alexander the great Flashcards
When was Alexander the Great born?
356BC in Pella (Macedonia)
Who was the father of Alexander the Great?
Philip II
Which country was Philip King of?
Macedon
Who was the mother of Alexander?
Olympias
Who was the main tutor of Alexander?
Aristotle
Who wrote a biography of Alexander?
Plutarch
What was the name of the author of the Anabasis (a military history of Alexander’s reign)?
Arrian
Which Persian King was defeated by the Greeks in 480BC?
Xerxes
How many wives did Philip have?
3
When did Philip marry Olympias?
357BC
Which battle did Philip win in 338BC, giving him control of Greece?
Chaeronea
What was the name of the long Macedonian spear?
Sarissa
What was the core of the Macedonian army?
Phalanx (tight formation of soldiers)
How long was the Macedonian spear?
6m
What part of the cavalry was made up of the noblest Macedonians?
Companion Cavalry
What were the cavalry known for?
Shock tactics (pretending to retreat to lure enemy, then suddenly turning round?
Who were the fastest cavalry?
Thessalian
Name one type of light infantry unit.
Agrianes or peltast
Why could the light infantry move quickly?
They didn’t wear armour
Who were the elite force of Alexander’s army?
Hypaspists
When the army was on campaign what were they expected to do?
Live of the land
How many were in the Macedonian army when it invaded Persia?
50,000
Who is supposed to be an ancestor of Alexander?
Herakles
What is supposed to have struck Olympias when she was pregnant?
Lightning
What image did Philip dream was sealing Olympias’ womb?
Lion
What animal did Philip see with Olympias?
Snake
Which God did Delphi suggest Philip should honour?
Ammon
Where was Olympias from?
Epirus in Greece
Who did Olympias claim Alexander was the son of?
Zeus
Which book did Alexander keep?
Homer’s Iliad
Name the tutor of Alexander
Aristotle
What was the name of the horse Alexander tamed?
Bucephalus
What did Alexander say he would pay if he lost the bet about the horse?
The price of the horse
What did Alexander realise the horse was scared of?
Its shadow
At what age was Alexander entrusted with the Kings seal?
16
Where was there a revolt that he overcame?
Maedi
Who did he lead a charge against at the Battle of Chaeronea in 338BC?
Sacred Band of Thebes
What had Philip II become before he began planning his expedition against Persia?
Hegemon (leader)
What was the name of Philip’s bodyguard?
Pausanias
Who had Philip failed to punish for abusing his bodyguard, leading to his assassination by his bodyguard?
Attalus
What weapon did he have hidden to kill Philip with?
Dagger
Who caught the murderer and killed him?
Perdiccas
Who was left as regent of Greece when Alexander went to Asia?
Antipater
Who helped develop the Macedonian army and commanded the left wing in battle?
Parmenio
Who was the close friend of Alexander?
Hephaestion
Who was appointed official historian by Alexander?
Callisthenes
Why did Persia have good communications?
The Royal Highway
How many men were available to Darius in the Persian army?
120,000
How many cavalry did Darius have?
30,000
Which conquest was Alexander keen to recreate?
Troy
One motive for attacking Persia was revenge for the invasion of Greece in …?
480BC
Who were the Persian King’s personal guard?
Immortals
How was the majority of the Persian army made up?
Conscripts
Name a historian who tells us about Alexander’s campaigns
Arrian
Name a biographer who writes about Alexander’s campaigns
Plutarch
What year did Alexander begin his invasion of Persia?
334BC
Who had Philip previously sent to Asia to prepare his campaign?
Parmenio and Attalus
Which water did Alexander cross to begin his campaign?
Hellespont
How many cavalry did Alexander take into Persia?
5000
Where was Alexander’s first battle fought?
River Granicus
Who was the leader of the Persian forces at this battle?
Memnon of Rhodes
What had he advised Darius III to do?
Scorched earth policy
Why did the Persians not take his advice?
Because he was Greek
How did the Persians recognise Alexander at the battle?
Splendid armour
What does Alexander break at the battle of Granicus?
Spear
Who saves Alexander from death at the battle of Granicus?
Cleitus the Black
What does Alexander do to the foreign mercenaries (fighting for Persia) at the end of the battle?
Massacres them
Which goddess does Alexander send gifts to on the acropolis?
Athena
What is at Gordium?
The knot
What does the Gordium prove?
The ruler of Asia
How does Alexander deal with the Gordium?
He cuts it
What was the second battle fought in Persia?
