In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great In this award-winning adventure, Michael Wood embarks on a 2,000-mile journey to follow in the footsteps of Alexander the Great from his triumphal journey from Greece to India. Journeying with Lebanese traders, Iranian pilgrims and Afghan guerrillas by jeep, train, boat, camel and on foot, he weaves momentous events of the past into today’s reality and gives us a sense of the myths and achievements of one man over the centuries. New insights that resonate in.
He was one of the most successful military commanders in history, undefeated in battle. By the time of his death, he had conquered most of the world known to the ancient Greeks. After unifying the numerous city-states of ancient Greece under his father Philip II of Macedon (Alexander had to repeat the work because the southern Greeks rebelled after Philip’s death), Alexander conquered the Persian Empire, including Anatomy Leah, Syria, Phoenicia, Judea, Gaza, Egypt, Bactria and Mesopotamia, and extended the borders of his own empire to those of the Punjab.
Before his death, Alexander had made plans to travel west and conquer Europe. He also wanted to continue marching eastward, to find the end of the world, because his childhood mentor Aristotle had told him the story of the end of the land and the beginning of the open sea. Alexander incorporated foreigners into his army, leading some scholars to attribute “fusion politics” to him. He encouraged his troops to marry foreigners and practiced it himself. After 12 years of continuous military service, Alexander could have died of malaria, West Nile virus, typhoid, viral encephalitis, or the effects of heavy drinking.
