The relationship between Philip and his son Alexander was a complex, sometimes stormy one, not unlike any household where a young man with a strong, powerful father must struggle to define himself and his manhood outside the shadow of his father. But of course this was not just any household.
The father was King Philip II of Macedonia who came to power at age 22 as Regent for his infant nephew. As Philip’s successes grew he was declared King of Macedonia, leaving his young nephew no choice but to abdicate the throne. Macedonia was a mountainous city-state of Greece. Isolated from the rest of Greece by its geography, it developed a distinct culture of its own. The Macedonians spoke a dialect of Greek and worshipped the Greek gods, but the southern city-states of Greece considered Macedonia backwards and unimportant. They were the “rednecks and hillbillies” of Greece as one historian describes them. Macedonian men who had not yet killed a man in battle wore a cord around their waist. Warriors let their garment hang loose. This was a mark of pride in Macedonia. Philip was a pragmatist to the core. He expected people to act in their own best interests and live up to their worst instincts, and people seldom disappointed him. He was hard because he had to be.
Philip was also ambitious and smart. At 15, his mother’s lover, Ptolemy, murdered Philip’s eldest brother, King Alexander II. Ptolemy then sent Philip in a hostage trade to Thebes where he resided in the house of Pammenes, an important general. The intelligent Philip quickly learned advanced ways of war from Pammenes and his friends, which included Epaminondas, the general who defeated Sparta. While he was in Thebes his second brother, King Perdiccas III, called him home and executed Ptolemy in revenge for their eldest brother. When Perdiccas was killed in battle, Philip became King of Macedonia. He used all he learned during his time as a hostage of Pammenes to strengthen Macedonia. He solidified his power by having his two half-brothers either executed or banished. Philip’s goal was to have all of Greece bow in respect to Macedonia. He was disappointed when his son Alexander did not rejoice in all his victories.
Alexander feared his successful and powerful father would leave nothing for him to do to obtain the glory he desired. Alexander did not want to just inherit all of Greece from his father, he wanted a way to prove himself greater than his father in battle and in leadership. And Philip set a very high standard to follow. This desire to be better than Philip pushed Alexander all his life. Despite all of his successes, he was never satisfied that he had achieved enough to surpass his father. He was always aware that his success in Asia was because of the strong, innovative Army his father had created in Macedonia. Philip created the idea of a professional army, well-equipped and trained in the best strategies of war. For two years Philip had been planning to invade Persia, and had been training his Army for this task. But he was assassinated shortly before he was able to start the invasion. As King, Alexander led his father’s Army into Persia in his place. It was with this army of his father’s that Alexander conquered Persia.
The other reason this father/son conflict was not like any other household was because of the son himself, Alexander. Alexander’s relationship with his father was one of respect and rivalry. Alexander went into battle at age 14 as his father’s page. At 16, Philip left him as regent prince in Macedonia to protect the homeland while Philip went on other campaigns. Alexander was so successful in leading the army in his father’s absence that Philip promoted him to general at age 18 as a reward. So while still a teenager he was able to remove the cord from around his waist. In this royal household there were two powerful, ambitious males in close proximity, so conflict was inevitable - especially when you add to the mix Olympias, a mother/wife whose love and ambition was only for her son, not her husband.
When Alexander was 9 he rode the wild stallion, Bucephalus. It is said that Philip wept for joy at his son’s success. Kissing his son, Philip told him, “My boy, you must find a kingdom big enough for your ambitions, Macedonia is just too small for you.”
Other encounters with his father were not always as joyful for Alexander. As a youth Alexander enjoyed playing the lyre and singing. Philip once told him that he should be ashamed of having such a sweet voice. It is reported that Alexander was never known to have sung again. It appears that the young Alexander sought his father’s approval. All of his life, even after Philip’s death, nothing Alexander did ever satisfied him that it was enough for his father.
Philip provided Alexander with Aristotle, the best tutor money could secure. Philip also arranged to have the sons of Macedonian nobles tutored by Aristotle with his son. This accomplished two goals for Philip. One, it insured the loyalty of these nobles, because he was providing their sons with the same fine education as the king’s own son. Also, it provided Alexander with companions who would develop loyalty to him in the future which would aid him in obtaining and maintaining power. These schoolmates would become the generals Alexander could later depend upon in battle.
Philip also made Alexander by creating the best Army known in the ancient world. From the disorganized backwater that was Macedonia, Philip created the ancient equivalent of a super-power. When Alexander led these men into battle, he had an advantage and edge that only this well-trained and equipped Army could give him. Philip also gave Alexander the best in military training, so he could become the leader of this magnificent Army. In addition to his school boy training, Philip provided Alexander valuable practical experience. By the time the 20-year-old Alexander was elected king, he was already a seasoned military leader respected by the Army. After all, in Macedonia the king was elected by the male citizens serving in the Army. Without the respect of the Army, Alexander would not have been elected king after Philip’s assassination.
Alexander was a young man of many natural leadership gifts, but Philip understood that his son would not become King by birthright, but must obtain it from a position of power and experience. Philip certainly did all he could as a father to encourage his son’s strengths, and to position him for success. Meanwhile, Olympias was filling Alexander’s head with her stories that Zeus was his father, not Philip. Philip was rightly concerned that if Alexander believed too many of his mother’s stories he might fail to develop the qualities necessary to rule, qualities that could only be developed in discipline and hardship. It was necessary for Philip to be somewhat hard on his son. In Macedonia, a king’s power was personal and not based on the monarchy. A popular strong king would command great loyalty, something Philip did with ease as he was extremely confident in his power and popularity. Though beloved by his Army, Alexander was always a man apart, perhaps caused by his greatness or his insecurities; he never was as strong nor as popular as his father in his role as king. But Alexander was a brave and brilliant military tactician, and he had Philips’s magnificent army to work with. Both with the army Alexander inherited, and with the training he received from his father, it might be said that it was Philip who made Alexander great.