Alexander the Great’s marriage to Roxanne. The Afghan wife to a warrior!
Who was Alexander the Great?
Alexander the Great, also known as Alexander III, Alexander of Macedonia, (born 356 BCE, Macedonia, Greece] — died June 13, 323 BCE, Babylon [near Al-Ḥillah, Iraq]), The king of Macedonia, who overthrew the Persian Empire and India, laid the foundations for the Hellenistic world of territorial kingdoms. The king of Macedonia had three wives polygamously in his lifetime.
Why the Marraige to Roxane?
Six words: Afghanistan is the Graveyard of Empires
Roxanne was not a princess, nor was he offered a dowry to marry her. Her father was a war lord, Oxyartes, a governor in the ancient Persian empire after his daughter’s marriage. The story goes that Oxyartes hid his wife and children in a rock fortress (deemed impenetrable and undefeatable), but Alexander the great soon found them. Alexander not only treated his captives with respect and dignity, but the beauty of Roxana captured his heart. The nuptials of his daughter with the king in 327 BC were celebrated with a magnificent feast.
For political reasons it would do a much better statement to marry a Persian princess. You see, Alexander knew well before Genghis Khan, Soviet Union…
