Historical Figures Codexery

Alexander the Great

King of Macedon who created a vast empire from Greece to India.

He created one of the largest empires in history, stretching from Greece to northwestern India, and was undefeated in battle.[1] Later military commanders frequently used Alexander's battlefield successes as a standard for comparison.[2]

Quick Facts

Reign
October 336 – June 323 BC
Predecessor
Philip II
Successor
Philip III
Spouse
  • Roxana
  • Stateira
  • Parysatis

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

Alexander was born in Pella, the capital of Macedon, on the sixth day of the ancient Greek month Hekatombaion, probably 20 July 356 BC.[3] Plutarch records that on the day of Alexander's birth, Philip received news that his horses had won at the Olympic Games.[4] At age 16, Alexander's education ended and he was left as regent while Philip campaigned against the Thracians.[5] He began his reign by eliminating potential rivals, including executing his cousin Amyntas IV.[5]

Philip II and his fourth wife Olympias were the parents of Alexander.[1] Following Philip's assassination in 336 BC, the Macedonian nobles and army immediately declared Alexander king when he was 20 years old.[6][7] In 334 BC Alexander's forces crossed the Hellespont to begin an invasion of the Persian Empire; he cast a spear into Asian ground to signify that Asia was a divine gift.[8]

What the cited sources add

Plutarch's account states that Alexander was averse to athletes and took no interest in offering prizes for boxing or the pancratium.[4] Plutarch further states that when satrap Pixodarus proposed marrying his daughter to Alexander's half-brother, Alexander dispatched friends to propose himself instead, which made Philip furious.[4]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Alexander the Great" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Bloom, Jonathan M.; Blair, Sheila S. (2009), The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture: Mosul to Zirid, Volume 3. (Oxford University Press Incorpor; Yenne 2010; Grant, "Commanders: History's Greatest Military Leaders", DK Publishing, 2011, p. 18; Beaton, "The Greeks: A Global History", Basic Books, 2021, p. 163 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Alexander the Great" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Yenne 2010; Doufikar-Aerts, "A Companion to World Literature", Wiley, 2020, p. 1–11; Mínguez Cornelles, "The visual legacy of Alexander the Great from the Renaissance to the age of revolution", Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2024, p. 22 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Alexander the Great" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Green, "Alexander of Macedon, 356–323 B.C.: a historical biography", University of California Press, 1970, p. xxxiii; "The birth of Alexander the Great", Livius; David George Hogarth, "Philip and Alexander of Macedon: two essays in biography", Charles Scribner's Sons, 1897, p. 286–287; , ,; Roisman Worthington 2010, p. 171 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Plutarch, Life of Alexander 3.5. facts only, no text reused. penelope.uchicago.edu
  5. Wikipedia, "Alexander the Great" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Roisman Worthington 2010, p. 171 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Alexander the Great" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Hammond, "The Regnal Years of Philip and Alexander", Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies, 21 December 1992, p. 355–373; Parise, "The book of calendars", Gorgias Press, 2002, p. 10; Philip and Pausanias: a deadly love in Macedonian Politics, The Classical Quarterly, 62.1 pp423-439 (2012); (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Alexander the Great" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: McCarty 2004, p. 26; ; (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Alexander the Great" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Roisman Worthington 2010, p. 171; (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Alexander the Great (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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