🚩 Offset your carbon footprint on Wren: www.wren.co/start/historymarche The first 100 people who sign up will have 10 extra trees planted in their name! 🚩I'm pleased to share with you "How did Alexander the Great's conquest impact the economy of the ancient world", made in collaboration with Charalampidis Grigorios. Prices, flow of goods, inflation, and a cascade of economic events reverberated for centuries after Alexander's death.
Extremely interesting! Specially the contrast between Greek and Roman economic models. Rome’s economic model was based on war, administration, slaves and taxes, while the Greek was based on trade. Maybe this is one of the reasons why the Roman Empire of the east survived 1.000 years more than the West.
@@vasileiospapapazoglou2309 absolutely true. It was a great civilization that blended Greek and Latin cultures and added many influences. They acted as a shield for west Europe during that time protecting it from eastern invasions and finally they were the main source of knowledge that helped the west develop in the renaissance. Amazing how ignored is this civilization that was so crucial
@@julio5prado I can call myself God, but that doesn't make me one. Just saying that the decree of a roman emperor does not in fact make someone Roman. The culture and relevance of Rome became less significant as they expanded citizenship and introduced violence as an answer to those who challenged the Status Quo. It inevitably becomes the down fall of the Republic starting in 163BC. They incorporated italians as "roman." Then Citizenship grants expanded to universal citizenship, and adopting foreign religions and ideas. By that point, Rome became irrelevant as it meant nothing to be Roman. The Eastern Half of the empire realized this and had to recreate their identity going forward. If you had asked Pompeii or Cicero if Greeks were Romanoi, they'd have laughed at you. They were considered provincials, not equals. Consequently Panonian emperors and Illyrian peasants became emperors as corruption and policy eroded away with the down fall of the senate. Many traditions discarded for doing whatever was desired.
I speculate that there is more noticable difference between Macedon and other Hellenistic regions due to Macedon's inherent resources, which were fairly meagre aside from occasion mine exploration and plunder from conquests. Egypt, Persia, etc, were already centres of wealth and therefore I think diadochi would've made less perceptible impacts.
I can say about India, being from there, at that point the kingdom of magadha was already very strong, while just a few years after Alexander's death, the giant Mauryan empire would also take place in India, and the revenues of goods and gold, and then coins during the Mauryan days, made that era of ancient India, one of India's richest
@@atticus6572 that is simply not true Ptolemy changed Egyptian government and his impact lasted until the end of Roman rule. Seleucus may have started the Persian gulf trade and he was the one who founded the first ports around modern basra. Not to mention how trade would change with the independence of many dynasty’s like Cappadocia or vassal states like Armenia
@@ChevyChase301 I understand that the diadochi made an impact outside of Macedon; my original comment wasn't disputing that. Rather, it was to say that Macedon perhaps bore more noticable fruits as it was a backwater region previously.
Great content. Most of my knowledge of this historical era is focused on the military and political aspects, this really adds a layer of depth and context.
One of the things that Alexander brought with him from the east was the practice of Saffron baths. Supposedly dating back to the days of Cyrus the Great. Alexander took hot water baths with Saffron (which was back then as today, very expensive) which he believed had quasi magical healing powers. Some people believe that these saffron baths were the reason Alexander was pictured with yellow hair in most of his portrayals. And the tradition spread throughout the Greek world and beyond. Which was the reason that Cleopatra took saffron baths before her encounters with both Julius Caesar & Marcus Antonius.
Wow; it's crazy to think that Thessaloniki- The city I've always thought of in my head as the "capital" of Macedonia and it's province throughout the ages; didn't even exist until after the reign of Alexander and his first successor.
@Sacred Squadron Actually the name means "Thessalian victory". Philip chose this name because she was either born the exact day or shortly after the day that the Macedonians and the Thessalian League won the Battle of Crocus field against the Phocians. The Thessalians were allied to the Macedonians, they didn't fight against them.
@@greekmetalhead1805 indeed, before that battle Philip II had suffered 2 major defeats by the Phocians under Onomarchus but after the Thessalians offered him their cavalry he managed to emerge victorious at Crocus field. Which is why he named his daughter after that "Victory of the Thessalian's"="Thessalon Nike". Btw it was important to move the capital to the sea since the lagoon where Pella was built eventually lost access to the sea due to the creation of the alluvial plain by the mud brought by the rivers of the region.
