BELLWORK Copy This Template Into Your Notebook Title

BELLWORK: Copy This Template Into Your Notebook Title: Alexander’s Empire

Alexander’s Empire Brief History of Alexander the Great

Setting the Stage n Peloponnesian War weakened many Greek city-states n Rapid decline in Greek military and economic power n King Philip II (Alexander’s Dad) of Macedonia took note – he could exploit Greece’s weakness and expand his empire

IN BOX 1 WRITE: n. Peloponnesian War left Greece weak and open for attack

King Philip Builds a Macedonian Power n Philip’s Army n Took the throne at 23 n Transformed disorganized peasants into a well-trained army n Used phalanx formation (16 wide, 16 deep, each carrying an 18 foot pike)

Philip’s Conquests of Greece n When Philip invaded, the Greek city-states couldn’t organize and work together, when they finally did, it was too late n Macedonians defeated the Greeks n Allowed many Greek city-states to keep their own local government, but Greece itself was no longer independent – it was controlled by the Macedonian Empire n Philip had plans to move on to conquer Persia, but his life was cut short, he was stabbed at his daughter’s wedding n Philip’s son, Alexander, immediately took control of the

IN BOX 2 WRITE: n. King Philip II of Macedonia invaded and took over Greece

Alexander the Great n Came to power when he was 20 n Highly educated n Extensive military training n Ruthless and because of this, he faced very little opposition n Didn’t lose a battle for 11 years

IN BOX 3 WRITE: n. Philip’s son, Alexander took power and wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps

Alexander’s Invasion of Persia n Greece had been secured under the Macedonian Empire, now it was time to fulfill his father’s dream, to invade Persia n Alexander was successful, took over Persia and its King, Darius III n Darius was furious and raised a huge army to take Alexander down, he failed

Conquering the Persian Empire n Darius III was intimidated and tried to negotiate with Alexander n Alexander refused and made it known that his intentions were to take over Persia n Alexander was welcomed when he invaded Egypt and was crowned Pharaoh n Darius III launched one more last ditch effort to defeat the Macedonians and was unsuccessful – Persian Empire collapsed n Alexander and his army occupied Persian cities and took all of their treasures n Persepolis, the capital of the Persian Empire, burned to the ground n Revenge for Athens? -or- Signal that the Persian Empire was gone for good?

IN BOX 4 WRITE: n. Skilled military leader, invaded and took over Persia and beyond

Alexander’s Other Conquests n After Persia, Alexander still wanted more n Alexander invaded India n Marched into India and met heavy resistance n After conquering for 11 years, Alexander and his troops were tired and retreated n Alexander empire returned to focus on his current

Alexander’s Legacy n Alexander died, only 33, debate as to how he died n Natural causes – malaria or typhoid fever likely n Poisoned n Following his death, three different Macedonian kings ruled the empire n Alexander adopted many Persian dress and customs and even married a Persian woman, he included foreign people in his army and many people in his empire adopted these cultures as well n A vibrant new culture emerged, the blend of Eastern cultures with Greek culture – Hellenistic Culture

IN BOX 5 WRITE: n. Legacy: largest empire of its time, Hellenistic Culture – blending of East and Western cultures