King of the World at 30

Such a distinction seems too impossible to bequeath to any mortal, yet Alexander the Great holds such a place in history. Alexander the III has been known throughout time as being one of the greatest conquerors the world has ever witnessed. Alexander was thrust into power in his early 20’s, and soon proved that he was not only capable of wielding the strength established by his esteemed father Phillip II, but of eclipsing his father’s legacy so effectively that it appears as little more than an footnote in comparison.

Alexander was tutored by the famous Greek philosopher Aristotle beginning at the age of 13, and exhibited a grasp of strategy so amazing, his tactics are still studied by military institutes over 2300 years later. Alexander’s first major victory was against the Persian forces ruled by King Darius III at the battle of Granicus. It was here that Alexander defeated a numerically superior army which viewed him as nothing more than an upstart teenager. Alexander maneuvered his troops with such skill and vibrancy however, that he routed the Persian force and according to legend, suffered only 118 losses.

After this loss, Darius III took personal command of the Persian army and met Alexander at the Battle of Issus. The Persian’s vastly outnumbered the Greeks this time and Darius was anticipating an easy victory. What took place however was anything but. Alexander was able to utilize the hilly country to break up the Persian formations, while using his superior cavalry to overwhelm the Persian flank. After their side was in disorder, Alexander was able to make his way behind the Persian forces and turn the battle into a rout. Darius fled from the field leaving his wife and children to be captured by Alexander. This left Palestine and Egypt relatively free for the taking. After mopping up those areas including a lengthy siege of the city of Tyre, Alexander pursued Darius in hopes of destroying finally his Persian opponent.

The two forces met at the battle of Gaugamela. Darius had assembled a force larger than any he had earlier amassed, and having learned his lesson from the battle of Issus, Darius waited for Alexander on a wide plain so that he could use his enormous numbers to crush the Macedonian soldiers. The plan was good on paper, but Alexander was a far superior general than Darius. Alexander concentrated his troops on his right flank and was able to push through the Persian left. Once he had smashed through their line, he just rolled them up onto one another. It was a massacre and it resulted in the absolution of the Persian Empire for good.

In a matter of years, Alexander had accomplished what would have seemed to be impossible. His empire stretched from the western end of the known world, all the way to lands unknown. Alexander was not satisfied with this however and spent the rest of his short life pursuing new conquests in central Asia, further pushing the boundaries of his already burgeoning empire. Alexander died at the age of 32, but not before his empire stretched from Egypt to India, the Mediterranean to the Himalayans.

Alexander is considered to be one of the greatest military minds of all time, and he has the distinction of being the first king in history to be called “The Great.” It is widely believed that Alexander never lost a battle in his life. One could certainly make the argument that he was the greatest commander the world has ever seen.