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  Moreover, he was planning to draw Alexander deeper into the country and

  weaken his forces through scorched earth tactics. But none of the expected

  reinforcements came. In Ecbatana Darius was left with merely 3,000

  cavalry and 30,000 infantry, of which only some 2,000 Greek mercenaries

  were of substantial military value. This was much too little to fight another

  battle against such a formidable enemy. Darius therefore dispatched his

  baggage train towards the so-called Caspian Gate, usually associated with

  today’s Sar-i Darreh pass in the southern part of the Elburz Mountain

  Range. He himself remained at Ecbatana for a while but then also began a

  retreat. It was during this retreat that a dispute began which the ancient

  authors call a conspiracy. The disagreement was between Darius and three

  of the highest Persian officials in his camp: Bessus, the satrap of Bactria

  and Sogdiana, Barsaentes, the satrap of Arachosia (Haruvatiš) and

  Drangiana, and the chiliarch Nabarzanes. These officials interpreted

  Darius’s successive defeats as a sign that he no longer had the support of

  the gods. They therefore suggested that he should temporarily hand over

  his authority to someone else, a ‘substitute king,’ and thus remove the bad

  omens that were currently imposed on the Great King. Darius flatly

  rejected this idea. The conspirators therefore decided to isolate their king

  from his loyal Greek mercenaries and effectively took over control of the

  army. Patron, the commander of the Greek mercenaries, contacted Darius

  and offered to have his men guard him. But the Great King rejected this

  offer for he did not wish his subjects to think he did not trust them.

  Therefore the mercenaries and Persians who, like the loyal Artabazus, did

  not wish to side with the conspirators now just tried to save themselves. At

  a village called Thara Bessus, Nabarzanes and Barsaentes arrested Darius

  and, bound in chains of gold – for this was after all still the Great King,

  transported him in a carriage towards the eastern satrapies. Bessus, who

  was most probably a member of the Achaemenid dynasty, symbolically

  donned the tiara and proclaimed himself king assuming the dynastic name

  of Artaxerxes (V).78

  Meanwhile the Macedonian army was still marching to Ecbatana. On

  the 12th day a Persian aristocrat called Bisthanes – apparently the son of

  Artaxerxes III – surrendered to Alexander and informed him that Darius

  had left Ecbatana five days earlier. Finally realising that Darius was

  78 Curt., 5.8.1-12.20; Arr., An. , 3.19.2, 3.21.1, 3.25.3; Diod., 17.73.2; Plu., Alex. , 42.5; Just., 11.15.1; Ps.-Callisth., 2.20; ME, 3; It. Alex. , 68-69. Bosworth 1980, pp.

  333-334, 340-342; Seibert 1985, p. 112; Holt 1988, pp. 45-46; Nylander 1993, pp.

  151-153.

  King of Asia

  257

  militarily weak, Alexander changed his plans. He decided that continuing

  the march to Ecbatana was no longer necessary, so he entrusted the

  capture of that city to Parmenion. As the Great King had left the last

  capital of his empire, Alexander considered the Panhellenic war ended. It

  was then or after Darius’s death that he relieved the Greek allies and

  Thessalians of military duty. Apart from the normal soldier’s pay they

  were given bonus, the sum total of which amounted to 12,000 talents. At

  same time it was declared that any soldier who wished to continue serving

  Alexander could do so as a mercenary. Many took up that offer.

