Alexander III of Macedon (20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), most commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to the throne in 336 BC at the age of 20 and spent most of his ruling years conducting a lengthy military campaign throughout Western Asia, Central Asia, parts of South Asia, and Egypt. By the age of 30, he had created one of the largest empires in history, stretching from Greece to northwestern India. He was undefeated in battle 从未尝过败绩 and is widely considered to be one of history's greatest and most successful military commanders.
Until the age of 16, Alexander was tutored by Aristotle. In 335 BC, shortly after his assumption 继位 of kingship over Macedon, he campaigned in the Balkans and reasserted control over Thrace and parts of Illyria before marching on the city of Thebes, which was subsequently destroyed in battle. Alexander then led the League of Corinth, and used his authority to launch the pan-Hellenic ( [həˈlen.ɪk] of or relating to the ancient or modern Greeks, and their history, art, etc. ) project envisaged by his father, assuming leadership over all Greeks in their conquest of Persia. In 334 BC, he invaded the Achaemenid Persian Empire and began a series of campaigns that lasted for 10 years. Following his conquest of Asia Minor, Alexander broke the power of Achaemenid Persia in a series of decisive 决定性的 battles, including those at Issus and Gaugamela; he subsequently overthrew Darius III and conquered the Achaemenid Empire in its entirety. After the fall of Persia, the Macedonian Empire held a vast swath of territory between the Adriatic Sea and the Indus River. Alexander endeavored to reach the "ends of the world and the Great Outer Sea" and invaded India in 326 BC, achieving an important victory over Porus, an ancient Indian king of present-day Punjab, at the Battle of the Hydaspes. Due to the mutiny 兵变 of his homesick troops, he eventually turned back at the Beas River and later died in 323 BC in Babylon, the city of Mesopotamia that he had planned to establish as his empire's capital. Alexander's death left unexecuted an additional series of planned military and mercantile campaigns that would have begun with a Greek invasion of Arabia. In the years following his death, a series of civil wars broke out 内战爆发 across the Macedonian Empire, eventually leading to its disintegration 瓦解, 倒台, 分崩离析 at the hands of the Diadochi. Alexander became legendary as a classical hero in the mould of Achilles, featuring prominently in the historical and mythical traditions of both Greek and non-Greek cultures. His military achievements and unprecedented enduring successes in battle made him the measure against 标尺, 标杆 which many later military leaders would compare themselves, and his tactics remain a significant subject of study in military academies worldwide. Legends of Alexander's exploits coalesced into the third-century Alexander Romance which, in the premodern period, went through over one hundred recensions, translations, and derivations and was translated into almost every European vernacular and every language of the Islamic world. After the Bible, it was the most popular form of European literature. After securing his Greek base and the Balkans by subjugating his political opponents(subjugate [ˈsʌbdʒəˌɡeɪt] I. 征服. to defeat a place or a group of people and force them to obey you. If someone subjugates a group of people, they take complete control of them, especially by defeating them in a war. to defeat a place or a group of people and force them to obey you The indigenous people of Mexico were subjugated by the Spanish conquistadors during the 16th century. People in the region are fiercely independent and resist all attempts to subjugate them. ...the brutal subjugation of native tribes. The indigenous people of Mexico were subjugated by the Spanish conquistadors during the 16th century. II. If your wishes or desires are subjugated to something 臣服于, they are treated as less important than that thing. Health, common sense, and self-respect are subjugated to the cause of looking 'hot'. vocabulary: If you say you won't be kept down by the man, you are saying that you won't let the man subjugate 屈服 you. To subjugate is to repress someone, or to make them subservient to you. In subjugate you see the word subject. In this word, it's not talking about the subject of a sentence, rather it's talking about the kind of subjects that Kings have serving them. Subjugate is to reduce someone's status to that of a subject. It's a royal demotion, often brought by force or intimidation.), and securing his army's rear 巩固后防 through the conquest of all the Afro-Asian coastline, where the Persian fleet was based and from which it was supplied, Alexander, moved to confront directly the Persians. He thus resolved the eternal problem of an army conducting operations deep into enemy territory 深入敌方, 深入敌后, Svechin states, in an "exemplary manner".
Alexander's sexuality has been the subject of speculation and controversy in modern times. The Roman era writer Athenaeus says, based on the scholar Dicaearchus, who was Alexander's contemporary 同时代的人, that the king "was quite excessively keen on boys", and that Alexander kissed the eunuch Bagoas in public. This episode is also told by Plutarch, probably based on the same source. None of Alexander's contemporaries, however, are known to have explicitly described Alexander's relationship with Hephaestion as sexual, though the pair was often compared to Achilles and Patroclus, who are often interpreted as a couple. Aelian writes of Alexander's visit to Troy where "Alexander garlanded the tomb of Achilles, and Hephaestion that of Patroclus, the latter hinting that he was a beloved of Alexander, in just the same way as Patroclus was of Achilles." Some modern historians (e.g., Robin Lane Fox) believe not only that Alexander's youthful relationship with Hephaestion was sexual, but also that their sexual contacts may have continued into adulthood, which went against the social norms of at least some Greek cities, such as Athens, though some modern researchers have tentatively proposed that Macedonia (or at least the Macedonian court) may have been more tolerant of homosexuality between adults.