@Sacred Squadron Thessalonike was born around 353 or 352 BC.[4][5] To commemorate the birth of his daughter, which fell on the same day as the armies of Macedon and Thessalian league won the significant battle of Crocus Field in Thessaly over the Phocians, King Philip is said to have proclaimed, "Let her be called victory in Thessaly". In the Greek language her name is made up of two words Thessaly and nike, that translates into 'Thessalian Victory'
Gotta love the trade/economic videos. I like the more strategy/tactics videos too,but as a finance student it’s cool to know some economic history,which I think takes a back seat most of the time because people think it’s boring. Appreciate ya’lls hard work!
If it wasn't for Phillip the second and of course Alexander himself the Greek world would have remained close to the mainland but thanks to them the Hellenic literature art and language spread as far as Afghanistan he truly deserves the name the Great both he and he's father the champions of Hellas
@@mattmacaulay2900 You perceive things in the absolute. Most of these territories were conquered by force and violence. But what came after this, was indeed one of the pinnacles of human civilization.
@@mattmacaulay2900 war of conquest Inevitably brings death whoever interestingly Alexander's conquest had a very low kill rate per city that it could have been and am not saying this just because am Greek if you have the time you can look it up for yourself
@Hernando Malinche The Late Achaemenid was incredibly corrupt and decadent you can’t see this by how easily Alexander was able to conquer the empire. Slavery was also existent at the time but just not in the form of chattel slavery rather the majority of the populace was relegated to serfdom which was arguably just as bad if not worse than slavery. The corruption and stagnation that plagued the empire at the time would’ve caused it to succumb to internal civil wars and collapse regardless. The Greeks just sped up the process and introduced a highly prudent system of government which didn’t meddle with local affairs and gave an injection of innovation and cultural arts that the Achaemenid empire sorely needed in its last days on this earth.
Great great great video. Sometimes we get caught up in all the action and battles of alexander. I personally cant get enough. But surely to really understand in how many ways his existance changed the order of things it is necesarry to dwelve in topics like this one. What an awesome piece of journalism. I dont really comment a lot. But the existance of channels of information such as yours are pure joy. You always adress historical topics of great interest for me at least. History unites me and us all in a promethian fire which is our wright to preserve alive.
It's a video less about Alexander's impact on the economy, but of the Macedonian economy in the span of 150 years following him but I get why you named the video as you did, it's very interesting nonetheless Kind of related since I thought about this since you concetrated on Macedon - now I'm interested about administration and economy of other Diadochi realms, esp. why Roman administration suceeded in culturally assimilating these areas and Diadochi failed (or never tried)
It comes down, I'd argue, to the unique needs and interests of Roman political leaders. Roman politicians were conquerors above all else. Their objective was to raise and lead armies with everything else being secondary. For this reason the Roman state needed to effectively raise large military forces. So the Roman's were often very generous with those they conquered in order to access their manpower for further warfare. This is why the republic developed its system of "allies" where they basically bribed other italian states into joining in on their wars by offering a larger share of any treasure than their military contribution (the allies needed to supply only half of all legions but each ally received treasure equal to what the Romans got). After the Maurian reforms this system was changed into offering citizenship in return for military service in the auxillia. This secured both a steady stream of provincial recruits as well as an influx of new citizens with military experience that could then join the legions proper (or be activated in times if need). One of the reasons for the empire's fall was the breakdown of this system and its replacement with the "foederati" system. By no longer incorporating non Romans into the regular army and providing no path to citizenship in return for miliatry service the empire increasingly found itself relying on non Romans without much stake in the empire for its defense. In spite of this, most of the "barbarians" that brought the western empire down did not intend to destroy Rime. At least at first, most of them wanted to become equal partners in the empire and it was the xenophobia and arrogance of the Romans at the time that was largely responsible for conflict.
@@volodymyrboitchouk yeah, but what makes the Romans best is they adapt the Greek cultures and improved it 2.0. They even improved Alexander's Helepolis (taker of Cities) and other engineering works.
