(JANUARY--AUGUST, 332 B. C.)
THE SIEGE AND DESTRUCTION OF TYRUS,
BY ALEXANDER OF MACEDON;
AND
THE HEROIC DEFENCE BY AZELMIC AND THE NATION.
This great National event in the History of an Ancient People, was
commenced by Alexander in person, attended and assisted by the
renowned Generals and favourites--Hephæstion, Antigonus, Seleucus,
Lysimachus, Cassander, Ptolemeus, "Old Clytus," and Parmenio,--all of
whom, except the first and two last named, subsequently became the
successors to, and sharers of, their Master's army and ill-gotten
dominions.
Upon the occupation of the mainland suburbs (the Tyrians and strangers
having fled to the Island), all the then known engines of warfare
(both of defence and offence) were constructed and arranged upon the
shore,--the army encamped on elevated ground, so as to be seen from
the Capital,--the Cavalry and Phalanx daily practised their complex
evolutions,--all this display was for the purpose of intimidating the
besieged,--but it failed in its intended object. Orders were then
given to commence an attack, not so much upon the walls, as upon the
People, by throwing into the City darts and missiles: but, high Towers
for the bowmen,--Balistæ for discharging heavy stones,--Catapultæ for
casting forth the deadly javelin,--were erected with no effect; for
the clouds of lightning-arrows, and the heavy thunderbolts of war
burst forth in vain; and the distant walls remained unscathed, and the
Tyrians unharmed. Alexander must now have found the error in
dismissing his Navy after the Passage of the Granicus: had he retained
it, he would have been enabled, upon a victory over the Tyrian fleet,
to have surrounded the walls, and so prevent supplies from entering
the Metropolis; but which were now daily received by the besieged,
without the power of prevention on the part of the Macedonian. In this
dilemma Alexander proposed to Azelmic and his Council, terms of
capitulation similar to those accepted by the Sidonians; but with the
original proposition of offering a sacrifice in the temple of
Hercules-Apollo. The "sacrifice" would have been the entire People!
The Tyrians, however, feeling safe within their walls, received the
proffered negotiation with scorn and contempt; and in regard to the
last proposition, they still resolved not to admit Alexander, or even
his peace-offering.
The Macedonian now felt for the first time, that his hitherto
untarnished glory might be dimmed,--his future pathway might be
clouded,--for to abandon the Siege would instantly destroy his
reputation for invincibility. Even his Generals were at a loss for
means to conceal their mortification, or of resources of invention,
whereby the reduction of the Capital could be accomplished. They,
however, suggested to Alexander, that his already brilliant fame would
not be clouded, by passing on to other victories obtainable upon the
land; for it was not originally intended in his present advance, to
attack a strongly-fortified Island, surrounded by the broad waters of
the Mediterranean, and with high walls based upon the very waves of
that Sea; and then the distance of the Isle from the mainland, placed
the besieged out of the reach of either fear or danger; and especially
in the absence of his fleet. These and similar arguments were of no
avail; for every suggestion of a present, or of a future difficulty,
only increased Alexander's resolution to conquer.
The Prince in his early youth had Nature for his guide,--and that
great Monitress then led him to accomplish his first victory: for the
untameable horse, Bucephalus,--the Mazeppa-charger of Macedonia,--was
not subdued from merely having the Lord of Wit or Wisdom by his side,
but because he exercised the high gift for which he had been so justly
named.[12] He, therefore, _did_ turn the head of the proud animal
"towards the East;" and in paying this supposed tribute to Apollo, he
compelled the fiery steed _to gaze upon the dazzling Sun_!--and while
thus partially blinded by the brilliant rays, the dauntless rider
mounted him, and the noble animal, feeling for the first time the
weight of man,--the lash and the deep-wounding spur,--forth he bounded
like an earthly Pegasus,--clouds of sand and dust rising from beneath
his earth-spurning, and indignant hoofs, concealed from the royal
Father's sight the form of his princely Son, and the now maddened
steed:--yet on he flew, like a Sirocco blast before the hurricane--his
eyes still towards, and in, the dazzling Sunlight:--but, ere Apollo
had reached the zenith, the horse and rider returned to the royal
presence, the latter triumphant, and the former for the first time
subdued, and gazing upon his shadow! Thus by Nature, and her laws, did
he tame the fiery spirit!
[12] Viz., the word Alexander, in the original formation,
signified _Lord of Wit, i. e. Wisdom_, in ancient days.