Hellenization 希腊化 was coined by the German historian Johann Gustav Droysen to denote the spread of Greek language, culture, and population into the former Persian empire after Alexander's conquest. This process can be seen in such great Hellenistic cities as Alexandria, Antioch and Seleucia (south of modern Baghdad). Alexander sought to insert Greek elements into Persian culture and to hybridize Greek and Persian culture, homogenizing the populations of Asia and Europe. Although his successors explicitly rejected such policies, Hellenization occurred throughout the region, accompanied by a distinct and opposite 'Orientalization' of the successor states.
The ancient Greeks believed that Troy was located near the Dardanelles and that the Trojan War was a historical event of the 13th or 12th century BC. By the mid-19th century AD, both the war and the city were widely seen as non-historical 不是历史真实的, 非历史真实存在的, but in 1868, the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann met Frank Calvert, who convinced Schliemann that Troy was at what is now Hisarlık in modern-day Turkey. On the basis of excavations conducted by Schliemann and others, this claim is now accepted by most scholars. The historicity 历史真实性 of the Trojan War remains an open question. Many scholars believe that there is a historical core to the tale, though this may simply mean that the Homeric stories are a fusion of various tales of sieges and expeditions by Mycenaean Greeks during the Bronze Age. Those who believe that the stories of the Trojan War are derived from a specific historical conflict usually date it to the 12th or 11th century BC, often preferring the dates given by Eratosthenes, 1194–1184 BC, which roughly correspond to archaeological evidence of a catastrophic burning of Troy VII, and the Late Bronze Age collapse.
The relationship between Achilles and Patroclus is a key element of the stories associated with the Trojan War. In the Iliad, Homer describes a deep and meaningful relationship between Achilles and Patroclus, where Achilles is tender 温柔 toward Patroclus, but callous and arrogant toward others. Its exact nature—whether homosexual, a non-sexual deep friendship, or something else entirely—has been a subject of dispute in both the Classical period and modern times. Homer, in the original epic, never explicitly casts the two as lovers, but they were depicted as lovers in the later archaic and classical periods of Greek literature, particularly in the works of Aeschylus, Aeschines and Plato. Some contemporary critics, especially in the field of queer studies, have asserted that their relationship was homosexual or latently ( latent I. present but needing particular conditions to become active, obvious, or completely developed: Recent developments in the area have brought latent ethnic tension out into the open. We're trying to bring out the latent artistic talents that many people possess without realizing it. II. present, but not yet active, developed, or obvious: Latent ethnic tensions exploded into the open yesterday. latent 未挖掘的 capability/talent/skill. Latent homosexuality is an erotic attraction toward members of the same sex that is not consciously experienced or expressed in overt action. This may mean a hidden inclination or potential for interest in homosexual relationships, which is either suppressed or not recognized, and which has not yet been explored, or may never be explored. moribund [ˈmɒrɪˌbʌnd] ( 类似于dormant) 停滞的. 没有活力的. 半死不活的.
adj. I. near death. II. stagnant; without force or vitality.
(especially of an organization or business) not active or successful.
used to describe a business, market, etc. that is not active or
successful: The figures show a moribund remortgage market. How can the department be revived from its present moribund state? At its root, officials said, this suggestion was intended in part to spur action
on an issue Trump viewed as moribund, with no other nations offering
reasonable solutions for how to rebuild an area that has been obliterated 夷为平地的 by Israeli bombardment following Hamas' October 7, 2023, terrorist attacks.) homosexual, while some historians and classicists have disputed this, stating that there is no evidence for such an assertion within the Iliad and criticize it as unfalsifiable.
