Book Review: “Philip and Alexander”
By: Dr. Thomas J. West Iii
Tags: Books, Biography, History, Greece, Classics

Book Review: “Philip and Alexander”

The new book from acclaimed historian Adrian Goldsworthy examines antiquity’s most famous father and son in a new light.

As everyone knows, I’m always on the lookout for a new book about antiquity, in particular anything having to do with Alexander the Great. This particular figure has always sort of cast a spell on me, perhaps because he’s become something of a queer icon.

So, when I saw that NetGalley had a copy of noted historian Adrian Goldsworthy’s new dual biography of Alexander the Great and his father Philip II, I knew that I had to get a copy for review.

As its title implies, this is a book that is very much about both Alexander and Phillip. Indeed, the book’s most noteworthy contribution to the already vast library of books about Alexander the Great is its dual emphasis on the father and the son. Poor Philip always seems to get short-shrift in the history books, the curse of having a son who would become one of the most famous men from antiquity. As Goldsworthy documents, however, were it not for Philip and his efforts to consolidate his power in both Macedonia and Greece, it’s very unlikely that Alexander would have been able to accomplish even a fraction of what he ultimately did.

In fact, one can’t help but admire Philip for his tenacity, his political skill, and his military abilities. Indeed, it’s something of a miracle that he managed to survive the cutthroat world of the Argead court for as long as he did, particularly since so many of his predecessors were cut down by those closest to them. Having managed to ascend to the throne, Philip set about forging Macedonia into a formidable force, and the book documents the way that he managed to first defeat the various tribes that sought to exploit Macedonia, before moving on to Greece. Philip’s genius was that he was able to take advantage of the Greek city-states’ chronic unwillingness to band together. By the time they realized just how much of a threat this “barbarian” was, it was far too late.

Philip’s great misfortune is that his perception in the present has been shaped by Hollywood’s representation of him. Two major films have so far been made about the life of Alexander, one in the 1950s and one in the early 2000s. In both cases, Philip comes across as a debauched sot unable to carry a sword or control what’s going on in his own home. By the time he’s cut down during a ceremony, it almost comes as a relief. Fortunately, Goldsworthy’s book goes a long way toward correcting this perception, allowing us to see the man in all of his complexity.

One of the book’s other great strengths is that it does give a pretty thorough examination of the broader world into which Philip was born, particularly Athens. Of all the city-states, this most famous city-state had arguably the most vexed relationship with the Macedonian king, due in no small part to the inveterate hatred born toward Philip by the famed and influential orator Demosthenes. We also get a glimpse into the workings of Macedonian court life which, Goldsworthy points out, centered around the king and his nobles. Understanding these contexts is vital for grasping the type of ruler that Philip went on to be. Personally, I would have liked to see more of these parts of the book, particularly since such context is so important to understanding Philip’s and Alexander’s role on the geopolitical stage.

When it comes to Alexander, however, the book falls a bit flat. Goldsworthy seems to have an almost pathological avoidance of anything having to do with Alexander’s personal life, and so those looking for illumination about the great man’s relationships with his mother Olympias, his friend and lover Hephaistion, or his lover and confidant Bagoas the eunuch are certain to be disappointed. Unlike almost every other historian I’ve read on the subject, Goldsworthy refuses to accept that Alexander had deeply physical relationships with men, and even at the end he can only bring himself to refer to Hephaistion as his dearest friend (he has a similarly prudish attitude toward Achilles and Patroclus). While his rationale for doing so is sound as far as it goes — we simply can’t know for sure whether the relationship was sexual — it does at times seem as if Goldsworthy is letting his own prejudices regarding same-sex eroticism color his understanding of Alexander.

What the book lacks in exploration of Alexander’s personal life it more than makes up for in discussions of battles, soldiers, and tactics. Quite frankly, I find those parts of the book the least enjoyable, mostly because I’m just not that much of a fan of military history. However, for those who want a detailed analysis of Alexander’s military exploits, particularly one he crosses into Persia and begins his conquest of that mighty, sprawling empire, this book more than fits the bill.

Throughout the book, Goldsworthy is very open about the fact that there is much that we don’t know about Alexander and his life. The sources are often written many years after his death. This is, of course, the danger in writing a narrative history about people who lived several millennia ago, but there were times when I began to wish that Goldsworthy would just move on from the constant uncertainty and tell the story that he wants to tell.

That being said, I found the concluding chapters to be the most compelling, in part because they make a convincing case for the need to continue exploring the lives of these two men. For better and worse, Philip and Alexander fundamentally reshaped the world that they found. Alexander in particular would cast a huge shadow over the rest of antiquity, and prominent men like Julius Caesar and Augustus would continue to yearn to achieve the same level of greatness (and, in Goldsworthy’s estimation, fail).

For the most part, I enjoyed this book. It’s a useful account of the lives of two of the ancient world’s most important rulers, men whose fame continues to shine down through the millennia.