It was a similar thought that led him to conceive the means for
subduing the apparently unconquerable spirit of the proud Tyrian, safe
within his untouched Island-Citadel,--as that which led him upon the
plain of Macedon, to master the white steed Bucephalus--who now stood
prancing upon the moonlit shore of ancient Tyrus, with his Princely
Master upon his gracefully-curved back as upon a throne of
ivory:--from this regal seat,--while the noble steed gazed upon the
phosphoric sparkles of the radiant sea, as the waves cast them at his
feet,--the pupil of Aristotle contemplated the apparently hopeless
Siege of the commercial emporium of the World! That contemplation
placed before him the fact, that Nature was to be subdued before the
successful appliances of Art could be brought to bear upon and support
his resolution. It forced upon him the conclusion that he had not
only to war against Island walls, and Patriot hearts within,--but
against another kingdom over which the trident monarch--Neptune--reigned,
guarding with safety and with honour the renowned "Queen of the
Sea,"--that he must drive back that victorious ally before he could
even hope to capture her coronet of freedom! He remembered, too, that
both the Babylonian and the Persian had retired, leaving their
victories imperfect by not subduing the Island;--this was an
additional reason why he resolved to conquer, that his military glory
should, in the estimation of posterity, be beyond any predecessor.
While many of the principal Officers held a midnight council of
war,--the towers and engines standing tenant-less and unmanned, from
their inutility,--Alexander, upon his snowy steed, pacing the
wave-washed shore, and ruminating upon his new conception,--Hephæstion
and Parmenio upon their war-chargers, and as the attendants for the
night, gazing upon the movements of their chief with that military
anxiety which the warrior only knows or can feel,--and the soldiers of
Macedonia murmuring within the camp at inactivity;--while this picture
was presented of the invaders, the inhabitants of the metropolis had
almost ceased to think that war and danger were near, and from their
walls, as the Moon arose, they expressed every joy to their
Goddess,--Astartē,--for the safety that she now witnessed and
smiled upon. Alexander arousing himself from his visioned
victory,--but more from the derisionary laughter of the foe, who had
now discerned him, instantly dashed with his proud Bucephalus into the
moonlit waters of the Mediterranean, and so toward the walls,--as if
to commence in person the first assault upon the domain of Neptune!
Hephæstion and Parmenio--as at the passage of the Granicus--instantly
followed their Prince to cover his safe return to the shore; for a
clouded shadow passed swift as a meteor over the waters towards the
noble group,--a whizzing like a sudden blast was heard,--then a
cutting in the waves like the swift fins of the shark,--and a rattling
as of hail upon armour;--it was a flight of arrows from the walls, but
they failed to reach the unpanoplied body of the chief, guarded as he
was by the devotional shields and helms of his companions,--who had
seen the action of the besieged, and had watched the speeding of the
surcharged deadly cloud! Refreshed from the plunge, and aroused to a
sense of his own danger, by that of his friends, Alexander returned to
the shore, and with speed to the royal pavilion,--where, springing
from his seat, he may be imagined to have thus addressed his noble
steed:
"Brave companion of my youth! you have commenced the attack upon the
Tyrian moat,--we will pass it,--Victory shall be ours!"
That night the fate of Tyrus was written!--for Alexander had conceived
the idea, and commanded that a Causeway, or military mole, should _be
constructed from the Shore to the Island_! The ruins of which
extraordinary work are seen even at this day!
The Tyrian sentinel at early dawn gave intelligence of a new movement
in the army of the invaders,--the rampart walls were instantly crowded
with citizens, to watch the motion upon the point, forming the nearest
distance between themselves and the shore. They beheld the removing of
the several war-engines and towers,--and thereupon gave a wild shout
of joy at the supposed _retreat_ of the Macedonians! Fatal error! That
loud shout which had aroused even the mangered horses of the foe, at
once proclaimed their present triumph, and their future doom!
The new orders of Alexander were received in the camp with pride and
gladness; and with alacrity were collected every kind of
material;--timbers from the captured houses on shore, and new-felled
trees for piles and outward dams,--old vessels, and decayed
merchant-galleys, left upon the beach by the Tyrians as useless, were
filled with stone, and sunk for the foundation, upon which the
superstructure was to be erected,--the sunken galleys, also, arrested
the progress of the sea-sand in its passage between the Island and the
beach, and thus aided the formation of the base. The different
portions of the army were then engaged in bringing thousands, and tens
of thousands, of sacks and loads of earth and stone,--every activity
and energy were manifested by men and officers, encouraged as they
were by the personal presence of the Princely Engineer.