Issus
What happens to Darius in the second battle fought in Persia?
He flees the battlefield
Who is captured in second battle fought in Persia?
The family of Darius
Where does Alexander have to capture by siege in 332BC?
Tyre
Why was it so important to capture the city which was captured by siege in 332BC?
To control the coast
What did Alexander construct to achieve the siege?
A causeway
How long did the siege last?
7 months
Which temple protected people who were spared by Alexander?
Herakles
When Alexander enters Egypt where does he go?
The oracle at Siwa
What does he learn at the place he went when he enters Egypt?
He is the son of Ammon
The third Persian battle is fought at ..?
Gaugamela
What year did the third Persian battle take place?
331BC
Why did Darius choose this battlefield for the third Persian battle?
Flat open plain
Which Persian source mentions the third Persian battle?
Astronomical Diary
What omen was seen at the battle?
An eagle flew from Alexander straight to the enemy
What does Alexander let his men do before the battle?
Rest
Who suggests that they should not attack immediately?
Parmenio
How many Persians does Arrian suggest died?
300,000
Which city did Alexander advance to after the battle?
Babylon
Which of Alexander’s companions is accused of conspiracy in 330BC?
Philotas (son of Parmenio)
Whose death does this also eventually lead to?
Parmenio
Alexander wanted to take the Persian capital which was..?
Persepolis
He had to pass through a narrow pass called …
Persian Gate
Darius had left this man in charge and he tried to stop Alexander passing through.
Ariobarzanes
What year did Alexander capture the Persian capital and treasury?
330BC
What happens while Alexander and his troops are there?
They burn the city
Who encourages this to happen?
Thais (an Athenian woman)
Who urges him not to do this?
Parmenio
Who kills Darius after he flees the battle of Gaugamela?
Bessus
Where was he the satrap of?
Bactria
What name did he take after the death of Darius III?
Artaxerxes V
What happened to the person who kills Darius after he flees the battle of Gaugamela in 329BC
Executed
Who was killed by Alexander in 328BC?
Cleitus
What was the Persian custom that he objected to?
Proskynesis
What is blamed for the killing?
Alcohol
Where does Alexander begin a campaign in 326BC?
Indus Valley (India)
Which place does Alexander capture by siege during this campaign?
Aornos Rock
How does Alexander capture the rock?
Constructs a mound
Who was the Indian King Alexander fought?
Porus
What unusual type of forces were used by the Indian ruler?
War Elephants
What is the name of the battle fought with the Indian ruler?
Hydaspes River (Beas)
Which of Alexander’s companions dies and has a city named after them?
Bucephalus
What does the silver tetradrachm of Ptolemy show Alexander wearing?
Elephant headdress
What happens at the Hyphasis?
Mutiny
Who led the Persian fleet home?
Nearchus
Which desert does Alexander cross on the way home?
Gedrosian
What else caused death on the journey home?
Monsoon
Which satrap is arrested and executed when Alexander returns to Susa?
Abulites
What did Alexander arrange at Susa in 324BC?
Mass marriages
Who had Alexander married previously?
Roxanne
What evidence is there of him becoming more paranoid?
Conspiracy of the Pages
Who is killed as a result of this conspiracy?
Callisthenes
Who does Alexander replace Antipater with at this point?
Craterus
Why did Alexander found so many cities?
To spread Hellenic culture
Which companion of Alexander died in 324BC?
Hephaestion
Where were they when Hephaestion died?
Ecbatana
How did Alexander honour him?
Funeral pyre costing 10,000 talents
What role had he had in the army?
Commander of the Companion Cavalry
In what year did Alexander die?
323BC
Which city had Alexander returned to?
Babylon
Why did he not enter the city?
A bad omen
What happened while Alexander was not sitting on his throne?
A stranger sat on it
What did Alexander do the night before he fell ill?
Drinking all night
What does he do each day despite being ill?
Bathes and sacrifices
Where do Arrian and Plutarch get the details of the death from?
Court journals
Which temple did Alexander’s men suggest taking him to?
Serapis
Who does Alexander say he leaves his kingdom to?
‘the strongest’
What do some people suggest killed him?
Poison
Who took control of Egypt?
Ptolemy
Who controlled Macedonia and Greece?
Cassander
How many cities did Plutarch say Alexander had founder?
70
How many cities did Alexander actually found?
20
Who revives the idea that Alexander was poisoned later?
Olympias
Who orders the execution of Roxane and her son?
Cassander
