Alexander the Great's death in 323 BC saw his empire torn apart by wars between his great, but destructively ambitious generals. These commanders were known as the Diadochoi (Successors). They initially included Ptolemy, Craterus, Seleucus, and Antigonus, but over time many more decided to join in the quest for the spoils of Alexander's conquests. The fighting between these former comrades was often savage and personal. Alliances and threats shifted over the almost 50 years of conflict, which ranged from Greece and Egypt to the far-flung frontiers of Bactria and the Indus.
 
From the remains of one of the largest empires the world had seen would emerge the three empires of the Hellenistic World, which would last until the rise of the Romans, and provide the birthplace of the modern western world.