Did Alexander the Great destroy a city to demonstrate his ability to reign?
score:16
Thebes
Actually, it wasn't intended specifically to set an example, but it did serve to deliver a message that Alexander was not someone who was going to just go away. Alexander's father, Phillip, was murdered in 336 BC, leaving Alexander to rule in his place. Many states, including Thebes and Athens, rose up in revolt when they heard the news. Alexander responded immediately by taking a cavalry force of 3000 men to put down the revolt.
Alexander and his cavalry were able to surprise the city of Thessalonika, resulting in their surrender and also resulted in the Thessalians joining Alexander's cavalry. From there he advanced on Thermopylae and Corinth, and then Athens settled for peace. While he was in Corinth, Alexander was given the title of "Hegemon", or leader, of the Greek forces against the Persians.
From here, Alexander had to move north and put down uprisings in Thrace and then Illyria before he could feel comfortable setting off against the Persians. When he was finally able to move back into southern Greece, he found that he still had to deal with the city of Thebes.
A full year had passed since Phillip's death, and Thebes was the last place to resist accepting Alexander as their leader. Although he tried several times to send ambassadors requesting that the city surrender on peaceful terms, they stubbornly refused. As a result, he had no choice and had to advance on the city, leaving it totally destroyed.
To say that Alexander intentionally destroyed Thebes to set an example would probably be overstating things. By the time he came to Thebes, the rest of Greece had pretty much accepted his leadership. It may be true that he destroyed the city to set an example of what would happen to others who may choose to defy him, but he didn't appear to have set out with that intention.
See Alexander's Balkan Campaign to read some more information.
Upvote:1
Yes, the city in question was Thebes.
UPDT: For a source, check out the always-excellent livius.org website. Here.
Upvote:1
The one city that Alexander The Great did destroy-(or set ablaze), was the Persian imperial Capital, Persepolis. However, in actuality, Alexander and his Armies did not entirely destroy the centuries old city of Persepolis since a sizable portion of the original city still stands-(and in remarkably good condition 2300 plus years since Alexander's invasion). Alexander's near destruction of Persepolis may have been revenge against the Persian Empire for their attack and near destruction of Athens under the Emperor Xerxes 150 years earlier-(the city of Athens was set ablaze by the invading Persian Empire several generations before Alexander's time).
There is an interesting story about the town of Merv in Turkmenistan. Alexander had conquered a sizable portion of Central Asia, which included Turkmenistan-(which had another name during his time). Alexander and his Armies founded the town of Merv. After Alexander's death, the town of Merv contniued to exist-( though in near historical obscurity). However, when the ferocious warlord Genghis Khan "came to town", he and his Mongolian Army devastatingly razed the already obscure town into historical oblivion.
Alexander The Great was a warrior and launched campaign after campaign against fellow Greek city-states, the Persian Empire and reached the distant Northern Indian subcontinent in less than 15 years. However, he also founded cities and towns across his Empire; the most famous of course, was Alexandria in Egypt, though he also founded the town of Kandahar in Bactria/(present-day Afghanistan. The town is named on his behalf), as well as the above mentioned town of Merv in Modern-day Tajikistan.
When looking at his legacy, Alexander, though a fierce and formidable campaigner, did not set out to rampage and ravage foreign cities "to demonstrate his ability to reign". Rather, it was Alexander's primary mission to capture, conquer and bring Hellenism-(albeit imperialistically), to the near and distant corners of the known world. This landmark achievement was the ultimate example of his ability to reign.
Upvote:1
Although late to the party, let me add that Alexander the Great did destroy a city as an example. The city of Tyre, which was an island city, would not surrender to him (there are others who say they pledged support but wouldn't allow him in the city due to it being a festival). Consequently, Alexander built a land bridge to the city (well, he built two with the first one failing) and then crushed all resistance and crucified 2000 men on the beach of the mainland after killing over 6000 others. That act served as an example to the other city-states and smaller nations in the Levant such as Judea, Idumea, and so on.
More post
- 📝 Why did Churchill order the destruction of the bombes?
- 📝 How would one muzzle a full grown polar bear in the 13th century?
- 📝 What is a term for cultural and social influences left by colonial power that has a long-lasting, negative influence?
- 📝 What percentage of relocated Armenians died?
