Alexander the Great Cambridge Shorts

Researcher: Stephen Harrison
Department: Classics
Film maker: Meghan Horvath

Alexander the Great is one of history’s most famous figures; he is also one of the most enigmatic. Aged just twenty when he inherited the throne of Macedonia in 336 BC, he led an invasion of the Persian Empire, then the most powerful empire in the world. Within ten years, Alexander had conquered vast swathes of territory, stretching from modern Egypt and Turkey in the West, to Afghanistan and Pakistan in the East. Conquering an empire is one thing, but consolidating it is a totally different matter. How was Alexander to go about integrating culturally and linguistically diverse peoples into a cohesive whole? This film explores one of the methods Alexander tried. In 327 he attempted to impose a Persian court practice, called proskynesis, on his Macedonian subjects. His reasons for doing so, however, are unclear and modern historians are deeply divided about his motivation. The film recreates the historical event and introduces the scholarly debate. By the end, you will have heard all of the available information and be able to take a stance on the issue. We’d love to hear your thoughts, tweet @olympusnews and visit: http://olympusnews.weebly.com/