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  the same advice in the same way to Cyrus the Great.22

  The Macedonians stayed in Taxila for most of the spring of 326. This

  was not so much because of a desire to admire the exotic surroundings or

  to converse with naked philosophers as on account of an attempt, by

  diplomatic means, to establish at least formal control over the rajahs of the

  Punjab. Unfortunately, not all of these rulers were as willing to concede as

  Abisares, Doxares and Porus – the king of the land between the rivers

  Acesines (Chenab) and Hydraotes (Ravi). Another, much more famous

  Porus ( Paurava), whose kingdom, bearing the same name, stretched from

  the river Hydaspes (Jhelum) to the Acesines, flatly refused to cooperate.

  The ancient authors exaggerate the significance of the Macedonian defeat

  of this other Porus. In the sources he is presented as a powerful rajah

  ruling over 300 towns and having at his disposal an army comprising

  20,000-50,000 infantry, 2,000-3,000 cavalry, 300-1,000 chariots and 85-

  200 elephants. Historical estimates, however, suggest that he ruled over a

  territory measuring merely 15,000 km2. In 1901, at the dawn of the

  industrial age, this area was inhabited by c. 1.5 m people and therefore its

  population would have been much smaller in ancient times. Moreover,

  Porus was now politically isolated, as most of the other rulers had taken

  the invader’s side, and he had a considerably smaller army than Alexander.

  It was for these reasons that he hoped to stop the invaders when they were

  22 Onesicritus, ap. Str., 15.1.63-64 (= FGrH, 134 F17a); Nearchus, ap. Str., 15.1.66;

  Arr., An. , 7.1.5-2.4, 7.3.3-4; Plu., Alex. , 65. Bosworth 1998, pp. 186-196. The advice of Oibares: Aristid, p. 202-203 (Jebb), after Ctesias. Hamilton 1999, p. 181.

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  crossing the Hydaspes. Working in his favour was the start of the monsoon

  season, in May-June 326, which took the unacquainted Europeans quite by

  surprise. On top of that the snow in the mountains had started melting, so

  the Hydaspes swelled and was now very difficult to cross.23

  Alexander’s army, burdened with a baggage train including boats,

  most probably took the easiest route from Taxila to the vicinity of today’s

  Jhelum. By the time it reached the Hydaspes, possibly near modern

  Haranpur, it was reinforced by 5,000 troops from Taxila and boats that had

  been brought over from the Indus. However, the river at that point and at

  that time measured 800 m. Moreover at the opposite end the army would

  have had to confront Porus’ forces, which included elephants terrifying

  Macedonian horses. Alexander therefore decided to trick the enemy so as

  to catch them off their guard. He ordered large amounts of provisions to be

  stocked in the Macedonian camp. This was supposed to give the

  impression that his army was intending to remain there until autumn, when

  the water level fell and the river could be waded across. But next, making

  use of his army’s numerical superiority, he had his men carry out short

  manoeuvres, each time as if they were trying to cross at a particular point

  along the river. These actions forced Porus’ troops to continually prepare

  themselves for battle. Moreover, the Macedonians also harassed the enemy

  at night by giving out loud war cries, to which Porus initially reacted by

  leading his troops out of the camp. After a time the rajah assumed that the

  Macedonians were merely trying to provoke him and so ordered his troops

  simply not to respond to enemy actions. His confidence may have also

  been raised by a small Indian victory over the Macedonians in a skirmish

  on one of the river islands.24

  The Indians were gradually lulled into a false sense of security. And

  then a storm broke out which further reduced their watchfulness, for an

  attacked seemed highly improbably in such unfavourable conditions. But

  this was the moment Alexander launched his manoeuvre against Porus.

  The sources state that the Macedonian army marched and crossed the river

  within a single night. However, the distance the Macedonians are said to

  have covered and the difficulties they must have encountered when

  crossing the wide river indicate that the manoeuvre must have taken them

  an entire day and night before the two sides clashed. Craterus was left in

  charge of the main camp, where the soldiers ostentatiously prepared to

  23 Str., 15.1.29; Diod., 17.87.2; Curt., 8.13.2, 8.13.5-11; Arr., An. , 5.8.4, 5.94,

  5.15.4, 5.21.4; It. Alex. , 111. Bosworth 1995, p. 320; Bosworth 1996a, pp. 8-11.

