Download The Hellenistic Era of Greece

The Hellenistic Era of
Greece
The Rise of Macedonia and
Alexander the Great
Geography
• The Hellenistic Era is
classified by the rise
and reign of Alexander
the Great.
• Alexander hailed from
the area of northern
Greece known as
Macedonia.
• The mainland Greeks
treated the
Macedonians as the
rejects or hillbilly
cousin’s of the Greeks.
Macedonia
• Macedonian cities had not developed
into independent city-states like
mainland Greece.
• Rather, they stayed small farming
communities.
• Despite the insults of the “civilized”
Greeks, the Macedonians were still
related.
Macedonia
• The Macedonians were closely related
to the Spartans. Both had descended
from the Doric clans of the early
Greeks.
• Therefore, Macedonian practices, both
culturally and militarily were closest to
the Spartans.
Macedonia
• In 359 B.C. a man by the
name of Philip II came
to power.
• He admired the overall
Greek culture, and
wanted to unite Greece
under the Macedonian
flag.
– The big picture, was to
eventually conquer
Persia.
• He built a strong
military and readied
himself for such
conquests.
Macedonia
• In 356, Philip’s wife,
Olympias gave birth
to Philip’s first son,
Alexander III of
Macedon.
– Due to Olympias’
lineage, Alexander was
not viewed as a full
legitimate heir to
Philip’s throne.
– Also, a myth surrounds
the conception and
birth of Alexander
Macedonia
• Athens feared Philip’s growing power
and decided to take the fight to him.
• Philip crushed the Athenian army and
it’s allies at the battle of Chaeronea.
• Following this victory, Philip quickly
took control of all Greek city-states,
and disbanded the various leagues of
Greece.
Macedonia
• Two years following his conquests of
Greece, Philip was assassinated.
• Two different theories prevail:
– 1) Philip’s wife and Alexander’s mother
Olympias had him murdered so Alexander
would be the only legitimate heir
– 2) The Athenians (rather all Greeks) did not
want to be subjected to the rule of one
man, and had him assassinated so that
Philip’s empire would fall.
Macedonia
• Following Philip’s death, Alexander
rose to power.
– He was only 20 years old.
• Alexander was already well prepared
for such a task.
– He had been groomed from a young age to
be a perfect king, and brilliant military
tactician.
Macedonia
Philip’s empire at the time of his death
Alexander
• Alexander was born in July of 356 BC
– He was not a legitimate heir, his mother
was not Macedonian
• Philip constantly took Alexander with
him on conquests
– Alexander learned battle tactics and
military strategies while doing this
Alexander
• As a boy, Alexander was tutored by
Aristotle
– Philip wanted Alexander to have the best
education possible
• Olympias always feared that Philip
would find a new wife, a full blooded
Macedonian women and produce a
“legitimate” heir.
Alexander
• Alexander studied at the Mieza, (think
of it as a boarding school)
– He studied with men who would later
become his friends and future generals
– He also fell in love with the epics of Homer
• He was given an annotated copy of the Iliad
and the Odyssey which he kept with him at all
times.
Alexander
Ascension to Glory
• At age 16, his father
Philip left to wage war
with Byzantium, and
left Alexander as the
stand in king
• The citizens of Thrace
revolted while Philip
was away, and
Alexander quickly
responded and put
down the revolt
Alexander
Ascension to Glory
• Following Philip’s
death, Alexander
had to fight for the
right to be King of
Macedonia.
• Eventually he
became king, and
set out to fulfill his
father’s dream.
Alexander
Ascension to Glory
• Following Alexander’s rise to power,
many Greek city-states rebelled
– Thebes, Athens, Thessaly, and Thrace
• Alexander quickly responded and
squashed the rebellions
– Following the rebellions, Alexander
consolidated the troops he conquered, and
rode for the Peloponnesus
Alexander
Ascension to Glory
• Alexander then sets his eyes on
securing his borders
– He starts at the northern borders of
Thrace, and slowly works his way down
through the entirety of the Balkans.
