Alexander the Great (Greek: Αλέξανδρος， English: Alexander the Great; From 356 BC to June 13, 323 BC, he was the king of the Kingdom of Macedonia (Alexander Empire) (reigning from 336 BC to June 13, 323 BC), known as Alexander III. An outstanding military strategist and politician in ancient world history, and the leader of the four (some say seven) military commanders in Western history. The son of King Philip II of Macedonia.
Alexander studied under the ancient Greek scholar Aristotle during his youth, and his father ruled Macedonia at the age of 16. In 336 BC, he succeeded to the throne after the assassination of Philip II at the age of only 20. Faced with internal and external difficulties, he quickly quelled the internal turmoil in the palace, defeated various opposition forces, and unified the entire territory of Greece in 335 BC. Starting from 334 BC, he led his army to invade the east and successively defeated the Persian Empire in the battles of the Granicus River, Issus, and Gaugamera. He swept across Asia Minor, the Middle East, and the Iranian Plateau, occupying the entire territory of Egypt without a single soldier. In 330 BC, he annexed the Persian Empire. In 329 BC, he moved to Central Asia and continued his southern expedition to India in 327 BC. Until his retreat to the west in 324 BC, Alexander conquered approximately 5 million square kilometers of territory within 13 years without a single defeat. Establishing a great empire that spanned Greece and Macedonia in the west, the Indus River basin in the east, the first waterfall of the Nile River in the south, and the Syr River in the north, Macedonia became the largest country in terms of territory in the world at that time. He passed away in Babylon in 323 BC at the age of 33.
Through Alexander's military conquest, ancient Greek civilization was widely spread and flourished, with close cultural and economic exchanges between the East and the West, ushering in the Hellenistic era. At the same time, he encouraged intermarriage among ethnic groups and advocated for equal status among them, which had a significant impact on the progress of human society and culture. As a recognized military genius in world history, he himself has become one of the most influential figures in human history.

Birth of Genius
In 356 BC, Alexander (meaning "Guardian of the People" [27]) was born in Pera, the administrative capital of the Kingdom of Macedonia. He was the son of King Philip II of Macedonia and Olympias of Epirus. When Alexander was of the same size, Philip II hired the Greek philosopher Aristotle as his mentor and other Macedonian nobles at Mieza. He cherished the poet Homer's poem "Iliad" and was influenced by the hero Achilles and the legendary figure Heracles. [11]
In 340 BC, when Philip II went to war on the Byzantine city-state, 16-year-old Alexander took over Macedonia and led his troops to suppress the uprising in Maedi in northern Macedonia, establishing a city named Alexandropolis after himself. [39]
In 338 BC, due to the defeat of Philip II in Byzantium, a great rebellion against Macedonia emerged in the Greek city states. Athens and Thebes formed an alliance, preparing to confront Philip II. Philip II led the coalition of Thessaly, Epirus, Etoria, North Phocles, and Rochus to engage in a battle against Athens and Thebes, which determined the fate of Greece - the Battle of Catalonia. In this battle, Alexander, as the commander of the left wing (some say the right wing) of the coalition, seized the opportunity and decisively penetrated the gaps of the coalition, completely annihilating the Saint Thebes and directly striking the enemy from behind, resulting in a crucial victory for Macedonia. [11] Alexander was only 18 years old this year, but his talent was undoubtedly displayed.
In 337 BC, Philip II divorced Olympias and later married Cleopatra, the niece of Macedonian nobleman Atarus. When Atarus commented at the wedding banquet between Philip II and Cleopatra that there would be a legitimate heir to the Macedonian royal family, Alexander replied, "So, what do you think of me, you despicable person? A bastard?" After that, he threw his glass at him. When Philip II leaned against his guard Artarus on a chair and drew his sword at Alexander, he was angry and fell on the chair because he couldn't stand steady while drunk. Alexander mocked him and said, "Look! A king who is preparing to sweep across Asia Minor from Europe cannot even jump over a chair."
After this incident, Alexander's mother and son were expelled by Philip II and returned to Epirus. Alexander's inheritance rights in Macedonia were also challenged. Shortly thereafter, Philip II sent messengers to recall Alexander and reconcile with him.

