What will I learn about: how a young Alexander used keen observation and problem-solving to tame the legendary horse Bucephalus?

Discover how a young Alexander used keen observation and problem-solving to tame the legendary horse Bucephalus.

What will I learn about: Learn why Alexander ruthlessly destroyed the rebellious city of Thebes to set a violent example that successfully secured his absolute power in Greece?

Learn why Alexander ruthlessly destroyed the rebellious city of Thebes to set a violent example that successfully secured his absolute power in Greece.

What will I learn about: how Alexander achieved stunning military victories against the Persians by trusting his own strategic intuition and defying the conventional advice of his senior generals?

Understand how Alexander achieved stunning military victories against the Persians by trusting his own strategic intuition and defying the conventional advice of his senior generals.

What will I learn about: how Alexander neutralized the superior Persian navy not by fighting them at sea, but by strategically conquering the Mediterranean coastline to eliminate their ports?

Find out how Alexander neutralized the superior Persian navy not by fighting them at sea, but by strategically conquering the Mediterranean coastline to eliminate their ports.

What will I learn about: Explore the highly unconventional tactics Alexander employed to capture enemy cities, including pushing campaigns through harsh winters and using disguised dancers as undercover assassins?

Explore the highly unconventional tactics Alexander employed to capture enemy cities, including pushing campaigns through harsh winters and using disguised dancers as undercover assassins.

Alexander the Great

The Macedonian who conquered the world

Philip Freeman

★ 4.6 / 5(351 ratings)

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Categories:

Biography & Memoir History

If You're Curious About These Questions...

You should listen to this audiobook

💡What drove a 21-year-old to embark on a decade-long campaign to conquer the known world?
💡How did one man's military genius create an empire that shaped the course of history for centuries?
💡What secrets can Alexander's leadership style teach us about achieving our own goals and building a lasting legacy?

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Key Takeaways from Alexander the Great

✓Discover how a young Alexander used keen observation and problem-solving to tame the legendary horse Bucephalus.
✓Learn why Alexander ruthlessly destroyed the rebellious city of Thebes to set a violent example that successfully secured his absolute power in Greece.
✓Understand how Alexander achieved stunning military victories against the Persians by trusting his own strategic intuition and defying the conventional advice of his senior generals.
✓Find out how Alexander neutralized the superior Persian navy not by fighting them at sea, but by strategically conquering the Mediterranean coastline to eliminate their ports.
✓Explore the highly unconventional tactics Alexander employed to capture enemy cities, including pushing campaigns through harsh winters and using disguised dancers as undercover assassins.

Learning Tools

Reinforce what you learned from Alexander the Great

Mind Map

Alexander the Great

Early Life & Ascension+

The Persian Campaign Begins+

The Battle of Issus+

Conquest of Egypt+

Fall of the Persian Empire+

The Eastern Frontier+

Death & Legacy+

Quiz — Test Your Understanding

Question 1 of 10

How did a young Alexander successfully tame the famously untameable horse, Bucephalus?

A. He broke the horse's spirit through brutal physical exhaustion.
B. He realized the horse was afraid of its own shadow and led it into the sun.
C. He fed the horse a specific calming herb found in the Macedonian mountains.
D. He blindfolded the horse before attempting to mount it.

Question 2 of 10

Why did Alexander order the total destruction of the southern Greek city of Thebes?

A. To set a violent example and deter other Greek states from rebelling against his rule.
B. To avenge the assassination of his father, Philip II.
C. To seize their vast treasury to fund his upcoming invasion of Persia.
D. Because the city had secretly allied with the Persian King Darius.

Question 3 of 10

What unconventional strategy did Alexander use to defeat the Persian navy after taking the city of Miletus?

A. He built a massive fleet of smaller, faster ships to outmaneuver them.
B. He bribed the Persian naval commanders to defect to his side.
C. He disbanded his own navy and focused on conquering the coastline to eliminate Persian docking ports.
D. He lured the Persian ships into a narrow strait where they crashed into the rocks.

Question 4 of 10

How did Alexander handle the generous peace treaty offered by King Darius after the Battle of Issus?

A. He accepted it to consolidate his control over Asia Minor.
B. He forged a fake version of the treaty with insulting remarks to ensure his generals would reject it.
C. He sent the messenger back with a counter-offer demanding Darius's surrender.
D. He accepted the ransom for Darius's family but refused the land concessions.

Question 5 of 10

What inspired Alexander to choose the specific location for the city of Alexandria in Egypt?

A. A strategic recommendation from his most trusted general, Parmenion.
B. A prophecy given to him by the oracle at the sanctuary of Ammon.
C. A dream in which an elderly man spoke to him about the island of Pharos.
D. An ancient Egyptian map he discovered while visiting the pyramids of Giza.

Question 6 of 10

What clever tactical maneuver did Alexander use to break through the Persian lines at the Battle of Gaugamela?

A. He deployed captured Indian war elephants to trample the Persian infantry.
B. He attacked at midnight, catching the Persian army completely off guard.
C. He faked a retreat to lure the Persian cavalry into a trap.
D. He rode his cavalry parallel to the Persian front line to draw men away and create a gap to charge through.

Question 7 of 10

Why did Alexander allow his soldiers to pillage the Persian capital of Persepolis?

A. He wanted to completely eradicate Persian culture and history.
B. He knew that if he tried to stop his restless men, it would result in a full-blown rebellion.
C. He needed the looted wealth to pay off his massive debts to the Macedonian treasury.
D. He believed it was a necessary sacrifice to appease the Greek gods.

Question 8 of 10

What ultimately caused Alexander to halt his eastward expansion and turn back toward home?

A. He suffered a severe and debilitating injury during a battle in India.
B. He received news that a massive rebellion had broken out in Macedonia.
C. His army lost faith, and a general convinced him that the men longed to see their families.
D. He ran out of food and supplies while attempting to cross the Ganges River.

Question 9 of 10

What were Alexander's dying words when asked who should succeed him as ruler of his massive empire?

A. 'To my unborn son.'
B. 'To the gods.'
C. 'To the strongest.'
D. 'To the people of Macedonia.'

Question 10 of 10

According to the text, how did Alexander's conquests inadvertently play a major role in the spread of Christianity?

A. He built a vast network of safe roads that early Christian missionaries later used to travel.
B. He established Greek as the primary language of the Mediterranean, giving the Greek Gospels a ready audience.
C. He destroyed pagan temples throughout the Middle East, leaving a religious void.
D. He introduced monotheism to the region after visiting the oracle at Ammon.