Alexander gets a lot of credit, which he certainly deserves- what he accomplished by the time he was 21 was astounding.
But his father laid the groundwork for his son's achievements. Phillip was the one who raised the well-trained, well-equipped, well-paid, highly-motivated army which Alexander used in his conquests.
Fun fact, there was a moment in Alexander's campaign in Persia where there was very nearly a mutiny. A bunch of his older officers wanted to go home, the army had been on campaign for years. Alexander could've had them executed, but instead, he gathered them up and let them air their grievances in front of the lower ranking soldiers. Then, he delivered what is considered one of the greatest speeches ever given.
The gist of it was a guilt trip. Alexander basically said "None of you had anything before you came with me. But now, you are rich men, your families are wealthy, your names will live on. Go home, if you want." It's said that a few of the men who were considering desertion broke down crying on the spot and begged forgiveness from Alexander. Alexander held no grudge toward them, and he put the incident behind him.
Imagine the charisma Alexander must've had to be able to pull something like that off, in his early 20s. He had these older, more experienced soldiers ready to undo all of his gains, and he guilt-tripped them into changing their minds, staying with him to fight on. Normal men can't inspire that kind of loyalty, that's an extraordinary trait.
[ + ] BloodyComet
[ - ] BloodyComet 1 point 1.2 yearsFeb 17, 2024 19:52:36 ago (+1/-0)
But his father laid the groundwork for his son's achievements. Phillip was the one who raised the well-trained, well-equipped, well-paid, highly-motivated army which Alexander used in his conquests.
Fun fact, there was a moment in Alexander's campaign in Persia where there was very nearly a mutiny. A bunch of his older officers wanted to go home, the army had been on campaign for years. Alexander could've had them executed, but instead, he gathered them up and let them air their grievances in front of the lower ranking soldiers. Then, he delivered what is considered one of the greatest speeches ever given.
The gist of it was a guilt trip. Alexander basically said "None of you had anything before you came with me. But now, you are rich men, your families are wealthy, your names will live on. Go home, if you want." It's said that a few of the men who were considering desertion broke down crying on the spot and begged forgiveness from Alexander. Alexander held no grudge toward them, and he put the incident behind him.
Imagine the charisma Alexander must've had to be able to pull something like that off, in his early 20s. He had these older, more experienced soldiers ready to undo all of his gains, and he guilt-tripped them into changing their minds, staying with him to fight on. Normal men can't inspire that kind of loyalty, that's an extraordinary trait.
[ + ] Ragnar
[ - ] Ragnar 1 point 1.2 yearsFeb 18, 2024 00:55:12 ago (+1/-0)