Dangerous Rulers

When you think of rulers, which rulers spring to mind? A strong leader, humble in his greatness, ruling with an iron fist and micromanaging the entire planet. There's no wonder that we tend to see the rulers of yesteryear as the epitome of power and control, because those were the days when those leaders ruled the world!

Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great was a king of Macedon and a leader of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire. He conquered the Kingdoms of Syria, Ptolemaic Egypt, Persia, Babylonia, and many other states. He defeated the Persian Empire and united all lands under his rule. Alexander's empire broke up after his death in 323 BC, but he left behind a vast legacy.

Alexander was born in 356 BC to Philip II and Olympias. His father was assassinated when Alexander was young and he became king at age 12. At first he was trained by Aristotle in Macedonia before being sent to study in Athens under Plato, who influenced him greatly. He returned to Macedonia when his mother died in 336 BC and took over as ruler of Macedon by murdering one of his generals then fighting with another one until they both committed suicide.

In 335 BC, Alexander fought against King Darius III of Persia at the Battle of Issus where he lost an eye after an arrow struck him in the face during battle; this would later be used as propaganda for Alexander's opponents when they claimed that he had lost an eye in battle (he did not). After defeating Darius at Gaugamela, Alexander went on through Asia Minor into what is now modern Iran

Alfonso III of Asturias

Alfonso III of Asturias, also known as Alfonso the Great, was the king of Asturias and Galicia. He was also the king of León, Castile, and Toledo.

Alfonso III was born in 858. He succeeded his father Leovigildo as king of Asturias in 866. He became king of Asturias and Galicia in 867 after his father's death. In 868, he conquered Seville from Ibn Marwan's Umayyad forces. In 870 he invaded Portugal where he defeated a Muslim army at Alfarrobeira but then faced a rebellion by local nobles who were unhappy with his rule.

In 877 Alfonso III went to Rome to seek a crown from Pope John VIII so that he could be crowned emperor by the pope himself but no crown was offered him and he returned home without it. In 882 Alfonso III married Sancha I de Navarra (born c869) daughter of count Aoiz I de Urgell and Sancha García de Armagnac (born c857). The couple had three children: Bermudo Alfonso (born c879), Fruela (born c880)

Alfred the Great

He is one of the best known Anglo-Saxon kings and is often considered one of England's greatest kings. Alfred founded several important towns, rebuilt London, kept an army at a time when it was dangerous to do so, and secured the East Midlands against Danish invasion.

Alfred's life was marked by almost continual warfare. He fought against the Vikings who had settled in East Anglia and he defeated them at Ashdown in 871. He then went on to defeat them again at Wilton in Hampshire in 878.

In 878, he began his most ambitious project – the building of a great wall from coast to coast across England from Newcastle upon Tyne to Chester. It took him twenty years to complete this work but it proved an important defence against Viking attacks from Scotland and Ireland as well as enabling him to secure his kingdom against Danish invasions from across the North Sea.

Alfred died on 8 September 901 at Wantage (now Aylesbury). He had been king for over thirty years but died childless after his wife Ealhswith refused to take another husband because she thought it would be wrong for her daughter