted as having . [51], Attalus was at that time corresponding with Demosthenes, regarding the possibility of defecting to Athens. [141], Historical sources frequently give conflicting accounts of Alexander's appearance, and the earliest sources are the most scant in their detail. [60], While Alexander campaigned north, the Thebans and Athenians rebelled once again. [232] However, Alexander also was a pragmatic ruler who understood the difficulties of ruling culturally disparate peoples, many of whom lived in kingdoms where the king was divine. They went on to occupy the city of Elatea, only a few days' march from both Athens and Thebes. It takes a visionary mindset to make the greatest army of the world to follow you for ten years to the end of the world. With the Athenians lost, the Thebans were surrounded. He founded more than twenty cities, with the most prominent being the city of Alexandria in Egypt. Ronald H. Fritze, Egyptomania: A History of Fascination, Obsession and Fantasy, p 103. [273] Furthermore, town planning, education, local government, and art current in the Hellenistic period were all based on Classical Greek ideals, evolving into distinct new forms commonly grouped as Hellenistic. They refused to be sent away and criticized his adoption of Persian customs and dress and the introduction of Persian officers and soldiers into Macedonian units. In 336 he sent Parmenion, with Amyntas, Andromenes and Attalus, and an army of 10,000 men into Anatolia to make preparations for an invasion. Alexander was emboldened to divide his forces, and Ambhi assisted Hephaestion and Perdiccas in constructing a bridge over the Indus where it bends at Hund,[121] supplied their troops with provisions, and received Alexander himself, and his whole army, in his capital city of Taxila, with every demonstration of friendship and the most liberal hospitality. The Decadent Emperors: Power and Depravity in Third-Century Rome. [17], This article is about the ancient king of Macedonia. [131] This river thus marks the easternmost extent of Alexander's conquests. [11] Although Philip had seven or eight wives, Olympias was his principal wife for some time, likely because she gave birth to Alexander. [152][154] There was even a suggestion that Aristotle may have participated. The Theban resistance was ineffective, and Alexander razed the city and divided its territory between the other Boeotian cities. [214], Both of Alexander's parents encouraged his ambitions. Throughout time, art objects related to Alexander were being created. This also showed Alexander's eagerness to fight, in contrast to his father's preference for diplomacy. In 326 BC, Alexander the Great conquered the northern territory of India. Meanwhile, the city of Amphissa began to work lands that were sacred to Apollo near Delphi, a sacrilege that gave Philip the opportunity to further intervene in Greek affairs. GERIN Dominique, GRANDJEAN Catherine, AMANDRY Michel, DE CALLATAY Franois, La monnaie grecque, "L'Antiquit: une histoire", Ellipse, 2001. p117-119. During this turmoil, the Illyrians invaded Macedonia, only to be repelled by Alexander. Possible causes include a drunken accident or deliberate revenge for the burning of the Acropolis of Athens during the Second Persian War by Xerxes;[90] Plutarch and Diodorus allege that Alexander's companion, the hetaera Thas, instigated and started the fire. The horns of Ammon were curling ram horns, used as a symbol of the Egyptian deity Ammon (also spelled Amun or Amon). [155] However, in a 2003 BBC documentary investigating the death of Alexander, Leo Schep from the New Zealand National Poisons Centre proposed that the plant white hellebore (Veratrum album), which was known in antiquity, may have been used to poison Alexander. Aristotle of Stagira (l. 384-322 BCE) was a Greek philosopher who pioneered systematic, scientific examination in literally every area of human knowledge and was known, in his time, as "the man who knew everything" and later simply as "The Philosopher", needing no further qualification as his fame was so widespread. After the defeat, Spitamenes was killed by his own men, who then sued for peace. The Athenians, led by Demosthenes, voted to seek alliance with Thebes against Macedonia. [258], The eastern borders of Alexander's empire began to collapse even during his lifetime. [205][206][207], Many scholars and historians attribute heterochromia to him. [283] The Corinthian order is also heavily represented in the art of Gandhara, especially through Indo-Corinthian capitals. On the subsequent advance of the Macedonian king, Taxiles accompanied him with a force of 5,000 men and took part in the Battle of the Hydaspes. Hephaestion makes his appearance in history at the point when Alexander reaches Troy. ", "Was Alexander The Great Poisoned By Toxic Wine? He lost another child when Roxana miscarried at Babylon. It included: The enormous scale of these plans has led many scholars to doubt their historicity. [162], Alexander's body was laid in a gold anthropoid sarcophagus that was filled with honey, which was in turn placed in a gold casket. [183] Diodorus, Curtius and Justin offered the more plausible story that Alexander passed his signet ring to Perdiccas, a bodyguard and leader of the companion cavalry, in front of witnesses, thereby nominating him. Subsequently, however, the two rivals were reconciled by the personal mediation of Alexander; and Taxiles, after having contributed zealously to the equipment of the fleet on the Hydaspes, was entrusted by the king with the government of the whole territory between that river and the Indus. Suspicion has fallen upon Alexander, Olympias and even the newly crowned Persian Emperor, Darius III. [66] Alexander left the government of Caria to a member of the Hecatomnid dynasty, Ada, who adopted Alexander. [144] Back in Babylon, Alexander planned a series of new campaigns, beginning with an invasion of Arabia, but he would not have a chance to realize them, as he died shortly after Hephaestion. [13], In his early years, Alexander was raised by a nurse, Lanike, sister of Alexander's future general Cleitus the Black. [12], Several legends surround Alexander's birth and childhood. At which Alexander reproachfully insulted over him: "See there," said he, "the man who makes preparations to pass out of Europe into Asia, overturned in passing from one seat to another. The campaign took Alexander through Media, Parthia, Aria (West Afghanistan), Drangiana, Arachosia (South and Central Afghanistan), Bactria (North and Central Afghanistan), and Scythia. [96] The Persian king no longer controlled his own destiny, and was taken prisoner by Bessus, his Bactrian satrap and kinsman. [162] Another recent analysis suggested pyogenic (infectious) spondylitis or meningitis. Greek-speaking communities in central Anatolia and in far-eastern Anatolia survived until the Greek genocide and GreekTurkish population exchanges of the early 20th century AD. The Macedonians were a Greek tribe. When Philip heard of this, he stopped the negotiations and scolded Alexander for wishing to marry the daughter of a Carian, explaining that he wanted a better bride for him. His troops misunderstood his intention and mutinied at the town of Opis. Therefore, since his feet did not reach its lowest step, one of the royal pages placed a table under his feet. [293], Caracalla's mania for Alexander went so far that Caracalla visited Alexandria while preparing for his Persian invasion and persecuted philosophers of the Aristotelian school based on a legend that Aristotle had poisoned Alexander. [181][220] His unique abilities were further demonstrated by the inability of any of his generals to unite Macedonia and retain the Empire after his deathonly Alexander had the ability to do so. All three of these people had motive to have Philip murdered. [citation needed], On either 10 or 11 June 323BC, Alexander died in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar II, in Babylon, at age 32. [220] He had great self-restraint in "pleasures of the body", in contrast with his lack of self-control with alcohol. Ernst Badian argued that they were exaggerated by Perdiccas in order to ensure that the Macedonian troops voted not to carry them out. Moreover, that a very pleasant odour exhaled from his skin and that there was a fragrance about his mouth and all his flesh, so that his garments were filled with it, this we have read in the Memoirs of Aristoxenus. Most infamously, Alexander personally killed the man who had saved his life at Granicus, Cleitus the Black, during a violent drunken altercation at Maracanda (modern day Samarkand in Uzbekistan), in which Cleitus accused Alexander of several judgmental mistakes and most especially, of having forgotten the Macedonian ways in favour of a corrupt oriental lifestyle. [80] Henceforth, Alexander often referred to Zeus-Ammon as his true father, and after his death, currency depicted him adorned with the Horns of Ammon as a symbol of his divinity. [254] Green suggested that, in the context of the period, Alexander formed quite strong friendships with women, including Ada of Caria, who adopted him, and even Darius's mother Sisygambis, who supposedly died from grief upon hearing of Alexander's death. [233] Thus, rather than megalomania, his behaviour may have been a practical attempt at strengthening his rule and keeping his empire together. He ascended the throne around age twenty. He then stormed the pass of the Persian Gates (in the modern Zagros Mountains) which had been blocked by a Persian army under Ariobarzanes and then hurried to Persepolis before its garrison could loot the treasury.[87].
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