Alexander the Great took over the throne at a young age of 20. He began his reign by eliminating potential rivals. This may have arguable been Alexander’s starting point of power. Alexander the Great is debatably still known as the greatest ruler the world has ever seen; as a result of, the victories he accomplished, his army, and his love of power.
Persepolis, the capital of the Persian Empire, was one of the wealthiest cities in Asia. Alexander believed it to be their worst enemy among all of the cities, and he ordered his soldiers to attack. The Macedonian soldiers followed through on their commands and began plundering the city. Alexander ordered the palace not to be touched, but during a drunken rampage, the palace was set fire by many women. The events that took place in Persepolis show the extreme power Alexander had. He was able to barge into possibly the wealthiest city in Asia and take over.
In 331 BC Alexander entered Egypt. His first order was to have a city designed and he founded his own name at the mouth of the Nile. Alexander later on made a pilgrimage to the oracle of Amon-Ra in order to be acknowledged as his son, the pilgrimage was successful. During his stay in Egypt, Alexander traveled across the desert to visit the oracle at the temple of Zeus Ammon; supposedly, the oracle told Alexander he was the son of Zeus Ammon and was going to rule the world. The Egyptians made Alexander pharaoh, voluntarily. Persia even offered Alexander a truce that came along with a gift of several provinces in the Persian Empire, but Alexander refused the gift and wanted the whole empire.
In roughly 330 BC Alexander invades Afghanistan. In Afghanistan Alexander faces many fierce battles and loses much of his army. After four years of war in Afghanistan he passes through to Central Asia and gains reinforcements for his army. He then proceeds to return to Afghanistan and he is able to capture Balkh, Qandahar, Heart, and Kabul. While in Afghanistan Alexander marries the local chief’s daughter, Rokhsana.
Alexander invades India in a place called Punjab, land of the five rivers. The kind ruling at the time was Porus, he had many princes under him who were forming a rebellion; as a result, they were thrilled Alexander was invading. Porus gathered a great army and a war broke out. A wide river separated the Indians and the Greeks, but eventually Alexander’s army passed through in the middle of the night. Despite the Indians advantage of using elephants in war, Alexander’s army came out on top. Despite the war Alexander was gracious to Porus and treated him respectfully. Alexander continued through India, fighting battles, building temples, and founding cities. Once city he even named after his favorite horse Bucephalus, the city was name Boukephala. He also named a city after himself, Alexandreia.
At the age of 32 in 323 BC Alexander died in the temple of Nebuchadnezzar II, in Babylon at the age of 32. Many would guess that he died due to battle injuries in war, assignation, or even due to a rebellion; however, Alexander the Great died because of a fever. His story lives on and so does his legends. With one of the strongest militaries in the world, Alexander was able to conquer just about everyone and everything. He was power hungry. He always wanted more power than what he had and could never stop. Despite Alexander the Great’s obsession with power, he is arguably still known by some, the greatest ruler of all time.
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"Alexander the Great." Macedonia FAQ. Web. 10 Mar. 2011. <http://faq.macedonia.org/history/alexander.the.great.html>.
"Alexander the Great Invades India." About Hinduism - What You Need to Know About Hinduism. Web. 10 Mar. 2011. <http://hinduism.about.com/od/history/a/alexander.htm>.
"History of Iran: Burning of Persepolis by Alexander the Great." Iran Chamber Society. Web. 10 Mar. 2011. <http://www.iranchamber.com/history/persepolis/burning_persepolis_alexander.php>.
"Internet Ancient History Sourcebook: Main Page." FORDHAM.EDU. Web. 10 Mar. 2011. <http://www.fordham.edu/HALSALL/ancient/asbook.html>.
Well I think you could improve on your thesis and your introductory paragraph could also be a but longer
ReplyDeleteRephrase this into a coherent thesis statement: "Alexander the Great is debatably still known as the greatest ruler the world has ever seen; as a result of, the victories he accomplished, his army, and his love of power." Lose the generalization about him being the "greatest" anything; instead, make something out of the idea of his "love of power". Was that his motivation? And if it was, was it worth it?
ReplyDeleteA major problem throughout this essay is that it basically reads as an encyclopedia article. An academic paper is not an encyclopedia article; rather, an academic essay presents a point-of-view and attempts to back it up.