The Greatest Speech in History? Alexander the Great & The Opis Mutiny
Alexander the Great is one of the most extraordinary individuals in history. He became king of the fringe Greek kingdom of Macedonia in 336 BC at the age of just 20, and before his death twelve years later, had imposed Macedonian overlordship on Greece, destroyed the mighty Persian Empire and led an army deep into modern Afghanistan and to the Indian frontier.
At Opis he faced a mutiny by his Macedonian troops, angered that he wanted to send some of them home, while appearing to give preference to his new Asian subjects, and adopting many of their customs. Alexander dealt ruthlessly with the ringleaders, before (according to ’The Anabasis’ by Roman historian Arrian) making a speech to his army in which he berated his troops for their disloyalty.
The speech, as it has reached us, was no doubt written by Arrian rather than Alexander. His actual words are now impossible to ascertain. But Arrian had access to eyewitness accounts which are now lost (principally Ptolemy and Nearchus), and modern historians generally agree that the speech was a real historical event, and that Arrian gives a good representation of its likely content.
Putting its (contested and debated) value as a historical source to one side, the scene - as it appears in Arrian - is a brilliantly written moment of high drama and emotion, in which Alexander first highlights his debt to his father Philip, before launching into a tirade in which he lists his own astounding achievements and qualities of leadership.
The speech has been abridged and edited by myself for this video.
You can read Arrian’s full version in English translation here:
Buy Alexander books at Amazon (as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases):
The best recent Alexander biography
A short introduction to Alexander
The most recent English translation of Arrian
Get early access and a vote on future topics by supporting Epic History TV on Patreon:
🎶🎶 Music from Filmstro:
Get 20% off an annual license with code EPICHISTORYTV_ANN
#EpicHistoryTV #AlexandertheGreat
1 view
34
3
1 week ago 00:02:33 1
El Chombo, Dancing Green Alien - Dame Tu Cosita feat. Cutty Ranks (Official Video) [Ultra Records]
1 week ago 00:05:20 1
Beth & Joe - Your Heart Is As Black As Night - Live In Amsterdam
1 week ago 00:42:35 1
The Map That Could Change History! | Unexplained and Unexplored | Full Episode | Discovery Channel
1 week ago 00:15:29 1
Триумф Петра. Из курса «Русское военное искусство»
1 week ago 00:44:08 1
Ramones - Rocket to Russia (Full Album) [Official Video]
1 week ago 00:04:31 1
Headlong (QUEEN Cover) by One Vision
1 week ago 01:29:35 1
⚡ 《斗罗大陆》Soul Land |大结局!唐三暴打比比东、千仞雪!七怪全体成神! | 💥MUTI SUB | Donghua
1 week ago 01:14:58 1
Greatest Hits Of All Time The Beatles - The Beatles Greatest Hits Full Album -The Beatles Top Songs
1 week ago 00:04:05 1
Chris Rea - The Road to Hell Pt 2 (Official Music Video)
1 week ago 00:01:58 1
Forza Horizon 5 - Official Launch Trailer
1 week ago 00:03:08 1
Five, Queen - We Will Rock You (Live)
1 week ago 00:56:30 1
Tidal Power: Unlocking the Greatest Untapped Energy Resource on the Planet | FD Engineering
1 week ago 00:04:05 1
Pentatonix - Mary, Did You Know? (Official Video)
1 week ago 00:03:14 1
Hear My Train A Comin’ (Acoustic) | Jimi Hendrix | Warner Archive
1 week ago 00:00:00 1
Encounters With Cryptids & The Unexplained - Volume #11
1 week ago 00:08:46 1
Guthrie Trapp Live At The Underdog In Nashville - Improvising Masterclass
1 week ago 00:04:05 1
MICHAEL SCHENKER - Mother Mary feat. SLASH & ERIK GRÖNWALL
1 week ago 00:11:06 1
MICHAEL SCHENKER - Rock Bottom feat. KAI HANSEN
1 week ago 00:03:51 1
ERA - Ameno
1 week ago 00:05:06 1
Pentatonix - Hallelujah (Official Video)
1 week ago 00:04:59 1
It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World (Official Live Performance Video)
1 week ago 00:06:18 1
KANONENFIEBER - Waffenbrüder (OFFICIAL VIDEO)
1 week ago 02:29:59 1
The Best of Zodiac🎸Сборник лучших композиций группы Зодиак (Zodiac)🎸The Greatest Hits of Zodiac
1 week ago 00:05:58 1
GREATEST GAME EVER?!? Shohei Ohtani goes 6-FOR-6 with 3 HOMERS, 2 SB and 10 RBI! (Joins 50/50 club!)