Reminiscing Alexander: A Grave Note

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"A tomb now suffices him for whom the whole world was not sufficient."
-Alexander the Great
The Funeral Procession of Alexander the Great, 1940
The Funeral Procession of Alexander the Great, 1940
I've been telling people about Alexander the Great's funeral procession, that he had peculiar requests at the end of his life but I think I was wrong in the details of his requests. So I'm going to leave the details to the historians. Let's backtrack.

There was a young man, filled with unthinkable accomplishments: glory, fame, power, wealth, you name it. People even equated him with immortality. By the age of 30, Alexander the Great had established his Macedonian empire (one of the largest empires in the ancient world, overthrowing the prominent Persian empire). Yet he died at the age of 32, shortly after the grand conquest. 

He died, and that's the end. His funeral procession was lavish but he brought nothing to his tomb, well, not sure if he ever had one (the procession was hijacked, his coffin was moved around). On top of that, he said he was dying from the treatment of too many physicians, so he concluded that the top of the world's intellectual knowledge couldn't save him. His wealth couldn't save him. And obviously, he couldn't save himself.

Fulfilled ambition and unfulfilled life were two sides of the same coin. Now that's tragedy. What then have we learned from history? Anyone?

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