Philip II, the Father of Alexander the Great: Themes and Issues

by Edward M. Anson

Overview

Philip II was not only the father of Alexander the Great, but in many respects was also the father of his son's incredible career. It was the father who unified Macedonia into the first European nation and who created the army with which his son conquered the Persian Empire and inaugurated the Hellenistic Age.

This volume is not the standard biography, but rather an examination of the major controversies concerning his life and reign. How did Philip in roughly twenty years transform a divided territory and little more than a geographical conception into a national state? How did he change the very nature of ancient Western warfare? How did he transform this formerly exploited region into the master of the Greek world?

Each chapter discusses one of the major academic controversies surrounding this transformative figure, bringing new clarity to the career of a man whose reputation has been so overshadowed by his illustrious son.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781350103955
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	10/01/2020
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Edward M. Anson is Professor of History at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, USA. He is the author or editor of five books, including Eumenes of Cardia: A Greek among Macedonians (2004) and Alexander the Great: Themes and Issues (Bloomsbury Academic, 2013).
Edward M. Anson is Professor of History at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, USA. He is the author or editor of five books, including Eumenes of Cardia: A Greek among Macedonians (2004), Alexander the Great: Themes and Issues (Bloomsbury Academic, 2013) and Philip II, the Father of Alexander the Great: Themes and Issues (Bloomsbury Academic, 2020).

Table of Contents

Preface
Map of Ancient Greece
Map of the Peloponnesus
Map of Asia Minor
Map of Ancient Macedonia
Abbreviations
Chronology

Philip the Great: An Introduction

1. Macedonia Before Philip
2. Philip and the New Model Army
3. Philip and the Creation of the Macedonian Nation
4. Philip and the Safeguarding of Macedonia
5. The Creation of Macedonian Hegemony in the Wider World

Appendix 1. Philip's Ambitions
Appendix 2: Philip a God?
Appendix 3: The Death of a King

Notes
Bibliography
Index

Editorial Reviews

"Meticulously researched and argued, with copious references to and discussions of primary and secondary sources ... For interested students of both Philip and Alexander ... this volume (with four maps, a chronology—which includes a useful discussion of the problems of accurate dating—notes and a comprehensive bibliography) is undoubtedly an important addition to the shelves." - Classics for All

From the Publisher