“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 (356-323 BC)

Alexander III, son of King Phillip II of Macedon, was undoubtedly a great general, having conquered a vast empire that stretched from Greece in the east to the border of India in the west, and that also included the lands of Egypt. This was the first time in history that the three powerful regions of Egypt, Greece, and Persia (Asia Minor) had ever been united. It also marked the destruction of the Persian Empire, which had been a powerful force for a long time before then.

But were these kingdoms really united by Alexander? Culturally, sort of. Politically, not really. Alexander was great at conquering land and disabling political infrastructures, but he was not so great at setting up a new system in their stead. What Alexander did do was spread Hellenistic (AKA Greek) values, art, ideas, and cultural, throughout the lands he invaded. Interestingly though, Alexander, being Macedonian, was not considered by the Greeks to be Greek. Rather, after they were defeated by him, they thought of him as more of a Hellenized barbarian.

Alexander also founded many new cities, mostly naming them after himself. The most famous of these is Alexandria, on the Mediterranean coast in Egypt.

To understand the man called Alexander the Great, and why he was so great, I think it is most important to understand and consider his personality. Growing up as the son of an ambitious king, he was famously tutored by Aristotle, who was one of the most learned men of his day. When he ascended to the throne at the age of 16 (due to his father’s death), the Greek cities thought to break the alliance they had made with his father, not wanting to be at the mercy of a such a young man. Alexander, quickly put them in their place and began his further conquests. It seemed that he delighted in battle and conquest, not so much for the territories he acquired, but more for the love of battle and glory. He set his sights on the Persian Empire, the most powerful force of that day and he pursued it’s king, Darius II,  as he fled across Asia. It is said that when one of his generals killed Darius, he was so anger to have been robbed of the opportunity himself that he hunted down his own general and killed him instead. This illustrates the kind of powerful personality Alexander had. It is clear that his quest for personal glory outweighed any other considerations.

His expansion west was finally halted when his army declared that enough was enough and turned back to head home. Alexander, likely very reluctantly, agreed but chose to take the most treacherous route home across the Gedrosian Dessert. This was perhaps to punish his troops for refusing to continue to march east or just to show the world once again how badass he was. 12,000 troops died on that march and it is widely considered to be Alexander’s greatest strategic blunder.

He died on his way back, 2 years later in Babylon. Some say he was murdered, and others that he died of alcohol poisoning (he drank a lot).  But, most likely the cause of his death was a simple fever. (It’s amazing how easily God can destroy great men and nations with ease, regardless of how great they think they are.)

So was Alexander really “Great”? Well, he certainly was accomplished, and had a mighty personality, but the motivation behind his deeds were not much more than an expression of his vanity and strength (which were considerable). Yet, he was the catalyst for a new era of interconnectedness between lands of the west and the east, which had been previously divided by the Empire of Persia. Theres no doubt that he had played a major role in the course of world history. He definitely was an exemplary human in some ways and an egotistical brat in others. Was he great though? I guess it depends on your definition of great…