At first the bold attempt only excited the increased derision and
laughter of the haughty Tyrians; but that mockery of the lip, was
gradually changed to a clouded brow, as the Mole advanced, though with
slow degrees, towards the Island. At every foot of progressive
movement the difficulty of the Macedonian was increased; for, as the
passage narrowed, the waters doubled their rapid rate, and nearly
destroyed the advancing work. The People of the Metropolis, with the
King and Nobles, viewed from the walls the first month's labour with
doubts and fears,--a second and a third month passed, when the
causeway reached arrow-distance from the Island. At this point of
advance, Alexander, still anxious to obtain his rich prize unharmed,
and believing that the Tyrians were now convinced of his resolution to
conquer, despatched in a royal barge several Envoys to propose terms
of capitulation. As the boat advanced to the edge of the walls, and
was approaching a port-gate, and when directly beneath the overhanging
parapet of a watch-tower,--a ponderous mass of stone was suddenly
hurled from the rampart, upon the unsuspecting victims beneath,--a
crush was heard,--the shriek of Life at the approach of sudden
Death,--the splash and gurgling of the waters,--and all had ceased.
Envoys and attendants had sunk, never to rise until that Day, when
even "the Sea shall give up its dead!"
The maddening fury of the Macedonian, now knew no bounds, upon this
(to him) murder of his Ambassadors,--though to the Tyrians, they were
only regarded as Invaders. Energy was renewed upon the Mole-work, and
as it continued to advance, the besieged were aroused from their
pride and confidence, to depend upon courageous action alone,--they,
thereupon, became the assailants, and cast upon the approaching
foemen, showers of arrows, darts, stones, and every species of missile
weapon. The Macedonians were guarded in part by their advancing
towers, which served as shields and screens to the military
workmen,--yet hundreds were daily slain,--nor were the Tyrians without
their death-list, for the wooden towers were manned in every story,
yet being but a third of the height of the walls of the Capital, the
advantage therefore was more than tenfold to the Islanders.
The intelligence of the present movement of the Macedonian, flew on
the wings of gladness to the surrounding Nations; where--through their
own fears at the success of such military talent--could be seen the
secret joy at the approaching downfall of a People, whose very
existence as a Nation, had been derived from stern and uncompromising
Monopoly;--who had looked upon all other countries as the mere
instruments of her own imperious will. The inland Nations, and those
upon the borders of the Mediterranean, would rather have suffered ruin
than aid the Tyrian,--although by an united effort they might have
saved both themselves and the Capital of Phœnicia. Even Carthage,
like a degenerate Child, had from selfish policy (the National
heirloom) refused to lend her aid, though to her Parent-Country. One
Nation only (and that was tributary to the Conqueror) received
intelligence of the gathering movements of the Macedonian with
sincere grief and active sympathy. It was the sympathy of an
imprisoned Mother, when, from her iron bars, she beholds her only
Daughter about to be chained to the fire-stand of remorseless doom!
Thus the Sidonian Parent gazed upon her Tyrian Daughter, resolved,
should occasion offer, to render that aid which a Mother ever feels is
due to her filial offspring,--and in this instance, though at the
hazard of her own destruction.
While the Military movements were progressing with apparent success,
the efforts of the attendant Naval operations of Alexander (who had
changed some of his mainland captures into vessels of war) were
equally triumphant,--for many Tyrian Galleys were seized, they being
chiefly Merchantmen, and deserted by the Pilots, Mariners, and Rowers,
in order to aid the defending of the City. In the words of EZEKIEL,
regarding Tyrus, and truly fulfilled:--
"And _all_ that handle the _Oar_,--the _Mariners_, and _all the
Pilots_ of the Sea, _shall come down from their ships,--they shall
stand upon the land_!" [_i. e._ in the City.]
Many of the ships were destroyed by the Tyrians themselves, upon the
Pilots and Mariners leaving them to defend the Capital,--to prevent
their falling into the hands of the Macedonian;--who, however,
succeeded in capturing vessels returning from foreign voyages,--and
instantly manning those as being of better construction, they
consequently sunk the old vessels on either side of the approaching
Mole, thus forming the outward parallels of this giant causeway of the
Mediterranean. Thus were the Tyrian vessels entirely captured,--or
destroyed by the contending foes,--and consequently the lion-hearted
citizens were now hemmed in a walled cavern,--with the "rough" and
furious hunter, attended by his yelling blood-hounds, guarding every
outlet towards the land, to prevent escape, or even the attempt in the
wild moments of despair!
About this period of the Siege, Darius of Persia, hearing of the
present Military undertaking of Alexander, and of its probable
success, sent to the Conqueror several Envoys, as a deputation to
propose terms of peace and amity for his own nation:--contemplating
his approaching triumph, all propositions were rejected by the Victor
of Issus! His pride was also wounded by the Despatches being addressed
simply to "Alexander of Macedon,"--without the title of "King" being
in any part employed in the proposal. The young Monarch, however, had
his revenge upon this point of neglected diplomacy, for in his answer,
he addressed his foreign adversary, whom he had beaten in two battles,
to the following effect:--"ALEXANDER of _Macedon_ refuses to accede to
the terms of surrender and amity, proposed to him by Darius, the
powerful _King_ of Persia and Media."