  Parmenion duly captured Ecbatana and deposited there the transported

  treasure, which was now put under the charge of Harpalus and a powerful

  garrison of 6,000 Macedonian soldiers and mercenaries. Next Parmenion

  was to subjugate Hyrcania by the Caspian Sea, but these instructions were

  changed as Alexander and two other Macedonian commanders had already

  conquered that land.79

  Alexander set himself the task of capturing Darius. The objective was

  to force the Great King to hand over the crown to the Macedonian

  conqueror and thus legitimise his rule in Persian eyes. So began the

  wildest chase in Alexander’s career, especially as the Persian conspirators

  were also aware of the political dangers they faced if Darius were captured

  by the Macedonians. The difficulties were compounded by the time of

  year, the start of a scorching summer, and the terrain, mountains and arid

  desert. The ancient authors relate an anecdote about how one hot day when

  everyone was suffering from thirst the soldiers, out of concern for the

  king’s health and therefore also their own safety, brought Alexander a

  helmet full of water. But the king, as always eager to demonstrate his

  heroic character, of course refused because there was not enough water to

  be shared with the other soldiers. Alexander was able to keep track of

  where his quarry was heading on account of Persian desertions: dignitaries

  and ordinary soldiers who disapproved of Darius’s arrest successively

  abandoned Bessus and Nabarzanes’s camp. The best detachments had

  been selected for this mission: hetairoi, mounted scouts, mercenary

  cavalry, Agrianians, archers and some phalangites. On the 11th day of a

  murderous march the Macedonians reached Rhagae (today Rey, in the

  Greater Teheran metropolitan area), some 80 km from the Caspian Gate,

  which the Persians had already crossed. Once the Macedonians reached

  the Caspian Gate, Alexander had to allow his men to rest – for five days

  according to Arrian. It was at this time that Alexander nominated

  Oxydates satrap of Media. Previously Darius had imprisoned this Persian

  79 Arr., An. , 3.19.2-8; Diod., 17.74.2-5; Curt., 5.13.1, 6.2.17; Plu., Alex. , 42.5.

  Bosworth 1976, pp. 132-136; Bosworth 1980, pp. 334-338; Heckel 2006, p. 72.

  258

  Chapter V

  in Susa for some disloyalty and that made him seem more trustworthy in

  the eyes of the new ruler. Beyond the Caspian Gate Alexander received a

  Babylonian called Bagistanes and Mazaeus’s son, Antibelos (Ardu-Bel?),

  who informed him of Darius’s arrest. After two nights of forced marching

  the Macedonians reached yet another abandoned Persian campsite.

  Alexander learned that the Greek mercenaries had also left the Persians

  and that was when he decided to change his tactic. He continued the

  pursuit with only 300-500 of his best foot soldiers, who were now

  mounted on horses for the sake of speed. The success of this improvisation

  incidentally led Alexander to later create a new military formation called

  the dimachae, who were trained to fight both on foot and on horseback.

  But instead of following their tracks Alexander chose to intercept the

  fleeing Persians by taking a shortcut across the Great Salt Desert (Dasht-e

  Kavir). Most of the horses failed to complete the arduous trek, which

  according to our sources covered a distance of 400 stades (72 km), so that

  Alexander was eventually left with only 60 soldiers. This detachment

  finally managed to intercept the Persian column not far from the town of

  Hecatompylos (today Shahr-i Qumis). Though numerically superior, the

  Persians panicked when they saw the Macedonians personally commanded

  by Ale
xander. Bessus tried to persuade Darius to leave the carriage, mount

  a horse and flee with the rest of them. But when Darius refused,

  Barsaentes and the satrap of Areia Satibarzanes stabbed him with their

  spears and fled, leaving the Great King to suffer his fate. Though legend

  would have us believe that Alexander found Darius while he was still alive,

  it is almost certain that the Great King was dead by the time the victor

  reached him. All the new king of Asia could do was to cover his body with

  his cloak.80 According to Arrian, Darius died in the Athenian month of

  Hekatombaion, i.e. in July 330. This date is confirmed by the Paros’

  Chronicle, where Darius’s death is the first recorded event in the Athenian

  year 330/329, which began in July. During the spring-summer campaign

  Alexander’s army covered the over 900-km distance from Persepolis to

  Hecatompylos in just two months, as usual surprising his enemy with

  sheer speed.81

  80 Arr., An. , 3.20-21; Curt., 5.12.18-13.25; Plu., Alex. , 42.6-43.5; Plu., mor. , 332f; Diod., 17.73.2-4; Just., 11.15; Polyaen., 4.3.25; Ael., NA, 6.25; Ps.-Callisth., 2.20;

  It. Alex. , 69; Poll., 1.132. Green 1974, pp. 321-322, 325-329; Bosworth 1980, pp.

