Military Legacy of Alexander the Great

Michael P. Ferguson (M.S.) is a U.S. Army Officer and Ph.D. student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His decades of military experience include combat tours to Iraq and Afghanistan and postings throughout Europe and Africa. He has authored dozens of journal articles and is an opinion contributor at The Hill.Ian Worthington (FSA, FRHistS) is Professor of Ancient History at Macquarie University, Australia. He has written numerous books, including The Last Kings of Macedonia and the Triumph of Rome; Athens after Empire: A History from Alexander the Great to the Emperor Hadrian; and By the Spear: Philip II, Alexander the Great, and the Rise and Fall of the Macedonian Empire.

• Introduction: Why Alexander the Great? Then and Now; Part I The Environment; 1. Alexander’s Macedonian Background and Influences; 2. A Brave New World?; Part II Military Organization and Structure; 3. The Macedonian Army and Greek Warfare; 4. Organizing, Innovating, and Prioritizing Modernization; Part III Choosing Battles – And Winning Wars?; 5. Alexander’s First Campaigns; 6. Alexander in Persia 1: King of Asia; 7. Alexander in Persia 2: Mission Accomplished?; 8. The Art of Control and the Enduring Fog of War; Part IV Eastern Exposure; 9. Alexander in Central Asia; 10. Alexander in India and His Final Years; 11. West Meets East: Command and Control?; 12. The Trials and Tolls of Expeditionary Warfare; Part V The Human Domain; 13. Alexander’s Generalship; 14. Alexander’s Grand Strategy: Model or Model Failure?; Conclusion by Lt. General H. R. McMaster.

"A timely, important, and impressive book that provides a tremendous new examination of Alexander the Great. Ferguson and Worthington establish convincingly that civilization's advances have not made war less complex or less taxing on the human condition. As the world evolves from an era of benign globalization to one of renewed great power rivalries, The Military Legacy of Alexander the Great is a compelling exploration of the timeless and often brutal nature of war." -- General David Petraeus (US Army, Ret.), former Commander of the Surge in Iraq, US Central Command, and NATO/US Forces in Afghanistan and co-author (with Andrew Roberts) of Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Ukraine."Ferguson and Worthington’s book is a bold effort that integrates a history from antiquity with contemporary insights on leadership. A well designed project of no small amount of intellectual ambition, it is brilliantly executed with nuance and good deal of classical scholarship. Professional students of the art of war will benefit from this historically grounded study that serves as a unique guide to anyone aspiring to master the complexities of strategic leadership." -- Frank Hoffman, Ph.D., U.S. National Defense University"A much needed, didactic reexamination of the unique ways in which Alexander the Great overcame daunting challenges of logistics, geography, numbers, culture, and politics that should have guaranteed his failure—and the lessons that ancient history offers... A rare, scholarly and pragmatic guide to the unchanging principles of conducting war by authors who are as versed with wars of the past as they are familiar with conflict in the present." -- Victor Davis Hanson, The Hoover Institution, Stanford University. Author of A War Like No Other; The Second World Wars."Michael P. Ferguson and Ian Worthington have presented an excellent account and analysis of Alexander’s campaigns, detailing his strengths and weaknesses across the different levels and components of strategy. Moreover, the book identifies a range of valuable insights for the modern practitioner of strategy. Perhaps most importantly, the book determines that, despite our ever-changing world, war and strategy remain fundamentally human endeavours in which leadership and strategic judgement remain paramount." -- David J. Lonsdale, author of Alexander the Great: Lessons in Strategy."Leadership, strategy, perseverance, individual will...these characteristics are the legacy of Alexander the Great, and they are why we have studied him and his campaigns over the centuries. His ability to push his army beyond normal limits and reach the fullest possible potential of his soldiers are what is expected of every modern leader today." -- Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, U.S. Army (Retired)."The Military Legacy of Alexander the Great offers readers an excellent contemporary examination of one of history’s most famous military and political leaders... Ferguson and Worthington adeptly bridge the gap between ancient history and modern warfare and demonstrate that national security professionals and joint warfighters can still learn from Alexander, one of history’s most recognizable figures." - Joint Force Quarterly