Book Description
A sagacious ruler and a volatile, often violent commander, a sensuous youth and paradigm of chastity, Alexander the Great of Macedonia remains one of the most fascinating and contradictory figures in world history. Son of King Phillip and the tempestuous Queen Olympia, educated by Aristotle himself, Alexander the Great led a swift succession of military victories that gave him an empire extending from Greece to India. From his first conquest in northern Greece at the age of sixteen, to victories over Macedonia, Egypt, Persia, and Asia, Alexander possessed almost inhuman energy and hubris that defied Zeus himself, until his death at the age of thirty-two. Alexander the Great is an epic history of a man who became one of the most heralded rulers and despised geniuses of all time.
About the Author
Lewis V. Cummings was a cartographer for the British Intelligence Service when he first traveled through the Middle East and Asia. His biography of Alexander the Great is based on exhaustive research and extensive collaboration with scholars at Columbia University.
Alexander the Great FROM THE PUBLISHER
Reissued to coincide with the release of Oliver Stone's epic movie on Alexander the Great (slated for fall 2004) and the Summer Olympics in Greece, Lewis Cummings's comprehensive and readable biography of Alexander the Great gives us the full portrait of this brilliant and tyrannical leader. A sagacious ruler and a volatile, often violent commander, a sensuous youth and a paradigm of chastity, Alexander the Great of Macedonia remains one of the most fascinating and contradictory figures in world history. Son of King Philip and the tempestuous Queen Olympia, educated by Aristotle himself, a swift succession of military victories gave him an empire that extended from Greece to India. From his first conquest in northern Greece at the age of sixteen, to a swift succession of victories over Macedonia, Egypt, Persia, and Asia, Alexander possessed almost inhuman energy and hubris that defied Zeus himself, until his death at the age of thirty-two. Alexander the Great is an epic history of a man who became one of the most heralded rulers and despised geniuses of all time.