- 📝 Did Edward VIII's abdication follow constitutional procedures?
- 📝 When and why did smiling at strangers and in photos become customary in the United States?
- 📝 Did Ali give his allegiance to the three first caliphs?
- 📝 Did Shackleton's crew all "miss out" on WW1?
- 📝 Was there a rule against non-Muslims wearing the colour green in the Ottoman empire?
- 📝 Where can I find what the cost of a train ticket in the USA was in 1930?
- 📝 Is this quotation authentic (88mm versus Sherman)?
- 📝 Did former SS-member Alois Brunner advise Syria on organizing it's Intelligence Service?
- 📝 Was Rudolph Hess a moderating influence on Hitler?
- 📝 Which culture first referenced bigfoot?
- 📝 Please help identify this medal... German military?
- 📝 Were defendants at the Nuremberg trial allowed to deny the holocaust?
- 📝 Why was wearing an orange lily so offensive as to warrant assault in Ireland in 1845?
- 📝 Which general rebuked the King of England over logistics?
- 📝 Can there be hidden ancient archives in Saudi Arabia?
- 📝 Why did the "Ruthenians" break up into "Belarusians" and "Ukrainians?"
- 📝 How did Hitler have his own private militia in 1923?
- 📝 Explain the symbols in the relief of Thoth raising Seti I in the Temple of Seti I at Abydos
- 📝 Germany's "Economic Miracle"
- 📝 How many people were executed during the reign of Henry VIII?
- 📝 Historical documents of Mount Athos
- 📝 How did Medieval armies survive the use of mail armor in the deserts of the Middle East?
- 📝 What percent of the population could vote in Venice between 900 and 1200 AD?
- 📝 What is the earliest depiction of a crane?
- 📝 Was the French philosopher Pierre Bayle a Calvinist believer or an atheist?
- 📝 Was Marcus Marcellus faced with Viridomarus or Britomartus?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Did Alexander the Great destroy a city to demonstrate his ability to reign?
- 📝 Why did Peter the Great change his daughters' title to Tsesarevna?
- 📝 How did Maximilien de Robespierre lose control of his Reign of Terror and die by the guillotine?
- 📝 Why did Frederick the Great do so much worse against the Russians than against his other enemies in the Seven Years' War?
- 📝 What was the personal philosophy of Alexander the Great in his youth?
- 📝 Why did Alexander the Great spare Porus's life?
- 📝 How did Alexander the Great die?
- 📝 Why did Alexander the Great succeed in overthrowing the Persian Empire?
- 📝 Did Alexander the Great win or lose against Porus (before the eventual 'fleeing')?
- 📝 Which port did Alexander board his ship from, while returning from the Indian campaign?
- 📝 Did Adolf Hitler ever address the fact that his own appearance was almost an exact opposite of what he considered the ideal Aryan appearance?
- 📝 When did humans develop the ability to sail any direction regardless of wind direction?
- 📝 Did Heisenberg undermine the German atomic bomb by deliberately hiding his expertise from the Nazis?
- 📝 How did Moscow become the capital/most important city in Russia?
- 📝 Was Alexander the Great Greek or Macedonian?
- 📝 Did people in China resort to cannibalism during the reign of Mao?
- 📝 During the Great Depression, did the US Army do a study involving paying people to dig a hole and fill it back up?
- 📝 Were Alexander the Great and Hephaestion lovers?
- 📝 Why did Peter the Great name Saint Petersburg, Russia with a foreign styled name?
- 📝 Who governed while Alexander the Great was away conquering Asia?
- 📝 How did William the Conqueror consolidate his military victory?
- 📝 Why did the Mongols destroy the library during the siege of Baghdad in 1258?
- 📝 Did Catherine the Great really call for the abolition of serfdom?
- 📝 in what form did William the Conqueror write the date of his own coronation?
- 📝 What did Tacitus write about Nero and the Great Fire of Rome 64AD?
- 📝 How did Alexander III of Macedon get the title "the Great"?
- 📝 What effect did the Attack on Mers-el-Kébir have on Great Britain's international relations during WW2?
- 📝 Why did Stalin push for the Great Purge against the Red Army in 1936?
- 📝 Why did the Native American city of Cahokia die out?
- 📝 When did the Soviets get the ability to drop a nuclear bomb on the United States?