Philip II of Macedon

At the start of each episode of this show we say that assassins can change the course of history with one terrible act. Never was that more true than with the murder of Philip. The death of the ruler of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia led to the accession of his son, Alexander.

Soon to be known as Alexander the Great, his military campaigns took him from Greece to India. His legacy was to create a Greek-speaking, Hellenized zone that stretched from the Balkans, through Asia Minor and the Levant, to Egypt, and even as far as Central Asia.

Had Philip not been murdered, Alexander might never have inherited the throne. And had that been the case, might the course of Western Civilization have run very differently?

RECOMMENDED LISTENING:

Though not particularly related to this episode, we cannot recommend highly enough the lecture series by the historian Robert Garland. Check out “The Other Side of History: Daily Life in the Ancient World”

https://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/the-other-side-of-history-daily-life-in-the-ancient-world#professor

Attribution for music used in this episode:

Kevin MacLeod: Master of the Feast (adapted from the original)

Kevin MacLeod: Dark Stand-off (adapted from the original)

Assassinations Podcast Theme Music (Intro, Outro, and Transitions) written and performed by Graeme Ronald