Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great PDF Author: Philip Freeman
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1416592814
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 418

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Book Description
In the first authoritative biography of Alexander the Great written for a general audience in a generation, classicist and historian Philip Freeman tells the remarkable life of the great conqueror. The celebrated Macedonian king has been one of the most enduring figures in history. He was a general of such skill and renown that for two thousand years other great leaders studied his strategy and tactics, from Hannibal to Napoleon, with countless more in between. He flashed across the sky of history like a comet, glowing brightly and burning out quickly: crowned at age nineteen, dead by thirty-two. He established the greatest empire of the ancient world; Greek coins and statues are found as far east as Afghanistan. Our interest in him has never faded. Alexander was born into the royal family of Macedonia, the kingdom that would soon rule over Greece. Tutored as a boy by Aristotle, Alexander had an inquisitive mind that would serve him well when he faced formidable obstacles during his military campaigns. Shortly after taking command of the army, he launched an invasion of the Persian empire, and continued his conquests as far south as the deserts of Egypt and as far east as the mountains of present-day Pakistan and the plains of India. Alexander spent nearly all his adult life away from his homeland, and he and his men helped spread the Greek language throughout western Asia, where it would become the lingua franca of the ancient world. Within a short time after Alexander’s death in Baghdad, his empire began to fracture. Best known among his successors are the Ptolemies of Egypt, whose empire lasted until Cleopatra. In his lively and authoritative biography of Alexander, classical scholar and historian Philip Freeman describes Alexander’s astonishing achievements and provides insight into the mercurial character of the great conqueror. Alexander could be petty and magnanimous, cruel and merciful, impulsive and farsighted. Above all, he was ferociously, intensely competitive and could not tolerate losing—which he rarely did. As Freeman explains, without Alexander, the influence of Greece on the ancient world would surely not have been as great as it was, even if his motivation was not to spread Greek culture for beneficial purposes but instead to unify his empire. Only a handful of people have influenced history as Alexander did, which is why he continues to fascinate us.

Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great PDF Author: Philip Freeman
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1416592814
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 418

Get Book Here

Book Description
In the first authoritative biography of Alexander the Great written for a general audience in a generation, classicist and historian Philip Freeman tells the remarkable life of the great conqueror. The celebrated Macedonian king has been one of the most enduring figures in history. He was a general of such skill and renown that for two thousand years other great leaders studied his strategy and tactics, from Hannibal to Napoleon, with countless more in between. He flashed across the sky of history like a comet, glowing brightly and burning out quickly: crowned at age nineteen, dead by thirty-two. He established the greatest empire of the ancient world; Greek coins and statues are found as far east as Afghanistan. Our interest in him has never faded. Alexander was born into the royal family of Macedonia, the kingdom that would soon rule over Greece. Tutored as a boy by Aristotle, Alexander had an inquisitive mind that would serve him well when he faced formidable obstacles during his military campaigns. Shortly after taking command of the army, he launched an invasion of the Persian empire, and continued his conquests as far south as the deserts of Egypt and as far east as the mountains of present-day Pakistan and the plains of India. Alexander spent nearly all his adult life away from his homeland, and he and his men helped spread the Greek language throughout western Asia, where it would become the lingua franca of the ancient world. Within a short time after Alexander’s death in Baghdad, his empire began to fracture. Best known among his successors are the Ptolemies of Egypt, whose empire lasted until Cleopatra. In his lively and authoritative biography of Alexander, classical scholar and historian Philip Freeman describes Alexander’s astonishing achievements and provides insight into the mercurial character of the great conqueror. Alexander could be petty and magnanimous, cruel and merciful, impulsive and farsighted. Above all, he was ferociously, intensely competitive and could not tolerate losing—which he rarely did. As Freeman explains, without Alexander, the influence of Greece on the ancient world would surely not have been as great as it was, even if his motivation was not to spread Greek culture for beneficial purposes but instead to unify his empire. Only a handful of people have influenced history as Alexander did, which is why he continues to fascinate us.

A Great Idea at the Time

A Great Idea at the Time PDF Author: Alex Beam
Publisher: ReadHowYouWant.com
ISBN: 1458758575
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 306

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Book Description
Today the classics of the western canon, written by the proverbial ''dead white men,'' are cannon fodder in the culture wars. But in the 1950s and 1960s, they were a pop culture phenomenon. The Great Books of Western Civilization, fifty-four volumes chosen by intellectuals at the University of Chicago, began as an educational movement, and evolved into a successful marketing idea. Why did a million American households buy books by Hippocrates and Nicomachus from door-to-door salesmen? And how and why did the great books fall out of fashion? In A Great Idea at the Time Alex Beam explores the Great Books mania, in an entertaining and strangely poignant portrait of American popular culture on the threshold of the television age. Populated with memorable characters, A Great Idea at the Time will leave readers asking themselves: Have I read Lucretius's De Rerum Natura lately? If not, why not?

