The Untold Story of Alexander the Great in Ancient Egypt

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[Music] You must find a kingdom big enough for your ambition, Alexander. My boy, Macedon is too small for you. It is hard to say if there was any truth in the prophecies made by ancient Greek oracles, but King Philip II must have felt quite prophetic when he allegedly said those words to his son, Alexander. At that time, Alexander was only 10, still quite far from the conqueror he would become in the following years.

It is true that Alexander was one of the world’s most legendary commanders, but history is full of them, and yet very few have been decorated with titles such as “the Great.” But what exactly made Alexander great? His martial campaigns, his love for knowledge, or his personality? Today on Nutty History, let’s find out how Alexander earned his reputation as a great leader and whether he was worthy of it. Viewer discretion is advised for this video, as some content may be sensitive. We, the makers of this video, in no way support or condone the actions of the subjects featured.

[Music] Following the Persian Wars, Athens gained more power in Greece, which obviously wasn’t acceptable for the Spartans. This power dynamic created a lot of tension between the two Hellenistic powerhouses and eventually led to an all-out war. The whole of Greece was forced to choose a side in the Peloponnesian Wars. Macedon, a city-state north of Greece that most Greeks considered far inferior, watched the two sides butt heads as King Philip II strengthened Macedon’s economic and military position.

The reason why Macedon was never respected by the ancient Greeks was that they treated the Macedonians as foreigners and barbarians, never as one of their own. Moreover, the predecessors of Philip II had not left a positive mark. Philip’s own brothers, who ruled before him, were unsuccessful in preventing the disintegration of the kingdom and were killed during the Illyrian invasion, paving the way for Philip II to ascend to the throne.

When the time was ripe, Philip took advantage of the years of fighting between Athens and Sparta to lead a campaign against his Greek neighbors to the south. He left his then 16-year-old son, Alexander, home in Macedon to maintain the affairs of the state as regent. A kingdom that neighbored Macedon and was under its sovereignty saw Philip’s absence as an opportunity and attempted a revolt. Alexander quickly fought them, not only for Macedon but for some of their own land as well. After crushing the rebellion, Alexander founded a Greek city there named Alexandropolis, the first of many cities to be founded by and named after the future king.

At 18, Alexander was then named a general in his father’s army and successfully fought numerous battles leading up to the two joining forces in Greece to take Thermopylae from the Thebans. The Macedonians continued, defeating smaller city-states while attempting to reach a peaceful surrender of Athens. When it was clear that Athens had no intention of submitting to King Philip peacefully or otherwise, King Philip prepared for battle against Athens and Thebes at Carania and Bioshabiosha, a territory just north of Attica where Athens ruled. Despite the fact that Alexander had never fought in a battle so large, he proved to be vital to his father’s victory there.

Alexander led his troops against the Thebans and then broke through an opening between the enemy lines. Philip, who had retreated earlier, lured the Athenians with him and then went back on the attack, trapping the Athenians between Philip’s troops and Alexander’s. After Athens’ defeat, almost every Greek city-state, with the exception of Sparta, quickly agreed to Philip’s terms and joined the League of Corinth. The terms were that each was free to continue as they had before but agreed to defend one another and Macedon. They also agreed to send support to help Philip in his fight against Persia. This was a huge lesson for Alexander in diplomacy.

Philip ensured that Alexander was getting the best teaching, not only in politics and the battlefield but in life too. Alexander was taught by Aristotle from a young age, which made him one of the most educated kings and commanders in the history of his time. His fascination for philosophy, books, arts, and other intellectual pursuits never ended. He had his own guild of philosophers traveling with him on his military campaigns.

Another lesson that Alexander inherited from Philip was the use of the sarissa, a very long spear. When King Philip II campaigned in Greece, he had neither the money to produce armor like that used by Greek hoplites nor the time to train his own conscripts in phalanx maneuvers. Consequently, his men wore lighter armor and carried smaller shields with straps, enabling them to deflect blows while freeing both hands to wield the lightweight sarissa, a Macedonian phalangite weapon weighing a total of 40 pounds compared to 50 pounds for the average hoplite. The sarissa offered other advantages, notably its 18 to 22-foot length and stout iron spearhead, which, given a two-handed thrust, could penetrate an enemy’s armor.

