Alexander+the+great+vs+the+Persian+Empire

Alexander succeeded his father, [|Philip II of Macedon], to the throne in 336 BC after Philip was assassinated. Upon Philip's death, Alexander inherited a strong kingdom and an experienced army. He was awarded the generalship of Greece and used this authority to launch his father's military expansion plans. In 334 BC, he invaded [|Persian] -ruled [|Asia Minor] and began a [|series of campaigns] that lasted ten years. Alexander broke the power of Persia in a series of decisive battles, most notably the battles of [|Issus] and [|Gaugamela]. He subsequently overthrew the Persian King [|Darius III] and conquered the entirety of the [|Persian Empire]. [|i[›]] At that point, his empire stretched from the [|Adriatic Sea] to the [|Indus River]. Seeking to reach the "ends of the world and the Great Outer Sea", he [|invaded India] in 326 BC, but was eventually forced to turn back at the demand of his troops. Alexander died in [|Babylon] in 323 BC, without executing a series of planned campaigns that would have begun with an invasion of [|Arabia]. In the years following his death, a series of civil wars tore his empire apart, resulting in several states ruled by the [|Diadochi], Alexander's surviving generals and heirs. Alexander's legacy includes the [|cultural diffusion] his conquests engendered. He founded some [|twenty cities that bore his name], most notably [|Alexandria] in Egypt. Alexander's settlement of Greek colonists and the resulting spread of Greek culture in the east resulted in a new [|Hellenistic civilization], aspects of which were still evident in the traditions of the [|Byzantine Empire] in the mid-15th century. Alexander became legendary as a classical hero in the mold of [|Achilles], and he features prominently in the history and myth of Greek and non-Greek cultures. He became the measure against which military leaders compared themselves, and [|military academies] throughout the world still teach his tactics. [|[3]] [|ii[›]
 * Alexander III of Macedon** (20/21 July 356 – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as **Alexander the Great** ( [|Greek] : Ἀλέξανδρος ὁ Μέγας, //Aléxandros ho Mégas// [|iii[›]] from the Greek αλέξω //alexo// "to defend, help" + ανήρ //aner// "man"), was a king of [|Macedon], a state in northern [|ancient Greece] . Born in [|Pella] in 356 BC, Alexander was tutored by [|Aristotle] until the age of 16. By the age of thirty, he had created one of the [|largest empires] of the [|ancient world] , stretching from the [|Ionian Sea] to the [|Himalayas] . [|[1]] He was undefeated in battle and is considered one of history's most successful commanders. [|[2]]

Accession
The Kingdom of Macedon in 336 BC. In 336 BC, while at [|Aegae] attending the wedding of his daughter [|Cleopatra] to Olympias's brother, [|Alexander I of Epirus], Philip was assassinated by the captain of his [|bodyguards] , [|Pausanias]. [|vi[›]] As Pausanias tried to escape, he tripped over a vine and was killed by his pursuers, including two of Alexander's companions, [|Perdiccas] and [|Leonnatus]. Alexander was proclaimed king by the nobles and [|army] at the age of 20. [|[46]] [|[47]] [|[48]]

Consolidation of power
Alexander began his reign by eliminating potential rivals to the throne. He had his cousin, the former [|Amyntas IV], executed. [|[49]] He also had two Macedonian princes from the region of [|Lyncestis] killed, but spared a third, [|Alexander Lyncestes]. Olympias had Cleopatra Eurydice and Europa, her daughter by Philip, burned alive. When Alexander learned about this, he was furious. Alexander also ordered the murder of Attalus, [|[49]] who was in command of the advance guard of the army in Asia Minor and Cleopatra's uncle. [|[50]] Attalus was at that time corresponding with Demosthenes, regarding the possibility of defecting to Athens. Attalus also had severely insulted Alexander, and following Cleopatra's murder, Alexander may have considered him too dangerous to leave alive. [|[50]] Alexander spared Arrhidaeus, who was by all accounts mentally disabled, possibly as a result of poisoning by Olympias. [|[46]] [|[48]] [|[51]] News of Philip's death roused many states into revolt, including Thebes, Athens, Thessaly, and the Thracian tribes north of Macedon. When news of the revolts reached Alexander, he responded quickly. Though advised to use diplomacy, Alexander mustered the Macedonian cavalry of 3,000 and rode south towards Thessaly. He found the Thessalian army occupying the pass between [|Mount Olympus] and [|Mount Ossa], and ordered his men to ride over Mount Ossa. When the Thessalians awoke the next day, they found Alexander in their rear and promptly surrendered, adding their cavalry to Alexander's force. He then continued south towards the [|Peloponnese]. [|[52]] [|[53]] [|[54]] [|[55]] Alexander stopped at Thermopylae, where he was recognized as the leader of the Amphictyonic League before heading south to [|Corinth]. Athens sued for peace and Alexander pardoned the rebels. The famous [|encounter between Alexander and Diogenes the Cynic] occurred during Alexander's stay in Corinth. When Alexander asked Diogenes what he could do for him, the philosopher disdainfully asked Alexander to stand a little to the side, as he was blocking the sunlight. [|[56]] This reply apparently delighted Alexander, who is reported to have said "But verily, if I were not Alexander, I would like to be Diogenes." [|[57]] At Corinth Alexander took the title of //Hegemon// ("leader"), and like Philip, was appointed commander for the coming war against Persia. He also received news of a Thracian uprising. [|[53]] [|[58]]

