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‘Alexander the Great, : His Life and his Mysterious Death,
Anthony Everitt

‘Alexander the Great, : His Life and his Mysterious Death,

More than two millennia have passed since Alexander the Great built an empire that stretched to every corner of the then known world. Stories of both real and legendary events from his life have kept him evergreen in the human imagination with a legacy that has signifies something different to every era – but who was he in his own time?

            In Alexander the Great, Everitt judges Alexander’s life against the criteria of his age. We meet the Macedonian prince who was naturally inquisitive by science and exploration. As his empire grew, Alexander showed respect for his new subjects and careful judgment in administering rule over a vast territory.

But his career also had a dark side. An inveterate conqueror he glorified war and was known to commits acts of great cruelty. He and his adored but terrifying mother, Olympias, may have been implicated in the assassination of his father, Philip of Macedon.

So far as his personal life is concerned he seems to have had a lifelong affair with a male fellow-student. In later years he had at least two heterosexual relationships.

As debate continues about the meaning of Alexander’s life and hid early death remains a mystery. Did he die of natural causes – felled by a fever – or did his marshals, disgusted by his despotic behaviour, kill him? An answer must lie in what we know of his deeds and his values. Everitt offers an ending to Alexander’s story that has eluded so many for so long.

Book Details:

  • Author: Anthony Everitt
  • Published Year: 2019
  • All rights are available
Anthony Everitt

Anthony Everitt

Anthony Everitt was Deputy Secretary-General of the Arts Council of Great Britain from 1985 to 1990 and Secretary-General from 1990 to 1994. Formerly he was Visiting professor of the Visual and Performing Arts at Nottingham Trent University. His fascination with ancient Rome began when he studied classics at school. He is the author of Cicero, a Turbulent Life; Augustus, The Life of Rome’s First Emperor; Hadrian and the Triumph of Rome; The Rise of Rome; The Rise of Athens; Alexander the Great and, with his co-author Roddy Ashworth, SPQR, A Roman Miscellany and Nero, Matricide, Music ...
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Book Reviews

  • "Reads as easily as a novel … Everitt has a wealth of anecdotes and two millennia of f histories to work with, and he delivers and interprets them flawlessly. Nearly unparalleled insights into the period and the man make this a story for everyone."
    Kirkus review
  • "[An] infectious sense of narrative momentum … Its energy is unflagging, including the verve with which it tackles that teased final mystery about the specific cause of Alexander’s death.‘  Even readers well versed in Alexander’s story will be fascinated all over again."
    The Christian Science Monitor
  • "Everitt, an expert story-teller, has written a riveting narrative that restores Alexander to his own context … Did he kill his father? Was he straight or gay? Visionary or winging it? Genius or lucky? Big-hearted or a violent drunk? And the ultimate question: What—or who—killed him? Everitt marshals the facts and offers an explanation. One conclusion is incontrovertible; Alexander was a military strategist of rare talent."
    Bookpage
  • "Everitt carefully discusses the controversy surrounding Alexander’s premature death at age 32, including a convincing probable cause. This detailed account of the intriguing ancient military genius will fascinate history readers eager to learn more about Alexander’s motivation and the lifelong fearlessness that propelled him to near-mythic status."
    Publishers Weekly