Elizabeth Milanov

22 April 2018
Portfolio Reflection – Military/Police

 Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great is a prime example of the military and policing of conquering cities. He

spent most of his time as king conquering Asia and northeast Africa1. Before he turned thirty, he

already had created one of the largest empires. When he died, he was undefeated, making him one

the most successful military leaders.

When looking at the past, sometimes the spread of a culture or belief will not make sense until

you look at the military behind it. In the article ‘Why Study History?’ from William H. McNeill,

he asks the question “Who cares? Why should anyone bothering learning about what happened in

the past?”2. In this case, we care about Alexander the Great conquests and empire because it shows

the expansion of the Greek culture. Backed by his tutor Aristotle, he spread the Greek philosophy,

culture, language, and art in every conquering land.

 Cyrus the Great

Cyrus the Great is also a worthy example of military and policing. He conquered the Median

Empire, Lydian Empire, and the Neo-Babylonian Empire. Even after his death, his son Cambyses

II conquered Egypt, Nubia, and Cyrenaica3. Cyrus the Great is a little different than Alexander the

Great in the way that he respected the customs and religions of the regions he conquered. He was

also known for his mercy; for example, he allowed the captive Hebrews to return to Jerusalem

instead of making them slaves.

In Michael Postma’s ‘What Can History Teach Us Today?’ he writes

“…historical narratives offer us stories of humility, courage, wisdom, and

–most important- hope. In essence, history teaches us to move forward,

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22 April 2018
recognize our mistakes and learn from them, and ultimately create a better

existence for all.”4.

When looking at Cyrus the Great and comparing him to Alexander the Great in terms of their

policing styles, they were very different. Alexander the Great would turn his captives into slaves

or execute them. I believe that Cyrus the Great looked at Alexander the Great and his methods and

decided to do things differently. Even looking at our policing now, we do not use slavery as a form

of punishment and rarely use the death penalty. Instead, we use more compassionate methods. I

believe that looking back at the way things used to be (e.g. execution), we learned that this is not

the solution to most problems and have since fixed the problems.

 Julius Caesar

Julius Caesar is the reason for the rise of the Roman Empire. Even though he was deeply in

debt, he conquered Gaul. However, Pompey accused Julius Caesar of insubordination and treason,

after he lead the Senate to order Julius Caesar to disband his army because his term as governor

had finished5. Because of this Julius Caesar eventually captured and killed Pompey and his

assassins. Eventually, Julius Caesar was assassinated as well.

David Perry wrote ‘How History Can Help Us Predict the Next Pope”. In this article, he argues

that clues from the past can help us predict what will happen in the future 6. In this case, Julius

Caesar used his policing and military to assassinate his colleague Pompey and Pompey’s small

army. Then later on, Julius Caesar would be assassinated while appearing before a session of the

Senate. This is almost what writers and scholars would call foreshadowing. Because Julius Caesar

had killed someone that was a threat to him, he would later be assassinated by the “Liberatores”,

which included Julius Caesar’s friend and brother-in-law, Gaius Cassius Longinus. If Julius Caesar

would have been kind to his captors and his friends, maybe his fate would have been different.

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 Bibliography

1. Mark, Joshua J. “Ancient Greece.” Ancient History Encyclopedia, Ancient History

Encyclopedia, 21 Apr. 2018, www.ancient.eu/greece/.

2. McNeill, William H. “Why Study History?” Historical Archives, American Historical

Association, www.historians.org/about-aha-and-membership/aha-history-and-

archives/historical-archives/why-study-history-(1985).

3. “Persian Empire.” Ushistory.org, Independence Hall Association,

www.ushistory.org/civ/4e.asp.

4. Postma, Michael. “What Can History Teach Us Today?” ASCD Express, vol. 6, ser.

22, 2011. 22, www.ascd.org/ascd-express/vol6/622-postma.aspx.

5. CrashCourse. “The Roman Empire. Or Republic. Or...Which Was It?: Crash Course

World History #10.” YouTube, YouTube, 29 Mar. 2012,

www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPf27gAup9U.

6. Perry, David M. “How History Can Help Us Predict the Next Pope.” The Atlantic,

Atlantic Media Company, 12 Mar. 2013,

www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2013/03/how-history-can-help-us-predict-

the-next-pope/273945/.

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