Alexander the Great | Sample answer Comment on the influence the following people had on Alexander; Philip, Olympias and Aristotle. From my reading of Plutarch and Arrian I have found that most of the information about Alexander's relationships with Philip Olympias and Aristotle come from Plutarch. I think that Philip had the biggest influence on Alexander. Philip was a great military example for him and when Alexander was young his father was away fighting in Byzantium and left Alexander in charge to welcome Persian ambassadors. Alexander felt he must show his father he was capable of being a good host and "did not bother them with any trivial or childish enquiries." once again when Alexander was 16 he was left in charge by Philip as Regent of Macedonia. he was influenced by Philip to act as a strong leader. He defeated he maedi tribe and re inhabited a Greek colony. This shows me that Philips trust in Alexander influenced his interest in military matters. Another example of Phillips influence on Alexander is the story of how Alexander got his horse Bucephalus. his father was presented with many horses to buy. Philip was insulted to be offered such a wild horse as Bucephalus but Alexander realised the horses was afraid of his own shadow. He begged his father to let him Tame the horse and if he was successful Philip would buy it. if not, Alexander would pay for it himself. this clearly shows that Philip influenced Alexander's determination. Alexander ran alongside the horse turning his head away from the Sun. He calmed the horse and was able to mount it. Philip "wept for joy" as he was so proud of his son. this highlights that Alexander was determined to prove his father wrong. clearly Philip had a massive influence on his son. Olympias definitely influenced the type of man Alexander grew up to be. from a young age Olympias, incited Alexander with the secret of his conception. she told him he was descended from the Greek gods and when he was born the temple of Artemus at Ephesus burnt down. it was said he left the temple because he wanted to be there for Alexander's birth. after Alexander heard of the stories of Olympias' womb being struck by a thunderbolt and the Temple burning down that Alexander became a very confident man. he felt powerful and that the gods were on his side. he thought that because he was destined for great things, he should be the one who takes over Philips army. due to all these stories, she influenced Alexander to be a brave confident and ambitious man. Alexander the Great | Sample answer 1 When Philip remarried to Cleopatra Alexander took Olympias' side. he was angry at his father for divorcing Olympias. When a fight broke out between a drunken Alexander and Philip, Alexander took his mother away to Illyria. obviously, Olympias had a big influence on Alexander. he would not have taken her away from Phillip to protect her if she had not had a large influence on him. this demonstrates that Olympia had a great influence on her son. Aristotle absolutely had a huge influence on Alexander. he was Alexander teacher and was well known and very well respected. according to Plutarch Aristotle gave Alexander a "love for all kinds of learning." Alexander was taught philosophy and esoteric studies. these weird things that only Aristotle taught to the most promising students, Alexander being one. Aristotle taught Alexander a wide range of subjects that influenced the man he grew up to be. it's clear that Alexander used his depth of knowledge from Aristotle in every single battle he was involved in. like Philip, Aristotle influenced Alexander's military skills. as a gift Aristotle gave Alexander a book called the Iliad. this book contains many tactics that Alexander found extremely useful. he kept it safeguarded everywhere he went on his travels. this book meant a great deal to him. Aristotle had a strong influence on Alexander's education both military and philosophical. Philip, Olympias and Aristotle had a large impact on the type of man Alexander grow up to be. Alexander the Great | Sample answer 2 .