Packing his troops in tight formations, 10 men wide and 10 deep, Philip initially kept the maneuvers simple, using his infantry only to pin down an enemy until his cavalry could flank them. As his phalangites gained experience, he used them more flexibly and aggressively. The length allowed the Macedonians to attack from a distance, destroying enemy troops before they were close enough to attack with their shorter weapons. Philip’s men had mastered the use of this complex weapon, and Athens was quickly defeated.

One highlight of Philip’s life that is not the most positive was his marriage to Alexander’s mother, Olympias. The two never saw eye to eye, and their relationship became more and more toxic over the years, allegedly ending with Olympias and possibly Alexander conspiring in Philip’s death at the hands of his ex and one of his former bodyguards. Olympias was the daughter of Neoptolemus, the first king of Epirus, who believed himself to be a descendant of Achilles. Olympias instilled this belief in Alexander as well. Both Philip and Olympias firmly believed that Alexander was more of Zeus’s blessing than Philip’s seed due to certain dreams they had during Olympias’s pregnancy.

Now you can see where Alexander got his sense of destiny, but it also instilled in him the self-belief that he was meant to achieve greatness. Alexander and his mother Olympias did everything they could to secure power. At just the age of 20, Alexander became king and inherited almost the entirety of Greece. Alexander displayed his capacity for brutality, holding nothing back as he ordered the deaths of a male cousin and two sons of the former king, sparing only those who he believed genuinely gave him their loyalty. Olympias took advantage of the circumstances as well and had Cleopatra Eurydice, the newest wife and then widow of Philip II, disposed of along with the young daughter she bore to Philip.

Alexander may not have agreed to that, but once it happened, he wasted no time having Cleopatra’s uncle eliminated so there would be no one left with grudges against him or his mother. Even Greeks tried to rebel after learning the news of Philip’s death, but their assumption about young Alexander being a weak king was further from the truth than they could have imagined. Despite his advisers suggesting he send ambassadors to negotiate, Alexander recognized the need to assert dominance and marched down with the Macedonian army immediately. With the prowess of the Macedonian army, Alexander doused the fire of revolt in Greece with ease and swiftly secured his northern borders by crushing the kingdoms raising their heads against his rule, including the Illyrian king.

But it was Thebes that was punished severely for their insurgency. Alexander destroyed the entire city after receiving the support of the entire Corinthian League. That said, death was inevitable for Thebes as they sided with Persia in the Persian War and had been the constant cause of unrest in Greece for quite some time. The one who united Greece, despite what happened to Thebes, does deserve the title of “the Great.” However, can we truly credit Alexander for it? As we discussed earlier, the Macedonian army was developed by Alexander’s father, Philip II. It was also under Philip that most of Greece was pacified, paving the way for large-scale recruitment and financing. Phalanx warfare was an evolution of the hoplite warfare of Greece, and Philip molded his soldiers to be the best in the world. Alexander inherited the army, the knowledge, and Greece along with the throne of Macedon. He had the world’s best generals at his disposal to crush the rebellions, so in a way, Alexander’s only job was to not mess it up.

Despite having a strained relationship with his father in King Philip’s final days, Alexander hadn’t forgotten the words and dreams of his father. Philip’s unfulfilled desire was to conquer Persia, so Alexander set out to do so immediately after getting things in order in Greece. Persia had grown much larger than it was when the Greco-Persian Wars occurred in the early 400s BCE. Alexander was in no hurry and decided to focus on one battle at a time. Despite the odds being against Macedon, Alexander’s army tasted early victory in the Battle of Granicus, despite the Macedonians having to cross a swift-running stream and fight uphill to do it.