Balkan campaign
Main article: [|Alexander's Balkan campaign] Before crossing to Asia, Alexander wanted to safeguard his northern borders. In the spring of 335 BC, he advanced to suppress several revolts. Starting from [|Amphipolis], he traveled east into the country of the "Independent Thracians"; and at [|Mount Haemus] , the Macedonian army attacked and defeated the Thracian forces manning the heights. [|[59]] The Macedonians marched into the country of the [|Triballi], and defeated their army near the Lyginus river [|[60]] (a [|tributary of the Danube] ). Alexander then marched for three days to the [|Danube], encountering the [|Getae] tribe on the opposite shore. Crossing the river at night, he surprised them and forced their army to retreat after the first cavalry [|skirmish]. [|[61]] [|[62]] News then reached Alexander that [|Cleitus], King of Illyria, and [|King Glaukias] of the [|Taulanti] were in open revolt against his authority. Marching west into Illyria, Alexander defeated each in turn, forcing the two rulers to flee with their troops. With these victories, he secured his northern frontier. [|[63]] [|[64]] While Alexander campaigned north, the Thebans and Athenians rebelled once again. Alexander immediately headed south. [|[65]] While the other cities again hesitated, Thebes decided to fight. The Theban resistance was ineffective, and Alexander razed the city and divided its territory between the other Boeotian cities. The end of Thebes cowed Athens, leaving all of Greece temporarily at peace. [|[65]] Alexander then set out on his Asian campaign, leaving [|Antipater] as regent. [|[66]

Conquest of the Persian Empire
Main articles: [|Wars of Alexander the Great] and [|Chronology of the expedition of Alexander the Great into Asia]

Asia Minor
Further information: [|Battle of the Granicus], [|Siege of Halicarnassus] , and [|Siege of Miletus] Map of Alexander's empire and his route. Alexander's army crossed the [|Hellespont] in 334 BC with approximately 48,100 soldiers, 6,100 cavalry and a fleet of 120 ships with crews numbering 38,000, [|[65]] drawn from Macedon and various Greek city-states, mercenaries, and feudally-raised soldiers from [|Thrace], [|Paionia] , and [|Illyria]. [|[67]] He showed his intent to conquer the entirety of the Persian Empire by throwing a spear into Asian soil and saying he accepted Asia as a gift from the gods. [|[65]] This also showed Alexander's eagerness to fight, in contrast to his father's preference for diplomacy. [|[65]] After an initial victory against Persian forces at the [|Battle of the Granicus], Alexander accepted the surrender of the Persian provincial capital and treasury of [|Sardis] and proceeded along the [|Ionian] coast. [|[68]] At [|Halicarnassus], in [|Caria] , Alexander successfully waged the first of many [|sieges] , eventually forcing his opponents, the mercenary captain [|Memnon of Rhodes] and the Persian [|satrap] of Caria, [|Orontobates] , to withdraw by sea. [|[69]] Alexander left the government of Caria to [|Ada], who adopted Alexander. [|[70]] From Halicarnassus, Alexander proceeded into mountainous [|Lycia] and the [|Pamphylian] plain, asserting control over all coastal cities to deny the Persians naval bases. From Pamphylia onwards the coast held no major ports and Alexander moved inland. At [|Termessos], Alexander humbled but did not storm the [|Pisidian] city. [|[71]] At the ancient Phrygian capital of [|Gordium], Alexander "undid" the hitherto unsolvable [|Gordian Knot] , a feat said to await the future "king of [|Asia] ". [|[72]] According to the story, Alexander proclaimed that it did not matter how the knot was undone and hacked it apart with his sword. [|[73]]