  24 Arr., An. , 5.8.4-10.4; Curt., 8.13.11-16; Plu., Alex. , 60.1-2; Polyaen., 4.3.9; Fron., Str. , 1.4.9; ME, 53-58. Seibert 1985, p. 156; Bosworth 1995, pp. 262-272;

  Hammond 1996, pp. 208-210; Heckel 1997, p. 212; Heckel 2009, p. 48.

  Expedition to India

  309

  cross the river. Meanwhile Ptolemy commanded a diversionary group that

  was sent downstream, whereas Alexander personally led 6,000 of the best

  infantry and 5,000 cavalry 150 stades (27 km) to a camp upstream where

  the flow of the Hydaspes turned and the army could not be seen from the

  other side on account of river islands in between. The detachments

  included hypaspists, two taxeis of phalanx, Agrianians, archers,

  Companion and east Iranian cavalry. At a prearranged place the boats

  hauled over from the Indus were already waiting for them. The army

  crossed the river at night in torrential rain. There was no shortage of drama

  as the Macedonians mistakenly landed on a large island separated from the

  other side by a tributary of the Hydaspes. They were forced to wade across

  this other river with the water almost up to their necks. By the morning,

  however, the whole corps was on the eastern shore and only then was it

  spotted by Porus’ scouts.25

  Informed of this landing, Porus still had no certainty whether this was

  the main force or perhaps just another diversion. To confront the enemy he

  therefore sent his son (or brother) in command of a unit that may have

  included 60 (Aristobulus), 100 (Curtius Rufus) or 120 (Ptolemy) chariots

  as well as 1,000-4,000 cavalry. These slender forces were instantly

  defeated by Alexander’s cavalry, especially as the chariots were all but

  immobilised in the mud and rendered virtually useless. Among those who

  perished were Porus’ son and 400 horsemen. The survivors fled back to

  their camp.26 Porus now knew that Alexander had crossed the Hydaspes.

  The rajah’s main force comprised elephants and now, apart from the few

  left to defend the camp against an eventual attack by Craterus’ soldiers,

  these proceeded to confront the invader, accompanied by the remaining

  chariots and cavalry as well as elite infantry units – which Arrian quite

  implausibly claims numbered as many 30,000 men. Alexander

  undoubtedly had a qualitatively and numerically superior cavalry, whereas

  Porus would have had more infantry. The two armies clashed on mud-free

  sandy terrain which allowed for the use of cavalry and chariots. The

  elephants were positioned at equal intervals in front of the Indians with the

  purpose of crushing the enemy infantry. But by then the Macedonians

  were aware of what
these animals could do in battle and had therefore

  prepared a tactic to combat them. Fearing the losses the elephants would

  inevitably inflict, Alexander ordered his infantry to hold back until the

  25 Arr., An. , 5.11-13; Curt., 8.13.17-27.2; Plu., Alex. , 60.3-7; Polyaen., 4.3.9; Fron.

  Str. , 1.4.9; ME, 58-59. Devine 1987, pp. 96-99; Bosworth 1995, pp. 273-281;

  Bosworth 1996a, pp. 12-15; Holt 2003, pp. 49-50.

  26 Arr., An. , 5.14.1-15.2 (after Aristobulus and Ptolemy), Curt., 8.14.1-8; Plu.,

  Alex. , 60.7-8.

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  enemy’s cavalry were defeated. As usual he personally took command of

  his cavalry on the right wing, while Coenus commanded the cavalry on the

  left wing and Seleucus as well as some subordinate offices took charge of

  the phalanx in the centre. The battle was begun by mounted east Iranian

  archers, who attacked the Indians from the Macedonian right wing. Next

  the cavalry units commanded by Alexander and Coenus entered the fray.

