The highest positions were in the Royal Companion Cavalry, the king’s own personal squadron, and in the Royal Hypaspists, an elite 500-man infantry unit that surrounded the king in battle. © 2020 A&E Television Networks, LLC. As Alexander and his elite Royal Companion Cavalry raced into the heart of the Persian defenses, they were momentarily surrounded by the enemy, but the experienced Macedonian sarissa regiments fought their way through. It could carry more than either a mule or horse, being able to transport 300 lb. Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group/Getty Image. A stunned Darius reportedly hopped on his horse and fled, with the rest of his army close behind. But he would try his troops' patience too much, prompting his remarkable army to mutiny. Alexander the Great, also known as Alexander III or Alexander of Macedonia, (born 356 bce, Pella, Macedonia [northwest of Thessaloníki, Greece]—died June 13, 323 bce, Babylon [near Al-Ḥillah, Iraq]), king of Macedonia (336–323 bce ), who overthrew the Persian empire, carried Macedonian arms to India, and laid the foundations for the Hellenistic world of territorial kingdoms. What Alexander did value and perhaps what kept his army smaller, was the mobility and speed gave military advantage. - Alexander the Great Alexander was able to train regiments from across his empire; at the great review of his forces in 324BC, there were apparently 120,000 men in his army, including contingents from Arachosia, Bactria, Sogdia, India, Scythia, and Egypt. Previous wars such as the Persian and Peloponnesian War had demonstrated that the old ways were no longer dependable. Gone was the shorter “dory” or Greek wooden spear (7 feet long), and in its place was the much longer sarissa, an 18- to 22-foot hunting spear with an iron tip that could puncture heavy armor and impale charging cavalry horses. Our mission is to provide a free, world-class education to anyone, anywhere. Alexander III, king of the ancient state of Macedon, is often heralded as one of history’s greatest military commanders. “Darius even flattened the ground so that his scythe chariots could charge at the Macedonians,” says Wrightson. he adopted a policy that enraged the devoted soldiers who had traveled and trampled the world with him. While Philip effectively drilled the Macedonians into an incredible fighting force, Alexander (the Great) endowed his inherited army with an air of majesty and pompousness. The Macedonian Phalanx, a rectangular infantry formation, was... Alexander Used Political Campaigns to Rule Greece. Even the way soldiers bathed was tightly regulated. It was Alexander’s father, Philip, who single-handedly transformed the Macedonian army into one of the most feared fighting machines in the ancient world. forged was not long-lasting, but his heroic deeds were legendary. In the century leading up to Alexander’s reign, Persia was furthered weakened by a civil war and other internal rebellions. The beneficiary of his father's brilliance, Alexander would prove to be an extremely skilled military strategist and amazing motivator who preached, "There is nothing impossible to him who will try." All Rights Reserved. The battle served as a coming-out party for 18-year-old Alexander, who bravely led the Macedonian cavalry charge that broke through the Athenian ranks and secured victory for the upstart kingdom. Permitted booty was fair and significant -- thus his soldiers were well motivated to win battles. For centuries this light-skinned, pagan people have claimed to be the long-lost descendants of Alexander the Great's world-conquering armies, which invaded this region in the fourth century B.C. His undermanned defeat of the Persian King Darius III at the Battle of Gaugamela is seen as one of the decisive turning points of human history, unseating the Persians as the greatest power in the ancient world and spreading Hellenistic culture across a vast new empire. Alexander faced his first big test not long after crossing … The Allied Greeks – Delving into the scope of the infantrymen, earlier we talked about how around … Their advance was halted when they reached Halicarnassus, the capital of Caria, which was defended by a Greek comma… Most historians of Alexander's campaigns have stated that the sufferings of his men on that march were out of all proportion greater than anything they had had to endure in Asia. Backed by his shiny new army, Philip marched south in 338 B.C. But Alexander will not be outplayed. Each soldier swore an oath of loyalty to the king. In all the battles he participated, Alexander the Great led from the front of the battle. The battle was the conclusion of his epic campaign to avenge the Persian