King of Egypt, King of Persia, King of Macedonia… These are just some of the many titles that belonged to Alexander III of Macedon. The title he is most commonly referred to is Alexander the Great due to his reputation as a military leader and the fact that he is one of the most well known names in history. There are plenty of pieces of literature, paintings, sculptures, and descriptions that depict Alexander and tell of his battles and of his great empire. Still, despite all of our knowledge about Alexander, historians are still puzzled by the mystery surrounding his death. So the question stands, how did Alexander the Great die? I argue that Alexander died by assassination, or more specifically, by some form of poisoning.
Alexander was a great military commander and was even successfully able to execute the conquests of several large empires, including Persia and Egypt.1 It is said that his army never once lost a battle, and at the peak of his rule, the Persian Empire became one of the largest and most populated empires in history. People viewed him as a godlike being because of his military prowess and other great accomplishments as king. It seems that even he thought of himself as a god, as he would always wear sacred clothes mimicking the appearances of Artemis and Hermes.2 It is easy to see how being the king of such a large empire can give a man a bloated ego. It has even been documented that, among the many questions he would ask other philosophers, he would always ask, “How can a man become a god?” This god-complex of his most likely played a role in his actions, as well as to what led to his assassination. But before discussing possible motivations for him being a target of assassination, the two known accounts of his death must be examined.
There are only two known accounts of his death, but they differ greatly in the retelling of the king’s death. The first account can be found in the “Royal Diary,” a journal written on Alexander’s everyday life. It is presumed that it was written by Alexander’s chief secretary shortly after his death. The most supported and likely reason for this is that the diary was meant to silence the rumors that his death was a result of poison.3 The second source can be found in the pages of the Alexander Romance. The Alexander Romance is a book that contains mostly fictional collections of stories, but also contains some accurate information regarding Alexander’s death.4
Both sources place Alexander at a banquet and, in addition to having fallen ill, Alexander had planned to invade Arabia, which may have provided motive to kill him. This provides support for the theory of him being poisoned so that the invasion of Arabia could have been prevented. According to the account from the Alexander Romance, Alexander first experienced a stinging pain at the banquet and felt weak for the next few days, but had no symptoms of fever. On the other hand, the other account depicts almost the polar opposite of the Romance. It describes Alexander as first developing a small fever that slowly got worse and worse until his inevitable death.5 The differences make it hard to be able to narrow down the possible causes of death and also bring into question the reliability of these two accounts.
The possibility that Alexander was poisoned is fairly high, considering the symptoms he experienced, especially those described in the Alexander Romance, but these symptoms could also be attributed to a number of common diseases in Alexander’s time. Along with anyone who was against the Arabian invasion, there were a number of other people that could have wanted him dead. Another motivation could be Alexander’s Exile Decree. This was Alexander’s plan to allow the people exiled from Greek cities to return to their homes.6 It was a complex issue at the time and it is easy to see why people would oppose this and even possibly go as far as to assassinate Alexander.
With so many people against the king’s actions and so many possible motivations for assassination, it is hard to argue that no one was responsible for his death. The two accounts of his symptoms prior to death are the only things available to us, along with a few more records and accounts that are not as detailed or reliable. There are skeptics that believe these two accounts also cannot be trusted because they are written by people who were not in favor with Alexander.7 The article looks into whether or not Alexander’s death was due to his use of consuming alcohol. The article concludes that the authors of the accounts most likely wanted it to seem as though that was the case so as not to draw suspicion and to go against the notion that he may have been assassinated.
And so, given all the known facts and sources, it is reasonable to conclude that Alexander the Great died due to poisoning. He was going to die at the hands of his men sooner or later given the amount of people and subjects he ruled over and he was bound to make enemies. Unfortunately, his dreams of conquest came to an abrupt end, following him to his grave. Still, Alexander remains one of the greatest conquerors in history, having conquered a multitude of other empires and accumulating land and wealth for his own empire.
- Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia, 2015, s.v. “Alexander the Great,” by Reynolds G. Clark. ↵
- Ian Worthington, Alexander the Great: Man and God (Hoboken: Routledge, 2014), 272. ↵
- Edward M. Anson, Alexander the Great: Themes and Issues (London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2013), 181-183. ↵
- Leo J. Schep et al., “Was the Death of Alexander the Great due to Poisoning? Was It Veratrum Album?,” Clinical Toxicology, no. 1 (January 2014): 73. ↵
- Leo J. Schep et al., “Was the Death of Alexander the Great due to Poisoning? Was It Veratrum Album?,” Clinical Toxicology, no. 1 (January 2014): 74. ↵
- Ian Worthington, Alexander the Great: Man and God (Hoboken: Routledge, 2014),263. ↵
- J. A. Liappas et al., “Alexander the Great’s Relationship with Alcohol,” Addiction 98, no. 5 (May 2003): 566. ↵
46 comments
Caroline Bush
Great article on one of my favorite historical figures. Alexander the Great accomplished things that you only hear about in legends. Its interesting to think about what would have happened had he not been poisoned. I agree with the article in the fact that he probably would have been killed by one of his men due to how many nations he conquered and how many people he had under him. overall I really enjoyed this article and can’t believe how little we know about the death of a man who had so many titles and conquered so many nations.
Andrew Rodriguez
Great article on one of the most interesting figures in history. its astounding that we only have two records to look back on, and try to determines someone’s death. I agree with your point on the assassination theory, the way how he was just taking over so many empires at once. Was bound to create a enemy to test his power or even to end it. He set the bar for future conquers to come on the size of his empire. If he was poisoned, the evidence most likely would have been in the glass he was drinking from that night. Seems like the best way to kill him and get non traced. But for someone to conquer so much being so young, is really astounding and that’s why I would view him as one of the most interesting figures in history.
Osman Rodriguez
Alexander the Great is one of my favorite figures in history. He accomplished things that many people would deem impossible. To do what Alexander did, you must have exceptional leadership skills, intelligence, willingness to learn, be fearless and devoted. Imagining such a person being poisoned or betrayed must not have sat well with many people in that time, as it does not with me. Interesting article one the King of Conquerors.
Erick Paul Martinez
Great article full of rich information. Alexander the Great was a very successful leader of one of the largest empires in history. He was perceived, dressed and acted as a God, even considering himself to be one. It is disappointing to be unsure of exactly how this great military commander’s life came to an end. We are able to find motives for his assassination but can never be truly sure of what ended this heroic man’s reign.
Lianna Ybarra
Very good article! Alexander the Great was a very influential emperor who conquered much during his time of reign. I never knew the two theories as to why he died though. After reading this article I also think that he died due to poisoning. It is sneaky that his chief secretary would continue writing in his journal even after he died which makes people suspicious.
Alyssa Valdez
Interesting story! I’ve heard a bit about Alexander the great and his contributions to the war during his time and I’ve also heard his death revolved around poisoning but I was unaware about that fact that there might have been TWO way he could have died. I think it’s so sneaky that someone decided to continue to write in his journal even after he died.
Sergio Cervantes
Before reading this article, I knew nothing related to Alexander except that he was a great military leader and conqueror. It is interesting to read about his ego and the questions he would ask numerous philosophers. It help depict his character and what he thought of himself. I always thought he had died of old age but never did it cross my mind that it was the result of an assassination. The different sources you provide help support your argument as to how Alexander the Great was killed.
Anayeli Prieto
Great Article! its really insane that they didn’t know the cause of death of alexander. its really unfortunate that they didn’t have any tools that helped them diagnose theor deaths correctly or to save lives. This great leader, like others have to deal with these situations and they also didn’t have a chance to be saved due to lack of medications and knowledge of medicine.
Cameron Adelman
This was definitely an interesting read, so thanks for taking the time to write this. I feel like you had some logical arguments for why Alexander was probably assassinated, although I would have liked to see a little more elaboration on who these enemies were that wanted to kill Alexander (for example, a little more information about the groups that hated Alexander for his Greek repatriation policy). Other then that, I feel like you wrote a great article. Well done.
Nataly Solis Chavez
Great job and very well written! I especially enjoyed how you presented both theories as to how Alexander the Great passed away before introducing your reasoning. What I found most astonishing was that Alexander the Great was so full of himself that he really contemplated on how to become a God, as if his fame and fortune as a human was not enough.