Facts about Alexander the Great
- 18
Eleven thousand troops from Greece and Macedonia crossed the Hellespont with Alexander in 334 BCE, beginning his conquest of the Persian Empire with a force smaller than the defending garrison at many Persian cities.
- 17
Egypt's pharaohs adopted Alexander as a legitimate successor after he visited the Oracle of Amun in 331 BCE, legitimizing his rule over the conquered kingdom and elevating his status beyond military conqueror.
- 16
Roxana, Alexander's Bactrian wife, bore him a son named Alexander IV in 323 BCE, who was murdered at age thirteen by rival generals dividing his father's empire.
- 15
Scholars estimate Alexander personally fathered at least two children during his conquests, including Hercules with Barsine and Alexander IV with Roxana, though legitimacy disputes plagued both lineages after his death.
- 14
After his conquest of Tyre in 332 BCE, Alexander's siege engineers built a causeway across half a mile of sea to breach the island fortress, using innovative siege technology to overcome the Phoenician city's natural defenses.
- 13
Susa's royal treasury contained approximately 180,000 talents of silver when Alexander captured the Persian capital in 330 BCE, representing the largest single acquisition of wealth in his military career.
- 12
Macedonian coins minted after Alexander's death featured his profile wearing an elephant scalp headdress, symbolizing his Indian conquests and exotic achievements.
- 11
Twenty-two thousand soldiers died at the Battle of Gaugamela in 331 BCE when Alexander defeated Persian King Darius III despite being outnumbered by nearly five to one.
- 10
Forty thousand soldiers comprised Alexander's core army when he crossed into Asia Minor in 334 BCE, vastly outnumbered by Persian forces yet winning decisive victories through superior tactics.
- 09
Three major battles at Gaugamela, Issus, and the Granicus River between 334 and 331 BCE decisively defeated Persian King Darius III's armies.
- 08
During his thirteen-year reign, Alexander established a Hellenistic culture across conquered territories by promoting Greek language, architecture, and customs as deliberate state policy.
- 07
Heavy drinking and fever killed Alexander in Babylon on June 10 or 11, 323 BCE, at just thirty-two years old, leaving his empire without a clear successor.
- 06
In 326 BCE, Alexander's army mutinied at the Hyphasis River in India, forcing him to abandon his eastward expansion after ten years of continuous conquests.
- 05
Bucephalus, Alexander's legendary horse, reportedly lived until age thirty after carrying him through countless battles across Asia before dying in 326 BCE.
- 04
Tutoring by Aristotle from age thirteen shaped Alexander's intellectual foundation, with the philosopher teaching him medicine, philosophy, and science throughout his formative years.
- 03
By age thirty-two, Alexander the Great had founded over twenty cities named Alexandria throughout his empire, with Alexandria in Egypt becoming the most influential.
- 02
At his death in 323 BCE, the Macedonian king's empire stretched 2 million square miles across three continents, from Greece to India.
- 01
Alexander the Great conquered the Persian Empire in just three years, from 334 to 331 BCE, winning four major battles.