Philip ii and alexander the great were able to conquer vast amounts of territory, primarily because they a. had advanced military weapons b. had a sophisticated system of taxation c. formed an alliance with sparta and athens d. controlled the trade of gold in the region

A. had advanced military weapons

Explanation:

Philip II quickly reformed the Macedonian army when he got to power. One of the reason for this was that he saw the potential that the Macedonian Kingdom has, and that strong military will result in gaining new territories and lot of wealth. The Greeks kind of missed the rise of the Macedonian army north of them, and maybe didn't expected attack. Philip created the Macedonian Phalanx, equipped it with new specially made weapons, very long spears, and face to face short swords, making it also very mobile. After the conquering of Paionia, the cavalry became much stronger because the Paionian cavalry was included and was very strong. This resulted in military campaign against the Greeks in the south, and they were successful, which was seen with despise by the Greeks, as they saw the Macedonians as barbarians not worthy of even being slaves. Alexander III of Macedon (the Great) inherited the empire, and having an excellent base set by his father, and his great military mind, supported by experienced Macedonian and Paionian generals, resulted in expansion and conquest of lot of territories, creating the largest empire the world had seen until then, and the third largest ever.

a goverment for the people by the people