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Very Short Introductions #393
Alexander the Great: A Very Short Introduction
Alexander the Great became king of Macedon in 336 BC, when he was only 20 years old, and died at the age of 32, twelve years later. During his reign he conquered the Achaemenid Persian Empire, the largest empire that had ever existed, leading his army from Greece to Pakistan, and from the Libyan desert to the steppes of Central Asia. His meteoric career, as leader of an alliance of Greek cities, Pharaoh of Egypt, and King of Persia, had a profound effect on the world he moved through. Even in his lifetime his achievements became legendary and in the centuries that following his story was told and retold throughout Europe and the East. Greek became the language of power in the Eastern Mediterranean and much of the Near East, as powerful Macedonian dynasts carved up Alexander's empire into kingdoms of their own, underlaying the flourishing Hellenistic civilization that emerged after his death.
But what do we really know about Alexander? In this Very Short Introduction, Hugh Bowden goes behind the usual historical accounts of Alexander's life and career. Instead, he focuses on the evidence from Alexander's own time -- letters from officials in Afghanistan, Babylonian diaries, records from Egyptian temples -- to try and understand how Alexander appeared to those who encountered him. In doing so he also demonstrates the profound influence the legends of his life have had on our historical understanding and the controversy they continue to generate worldwide.
ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
But what do we really know about Alexander? In this Very Short Introduction, Hugh Bowden goes behind the usual historical accounts of Alexander's life and career. Instead, he focuses on the evidence from Alexander's own time -- letters from officials in Afghanistan, Babylonian diaries, records from Egyptian temples -- to try and understand how Alexander appeared to those who encountered him. In doing so he also demonstrates the profound influence the legends of his life have had on our historical understanding and the controversy they continue to generate worldwide.
ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
120 pages, Paperback
First published June 26, 2014
28 people are currently reading
610 people want to read
About the author
Hugh Bowden
8 books14 followersHugh Bowden (DPhil, Ancient History, University of Oxford, 1990) is Professor of Ancient History and former head of arts in the Faculty of Arts and Humanities at King's College, London.
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
October 9, 2022
Another wonderful book in this important series providing all the pertinent information people can require on the subject.
Here Hugh Bowden charts the battles and the campaigns of Alexander as well as all the titles he claimed during his short life. However, the most pleasing part is that Bowden focuses on the evidence from Alexander's own time - the letters, diaries, and official records - to show how he was regarded then, rather than relying on books written hundreds of years after Alexander's death which mostly relied on rumours and gossip handed down as myth.
The reader appreciates the influence Alexander had on culture and history and the controversy he generates even to this day.
When you look at the map and see how far he travelled - to the Indus, Hindu Kush, and Northern Pakistan - you appreciate how his men must have believed in him and how well his army was organised.
There's no great detail of the tactics used in the famous battles of Granicus, Issus, and Gaugemela but what is discussed is the political results of those battles.
He died at the age of 32 in Babylon probably from a combination of alcoholism and a series of wounds from various battles. The story that he was poisoned was almost certainly invented like a lot of the anecdotes that we hear about Alexander the Great. This book dispels those myths, legends, and rumours and gives us as clear a picture of the man as we could expect from 2,500 years in the future.
Here Hugh Bowden charts the battles and the campaigns of Alexander as well as all the titles he claimed during his short life. However, the most pleasing part is that Bowden focuses on the evidence from Alexander's own time - the letters, diaries, and official records - to show how he was regarded then, rather than relying on books written hundreds of years after Alexander's death which mostly relied on rumours and gossip handed down as myth.
The reader appreciates the influence Alexander had on culture and history and the controversy he generates even to this day.
When you look at the map and see how far he travelled - to the Indus, Hindu Kush, and Northern Pakistan - you appreciate how his men must have believed in him and how well his army was organised.
There's no great detail of the tactics used in the famous battles of Granicus, Issus, and Gaugemela but what is discussed is the political results of those battles.
He died at the age of 32 in Babylon probably from a combination of alcoholism and a series of wounds from various battles. The story that he was poisoned was almost certainly invented like a lot of the anecdotes that we hear about Alexander the Great. This book dispels those myths, legends, and rumours and gives us as clear a picture of the man as we could expect from 2,500 years in the future.