July, 332 B. C.] In the sixth month from the commencement of the
siege, the invaders had advanced to the foot of the walls, and in
approaching they widened the Causeway, in order to enable them to have
greater space for carrying on the operations of Storming the Capital.
Upon the successful termination of constructing the Mole, the engines
of ancient warfare were placed in their several localities for active
service. In front, and near to the walls (which were of soft stone and
stuccoed), were stationed several battering-rams of enormous magnitude
and power, and swung from high triangles and towers, in order to
batter the upper, and consequently the weakest part of the mural
defence. Behind these engines, at a short distance, were placed the
powerful Balistæ and Catapultæ for throwing stones and timber, darts
and javelins into the city. In the third position from the walls, were
stationed several high wooden-towers, from four to six stories in
altitude, and manned with archers; each story had its drawbridge, both
for defence, and to let down upon, or into any breach that might be
made, and from which bridge the archers and spearmen could pass on to
the walls, upon the huge machines being wheeled forward by the
Soldiery in the rear of the towers. The now Grecian Galleys (captured
from the Tyrians) were brought and moored along the sides of the Mole,
having their lines trebled near, and especially at the Island-base of
the causeway. This precaution was to prevent escape in case of any
sortie; as, also, to give protection to the new Military work against
the continual injury from the waves. This action and locality of the
captured vessels _left the walls towards the Sea unwatched_, and it
was considered by the invaders as useless to keep their small fleet
dispersed, when no escape could be made by the Tyrians in that
quarter, from the want of vessels; therefore, from the oblong form of
the Island-Capital (its sides being parallel with the Sea and the
mainland), _it would prevent those engaged at the Causeway, from
seeing any movement or enterprise, that might be undertaken at the
Seaward gates of the Metropolis_. This fact is of great importance,
and for the full appreciation of the result, the reader should not let
it escape from memory. During the successful advance, the Tyrians had
been incessant in their defence of Nature's Moat; but, now that it was
passed by the enemy, their only duty was to prevent a breach being
made in the wall: this defence was comparatively easy, for the attack
could only be made upon one point, and the only approach to that
assault was over the Causeway.
When Alexander had personally inspected the fulfilment of his
instructions, he commanded a simultaneous assault to be made upon the
wall and city, from every warlike engine on the Causeway. It was
useless: the brave defence exceeded in its results any injury received
from the spirit of the attack; for where the battering-rams would
otherwise have had effect, bales of cloths, linen and wool were hung,
so that no impression could be made; at the same time hundreds of the
invaders were crushed or slain by the high-mounted besieged, who
continued to hurl down upon those beneath, and upon their works,
ponderous stones, showers of darts and javelins, together with ignited
combustibles and fascines. In this manner were several attempts upon
the City completely foiled by the Tyrians. The Macedonians were,
therefore, compelled to retire towards the shore, for the purpose of
repairing their shattered and burnt engines and towers;--and who, amid
the irreverend shouts of triumph from the Islanders, daily buried
their dead within the adjacent camp: but these untimely rejoicings,
and the death of the Envoys, only the more securely sealed the
judgment upon Tyrus!
It has already been stated that the vessels composing the captured
fleet had been moored on either side of the Causeway, and consequently
they were placed between the Island and the shore. Upon this
disposition of the Macedonian Navy being made known at _Sidon, several
of her most determined Citizens manned a few of their own
merchant-galleys, hoisted sails, and lowered oars for Tyrus_, which
was distant but twenty-three miles. They arrived and hovered on the
sea-side of the Island, so as to be unperceived by the invaders; and
even if they were seen at, or after the storming of the city, they
were _Sidonians_, and would be treated by the besiegers in a friendly
manner, for they were already tributary to the Macedonian. Their deep
_intent_, however, could not be known, and their _presence_ merely,
would, therefore, pass unquestioned. Although, by their intended act,
a portion of the Sidonians broke their treaty of surrender with
Alexander, and were in fact as guilty as if detected in the act
itself, and consequently within the sentence of death; still they were
determined to prove the truth of a prior faith to the Tyrians, and
were thus prepared to rescue any "remnant" of their descendants,
should the City be stormed and taken.
It was no hollow friendship that amid the whirlwind would come forth,
and from the Conqueror's field of blood--the Aceldama of his shame and
cruelty--would boldly "glean" the Tyrian "olive-tree," or the
remaining fruit from Slaughter's "vintage." This was an act worthy of
renown from the Sculptor's magic, yet enduring Art, worthy to grace
the "Chief Altar" of a land, wherever the "gleanings" of the
bloody-harvest should be housed in safety!
