The Death of Alexander

After years of campaigning and conquering lands in the East, the great Macedonian king Alexander finally succumbed to death.

He died in Babylon around 323 BC, after a decade of arduous campaigns conquering Asia as far as the Indus River.The great king died at a very young age, wherein his death remained one of the greatest mysteries of all history. His death raised speculations from his contemporaries, assuming different things which have probably contributed to his death.For some of them, Alexander died because of his fondness of drinking, but for others, he was killed by someone close to him, using the image of alcohol to hide the deed.

There were several people who gave their accounts as to what really happened back then, though they lived a few hundred years after Alexander died. These people mainly showed own opinion and prejudices, wherein some are relatively clearer than the others. All in all, these accounts are very important as they are the only ones left today.One of the early accounts about Alexander’s death was that of Diodorus Siculus, of ca 80-20 BC.

He was born in Sicily, and his travels during in the early parts of his life have brought him to Rome. While in the area, he wrote in Greek about the monumental History of the World, where he covered the death of Alexander in one of the books he wrote.According to Diodorus Siculus, the great king Alexander drank too much unmixed wine in one occasion, downing a whole beaker in just one gulp (Siculus). After the feat, he instantly shrieked loud, as if he got hit by a very violent blow. Afterwards, he was led back to his apartments by his servants.

This account by Suculus states that the cause of death is alcohol.Another historian who gave his opinion about the death of Alexander was Quintus Curtius Rufus. He was a Roman who wrote in Latin, writing about Alexander in probably the first half of C. 1 AD, the time when Tiberius and Claudius were the rulers of Rome.According to Curtius Rufus, Alexander the Great was mortally ill during that time, and was just waiting to die a few moments later (Rufus).

Rufus’ speculation was that Alexander died a natural death, at a very young age though. It wasn’t clear what the cause of death was, just the fact that he has died naturally at a young age of 32.The next one to give his account was Plutarch, ca 46-120 AD. He was a Greek and wrote in Greek, producing a series of writings about the lives of Greeks and Romans at the end of C. 1 AD.

His account on Alexander the great was made for comparing with the one of Julius Caesar.His focus was more on the character and the motivation of his subjects, though his chronology was much more confusing. According to Plutarch, Alexander has allowed himself to indulge in drinking bouts, giving splendid banquets, drinking all throughout the day till the next, until one time he felt feverish of doing so (Plutarch).Plutarch though, denies that it was caused by one big drink, say a gulp of a beaker of alcohol, or that there was an onset of sudden pain, like a blow to the great king. According to him, these are the crucial details which the historians felt that they have to embellish the occasion, thus having to invent a tragic end for the great king.He was seized with a raging fever, then out of thirst, drank wine making him very delirious.

The fever continues, as he deteriorates gradually, and eventually dying at about ten days after the incident. According to Plutarch, most of his accounts were from the Royal Journals, published after Alexander’s death.Another historian who wrote about Alexander’s death was Lucius Flavius Arrianus, C. 95-180 AD. He was a Romanized Greek who wrote in Greek, about The Campaigns of Alexander some time during the middle off C.

2 AD. His accounts were from sources like Alexander’s generals, Aristobulus and Ptolemy.Arrianus’ account was much more like Plutarch, saying that Alexander has been drinking far into the night, and decided to continue drinking in another party (Arrian). After that, he went straight to sleep, already having fever on him, and after a few days, he died.The last account was that of Marcus Iunianius Iustinus, though he was the least well known of the historians tackling about the king Alexander the Great.

His works were assumed to be around the mid C. 2 AD. Iustinus’ account was like the others, but when Alexander went to another party, he wasn’t able to finish a cup when he uttered a groan of pain.His agony was so great that he wished to be pierced with a sword than continue feeling the pain (Justin). After six days, Alexander’s voice already failed. Most of his friends suggested that it was about excessive drinking, but Iustinus said it was actually a conspiracy, a scandal suppressed by the power of those who succeeded him.

The death of Alexander the Great has still remained a mystery, as speculations have been raised about the real cause of death, spanning from the day he died to the preset time. It was a highly publicized death, where most people would say that it was his alcohol vice that led to his death. Unfortunately, not one of these speculations have been proven yet, and the death of the great king remains to be a mystery.Works Cited:Arrian. The Campaigns of Alexander. Trans.

Aubrey de Selingcourt. Harmondsworth, London: Penguin Classics, 1971.Justin. Epitome of the Philippic History of Pompeius Trogus.

Trans. John Yardley. Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1994.Plutarch. The Age of Alexander. Trans.

Ian Scott Kilvert. Harmondsworth, London: Penguin Classics, 1973.Rufus, Quintus Curtius. The History of Alexander.

Trans. John Yardley. Harmondsworth, London: Penguin Classics, 1984.Siculus, Diodorus. Book Xvii. Trans.

C. B. Welles. Loeb Classical Library: Harvard University Press, 1963.