Silver tetradrachm of Lysimachus, King of Thrace

c. 297 - 281 BC

Gallery 37, Heberden Coin Room

The Life of Alexander

Alexander the Great was born in 356 BC, heir to the Macedonian throne. In 336BC his father, King Philip II, was assassinated, leaving Alexander in control of the kingdom. Within 12 years he had conquered most of the known world of the time.

Alexander’s greatest enemy was the Persian King, Darius III. The Persian empire stretched from Egypt and the Mediterranean to India and central Asia. It had dominated the ancient world for over 200 years. In 331BC Alexander finally defeated Darius at Gaugamela. Alexander was not finished: he continued eastwards into India, where he defeated King Poros in 326BC. At this point his troops refused to continue. Alexander decided to retreat to his new capital at Babylon. There, in June 323BC, Alexander fell gravely ill and died after days of fever. He was 32 years old.

After Alexander’s death, his generals divided the empire amongst themselves and ruled as if they were kings. These generals were called the Diodochoi: the ‘successors’.