August, 332 B. C.] In the seventh month of the Siege, the invaders had
repaired and increased the number of their warlike engines and
machines, and especially those for battering down the walls. They were
now replaced, but stationed out of danger of the ignited fascines, to
await the final orders of the King of Macedon, who had retired to the
neighbouring Mountain for recreation, until the preparations should be
completed for a renewal of the assault. In the mean time the soldiers
of Alexander, accustomed to speedy victories, began to murmur at their
long and arduous duties, and at the number of their useless dead,
which had made their camp nearly a pestilential charnel-house. They
desired that the Siege should be instantly raised, that they might
march on to certain victories, and so efface their present infamy of
defeat. In these sentiments they were joined by many of the subaltern
officers; and the growing spirit of open mutiny was roaming through
every division of the army.
During this cessation of active hostilities, the Tyrians were making
preparation for the great Annual Festival in honour of their tutelary
God,--Apollo,--which had been postponed from the summer solstice,
owing to the position of the Siege. In this Religious ceremony no one
could be excused, or excluded; even the sentinels from the ramparts
must leave the steps of war, for the paths of peace: all must join in
devotion and thanksgiving to the protecting Sun, which, as Apollo, was
supposed at Midsummer to reach his altitude of beatific power. Any
Tyrian, therefore, who did not worship the rising of the great Deity
of Phœnicia upon that day, was believed to be banished from his
genial influence, during the next annual circling of their Zodiac.
It was in the fulness of the Moon's last quarter, in the month of
August, that Alexander, having left his Pavilion on the Mountain, and
wandering alone through the deep vistas, suddenly cast his war-mantle
at the foot of a giant cedar of Lebanon; and reclining thereon,
perused a few pages of the Iliad, his fond and fatal companion,--but
from anxiety and fatigue was soon in slumber. The sleeper was as
solitary as the tree beneath which he slept--for they were both alone
in station as they were in character. The Moon had risen in unclouded
splendour, and cast her beams, as in playfulness, upon the child of
fortune; like celestial Cynthia, when, upon the retiring of her
attendants--the Stars of Night--she cast her virgin smiles upon the
earthly beauty, and youthful figure of Endymion; for the now sleeping
hero had seen but twenty-four summers, and those without a cloud to
dim their brilliancy. He now dreamed of Tyrus and her downfall,--a
smile played around his lips, triumphant as Apollo's:--he suddenly
sprung to his feet and grasped his sword;--the action was but the
active portion of his visioned victory, for--
The _Mind_ is ever wakeful,--when the _spirits_
Grow weary, Nature calls for _their_ repose:
And thus our animal-being slumbers nightly.--
But the Mind moves in its eternal course,
Thought following thought, by the association
Which govern'd them by day: but (like a King
Throned, with his vassals slumbering by his side)
Its Counsellors are gone;--Perception's messengers
Lie mute before their Monarch,--whose mistake
Leads to such a labyrinth of errors,
That bright Aurora, with her threads of light,
Must be its Ariadne, or 'tis lost![13]
When the fleshy walls of this human citadel
Are in repose, or apparent slumber,--
Still the faithful sentinel of the brain,--
The Mind,--is watchful through all space and time!
Like th' immortal Soul, in the Sleep of Death![14]
[13] MS. Tragedy, "The Bride of Damascus."
[14] MS. Tragedy, "Tecumseh."
Alexander awoke, and beheld before him, waiting his time of slumber,
Hephæstion, and the War-Council. They informed him that the
preparations were ready for another attack; they also announced the
growing discontent of the entire camp; that the spirits of the
soldiery were already depressed, from their tedious and useless
hardships; that the cavalry loudly murmured from their total inutility
through the present service: they also forced upon him the reflection,
that his reputation might be injured, if the future assault upon the
walls should again prove ineffectual; and that every gloom cast over
the Macedonians, was a just cause to renew and continue the brilliant
bravery of the Tyrians. The King of Macedonia listened with unwonted
placidity to the remarks and covert advice from his Council, and in
reply told them,--_that Tyrus would be captured within two
days_,--that in a Vision of the present night it was revealed to him
that the Island would be defenceless within that time!
The Council returned to the camp, where, the omen contained in the
reported Vision in Mount Lebanon aroused their superstition and
renewed their courage; which Religious and warlike feelings were
increased seven-fold when, upon Alexander's return to the camp, it was
announced that some Tyrians (captured in the galleys) had stated that
the "morrow" was to be the great National festival to Apollo!--and
during which ceremony--Alexander reasoned--the Island-Capital would be
in a manner defenceless!
It must have been at this discovery that the vain Macedonian imagined
he was descended from Apollo, having for the time being cast aside his
former claim to be the son of Jupiter.
