Largest possible Alexandrian Empire

[Zoidberg12]

This was inspired by me brianstorming over the scenario presented in the plot of the S.M. Stirling book "Conquistador". In the book, a US soldier from 1946 is sent to an alternate universe where Alexander the Great lived until 280 BCE and conquered a much larger empire then OLT which stretches from Iberia to the Ganges River.

My question is that if Alexander the Great lived longer, how much larger could his empire have gotten and what is the largest it could have possibly gotten?

Below is a map showing my idea of such a scenario. This map is based on the 323 BC base map, but it shows the Macedon Empire having conquered Carthage, Rome, Arabia and India. Is this big as the Macedon Empire could have got, or could it have gotten even bigger? For example, could southern India have fallen?

 

[Cuāuhtemōc]

Talk about overstretch. I don't see Alexander conquering that much land even if he has forty years of life ahead of him. Sure, he had planned expeditions to conquer Carthage and Arabia in the days prior to his death but one thing is drawing up plans and another is executing them; and of course another to actually succeed in doing so. I'm not questioning Alexander's skill as a commander and he certainly proved himself on multiple occasions to be an effective general but does that translate into conquering as much land as shown on the map? Doubtful. Me thinks he would spend much of his latter reign putting down the occasional rebellion by some uppity Greek city-state or some overly ambitious satrap of his than expanding more than he already had.

Arabia is doable. But he would only concentrate on conquering the coastal ports and turning them into new satrapies or into tributaries, probably putting a few more Alexandrias as bastions of Hellenistic culture. He has no reason to go into the desert interior. There is not much there worth conquering for Alexander.

 

[Lalli]

I don't believe that Alexander can't conquer much more than in OTL. His soldiers mutined continously war treks far from their homes and surely Alexander would has much doing put down local rebels. That kind of empire he can't conquer. Maybe some parts of India and Arabia but hardly more. And he surely don't bother to conquer Arabian desert. I don't think that his soldiers and horses can eat sand. There not be anything for him. And with that kind of empire Alexander would has terrible logistic problems.

 

[Zoidberg12]

I don't believe that Alexander can't conquer much more than in OTL. His soldiers mutined continously war treks far from their homes and surely Alexander would has much doing put down local rebels. That kind of empire he can't conquer. Maybe some parts of India and Arabia but hardly more. And he surely don't bother to conquer Arabian desert. I don't think that his soldiers and horses can eat sand. There not be anything for him. And with that kind of empire Alexander would have terrible logistic problems.

I personally think, that if he was going to do any more conquering, he would try and attack either Carthage or Italy first. I've heard he planned on conquering them and they seems like probable targets if any.

 

[Falecius]

I personally think, that if he was going to do any more conquering, he would try and attack either Carthage or Italy first. I've heard he planned on conquering them and they seems like probable targets if any.

He planned Arabia first and carthage second, and I think that much could possibly manage if he lived longer.
Keeping the whole thing together after his death (or maybe even in his lifetime) is another matter though.

 

[SlyDessertFox]

He's not going to go any further into India than he already did. Arabia is pretty easy to accomplish. Carthage, ehhhh. He could, but it's not going to be a pushover. After that though, I can't see him going any further. Maybe he'll personally travel to the Pillars of Hercules and IIRC, Rome boasted of their location being where Hercules stopped at one point so it might cross his mind to go there but I doubt he'll actually attempt to conquer it (maybe demand entry into the city a la Tyre?

 

[Elfwine]

He's not going to go any further into India than he already did. Arabia is pretty easy to accomplish. Carthage, ehhhh. He could, but it's not going to be a pushover. After that though, I can't see him going any further. Maybe he'll personally travel to the Pillars of Hercules and IIRC, Rome boasted of their location being where Hercules stopped at one point so it might cross his mind to go there but I doubt he'll actually attempt to conquer it (maybe demand entry into the city a la Tyre?

Is that "Alexander won't be able to", or Alexander won't try?

Because Alexander took Tyre - it was worth sitting down for a difficult siege for to him.

Which doesn't mean its realistic to keep going, but "realistic" never stopped Alexander's ambitions before - short of mutiny by his army.