The true Success of Alexander the Great When historians are asked to consider the most incredible military strategist of all time the answer will typically be Alexander the Great, not only for his immeasurable military strategy skills, which were impressive during his life time, but for his overwhelming achievements that had managed to impact history thousands of years later. Alexander the Great was so successful because from the beginning of his life all the way up until his final moments he lived solely to prove himself as the almighty conqueror of Asia. From a young age alexander became aware of many elements of the world through his education. When he got his start as a ruler many fortunate events occurred and encouraged his progression. The real genius of Alexander the Great was through his infamous military formation known simply as the phalanx. It was this impenetrable formation and Alexander’s own deceivingly simple ideologies that secured his successes. Early on in Alexander’s life many knew his ultimate goal was to conqueror all of Asia, and it became clear once his undefeated record started growing that he truly had the capacity to tackle such an aspiration. When Alexander was approximately thirteen years of age he became a student of the widely renowned philosopher, Aristotle. Alexander’s father, Phillip II, went out of his way to acquire the famous philosopher for his son’s education. Not only was Alexander becoming increasingly aware of the sciences and mathematics with the help of his teacher, but he was also in the presence of a strong military power: his own father. Phillip II of Macedonia was a conqueror himself, and a successful one at that. It is no surprise that his own son became such a successful military strategist. During this time in history it is important to note that many famous rulers died prematurely, some were assassinated on the battlefield and others were poisoned within the supposedly safe walls of the kingdom they governed. A serious conqueror who had built a strong kingdom with increasingly growing territories, such as Phillip II of Macedonia, would have to be prepared with a successor to continue their legacy. Naturally, Phillip II was afraid of losing what he had strategically gained, so he reacted by preparing his own son to take over his life’s work, beginning of course with the teachings of Aristotle. After the death of Alexander’s father a sequence of events magically fell into place for the twenty year old novice ruler. Phillip II had already planned a takeover of Persia before his untimely death, and even though he himself was unable to act on what he had planned, his son was able to fulfill his plans and then some. Honor existed in the footprint you left behind, in other words, a man’s worth was determined by how great his rule was. Though Phillip II was considered successful, there is a reason Alexander the Great is considered the ultimate legend of military history. He conquered an area and then appointed someone he entrusted to govern because he was aware that he could not be the only defining power across Asia (Arrian 154). His accomplishments cannot be denied by anyone, only recognized as the successes they are. It is not a matter of whether Alexander was successful, but rather how to attribute his successes. One of the most well-known facets of Alexander the Greats army was his phalanx. This military strategy was one of the main reasons Alexander lost very little men in battle, especially compared to all the casualties of the opposing states. This unique formation blocked all attacks from in front and above with ease, leaving very little room for attack and very little time for the enemy to come up with a way to actually fight off the rapidly approaching army. On more than a few occasions Alexander encircled his victims and mercilessly left all but a handful dead. Almost like a game of chess, as soon as the opposing side thought they had somehow outsmarted Alexander the Great and his legendary army they were proven wrong, and their defenses all came tumbling down as Alexander countered with a level of efficiency that was simply unmatched by any other leader of his time. Not only was the phalanx practically impenetrable, but Alexander also greatly utilized archers for long distance kills. Often times the area Alexander was trying to conqueror would retreat, sometimes even practicing “scorched earth” which left Alexander’s army nothing to steal once they took over a city, unfortunately for those who retreated they also lost everything in a vain attempt to thwart Alexander’s growing rule in Asia. Arrian seems to attribute many of Alexander the Greats more acclaimed victories to his unusually simple military ideologies. For instance, when he advanced on the city of Tyre, which geographically is surrounded by water on all sides, he ran into an obvious predicament. He was able to acquire a few boats, but not enough to carry his entire army. Usually if a group of people need to get over a body of water they simply cross a bridge, but in this case there was no bridge. The people of Tyre seemed to laugh at Alexander’s toils until they realized the bold plan the great conqueror had concocted. His soldiers were building a bridge. This example of his daring simplicity is part of what separated the successes of Alexander the Great from other conquerors and famous military strategists. The real icing on the cake was the fact that after Alexander and his army had finally taken control of Tyre, he had also successfully occupied a final territory boarding the Mediterranean Sea, putting him one step closer to his goal of taking over all of Asia. From the moment Alexander took over control of Macedonia he was driven by a desire to prove himself. A strong reputation went a long way throughout Asia. The Persian rulers, first Xerxes and then Darius III, had established themselves as rulers of some of the strongest warring people. Alexander the Great wanted nothing more but to defeat the Persians and then follow up by conquering the rest of Asia, this must have been especially difficult for anyone at this time to comprehend because no one knew exactly how far Asia stretched. In fact, after Alexander had truly done the unthinkable and conquered all of his adversaries he still marched his troops in a vain attempt to capture more. As mentioned in Arrian: The campaigns of Alexander in regards to the character of Alexander the Great himself, “…he was brave and adventurous, strict in the observance of his religious duties, and hungry for fame.” (Arrian 395). The great strategist actually had more casualties due to starvation and dehydration then any battle leading up to his final moments, though Ptolemy leaves Alexander’s demise to illness while traveling further into unknown lands. Alexander’s death at thirty two years of age is a clear example of his attitude toward what he believed he was meant to accomplish. The successes of Alexander the Great have been recognized by all who have appreciated his individual style. The uniqueness and absolute cunning involved in each military decision he made is what ultimately lead to his fame. Each step involved, whether it be taking Tyre or taking Persia, was perfectly executed by all his soldiers and flawlessly delivered by Alexander himself. From beginning to end, Alexander the Great lived for his title and his honor, and that is truly what his successes should be attributed to.

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Works Cited
Arrianus, Flavius, Aubrey De. Sélincourt, and J. R. Hamilton. Arrian: The Campaigns of
Alexander. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1976. Print.