  In face of these attacks Porus tried to regroup his cavalry but there ensued

  confusion in the ranks and the Indian horsemen were eventually forced to

  retreat behind the infantry and elephants. Now the foot soldiers clashed.

  After an unsuccessful counterattack by the Indian cavalry, Porus’ army

  found itself surrounded. At first the elephants inflicted heavy losses on the

  phalanx but as the Macedonian noose round the Indian army tightened it

  got increasingly easier to get at the pachyderm animals and their drivers

  with arrows, javelins and sarissae. Wounded elephants or ones deprived of

  their mahouts panicked and trampled the soldiers around them, mainly the

  encircled Indians for the Macedonians on the outside were free to move

  out of the frightened elephants’ way. The battle ended with the slaughter

  of Porus’ troops for Alexander – as by then frequently in India – strove to

  eliminate his enemies physically. Among those killed were two of Porus’

  sons and all his commanders as well as a very large part of his army.

  According to Diodorus, the Macedonian side lost 280 horsemen and 700

  foot soldiers, whereas Arrian gives a court propaganda version in which

  230 horsemen and only 80 infantry were supposed to have died. Porus’

  engagement with Alexander’s forces allowed Craterus to get his men

  across the Hydaspes and join in the slaughter.27

  Porus stood out from the other Indians on account of his good looks,

  his height (reputedly over 2 m tall) and the fact that he fought mounted on

  the largest of his elephants. He had been wounded several times in the

  clash but not leave the battlefield while his men were still fighting.

  Alexander most probably spared him his life not only because he had

  fought courageously and with dignity, but also because of his good looks.

  Porus’ physical attractiveness may well have been an important factor

  when we bear in mind the tragic fate the Gaza commander, Batis, who

  distinguished himself with valour but was, unfortunately, far from the

  perceived ideal of male beauty (see Chapter IV.5). According to the most

  popular version of events given by the ancient authors, the wounded Porus

  was persuaded to get off his elephant and surrender to Alexander. The

  Macedonian is said to have asked the captive what he wanted, to which

  27 Arr., An. , 5.15.5-18.3; Diod., 17.87.4-89.3; Curt., 8.14.9-30; Plu., Alex. , 60.9-11; Polyaen., 4.3.22; ME, 60-62. Scullard 1974, pp. 65-70; Devine 1987, p. 91, 100-113; Bosworth 1996a, pp. 16-20; Strauss 2003, pp. 140-142.

  Expedition to India

  311

  Porus reputedly gave the famous reply basilikos, which may be interpreted

  that he wished to be treated as a king or that he wished Alexander to

  behave like a king. Either way, Alexander was so impressed with this

  attitude that he allowed Porus to continue ruling his kingdom – of course

  now as his vassal – and even extended its borders. Consciously or

  unconsciously, Alexander thus acted in accordance with the Indian code of

  conduct, showing that he was Dharmavijayi, a ‘conqueror through

  righteousness’.28

  After the battle Alexander had the bodies of the fallen buried and the

  survivors rewarded. Sacrifices were also made and games were organised.

  One of the victims of the battle of the Hydaspes was Alexander’s favourite

  horse Bucephalus, which died of exhaustion and old age before the

  fighting was finished. A more dramatic version (originating from Chares,

  Alexander’s court-marshal) states that Bucephalus died as a result of

  wounds incurred during the battle. Alexander commemorated his horse by

  naming one of two towns he founded on the Hydaspes Bucephala. The

  town was most probably founded on the western bank of the river,

  whereas a town called Nicaea (Victory City) was founded on the eastern

  bank, on the site of the battle. Tracing their exact location is no longer

  possible but we know that at least Bucephala still existed in the first

  centuries of A.D./C.E.29

  Victory over Porus was also commemorated with the issuing of large

  silver coins weighing approximately 40g. These were more probably

  somewhat inexact dekadrachms (10 drachma pieces) rather than 5-shekel

  pieces. The reverse presents a horseman wearing a Phrygian helmet with a

  crest and plume. In one hand he is holding a spear and in the other an

  object that has been interpreted to represent lightning. Such a Phrygian

  helmet has been found in tomb II at Vergina. Some historians believe that

  the helmet at Vergina had belonged to Alexander and this is one of the

  reasons why numismatists assume the warrior on the coin to represent

  Alexander. The lightning held in the horseman’s hand resembles Apelles’

