A Smaller History of Greece

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On succeeding to the throne Alexander announced his intention of
prosecuting his father's expedition into Asia; but it was first
necessary for him to settle the affairs of Greece, where the news
of Philip's assassination, and the accession of so young a
prince, had excited in several states a hope of shaking off the
Macedonian yoke. Athens was the centre of these movements.
Demosthenes, although in mourning for the recent loss of an only
daughter, now came abroad dressed in white, and crowned with a
chaplet, in which attire he was seen sacrificing at one of the
public altars. He also moved a decree that Philip's death should
be celebrated by a public thanksgiving, and that religious
honours should be paid to the memory of Pausanias. At the same
time he made vigorous preparations for action. He despatched
envoys to the principal Grecian states for the purpose of
inciting them against Macedon. Sparta, and the whole
Peloponnesus, with the exception of Megalopolis and Messenia,
seemed inclined to shake off their compulsory alliance. Even the
Thebans rose against the dominant oligarchy, although the Cadmea
was in the hands of the Macedonians.

The activity of Alexander disconcerted all these movements.
Having marched through Thessaly, he assembled the Amphictyonic
council at Thermopylae, who conferred upon him the command with
which they had invested his father during the Sacred War. He
then advanced rapidly upon Thebes, and thus prevented the
meditated revolution, The Athenians sent ambassadors to deprecate
his wrath, who were graciously accepted. He then convened a
general congress at Corinth, where he was appointed generalissimo
for the Persian war in place of his father. Most of the
philosophers and persons of note near Corinth came to
congratulate him on this occasion; but Diognes of Sinope who was
then living in one of the suburbs of Corinth, did not make his
appearance. Alexander therefore resolved to pay a visit to the
eccentric cynic, whom he found basking in the sun. On the
approach of Alexander with a numerous retinue, Diogenes raised
himself up a little, and the monarch affably inquired how he
could serve him? "By standing out of my sunshine," replied the
churlish philosopher. Alexander was stung with surprise at a
behaviour to which he was so little accustomed; but whilst his
courtiers were ridiculing the manners of the cynic, he turned to
them and said, "Were I not Alexander, I should like to be
Diogenes."

The result of the Congress might be considered a settlement of
the affairs of Greece. Alexander then returned to Macedonia in
the hope of being able to begin his Persian expedition in the
spring of B.C. 335; but reports of disturbances among the
Thracians and Triballians diverted his attention to that quarter.
He therefore crossed Mount Haemus (the Balkan) and marched into
the territory of the Triballians, defeated their forces, and
pursued them to the Danube, which he crossed. After acquiring a
large booty he regained the banks of the Danube, and thence
marched against the Illyrians and Taulantians, whom he speedily
reduced to obedience.

During Alexander's absence on these expeditions no tidings were
heard of him for a considerable time, and a report of his death
was industriously spread in Southern Greece. The Thebans rose
and besieged the Macedonian garrison in the Cadmea, at the same
time inviting other states to declare their independence.
Demosthenes was active in aiding the movement. He persuaded the
Athenians to furnish the Thebans with subsidies and to assure
them of their support and alliance. But the rapidity of
Alexander again crushed the insurrection in the bud. Before the
Thebans discovered that the report of his death was false he had
already arrived at Onchestus in Boeotia. Alexander was willing
to afford them an opportunity for repentance, and marched slowly
to the foot of the Cadmea. But the leaders of the insurrection,
believing themselves irretrievably compromised, replied with
taunts to Alexander's proposals for peace, and excited the people
to the most desperate resistance. An engagement was prematurely
brought on by one of the generals of Alexander, in which some of
the Macedonian troops were put to the rout; but Alexander, coming
up with the phalanx, whilst the Thebans were in the disorder of
pursuit, drove them back in turn and entered the gates along with
them, when a fearful massacre ensued committed principally by the
Thracians in Alexander's service. Six thousand Thebans are said
to have been slain, and thirty thousand were made prisoners. The
doom of the conquered city was referred to the allies, who
decreed her destruction. The grounds of the verdict bear the
impress of a tyrannical hypocrisy. They rested on the conduct of
the Thebans during the Persian war, on their treatment of
Plataea, and on their enmity to Athens. The inhabitants were
sold as slaves, and all the houses, except that of Pindar, were
levelled with the ground. The Cadmea was preserved to be
occupied by a Macedonian garrison. Thebes seems to have been
thus harshly treated as an example to the rest of Greece, for
towards the other states, which were now eager to make their
excuses and submission, Alexander showed much forbearance and
lenity. The conduct of the Athenians exhibits them deeply sunk
in degradation. When they heard of the chastisement indicted
upon Thebes, they immediately voted, on the motion of
Demosthenes, that ambassadors should be sent to congratulate
Alexander on his safe return from his northern expeditions, and
on his recent success. Alexander in reply wrote a letter,
demanding that eight or ten of the leading Athenian orators
should be delivered up to him. At the head of the list was
Demosthenes. In this dilemma, Phocion, who did not wish to speak
upon such a question, was loudly called upon by the people for
his opinion; when he rose and said that the persons whom
Alexander demanded had brought the state into such a miserable
plight that they deserved to be surrendered, and that for his own
part he should be very happy to die for the commonwealth. At the
same time he advised them to try the effect of intercession with
Alexander; and it was at last only by his own personal
application to that monarch with whom he was a great favourite,
that the orators were spared. According to another account,
however, the wrath of Alexander was appeased by the orator
Demades, who received from the Athenians a reward of five talents
for his services. It was at this time that Alexander is said to
have sent a present of 100 talents to Phocion. But Phocion asked
the persons who brought the money--"Why he should be selected for
such a bounty?" "Because," they replied, "Alexander considers
you the only just and honest man." "Then," said Phocion, "let
him suffer me to be what I seem, and to retain that character."
And when the envoys went to his house and beheld the frugality
with which he lived, they perceived that the man who refused such
a gift was wealthier than he who offered it.

