Untitled Document
 I
want to tell you about a great king from ancient history. Thousands of books have been
written about him. And even today people remember him as the strongest and smartest
leader. His name is Alexander
the Great!
Before moving on to talk about Alexander, I have a question. Which
country is famous for mythology? Don’t know what
mythology is? It’s the story of many interesting gods and characters. Characters like
Hercules! I am sure you know Hercules, the guy who was strong enough
to lift a building! You might
be wondering why I am talking
about Greece. Well, it’s because Alexander has Greek background.
In ancient times, Greece was
the strongest nation. It fought wars with
many nations. As time passed, Greece was controlling almost all of
Europe! Alexander was a prince. He was the son of the king of Macedonia. He was born in
356 B.C. Macedonia was one of many countries in the Greek empire. It had the strongest
and biggest army. And it ruled all of Greece.
As a young boy, Alexander had a private teacher. His teacher
was the most famous philosopher, mathematician and scientist of all time. His name was
Aristotle! The young prince learned about Greek gods, culture and history from the great teacher.
As Alexander grew up, he wanted to let everyone in the world know
about wonderful Greece. When he
became a teenager, he was smart and
ready to lead.
Alexander’s father was a king and a powerful army general. He wanted his son
to be strong and powerful just like him. The young prince trained to fight. He was
taught how to lead an army, too. His father, King Phillip II was very
strict. His mother, Queen
Olympia, was very loving. When King Phillip II died, the young teenager
was ready to take his father’s place. As the new King, Alexander had
a big dream. He wanted to have Asian nations in his empire. He wanted
to be a good and kind king to the Asian people and he wanted to share different cultures
with them. But to do this, he had to go to war.
 Alexander
was only 19 when he decided to fight Persia. With 40,000
men, Alexander fought King Darius of Persia. The young King swore
to his people that he would win and control all of Asia. Well, he
sure did. In his first war, Alexander lost only 110 men. King Darius’
army was twice as big as his. Persia was a great empire just like
Greece. It controlled almost all of Asia. For many
years, Alexander fought many wars against King Darius.
In 331 B.C., Alexander’s dreams came true. He won every country in
the Persian Empire! Alexander was the king of Europe and Asia. Alexander
was generous to the people. He
spread wonderful Greek culture
to Egypt and even to India. By the time Alexander was 32, the world
knew him as the Great King. He was the first king in history to be
called by that name.
When you are a King who controls Europe and Asia, life can be hard.
And Alexander had countless people to take care of. Many Greeks
didn’t like the Asians. Greeks didn’t want their King to be so kind
to other cultures. Alexander tried so hard to unite everyone. Sadly, as he worked hard,
he got very sick. At the age of 33, Alexander’s heart stopped and he passed
away.
In history, he is still remembered as the first king to hold such a big empire. But
he is also remembered for uniting many cultures. He was a kind leader,
strong soldier and a king who loved
his empire. Alexander the Great was a truly great king! |
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