The Levant and Syria
Further information: [|Battle of Issus] and [|Siege of Tyre] Detail of Alexander Mosaic, showing [|Battle of Issus], from the [|House of the Faun] , Pompeii. After spending the winter campaigning in Asia Minor, Alexander's army crossed the [|Cilician Gates] in 333 BC, and defeated the main Persian army under the command of [|Darius III] at the [|Battle of Issus] in November. [|[74]] Darius fled the battle, causing his army to collapse, and left behind his wife, his two daughters, his mother [|Sisygambis], and a fabulous treasure. [|[75]] He offered a [|peace treaty] that included the lands he had already lost, and a ransom of 10,000 [|talents] for his family. Alexander replied that since he was now king of Asia, it was he alone who decided territorial divisions. [|[76]] Alexander proceeded to take possession of [|Syria], and most of the coast of the [|Levant]. [|[70]] In the following year, 332 BC, he was forced to attack [|Tyre], which he captured after a long and difficult [|siege]. [|[77]] [|[78]] Alexander massacred the men of military age and sold the women and children into [|slavery]. [|[79]]

Egypt
Further information: [|Siege of Gaza] Name of Alexander the Great in [|Egyptian hieroglyphs] (written from right to left), circa 330 BC, Egypt. [|Louvre Museum]. When Alexander destroyed Tyre, most of the towns on the route to Egypt quickly capitulated, with the exception of [|Gaza]. The stronghold at Gaza was heavily fortified and built on a hill, requiring a siege. [|[80]] After three unsuccessful assaults, the stronghold fell, but not before Alexander had received a serious shoulder wound. As in Tyre, men of military age were put to the sword and the women and children sold into slavery. [|[81]] Jerusalem instead opened its gates in surrender, and according to [|Josephus], Alexander was shown the [|book of Daniel] 's prophecy, presumably chapter 8, which described a mighty Greek king who would conquer the Persian Empire. He spared Jerusalem and pushed south into Egypt. [|[82]] Alexander advanced on Egypt in later 332 BC, where he was regarded as a liberator. [|[83]] He was pronounced the new "master of the Universe" and son of the deity of [|Amun] at the [|Oracle] of [|Siwa Oasis] in the [|Libyan] desert. [|[84]] Henceforth, Alexander often referred to [|Zeus-Ammon] as his true father, and subsequent currency depicted him adorned with rams horn as a symbol of his divinity. [|[85]] During his stay in Egypt, he founded [|Alexandria-by-Egypt], which would become the prosperous capital of the [|Ptolemaic Kingdom] after his death. [|[86]]

Assyria and Babylonia
Further information: [|Battle of Gaugamela] Leaving Egypt in 331 BC, Alexander marched eastward into [|Mesopotamia] (now northern [|Iraq] ) and again defeated Darius, at the [|Battle of Gaugamela]. [|[87]] Darius once more fled the field, and Alexander chased him as far as [|Arbela]. Gaugamela would be the final and decisive encounter between the two. Darius fled over the mountains to [|Ecbatana] (modern [|Hamedan] ), while Alexander captured [|Babylon]. [|[88]]

Persia
Further information: [|Battle of the Persian Gate] From Babylon, Alexander went to [|Susa], one of the [|Achaemenid] capitals, and captured its legendary treasury. [|[88]] He sent the bulk of his army to the Persian ceremonial capital of [|Persepolis] via the [|Royal Road]. Alexander himself took selected troops on the direct route to the city. He had to storm the pass of the [|Persian Gates] (in the modern [|Zagros Mountains] ) which had been blocked by a Persian army under [|Ariobarzanes] and then hurried to Persepolis before its garrison could loot the treasury. [|[89]] On entering Persepolis, Alexander allowed his troops to loot the city for several days. [|[90]] Alexander stayed in Persepolis for five months. [|[91]] During his stay a fire broke out in the eastern palace of [|Xerxes] and spread to the rest of the city. Possible causes include a drunken accident or deliberate revenge for the burning of the [|Acropolis of Athens] during the [|Second Persian War]. [|[92]]

