pomp, and then bid a long farewell to his native land. His army
consisted of about thirty thousand foot and four or five thousand
horse. But they were all brave men. His officers were experienced men
of sixty years of age, who had served under Philip his father. Parmenio
commanded the infantry, Philotas his son the cavalry. Alexander sent a
fleet of one hundred and fifty galleys over the Ægean Sea, to land at
Sestos, to be ready to transport his army across the Hellespont. The
army marched to Sestos by land. Having arrived there, Alexander left
Parmenio to conduct the transportation of the army, while he himself
went in a single galley to visit the ruins of Troy, which city was the
scene of Homer’s poems, which had so charmed Alexander in his early
years. So Alexander resolved that his first landing in Asia should be
at Troy. As they approached the Asiatic shore, Alexander took the helm
and steered the galley himself, and just before he reached the land, he
stood upon the prow and threw a javelin at the shore as he approached,
as a sign of his purpose to take possession. He then leaped upon the
land before any of his crew, and afterwards offered sacrifices to the
gods, having erected altars on the shore to Jupiter, Minerva, and to
Hercules.
A large part of Asia Minor had been settled by the Greeks, and
sometimes these cities had been under Grecian rule, and sometimes under
Persian. They were now included in the dominion of Persia. One of
these cities, called Lampsacus, had incurred the anger of the Greeks,
because it had formerly revolted from their rule. Alexander determined
to destroy this city. The ambassador sent by the city to implore his
mercy was a famous historian, who had once been Alexander’s teacher.
Alexander knowing his errand, and fearing his former friendship might
weaken his resolve, declared with a solemn oath, as the ambassador
approached him, that he would not grant the request he was about to
make. The witty historian replied,—
“I have come to implore you to _destroy_ Lampsacus.”
Alexander, pleased with the readiness of the reply, kept his oath; and
of course the city was saved.
In his progress onward, Alexander found himself obliged to cross either
Mount Ida, or a river which descended from its slopes, called the
Granicus. As they neared the river, some of the Grecian scouts, or as
they were called by the Greeks, _prodromi_, reported that the opposite
side was lined with Persian troops, waiting to dispute the passage.
Parmenio counselled Alexander against an immediate crossing, but
Alexander was unwilling to delay. Accordingly, the army advanced to
the banks in order of battle. The centre portion of the Grecian troops
was arranged in a peculiar manner, and was called a phalanx. The men
composing it were heavily armed. They bore a shield upon the left
arm, and they carried spears sixteen feet long and pointed with iron,
which they clasped firmly with both hands, with the points projecting
in front. These men were placed in line, one behind another, to the
number of sixteen, all facing the enemy. So that a phalanx contained
sixteen thousand men. The spears were so long, that when drawn up in
close lines, the points of eight or ten of the ranks projected in
front, forming a bristling wall of sharp points of steel. This wall no
force could penetrate; men, horses, elephants, rushed upon it, only to
meet inevitable destruction. If their enemies threw javelins from a
distance, the shields upon their arms were held in such a manner as
to form a mass of close scales of metal, upon which the javelins fell
harmlessly. The troops upon the sides of the phalanx were called the
wings, and were composed of cavalry and foot-soldiers, who were more
lightly armed, and could therefore move with greater speed.
Alexander commanded one wing, and Parmenio the other. The Persians had
assembled in vast numbers upon the opposite shore. The Grecian army,
led by Alexander, descended into the stream, and moved on through the
water. The Persians dashed down the farther banks, and strove to oppose
their landing. A terrible battle ensued, the soldiers grappling with
each other in the midst of the waves, and the Granicus ran red with the
blood of the wounded. Alexander was fearless and irresistible, and his
long white plume, waving from his shining helmet, was a conspicuous
target for the arrows and javelins of the enemy. At one time, meeting
the foe in close combat, a Persian horseman aimed a blow at his head
with a sword. The weapon took off the white plume, and cut into the
helmet of Alexander, who immediately stabbed his antagonist through the
heart. Just as a second Persian had raised his sword to strike a fatal
blow upon the exposed head of the Grecian hero, a Macedonian general
cut the uplifted arm from the assailant’s body, and saved the life of
Alexander the Great. The Persians were defeated, and Alexander landed
his brave band of warriors upon the opposite bank, while the terrified
Persians fled in dire confusion.
