How was Alexander the Great able to rule so much territory?
score:29
Alexander, for the most part, left things unchanged in the lands he conquered. He didn't impose Greek customs, respected (or perhaps ignored) local religions and cultures and allowed a certain degree of self government that, for several of the territories of the former Achaemenid empire, was quite a refreshing change. Not everyone under his rule accepted him, but most did, and several satraps capitulated without a fight. The Egyptians went a step further and proclaimed him a son of Amun. Several of his opponents even kept their positions (or attained other positions of power) in the new empire (the more notable example being Porus).
Of course, Alexander would leave a garrison here and there, and would raze cities to the ground when he felt they could oppose them in the future (see Tyre & Gaza), but his main methods of controlling his vast territories were the image of liberator he cultivated, and extremely tight financial control. Although the former satrapies maintained their lands and a higher degree of autonomy than they enjoyed under Persian rule, Alexander denied them any control over taxation. The vast network of cities Alexander founded during this time ensured the Greeks also had a quite strong grip on the empire's trade.
That said, Alexander's empire didn't last long. It splitted into several states almost right after his death and the conflicts between his successors went on for almost half a century. These states, once normalized, were much smaller in comparison and thus easier to control. In general, the successors continued Alexander's plan: they avoided antagonizing the local population, kept tight financial control and continued expanding the already vast network of cities Alexander had build.
Upvote:8
Today I stumbled across Machiavelli's answer to this question (at least with reference to the Persian Empire) in chapter 4 of The Prince, where he writes,
Considering the difficulties which men have had to hold to a newly acquired state, some might wonder how, seeing that Alexander the Great became the master of Asia in a few years, and died whilst it was scarcely settled (whence it might appear reasonable that the whole empire would have rebelled), nevertheless his successors maintained themselves, and had to meet no other difficulty than that which arose among themselves from their own ambitions (link).
He answers by comparing Persia at the time of Alexander's conquest to two states at the time of The Prince's writing: the Ottoman Empire and France. If one conquered France, it would be hard to hold because even if you killed the entire royal family you'd be unable to rid yourself complete of the French nobility, and they'd be looking for opportunities to rise up against you to their own advantage. But Persia was like the Ottoman Empire, with no hereditary sources of power outside of the emperor's own family. So once Alexander had defeated Darius there were no likely parties left to mount a successful rebellion.
More post
- 📝 What names did the ancient Egyptians give to different stages of their history?
- 📝 Does anyone know the history on this artillery shell I found in my grandfather’s shed?
- 📝 Are the Sabean people of Cushitic or Ethiopian origin?
- 📝 Why were the Merovingians so reviled?
- 📝 What's the correlation between an excessive unmarried male population and a big war breaking out?
- 📝 How did Americans adopt processed and off-site butchered meat for domestic consumption in their food supply?
- 📝 Was there other research focusing on the medical uses of ether in the 18th Century?
- 📝 Help identifying an old bayonet
- 📝 Is there any documentation that indicates the Aztecs were as violent as they are made out?
- 📝 Did all of Egypt, or just the Ptolemies decline?
- 📝 Is a "buckle plate" the same thing as a "buckle chape"?
- 📝 What were Russia and the US were planning to do if Ukraine refused to give up their nuclear arsenal?
- 📝 Why did 1906 Iranian constitutionalists use the Belgian constitution as inspiration?
- 📝 Why was Franklin D. Roosevelt pro-intervention?
- 📝 Did the Creole estate in Russian America encompass Siberian creoles?
- 📝 When was King John of England given the name 'Dollheart', and who first used it?
- 📝 Did the Mayans view the gods as antagonistic to humanity?
- 📝 What do the last four digits of this postal cancellation stamp mean?
- 📝 The name of a German Nazi supporter who owned many newspapers
- 📝 Were there many "co-headed" commands where the senior member was younger than the junior?
- 📝 Why would a 16th century Italian painter choose canvas over wood panel?
- 📝 Christian and Etruscan end of times
- 📝 What was the origin of religious tolerance in Europe?
- 📝 Were early mosques originally oriented on Petra instead of Mecca according to archaeological record?
- 📝 Where was Carl Sagan working on a plan to detonate a nuke on the Moon? Where was he applying when he leaked it?
- 📝 Was Rome obliged to expand its territory whether it wanted to or not?
- 📝 Were there military operations that targeted individual enemy commanders?
- 📝 What did the sympathies lie of the US Navy around the time of the American Civil War?
- 📝 How long would it take a Victorian to travel from central Germany to the UK?
- 📝 Was being in the KKK politically/socially acceptable in early 1900's American South?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 How was Alexander the Great able to rule so much territory?
- 📝 How was the United States able to produce excellent tanks in 1942?
- 📝 Was Alexander the Great Greek or Macedonian?
- 📝 Who governed while Alexander the Great was away conquering Asia?
- 📝 How was the Luftwaffe able to destroy nearly 4000 Soviet aircraft in 3 days of operation Barbarossa?
- 📝 Approximately how much travel time was saved by the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869?
- 📝 How was the USA able to win naval battles in the Pacific?
- 📝 How was Israel able to build a powerful military within days of the formation of the state?
- 📝 How much oil was spilled by the naval combatants during WW2?
- 📝 In Viking combat, how much damage was done using the shield?
- 📝 How much of the *Iliad* was confirmed scientifically?
- 📝 How much was the wealthy elite harmed by the Bolshevik revolution?
- 📝 How much of "Russia" was actually occupied by the Germans in World War II?
- 📝 Was Alexander the Great ever an emperor?
- 📝 How much knowledge of the past was destroyed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries?
- 📝 How was Enguerrand VII de Coucy able to keep his allegiance to both king of England and France during the Hundred Years War?
- 📝 What was the personal philosophy of Alexander the Great in his youth?
- 📝 In early WW2, how much of the merchant marine was American?
- 📝 How was Ivaylo's Bulgarian peasant army able to repel the Mongols?
- 📝 How much leisure time was enjoyed by English peasants in the 16th century?
- 📝 How tall was Frederick the Great of Prussia?
- 📝 Was Alexander the Great undefeated in every battle?
- 📝 How was Herodotus able to get accounts of the Battle of Thermopylae?
- 📝 How did Alexander the Great die?
- 📝 How was Napoleon able to take power from the Republic
- 📝 How were the Incas able to build such great works of architecture without using mortar?
- 📝 How old was Bagoas when he met Alexander the Great?
- 📝 How were the Burmese able to sack Ayutthaya when it was one of the wealthiest and most powerful cities in Asia at the time?
- 📝 How much damage was USSR already capable of doing by the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis?
- 📝 How was Germany able to hold itself together, while Austria-Hungary could not?