Having thus put the affairs of Greece on a satisfactory footing,
Alexander marched for the Hellespont in the spring of B.C. 334,
leaving Antipater regent of Macedonia in his absence, with a
force of 12,000 foot and 1500 horse. Alexander's own army
consisted of only about 50,000 foot and 5000 horse. Of the
infantry about 12,000 were Macedonians, and these composed the
pith of the celebrated Macedonian phalanx. Such was the force
with which he proposed to attack the immense but ill-cemented
empire of Persia, which, like the empires of Turkey or Austria in
modern times, consisted of various nations and races with
different religions and manners, and speaking different
languages; the only bond of union being the dominant military
power of the ruling nation, which itself formed only a small
numerical portion of the empire. The remote provinces, like
those of Asia Minor, were administered by satraps and military
governors who enjoyed an almost independent authority. Before
Alexander departed he distributed most of the crown property
among his friends, and when Perdiccas asked him what he had
reserved for himself he replied, "My hopes."

A march of sixteen days brought Alexander to Sestos, where a
large fleet and a number of transports had been collected for the
embarkation of his army. He steered with his own hand the vessel
in which he sailed towards the very spot where the Achaeans were
said to have landed when proceeding to the Trojan war. He was,
as we have said, a great admirer of Homer, a copy of whose works
he always carried with him; and on landing on the Asiatic coast
he made it his first business to visit the plain of Troy. He
then proceeded to Sigeum, where he crowned with a garland the
pillar said to mark the tumulus of his mythical ancestor
Achilles, and, according to custom, ran round it naked with his
friends.

Alexander then marched northwards along the coast of the
Propontis. The satraps of Lydia and Ionia, together with other
Persian generals, were encamped on the river Granicus, with a
force of 20,000 Greek mercenaries, and about an equal number of
native cavalry, with which they prepared to dispute the passage
of the river. A Rhodian, named Memnon, had the chief command.
The veteran general Parmenio advised Alexander to delay the
attack till the following morning; to which he replied, that it
would be a bad omen at the beginning of his expedition, if, after
passing the Hellespont, he should be stopped by a paltry stream.
Thereupon he directed his cavalry to cross the river, and
followed himself at the head of the phalanx. The passage,
however, was by no means easy. The stream was in many parts so
deep as to be hardly fordable, and the opposite bank was steep
and rugged. The cavalry had great difficulty in maintaining
their ground till Alexander came up to their relief. He
immediately charged into the thickest of the fray, and exposed
himself so much that his life was often in imminent danger, and
on one occasion was saved only by the interposition of his friend
Clitus. Having routed the Persians, he next attacked the Greek
mercenaries, 2000 of whom were made prisoners, and the rest
nearly all cut to pieces, In this engagement he killed two
Persian officers with his own hand.