July 18, 2016
I acknowledge and appreciate the author’s aim at proving that many episodes in Alexander’s life and career have different (and often conflicting) accounts of the same events, as reported by various historians (Diodorus, Curtius, Plutarch, Arrian, Justin among others). However, the continuous reference to multiple sources render this book narrative confusing and difficult to follow (e.g. the section of the oracle of Amun). Perhaps it would have been better to stick to a “version” first and provide evidence from other sources where the different “versions” differ?
I was also surprised at the inclusion of arbitrary statements dropped without further explaining the basis for such statements, such as:
“The period of dictatorship in Europe in the second quarter of the 20th century, and the rebirth of the idea of the ‘clash of the civilizations’ in the wake of 9/11 have both had their impact on Alexander’s studies, as prejudices of the Romans have seemed to pre-echo the politics of the 20th and 21th centuries”.
Although this book is short, I would not recommend it to someone looking for a "introduction" to Alexander’s life but rather to someone already very familiar with the political landscape and the historical events of the period and appreciates the effort by the author to provide some interesting reflections on the historical evidence available today.
I have a passion for classical antiquity (and on Alexander in particular), have read quite a few books on the subject but despite its potential to be a much better book, unfortunately I would rate this book no more than 2 stars.
I was also surprised at the inclusion of arbitrary statements dropped without further explaining the basis for such statements, such as:
“The period of dictatorship in Europe in the second quarter of the 20th century, and the rebirth of the idea of the ‘clash of the civilizations’ in the wake of 9/11 have both had their impact on Alexander’s studies, as prejudices of the Romans have seemed to pre-echo the politics of the 20th and 21th centuries”.
Although this book is short, I would not recommend it to someone looking for a "introduction" to Alexander’s life but rather to someone already very familiar with the political landscape and the historical events of the period and appreciates the effort by the author to provide some interesting reflections on the historical evidence available today.
I have a passion for classical antiquity (and on Alexander in particular), have read quite a few books on the subject but despite its potential to be a much better book, unfortunately I would rate this book no more than 2 stars.
December 12, 2020
This book is really closer to a historiography than a history of Alexander the Great - and while I was initially skeptical of that critical approach it ended up being the right way to introduce this topic. Being clear about the ways in which primary source material is conflicting, or influenced by the biases of their time, was a useful way to learn the subject.
My biggest criticism is that the book is arranged thematically rather than purely chronological. The VSI book on Ancient Greece did the same thing. This trend to tell history thematically is interesting but in my view inferior to the traditional, chronological approach. It’s just harder to follow where we are at in the story when it jumps around.
My biggest criticism is that the book is arranged thematically rather than purely chronological. The VSI book on Ancient Greece did the same thing. This trend to tell history thematically is interesting but in my view inferior to the traditional, chronological approach. It’s just harder to follow where we are at in the story when it jumps around.
January 3, 2015
i wanted to read more A Very Short Introduction books this year and decided to start with this one because Alexander the Great is my ultimate problematic fave.
March 23, 2022
Probably my favorite VSI so far. It's mostly historiography and source analysis, with some very smart observations about audience.
May 4, 2019
Great introduction to the topic for any academic. Bowden does not present a retelling of the ancient sources, but a critical analysis of the sources. This is essential knowledge for any who are interested in studying Alexander the Great.
January 2, 2015
The very short introduction series continues to impress me. These are no re-hashed summaries of various topics. In 122 pages this book does an admirable job of punching holes in some of the current ideas about alexander, drawing the readers attention to the problems of the ancient sources and asks one to consider things that Green, Fox and others haven't.
July 11, 2021
I picked this up because I’ve been meaning to get my hands on some of the Very Short Introductions and because a YA novel I read recently made me curious about Alexander the Great. It’s very short (as one might expect), and it’s densely packed but quite readable.
I liked how the book carefully established where the information came from and how scholars traditionally approach that body of work. It’s good context to have, especially given how condensed the book is. It’s a high-level overview of a narrow subject, so there is some detail, but this is very much the high points. Information is presented pretty factually, and it’s nice to be able to gauge the reliability of that information, even in this introductory text. However, the repeated concerns about the accuracy of the Alexander historians means that the main takeaway from the book is “we can’t know much about him at all,” which is interesting for how cautious it is. This is not a biography. It’s more of an intro to a field of study, and it tries pretty hard to be objective but ends up taking focus away from the subject matter.
