Chapter 1: What sparked Alexander the Great's invasion of Persia?
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You'll also unlock hundreds of hours of original documentaries with a brand new release every single week covering everything from the ancient world to World War II. Just visit historyhit.com slash subscribe. It's spring, 334 BC, and a fleet of ships sail across the small stretch of water that divides Europe from Asia. The ancient Hellespont, the modern-day Dardanelles in Turkey.
The sun beams brightly and the waters are calm. A gentle and favourable breeze helps the vessels eastwards. The ships are fooled to the brim with soldiers and horses. Supplies of food, weapons and armour are also not too far away, vital cargo for the campaign ahead. The soldiers wear tunics, not armour. They're not expecting any attack.
For many, this would have been the first time they had ever been on board a ship. They're anxious to reach dry land as soon as possible. The horses likewise are eager for a return to terra firma and the freedom to stretch their legs and graze once more. Thankfully, the voyage is short.
Soon enough, thousands of men and mounts will disembark onto Asian soil, ready to follow their leader on his most daring campaign to date. Their leader is a young king, standing at the prow of his own ship. Barely in his twenties, he oozes with confidence.
He is dressed in splendid royal armour, a purpled cloak, and a lion-shaped helmet topped by a crest, with white plumes protruding out either side. His eyes are intensely focused on the coastline that's fast approaching. Asia. This is a king who has already sent shockwaves across his kingdom, winning battles, destroying one of the great cities of Greece and purging political enemies.
A warlord who is not to be underestimated. His name is Alexander, King Alexander III of Macedon. Soon enough, Alexander's ship nears its own special landing site, a deserted stretch of sandy coastline some distance from where the rest of his invasion force is headed. But close to a site this young king has dreamed about visiting for years.
The fabled city of Troy, where great Homeric heroes like Achilles, Odysseus and Hector battled all those centuries before. Alexander knew the stories off by heart. His heart swells at the thought that he is following in the footsteps of his heroic ancestor Achilles. But this time, his enemy isn't one powerful city.
It is a superpower that dominates much of the known world, with this beach being its westernmost fringe. This is the Persian Empire. Taking an iron-tipped spear, the young king launches it from the prow of his ship into the sandy beach. A bold, symbolic statement. Alexander is claiming the Persian Empire as his soon-to-be spear-won territory. This isn't to be a quick raid across the sea.
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Chapter 2: How did Alexander's crossing of the Hellespont impact his campaign?
The invasion of Persia has begun. Welcome to Episode 2 of this special series about the life and legend of Alexander the Great, one of history's most formidable commanders.
In the last episode, we covered the early years of Alexander, the vital role played by his father King Philip II of Macedon, the influence of his mother Olympias, and Alexander's succession to the kingship following his father's murder, and how he brutally consolidated his position.
Now we turn to the main event, Alexander's invasion of the mighty Persian Empire, an empire far, far greater in size than his own kingdom. In this episode, we'll explore the early challenges that Alexander quickly faced and how he ultimately came to confront the Persian King of Kings on the battlefield, Darius III.
Joining me once again is Dr. Adrian Goldsworthy, author of Philip and Alexander, Kings and Conquerors. I'm Tristan Hughes, your host, and this is Episode 2, The Invasion of Persia. Adrian, welcome back. It's almost as if we've just finished recording the last episode. I know, it's just like being in the very same room. Time flies when you're having fun.
So this is episode two of our Alexander the Great series. And where we left it last time, Alexander has just become king and he's done some early military campaigning in Europe, I guess, you know, Bulgaria up to the Danube and then punishing the city-state of Thebes. And now he's looking east. Now he's looking towards the Persian Empire, isn't he?
Yes. I mean, it's the war that Philip has already started because Philip had sent an advance guard, really, to Asia Minor several years before and was planning to join them. But now Alexander has had to wait till he's secured his control on power, his control of the Macedonian throne. But eventually, this is the big project. This is how he can outdo his father.
There's the story about the younger Alexander hearing news of Philip's latest victory, looking depressed, and his friends asking him and saying, because he's leaving me so little to do. This is the one big thing that Philip had only just started and hasn't done, the challenge of facing Persia, the superpower of the world then, and beating them. So this is the great event, the great adventure.
And at the time, so this is spring 334 BC when it all begins. And that's the beginning of the campaigning season, isn't it? So winter finishes in March or April time. That's normally when the army start rolling into action again.
Yes, although Philip has broken the rules in recent years by organising a supply train for his army and keeping some of the mercenaries being paid, some of them Macedonians that will be willing to serve throughout. So even though he campaigns with fewer soldiers in winter, he has kept on fighting all the year round, which means... It's very hard to face him.
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Chapter 3: What challenges did Alexander face during his early campaigns?