invasion of Greece 150 years before. Aristotle Was His High School Teacher. A Roman mosaic of Alexander the Great. At the age of 14… Darius’ strategy was to cut off Alexander’s supply lines from behind and force the Macedonian troops to turn around and face off. Philip and Alexander were able to do this because: 1. The mouth of the Indus lay some 800 miles to the south, and they had not even seen the valley of the Ganges. Alexander recognized that rigorous discipline, unity, and uniformity were the lifeblood of his killing machine. According to an anecdote told by Macedonian author Polyaenus, Philip once dismissed a mercenary officer "for taking a warm bath, which apparently even Macedonian women would not do after giving birth." But soon after crossing the Hellespont into Persian territory, Philip was assassinated, making young Alexander the new king and commander-in-chief of the Macedonian forces. Alexander the Great. Three years before, an army of Macedonians and Greeks had crossed to Asia behind the young king of Macedonia, Alexander III, known better to history as Alexander the Great. Alexander in the Gedrosian desert [6.24.1] The next objective was the capital town of Gedrosia, situated in a district named Pura. Introduced into Alexander’s army in either Syria or Egypt, the camel played a critical role in Alexander’s conquests. “Alexander creates a propaganda campaign that the Macedonians are invading Persia on behalf of the Greeks, even though Macedon wasn’t part of Greece and didn’t fight on the side of Greece in the original Greco-Persian wars,” says Wrightson. Darius grew frustrated with the lack of progress, so he sent in another 10,000 cavalry, almost his entire left flank. The Macedonian Phalanx, a rectangular infantry formation, was developed by Philip II of Macedon and used by his son Alexander the Great to conquer other armies. After suffering humiliating back-to-back defeats in Greece in the 5th-century B.C., Persia stopped expanding. Alexander owed a tremendous debt to his father for leaving him a world-class army led by experienced and loyal generals. This tutelage would instill in Alexander a lifelong love of reading and music. Weaponry also got an upgrade under Philip. This created just enough slack in the Persian line for Alexander to strike. Thanks to reforms implemented by his father, Philip II, Alexander would wield an army that displayed unprecedented discipline. In the interim, Darius regrouped and called in reinforcements from the East, while Alexander marched his army South into Egypt. Perhaps surprisingly, the size of his army never went over 40,000. Immediately after Alexander was made king, Thebes rose up to challenge his authority—a big mistake. There has been considerable debate as to when Alexander first used Orien… a) Cavalry. While we tend to think of Alexander’s whole army, including his Phalangite phalanx, as an elite force, Alexander had his own core of hand-picked expert troops. The Reason Alexander The Great's Army Revolted. How Alexander the Great Conquered the Persian Empire Philip II Left Alexander the Great a Fierce Army. It’s estimated that King Darius III of Persia was in command of a total of 2.5 million soldiers spread across his vast empire. The Battle of the Granicus: May 334 BC. In battle, Alexander the Great personally led the charge at the head of the royal squadron of the Companion cavalry, usually in a wedge formation. Alexander the Great takes power. in the small Kingdom of Macedonia. But it was Alexander’s genius as a leader and battlefield strategist that secured his victory against an imposing adversary deep in enemy territory. Diadochi and the Hellenistic Period. Alexander the Great is one of the most extraordinary individuals in history. Alexander used both military and political cunning to finally unseat the Persian superpower. But Darius botched the location of the battle, which ended up being a narrow strip of land between a ridge and the sea that neutralized his numbers advantage. He camped the Macedonian army in the hills above the battle site to fuel up and rest while he drew up a game plan. Knowing he would be outmatched in manpower, Alexander relied on speed and distraction. Not only did the Macedonian army easily crush the Thebian rebellion, says Wrightson, “but Alexander razed Thebes to the ground and sold the entire city into slavery, except for one house owned by the descendants of his favorite poet.”