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Wen 丨 walking 2B pencil
Editor丨Walking 2B pencil
preface
Alexander the Great died at a very young age, he ended his career at the age of 32, and when he started his career about 20 years old, only 12 years he really worked on his life's work, Napoleon spent almost three times as long as Napoleon in the great field of human action.
Although Alexander's career was short, in that short period he accomplished a series of very brilliant feats that were so daring, so romantic, and made him so adventurous in the most magnificent and brilliant scenes, that all the world at that time watched the story in shock, and ever since mankind has continued to read it with the greatest interest and attention.
The secret of Alexander's success lay in his character, a certain combination of spiritual and personal charisma which, in every era, gave those who showed it a mysterious, almost limitless advantage, beyond all those within their sphere of influence.
The qualities of young Alexander
Alexander possesses these qualities to a very remarkable degree, he is well-proportioned and graceful, he is active and robust, he is passionate and enthusiastic about everything he does, he is calm and thoughtful in emergency situations that require discreetness, thoughtful and far-sighted about the impact and consequences of his actions.
He developed a strong attachment, gratitude for the kindness of others, empathy for the feelings of all who were connected to him in any way, loyalty to his friends, generosity to his enemies, in short, noble character, although he unfortunately devoted his energies to conquest and war.
In fact, he lived in a time when there was hardly any other area in which a great personal and spiritual strength could make a difference, he started his career with great enthusiasm and the position he was in gave him the opportunity to make a huge difference.
The composition of the European side
Several circumstances combined, in the case in which Alexander was located, offered him a great opportunity to exercise his great power, and his homeland was located on the border of Europe and Asia, which, in those days, as now, were marked and distinguished by two huge groups of social and civilized life, distinct from each other.
The Asian side was occupied by the Persian Medes and Assyrians, and the European side was made up of the Greeks and Romans, who were separated from each other by the waters of the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas of the Hellespont Strait, which constituted a kind of natural barrier that separated the two races, so that these races formed two huge organizations, which were very different and distinct from each other, and of course competitors and enemies.
It is difficult to say whether Asian civilization or European civilization is the highest, the two are so different that it is difficult to compare them, on the Asian side, there is wealth luxury and splendor, about European energy genius and power, on the one hand huge cities ornate palaces and gardens of world wonders, fortified castles, military roads and bridges, and compact and heavily defended towns.
Against the Persian army
The Persians had a large army, well equipped, with beautiful tents, elaborately decorated horses, the finest weapons and munitions, officers richly dressed and accustomed to a life of luxury and splendor, on the other hand, the Greeks and Romans were proud of their exquisite armies, hard-working and disciplined.
Their officers are not proud of luxury and parades, but of the courage and absolute obedience of their troops, as well as their own scientific skills and military computing capabilities, so there is a great difference in the entire system of social and military organization in the two regions.
Now born heir to the throne of the Greek kingdoms, Alexander possessed the energetic initiative and military skills characteristic of the Greeks and Romans, and to an astonishing degree, he organized armies, crossed the Eurasian border, and in the twelve years of his career, invaded the center and seat of Asia in the most triumphant way.
Power, destroying the armies of Asia, conquering the most glorious cities, defeating or capturing kings, princes and generals who opposed his progress, the whole world watched in amazement the process of such a conquest, carried out so successfully by such a young man and such a small army, with continuous victories, as it did, defeating so many enemies and conquering so accumulated wealth and brilliant treasures.
Factors that influenced Alexander's life
Alexander's father was named Philip, and the kingdom he ruled over was called Macedonia, located in northern Greece, which was about twice the size of Massachusetts and one-third the size of New York, and Alexander's mother was named Olympias, the daughter of King Epirus, a smaller kingdom than Macedonia located to its west.
Olympias was a woman of a very strong and determined character, and Alexander seemed to have inherited her energy, which was also combined with other, more attractive qualities, which his mother did not have, and as a young prince, he was a very important figure in his father's court.
Everyone knew that after the death of his father he would become the king of Macedonia, therefore, he became the object of all people's attention and attention, and as he grew up in his youth, all who knew him observed that he was endowed with extraordinary qualities and qualities of thought, which seemed to foreshadow that he would become a great figure in the future at a very young age.
Although he was a prince, he did not grow up in the habit of luxury and effenuity, which went against all the ideas of the Greeks of that time, when they did not have firearms, so in battle, combatants could not stand quietly and calmly fire muskets or cannons, far from the enemy, as they are now.
Alexander's love of books
Young Alexander was very fond of Homer's story. These stories tell the exploits and adventures of certain great warriors in the Siege of Troy, a siege that lasted ten years, they are written so beautifully and powerfully, as well as such vivid and vivid descriptions of romantic adventures, and picturesque and striking scenes, which have been influenced by all learned to understand them throughout the ages.
Alexander could easily understand them because they were written in his native language, and he was very excited about the narratives themselves and satisfied with the flow of the verses that told the stories, and later in his educational course he was placed under the guidance of Aristotle, one of the most outstanding philosophers of antiquity.