Alexander now marched southwards towards Sardis, which
surrendered before he came within sight of its walls. Having
left a garrison in that city, he arrived after a four days' march
before Ephesus, which likewise capitulated on his approach.
Magnesia, Tralles, and Miletus next fell into his hands, the last
after a short siege. Halicarnassus made more resistance. It was
obliged to be regularly approached; but at length Memnon, finding
it no longer tenable, set fire to it in the night, and crossed
over to Cos. Alexander caused it to be razed to the ground, and
pursued his march along the southern coast of Asia Minor, with
the view of seizing those towns which might afford shelter to a
Persian fleet. The winter was now approaching, and Alexander
sent a considerable part of his army under Parmenio into winter-
quarters at Sardis. He also sent back to Macedonia such officers
and soldiers as had been recently married, on condition that they
should return in the spring with what reinforcements they could
raise; and with the same view he despatched an officer to recruit
in the Peloponnesus. Meanwhile he himself with a chosen body
proceeded along the coasts of Lycia and Pamphylia, having
instructed Parmenio to rejoin him in Phrygia in the spring, with
the main body. After he had crossed the Xanthus most of the
Lycian towns tendered their submission. On the borders of Lycia
and Pamphylia, Mount Climax, a branch of the Taurus range, runs
abruptly into the sea, leaving only a narrow passage at its foot,
which is frequently overflowed. This was the case at the time of
Alexander's approach. He therefore sent his main body by a long
and difficult road across the mountains to Perge; but he himself
who loved danger for its own sake, proceeded with a chosen band
along the shore, wading through water that was breast-high for
nearly a whole day. Then forcing his way northwards through the
barbarous tribes which inhabited the mountains of Pisidia, he
encamped in the neighbourhood of Gordium in Phrygia. Here he was
rejoined by Parmenio and by the new levies from Greece. Gordium
had been the capital of the early Phrygian kings, and in it was
preserved with superstitious veneration the chariot or waggon in
which the celebrated Midas, the son of Gordius, together with his
parents, had entered the town, and in conformity with an oracle
had been elevated to the monarchy. An ancient prophecy promised
the sovereignty of Asia to him who should untie the knot of bark
which fastened the yoke of the waggon to the pole. Alexander
repaired to the Acropolis, where the waggon was preserved, to
attempt this adventure. Whether he undid the knot by drawing out
a peg, or cut it through with his sword, is a matter of doubt;
but that he had fulfilled the prediction was placed beyond
dispute that very night by a great storm of thunder and
lightning.

In the spring of 333 Alexander pursued his march eastwards, and
on arriving at Ancyra received the submission of the
Paphlagonians. He then advanced through Cappadocia without
resistance; and forcing his way through the passes of Mount
Taurus (the PYLAE CILICIAE), he descended into the plains of
Cilicia. Hence he pushed on rapidly to Tarsus, which he found
abandoned by the enemy. Whilst still heated with the march
Alexander plunged into the clear but cold stream of the Cydnus,
which runs by the town. The result was a fever, which soon
became so violent as to threaten his life. An Acarnanian
physician, named Philip, who accompanied him, prescribed a
remedy; but at the same time Alexander received a letter
informing him that Philip had been bribed by Darius, the Persian
king, to poison him. He had however, too much confidence in the
trusty Philip to believe the accusation and handed him the letter
whilst he drank the draught. Either the medicine, or Alexander's
youthful constitution, at length triumphed over the disorder.
After remaining some time at Tarsus, he continued his march along
the coast to Mallus, where he first received certain tidings of
the great Persian army, commanded by Darius in person. It is
said to have consisted of 600,000 fighting men, besides all that
train of attendants which usually accompanied the march of a
Persian monarch. Alexander found Darius encamped near Issus on
the right bank of the little river Pinarus. The Persian king
could hardly have been caught in a more unfavourable position,
since the narrow and rugged plain between Mount Amanus and the
sea afforded no scope for the evolutions of large bodies, and
thus entirely deprived him of the advantage of his numerical
superiority. Alexander occupied the pass between Syria and
Cilicia at midnight, and at daybreak began to descend into the
plain of the Pinarus, ordering his troops to deploy into line as
the ground expanded and thus to arrive in battle-array before the
Persians. Darius had thrown 30,000 cavalry and 20,000 infantry
across the river, to check the advance of the Macedonians; whilst
on the right bank were drawn up his choicest Persian troops to
the number of 60,000, together with 30,000 Greek mercenaries, who
formed the centre, and on whom he chiefly relied. These, it
appears, were all that the breadth of the plain allowed to be
drawn up in line. The remainder of the vast host were posted in
separate bodies in the farther parts of the plain, and were
unable to take any share in the combat. Darius placed himself in
the centre of the line in a magnificent state chariot. The banks
of the Pinarus were in many parts steep, and where they were
level Darius had caused them to be intrenched. As Alexander
advanced, the Persian cavalry which had been thrown across the
river were recalled; but the 20,000 infantry had been driven into
the mountains, where Alexander held them in check with a small
body of horse. The left wing of the Macedonians, under the
command of Parmenio, was ordered to keep near the sea, to prevent
being outflanked. The right wing was led by Alexander in person,
who rushed impetuously into the water, and was soon engaged in
close combat with the Persians. The latter were immediately
routed; but what chiefly decided the fortune of the day was the
timidity of Darius himself, who, on beholding the defeat of his
left wing, immediately took to flight. His example was followed
by his whole army. One hundred thousand Persians are said to
have been left upon the field. On reaching the hills Darius
threw aside his royal robes his bow and shield, and, mounting a
fleet courser, was soon out of reach of pursuit. The Persian
camp became the spoil of the Macedonians; but the tent of Darius,
together with his chariot, robes, and arms, was reserved for
Alexander himself. It was now that the Macedonian king first had
ocular proof of the nature of Eastern royalty. One compartment
of the tent of Darius had been fitted up as a bath, which steamed
with the richest odours; whilst another presented a magnificent
pavilion, containing a table richly spread for the banquet of
Darius. But from an adjoining tent issued the wail of female
voices, where Sisygambis the mother, and Statira the wife of
Darius, were lamenting the supposed death of the Persian monarch.
Alexander sent to assure them of his safety, and ordered them to
be treated with the most delicate and respectful attention.