Alexander took control of the capital of the province by leaving one of his trusted friends in control of the government at Sardis, but he also allowed the Persians to maintain all of their customs. He showed respect for the former rulers as well as the Persian warriors lost in battle, as his father had with the Thebans. Alexander gave proper funeral rights to all of the dead, not just his own men. Alexander’s victory march continued along with the port cities of the northern Mediterranean. He would allow the cities to surrender before his arrival and only fight when necessary as an object lesson for any Greek who decided to fight for the Persians. He sent Greek mercenaries fighting for these cities back to Greece to work in the mines.

When Alexander began advancing inland, Darius III at last decided to deal with Alexander himself outside of the city of Issus. One significant difference between the two kings is that Alexander always led his troops from the front, being the first in battle, while Darius led from the rear, staying out of harm’s way. Despite the Persians having significant numbers over the Macedonians, Darius soon found himself on the losing side with an inevitable defeat in sight and Alexander searching for him for a one-on-one battle. Darius turned his chariot around and began to flee. He didn’t just run from the battlefield; the scared and embarrassed king didn’t even stop at the city of Issus, abandoning his entire family.

When Alexander learned that Darius had left his family behind at the Macedonians’ mercy, he declared that they were to be treated just as they were accustomed. Darius tried to negotiate with Alexander for his family in return for letting Alexander keep the land he had conquered along with a hefty gift of ten thousand talents, but Alexander insisted that as he defeated Darius, the Persian king must recognize Alexander as the new emperor. It was an appropriate counteroffer given that Alexander held all the cards in his hands at the moment.

[Music] But Darius II chose to hide somewhere in Persia instead of replying to Alexander, so the Macedonian conqueror turned his eye toward Tyre and Egypt. Alexander marched most of the way to Egypt with very little fighting required. City by city, the people all submitted to their new king voluntarily. Word was spreading that acceptance of the king resulted in very little change for the citizens, while resistance always resulted in complete annihilation, as Alexander the Great never lost a battle.

This may have to do with the fate of Tyre, as the rulers of the island thought they were safe from Alexander. They gave him no diplomacy nor allowed him to build a bridge to seize the island, so with a little help from other Mediterranean cities that were now under his rule, Alexander surrounded the island with 200 ships equipped with battering rams. The walls of the island city were battered day and night, and all it took was one breach for Alexander’s men to destroy the entire city, taking the citizens hostage and selling many into slavery.

Gaza also tried to resist Alexander’s advances, feeling confident about sitting atop a hill, but Alexander was so determined that he ordered his men to raise the earth along the southern wall of the city. The people of Gaza did not simply sit back and wait to be attacked; they made attempts to destroy Alexander’s equipment, but he quickly led a counter-attack while his men continued their work. Alexander was wounded in the shoulder while providing protection for his men. This was the first significant wound reported to the king, but it proved to be more of an agitation to his temper than a deterrent to his efforts. It took three attempts to take Gaza, but when the Macedonians finally did, they killed every man and sold every woman and child into slavery. Alexander was so infuriated at an insult made by Batis, the highest-ranking commander of Gaza, that he dragged him around outside the city walls, reminiscent of the story of Troy.

Following these events, the rest of the march to Egypt was straightforward. The Egyptians were more than welcome to open the gates of Cairo, just like Jerusalem did for Alexander, as they were exhausted from Persian rule. They were, in fact, waiting for Alexander to hand him the title of Pharaoh of Egypt. Also aware that Alexander considered himself the son of Zeus, they proclaimed him the son of Amun Ra. Flattery will get you as far as possible from Alexander’s wrath, right? Alexander handed Egypt to his trusted commander Ptolemy and ordered them to build a new city where the Nile River met the Mediterranean Sea, which within a year became the largest city in the world. Sadly, Alexander would not be able to make it back to see the city, as his ambitions had him seeking Darius II again to end his conquest of the Achaemenid Empire.

In the two years since they fought at Issus, Darius had sent three requests to settle the matter peacefully, even going so far as to offer his oldest daughter in marriage. Alexander accepted none of them. He reportedly sent Darius a letter telling him that if he wanted to dispute the right to the Persian throne, he should fight for it like a man instead of running away. Darius and his troops were waiting at Gaugamela. Historians calculated that Darius’s forces numbered 250,000 soldiers, while Alexander marched in with only 47,000. However, some historians have claimed as many as a million Persians. The Persians also had something the Macedonians had never seen in battle before: elephants.

