Skyler Eastin Blog Posts 1, 2, and 3

Skyler Eastin Blog Posts 1, 2, and 3.        

Post 1:    

 Alexander the Great is the military commander alive today. Having been in the Macedonian army since I was old enough to serve, I know that this army has never been as feared as when Alexander was in charge. The fighting style he learned from his father, using the phalanxes in the center with cavalry on either side has enabled our forces to conquer large areas with little threatening opposition. He was wise enough to ally with the Egyptians who eagerly made him a pharaoh and allowed him to construct the city of Alexandria one of the most beautiful and prosperous cities in the world today. He was wise to destroy Thebes I feel. The Greek peoples uprising could have weakened the infrastructure of the empire, thereby ruining Macedonia’s chance to get revenge on the Persians for their attacks on Greece. The destruction of Thebes was a sad but necessary blow to the Greek people that convinced them to join our army. I think that Alexander is considered great because he has led the Macedonian army to victory over Greece and Persia.

Post 2:

            The Hellenic culture has helped Alexander’s empire. After the Greek uprising, the Greek people agreed to become part of the Macedonian empire. However, this was not an easy transition. The Hellenic culture is a merge all the cultures under Alexander’s reign. Because of this, none of the original cultures feel like they are losing too much of their original roots, allowing the cultures to united easier, both in battle and in day to day life.

Post 3:

            While Alexander was a great leader, much of the credit is owed to his father, King Philip II. King Philip was the one who united the Macedonian people, mostly peasant farmers, into the greatest army of the age, the same army that Alexander would inherit and use to conquer Persia. It was King Philip who originally took over the Greeks, who would later join Alexander’s army. It was King Philip who came up with the strategy for battles using phalanxes and cavalry, the same strategy that Alexander would use to defeat Persia. It was King Philip who hired Aristotle to tutor Alexander so he would be a better ruler when he was older. Unfortunately, King Philip died before he could attack Persia. The fact that Alexander is the one who delivered the final blow to Persia is the only reason he is remembered better than his father. King Philip laid the foundation that Alexander would inherit after Philip was murdered so young. Philip may have been referred to as great when he was alive, but he is now eclipsed by his son. If he had lived a little longer and been able to conquer Persia himself, he would have been known in history as “Philip II, the great” instead of “Philip II, the father of Alexander the Great.”

Cites:

Brown, Bryan. "Alexander the Great." Ebscohost. Junior Scholastic, 9 May 2011. Web. 23 Sept. 2013. http://web.ebscohost.com/hrc/detail?sid=65601053-ff07-43bc-9d5a-0f4b5b965071%40sessionmgr13&vid=1&hid=21&bdata=JnNpdGU9aHJjLWxpdmU%3d#db=khh&AN=60685597

Pomeroy, Sarah B., et al. Ancient Greece a Political, Social, and Cultural

    History. New York; Oxford: Oxford UP, 1999. Print.

Sacks, David. Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World. Ed. Oswyn Murray. Illus.

    Margaret Bunson. New York Cirt: Facts On File, 1995. Print

Breasted, James Henry. Ancient Times. Chicago: U of Chicago, 1944.