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Let me take you back to 333 BC, to southern Anatolia and to the Battle of Isis, the first encounter between the Greeks led by Alexander III of Macedon, better known as Alexander the Great, and the Emperor Darius of Persia.
This account is by the Greek historian Plutarch.
Fortune was not kind to Alexander in the choice of battleground, but he was able to turn this to to his advantage.
Even though his army was much inferior in number, he did not allow himself to be outflanked.
Stretching his right wing much further out than the left wing of the enemy, fighting alongside his men on the front line, he put the barbarians to flight.
Nothing was wanting to complete this victory in which he overthrew more than 110,000 of his enemies.
It was a battle Alexander won against impossible odds.
It marked the end of the great Persian empire and sent shockwaves through the ancient world.
Undefeated by the time of his death in 323Bce, Alexander's vast territory stretched from Greece to Persia to India and made him one of the greatest military leaders in history.
But how truly great was he?
Alexander was an empire builder who was often brutal and destructive in his tactics.
In the modern era, Alexander has become a resource for leaders who want a shorthand symbol of masculinity and nationalism.