– Thebes once again rebelled and Alexander
squashed the revolt and razed the city
following immense bloodshed
Alexander
Ascension to Glory
• Following the destruction of Thebes,
Alexander cements his grip as ruler
and unifier of Greece
– Other city-states were too scared to revolt
following the burning of Thebes
– Various other city-states gave their
loyalties, their armies, and their money to
support Alexander
Alexander
• Alexander was now supreme ruler of Greece
– Also known as the Basileus of Macedon, and all of
Greece
Alexander
Becoming the Great
• Once all of Greece was conquered,
Alexander set out to fulfill his father’s
wish to see the Persian empire fall
– Ever since the Greco-Persian war, Greece
had wanted to take out Persia
– Alexander would see this dream a reality
– He dreamed to be like Achilles, the famous
warrior from the Iliad
Alexander
Becoming the Great
• To conquer Persia, Alexander would
need to rethink his military strategy
– Macedonian military tactics mirrored the
Spartans, so he adapted his phalanx
– The soldiers began wielding longer spears,
and their shields shrank in size.
Alexander
Becoming the Great
The Phalanx becomes a pure offensive formation under
Alexander
Alexander
Becoming the Great
• Alexander also relies less on his
phalanx formation, and utilizes the
swiftness of his cavalry
Alexander
Becoming the Great
Alexander
Becoming the Great
• With his new tactics and skills set for
his military campaign, he sets out for
Persia, to conquer Darius
• But, first things first
– Alexander marches through Asia Minor,
conquering city of city
– He conquered Ionia, then Israel, then
finally Egypt
Alexander
Becoming the Great
• In Egypt, Alexander seeks out an oracle
of the gods
– The oracle tells Alexander that he is a
descendant of Zeus himself
– This lie spurs Alexander on, and is his
continuing motivation throughout his
campaigns
Alexander
Becoming the Great
• Following the conquest of Egypt,
Alexander and his troops march toward
Babylon.
• He meets Darius and his forces in
Syria, defeats them and chases them
through Mesopotamia
– Darius retreats to Gaugamela, where he
makes a valiant stand against Alexander
Alexander
Becoming the Great
• Alexander defeats Darius at Gaugamela, and cements his
place as ruler of Babylon and the Persian Empire
Alexander
Becoming the Great
• Following the conquest of Babylon,
Alexander marches east towards India
– His troops are weary of battle and
homesick
• He meets with success less and less
– The morale of his soldiers decline and
become near mutinous
Alexander
Becoming the Great
• Alexander’s men refuse to march past
the Hyphasis river, fearing the strength
of the Nanda Empire and the
Gangaridai Empire
– This river marks the easternmost point of
Alexander’s conquests
• He then returns to Babylon
Alexander
The Decline
• Once back in Babylon, Alexander
disciplines his provincial governors
• Then it becomes time to celebrate
– He parties to hard and becomes deathly
sick
– Whatever ailed him at that time, ended up
killing him
Alexander
The Decline
• Following his death, Alexander’s
Empire is split into four sections, due
to Alexander not having an heir.
• The four kingdoms were: Macedonia,
Syria, Pergamum, Egypt
– The most prosperous one of the four was
Egypt, as it became governed by Ptolemy
and his family.
Accomplishments of the
Hellenistic Age
• Alexander unites the known world
• He spread Greek culture as far as India
• He found common ground with the
people he conquered and their culture
became an amalgam with the Greek
way of life
• Alexandria, became the most famous
place in the world for scholars to live
and work
Accomplishments of the
Hellenistic Age
• Alexandria had the largest collection of
books in the world. It numbered six
million
– When Alexandria burned in the middle
ages, those books and their knowledge
was lost forever
• New philosophies sprang up under the
reign of Alexander: Epicureanism and
Stoicism
Conclusion
• Alexander was the first man to unite the
known world
• He believed in a unification of all
peoples, living together in happiness
• Also, Alexander became the role model
for almost every great leader to emerge
since his death