The “high points” angle shows most in the sections that cover the political landscape leading up to Alexander’s reign, which briefly skim a couple hundred years of history in a very eventful part of the ancient world. Most of this was pretty new to me, aside from some obvious ones like the battle at Thermopylae and some stuff about the oracles of Apollo. Later chapters focus in more on Alexander himself and cover the expansion of the empire in slightly more detail. The book is arranged by topic rather than chronologically, though the topics are organized roughly in chronological order, and a lot of cultural explanations are included to highlight the significance of various items that don’t necessarily mean anything to a modern audience. Keeping track of the dates, the order of events, and the different Dariuses and Alexanders can be difficult for someone unfamiliar with the subject (aka me). Overall, though, it’s very accessible, which is the aim of this series. I feel like I learned something, and I enjoyed reading it.
I liked how the book carefully established where the information came from and how scholars traditionally approach that body of work. It’s good context to have, especially given how condensed the book is. It’s a high-level overview of a narrow subject, so there is some detail, but this is very much the high points. Information is presented pretty factually, and it’s nice to be able to gauge the reliability of that information, even in this introductory text. However, the repeated concerns about the accuracy of the Alexander historians means that the main takeaway from the book is “we can’t know much about him at all,” which is interesting for how cautious it is. This is not a biography. It’s more of an intro to a field of study, and it tries pretty hard to be objective but ends up taking focus away from the subject matter.
The “high points” angle shows most in the sections that cover the political landscape leading up to Alexander’s reign, which briefly skim a couple hundred years of history in a very eventful part of the ancient world. Most of this was pretty new to me, aside from some obvious ones like the battle at Thermopylae and some stuff about the oracles of Apollo. Later chapters focus in more on Alexander himself and cover the expansion of the empire in slightly more detail. The book is arranged by topic rather than chronologically, though the topics are organized roughly in chronological order, and a lot of cultural explanations are included to highlight the significance of various items that don’t necessarily mean anything to a modern audience. Keeping track of the dates, the order of events, and the different Dariuses and Alexanders can be difficult for someone unfamiliar with the subject (aka me). Overall, though, it’s very accessible, which is the aim of this series. I feel like I learned something, and I enjoyed reading it.
July 23, 2020
I've been interested in the Very Short Introduction series for a while. It's a series published by Oxford University Press that covers a wide range of topics, with each book coming in between 100 and 200 pages. To check out the series, I literally just selected a book at random. That is how I ended up reading a little book on Alexander the Great.
I liked the book, but I don't know that I loved it. Alexander the Great is a subject that interests me only so much, so I couldn't see myself dedicating 500 pages to him. As such, it was an ideal subject matter for this sort of format. I got a good overview of the life of Alexander without getting bored in the weeds. This sort of book would be an ideal read before embarking on a deeper study of a subject. I definitely intend to read a few more from this series.
As for this book specifically, I appreciated the focus that was given to the authenticity of various facts around Alexander's life. Mr Bowden engaged with not just what we know about his life but how we know those things and the cases when there might be less certainty around a particular event. I appreciate when histories engage directly with the inevitable uncertainty of history rather than just presenting a narrative as unquestionable fact.
I liked the book, but I don't know that I loved it. Alexander the Great is a subject that interests me only so much, so I couldn't see myself dedicating 500 pages to him. As such, it was an ideal subject matter for this sort of format. I got a good overview of the life of Alexander without getting bored in the weeds. This sort of book would be an ideal read before embarking on a deeper study of a subject. I definitely intend to read a few more from this series.
As for this book specifically, I appreciated the focus that was given to the authenticity of various facts around Alexander's life. Mr Bowden engaged with not just what we know about his life but how we know those things and the cases when there might be less certainty around a particular event. I appreciate when histories engage directly with the inevitable uncertainty of history rather than just presenting a narrative as unquestionable fact.
