Alexander the Great

The Birth of Greatness

356 BCE

Alexander the Great was born in Pella, Greece around 356 BC on July 20th or on the 21st. His parents were Philip II of Macedonia, king of Macedonia, and his mother Olympias was the princess of Epirus and Philip ll's fourth wife.

Taught by a Legend

343 BCE

As Alexander grew into an adult he was taught by Aristotle until the age of 16. The well-known philosopher tutored Alexander and then continued to found his own school, the Lyceum, in Athens.

Death of Philip II

336 BCE

Philip ll of Macedonia had died at the age of 46. He was murdered by Pausanias, a Macedonian noble. After his death, the throne was passed on to his son, Alexander. Alexander would then continue on to build the world's largest empire.

Rebellion Shut Down

335 BCE

Alexander the Great started his rule by ending the revolt from Thebes. The Theban people were too weak to continue to continue to fight against the strong Macedonians. After Alexander had ended the revolt, he was confident that the Greeks would not rebel again.

...the Great

334 BCE

Alexander then became well-known and respected for the efforts he made to expand and strengthen the empire his father wanted to begin. Because of this, he then became known as Alexander the Great.

Invasion of the Persian Empire

334 BCE

Alexander the Great decided to invade the Persian Empire. This would lead to a series of battles between him and the Persian king, Darius III.

Heliopolis

334 BCE

At this time, Alexander the Great had sacked Baalbek and renamed it Heliopolis.

Battle of Issus

333 BCE

The Battle of Issus took place in the southern part of Anatolia. The battle was between Alexander II's army and King Darius III's army. This battle turned out to be victorious for Alexander the Great.

Control of Sidon

333 BCE

Sidon was one of the most powerful cities in all of Phoenicia. However, Alexander the Great had managed to take control of this city in part of his conquest to conquer all of Persia.

Conquering of Egypt

332 BCE

Alexander the Great made a valiant effort as a king when he conquered Egypt in 332 B.C. He had gone through Pelusium, the eastern side of Egypt, and received no resistance.

Battle of Guagamela

331 BCE

The Battle of Guagamela is a historic end to the beginning of Alexander's reign the Persian Empire, and the end of King Darius III's reign. At this battle, Alexander and his forces were able to defeat King Darius; although, they were heavily outnumbered.

The Death of a Great King

323 BCE

The great leader of Macedonia, Alexander the Great, passed away on June 323 B.C. The exact cause of death is unknown, however, historians believed that he suffered from malaria in Babylon. Alexander's death had a big impact on his empire, they separated into three kingdoms, Hellenistic Macedonia, Hellenistic Syria, and Hellenistic Egypt. King Alexander was known for having the largest empire that the world has ever seen.