Darius once more sent an offer to Alexander, offering half of Persia to stop fighting. Alexander refused, despite Parmenion, a general who had served as Philip’s second-in-command and was respected by Alexander, stating that if he were Alexander, he would gladly accept the offer. Alexander replied that he would too if he were Parmenion.

By every chance, it was Darius’s battle to lose, and Alexander planned to force exactly the same. Though the Macedonian infantry started the battle, Alexander forced Darius to start the cavalry attack, as Alexander wanted all of the cavalry from both sides engaged in one battle. Despite the fact that the Macedonians were extremely outnumbered, Alexander had planned for reinforcements and held long enough for the young king’s next move. Alexander took command of a smaller number of troops who easily worked their way through Darius’s chariots to the center of the Persian line and Darius’s own guards. When Darius saw Alexander heading straight for him, he turned and ran. His army followed him, and though Alexander wanted to chase his army, he needed him elsewhere, so he had to let Darius go.

Even though Alexander didn’t catch Darius, he did secure Babylon and Susa, and after a small skirmish, he invaded Persepolis as well. Meanwhile, Darius sought refuge and help from local governors to fight Alexander again, but the word of Alexander’s mercy on surrender and Darius’s cowardice was spreading fast. Darius wanted to negotiate with Alexander but was eliminated by his own general, Bessus. When Alexander found out about Darius’s passing, he gave him a proper funeral at Persepolis and punished Bessus for denying Darius a chance to surrender. He also grabbed most of Central Asia along the way and built several new cities, all called Alexandria, in modern-day Afghanistan and Tajikistan.

Alexander had achieved much more than any military commander before him and sealed his place in the list of the greatest military generals to ever live. But among all this glory and gilded legacy, there were moments that may make you wonder if Alexander’s military campaign was a stroke of genius or a stroke of luck. We already mentioned that Egypt was eager to welcome Alexander when he arrived there. He was in the right place at the right time, but this coincidence can apply to his whole military campaign, not just Egypt. The entire Achaemenid Empire was crumbling due to a series of civil wars and internal feuds. To be fair, the Persian Empire had never been the same since its defeat in Greece.

Then there is the matter of the annihilation of Persepolis, a city that was raised to the ground possibly just because somebody angered Alexander and his army after they all drank too much at a feast. Persepolis citizens had organized this feast in honor of their new conqueror, Alexander. The reasons suggested by historians generally boil down to intoxication, policy, debauchery, or revenge. When Alexander woke up from his drunken slumber, he regretted his actions during an intense hangover, but that doesn’t clear up the accusation that Alexander may very well have been the one to throw the first torch at the palace of Xerxes. Whether Alexander participated in the annihilation of Persepolis or not, it doesn’t change the fact that the whole incident was a dark stain on his perfect image.

For Macedonian and Greek generals, it was acceptable when Alexander accepted Egyptian customs and behaved like a native there, but they drew the line when he did the same with the Persians. The reason is valid: Persians and Greeks had been enemies for centuries, and Alexander’s campaign was built on the promise of destroying the Persians and not mingling with them. So when Alexander tried to appease Persians by accepting their cultural norms, religion, and dressing style, asking the same from his army men too, the prejudice of these Greeks kicked back. There were a lot of disgruntled men, and some were willing to go to the measure of taking care of Alexander as well. However, Alexander’s luck hadn’t run out yet, and he was able to apprehend these plotters before they were able to do any harm.

However, as the number of conspirators and dissatisfied voices grew in the Macedonian camp, so did Alexander’s paranoia. In a drunken rage, Alexander slew his brother-like friend, Cleitus, and later also had his teacher Aristotle’s nephew, Callisthenes, executed on a speckle of doubt. After marrying Roxana, his most well-known wife in Bactria, Alexander crossed the Indus River to fight his last major battle against King Porus of Paurava