Alexander the Great: A Very Short Introduction

Alexander the Great: A Very Short Introduction PDF Author: Hugh Bowden
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191016365
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 131

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Book Description
Alexander the Great became king of Macedon in 336 BC, when he was only 20 years old, and died at the age of 32, twelve years later. During his reign he conquered the Achaemenid Persian Empire, the largest empire that had ever existed, leading his army from Greece to Pakistan, and from the Libyan desert to the steppes of Central Asia. His meteoric career, as leader of an alliance of Greek cities, Pharaoh of Egypt, and King of Persia, had a profound effect on the world he moved through. Even in his lifetime his achievements became legendary and in the centuries that following his story was told and retold throughout Europe and the East. Greek became the language of power in the Eastern Mediterranean and much of the Near East, as powerful Macedonian dynasts carved up Alexander's empire into kingdoms of their own, underlaying the flourishing Hellenistic civilization that emerged after his death. But what do we really know about Alexander? In this Very Short Introduction, Hugh Bowden goes behind the usual historical accounts of Alexander's life and career. Instead, he focuses on the evidence from Alexander's own time -- letters from officials in Afghanistan, Babylonian diaries, records from Egyptian temples -- to try and understand how Alexander appeared to those who encountered him. In doing so he also demonstrates the profound influence the legends of his life have had on our historical understanding and the controversy they continue to generate worldwide. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Alexander the Great and the East

Alexander the Great and the East PDF Author: Krzysztof Nawotka
Publisher: Harrassowitz
ISBN: 9783447107105
Category : Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Even if Alexander's rule in Asia has to be approached primarily through the study of Greek and Latin authors, many papers in this volume try to look beyond Arrian, Plutarch, Curtius, and Diodorus to Greek inscriptions, papyri, Egyptian, Babylonian, medieval Syriac and Arabic evidence. One focus is on Egypt, from the XXX dynasty to the Ptolemaic age. A lasting achievement of the early Macedonian age in Egypt is the lighthouse of Pharos, probably devised under Alexander to serve both as a watchtower of Alexandria and the focal point of the fire telegraph. Another focus of the volume is on Babylonia, with caveats against the over-enthusiastic usage of cuneiform sources for Alexander. This focus then moves further east, showing how much caution is necessary in studying the topography of Alexander's campaigns in Baktria, the land often misrepresented by ancient and medieval authors. It also deals with representation and literary topoi, having in mind that Alexander was as much a historical as a literary figure. In many respects ancient Alexander historians handled his persona in strong connection with Herodotean topics, while the idealized portrait of Alexander translated, through court poetry, into the language of power of Ptolemy of Egypt. Alexander was adopted to cultural traditions of the East, both through the medium of the Alexander Romance and through his fictitious correspondence with Aristotle, sometimes becoming a figure of a (Muslim) mystic or a chosen (Jewish) king.

The First European

The First European PDF Author: Pierre Briant
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 067465966X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 501

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Book Description
Enlightenment thinkers, searching for ancient models to understand contemporary affairs, were the first to critically interpret Alexander the Great’s achievements. As Pierre Briant shows, in their minds Alexander was the first European: an empire builder who welcomed trade with the “Orient” and brought Western civilization to its oppressed peoples.

Alexander the Great Failure

Alexander the Great Failure PDF Author: John D Grainger
Publisher: A&C Black
ISBN: 082644394X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 514

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Book Description
In this authoritative book John Grainger explores the foundations of Alexander's empire and why it did not survive after his untimely death in 323 BC.

Alex the Great

Alex the Great PDF Author: Harry Witwer
Publisher: Litres
ISBN: 5040481853
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 201

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Book Description


Brill's Companion to Alexander the Great

Brill's Companion to Alexander the Great PDF Author: Joseph Roisman
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 900421755X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 436

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Book Description
Many important issues surrounding Alexander the Great's conquest have captured the interest of scholars and general readers since antiquity. This book acquaints us with these issues and their current interpretations, and opens up new directions of investigation as it confronts them. It covers a broad range of topics: the ancients' representations of the king in literature and art; Alexander's relations with Greeks, Macedonians, and the peoples of Asia; the military, political, sociological, and cultural aspects of his campaigns; the exploitation of his story by ancient philosophers to argue a moral point and by modern communities to affirm or contest ethnic and national identities. This volume will be of interest to scholars and nonspecialists alike and serve as a standard reference work for years to come.

Olympias

Olympias PDF Author: Elizabeth Carney
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134318197
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 241

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Book Description
Presenting a critical assessment of a fascinating and wholly misunderstood figure, this is the definitive guide to the life of the first woman to play a major role in Greek political history, and the first modern biography of Olympias.

Grow the Pie

Grow the Pie PDF Author: Alex Edmans
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1009062719
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 541

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Book Description
Should companies be run for profit or purpose? This book shows how they can deliver both-based on rigorous evidence and an actionable framework. This edition, updated to include the pandemic and latest research, explains how managers, investors and citizens can put purpose into practice-and overcome the difficult trade-offs that hold them back.