. The vast Eurasian empire that Alexander the Great (356–323 B.C.) Jeff Bezos Reportedly Considers Himself the Alexander the Great of Modern Exploitation Jezebel - Emily Alford. For more than two centuries, the Achaemenid Empire of Persia ruled the Mediterranean world. Just as he did with his father at Chaeronea, Alexander personally led the Macedonian cavalry charge at Issus, which cut right to the heart of the Persian defenses, just as planned. Alexander counter-struck with a regiment of 1,500 mercenaries tasked with holding the right-hand position. Whether motivated by Greek pride or the spoils of imperial conquest, Alexander picked up where his father left off and marched into Persia in 334 BC, where his army of 50,000 would be tested against the largest and best-trained fighting force in the known world. Other cavalry troops would protect the flanks of the Macedonian … The historic centers of Greek power were the city-states of Athens, Sparta and Thebes to the south, whose leaders regarded the Macedonians as barbarians. That conflict featured the famous Battle of Thermopylae, where 300 Spartan warriors made a heroic last stand against tens of thousands of Persian invaders. Alexander responded with what’s known as his “pawn sacrifice” of several thousand troops destined to die as a set up for the final move. Armed with a military juggernaut, the Macedonian monarch turned islands, mainlands, and almost every other land in the known world into his empire. Per the Ancient History Encyclopedia, the king proclaimed, "Remember upon the conduct of each depends the fate of all.". A horse or mule in comparison could carry only 200 lb (91 kg). and defeated an all-star alliance of Athens and Thebes at the Battle of Chaeronea. When Alexander was young, he was taught to fight and ride by Leonidas of Epirus, a relative of his mother Olympias, as well as to endure hardships such as forced marches. Sort by: Top Voted. Twice a week we compile our most fascinating features and deliver them straight to you. The Greek city-states of Athens and Thebes weren’t thrilled to be under the thumb of “barbarian” kings, particularly since it infringed on their democratic ideals. Battle Strategy. The Battle of the Hydaspes was Alexander’s last great pitched battle. At dawn, the Macedonians took the battlefield. This is the reason Alexander the Great's army revolted. They were present at the grand army revue Alexander assembled in 324 BC. True to his strategy, Alexander’s army advanced in a line with the two flanks drawn back like a bow. Rise of Rome. When Philip II became king of Macedonia in 359 BCE, he inherited an army that was relatively ineffective. When Alexander returned to Persia from his Egyptian conquests, Darius tried to delay the inevitable clash as long as possible, eventually deciding that if there was going to be a rematch, it would be on Daruis’ terms. However he ensured they were well-fed. Alexander the Great recognized that rigorous discipline, unity, and uniformity were the lifeblood of his killing machine, aka his massive army. Only Alexander's royal bodyguard remained loyal. Alexander planned to create a "master race" through the intermixing of Macedonians and Persians. Alexander The Great “The first recorded incident regarding Alexander the Great and UFO’s was recorded in 329BC.Alexander decided to invade India and was attempting to cross the river Indus to engage the Indian army when “gleaming silver shields” swooped down and made several passes over the battle. Always the savvy strategist, Alexander knew that he couldn’t rule the Greek mainland by fear and brute force alone. During the 4th century B.C., no man understood that better than Alexander the Great. The troops wore uniforms to foster cohesion and drilled tirelessly to master the tightly packed phalanx formation that Philip innovated. Realizing their gambit backfired, the mutineers backed down and got back in line. Alexander was said to have been impressed by the drill of the 30,000 Persians who had been trained in the methods of the Macedonian phalanx. According to legend, Alexander killed Darius’ chariot driver and almost captured the Persian king before he fled once again on horseback. Undefeated in battle, he un leashed his army on countries great and small to forge an empire that stretched over three continents, from Greece to India and as far south as Egypt. In a pitched battle, the Companions usually fought on the right wing of the Macedonian army, next to the shield-bearing guards, the hypaspists, who would guard the right flank of the phalanx. Days later, with Alexander’s cavalry in hot pursuit, Darius was killed by his own cousin, who delivered the fallen king’s head to Alexander as a tribute. When a man was killed, another rose to take his place. He also worked hard in other ways to maintain the l… After quickly dispatching a small regional army near the town of Granicus, Alexander had his first real test against Darius and his Persian Royal