Alexander the Great (his relationship with his father; how… | Bartleby

Alexander the Great, king of Macedonia, accomplished much in his lifetime. He added many new lands to his vast empire including Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, Mesopotamia, Persia, Sogdiana, and part of India. He became the conqueror of the world he knew.

Alexander the Great was the son of Princess Olympias of Epirus (Cinderella) and King Philip II of Macedonia (Popovic). His parents hated each other and had an unstable marriage (Cinderella). Philip’s relationship with Alexander was also poor. He once told his son that he should be embarrassed by his high-pitched voice (Cinderella). After Alexander had become a general in his father’s army, Philip was wounded in battle and played dead (Cinderella). Alexander protected him and saved his life,

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This was enough to sway the minds of Athenians, however Thebes continued to challenge him (132). Alexander destroyed the city of Thebes and enslaved its people (132). He then began his conquests in Pella (132) to punish the Persians for Xerxes’ invasion of Greece (Boardman 310).

Alexander first entered Asia Minor in 334 BC (Hackney). The first major battle was that of the Granicus. The Persians tried to tempt Alexander to cross the river so they could kill him, and they almost succeeded, but the Persian line broke, allowing him to win the battle (Popovic). Sardis, the headquarters of Persian government, surrendered to the Macedonian forces without a struggle (Popovic). In Miletus, they would not open their gates, encouraged by the closeness of the Persian fleet (Popovic). Alexander had to take over the coastal cities in order to defeat the fleet (Popovic). Halicarnassus was a difficulty for Alexander, because the resistance was strengthened by Greek Mercenaries (Cook 154). He eventually broke through the eastern side of the city’s wall only to find that another brick wall had already been constructed inside (154). The people of Halicarnassus abandoned the town and garrisoned their troops is Salmacis (155). Alexander left 3,000 men there for one year to fight the garrison (155). In Gordium, it was prophesized that whoever could loose the knot of a yoke that was tied to a chariot, would