The Festival was applied by the army to the true meaning of the dream,
and that interpretation was received by all as a certain harbinger of
instant victory. Orders were thereupon forthwith given that a general
and desperate assault upon the walls should be made at sunrise of the
morrow, as that would be the precise moment when Tyrus--as one
man--would be bent in adoration to the visible God of Light. The
wooden-towers were to be secretly advanced during the night to the
walls,--as, also, the ponderous battering-rams;--the former were to be
filled with soldiery, so as to be ready for instantly entering the
city through any breach, by lowering the tower drawbridges;--"crouching,"
like their ancestors, "in the ominous horse" at the siege of Troy.
At midnight of the day preceding the Festival, the devotional tribute
to Apollo commenced in the Capital by withdrawing from the walls the
sentinels, citizens, and all warlike defences,--for the day about to
dawn was dedicated to Nature, as a peace-offering upon the Altar of
their Deity.
Upon the walls being vacated, the Macedonians in silence, and aided by
the darkness of the night, placed their battering-engines in position;
advanced and filled their scaling-towers; and made every preparation,
unseen and unheard, for the coming and dreadful event.
As the first indication of the break of day became apparent, the
Tyrian population, arrayed in their gayest robes and attire (the
garlands of their own sacrifice) began to assemble, and concentrate
towards the great Temple of Hercules-Apollo;--its steps,--the vast
area in front,--and the broad avenues leading to the Edifice of
Religion, were filled and occupied with masses of human beings, who,
with their faces toward "the East," stood ready to kneel and kiss the
bosom of their great mother,--Earth,--as the first beams of their
protecting God should descend upon them! The rising of that Last Sun
upon Tyrus was looked for with breathless anxiety, both by the
besieged and the invaders,--the former were gathered to offer their
wild thanks for their past safety,--for the present cessation from
hostilities, and devout prayers for their future preservation,--for
these solemn purposes were assembled the Old and the Young,--Fathers
with their Sons,--Mothers and their infant Children,--Youths and
Virgins plighted in the spring-time of hope,--King, Priests, the "Wise
men," Warriors, and People were gathered as with one heart--with one
impulse, to join in festive joy upon the Tyrian Sabbath of the Year.
But the foes to this scene of human happiness, were crouched in
ambush,--like the Serpent of Eden,--and waited for that Sun's
appearance as if it had been the enemy of mankind, and were ready to
wreak their fury upon its children and worshippers!
At length the advancing heralds of Apollo were seen bounding above the
mountains of Damascus,--springing with their gold-imbuing feet from
cloud to cloud until they reached the zenith,--when the Sun-God
himself appeared and approached from the mighty portals of the East,
arrayed in the gorgeous mantle of his eternal throne! There was a
moment of calm, breathless intensity,--as before the hurricane;--then
arose the loud hosannahs from his Tyrian subjects, now prostrate with
adoration;--but they were answered by the terrific and appalling
shouts of the ambushed Macedonians! Sudden as the storm-flash, a
breathless panic seized the kneeling worshippers;--they were
transfixed with fear, surprise, and wonder;--they felt that their
ever-faithful Deity had delivered them, bound in his own fetters, to
the unsparing foe,--they called aloud for his protection,--but the
brow of their God was suddenly shadowed by the clouds of an
approaching Tempest, indicating the war of elements as of man;--the
voice of supplication was now changed to the wild language of
despair,--all was horror and confusion amid the Temples, Palaces,
Courts, and Streets of the Metropolis,--the screams and shrieks of
women and children, trodden underfoot by the frantic and flying
citizens, were unheard amid the demoniac yells of the invaders, which
even deadened the sound of the distant and murmuring thunder: and they
now in their shouts of approaching triumph applied the battering-engines
with every energy and success,--for the ramparts were unmanned, and
their desperate assault unchecked. The boldest of the Tyrians,
recovering from surprise, now rallied, and snatching up weapons merely
of attack (for their persons were defenceless from their festival
attire) flew towards the wall, against which the impious attack was so
furiously rendered. It was too late,--an upper breach had been made,
and the soft stone wall was fast falling beneath the repeated and
ponderous blows of the battering engines;--the balistæ and catapultæ
were now unmanned and overthrown as being useless, while the giant
towers were wheeled and levered toward the breach, which now
momentarily increased in width; the several drop-bridges of the towers
were instantly lowered upon the battered walls, when the concealed
Soldiery, after their first discharge of arrows and javelins, rushed
like wolves from their dens upon the devoted sheepfolds! As the
towers, galleries, and hive-cells were emptied, they were instantly
replaced by swarms of warriors from the camp, the whole of which was
now in motion. The hitherto inactive and impatient Cavalry were drawn
out and marshalled ready to plunge like fierce dragons within the
city, when the crumbling walls should be partially levelled. The
bravest of the hardy Tyrians met the first storming party (the
forlorn-hope even of ancient days) with dauntless courage, and kept in
check, even by their dead bodies, the instant advance of the foe;--the
wall was disputed inch by inch, and with increasing fury by both
parties,--each being resolved to conquer or to die! While the conflict
was raging on the walls,--where the loud sounds and flashing weapons
seemed but the similitude of the over-hanging thunder and the vivid
lightning,--Azelmic, his Priests and body-guards, prepared to protect
their God and Temple to the last; in their despair and wild devotion
they took the golden Statue of their Deity from its pedestal, and with
massive chains of the same metal to secure it, and with huge nails
driven through perforated holes in the feet, they thus fastened it to
the broad summit of the great Altar of the Nation!
