At age twenty-two, Alexander begins his campaign to acquire new territory in Asia. Alexander continues his campaign farther east and eventually returns to Persia in 323 BCE , where he dies of fever in Babylon. Before his death, Alexander was the ruler of the largest empire the world had seen. Greece - Alexander leaves no successors, and the highest generals engage in many wars which result in the decisive battle of Ipsus in 301 BCE . The empire is divided into four major states under the separate rules of Seleucus, Lysimachus, Cassander and Ptolemy.
Greek cities revolt against Macedonian rule but to no avail.
The next four hundred years witness the growth of large cities and Hellenistic international trade. Neither believe in spiritual substances. The soul is thought to be material. The Epicureans believe that pleasure is the highest good, and only by abandoning the fear of the supernatural can one achieve tranquillity of mind. The Stoics believe that tranquillity of mind is only achieved by surrendering the self to the order of the cosmos.