On the journey *Bonaparte conversed about the warriors of antiquity, especially Alexander, Caesar, Scipio, and Hannibal. I asked him which he preferred, Alexander or Caesar. "I place Alexander in the first rank,"* said he, "yet I admire Caesar's fine campaign in Africa. But the ground of my preference for the *King of Macedonia* is the plan, and above all the execution, of his campaign in Asia. Only those who are utterly ignorant of war can blame *Alexander* for having spent seven months at the siege of Tyre. For my part, I would have stayed there seven years had it been necessary. This is a great subject of dispute; but I look upon the siege of Tyre, the conquest of Egypt, and the journey to the Oasis of Ammon as a decided proof of the genius of that great captain. His object was to give the King of Persia (of whose force he had only beaten a feeble advance-guard at the Granicus and Issus) time to reassemble his troops, so that he might overthrow at a blow the colossus which he had as yet only shaken. By pursuing Darius into his states *Alexander* would have separated himself from his reinforcements, and would have met only scattered parties of troops who would have drawn him into deserts where his army would have been sacrificed. *By persevering in the taking of Tyre he secured his communications with Greece, the country he loved as dearly as I love France, and in whose glory he placed his own.* By taking possession of the rich province of Egypt he forced Darius to come to defend or deliver it, and in so doing to march half-way to meet him. By representing himself as the son of Jupiter he worked upon the ardent feelings of the Orientals in a way that powerfully seconded his designs. *Though he died at thirty-three what a name he has left behind him!"* -Napoleon Bonaparte [Memoirs Volume 1 Chapter 35] [By Louis Antoine Fauvelet De Bourrienne] [His Private Secretary]
I just wanted to mention that where you guys put the text on screen with extra little details, such as where the term "Pyrrhic victory" came from at 7:17, gets covered up by youtube's subtitles. I don't like having to turn off subtitles so I can read those extra cool facts, especially ones that are so influential in history, it'd be a shame to miss them. In any case, I really enjoyed this video. Good work guys (:
I was interested in Iranian culture and chatted with Iranians. Iranians consider Alexander the Great as a barbarian, who had destroyed their half-world Empire, but after that he married Persian women and accepted Persian traditions. Persians were tolerant and promoted equality. Their Kings of the kings allowed people in the Persian Empire to keep their traditions, religions and writing systems. Even the Bible describes the Persian Kings of the kings as good rulers.
Lol barbarian. They conquered a bunch of people and then got conquered. They tried to play in the Greek world both as an aggressor and behind the scenes. They got beat by a better military with a better commander. Thats how its always been and always will be.
Let’s keep in mind that while the Greeks had their bias in the historical account, the Persians did too. Most attest to their general tolerance (until you rebel, then the gods help you), their usual support for local religions (except Xerxes when he declaimed against the Babylonian gods as demons and refused to acknowledge the Egyptian pantheon), and their penchant for leaving local rulers in place. But let’s also keep in mind that modern Iranians have no less of a reason to remember “their side” fondly than anyone else.
@Hernando Malinche although it also doesn't make sense to judge the events of the past, especially those that happened 2000 years ago, with todays moral standards
@@hosseiniamirali9 Eh, people seem to do that with most countries that exist, in the West people seem to enjoy judging their historical cultures by modern standards, ludicrous as that is. At the end of the day the Persians didn't pursue their relatively good system because they were so benevolent, they did it because they saw that respecting local cultures helped to prevent revolts in their empire. Ultimately the best thing to do is respect the historical contributions of a culture and positive steps it took while acknowledging their mistakes. For instance, the British Empire spread the concepts of democracy across the globe, and was the main force in making slavery illegal, but that doesn't change the fact that they also committed horrific acts in various parts of the world. In the end the only reasonable way to judge a culture is to ask whether it overall contributed to the growth of humanity? Though I guess the answer to that will vary from person to person.
@@gerardjagroo "The whole idea of assembling two massive armies" This is not what Alexander did at all. Alexander conquered Afghanistan for crying out loud imo. He constantly made sure to disrupt enemy supplies, finding allies while creating a vast complicated supply line on foreign soil to keep moving. He fought some massive battles against the Persians because the Persians brought huge forces and Alexander had one small army. He didnt have the luxury to use smaller forces and play around. He was outnumbered. Also, I dont know where you got the idea that assembling massive armies is primitive. If anything, assembling a massive army in that time from all across the globe required insane planning and coordination of supply lines and in the hands of a capable general, it was very effective. The Romans did that all the time and they conquered the West. Alexander conquered the East...The results speak for themselves.