Achilles and Patroclus quarter ( quarter noun. I. one or more people who provide help, information, or a particular reaction to something but who are not usually named: Help came from an unexpected quarter. There is a feeling in certain/some quarters (= some people consider) that a change is needed. II. quarters [ plural ] a room or house that has been provided, especially for servants or soldiers and their families, to live in: married quarters 家庭区. The army's married quarters are just outside the town. III. a house or other place to live that has been provided by a company for an employee. IV. the fact of being kind towards or forgiving an enemy or opponent: We can expect no quarter原谅, 谅解 from our enemies. He gave no quarter to anyone that disappointed him. No quarter 无俘虏, during military conflict or piracy, implies that combatants would not be taken prisoner, but executed. Since the Hague Convention of 1899, it is considered a war crime; it is also prohibited in customary international law and by the Rome Statute. The Hague Convention of 1907 states that "it is especially forbidden [...] to declare that no quarter will be given". V. one of four equal or almost equal parts of something; ¼: He cut the orange into quarters. Under a quarter of people questioned said that they were happily married. My house is situated a mile and three-quarters from here. verb. I. to cut something into four parts. II. to send someone, especially soldiers, to live in a place: The soldiers were quartered with (= they lived with) local people during the war. ) together in a tent near their Greek allies fleet of ships. King Agamemnon realizes that Achilles, due to his heroic reputation, needs to enter the fight 参战, but Achilles, having been disrespected by Agamemnon, refuses. Agamemnon sends an envoy to change his mind. In Book IX (lines 225 to 241) the diplomats, Odysseus and Ajax, hear Achilles playing the lyre and singing all alone with Patroclus. They both spring to their feet in surprise as the guests enter. After much talk, the embassy fails to convince Achilles to fight.
After more fighting, Nestor arrives back to the Greek allies base with a wounded soldier. Achilles sends Patroclus out to speak with him. In Book XI (lines 786 to 804) Nestor reminds Patroclus that his father had long ago taught him that, although Achilles was nobler, he (Patroclus) was still Achilles' elder, and therefore he should counsel and guide Achilles wisely so that perhaps he would finally enter the fight against the Trojans, but if not, then he himself (Patroclus) should don Achilles' armor to deceive the Trojans into thinking that Achilles had joined the fight, which should scare them away from their base and back to their own walls.
Later on, the Trojans continue their advance on the Greek allies' base and breach 攻破 the defensive wall guarding their ships. Patroclus eventually dons Achilles' armor and scares the Trojans back as planned, and Patroclus also kills Sarpedon, a son of Zeus, but then Hector kills Patroclus. News of Patroclus' death reaches Achilles through Nestor's son Antilochus, which throws Achilles into deep grief. The earlier steadfast 心意坚定的 and unbreakable Achilles agonizes, touching Patroclus' dead body, smearing himself with ash and fasting. He laments Patroclus' death using language very similar to the grief of Hector's wife. He also requests that when he dies, his bones be mixed with Patroclus' in a vase. The rage that follows from Patroclus' death becomes the prime motivation for Achilles to return to the battlefield. He returns to battle with the sole aim of avenging Patroclus' death by killing Hector, despite a warning that doing so would cost him his life. After defeating Hector, Achilles drags his corpse by the heels behind his chariot.
Achilles' strongest interpersonal bond is with Patroclus.
Babylon was an ancient city located on the lower Euphrates river in southern Mesopotamia, within modern-day Hillah, Iraq, about 85 kilometres (55 miles) south of modern day Baghdad. Babylon functioned as the main cultural and political centre of the Akkadian-speaking region of Babylonia. The town became part of a small independent city-state with the rise of the first Babylonian Empire, now known as the Old Babylonian Empire, in the 17th century BC. The Amorite king Hammurabi founded the short-lived Old Babylonian Empire in the 16th century BC. He built Babylon into a major city and declared himself its king. Southern Mesopotamia became known as Babylonia, and Babylon eclipsed Nippur as the region's holy city. The empire waned 衰落 under Hammurabi's son Samsu-iluna, and Babylon spent long periods under Assyrian, Kassite and Elamite domination. After the Assyrians destroyed and then rebuilt it, Babylon became the capital of the short-lived Neo-Babylonian Empire, from 626 to 539 BC. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon were ranked as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, allegedly existing between approximately 600 BC and AD 1. However, there are questions about whether the Hanging Gardens of Babylon even existed, as there is no mention within any extant Babylonian texts of its existence. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon were one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World listed by Hellenic culture. They were described as a remarkable feat of engineering with an ascending series of tiered gardens containing a wide variety of trees, shrubs, and vines, resembling a large green mountain constructed of mud bricks. It was said to have been built in the ancient city of Babylon, near present-day Hillah, Babil province, in Iraq. The Hanging Gardens' name is derived from the Greek word κρεμαστός (kremastós, lit. 'overhanging'), which has a broader meaning than the modern English word "hanging" and refers to trees being planted on a raised structure such as a terrace. According to one legend, the Hanging Gardens were built alongside a grand palace known as The Marvel of Mankind, by the Neo-Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar II (who ruled between 605 and 562 BC), for his Median wife, Queen Amytis, because she missed the green hills and valleys of her homeland. This was attested to by the Babylonian priest Berossus, writing in about 290 BC, a description that was later quoted by Josephus. The construction of the Hanging Gardens has also been attributed to the legendary queen Semiramis and they have been called the Hanging Gardens of Semiramis as an alternative name.