August 21, 2021
Alexander the Great: A Very Short Introduction is yet another excellent volume in the Oxford University Press series of Very Short Introductions. There are many books about Alexander’s military campaigns, but this slim book examines Alexander in the context of his time and his world, and attempts to stick to what is factual and verifiable as opposed to what is legendary and mythic. Author Hugh Bowden does this by acknowledging the context of the biographies of Alexander – they were written to illustrate not the virtues and mores of Alexander and his times, but to illustrate the virtues that were extolled at the time and in the culture in which they were written – while examining what evidence we have of Alexander that was written in inscriptions and court documents, etc., of his day.
Or, to quote the last chapter of the book itself: “This book has tried to show what we can say with confidence about Alexander and his world, on the basis of evidence from his own time. Often this has meant challenging commonly held ideas about how he acted, why he did what he did, and even questioning whether he did do some of the things attributed to him.”
Or, to quote the last chapter of the book itself: “This book has tried to show what we can say with confidence about Alexander and his world, on the basis of evidence from his own time. Often this has meant challenging commonly held ideas about how he acted, why he did what he did, and even questioning whether he did do some of the things attributed to him.”
June 17, 2023
This was a really good, accessible read! I highly recommend it to anyone interested in the life of Alexander the Great, though I do think having some background knowledge before you read it would help. It was well-written and easy to read, and I liked how everything was presented and laid out. It has some very compelling arguments about the Alexander historians, which will for sure impact the way I read them (and understand Alexander's life) from now on. I do kind of wish it elaborated on more things that it mentioned very briefly, but I understand it's meant to be an introduction so it obviously can't go too in depth or encompass everything. Still, I think it did a good job of introducing him, and if I weren't already obsessed with this man, I'd be very intrigued to learn even more. Definitely worthwhile for me!
January 8, 2025
Bowden has written one of the more dry VSI books in their classical studies series; however this book is packed with information about its titular figure. I appreciated the mostly chronological telling of Alexander the Great's biography, as each chapter takes us through part of Alexander's life (as warrior, as commander, as king, as Pharoah, as cult hero, as traveler, as legend) and focuses on the specific regions he went through these roles in. This book is heavy on names, dates, and battles. But it covers much more including clothing of the era, marriage traditions, scholarship during Alexander's reign, and much more. I appreciate that Bowden lays out the controversy over various events of Alexander's life among his biographers, and clearly explains which accounts (if any) he believes and based on what evidence.
February 27, 2021
I like the very short introductions. But why oh why did they have to include a map so sh*te that you cant even read it with a magnifying glass! And all the unfamiliar place names, particularly in Macedonia, really cry out for a clarifying map.
Editor, sack your mapmaker! He/she is a disgrace to the profession! I question his/her eyesight and if that's okay, his/her competence!
Editor, sack your mapmaker! He/she is a disgrace to the profession! I question his/her eyesight and if that's okay, his/her competence!
November 18, 2021
A broad but focused overview of both the history and historiography of Alexander the Great. The book contains healthy skepticism, showing that much of Alex’s life has been mythologized. (A longer version of this book could be titled “The Historical Alexander III of Macedon”.) In staying on topic, the book avoids discussion of military strategy and the Diadochi.
February 16, 2019
Interesting and honest history of Alexander the Great’s life and military campaigns; it is honest to the extent that it foregrounds how the sources that historians rely on to speculate about Alexander are very inconsistent and subject to their own historically-specific pressures.
December 29, 2017
One of the better Very Short Introductions out there. The author clearly has great command over the subject. Intelligently written. A pearl.
I do find however that the author throughout the book comes off somewhat defensive. Clearly he is defending his view against other specialist on the matter, which is understandable yet perhaps not entirely appropriate for a layman audience that would pick up a very short introduction.
I applaud the author’s aim to investigate how Alexander was judged by his contemporaries rather than judge from ourselves.
I do find however that the author throughout the book comes off somewhat defensive. Clearly he is defending his view against other specialist on the matter, which is understandable yet perhaps not entirely appropriate for a layman audience that would pick up a very short introduction.
I applaud the author’s aim to investigate how Alexander was judged by his contemporaries rather than judge from ourselves.
July 31, 2019
This Short introduction was interesting and remarkably concise, and while it gave good information on Alexander...it left me wanting something more.
April 17, 2020
Not sure how such an interesting life can be told so boringly.
January 7, 2023
A great little intro to Alexander, that puts a focus on contemporary sources
July 13, 2023
Maybe it's because I used to know a lot about Alexander, but this was a good overview.