Army near the coastal city of Issus. Philip took a poorly disciplined group of men and turned them into a formidable army. The two armies wouldn’t meet again for another two years. The army supposedly reached 120,000 front-line troops at one point. His empire spread from Gibraltar to the Punjab, and he made Greek the lingua franca of his world, the language that helped spread early Christianity. Tutored in his youth by Aristotle and trained for battle by his father, Philip II, Alexander the Great grew to become a powerful imperialist. (136 kg) of supplies over a long distance. After subduing all of the Persian Empire, his army marched east and got as far as India before turning back home to Macedon. “As soon as Alexander came to the throne, he openly stated that he would carry on his father’s plans,” says Graham Wrightson, a history professor at South Dakota State University and author of Combined Arms Warfare in Ancient Greece. Diadochi and the Hellenistic Period. One of history’s first true super powers, the Persian Empire stretched from the borders of India down through Egypt and up to the northern borders of Greece. His father, Philip, was interested in cultivating a refined future king and so hired Lysimachus of Acarnania to teach the boy reading, writing, and to play the lyre. The march thither from Oria occupied in all sixty days. But he would try his troops' patience too much, prompting his remarkable army to mutiny. Philip reorganized all of Macedonian society around a professional army and raised elite fighting forces of infantry, cavalry, javelin throwers and archers. The book begins by outlining the basics concerning how to move an army in the ancient world and the difficulties of keeping a large army supplied as it moves along a campaign. OK, there was no such thing as high school in the fourth … Much like Alexander the Great conquered the world by courting the loyalty of a vast army who worshipped him like a deity, Jeff Bezos apparently … This is the currently selected item. At the heart of the Persian army were the “Immortals,” an elite regiment of 10,000 infantrymen whose numbers never changed. But he never made it home. Alexander the Great is regarded as one of the most influential people in history. Alexander's Army In the 4th century bc, the Macedonian army was the best in the world. For a 32 page book, it does a pretty good job covering the Great King's history, with the usual caveats that apply to Alexander (very little actual primary sourcing and the secondary sources are written >150 years after his death). But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Alexander and the Logistics of the Macedonian Army is an excellent work on the often under appreciated, yet critically vital, aspect of warfare: logistics. “He’s invading Persia to punish the Persians retroactively for daring to invade Greece in the first place.”. Together, Alexander and his father would create an army unlike anything the ancient world had even seen. According to Arrian, Alexander used Arachosian, Bactrian, Parapamisadaean, Sogdian, Indian, and Scythian troops. The Battle of Gaugamela began on the morning of October 1, 331 bc, when two great armies drew up for battle to determine the destiny of empires. The Battle of Issus, in which Alexander the Great secured a decisive victory over Darius III of Persia. But before Alexander could push into Persia, he had to take care of business back home. The Persian cavalry and archers were also legendary, as were the scythe chariots which cut down enemy infantry with their razor-sharp wheel hubs. Next lesson. In the spring of 334, Alexander and Parmenion crossed the Hellespont and attacked the local Persian army, which was defeated near the river Granicus in the northwest of what is now called Turkey. Alexander moved his army on to the east, still hoping to find the end of the earth. The animist Kalash are outwardly different from the darker-skinned Pakistani Muslims who live in the lowlands below them, so it seemed plausible. As a gesture of goodwill, Macedonians and Persians broke bread together at a 9,000-person banquet. Aristocratic young men would start their military training at seven years old and graduate to officers at 18. It was remarkable, mainly, because it was a standing army. It was a wide, flat valley that, unlike Issus, would allow the Persians to take full advantage of their lopsided numbers, an estimated 250,000 Persian troops facing off against Alexander’s 50,000. Darius, fearing he was about to be overlapped on his left side, sent in 5,000 of his best cavalry. Darius and his generals chose a battle site near the town of Gaugamela. A full-blown mutiny ensued. Appalled by the treasonous