Shubhi Maheshwari
Washington D.C
“I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion.”
Alexander the Great (21 July 356 BCE – 10 or 11 June 323 BCE) was a brilliant leader who efficiently and successfully conquered most of the known world. He took over the Macedonian Empire at a very young age after his father, King Philip, was assassinated. Alexander was very wise, having been taught by famous scholars such as Aristotle. Although he was just starting out, his conquests led him to greatness until his early death at age 32. Some believe that Alexander was not really great, and that he just craved power and wealth. However, because of his ingenious military tactics and strategies, his openness and toleration for newly conquered people, and his spreading of Hellenistic culture, he is widely considered to be a compassionate and wise leader and a military genius.
Alexander the Great was a renowned commander due to his brilliant military tactics and strategies. He used the famous phalanx formation in battle which by definition is “in military science, tactical formation consisting of a block of heavily armed infantry standing shoulder to shoulder in files several ranks deep” (Encyclopedia Britannica). This formation developed early on and stayed as a top battle strategy until the Roman legion. The phalanx allowed the armed men to stay united, creating a greater force.
Although he was one of the many generals that used the phalanx formation of battle, Alexander and his father, King Philip, modified the form to work faster and more efficiently. Adopting the original phalanx’s basic idea, they changed the positioning to sixteen men deep instead of eight men deep to create a stronger united force (Encyclopedia Britannica). Alexander also almost never exceeded 40,000 soldiers in his army. This gave the army faster speed and mobility, advantageous in battle (Changing Minds). His army consisted of warhorses and a strong cavalry which he would use for river battles and other tough terrains. Surrounding the phalanx formation would be a minor infantry which was made up of slingers, javelin men and archers. The hoplites (soldiers) were armed with tall pikes called hasta to use in a thrusting motion and wore iron and bronze breastplates for protection (Britannica Encyclopedia). Using this powerful defense force, he conquered areas from Europe far into Asia.
Alexander’s army was also very reliable and resourceful because of the strategies the great military commander used. He was unlike other generals, ruthless and brutal with everyone and everything. Alexander showed compassion towards his men and treated them almost as equals. Although the salary of the soldiers wasn’t much, he paid them promptly. Soldiers were well-fed and had many incentives for winning battles. To gain his soldiers allegiance even further, he usually dressed like his soldiers and walked around camp listening to them. Alexander also spent time with his men showing concern and love for his army. However, when a soldier would betray him or do wrongdoing, he would not hesitate to punish them for what they deserve (Changing Minds). This strategy of maintaining discipline and loyalty within his military was a very successful approach.
Alexander was a brilliant military strategist. He used many unique tactics like surprising the opposition using quick moves and speed, making unplanned decisions, using deception, aiming for leaders to disorganize enemy combatants and attacking at the opponent’s weakest point among others to be victorious. Some of his techniques are shown in the Battles of Granicus River, Issus, and Gaugamela. Alexander knew the exact time to attack his enemies; when they were at their weakest and most fatigue state. In the famous battle of Gaugamela, he surprised his enemies by using unplanned moves and deceived the Persians into believing there would be a night attack. Instead, Alexander never attacked at night and weakened the Persian army because of fatigue which led to an easy victory for the Greeks (Donald J. Wasson). In the battle of Granicus River, Alexander diminished the enemy’s confidence by targeting enemy leadership. This resulted in the opponents being disorganized, giving the Greek-Macedonians an advantage and a simple victory (Donald J. Wasson).