  most famous depiction of Alexander and in both cases this may well be an

  allusion to the king’s ancestor, Zeus. It may well also be a suggestion of

  equivalence between Alexander and Zeus. The obverse of the coin

  28 Arr., An. , 5.18.4-19.3; Plu., Alex. , 60-12-16; Plu., mor. , 181e, 332e, 458b; ME, 60-61; Them., 7.88d. Without basilikos answer: Diod., 17.88.4-89.6; Curt.,

  8.14.31-46; Just., 12.8. Narain 1965, p. 163; Bosworth 1995, pp. 305-311.

  29 Chares, ap. Gel., 5.2.1-5 (= FGrH, 125 F18); Str., 15.1.29; Arr., An. , 5.19.4-20.1; Curt., 9.1.6, 9.3.23; Diod., 17.89.6, 17.95.5; Plin. Nat. , 6.77, 8.154; Plu., Alex. , 61; ME, 62; Ps.-Callisth., 3.3.6; Just., 12.8. Bosworth 1995, pp. 311-316; Fraser 1996,

  pp. 161-162.

  312

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  portrays a horseman armed with a long spear fighting a warrior mounted

  on an elephant. In all probability this is a depiction of Alexander’s clash

  with Porus at the battle of the Hydaspes at the moment when the defeated

  rajah was retreating but still fighting. Only 24 such coins have been found,

  most of them in a treasure discovered in Iraq in 1973, which has led some

  historians to believe that they had been struck in nearby Susa after

  Alexander’s return from India or in Babylon in the year of his death. The

  high artistic quality of the images on both sides of the coin suggests the

  work of experienced Greek engravers. However, the careless manner in

  which the coins were struck indicates that they may have been struck

&nb
sp; elsewhere. F. Holt therefore argues that the coins were most probably

  struck in Alexander’s camp in India by inexperienced Indian minters. If

  this was the case, they were most probably commemorative coins

  produced and issued to Alexander’s men soon after the battle of the

  Hydaspes.30

  After the victory, Alexander’s army was allowed to rest for 30 days. In

  that time Craterus supervised the fortifying of the newly founded towns of

  Bucephala and Nicaea – though these fortifications eventually failed to

  withstand the weathering caused by the monsoon. Meanwhile Alexander

  led a campaign against mountain tribes living somewhere to the north of

  the Hydaspes battlefield. The most probable objective of this campaign

  was to ensure the area was safe for the logging of timber necessary for the

  construction of ships that would take the army down river to conquer the

  valleys of the lower Indus. The sources mention exotic beasts that

  inhabited these forests: giant snakes and rhinoceroses. The giant snakes

  were most probably large Indian pythons, which had been quite unknown

  to the Greeks and are frequently mentioned in accounts of Alexander’s

  expedition. One of the most fantastic tales is the account of Maximus of

  Tyre, in which the author describes a snake 5 plethra (150 m) long. Taxiles

  reputedly personally showed Alexander this snake inside a cave.

  Onesicritus describes the same snake as being 70 cubits (c. 35 m) long and

  having eyes like Macedonian shields or, in different versions, 80 and 140

  cubits long. Heeding the request of the Indians, Alexander prudently

  refrained from disturbing the creature.31

  30 Holt 2003, especially pp. 118-130, 139-161.

  31 Arr., An. , 5.20.1-4; Str., 15.1.29; Diod., 17.89.4-90.3; Curt., 9.1.4-5, 9.1.8-13;

  Max. Tyr., 2.6.d-e; Onesicritus, ap. Str., 15.1.28 and ap. Ael., NA, 15.21. Bosworth

  1995, pp. 316-319; Karttunen 1997, pp. 184-186, 221-225; Malinowski 2003, pp.

  197-198.

  Expedition to India

  313

  3. Hyphasis – the end of the expedition

 

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