Darius himself had not commanded this Persian force, and he employed
all of the following winter in preparing for a vigorous defence of his
dominions from the encroaching foe.
Alexander, however, did not remain idle during the winter. He marched
from province to province, meeting with many adventures. During this
time Parmenio had remained in the western part of Asia Minor, with
quite a large force. As the spring approached, Alexander ordered him to
meet him at Gordium. One reason which influenced Alexander in this plan
was the desire to attempt to untie the famous Gordian knot. The story
of the Gordian knot was this:—
Gordius was a sort of mountain farmer. One day he was plowing, and an
eagle flew down and alighted upon his yoke, and remained there until he
had finished his plowing. This was an omen; but Gordius did not know
what it meant. So he went to a neighboring town to consult the prophets
and soothsayers. On his way he met a maiden who was going forth to draw
water. Gordius fell into conversation with her, and related to her
the occurrence which had just transpired. The maiden advised him to
go back and offer a sacrifice to Jupiter. Finally she consented to go
back with him and aid him. The affair ended in her becoming his wife,
and they lived in peace and happiness for many years upon their farm.
They had a son named Midas. The father and mother were accustomed to
go out in their wagon drawn by oxen, with Midas as their driver. One
day they were going into the town in this manner, at a time when it
happened that there was an assembly convened, which was in a state
of great perplexity, on account of civil dissensions in the country.
They had just inquired of an oracle what they should do. The oracle
said that “a cart would bring them a king who would terminate their
eternal broils.” Just then Midas came up, driving the cart in which his
father and mother were seated. The assembly thought at once that this
must be the cart meant by the oracle, and they made Gordius king by
acclamation. They took the cart and yoke to preserve as sacred relics,
consecrating them to Jupiter, and Gordius tied the yoke to the pole of
the cart by a thong of leather, making a knot so close and complicated
that nobody could untie it again. It was called the Gordian knot. The
oracle afterwards said that whoever should untie this knot should
become monarch of all Asia. Thus far, nobody had succeeded.
Alexander was very desirous of examining this wonderful knot and
trying his own fortune. He accordingly went into the temple where the
sacred cart had been placed, and after looking at the knot, he became
convinced that it could not be untied, whereupon he cut it to pieces
with his sword.
From this story comes the old saying, when any one gets out of a
difficulty by very violent means, “He has cut the Gordian knot.”
After leaving Gordium, Alexander proceeded with his whole army against
Darius, who was now advancing to meet him.
On a very warm day, after a long and fatiguing march, the Grecian army
reached the river Cydnus, a small stream which came down from Mount
Taurus, near the city of Tarsus. Alexander, warm and weary, plunged
into the cold mountain stream, and was taken with a violent chill, and
as he was lifted out of the water, he fainted away. He was borne to his
tent. A severe and protracted fever came on. Alexander bewailed this
enforced delay, and summoned his physicians, to whom he said,—
“The present condition of my affairs will not admit either of slow
remedies or fearful physicians. A speedy death is more eligible to me
than a slow cure. In case the physicians think it is in their power to
do me any good, they are to know that I do not so much wish to live as
to fight.”
All his physicians but one, however, were afraid to dare any violent
and hazardous remedies, especially as an unfavorable result would
endanger their honor; for Darius had published that he would reward
with a thousand talents the man who should kill Alexander.
His old family physician, named Philip, who had attended him from
childhood, offered to give him a dose of medicine which would be speedy
in its effects, but desired three days to prepare it. During this
interval of waiting Alexander received a letter from Parmenio, who had
been left behind in Cappadocia, warning him against this physician
Philip, and stating that Darius had bribed him by promising a thousand
talents, and his sister in marriage. Alexander courageously refrained
from divulging its contents, and placed the letter under his pillow.
