Philip and Alexander: Kings and Conquerors

by Adrian Goldsworthy

Overview

In this definitive biography of father and son, an eminent historian "brings to life the full drama of ancient history" (Wall Street Journal)

Alexander the Great's conquests staggered the world. He led his army across thousands of miles, overthrowing the greatest empires of his time and building a new one in its place. He claimed to be the son of a god, but he was actually the son of Philip II of Macedon.

Philip inherited a minor kingdom that was on the verge of dismemberment, but despite his youth and inexperience, he made Macedonia dominant throughout Greece. It was Philip who created the armies that Alexander led into war against Persia. In Philip and Alexander, classical historian Adrian Goldsworthy shows that without the work and influence of his father, Alexander could not have achieved so much. This is the groundbreaking biography of two men who together conquered the world.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781541602625
Publisher:	Basic Books
Publication date:	10/18/2022
Pages:	624
Sales rank:	179,972
Product dimensions:	8.20(w) x 5.40(h) x 1.70(d)

About the Author

Adrian Goldsworthy received his DPhil in ancient history from Oxford and has taught at Cardiff University, King's College, and the University of Notre Dame in London. The author of numerous books, including Pax Romana, How Rome Fell, and Caesar, he lives in South Wales, UK.

Table of Contents

List of Maps and Figures ix

Chronology x

Introduction "Some Talk of Alexander" 1

Part 1 Philip II

Chapter 1 In the Beginning 15

Chapter 2 Crisis 29

Chapter 3 Macedonian, Greek, and Barbarian 47

Chapter 4 Alliances and Wives 69

Chapter 5 War and Its Price 79

Chapter 6 "I Did Not Run Away": Defeat in Thessaly 93

Chapter 7 The Avenger 105

Chapter 8 Peace 119

Chapter 9 The Prince 133

Chapter 10 Old and New Enemies 151

Chapter 11 Chaeronea 163

Chapter 12 Love and Persia 179

Chapter 13 "Wreathed Is the Bull": Passion, Ambition, and Revenge 193

Part 2 Alexander and Persia

Chapter 14 The Example 209

Chapter 15 The Army and the Enemy 225

Chapter 16 The River 243

Chapter 17 The Gordian Knot 261

Chapter 18 "Then Truly There Was Great Bloodshed": The Battle of Issus, 333 BC 275

Chapter 19 "Manifestly a Large Task": The Siege of Tyre 291

Chapter 20 An Oasis and a God 307

Chapter 21 The Battle of Gaugamela 319

Chapter 22 "The Most Hateful of the Cities of Asia" 337

Chapter 23 An End and a Beginning 349

Chapter 24 The Upright Tiara 367

Part 3 Lord of Asia

Chapter 25 The Sword and the Flame 381

Chapter 26 "Poorer for a Kiss" 397

Chapter 27 India 411

Chapter 28 Victory into Retreat 431

Chapter 29 Sea and Sand 449

Chapter 30 The Return of the King 461

Chapter 31 "An Utter Loss" 477

Epilogue Tears and a Broken Nose 495

Appendix 1 The Main Sources 511

Appendix 2 The Royal Tombs 515

Acknowledgments 519

Bibliography 521

Notes 531

Index 563

Editorial Reviews

A compelling but temperate book, giving readers an in-depth but dispassionate account of its subjects….Mr. Goldsworthy has a rare gift for imagining and describing ancient warfare….He combines the talents of scholar and storyteller, bringing to life the full drama of ancient history while assessing the evidence with a critical eye.”—Wall Street Journal

“[Goldsworthy] brings a careful, often insightful balance to the familiar stories.”—Open Letters Review

“Contributes significantly to making these scholarly developments accessible to a very wide audience, through engaging narratives which capture the political complexity of the Greek world both before and after Alexander. The major innovation of Goldsworthy's vivid Philip and Alexander is to pair Alexander's biography with that of his father, Philip II.”—Times Literary Supplement

“Belongs on the (sturdy) shelf of any reader interested in military, political, or social history.”—Minerva Magazine

“By pairing the two giants of Macedonia, Goldsworthy helps the reader understand Alexander's life all the better, and sheds light on the achievements and character of Philip.”—Aspects of History

“A gripping history that combined deep scholarship with readability ... This is an epic history. Very much in the vein of the Tom Holland histories of empire, enjoyable and informative but also gripping.”—NB Magazine

"Riveting...Goldsworthy is the best sort of writer on ancient times. He eschews psychohistory, explains the wildly unfamiliar culture of that era, and speculates carefully...An outstandingly fresh look at well-trodden ground."—Kirkus (starred review)

"An impressive dual biography.... Goldsworthy expertly mines ancient sources to parse fact from legend...This is a fascinating and richly detailed look at two men who 'changed the course of history.'"—Publishers Weekly

“Thorough and riveting.”—Library Journal (starred review)

"Philip and Alexander is another wonderful product of Adrian Goldsworthy's historical craft — sterling scholarship, engaging prose, insightful analysis, and unbiased assessment. Goldsworthy explores brilliantly the complex relationship between father and son, the failure of the Greek city-states to stop them, the proper credit for the Macedonian expansion, and the megalomania of Alexander's near global conquests. A brilliant account of how father and son changed the world, for both good and bad."—Victor Davis Hanson, author of A War Like No Other: How the Athenians and Spartans Fought the Peloponnesian War

"A thrilling read, as successful in meeting its ambitions as Philip's kingship, as sweeping as Alexander's conquests."—Tom Holland, author of Rubicon: The Last Years of the Roman Republic

