1. Alexander the Great

2. Background Peloponnesian War weakened several Greek city-states.
King Philip II wanted to take control of Greece and then move on to Persia.

3. Philip and Macedonia Kingdom located north of Greece. King Philip
Brilliant general and ruthless
politician
Created a well-trained army
Invaded Greece
Defeated the Greeks at the battle of Chaeronea end of Greek independence
Philip is stabbed to death at his daughter’s wedding and Alexander becomes King 336 BCE
Lived in mountain villages not city-states
Many of them thought of themselves as Greeks but the Greeks looked down on them
Organized phalanxes into 16 men deep and 16 men across
Demosthenes, the Athenian orator, tried to warm the Greeks of the threaet Philip and army posed but the greek city-states could not agree on any single policy so were soundly defeated

4. Alexander 356-323 BCE Well prepared to lead although he was only 20
Excellent military leader
City of Thebes rebelled and he destroyed the city
The survivors were sold into slavery
He then prepared to invade Persia

5. Alexander’s Invasion of Persia
334 BCE, he led 35,000 soldiers across the Hellespont into Anatolia and crushed the Persian defense at the Granicus River
Persia’s king, Darius III, raised another army of 75,000 men
Alexander vastly outnumbered so he used the tactic of surprise and Persia is defeated once again
Wanted to carry out his father’s plan to conquer Persia

6. Alexander’s Invasion of Persia
Darius tried to negotiate a peace settlement
Alexander rejects Darius’s offer
Alexander marches into Egypt
Persian lines crumbled; victory
ended Persia’s power
Alexander named pharaoh
He moves into Mesopotamia,
Babylon, Susa and Persepolis, the
Persian capital
He burns Persepolis to signal the
total destruction of Persia

7. Alexander He is now the unchallenged ruler of southwest Asia
More interested in expanding his empire than governing it
Finally reaches the Indus Valley
Morale is low after fighting for 11 years
He agrees to go home, bitterly disappointed
323 BCE in Babylon he gets a fever and dies at the age of 32

9. Alexander’s Other Conquests
Alexander’s death
His empire is split into three parts
His conquests had a cultural impact
Creates a new culture
Adopted Persian dress and customs, married a Persian woman
The Hellenistic culture emerges – a combination of Greek, Egyptian and Persian cultures

11.
The Library at Alexandria - Ancient Mysteries