They're serving for pay. The other thing, as soon as you learn anything about the Greek city-states, you learn about the instability, the stasis, the revolutions that occur everywhere. And very frequently, there are always losers in these, whether it's an aristocracy that takes over or their rivals get thrown out, whether it turns into a democracy, whether it becomes a tyranny.
There are always losers who go elsewhere. And the best thing, the easiest thing for many of them to do is to sell their spear. And there's been a long tradition of mercenary service that goes back almost into the Greek Dark Ages.
And that period, and there's even the idea that some of the origins of hoplites and phalanx fighting may have come from organized groups of Greek mercenaries who say, oh, this was a good way of doing it and bring it home with them. Work out this is how you work as a group. So there's always been that element.
And think back to Xerxes and Darius, you know, the earlier invasions, they come with Greek exiles. So there's always these people around. But yes, it's certainly been magnified by Philip as well. Not just Alexander, but Philip and his campaigns. There will be more losers out there. So that tradition is there. And it's not considered dishonorable.
Alexander tries, you know, he's trying to make this into all the Greeks coming together under my leadership, fighting this. But that's... The Greeks, there isn't Greece. You are an Athenian, you are a Theban, you are from Bethune, any of these cities. So it's again, it's not up to him to say he's in charge and you've got to follow him.
Let's get to the Battle of the River Granicus. It's an interesting one, the details of this, and you'll see it again and again. We get the deployment of Alexander's army. He approaches this very small river, so not a big obstacle. They can get troops across and there's no massive current. Then that Persian army, lots of cavalry and the Greek mercenaries are reposing it.
When we get to the battle itself, there's a funny anecdote and one of many that will follow of Alexander versus Parmenion, isn't it? Parmenion urging caution Alexander deciding, no, screw this, we're going to attack straight away. And then it all focuses in on Alexander, doesn't it? Like the narrative follows Alexander as we go through the battle.
You get deployment, initial moves, and then the camera pans in and it's all Alexander. Particularly in this case where you get great detail about the blows he strikes, the ones he suffers. So it's, which in a sense you could say that's what happens in Homer's battles.
You know, you have the sort of the broad sweep and you talk about all these numbers and then suddenly it's named heroes doing their thing. So there's an element of that. The other thing is Alexander's perception of a battle is going to be like that. It goes back to something we talked about a bit in the first episode.
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Chapter 4: How did Alexander's strategy differ from previous military leaders?
And he's doing that. We don't hear much about that at all. What we hear about is what Alexander's doing on the right. And, you know, as you correctly say, if they know that Alexander's there and they've positioned themselves with property, their best household troops to face him, we do hear some amazing stories, don't we?
Yes. I mean, one thing just to throw in quickly, in any form of common sense or military sense, you don't put cavalry to defend a riverbank and you don't make cavalry static. So the Persians are wrong-footed. I can't help wondering if they expected Alexander to wait a bit and follow Parmenides, but maybe attack tomorrow.
Because you don't normally, even a little river like that, it's a bit of an obstacle, a bit of a problem. But cavalry, their strength is their mobility. You put them all standing on the bank of a river and the strength will be with the horse. Horses love to climb. So you're coming up out of this. That's going to push them aside much quicker. You don't stand there and barge people.
So they've got it wrong from that point of view. They all seem to be clubbed in one place. They all charge at Alexander. And then you have Alexander steaming forward, running through a man with his ice and his spear. Breaks that, calls for another one. One of his friends says, look, I'm sorry, I'm really busy at the moment. I can't spare it to you.
Somebody else, interestingly enough, the same man who is supposed to have brokered the deal to get Alexander back from exile, self-imposed exile, when he's gone off in a strop after the argument at Philip's wedding feast, is there who gives Alexander a spear by this time. So you have him fighting.
He then, as soon as he's got that, steams off again at another batch of Persians who look distinguished. While he's fighting there, somebody comes up around him. He's killed or wounded one man. The man's brother comes around behind and is ready to chop down with either an axe or a falchion or some sort of heavy blow. Slices off one of the side plumes of Alexander's helmet.
Perhaps, depending on the version, knocks him off his horse, maybe knocks him unconscious. He's saved from being killed by Black Clitus. One of the, again, one of Philip's men who's been set beside him, whose sister was Alexander's nurse at one point. He is quicker off the mark and chops off the Persian satrap's arm, the Turkish aristocrat's arm, before he can strike that fatal blow.
But had that worked, Alexander could have been dead or crippled. in this first battle. And it comes back to that point. If that happens, isn't the war over? Because there's no obvious successor. Certainly no one is going to be sufficiently secure to think, I can be fighting in Asia for months, years, and not worry about what's happening back in Massachusetts.
And Alexander's so distinguishable as well with his big plume, I guess, that people can recognize him straight away. So he is a walking target.
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