Alexander Builds an Empire

Alexander Builds an Empire Chapter 9 Lesson 4

Objectives • Describe the events that led to the rise of Alexander the Great’s Empire. • Explain how Greek culture spread during and after Alexander’s rule.

Vocabulary • Hellenistic Age – Greeklike age • Multicultural – a city with many cultures

The End of Greek Independence • Phillip II of Macedonia united his people and conquered Greece • All the major Greek city-states except Sparta joined Phillip’s League of Corinth

Alexander’s Conquests • Alexander set out to conquer Persia and the rest of the known world • By 331 BC he ruled a huge empire, throughout which he spread Greek culture and introduced the Greek language

The End of an Empire • After Alexander’s death in 323 BC his empire broke into separate kingdoms • They were often in conflict with each other • Alexander’s influence, however, lasted for nearly 300 years after his death

Alexandria: A Center of Learning • Alexandria, Egypt became a new center of culture and learning • Many scholars and scientists worked at a center for learning called the Museum, next to the world’s largest library

The Hellenistic Age • Hellenistic culture flourished in all parts of Alexander’s former empire • In Alexandria, texts from different cultures were translated into Greek so they could be shared with Greek scholars

Summary • The Greek city-states fell to Phillip II, the king of Macedonia • His son Alexander went on to build the largest empire the world had known • Through his conquests, Alexander spread Greek culture • When he died, his empire broke up, but Greek culture lived on throughout parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa

Reading Check Questions • How did Phillip of Macedonia end the independence of the Greek city-states? • He conquered and united them under his rule • How was Alexander’s plan similar to his father’s plan? • Both planned to conquer the Persians • What caused Alexander to stop conquering more of India? • His soldiers refused to go on • What enduring contributions did Euclid and Hypatia make to learning? • Euclid advanced geometry, and Hypatia headed a school, developed theories in mathematics, and invented tools for measuring the properties of water • What caused the spread of Greek culture in the Hellenistic Age? • The new kings continued to spread Greek culture throughout the former empire

Alexander Builds an Empire