Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar - Assignment Example

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon, also known as Alexander the Great, was born in 356 BC in Pella. His parents were Philip II and Olympias. In his early age, Alexander was fortunate to be educated by Aristotle, the renowned Greek philosopher. In 336 BC, Philip II was assassinated. Thus, Alexander had to inherit power in his teenage age. Truly, it was a huge responsibility in his teenage shoulders because of the volatility of the kingdom. However, because of his brilliance, Alexander managed to deal with his enemies at home, reasserting Macedonia power within Greece. He subsequently headed off to conquer the great Persian Empire (BBC). Although he was a prince, Alexander never had the luxuries that came as a result of holding such a position. Because he was a king’s son, his ultimate destiny was to take over from his father. Thus, he needed to experience the harsh realities of the job ahead of him early in life. Therefore, he had to learn what was considered essential skills during his time. For instance, he started learning the tactics of war from the day he could walk. His father used the most skilled veterans to train him. Alexander subsequently learnt vital military skills such as swordplay, archery, and horsemanship. Apart from military science, Alexander learnt reading and writing (Freeman 18; BBC). Alexander’s first test of military command and war came when he was only 18 years old. At that time, Macedon was locked in conflict with the south. The war provided a perfect opportunity for Alexander to test his military skills. Since King Philip wanted his son to be a great soldier and commander, he gave him the command of one of the wings of his army. However, because of Alexander’s young age, King Philip still feared the occurrence of unfortunate results of the war. Thus, as a precautionary measure, King Philip decided to put some of his bravest generals on Alexander’s side. Alexander emerged victorious from the battle. The army wing under his command decisively won the battle (Abbott 8). Alexander’s military ingenuity was an edge over his Persian enemies in the Battle of Gaugamela. In his attempt to conquer Asia Minor, Alexander ignored his commander’s strategies and pursued his own. The commanders had suggested attacking the enemy soldiers at night when most of their horses were grazing. The strategy would have led to an easy victory for Alexander’s army. However, Alexander himself wanted a victory that could intimidate the entire Asia Minor region. He attacked the Persian army during the day. Although it was a difficult battle, Alexander’s army victoriously emerged from the war. Apart from the victory, the battle brought the desired fear of Alexander’s army (Abbott 28). In the southern Asia Minor expedition, Alexander met very little resistance in most areas because the inhabitants were Greeks. For several years, the area had been under Greek and Persian rule depending on whoever had the strongest army. Thus, as a way of buying loyalty, Alexander decided not to change most of the governance structure in the area. For example, he maintained the taxes that the people used to pay under Persian rule. He also promised to protect private property. In addition, he promised to control his army from killing anyone in the area. Because he kept his promises, Alexander managed to conquer most of the Greek cities that had been under the Persian rule (Abbott 29). Though his army was weak in comparison to other empires, Alexander emerged victorious in numerous battles in the Persian territories of Syria, Asia Minor, and Egypt. He never suffered any decisive defeat in all these battles. The Battle of Gaugamela, the present day northern Iraq, became his ultimate victory. Thus, at the age of 25, Alexander became the great king of Persia (BBC). During his reign, Alexander became a commander, scholar, politician, and explorer. He founded more than 70 cities and created the largest empire covering three continents with an estimated area of 2 million square miles. Indeed the empire was enormous; it covered the entire Greece, Danube, Egypt, and Indian Punjab. These regions were linked with vast trading activities in what amounts to an international trade. Alexander also united the regions by enforcing Greek language and culture. In addition, he adopted foreign customs as a way of controlling his subjects (BBC). Though he was careless with his life and those of his soldiers, Alexander was recognized as a military genius who could lead by example. As an illustration, his soldiers mutinied only once in his 12-year reign. Although there was constant fighting, Alexander managed to inspire loyalty among his soldiers (Abbott 66; BBC). The peak of Alexander’s military expeditions and conquests took place in India. He managed to reach the banks of Indus, and was still determined to cross and extend his conquest further into the Ganges. However, because his army had fought several battles in Asia, a significant number had been killed while others sustained serious injuries. Though they had emerged victorious in all the battles, the morale to continue fighting had deteriorated. Majority of soldiers wanted to return to their homes and celebrate their conquests. As a result, Alexander’s soldiers mutinied. Thus, he opted to give up his ambitions (Abbott 65-66). After the Indian conquest, Alexander moved to Babylon. It was at this point that his extravagances worsened. He started isolating himself from his army and others who had helped him throughout his numerous victories. In June 323 BC, Alexander died of fever. His body was moved to the present-day Egyptian city of Alexandria (Abbott 70). Julius Caesar Julius Caesar was born in 100 BC into the high-status clan of Julian. Because he was brought up in a political family, he subsequently took a career in politics. His opportunity was that his family had close ties with the Marian, the faction that dominated Roman politics. Thus, he managed to progress within the political system (Fields 6-7). Caesar’s political education and career started at the age of 10. At that time, his father served as a consul. Thus, Caesar had the rare privilege of learning the political art of life. In those days, success in Roman politics depended on money and one’s ability to speak in public (Fields 12). Political aspirants were expected to address people including the senate fluently. When Caesar’s father left the consulship, his cousin took the same position. Thus, Caesar got plenty of opportunities to master the Roman politics. The Caesar family also had vested interests in reviving their political prominence after staying for long without holding major political positions (Billows). Because of political alliances that were cemented with marriages and close family ties, Caesar managed to progress within the political system. For example, he was the governor of Spain, one of the Roman provinces, from 61 to 60 BC. In 59 BC, he was elected a consul after making a deal with Pompey and Crassus. After serving for one year in the post, he became the governor of Roman Gaul. In his tenure, he added the present-day France and Belgium to the Roman republic, effectively protecting Rome from Gallic invasions. He also made two expeditions to Britain (BBC). When he returned to Italy, he not only disregarded the senate’s authority but also crossed the Rubicon River with his army. The Roman constitution did not allow armies to enter Rome. The constitution also required any military general to lay aside his command before entering the city (Fields 11). Because Caesar had disregarded the constitution, his political opponents thought it was appropriate to punish him. The move ignited a civil war in which Caesar emerged victorious. Caesar managed to defeat the republican forces, prompting their leader, Pompey, to flee to Egypt. However, Caesar pursued and subsequently assassinated him. Although he was initially after Pompey, Caesar eventually fell in love with the Egyptian queen (BBC). During his reign, Caesar became a dictator. He declared himself consul and master of Rome. Nevertheless, he used his position to bring the necessary reforms to the region. For example, he enlarged the senate, revised the calendar, introduced debt relieve, and built the Forum Iulium (BBC). The Romans had little concerns about the dictatorship because they considered it temporary. However, when it became clear that Caesar intended to take it for life, some defiant republican politicians decided to overthrow him. Thus, in 44 BC, a faction led by Brutus and Cassius assassinated him. The move ignited another round of civil wars, which effectively ended the republic. The war also brought Caesar’s nephew, Augustus, to power as the first emperor (Vigon 1-2). Works Cited Abbott, Jacob. “Alexander the Great.” N.p., n.d. Web. 15 November 2014. . “Alexander the Great.” BBC., n.d. Web. 15 November 2014. . Billows, A. Richard. Julius Caesar: The Colossus of Rome. London: Routledge, 2008. Print Fields, Nic. Julius Caesar: Leadership, Strategy, Conflict. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2010. Print. Freeman, Philip. Alexander the Great. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2011. Print. “Julius Caesar.” BBC., n.d. Web. 15 November 2014. . Vigon, Derek. “Julius Caesar and The Roman Empire.” N.p., n.d. Web. 15 November 2014. . Read More