When Philip entered the tent with the medicine, Alexander took the cup,
and handing the letter at the same time to the physician, he swallowed
the dose without waiting his perusal of it. After reading the letter,
Philip replied,—
“Royal sir, your recovery will soon clear me of the guilt of murder,
with which I am charged.”
Three days after, Alexander showed himself to his army, who were filled
with delight at his wonderful recovery; and the accused physician was
now the recipient of the most lavish praises, and looked upon with the
deepest reverence, because he had saved the life of their sovereign.
Slowly Darius marched in stately grandeur to meet his advancing enemy.
A description of his martial procession reads more like a picture of a
grand tournament than the march of an army. One of the historians thus
describes this gorgeous pageant:—
“The king advanced with his troops towards the Euphrates. It was a
custom long used by the Persians never to set out upon a march till
after sunrise, at which time the trumpet was sounded for that purpose
from the king’s tent. Over this tent was exhibited to the view of the
whole army the image of the sun set in crystal, as the Persians were
worshippers of the sun and fire.
“The order they observed in their march was as follows: First, they
carried silver altars, on which there was fire, called by them sacred
and eternal; and these were followed by the Magi, singing hymns after
the manner of their country. They were accompanied by three hundred
and sixty-five youths, corresponding to the number of days in a
year, clothed in purple robes. Afterwards came a chariot consecrated
to Jupiter, drawn by white horses, and followed by a courser of a
prodigious size, to whom they gave the name of the sun’s horse; and the
equerries were dressed in white, each having a rod of gold in his hand.
“Ten chariots, adorned with sculptures in gold and silver, followed
after. Then marched a body of horse, composed of twelve nations,
whose manners and customs were various, and all armed in a different
style. Next advanced those whom the Persians called the Immortals,
amounting to ten thousand, who surpassed the rest of the barbarians in
the sumptuousness of their apparel. They all wore gold collars, were
clothed in robes of gold tissues, with surtouts completely covered with
precious stones. Then followed those called the king’s relations, to
the number of fifteen thousand, in habits very much resembling those
worn by women, and more remarkable for the vain pomp of their dress
than the glitter of their arms. Then came the king’s guards; they
carried the cloak of the monarch, and walked before his chariot, in
which he seemed to sit as on a high throne. This chariot was enriched
on both sides with images of the gods in gold and silver; and from the
middle of the yoke, which was covered with jewels, rose two statues
a cubit in height, the one representing war, the other peace, having
a gold eagle between them, with wings extended, as ready to take its
flight.
“But nothing could equal the magnificence of the king. He was clothed
in a vest of purple, striped with silver, and over it a long robe
glittering all over with gold and precious stones, that represented two
falcons rushing from the clouds and pecking at one another. Around his
waist he wore a gold girdle, called cidaris, after the manner of women,
from which hung his scimitar, the scabbard of which flamed all over
with gems. On his head he wore a tiara, or mitre, round which was a
fillet of blue mixed with white. On each side of him walked two hundred
of his nearest relations, followed by ten thousand pikemen, whose pikes
were adorned with silver and tipped with gold; and lastly, thirty
thousand infantry, who composed the rear-guard. These were followed by
the king’s horses, four hundred in number, all of which were led.
“Then came the chariots of his wife Statira and his mother Sysigambis,
with the several female attendants of both queens, riding on horseback.
After them came fifteen large chariots, in which were the king’s
children and those who had the care of their education, escorted by
a band of household officers. Then followed three hundred and sixty
carriages, containing the ladies of the court, dressed in the costumes
of princesses.
[Illustration: DARIUS.]
“After these marched six hundred mules and three hundred camels,
which carried the king’s treasure, and were guarded by a great body
of archers. After these came other chariots, in which rode the wives
of the crown officers and of the greatest lords of the court; then
the sutlers and servants of the army. In the rear were a body of
light-armed troops, with their commanders, who closed the imposing
procession.”
