Have you ever wondered about those people who
are called _______the great or _______ the magnificent and you wondered if they
are really, actually that great and magnificent?
Well, for example, you might know Alexander the
Great. He was born in Macedonia and was raised for kingship by his parents,
King Philip and Queen Olympia. Macedonia was a time of scattered, warlike
tribes at that time. Alexander's father took power and united them. Later, King
Philip conquered Greece when Greece at that time was weak from all its
city-states battling each other. Then Philip died and Alexander rose to power
at age twenty.1
Now, Many historians are hesitating whether
Alexander the Great was great or not. I think that to be great, you need to
have courage, intelligence, creative, leadership, concern for others,
integrity, discipline and sometimes some remarkable achievement. So…..how great
was Alexander the Great?
Right now, I could tell you MANY reasons why Alexander was great and I think that he had all of those traits that were listed, hesitating historians.
First, just look at how much Alexander gained!
In only 11 years, Alexander already owns two million sq. miles! And he was
like, only twenty! Many dream of that kind of dream and only Alexander
accomplished it. Also, he found 70 cities(which he found most of them himself)!
And all that time, he was with his army and never gave up to just stayed behind
in the safety of his empire(sometimes he was even at the front of his army at
battles!).2
So why not just call him great? Evan the Roman
Emperor and his descendants wore his image on his clothes after Alexander’s
death for 540 YEARS!!!2 After all, he conquered SO much land in ONLY 11 years! Can’t you
see the kind of courage and leadership you need for that!? And can’t you see
his such remarkable achievement!?
Another reason Alexander the Great was GREAT was
because he had so much intelligence, creativity and such a remarkable
achievement. In the battle with Porus, Alexander was able to creatively drag
them around the place, confusing them(by making a racket and war cry, causing
Porus to follow the noise), intelligently crawling up to them silently(crossing
a river while Porus was distracted by 5,000 soldiers standing in open view in
front of Porus) and remarkably turn their own forces against themselves(made
Porus elephants knock against each other)! 3
Can you, historians see that kind of creativity,
intelligence and his remarkable achievement Alexander has?
Another reason of many
why Alexander the great was great, was because he had leadership, courage,
concern for others and integrity. This can be shown in the story ‘‘The Legend
of the Helmet’’. In this story, Alexander with his army was walking across a
desert. In this story, it is stated:
‘‘Alexander, like everyone else, was tormented by thirst,
but nonetheless
marching
on foot at the head of his men’’
That line just stated
how Alexander, not looking at his thirst, has leadership and courage to keep
marching in the blazing sun and heat. Later, in the story, they stop by a tiny,
little trickle of water.
With difficulty,
Alexander’s infantry scooped up some water, poured it in a helmet and gave it
to him. Alexander, in front of everybody, poured the water on the ground. He
did this because saw it unfair for him to satisfy himself by rehydrating while
all of his army stands thirsty and hot. This shows that he was great in his
concern for others and integrity.3
Another time where
Alexander shows his concern for others is stated by the text, HIstory Alive!,
‘‘The towns and cities that resisted him would be burnt to the ground and their
people sold into slavery. The towns and cities that surrender would keep their
government officials, and Alexander would help them rebuild damaged property’’
(290-291).
I mean, wouldn't you do
the same? You would treat people who respect you better then the people who
don’t.
So you see, Alexander
had a lot of integrity and concern for others too.
Although Alexander did
kill quite a lot of people1, Alexander not only conquered a lot of land,
but also united them5! Not a lot of people can one: conquer so much
land in only 11 years and at such a young age, two:unite them too!
He united them in three
ways. One: he spread greek culture by building Greek buildings. Two: he
honored other gods as his gods to inspire loyalty. Three: he showed respect for
cultural practices of the people he conquered. He even adapted some practices
himself! Do you see those amazing traits Alexander has?1
He was so great that
after his death, his empire fell apart because without him, nobody could hold
such a big empire.1
So you see, with the
traits courage, intelligence, creativity, leadership, concern for others,
integrity, discipline and a huge remarkable achievement, Alexander is proven to
be great.
1 History Alive! (290-295)
2 The Chart of Alexander’s Legacy- Created by
Various Sources
3 Lucius Flavius Arrianus, The Campaigns of
Alexander, circa 130 CE.
Source:http://www.ancientfacts.net