Fall of the Empire and the East
Alexander then chased Darius, first into Media, and then Parthia. [|[93]] The Persian king no longer controlled his own destiny, and was taken prisoner by [|Bessus], his [|Bactrian] satrap and kinsman. [|[94]] As Alexander approached, Bessus had his men fatally stab the Great King and then declared himself Darius' successor as Artaxerxes V, before retreating into Central Asia to launch a [|guerrilla] campaign against Alexander. [|[95]] Alexander buried Darius' remains next to his Achaemenid predecessors in a regal funeral. [|[96]] He claimed that, while dying, Darius had named him as his successor to the Achaemenid throne. [|[97]] The Achaemenid Empire is normally considered to have fallen with Darius. [|[98]] Silver coin of Alexander wearing the lion scalp of Herakles, [|British Museum]. Alexander viewed Bessus as a usurper and set out to defeat him. This campaign, initially against Bessus, turned into a grand tour of central Asia. Alexander founded a series of new cities, all called Alexandria, including modern [|Kandahar] in Afghanistan, and [|Alexandria Eschate] ("The Furthest") in modern [|Tajikistan]. The campaign took Alexander through [|Media], [|Parthia] , [|Aria] (West Afghanistan), [|Drangiana] , [|Arachosia] (South and Central Afghanistan), [|Bactria] (North and Central Afghanistan), and [|Scythia]. [|[99]] [|Spitamenes], who held an undefined position in the satrapy of Sogdiana, in 329 BC betrayed Bessus to [|Ptolemy] , one of Alexander's trusted companions, and Bessus was executed. [|[100]] However, when, at some point later, Alexander was on the [|Jaxartes] dealing with an incursion by a horse nomad army, Spitamenes raised Sogdiana in revolt. Alexander personally defeated the Scythians at the [|Battle of Jaxartes] and immediately launched a campaign against Spitamenes, defeating him in the Battle of Gabai. After the defeat, Spitamenes was killed by his own men, who then sued for peace. [|[101]]

Problems and plots
During this time, Alexander took the Persian title "King of Kings" (//Shahanshah//) and adopted some elements of Persian dress and customs at his court, notably the custom of // [|proskynesis] //, either a symbolic kissing of the hand, or prostration on the ground, that Persians showed to their social superiors. [|[102]] The Greeks regarded the gesture as the province of [|deities] and believed that Alexander meant to deify himself by requiring it. This cost him the sympathies of many of his countrymen, and he eventually abandoned it. [|[103]] A plot against his life was revealed, and one of his officers, [|Philotas], was executed for failing to alert Alexander. The death of the son necessitated the death of the father, and thus [|Parmenion], who had been charged with guarding the treasury at [|Ecbatana] , was assassinated at Alexander's command, to prevent attempts at vengeance. Most infamously, Alexander personally killed the man who had saved his life at Granicus, [|Cleitus the Black], during a drunken argument at [|Maracanda]. [|[104]] Later, in the Central Asian campaign, a second plot against his life was revealed, this one instigated by his own royal [|pages]. His official historian, [|Callisthenes] of [|Olynthus], was implicated in the plot; however, historians have yet to reach consensus regarding this involvement. Callisthenes had fallen out of favor by leading the opposition to the attempt to introduce proskynesis. [|[105]]

Macedon in Alexander's absence
When Alexander set out for Asia, he left his general [|Antipater], an experienced military and political leader and part of Philip II's "Old Guard", in charge of Macedon. [|[66]] Alexander's sacking of Thebes ensured that Greece remained quiet during his absence. [|[66]] The one exception was a call to arms by Spartan king [|Agis III] in 331 BC, whom Antipater defeated and killed in battle at [|Megalopolis] the following year. [|[66]] Antipater referred the Spartans' punishment to Alexander, who chose to pardon them. [|[106]] There was also considerable friction between Antipater and Olympias, and each complained to Alexander about the other. [|[107]] In general, Greece enjoyed a period of peace and prosperity during Alexander's campaign in Asia. [|[108]] Alexander sent back vast sums from his conquest, which stimulated the economy and increased trade across his empire. [|[109]] However, Alexander's constant demands for troops and the migration of Macedonians throughout his empire depleted Macedon's manpower, greatly weakening it in the years after Alexander, and ultimately led to its subjugation by Rome. [|[14]]