April 7, 2024
I thought it was an easy, thought-provoking read. It reminded me of all the great texts I had the opportunity to read in college, taking classics courses. I'm not sure why the reviews aren't higher!
August 31, 2024
Not interested in history but want to find some inspiration.
September 12, 2025
I didn’t learn a ton that I did not already know from reading history books about this era.
March 15, 2020
A short introduction on Alexander the greate. It is not much of an interesting book for a common reader. It's basically a historical analysis of Alexander the great. The facts and rumours of the great King have been analysed in this book. This book is for historians.
February 20, 2019
My original goal in reading this was to see how well it served as a decent introduction to Alexander’s history, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that it featured some lines of inquiry and discussion that not even some longer books have delved into. It both looked beyond the traditional main sources for Alexander’s history, as well as scrutinized them their potential biases. Given it’s nature as ‘A Very Short Introduction’, there was only so far such things could be taken within the confines of the book itself, but it left me with numerous lines of inquiry to pursue further.
Some of the points of interest:
- Some events of the Battle of the Granicus resembling parts of the Iliad
- The battle at the Persian Gates appearing as an inversion of the battle at the Hot Gates
- Reference to inscriptions around the Aegean that point to Alexander’s efforts in arbitration
- The shadows of likely coronation-related details in respect to Egypt, Babylon, and Susa. It was very interesting to read about the theory that the Roman authors who form the core extant sources may have deliberately obscured such events due to their lack of alignment with a narrative of Alexander having been gradually ‘corrupted’ by interaction with ‘the east’ (a recurring Roman concern in general).
- An alternative look at what may have been going on with the proskynesis incidents.
- The possibility that turning back at the Hyphasis was the original plan if it was functionally the eastern border of the Achaemenid empire, as Alexander had made other such border-asserting movements at the Danube and the Jaxartes.
- The possibility that Curtius’s more negative portrayal of Alexander was actually commentary on the Roman Emperor Caligula.
I’ve found a couple of freely available papers by this author that expand on some of the ideas touched on in the book which I’m now reading through:
https://www.academia.edu/10464293/Bow...
https://www.academia.edu/10003973/Bow...
Some of the points of interest:
- Some events of the Battle of the Granicus resembling parts of the Iliad
- The battle at the Persian Gates appearing as an inversion of the battle at the Hot Gates
- Reference to inscriptions around the Aegean that point to Alexander’s efforts in arbitration
- The shadows of likely coronation-related details in respect to Egypt, Babylon, and Susa. It was very interesting to read about the theory that the Roman authors who form the core extant sources may have deliberately obscured such events due to their lack of alignment with a narrative of Alexander having been gradually ‘corrupted’ by interaction with ‘the east’ (a recurring Roman concern in general).
- An alternative look at what may have been going on with the proskynesis incidents.
- The possibility that turning back at the Hyphasis was the original plan if it was functionally the eastern border of the Achaemenid empire, as Alexander had made other such border-asserting movements at the Danube and the Jaxartes.
- The possibility that Curtius’s more negative portrayal of Alexander was actually commentary on the Roman Emperor Caligula.
I’ve found a couple of freely available papers by this author that expand on some of the ideas touched on in the book which I’m now reading through:
https://www.academia.edu/10464293/Bow...
https://www.academia.edu/10003973/Bow...
May 31, 2016
In some places the author assumes the reader already knows the story of Alexander so he skimps on details. But he explicitly states in the conclusion that his aim is to serve as a corrective to traditional sources & legends by making use of recent archeological & historical finds. His goal is to see how Alexander's contemporaries viewed the man, a prerequisite to making any realistic judgement.
All in all quite fascinating & illuminating, leaving you wanting to know more about the man who changed the world - indeed a very short introduction.
All in all quite fascinating & illuminating, leaving you wanting to know more about the man who changed the world - indeed a very short introduction.
October 17, 2016
Does what it says on the cover. Very readable short introduction to the life of Alexander the Great. I read it when I was visiting Thessaloniki and had been to Pella and Vergina, which brought the history to life. Great way to learn stuff without too much effort. I'd recommend it, especially if you are travelling in that area.
June 6, 2017
This is an ok introduction, I bought it to get more sources (which were provided) but it lacks ancient references.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews