Alexander the Great, whose biography shows us the irrepressible desire of man for a grand dream, has become one of the most important characters in ancient history. Even in antiquity, the glory of the greatest commander in the world was entrenched in him. And it is no coincidence, because it was this ruler who managed to create an empire colossal in scale.
Alexander the Great: a brief biography
The father of the future commander was the Macedonian king Philip II, who managed to subjugate a significant part of the Greek territories by the middle of the 4th century. Alexander the Great, whose biography begins around 356 BC, was born in the capital of the state - Pella. In childhood, he managed to get a brilliant education. The fact that the young man was brought up by the famous thinker of the ancient era Aristotle already speaks volumes. The latter sought to instill in his ward the qualities of an ideal sovereign - wise, fair and courageous. The ideas of the philosopher to a large extent influenced the further policy of the great ruler.
Alexander the Great: biography of the first period of rule
The young warrior ascended the throne at the age of twenty, after his father Philip was assassinated by the conspirator-conspirators. Over the next two years (from 336 to 334 BC), the new ruler was busy restoring the shaky
empire. After restoring order in the country and eliminating the threat from the northern Thracian tribes, Alexander turns his eyes outside the borders of his own state. His father for a long time hatched the idea of finally breaking up the
Persian state, which by that time had been the main rival of Hellas for more than a century and a half. This dream was realized by his son.
Alexander the Great: a biography of brilliant years
In 334 BC e. Alexander’s armies are transported to Asia and begin to advance deep into the possession of the Persians. The general battle took place in the same year on the Granik River, after which a significant part of Asia Minor fell into the hands of the Macedonians. It was after this battle that the glory of the greatest conqueror was entrenched to the young commander. However, he did not stop there. Alexander’s next two campaigns were also
directed to the East, but now he almost did not meet any serious resistance. So they took Egypt, where the ruler founded the city, which was named after him - Alexandria. Some resistance was provided in the central regions of Persia, but after the
battle of Gaugamela in 331, King Darius III was defeated, and the city of Babylon became the capital of the Macedonian empire. Many noble Persians then switched to his side. By 328, almost all of
Central Asia was conquered
, after which the ambitious military leader began to prepare the invasion of India. This campaign took place in 325 BC. e. However, the heavy battles of Alexander the Great over the Indus River greatly depleted his army, which had been in campaigns for many years without returning to its homeland. The murmuring of the army forced the ruler to turn back to Babylon. Here he spent the short rest of his life, having managed to marry a noble Persian, but suddenly died in 323 BC. e. After the death of the great conqueror, his state could not be maintained in unity, and it split into several small formations.