Could DNA Testing and Census Systems Have Prevented the Downfall of Alexander the Great’s Empire?
Written by: Saskia Higgins
Reviewed by Sean Bulter and Oscar O’Neill
Shortly after 336 BC when Alexander the Great was declared King he began his mission to conquer the Persian Empire (Alexander the Great, 2017). As our previous blogs have noted, Alexander was very successful in his conquests, expanding beyond Persia into Asia, Syria, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and more (Alexander the Great, 2017). Alexander’s empire was massive. More than 20 cities were named after the King and many more cities thrived after being taken over by Alexander. However, after Alexander’s sudden death in 323 BCE and with no legitimate heir to the throne (his son, Alexander IV, was born after his death), Alexander’s empire fell apart. Alexander needed to have provided his people with an adult successor, but historians say when asked who his heir would be he would respond: “The strongest will be my heir” (Geggel, 2015). However, Alexander failed to select a successor and actually killed any man who was seen to be a good replacement. This resulted in the ultimate destruction of his empire (Grainger, 2007).
The collapse of Alexander’s empire shows you cannot hold an empire together with just a good military strategy on its own. This blog will explore how modern-day DNA testing and Census systems could have helped Alexander pick a suitable heir to the throne, potentially saving his legacy from falling apart.
It is suspected that Alexander had a son — Heracles — with a woman called Barsine, the daughter of Artabazus, who was a Persian nobleman. Many scholars refute this, however. Historian Mary Renatul claims no records of the two being together exist and the son only comes onto the scene during the ‘Succession Wars’ after Alexander’s death (Renault, 1975). Nowadays, when disputes arise as to whether a child is biologically his fathers, families use DNA testing to check who the child’s biological father is (Clarke, n.d.). The results of such tests may raise some eyebrows should the child’s alleged father not be the biological parent, but it does eradicate any doubts or uncertainties.
Had technology of this nature been available 2000 years ago, the Persians could have tested Heracles, the alleged son, to confirm if he was the offspring of Alexander the Great. At 17 years old when Alexander died, Heracles could have been a suitable heir to the throne had the doubts around his biological father been quashed.
Similarly, Alexander’s son (Alexander IV) with Roxana, who was born after Alexander died and ultimately did go on to rule, was never proven to be a legitimate child of Alexander. DNA testing could have prevented the empire from collapsing, saving the bloodshed which followed in the Succession Wars after Alexander’s death.
DNA testing has now gotten more advanced, with the likes of 23andMe now showing users if they are predisposed to any medical conditions and even the likelihood of their offspring being predisposed to medical conditions or disabilities (23andMe, n.d.). Having a healthy, capable son to carry on the empire’s legacy is crucial to a leader’s legitimacy so it is highly likely that had these systems been available during Alexander’s rule he would have utilised them to “screen” potential wives or mates to see the likelihood of them producing healthy, strong children.
Further to this, the idea of Gene Matchmaking which utilises DNA testing is now used by 21st-century couples to match based on their biological compatibility. Studies have shown that couples who have dissimilar “alleles” produce offspring with a greater variety of alleles, which ultimately provides greater immune systems (Jokiniemi et al., 2020). With this knowledge, Alexander could have chosen his mate based on her genetic makeup in order to increase the chances of having a healthy child.
Greek tradition holds that the legitimacy of a leader goes beyond his offspring and insists royal women (especially mothers) were a vital part of the Persian Monarchy (Carney, 1996). Record-keeping was in place as early as 3800 BC, but modern census records only began in the 17th century (Census through the ages, 2006). Having access to detailed demographics of the regions he was invading would have helped Alexander know exactly who to socialise with, marry, and kill (although he did a lot of that anyway). Alexander’s sons whom he had with Barsine and Roxane, were never taken seriously as they were children of captured women. Alexander could have utilised census information to have children with married Persian or Achaemenid women (rather than captured) who were considered able to produce legitimate sons (Carney, 1996).
While the moralities of using DNA technology or Census systems to identify optimal mating partners may be questionable, such practices would certainly not be out of Alexander’s reach. As our previous blogs have talked about; he slaughtered men, women, and children during his reign. Some historians argue he starved a quarter of his own army to death for bragging rights over being the first person to cross the Gedrosian desert (Heckel, 2014). He also believed that he was sent from the Gods. We know Alexander went to extraordinary lengths to build his empire, coupled with the fact he was obsessed with his God-like identity, it is not farfetched to say Alexander could have used this technology to not only produce another “God-like” heir.
