What operations and logistical skills contributed to Alexander the great success?

Answer 1

Marching armies need to be supplied. Quite often they cannot depend simply on foraging for food as they moved along in ancient times. Alexander the great was a great military leader who conquered much of the known western world in his time. One way he did this was through a better system of logistics, or better said a way to keep his army supplied as he marched from victory to victory. Alexander, a Macedonian, not a Greek, discarded the well known method of having animals loaded with army supplies. The idea was that any transport animal can pull more than it can carry on its back. The problem of pulling wagons of supplies lay with the harness used to connect the animal with the supply cart. Alexander's father was the first pioneer in Alexander's time. He reduced the logistics of the ancient Greeks by reducing the numbers of servants that marched along with each soldier. The Greeks had servants carry armor and weapons. This was changed by having the soldier carry much of his own supplies and it eliminated the numbers of servants, who slowed an army down.

In consideration of the aforementioned pack animals, the problem with the harness was that it impeded the lungs of the animal, plus over rough terrain, the wagons slowed everything down. Instead, Alexander had the animals carry supplies on their backs and thus were able to keep up with the marching soldiers. Alexander also made note of the superiority of the horse over the oxen. Oxen were great "strength " animals but were "temperamental" in nature. THe horse was more willing to "follow" instructions, so to speak,. Plus horses had more endurance. The bottom line was that minus the extra servants and minus the oxen, the marching soldier with a good horse simply moved along faster. Speed is an essential element in armies. Alexander made his forces move faster and their speed overcame the enemies he faced.

Answer 2

He ran his offensive campaigns aligned with the harvest period where he could seize the local crops. This allowed him to support sizeable forces of infantry and cavalry over long distances, which in an age of no mechanical transport was otherwise an impossible task with one tonne carts, drawn by beasts which also had to be fed.

Answer 3

because he had a big phalanx