@@tusharthebest7571 His army didnt rebel because of an indian army. They rebelled again a second time in Babylon AFTER they rebelled in India. Why they rebelled again in Babylon? The mutinies had nothing to do with India. In India, after Alexander defeated the Indians, his army realized that Alexander would not stop the campaign and had no intention of going home . Then in Babylon, he decided to send some of his troops home but he still wanted to keep conquering and his men got angry again. Basically his troops were homesick and wanted to go back...not only that but they also wanted Alexander himself to come back with them in Greece..they didnt want him to stay in Asia.
@@dimel1347 his army will to fight more ended when they face king porus (also some people in india believe porus won that war). his army is scared of colossal force of nanda empire who have 1000's of war elephants . may be they are home sickness but his army is scared of nanda force .
@@tusharthebest7571 Also keep in mind, that the greeks thought that India was the end of the world. As soon as they entered India, they started getting reports of a big continent with many empires and countries. Alexander was like "Hey guys..that is awesome..more glory for us, arent you excited?" His army was like "Are you insane? It has been TEN years. No more". imo
The GDP per capita of Mesopotamia was recently studied and it was found to have been reduced after Alexander's conquests. The conquests had a harmful impact on the world. I'm sorry to say.
It's a good video but the title is incredibly misleading. It should be renamed to ''How did Alexander the Great's conquest affect the economy of Macedon?''
On the journey *Bonaparte conversed about the warriors of antiquity, especially Alexander, Caesar, Scipio, and Hannibal. I asked him which he preferred, Alexander or Caesar. "I place Alexander in the first rank,"* said he, "yet I admire Caesar's fine campaign in Africa. But the ground of my preference for the *King of Macedonia* is the plan, and above all the execution, of his campaign in Asia. Only those who are utterly ignorant of war can blame *Alexander* for having spent seven months at the siege of Tyre. For my part, I would have stayed there seven years had it been necessary. This is a great subject of dispute; but I look upon the siege of Tyre, the conquest of Egypt, and the journey to the Oasis of Ammon as a decided proof of the genius of that great captain. His object was to give the King of Persia (of whose force he had only beaten a feeble advance-guard at the Granicus and Issus) time to reassemble his troops, so that he might overthrow at a blow the colossus which he had as yet only shaken. By pursuing Darius into his states *Alexander* would have separated himself from his reinforcements, and would have met only scattered parties of troops who would have drawn him into deserts where his army would have been sacrificed. *By persevering in the taking of Tyre he secured his communications with Greece, the country he loved as dearly as I love France, and in whose glory he placed his own.* By taking possession of the rich province of Egypt he forced Darius to come to defend or deliver it, and in so doing to march half-way to meet him. By representing himself as the son of Jupiter he worked upon the ardent feelings of the Orientals in a way that powerfully seconded his designs. *Though he died at thirty-three what a name he has left behind him!"* -Napoleon Bonaparte [Memoirs Volume 1 Chapter 35] [By Louis Antoine Fauvelet De Bourrienne] [His Private Secretary]
Good video, but this only talked about Macedonia, and there wasn’t too much explained but say trade, which you would expect to be more wide spread for Greece and the Far East. I expected more talk the rest of the Greek world.
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I kind of dislike this video because the name of the video is very misleading. A more accurate title would be "The Economics of Macedon from Alexander the Great to the Roman Conquest", which is really quite different from the videos title. I was really interested in the idea of learning more about Alexander's economic policies over all of the territories he ruled and its aftermath, but I already know too much about Macedon.
Persian 1: "the Greeks have come down and burned my city to the ground! I tried to escape with my wife and daughters but when I looked back they weren't there anymore! I dont know if I can go on!" Persian 2: lol this gonna effect the economy
Fun Fact: despite I do appreciate the carbon footprint too, it’s a Concept the industry made up to make us individuals feel „bad“ instead of the cooperations and companies who are in majority doing the real deal out there. Fossile Energy companies are still making their Profit. It’s interesting to see this is still so present inside our society same goes with MSG. We do know it’s not as bad as it got presented years and decades ago, but we don’t change out view on it.
Title - impact on economy of ancient world. Actually - post Alexander economy of Macedon. Its not the same guys. Appreciate your work though, keep it up.
15:40- Did those harsh economic restrictions continue throughout the Roman period, or were they temporary means of consolidating the conquest by preventing the locals from building or hiring an army to revolt/a way of artifically creating a situation where Roman traders can make extraordinary profits, thereby encouraging citizens to populate the region and speed up assimilation?