Alexander’s conquests were significant because they represented the victory of Greek ideas and culture as well as of arms.  In each country conquered he usually succeeded in Hellenizing the native peoples.  Greek cities, settled by his veterans and the horde of migratory Greeks that followed in his wake, were founded at strategic points throughout the vast empire.  As recent excavations have shown, Greek art and ideas continued even after the death of Alexander to sweep eastward across Asia, until they profoundly influenced the culture and ideas in such distant nations as China and Japan.

III.  The Jews in Egypt and Alexandria.  The crown of Alexander’s constructive work was the building of Alexandria in Egypt.  Selecting a narrow strip of coast, protected on the south by the low-lying lake Mareotis and on the north by the Mediterranean, he built there a magnificent Greek city.  On the south it was connected by canal with the Canopic arm of the Nile.  Alexander thus diverted to this new metropolis the rich trade of the Red Sea and the Nile.  A mile distant was the island of Pharos, which was connected with the mainland by a great moll.  On either side, protected from the storms, were the eastern and western harbors, large enough to accommodate the merchant-men and navies of the ancient world.  On the west was the native Egyptian quarter.  In the centre, opposite the island of Pharos, was the Greek and official quarter.  In the northeastern part of the city was the Jewish quarter.  Here the Jews lived together under the rule of their law; they were also represented in the civic council by their own leaders.  When Ptolemy, the son of Lagus, became governor of Egypt and, after the death of Alexander, subjected Palestine, he carried back to Alexandria many Jewish captives, and attracted others by the special privileges which he granted them.  In them he recognized valuable allies in developing the commercial resources of Alexandria and in maintaining his rule over the native Egyptians.  Here in time the Jews became wealthy and powerful and developed a unique civilization.  From the beginning of the Greek period the number of the Jews in Egypt equalled, if it did not surpass, that of the Jews in Palestine.  While they maintained close connection with the Jews in Palestine and remained true to their Scriptures, they were profoundly influenced by their close contact with the civilization and ideas of the Greek world.

IV.  The Rule of the Ptolemies.  The long-continued rule of the Ptolemies in Egypt is one of the most astonishing phenomena in this remarkable period in human history.  Far outnumbered by the native population, involved in almost constant war with their fellow-Greeks, they succeeded by sheer audacity and vigilance in maintaining their authority during the many crises through which they passed.  Egypt’s natural defences also made its conquest by outside powers exceedingly difficult.  Alexandria with its fleet commanded Egypt’s one entrance by the sea.