The devoted Sidonians were not inactive, for they were watching the
progress of the storming of the walls, and as they learnt (from the
shouts) that the invaders were about to enter the city, they drew
near,--_resolved to receive at the Seaward Gates_ those Fugitives who
would rather choose a home within the Galleys, than a grave within the
Citadel.
The bloody contest at the storming point was terrible in its effects,
both upon the invaders and the besieged; for the falling masses of
stone buried in one indiscriminate grave both friends and foes. At
length, the towers becoming useless from the walls being lowered
beneath the level of the drawbridges, they, with the engines and
machines were overthrown on either side of the causeway, and the famed
Macedonian Phalanx passed the breach,--but the dead and dying, with
their upraised spears, and broken shafts in their writhing bodies,
formed for a time a barrier against the advance of a division of
horse,--they were recalled by the shrill trumpets, while the pioneers
levelled the path of death;--a second troop of Infantry passed on to
the support of the first, who were now in desperate conflict on the
walls and breach with the opposing ranks of the despairing Tyrians,
many of whom empaled themselves on the triple-spears of the
Phalanx:--when on a preconcerted signal from an upreared flag (for the
now loud thunder and deafening shouts and shrieks deadened all
trumpet-sounds to the distant soldiery) the two battalions of Infantry
on the ruins opened to the right and left,--and Alexander,--mounted on
Bucephalus, and with the Standard inscribed _Granicus_, just snatched
from his banner-bearer, and at the head of his Officers and Cavalry,
flew like "fiery Mars" to the summit of the breach! At that instant a
terrific flash rent the dark storm-clouds, and a shaft from the wild
tempest struck to the ground the marble Statue from the apex of the
Temple,--the entablature was sundered as by an earthquake! Alexander
at that moment,--with his bright corslet and white-plumed helm
reflecting back the lightning glare,--his inspiring face and standard
turned to his troops,--his unsheathed and glittering sword pointing to
the foe,--his white and noble war-steed with storm-scattered mane, and
upreared head and feet, as if spurning the dying bodies beneath his
proud hoofs, yet feeling his master's spirit, and anxious for the
plunge amid the living,--at that moment--Alexander appeared the Hero
of the World! He might have remained so,--but the moment passed and
for ever!--he descended, as it were, from his moral elevation, like an
avalanche of crime upon the already blood-stained vale beneath! His
example was followed by Hephæstion, old Clytus, Parmenio and the troop
of future kings,--horsemen,--the triple-guarded Phalanx,--cohorts of
archers,--"the whole camp, pioneers and all;"--fire, spear, and sword
were carried into every quarter of the capital. While the Metropolis
was wrapt in flames by the foot-soldiery, and murdered women and
children fell in every street,--the Conqueror and his Cavalry attacked
the avenues leading to the Temple,--every pathway to that Edifice was
defended with a patriotic devotion, and a Religious fanaticism!
While thus every passage was nobly defended, and attention directed to
those quarters, the few _Sidonian Galleys_ received on board their
living freights,--_Families_,--_Men_, _Women_, and _Children_,--cleared
the harbour unobserved, and upon the gradual lessening of the storm of
elements, they reached the open Sea in safety:--Thus were the
_Prophesied_ "gleanings" of the Nation rescued!
Azelmic, Priests, and People disputed with devoted heroism the area to
the Temple of the kingdom--it was passed, but over the dead bodies of
hundreds of the defenders,--every step to the platform of the edifice
was dyed with human gore;--ascending the steps over his crimson
pathway, Alexander, followed by Hephæstion and his favourites, reached
the chief entrance, through which Azelmic had rushed into the interior
of the Temple,--the Conqueror instantly dismounted (followed by his
officers), and pursued the apparent Fugitive, in order to capture with
his own hands the Monarch of the Nation;--he entered the sacred court
of worship over the dead bodies of mangled priests,--when suddenly the
Standard of the Granicus dropped from his hand, and was stained and
effaced with sacrilegious blood,--while himself and his officers fell
back in Religious awe, and were transfixed with heroic admiration!--for
the Last King of Tyrus, so far from retreating, had sprung, sword in
hand, upon the Altar of the Nation,--and throwing his despairing arms
around the image of Apollo, resolved to defend--even to the death--the
enchained Statue of his Country and his God!