Darius, at the head of six hundred thousand men, and surrounded with
this mighty pomp, considered himself invincible, and imagined that he
had only to show his gorgeous army to the few Grecian troops led by the
boy Alexander, in order to inspire such awe as should cause them to fly
in terror.
The two opposing forces came in sight of each other upon a plain
near the city of Issus. It was now evening. At midnight the army
of Alexander had reached a defile in the chain of mountains called
Mount Taurus. Among these mountains there are various tracts of open
country, and upon one of these the army of Darius was encamped.
Alexander ascended one of the eminences from whence he could look
down upon the great plain beyond, which was dimly illuminated by the
smouldering fires of the Persian encampment. Alexander there sacrificed
by torchlight to the gods of the Grecians, and returning to his army,
prepared for an early conflict. In the morning, at break of day,
Alexander began his march down to the plain. The battle waged hotly
all day, and at sunset all the valleys and defiles around the plain of
Issus were thronged with the vast masses of the Persian hosts, flying
in confusion from the victorious Macedonians. The flight of Darius had
been so sudden that he had left his wife and mother and children and
much of his treasure behind in the deserted camp. He pressed on
in his chariot as far as he could, and then mounted a horse and fled
for his life. Alexander and his army soon abandoned the pursuit, and
returned to take possession of the Persian camp. The tents of King
Darius were filled with gold and silver vessels, caskets, boxes of rich
perfumes, and many articles of luxury. The greater part of his vast
treasures, however, he had previously sent to Damascus, where they were
afterwards captured by Parmenio. So that Alexander came into possession
of all his splendid treasures, upon which he had so prided himself.
Alexander treated the captive wife, mother, and children of Darius with
great kindness, and gave them every attention he would have paid to
honored guests.
Darius got together a small remnant of his army and continued his
flight. After he had crossed the Euphrates, he sent an ambassador to
Alexander to make propositions for peace. He offered him any sum he
desired as a ransom for his wife, mother, and child, and agreed to
become his ally and friend if he would deliver them up and depart to
his own dominions. Alexander replied by a brief letter. He reminded him
that the Persians had been the first to invade Greece. “I am acting
only on the defensive,” wrote Alexander. “The gods, who always favor
the right, have given me the victory. I am now monarch of a large part
of Asia, and your sovereign king. If you will admit this, and come to
me as my subject, I will restore your wife, mother, and child without
any ransom. And, at any rate, whatever you decide in respect to these
proposals, if you wish to communicate with me on any subject hereafter,
I shall pay no attention to what you send unless you address it to me
as your king.”
As the vast army of the Persian king had now been defeated, none of the
smaller kingdoms or provinces thought of resisting. They yielded one
after another, and Alexander appointed governors of his own to rule
over them. He then advanced along the shores of the Mediterranean Sea,
until he reached the city of Tyre.
The Tyrians wished to avoid a quarrel if possible, and so sent
complimentary congratulations to Alexander, presenting him with a
golden crown. Alexander replied courteously, and stated that his reason
for coming to Tyre was to offer sacrifices to Hercules, a god whom the
Tyrians worshipped. The Tyrians, fearful of allowing him to enter the
city, sent him word that it would not be in their power to receive
him in the city, but that he could offer the sacrifice on the site of
ancient Tyre, as there was a temple sacred to Hercules among the ruins
there.
This answer displeased Alexander, and he now determined to build a
broad causeway from the mainland to the island upon which the present
city of Tyre stood. This causeway he would build out of the ruins of
old Tyre, and then march his army over it and take the new city. His
soldiers accordingly commenced this work. But the Tyrians constantly
harassed the workers; now attacking them with arrows and javelins;
then they took a large galley and filled it with combustibles, and
towing it near the enemy’s works, they set fire to it; and putting it
in motion towards the pier where there was the largest collection of
engines and machines, the vessel drifted down upon Alexander’s works,
and notwithstanding the most strenuous efforts of the Macedonians, the
whole mass was destroyed. Not long after this the sea itself came to
the aid of the Tyrians, and a fearful storm destroyed the portions of
the work which had escaped the fire. Whereupon the Tyrians deridingly
inquired, “Whether Alexander was greater than Neptune, and if they
pretended to prevail over that God?”