  338-345; Bosworth 1988, pp. 95-96; Badian 1985, pp. 448-449; Badian 1996, pp.

  20-21; Nylander 1993, p. 151; Hammond 1996, pp. 171-173; Heckel 2006, pp. 30,

  188.

  81 Arr., An. , 3.22; Marmor Parium: FGrH, 239 F107. Bosworth 1980, p. 346.

  King of Asia

  259

  The treasure that had been taken from Ecbatana by Darius was duly

  found by Alexander’s men in Persian camp – Arrian’s figure of 7,000

  talents is probably closer to the truth that Curtius’s 26,000. The new king

  of Asia ordered the body of Darius to be taken to Persepolis. It was buried

  in one of the royal graves at Naqsh-e Rustam – presumably not the one

  with unfinished sculptures that Darius had started having built in his

  lifetime. Concern over providing a royal burial for Darius and the later

  pursuit of the Great King’s murderer, Bessus, shows that Alexander was

  clearly taking his role as successor to the Achaemenids on the Asian

  throne seriously. At Hecatompylos Alexander had to wait for the rest of

  his detachments to catch up and it is probably there that he made further

  official nominations. He appointed Amminapes, a member of his retinue,

  satrap of the as yet unconquered Parthia and Hyrcania. One of Alexander’s

  hetairoi, Tlepolemus, was appointed commander of a garrison of

  mercenaries. Of greater importance was the inclusion of Darius’s younger

  brother, Oxyathres, among Alexander’s hetairoi. This was the only

  instance recorded in the sources of an Iranian being bestowed such an

  honour at this time. Darius’s death, the stay at Hecatompylos and the

  release from service of the Greek allies were all interpreted by the

  Macedonian troops as signs the campaign was drawing to a close and that

  soon they would be heading home, especially as they had recently crossed

  the Caspian Gate, which the Greeks considered the end of the inhabited

  world. In this instance Alexander easily managed to persuade his soldiers

  of the necessity to continue the war by stressing that Bessus was still

  putting up resistance, which could eventually lead to a counteroffensive or

  even another invasion of Europe. But this was nonetheless the first clear

  signal of diverging views between Alexander and his men regarding the

  war. It was no doubt as consequence of this experience that during his stay

  in Hyrcania Alexander imposed a censorship policy regarding the

  correspondence of Macedonian and mercenary soldiers, whose letters were

  now secretly opened in search of politically incorrect opinions.82

  The king did not immediately start the expedition against Bessus but as

  usual first made sure the territories behind him were secure. His army

  turned back from the road to Bactria and instead invaded the fertile

  agricultural land of Hyrcania by the Caspian Sea. There it divided into

  three groups commanded by Alexander, Craterus and Erigyios.

  Alexander’s corps occupied the satrapy’s capital, Zadracarta, and there he

  82 Aeschin., 3.165; Arr., An. , 3.22.1, 3.22.6; Diod., 17.73.3; Curt., 6.2.1-4.1; Plin., Nat. , 36.132; Plu., Alex. , 43.7; Polyaen., 4.3.19; Just., 11.15. Wilcken 1967, pp.

  149-151; Bosworth 1980, p. 345; Stoneman 1994, p. 95; Briant 2003, pp. 45-52;

  Heckel 2006, p. 188.

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  Chapter V

  received Persian officials successively surrendering to him after Darius’s

  demise: the satrap of Hyrcania, Phrataphernes, the chiliarch Nabarzanes

  and the satrap of the Tapuri, Autophradates (or Phradates), alone among

  them allowed to keep his position. Artabazus and his sons were accepted

  into the king’s entourage partly as reward for the father’s loyalty to Darius

  even in the hardest of times and partly because his daughter Barsine had

  been Alexander’s lover for two and a half years (see Chapter IV.5).