Indian campaign
Main article: [|Alexander's Indian campaign]

Invasion of the Indian subcontinent
The phalanx attacking the centre in the battle of the Hydaspes by Andre Castaigne (1898–1899) After the death of [|Spitamenes] and his marriage to Roxana (Roshanak in [|Bactrian] ) to cement relations with his new satrapies, Alexander turned to the [|Indian subcontinent]. He invited the [|chieftains] of the former satrapy of [|Gandhara], in the north of what is now [|Pakistan] , to come to him and submit to his authority. [|Omphis], ruler of [|Taxila] , whose kingdom extended from the [|Indus] to the [|Hydaspes] , complied, but the chieftains of some hill clans, including the [|Aspasioi] and [|Assakenoi] sections of the [|Kambojas] (known in Indian texts also as Ashvayanas and Ashvakayanas), refused to submit. [|[110]] In the winter of 327/326 BC, Alexander personally led a campaign against these clans; the Aspasioi of [|Kunar] [|valleys], the Guraeans of the [|Guraeus] valley, and the Assakenoi of the [|Swat] and [|Buner] valleys. [|[111]] A fierce contest ensued with the Aspasioi in which Alexander was wounded in the shoulder by a dart, but eventually the Aspasioi lost. Alexander then faced the Assakenoi, who fought in the strongholds of Massaga, Ora and [|Aornos]. [|[110]] The fort of Massaga was reduced only after days of bloody fighting, in which Alexander was wounded seriously in the ankle. According to [|Curtius], "Not only did Alexander slaughter the entire population of Massaga, but also did he reduce its buildings to rubble". [|[112]] A similar slaughter followed at Ora. In the aftermath of Massaga and Ora, numerous Assakenians fled to the fortress of [|Aornos]. Alexander followed close behind and captured the strategic hill-fort after four bloody days. [|[110]] After Aornos, Alexander crossed the Indus and fought and won an epic battle against [|King Porus], who ruled a region in the [|Punjab] , in the [|Battle of the Hydaspes] in 326 BC. [|[113]] Alexander was impressed by Porus's bravery, and made him an ally. He appointed Porus as satrap, and added to Porus' territory land that he did not previously own. Choosing a local helped him control these lands so distant from Greece. [|[114]] Alexander founded two cities on opposite sides of the [|Hydaspes] river, naming one [|Bucephala], in honor of his horse, who died around this time. [|[115]] The other was [|Nicaea] (Victory) located at the site of modern day [|Mong, Punjab]. [|[116]]

Revolt of the army
Alexander's invasion of the Indian subcontinent. East of Porus' kingdom, near the [|Ganges River], were the [|Nanda Empire] of [|Magadha] and further east the [|Gangaridai Empire] of [|Bengal]. Fearing the prospect of facing other large armies and exhausted by years of campaigning, Alexander's army mutinied at the [|Hyphasis River], refusing to march further east. This river thus marks the easternmost extent of Alexander's conquests. [|[117]] > As for the Macedonians, however, their struggle with Porus blunted their courage and stayed their further advance into India. For having had all they could do to repulse an enemy who mustered only twenty thousand infantry and two thousand horse, they violently opposed Alexander when he insisted on crossing the river Ganges also, the width of which, as they learned, was thirty-two furlongs, its depth a hundred fathoms, while its banks on the further side were covered with multitudes of [|men-at-arms] and horsemen and elephants. For they were told that the kings of the Ganderites and Praesii were awaiting them with eighty thousand horsemen, two hundred thousand footmen, eight thousand chariots, and six thousand [|war elephants]. [|[118]] Alexander tried to persuade his soldiers to march further but his general [|Coenus] pleaded with him to change his opinion and return; the men, he said, "longed to again see their parents, their wives and children, their homeland". Alexander eventually agreed and turned south, marching along the [|Indus]. Along the way his army conquered the [|Malli] clans (in modern day [|Multan] ), and other Indian tribes. [|[119]] Alexander sent much of his army to [|Carmania] (modern southern [|Iran] ) with general [|Craterus], and commissioned a fleet to explore the [|Persian Gulf] shore under his admiral [|Nearchus] , while he led the rest back to Persia through the more difficult southern route along the [|Gedrosian Desert] and [|Makran] (now part of southern Iran and Pakistan). [|[120]] Alexander reached Susa in 324 BC, but not before losing many men to the harsh desert. [|[121]]