But Alexander was not to be defeated by fire, or storm, or the hostile
Tyrians, and again ordered his men to repair the pier. Meanwhile,
Alexander himself collected and equipped a fleet, and sailed into the
Tyrian seas.
The fleet of galleys now protected the men at work on the pier, and
Alexander began to prepare for the final assault. He proposed to force
his entrance on the southern side of the city, where there was a large
breach in the wall.
The plan was successful. He prepared a number of ships, with platforms
raised upon them in such a manner that on getting near the walls they
could be let down, and form a sort of bridge, over which the men could
pass to the broken fragments of the wall, and thence ascend through the
breach above.
The ships advanced to the proposed place of landing. The bridges were
lowered, and before the Tyrians realized their danger the city was
filled with thirty thousand infuriated soldiers, who showed them no
mercy. Thus the city was stormed.
Alexander here displayed a brutal ferocity which tarnished the
brightness of his victory. The inhabitants were put to the sword,
some were executed, some thrown into the sea; and it is said that two
thousand were crucified along the seashore.
Prosperity and power were beginning to exert a baneful influence upon
the character of Alexander. He became haughty, imperious, and cruel.
About this time Darius sent him a second communication, proposing terms
of peace. Darius offered him a large sum of money for the ransom of
his wife, mother, and child, and agreed to give him all the country he
had conquered. He also offered him his daughter Statira in marriage.
He recommended that he should be content with his conquests, and added
that he could not hope to succeed in crossing the mighty rivers of the
East, which were in the way of his march toward the Persian dominions.
Alexander replied “that if he wished to marry the daughter of Darius,
he could do it without his consent; as to ransom, he was not in want
of money; and as to the offer of Darius to give him all the territory
west of the Euphrates, it was absurd for a man to speak of giving
what was no longer his own; that he had crossed too many seas in his
military expeditions, since he left Macedon, to feel any concern about
the _rivers_ that he might find in his way; and that he should continue
to pursue Darius wherever he might retreat in search of safety and
protection, and he had no fear but that he should find and conquer him
at last.”
The siege and storming of Tyre has been considered one of the greatest
of Alexander’s exploits.
After the subjugation of Tyre, Alexander commenced his march for
Egypt. His route led him through Judea. This was about three hundred
years before the birth of Christ. A Jewish writer, named Josephus, who
lived and wrote a few years after Christ, relates the circumstances of
Alexander’s visit to Jerusalem.
When Alexander had been besieging Tyre, he had sent to Judea for
supplies, which were refused, as the Jews were subjects of Darius.
Hearing that Alexander was about to pass through Jerusalem, they began
to fear a fate like that of Tyre. Accordingly the high priest Jaddus,
who was the chief magistrate at Jerusalem, caused great sacrifices to
be offered to Almighty God, and public and solemn prayers were made, to
implore his guidance and protection.
The day after these services he told the people that they need fear
nothing; for God had appeared to him in a dream, and directed him what
to do. “We are not to resist the conqueror,” said he, “but go forth to
meet him and welcome him. We are to strew the city with flowers, and
adorn it as for a festive celebration. The priests are to be dressed in
their pontifical robes, and lead the procession, and the people are to
follow. In this way we are to go out to meet Alexander as he advances,
and all will be well.”
When Alexander met this procession he stopped, and appeared both
pleased and surprised. He advanced to meet the high priest with an air
of the profoundest reverence.
Parmenio, astonished at such a sudden change in his sovereign, asked
for an explanation. To which Alexander replied,—
“When I was in Macedon, before setting out on this expedition, one
night I had a remarkable dream. In my dream this very priest appeared
before me, dressed just as he is now. He exhorted me to banish every
fear, to cross the Hellespont boldly, and to push forward into the
heart of Asia. He said that God would march at the head of my army, and
give me the victory over the Persians. I recognize this priest as the
same person who appeared to me then. It is through his encouragement
and aid that I am here, and I am ready to worship and adore the God
whose service he administers.”