Which was the Hero then?--the Patriot or the Invader?
So noble a picture of Patriotism, the Conqueror had in vain looked for
in the pages of the Iliad,--the inspiring Volume to invasions and his
victories. Amid all the Sons of Priam and of Troy, there was not one
Azelmic;--and his true glory was indeed brilliant, for Alexander's was
dimmed and lost before it;--like a Planet of the Night, when the
star-discovering shade of Earth, is dispelled by the dawning Sun!
The Patriot's life and liberty were granted by the Conqueror, whose
youth and native heroism sympathized with such devoted and gallant
bearing. Would that the same mercy had been extended to the brave
Tyrians! The Capital had fallen,--but Conflagration and wild Slaughter
raged and ranged in every corner of the Metropolis;--Massacre and
Rapine roamed at large unchecked by "pity or remorse,"--but sustained,
and hallooed on by the frantic yells of demoniac Revenge! Thousands
were slain in defending the walls, streets, and Temples. Eight
thousand Women and Children fell by the sword alone, while nearly an
equal number were buried beneath the falling ruins, or perished in the
flames! Thirty-two thousand of the inhabitants were made
prisoners,--the walls were razed, and every building burnt or levelled
to the ground. Thirty thousand of the captives were sold as slaves,
and dispersed into the Asiatic Countries. Alexander then committed an
act which should,--it has--"damned him to everlasting fame,"--placed
upon his once bright shield, the canker-rust of infamy,--and which
must increase from the gathered curses of posterity! After the
surrender,--when even Slaughter and Rapine--the scarlet sins of
unrighteous war--had ceased their havoc and brutality,--and the
patriotic prisoners were ranged and numbered,--this Demon of Macedonia
selected _two thousand_ of the chief Citizens, and, as if in mockery
of their Goddess of the Nation--Astartē,--whose emblem was the
_Cross_,--_commanded that they should be Crucified_! It was
accomplished,--the setting Sun upon that Last Day of Tyrus, cast his
expiring gaze upon a Nation's Crucifixion! Avenues of Crosses were
upraised with frantic victims, along the shores of the mainland; and
in the streets of the Isle,--or grouped upon the mounds of ruins,
walls, and Temples! Such an instance of cold-blooded barbarity cannot
be equalled in the annals of ancient crime,--except--_in its
repetition_ by the same ruthless murderer, after the patriotic defence
of Oxus in India.
Alexander, as he stood upon the breached-wall of Tyrus, could have
been the Saviour of a People; but, in his descent, he became like
Lucifer,--a demon devoted to passion and to crime! Let no voice
applaud him after he plunged from that wall,--the bloody stream
beneath was the Rubicon of his fame and glory;--he passed it,--it could
never be retraced. Oh! let no author,--the instrument of
Intellect--betray his high duty and uphold the deeds of Invaders or
Conquerors, be they of the ancient or the modern world:--let him
stigmatize crime and injustice by their proper names, belong they to
Macedonia, or to any other Nation existing in our own times:--ay!--
although the home of our ancestors should be rebuked, for then only
will the hearths of their descendants be free from blame, and avoid
that desolation, which the contrary course must (the North-Star is not
more true) engender for future time and action!--But, if the historic
pen in its duty to posterity, must be employed in recording the annals
of savage warfare and invasion, let it only _praise_ the true Patriots
and Defenders of their Native-land,--be they of remote antiquity in
either hemisphere,--or the Israel-warriors of Asiatic mountains,
snow-crowned Passes, or of the Vale of Cashmere;--the noble and
chivalric spirits of Circassia; the natives of Algeria,--or the
impotent People of that land, claiming Confucius for its
Philosopher,--where thousands have been slain, and not one record made
of the desolated hearts of the Mother, Widow, or the Orphan! Let us
teach ourselves the truth,--open our own hearts, and minds to receive
the Religious impress of its power,--ingraft it in the growing
intellect of our children, that they may, as a necessity, teach it to
their descendants,--that _one_ Azelmic, or Montezuma,--Alfred, or
William Tell,--are worth the _entire host_ of Alexanders, Cortezes,
Danish Conquerors, or tyrannic Gieslers!
Our humble, yet fervent description of the Conquest of Tyrus would
fail of our hearted intent, if any other sentiment than the above
could be derived from it. That terrible event was consummated on the
5th day of Elul--the sixth month of the Hebrews and Phœnicians;--which,
by the present computation of time, would place the Destruction of the
Tyrian Nation upon the twentieth day of August, 332 years before the
Christian Æra.