Aristotle prepared a beautiful collection of Homeric poems exclusively for Alexander, which he painstakingly transcribed in the most elegant way, Alexander carried this copy with him in all his campaigns, and a few years later, when he conquered the Persians, in the spoils of a victory, he took with him a very beautiful and expensive coffin, which King Darius used to hold jewelry or some other precious treasure.
Alexander was full of energy and spirit, but at the same time he was also reflective and considerate like all truly great people, and he was very fond of the research that Aristotle led him, and although these studies were very esoteric, he made great strides in metaphysical philosophy and mathematics, which greatly improved his calculation and judgment.
He showed great ambition very early, his father Philip was a powerful warrior, although he did not enter Asia, he made many conquests throughout Greece, and when the news of Philip's victory reached Macedonia, the whole court would be filled with an atmosphere of jubilation, but in this case Alexander appeared contemplative and disappointed, and complained that his father would conquer every country, leaving him with nothing to do.
Once, in Philip's absence, some ambassadors of the Persian court arrived in Macedonia, and these emissaries, of course, saw Alexander and had the opportunity to talk to him, they expected that he would be interested in the splendor of the Persian monarchy and the parade, and they had many stories to tell him about the famous hanging gardens.
Geographical location of different Persian countries
The gardens were artificially built in the most magnificent way on high arches, and there was also a vine made of gold, inlaid with various precious stones instead of fruits, adorned as ornaments on thrones often received by Persian kings, the ornate palaces and vast cities of the Persians, and the banquets they used to hold there for grand entertainment and celebrations.
To their surprise, they found that Alexander was not interested in hearing about these things, and he always shifted the conversation from them to inquiring about the geographical location of different Persian countries leading to the organization of Asian armies on various routes leading to the interior, and the envoys were very surprised by such a mature mind, foresight, and thoughtful ability of the young prince.
They could not help but compare him with Artaxerxes, Alexander, they say, great, and our king was only rich, and the veracity of the judgments made by these ambassadors about the qualities of the young Macedonian in comparison with those most revered on the Asian side was amply confirmed in the subsequent stages of Alexander's career.
In fact, this combination of calm and thoughtful thoughts with the enthusiasm and dynamism that formed the basis of his character is a great secret of Alexander's success, illustrated in a very striking way by the story of his famous horse Bucephalus, an animal that was a very heroic war horse that Alexander gave as a gift when he was young.
They led the horse to a park connected to the palace, and the king and many of his courtiers went out to see him, the horse leaping so violently that it seemed completely uncontrollable, that no one dared to ride him, Philip, and not satisfied with the present, and at the same time, at the same time that all other onlookers joined the general condemnation of the horse, Alexander stood quietly on the sidelines, observing his movements, carefully studying his character.
He felt that part of the difficulty was due to the excitement that the horse experienced in such a strange and fresh scene, and he also seemed to be frightened by his own shadow, when it happened to be thrown far away and fell strongly and clearly to the ground, and he also saw other signs that the high excitement felt by the horse was not malicious, but a noble and generous impulse, that was courageous enthusiasm, and awareness of great nerve and muscle strength.
Alexander's talent for fighting
Philip considered the horse useless and ordered him to be returned to Thessaly, where he came, Alexander was so worried about the prospect of losing such an excellent animal that he begged his father to allow him to experiment on horseback riding, which Philip initially refused, thinking that it was so presumptuous for such a young man to try to tame such a fierce animal that all his experienced riders and grooms condemned him.
He finally agreed, and Alexander stepped onto the horse and grabbed his reins, and he patted him on the neck, soothing his voice, and at the same time showed from his calm and careless demeanor that he was not afraid of him at all, and when someone approached him in a timid or cautious way, a lively horse would immediately know that for such a master he appeared to be contemptuous and determined not to submit.
Horses seem to like to obey people, and when those who demand obedience have qualities of calmness and bravery, their instincts allow them to appreciate these qualities, which, in any case, are calmed by the presence of Alexander, who allows himself to be caressed, and Alexander turns his head so as not to see his own shadow.
He quietly and gently took off one of the cloaks he was wearing and jumped on horseback, and instead of trying to restrain him or stop him with useless effort, he let him steer him freely, encouraging him with his voice, causing the horse to fly over the plain and over the top of the hill, his speed, the king and courtiers watched, at first with fear and trembling, but soon filled with the greatest admiration and joy.
The horse was satisfied with his run and easily controlled it, Alexander returned safely to the king with it, the courtiers flooded him with praise and congratulations, Philip spoke highly of him, telling him that he should have a kingdom larger than Macedonia to rule.
Alexander's judgment of the true character of the horse turned out to be correct, he became very docile and docile, obedient to his master in everything, he would kneel on his front legs at Alexander's order so that he could board more easily, Alexander kept it for a long time and made it his favorite war horse.
epilogue
Historians tell many stories of his time, about his wisdom and exploits in war, and whenever he went out on the battlefield in his military uniform, he seemed to be smug and proud, and at such times, he did not allow anyone but Alexander to ride on him.
He felt that his strength and ability made him qualified to take his father's place and reap the harvest of glory and power for himself, which seemed to await the Greek army in the upcoming battle, yet he could only be a prince while his father was alive. It is true that influential and accomplished are welcome, but still do not have any substantial independent power.