act, Alexander had the man tortured and executed before declaring himself the undisputed king of Macedonia, Greece, and now Persia. To quell the rebellion, the king fired his entire army and began replacing his troops with Persians. It is not clear if the definition of “companion” came from the fact that … As Britannica recounts, he had vanquished Persia and triumphantly entered Egypt, which embraced him as "a deliverer." “I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion.” ― … “Just as Darius begins the charge, the Macedonians launch a devastating cavalry attack that goes right into the gap cunningly created by Alexander’s tactics,” says Wrightson. While staying in the ancient Mesopotamian city of Opis, Alexander made the controversial decision to send Macedonian veterans home, sparking fears that he intended to relocate the capital of his empire to Asia.Â. But there were also signs that the Persian Empire was already in decline. Then he ordered the entire Macedonian line to march quickly to the right. So as he turned his attention back to Persia, Alexander framed his campaign against the Achaemenid Empire as a patriotic retaliation for Persia’s failed invasion of the Greek mainland a century earlier. Why was the Macedonian Army so good? He would draw enemy troops toward one flank, then wait for a momentary gap to open up in the center of the enemy lines for a head-first cavalry charge. The Persians, fearing a night attack, remained in ready formation all night, anxiously awaiting a charge that never came. At this point, Darius ordered a full-frontal charge on the rest of the Macedonian army, but it took time for his orders to reach his left flank. He invaded and vanquished part of India, only turning back after his war-weary army insisted. In the autumn of 331 bc, Alexander the Great won a decisive victory over the Great King Darius III of Persia at the Battle of Gaugamela. Alexander the Great was one of the most talented generals who ever existed, but he was helped a great deal by his exceptional army. This did not include camp followers. … On their way back along the Indus, Alexander was wounded by Malli warriors. Besides giving off disturbing 1930s Germany vibes that his troops obviously wouldn't have picked up on, the policy made the Macedonian worry that their status was in jeopardy. FACT CHECK: We strive for accuracy and fairness. HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate. A Standing Army. - Alexander the Great quotes from BrainyQuote.com "I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion." Alexander III was born in 356 B.C. The reign of Alexander the Great was short-lived. Updated February 12, 2020 Alexander the Great, King of Macedon from 336 - 323 B.C., may claim the title of the greatest military leader the world has ever known. He and 80 officers wedded Persian women to get the ball rolling in the hay. No other Greek city-state other than Sparta was able to keep an army permanently mobilised. Roughly 12 years into his historic reign on the Macedonian throne, Alexander the Great had more than lived up to his epithet. But between 326 and 324 B.C. At just 32 years old, Alexander died in Persia in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar II in Babylon from a sudden and mysterious illness. He immediately initiated a series of military reforms. This is a child's book on Alexander. In 325, after Alexander had recovered, he and his army headed north along the … India proved to be much bigger than the Macedonians had supposed. With the Greek mainland subdued under Macedonian rule, Philip turned his well-oiled army East toward the Persian Empire, a far greater prize. At the time of his … Darius still commanded a massive army, but Persia was receding on the world stage while Macedon had the momentum of an ascendant military super power. But Persia’s rule as a dominant empire would finally be brought to an end by a brilliant military and political strategist, Alexander the Great. The Macedonians weren’t always a force to be reckoned with. No man is an island unto himself, and no king conquers an island alone. After their first victory, the Macedonians went to the south, where the Persian stronghold Sardes surrendered and the Macedonians could occupy Greek cities like Ephesus, Priene, and Miletus. Army pay was meager but was paid promptly. At Issus, Alexander debuted the battle strategy that would assure him victory after victory during his remarkable reign of conquest. Alexander the Great conquers Persia. Alexander inherited a well-trained army from his father and trained them even further. Turns out Alexander was also great at conflict resolution. 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