  Alexander initially refused to make any deals with the Greek mercenaries

  who had served Darius but eventually he relented and promised to forgive

  them on condition that they now entered his service. Also some

  ambassadors from Greek states were taken into Macedonian captivity.

  Alexander, however, released Sinope’s envoys as that state had not been

  included in the universal peace and therefore had had a right to collaborate

  with Darius. The subjugation of Hyrcania was ended with a short, five-day

  campaign against the Mardi, who inhabited the south west part of that

  country. Alexander’s ire was raised when this tribe audaciously captured

  his favourite steed Bucephalus. Threatened with total annihilation, the

  Mardi returned the horse, submitted hostages and promised obedience to

  the satrap Autophradates. In Hyrcania Alexander was also reportedly met

  by the Queen of the Amazons, Thalestris, who came to Macedonian camp

  for the express purpose of having the greatest war leader father a child by

  her and it was for this reason that she remained in the camp for thirteen

  days. If she gave birth to a girl, she intended to keep her, but if she gave

  birth to a boy, she would have the child sent to Alexander. This tale set in

  the most distant of imaginable lands was already controversial in ancient

  times and rejected by more sober minded authors. Plutarch even cites an

  anecdote about how Onesicritus read the tale of Alexander and Thalestris

  to Lysimachus and his companions. The king’s former bodyguard who had

  always been at hand suddenly interrupted Onesicritus and sarcastically

  asked: ‘And where was I at that time?’83 Some modern historians believe

  that the historic part of this tale refers to a genuine encounter with a

  princess of an Iranian nomadic people called the Dahae.84

  A less sensational but much more important development that would

  influence Alexander’s future policies regarding conquered nations was the

  mass capitulation of Iranian aristocrats, who now formed a sizable group

  in his entourage. Alexander received them willingly for by then he was

  83 Arr., An. , 3.23.1-24.1; Curt., 6.4.1-5.32; Diod., 17.75.1-77.3; Str., 11.5.4 (after

&
nbsp; Cleitarchus); Plu., Alex. , 44-46; Just., 12.3; It. Alex. , 70-72. Plutarch ( Alex. , 46) lists now lost sources to the alleged encounter between Alexander and Thalestris.

  Engels 1978, pp. 83-84; Atkinson 1994, pp. 192-200; Bosworth 1995, pp. 121-122.

  84 Lane Fox 1973, p. 276; Bosworth 1995, pp. 102-103.

  King of Asia

  261

  well aware of the essential role played by aristocrats in the running of this

  vast empire. This also probably explains why the king was usually

  merciful to those who had previously held important positions in the

  Achaemenid state, including the conspirators Nabarzanes and Satibarzanes

  who had been involved in overthrowing Darius. Their high status and the

  speed with which they surrendered saved them from the punishment that

  would eventually be imposed on Bessus. Such a large presence of well-

  born Persians in Alexander’s circle naturally enhanced the process of

  ‘orientalization’ in his policies, which began soon after his first victories in

  Asia. This was given even greater impetus after news of Bessus’s

  usurpation, for now Alexander very much wanted to show the Iranian

  aristocrats that he was the real Great King by adhering to the traditions of

  the Achaemenid court. A turning point in the ‘orientalization’ of

  Alexander’s policies occurred during his stay in Zadracarta from August to

  September 330. Apart from the Persian dress he himself had been wearing

  for some time when in court, Alexander now persuaded some of his

  hetairoi to wear certain elements of this attire as well. Henceforth he had

  two chancelleries: one for documents concerning European affairs, which

  Alexander sealed with his original signet and a chancellery for royal

  Persian affairs where Alexander used a signet captured from Darius. At the

  time Alexander also at least partly adopted the Achaemenid court’s

  hierarchical system and gave Macedonians and Greeks in his retinue

  Persian court titles. People wishing to speak to Alexander were now

  ushered in by his chamberlain ( eisangeleus), Chares, in command of a

 

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