Such was the memorable battle of Issus, fought in November, B.C.
333. A large treasure which Parmenio was sent forward with a
detachment to seize, fell into the hands of the Macedonians at
Damascus. Another favourable result of the victory was that it
suppressed some attempts at revolt from the Macedonian power,
which with the support of Persia, had been manifested in Greece.
But, in order to put a complete stop to all such intrigues, which
chiefly depended on the assistance of a Persian fleet, Alexander
resolved to seize Phoenicia and Egypt, and thus to strike at the
root of the Persian maritime power.

Meanwhile, Darius, attended by a body of only 4000 fugitives, had
crossed the Euphrates at Thapsacus. Before he had set out from
Babylon the whole forces of the empire had been summoned; but he
had not thought it worth while to wait for what he deemed a
merely useless encumbrance; and the more distant levies, which
comprised some of the best troops of the empire, were still
hastening towards Babylon. In a short time, therefore, he would
be at the head of a still more numerous host than that which had
fought at Issus; yet he thought it safer to open negotiations
with Alexander than to trust to the chance of arms. With this
view he sent a letter to Alexander, who was now at Marathus in
Phoenicia, proposing to become his friend and ally; but Alexander
rejected all his overtures, and told him that he must in future
be addressed not in the language of an equal, but of a subject.

As Alexander advanced southwards, all the towns of Phoenicia
hastened to open their gates; the inhabitants of Sidon even
hailed him as their deliverer. Tyre, also, sent to tender her
submission; but coupled with reservations by no means acceptable
to a youthful conqueror in the full tide of success. Alexander
affected to receive their offer as an unconditional surrender,
and told them that he would visit their city and offer sacrifices
to Melcart, a Tyrian deity, who was considered as identical with
the Grecian Hercules. This brought the matter to an issue. The
Tyrians now informed him that they could not admit any foreigners
within their walls, and that, if he wished to sacrifice to
Melcart, he would find another and more ancient shrine in Old
Tyre, on the mainland. Alexander indignantly dismissed the
Tyrian ambassadors, and announced his intention of laying siege
to their city. The Tyrians probably deemed it impregnable. It
was by nature a place of great strength, and had been rendered
still stronger by art. The island on which it stood was half a
mile distant from the mainland; and though the channel was
shallow near the coast, it deepened to three fathoms near the
island. The shores of the island were rocky and precipitous, and
the walls rose from the cliffs to the height of 150 feet in solid
masonry. As Alexander possessed no ships, the only method by
which he could approach the town was by constructing a causeway,
the materials for which were collected from the forests of
Libanus and the ruins of Old Tyre. After overcoming many
difficulties the mole was at length pushed to the foot of the
walls; and as soon as Alexander had effected a practicable
breach, he ordered a general assault both by land and sea. The
breach was stormed under the immediate inspection of Alexander
himself; and though the Tyrians made a desperate resistance, they
were at length overpowered, when the city became one wide scene
of indiscriminate carnage and plunder. The siege had lasted
seven months, and the Macedonians were so exasperated by the
difficulties and dangers they had undergone that they granted no
quarter. Eight thousand of the citizens are said to have been
massacred; and the remainder, with the exception of the king and
some of the principal men, who had taken refuge in the temple of
Melcart, were sold into slavery to the number of 30,000. Tyre
was taken in the month of July in 332.

