Tides of History How Alexander the Great's Soldiers Spent Their Money
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Dec 25, 2025 Explore the financial life of a Macedonian soldier during Alexander the Great's conquests. Learn how soldiers like Red Cleitus handled their newfound wealth, navigating a world of camp markets, inflation, and credit. Discover the economic incentives that drew men into military service, and how their spending influenced regional economies. Delve into the realities of their expenditures— from arms to indulgences like wine and sex work. Uncover the dark side of war as a slave-producing economy and the long-term impacts on Hellenistic society.
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Weapons As Rational Investments
- Early earnings funded better weapons, armor, and quality gear for soldiers like Cletus.
- Wyman emphasizes tools of violence were rational investments for a soldier's livelihood.
Arms Industry And Slavery
- Arms production existed at scale in the classical world, sometimes using enslaved labor.
- Wyman connects military demand to specialized workshops and exportable weapon industries.
War As Slave Production
- Campaigns routinely produced captives who were funneled into slavery and markets across Greece.
- Wyman argues many ancient campaigns functioned primarily as large-scale slave raids.