The opposition would never be ready to battle Alexander’s strong army when he unexpectedly attacked. Due to his small but potent army size, he was able to move quickly from one place to another during battle. With such a cunning and clever mind, Alexander suddenly made battle plan changes during the wars and these decisions changed their outcome dramatically. Alexander’s military brilliance was incomparable, but he is also known for his openness and toleration for new conquered lands. When he conquered a new area, Alexander would incorporate his Greek laws and government into the societies, but allowed the native people to continue their customs and traditions. Alexander was also religiously tolerant and did not force anyone to change their beliefs. All the religious groups were able to worship as they pleased as long as it did not interfere with Alexander’s rule. Alexander also prohibited his troops from raping and or pillaging in the areas they had conquered .Although Alexander would mercilessly take the throne from competitors in the newly conquered lands, he did not change the ways of life for the people (Tejvan Pettinger). Many societies welcomed him as leader and other did not mind him. One example of his tolerance is the ancient Egyptian kingdom. During his ongoing conflict to conquer the Persian Empire, Alexander needed a more strategic place to rule from which he could control the multiple areas around him and attack the Persians. He chose Egypt, on the edge of the Mediterranean Sea, and stayed there for six months. The Egyptian mayor accepted him as leader and from there Alexander continued his fight against Persia. After relieving Egypt from Persian rule, the Egyptians welcomed Alexander as their liberator and savior and named him their pharaoh. Alexander was very accepting of the culture and religion of Egypt and even worshipped the Egyptian gods. He also listened to teachings from Egyptian philosopher, Psammon, and studied Egyptian law. He even helped rebuild religious centers and temples (Fildes and Fletcher). This example shows how Alexander was able to accommodate his own needs and the people’s needs in a very peaceful and well-organized way.
Alexander conquered the entire world in less than a decade and along the way he spread Hellenistic culture; which made his rule known as the Hellenistic Period. Hellenism The world at the time was very spread out and a lot of it was under Persian rule. When the Greeks had defeated the Persians, these little areas separated and needed centralization.
One of Alexander’s grandest visions was for everyone to be one unified group; no differences between anyone and no judgment of others.
“Now that the wars are coming to an end, I wish you to prosper in peace. May all mortals from now on live like one people in concord and for mutual advancement. Consider the world as your country, with laws common to all and where the best will govern irrespective of tribe. I do not distinguish among men, as the narrow-minded do, both among Greeks and Barbarians. I am not interested in the descendance of the citizens or their racial origins. I classify them using one criterion: their virtue. For me every virtuous foreigner is a Greek and every evil Greek worse than a Barbarian. If differences ever develop between you never have recourse to arms, but solve them peacefully. If necessary, I should be your arbitrator.” –Alexander (Goodreads)
This quote illustrates Alexander’s vision and how he wanted everyone to live. Alexander was tolerant of others’ ways of life allowed them to have individuality and personal lives. Nevertheless, he still believed in overall unity and wanted this idea to reach everyone he dominated.
To make his vision come to life, he spread his hometown Greek culture in the entire world and this period was called the Hellenistic period. The word Hellenistic derives from the ancient Greek word “hellas” meaning Greece. This was the time period in which Greek culture was original and unaffected by other cultures and it is when Greeks came in contact with new cultures. The blending of these many cultures with Greek culture is the Hellenistic society and Alexander the Great is held accountable for this. The Hellenistic period influenced the world in many ways. This is the time when many new thinkers came to the top like Euclid, Hero and Archimedes. There were also much revolutionary advancements made in the subjects of architecture, math, science and art. This whole era gave people a sense of serenity and tranquility which helped everything move smoothly and productively. Trade and travel increased a lot during this era and many impressive cities grew like Antioch in Syria, Pergamum in Asia Minor and lastly Alexandria in Egypt; the great city of Alexander the Great (Giotto).
Alexandria was founded by Alexander himself and contained some of the greatest works and architecture. The Library of Alexandria was a place filled with a vast amount of information and creations, still used today. Even though all these cities were not located in Greece, they all were made with Greek architectural styles and designs (Giotto).
Even after Alexander’s death, his legacy continued. He did not leave any capable leader to rule the immense empire, so there were several struggles for power. Four of his best generals took control of the areas and almost separated from the rest (World Book Encyclopedia). Alexander’s empire had almost fallen apart; the only thing that kept them connected were Alexander’s Hellenistic societies. This connection of cultures kept the different communities together and formed a bond. His legacy and Hellenism lasted a very long time and had much influence on the world.
With such an intelligent and innovative mind, Alexander the Great was able to conquer and dominate the entire world from Europe in the east to India in the west. He used his expertise and skills to take over his surrounding areas and ventured farther than anyone before him. With his efficient and deliberate military strategies and tactics, his toleration and acceptance of his conquered people, and his blending of cultures in the Hellenistic era, Alexander was able to be the man he is known to be today; an ingenious leader and military commander.
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