Born 356 BCE, Alexander the Great became the king of Macedonia at the age of 20, after a political rival assassinated his father.
During his 13-year reign, he overthrew the Persian empire, carried Macedonian arms to India, and laid the foundations for the Hellenistic world of territorial kingdoms.
In 323 BCE, Alexander died mysteriously at the age of 32. Historians have since debated his cause of death, with theories ranging from malaria to assassination.
So, how did Alexander the Great die?
Read on for everything you need to know about the character at the centre of the Netflix documentary.
How did Alexander the Great die?
There have been many explanations for Alexander’s death, including alcoholic liver disease and strychnine poisoning, however, there is little information to support this as the cause of his death. Some historians have even suggested that he could have died by assassination from one of his rivals.
It’s most likely that he died from malaria or typhoid fever, which were both widespread in ancient Babylon. The description of his final illness from the royal diaries is consistent with typhoid fever or malaria, but is most characteristic of typhoid fever.
In one theory, a scholar and practicing clinician suggests that Alexander may have suffered from the neurological disorder Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), which caused his death. She also argues that people might not have noticed any immediate signs of decomposition on the body for one simple reason – because Alexander wasn’t dead yet.
While historians have long speculated over what exactly killed Alexander, Dr Katherine Hall, a senior lecturer at the Dunedin School of Medicine at the University of Otago, New Zealand, has debated over the timing of his death, suggesting he might not even have died when people thought he did.
During those times, doctors relied on the presence or absence of breath, rather than a pulse, to determine whether a patient was alive or dead. Hall believes Alexander might have been falsely declared dead before he actually died.
In a statement from the University of Otago, she said: “I wanted to stimulate new debate and discussion and possibly rewrite the history books by arguing Alexander’s real death was six days later than previously accepted.
New on Netflix in February 2024
Alexander: The Making of a God is available to stream on Netflix. Looking for something else to watch? Check out more of our Documentaries coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to see what’s on tonight.
Try magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10 – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Podcast.