"Philip and Alexander is history writing at its best. In one volume, Adrian Goldsworthy tells the story of perhaps the most successful father-son pair of conquerors of all time. He highlights both the drama of their violent achievements and the consequences that were felt for centuries. The result is expert, fluent, and vivid."—Barry Strauss, author of Ten Caesars: Roman Emperors from Augustus to Constantine

From the Publisher

08/24/2020

Historian Goldsworthy (Cannae: Hannibal’s Greatest Victory) examines the lives of Philip II of Macedon and his son, Alexander the Great, in this impressive dual biography. Stressing that “without Philip there could have been no Alexander,” Goldsworthy details how Philip transformed the military by instituting the infantry formation known as the “Macedonian phalanx” and how he consolidated power against Greece’s more established city-states. When Alexander took the throne after Philip’s assassination in 336 BCE, the 20-year-old military prodigy embarked on a decadelong campaign that took the Macedonian army and empire as far east as present-day Pakistan. Along the way, Alexander sacked Thebes, became the Pharaoh in Egypt, conquered the Persian Empire, and crossed the Gedrosian desert in a dangerous trek that nearly broke his army. He turned back toward Greece at the height of his successes, but succumbed to disease—or poison—weeks before turning 33. Without an heir, his vast empire splintered in wars waged by his would-be successors. Goldsworthy expertly mines ancient sources to parse fact from legend, but admits that both Philip and Alexander remain elusive figures, better known for their battlefield accomplishments than for their personalities, about which less is known. Still, this is a fascinating and richly detailed look at two men who “changed the course of history.”(Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

★ 10/01/2020

Philip II of Macedon (382–36 BCE) inherited a small kingdom and made it the dominant power in Greece; his son and heir Alexander the Great (356–23 BCE) not only overthrew the Persian Empire but conquered territory as distant as India. Alexander and his military triumphs have received the lion's share of popular and scholarly attention, but Goldsworthy's dual biography asserts the importance of both men, further positing that while both were brilliant and capable, their accomplishments also relied on situational benefits and good fortune as much as their skills: Philip's rise was aided by the fractious nature of the Greek states, and Alexander's conquest benefited hugely from Philip's consolidation of Macedonian power and establishment of a well-trained military force. The text also effectively deals with the gaps in sources of knowledge about both men as people, with Goldsworthy avoiding conjecture when possible and presenting famous rumors and legendary incidents as valuable examples of the myth-building around both men but not always verifiable historical facts. VERDICT The thorough and riveting narrative of both Philip and Alexander's lives and accomplishments makes this an ideal choice for the general reader, with some fresh insights to offer to those familiar with the subjects as well.—Kathleen McCallister, William & Mary Libs., Williamsburg, VA

Library Journal

Neil Dickson’s clear, straight-ahead narration aptly matches Goldsworthy’s history of the ancient Macedonian father and son who were kings and conquerors. Both text and performance are professional and engaging. Neither calls attention to itself. Dickson maintains the sense of story while still delivering intelligent nonfiction, aided by his strong voice, pleasing British accent, and good pacing. Occasionally, he gives the wrong emphasis to a word or phrase, but, for the most part, he matches articulation to sense. Acting is unnecessary, but he gives dramatic phrases added emotional heft. He is exactly the smart, skilled companion one wants for long narrative nonfiction. He makes his narration sound as effortless as conversation as it quietly entertains. W.M. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

MAY 2021 - AudioFile

Neil Dickson’s clear, straight-ahead narration aptly matches Goldsworthy’s history of the ancient Macedonian father and son who were kings and conquerors. Both text and performance are professional and engaging. Neither calls attention to itself. Dickson maintains the sense of story while still delivering intelligent nonfiction, aided by his strong voice, pleasing British accent, and good pacing. Occasionally, he gives the wrong emphasis to a word or phrase, but, for the most part, he matches articulation to sense. Acting is unnecessary, but he gives dramatic phrases added emotional heft. He is exactly the smart, skilled companion one wants for long narrative nonfiction. He makes his narration sound as effortless as conversation as it quietly entertains. W.M. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

MAY 2021 - AudioFile

★ 2020-07-16
Superb biographies of royalty’s greatest father-son combination.

Countless books have covered the lives of Alexander the Great and his energetic father, Philip of Macedon, but this dual biography, one of the first for a popular audience, not only gives them equal weight, but emphasizes that “both men were able, and Alexander won the war planned and prepared by Philip.” Prolific British historian Goldsworthy reminds readers that Macedonia, north of the classical Greek cities, was long viewed as a nation of uncultured barbarians. When not warring against neighbors, kings fought off rivals and were frequently murdered. No one held great hopes for the 22-year-old Philip, who took over leadership in 359 B.C.E. after his uncle died in battle. Yet, during a 23-year reign, he secured his throne and turned his army into a trained, professional fighting force that made him the de facto leader of all Greece. Few objected to Philip’s plan to invade Persia, still a wealthy superpower, although his murder interrupted the project, which was already underway. Goldsworthy’s Alexander spent two years dealing with rivals and the usual rebellions before marching off in 334, never to return. Despite the plethora of accounts of Alexander’s campaign, readers will still enjoy this riveting one. His army enjoyed dazzling victories accompanied by the accepted mass murder, looting, and rape. They grumbled over their hardships and disliked Alexander’s increasing love of foreign customs and ceremonies. As paranoid as most ancient rulers, he regularly discovered plots and executed friends and subordinates, not all of whom were guilty. Most scholars deplore his neglect of a succession plan, and his empire fell apart following his death. Goldsworthy is the best sort of writer on ancient times. He eschews psychohistory, explains the wildly unfamiliar culture of that era, and speculates carefully. Because so few sources survive and most are untrustworthy, the author, who includes a chronology and maps, also keeps readers informed of the probability that a historical event actually happened.

An outstandingly fresh look at well-trodden ground.

Kirkus Reviews