At the beginning of his ascension to the throne
In 336 BC, Philip II was assassinated by the close guard Passanias at the wedding of his daughter Cleopatra and Alexander I of Epirus held in Eg. [11] Alexander accused this matter of being instructed by Persian King Darius III, who later used it as a reason to attack Persia. [27]
Subsequently, at the age of 20, Alexander was elected as the new king by Antipater, a prominent figure in the Macedonian army, and was known as Alexander III. [11] Taking advantage of his position in Pela, he won the support of the Macedonian people and army through the funeral of Philip II and the policy of reducing taxes. He executed the two sons of Eros on charges of participating in the assassination of Philip II. Amintas, who also had the right to succeed, was executed on charges of conspiring to overthrow Alexander. Olympias killed Cleopatra and her son who had the right to succeed, making Alexander the only healthy male heir to the Macedonian royal family. [27] [40]
Athens, which was forced to ally with Philip, and Thebes, who hated Philip II, saw his assassination as an opportunity to regain independence and began to show signs of instability. Under the leadership of Demosthenes, Athens once again launched a struggle against Macedonia. The states of the Peloponnese (except for Megalopolis and Messenia) also united under Sparta and launched a struggle against Macedonia. Alexander first suppressed the rebellion of Macedonian nobles, then led his army south, crossed the Hot Springs Pass, entered Forkis, and convened the Neighbor Alliance in Delphi, regaining the power of the Allied lords during the Philip era. Then they marched into the Peloponnese and gained control of the states outside of Sparta. Although Athens was not within the reach of Alexander's army, it was intimidated by his might and had to send envoys to apologize to Alexander, acknowledging him as the hegemon of Greece. In the autumn of 336 BC, Alexander convened the Greek League Congress in Corinth, with representatives from all states except Sparta attending. At the meeting, Alexander was appointed as the commander of the alliance against Persia, leading the revenge war against Persia.

After suppressing the Greek rebellion, Alexander did not immediately attack Persia. He believed that before advancing, it was necessary to sweep the north and west, remove obstacles on the way forward, so that his rear base in Macedonia could be safely guaranteed when he truly advanced. Therefore, Alexander decided to first conquer the barbaric tribes between Macedonia and the Danube. In 335 BC, Alexander personally led his army to attack Thrace in northern Macedonia, stabilizing the northern defense line for the eastward expedition to Asia Minor, and retaliating against the local Tribali tribe's ambush on Philip II's troops and theft of war spoils in 338 BC. After defeating Tribali on the Danube, Alexander advanced and defeated the Illyrians who threatened northwest Macedonia. [23]
At the same time, Greek states mistakenly reported Alexander's death on the Danube battlefield. Thebes saw this rumor as a new opportunity and first rose up, killing the remaining Macedonian officials and besieging the Macedonian army stationed in the Acropolis of Cadmia. Athens and the Peloponnesian states all participated in the anti Macedonian movement, but maintained a cautious attitude. After hearing the news, Alexander quickly rushed back from Illyria and arrived at Thebes in just 14 days. The resistance of Thebes failed, and the city was completely destroyed. Alexander divided his territory equally among his allies and sold most of the people of the Thebes as slaves, with only the temple and the poet Pindar's house surviving. [11] Athens, whose ports were blocked by Macedonians, subsequently gave up resistance. The Greek states were deterred and sent envoys to apologize to Alexander. Within less than 2 years, Alexander solidified his position in Greece. At the Greek League Conference held in Corinth, the states reaffirmed their support for Alexander as the Greek leader and for his eastward expedition to Persia. During Alexander's Eastern Expedition, anti Macedonian movements occurred in various Greek states, but none of them were successful.