Whilst Alexander was engaged in the siege of Tyre, Darius made
him further and more advantageous proposals. He now offered
10,000 talents as the ransom of his family, together with all the
Provinces west of the Euphrates, and his daughter Barsine in
marriage, as the conditions of a peace. When these offers were
submitted to the council Parmenio was not unnaturally struck with
their magnificence, and observed, that were he Alexander he would
accept them. "and so would I," replied the king, "were I
Parmenio." Darius, therefore, prepared himself for a desperate
resistance.

After the fall of Tyre, Alexander marched with his army towards
Egypt, whilst his fleet proceeded along the coast. Gaza, a
strong fortress on the sea-shore, obstinately held out, and
delayed his progress three or four months. After the capture of
this city Alexander met his fleet at Pelusium, and ordered it to
sail up the Nile as far as Memphis, whither he himself marched
with his army across the desert. He conciliated the affection of
the Egyptians by the respect with which he treated their national
superstitions, whilst the Persians by an opposite line of conduct
had incurred their deadliest hatred. He then sailed down the
western branch of the Nile, and at its mouth traced the plan of
the new city of Alexandria, which for many centuries continued to
be not only the grand emporium of Europe, Africa, and India, but
also the principal centre of intellectual life. Being now on the
confines of Libya, Alexander resolved to visit the celebrated
oracle of Zeus (Jupiter) Ammon, which lay in the bosom of the
Libyan wilderness. The conqueror was received by the priests
with all the honours of sacred pomp. He consulted the oracle in
secret, and is said never to have disclosed the answer which he
received; though that it was an answer that contented him
appeared from the magnificence of the offerings which he made to
the god. Some say that Ammon saluted him as the son of Zeus.

Alexander returned to Phoenicia in the spring of 331. He then
directed his march through Samaria, and arrived at Thapsacus on
the Euphrates about the end of August. after crossing the river
he struck to the north-east through a fertile and well-supplied
country. On his march he was told that Darius was posted with an
immense force on the left bank of the Tigris; but on arriving at
that river he found nobody to dispute his passage. He then
proceeded southwards along its banks, and after four days' march
fell in with a few squadrons of the enemy's cavalry. From some
of these who were made prisoners Alexander learned that Darius
was encamped with his host on one of the extensive plains between
the Tigris and the mountains of Kurdistan, near a village called
Gaugamela (the Camel's House). The town of Arbela, after which
the battle that ensued is commonly named, lay at about twenty
miles distance, and there Darius had deposited his baggage and
treasure. That monarch had been easily persuaded that his former
defeat was owing solely to the nature of the ground; and,
therefore, he now selected a wide plain for an engagement, where
there was abundant room for his multitudinous infantry, and for
the evolutions of his horsemen and charioteers. Alexander, after
giving his army a few days' rest, set out to meet the enemy soon
after midnight, in order that he might come up with them about
daybreak. On ascending some sand-hills the whole array of the
Persians suddenly burst upon the view of the Macedonians, at the
distance of three or four miles. Darius, as usual, occupied the
centre, surrounded by his body-guard and chosen troops. In front
of the royal position were ranged the war-chariots and elephants,
and on either side the Greek mercenaries, to the number, it is
said, of 50,000. Alexander spent the first day in surveying the
ground and preparing for the attack; he also addressed his
troops, pointing out to them that the prize of victory would not
be a mere province, but the dominion of all Asia. Yet so great
was the tranquillity with which he contemplated the result, that
at daybreak on the following morning, when the officers came to
receive his final instructions, they found him in a deep slumber.
His army, which consisted only of 40,000 foot and 7000 horse, was
drawn up in the order which he usually observed, namely, with the
phalanx in the centre in six divisions, and the Macedonian
cavalry on the right, where Alexander himself took his station.
The Persians, fearful of being surprised, had stood under arms
the whole night, so that the morning found them exhausted and
dispirited. Some of them, however, fought with considerable
bravery; but when Alexander had succeeded in breaking their line
by an impetuous charge, Darius mounted a fleet horse and took to
flight, as at Issus, though the fortune of the day was yet far
from having been decided. At length, however, the rout became
general. Whilst daylight lasted Alexander pursued the flying
enemy as far as the banks of the Lycus, or Greater Zab, where
thousands of the Persians perished in the attempt to pass the
river. After resting his men a few hours Alexander continued the
pursuit at midnight in the hope of overtaking Darius at Arbela.
The Persian monarch, however, had continued his flight without
stopping; but the whole of the royal baggage and treasure was
captured.

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