Kingdom north of Greece Ruled by Philip II - raised in Greece & dreamed of ruling it Defeated the Greeks in 338 BCE & wants the Persian Empire too

Tutored by Aristotle Tames Bucephalas – an untamable horse

Philip II assassinated His wife Olympias ensures Alexander takes the throne Only 20 years old but well- trained & ambitious Inherits a strong kingdom & experienced army

Eliminates all his rivals Uses force & diplomacy to put down revolts across Greece

Persian emperor weak, fighting rebellions Crosses the Hellespont in 334 with almost 50,000 soldiers Intends to conquer Persia and defeat Emperor Darius

In 331 BCE he conquers Syria & Egypt The next year he wins the Battle of Gaugamela which leads to the fall of the Persian Empire

Seeks to reach “the end of the world” Invades India in 326 BCE but his troops demand to finally stop In 323 BCE, Alexander dies in Babylon

Blending of east and west (Hellenistic culture) Alexandria in Egypt becomes a major city & contains the world’s best library New status & opportunities for women in society

Means “like the Greeks” Multi-Cultural - Mixture of cultures (P.I.G.E. – Persia, India, Greece, Egypt) People travel and live in different places in the Empire The “real” man Women given larger role in society Means “Greek” People are all mostly Greek People stay in Polis The “perfect” man Women stay at home