Mind-Munitions

Ancient Greece 33
Philip was assassinated in 336 BC and was succeeded by his 20
year old son, Alexander the Great, who took up both his father’s
military and propagandist mantles. Alexander’s mettle as a
commander is undisputed; his skill as a propagandist is less well
appreciated. Alexander did of course become a cult figure and
assumed a towering reputation as a military genius to stand alongside,
and even above, the likes of Hannibal, Caesar, and Napoleon
– who all admired him. Much of our knowledge of Alexander
derives from that cult and there are actually very few contemporary
sources of information about him. Even so, what does survive
reveals an undoubtedly inspired leader of men and perhaps the first
truly great military and political propagandist.
Following his initial successes against the Persians, Alexander
publicized his victories in Greece as a triumph for the League of
Corinth, even though the Greeks formed only part of his alliance
and some, indeed, fought with the Persians. In his attempts to unite
his Macedonians with the Persians, Alexander staged a symbolic
act at Susa where he himself married Darius’s daughter, eighty of
his officers married Persian noblewomen, and 10,000 of his troops
married their Asiatic concubines. Even his demands for deification
as the son of Zeus can be seen as an act of political propaganda.
Alexander’s coins reflected this. The mint at Alexandria produced
coins on which Alexander’s face replaced that of Heracles, the
‘real’ son of Zeus. And, of course, cities from Egypt to India were
named after him in the wake of his massive expedition to conquer
not just Persia but most of Asia – all of which had been anticipated
by his well known and widely publicized action at Gordium when
he had cut through the Gordian knot, thereby convincing people
that his destiny to rule Asia had been granted by the gods.
Like his father, Alexander employed Greek artists and craftsmen
to depict him in bronze statues and in paintings, but most of the
surviving portraits of him date from the period immediately following
his death at the age of 32 in 323 BC. These portraits depict the
deification of Alexander either in Greek or oriental styles and this
stereotypical image was adapted by Roman generals and emperors
who wished to emulate him. An essential ingredient of his success
had been his attention to detail in matters of morale, not only
among his troops but among his peoples. He realized that propaganda
was an excellent substitute for his actual presence, which is
why his image – on coins, buildings, statues, pottery, and in art –