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Alexander the Great (All Parts)

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In 334 BC, Alexander, King of Macedonia, began one of the greatest military campaigns in history

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- against the superpower of the age - the Persian Empire.

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Just 20 years-old, his brilliant and fearless
leadership won him battle after battle.

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And in an astonishing 10 year campaign that
took him to the edge of the known world,

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he carved out one of the largest empires ever known.

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Few men have had such a massive impact on
the course of history.

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To the Persians, he was Alexander the Accursed,
but to the west,

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he was immortalised...  as  Alexander the Great.

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EPIC HISTORY TV

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And Invicta

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Aleksander the Great Part I

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Ancient Greece.

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From around 500 BC, this rugged land was the
scene of remarkable developments in art,  philosophy, and warfare.

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Its two greatest city-states were Athens,
a naval power, where democracy, art, drama and philosophy flourished;

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and Sparta, an austere, militaristic
 society, famed for its formidable army.

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In 480 BC, these two city-states had joined
forces

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to fight an invasion by the mighty  Persian Empire.

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At the narrow pass of Thermopylae, a small
Greek force, led by 300 Spartans,

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held up  the enormous Persian army for three days,
before they were finally encircled and killed.

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Then, in the straits of Salamis, the Greek
fleet defeated the Persian navy ...

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But they couldn't prevent the Persians burning
the sacred temples of the Athenian acropolis.

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The next year, at Plataea, the Greeks won
a decisive land battle against the Persians,and forced them to abandon their  invasion.

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The next fifty years were the golden age of
classical Greece.

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But rising tension between Athens and Sparta,
and their allies, eventually led to war,

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dragging  the Greek world into decades of destructive
fighting.

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Wars between the Greek city-states continued
for almost a century, leaving them exhausted...

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and vulnerable to a new, rising power to the
north...

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For centuries, sophisticated Greeks had viewed
the mountainous kingdom of Macedonia

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as a  backwater, hicksville - barely Greek at all.

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But under King Philip II, Macedonia emerged
as a formidable military force.

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His most famous reform: the introduction of
the sarissa, an 18 foot pike, twice the length of a normal Greek spear,

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and wielded by trained
infantry fighting in close formation, known as a phalanx.

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In 338 BC, at the Battle of Chaeronea, Philip's
army crushed the joint forces of Thebes and Athens.

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Through alliance and conquest, Philip had
already gained control over most of his neighbours.

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Now, following this victory, he united all
Greece in an alliance known as the Hellenic  League,

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or League of Corinth, with Philip
as hegemon – or supreme commander.

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Only Sparta stood aside.

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Philip began to plan a great campaign - a
Panhellenic, or all-Greek, war against the Persian Empire.

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Their old foe was now an ailing
superpower, its great riches ripe for the taking...

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But on the eve of launching his war, Philip
was assassinated by his own bodyguard

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– victim  of Macedonia's brutal court rivalries.

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He was succeeded by his 20 year-old son Alexander:
brilliant, restless, tutored by the great philosopher Aristotle,

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and already an experienced
military commander.

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Alexander inherited his father's grand plan
to invade Persia, but first he had to secure his own position as king:

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At home, he had potential rivals executed,
then crushed rebellions in Illyria, Thessaly, and central Greece.

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He made a special example of Thebes – completely
destroying the ancient city, and selling its people into slavery.

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In the spring of 334 BC, now ready to launch
his war against the Persian Empire, Alexander led his army across the Hellespont  into Asia
Minor.

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It was the start of one of the greatest military
campaigns in history.

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The Macedonian Army

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Alexander's army was about 40,000 strong,
drawn from all parts of Greece.

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The infantry were commanded by the veteran
Macedonian general Parmenion.

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In the front rank, 9,000 Macedonian phalangites,
armed with the 18-foot sarissa.

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These were professional soldiers, well-trained
and drilled, who formed up for battle in the phalanx, 16 ranks deep.

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This packed formation presented a solid wall
of iron spear-tips, and was virtually unstoppable.

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But it was also difficult to manoeuvre, and
highly vulnerable to attacks on its flanks  or rear.

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So 3,000 elite infantry, the hypaspists, or
'shield-bearers', armed with shorter spears,

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guarded its flanks. They were commanded by
Parmenion's son, Nikanor.

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The second line of Alexander's army was made
up of 7,000 Greek allies and 5,000 mercenaries,

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armed as hoplites. They took their name from
the hoplon, their large round shield, and carried, shorter, 8 foot spears.

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A hoplite phalanx was not as effective as
the Macedonian phalangites, but still well-armed and heavily armoured for the time.

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The Agrianes were the army's elite skirmishers,
expert javelin-throwers from what's now southern Bulgaria.

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Other skirmishers from Thrace, and Illyria,
were armed with javelins, slings and bows.

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The shock troops of Alexander's army were
the Companion Cavalry, 1,800 elite horsemen armed with spear and sword,

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commanded by Philotas,
another son of Parmenion. Alexander led the royal squadron in person.

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There were also 1,800 cavalry from Thessaly,
commanded by Kallas,

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600 from other parts  of Greece, led by Erigyius, and 900 mounted scouts from Thrace and Paeonia, under Kassander.

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THE GRANICUS

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The great Persian Empire was divided into
provinces, called satrapies.  Each satrapy was ruled by a governor, or satrap.

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Those in Asia Minor now threatened by Alexander's
invasion met to discuss strategy.

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Memnon of Rhodes, a skilled Greek general
in Persian service, urged them to avoid battle with Alexander.

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Instead, he advised them to
use a 'scorched earth' strategy

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– to burn  villages and crops, and withdraw to the interior - Alexander's army, he promised, would quickly starve.

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It was good advice. But the satraps were unwilling
to lay waste to their own provinces without a fight.

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So they decided to face Alexander's army at
the River Granicus.

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The Persian army formed up behind the river,
which was shallow, but 60 feet wide with steep banks.

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Their front line was a wall of cavalry, about
10,000 horsemen from across the empire

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– Medes and Hyrcanians from modern Iran, Bactrians
from Afghanistan, and Paphlagonians from Turkey's Black Sea coast.

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Behind, in reserve, were the infantry – several
thousand Greek mercenaries,

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a common sight in Persian armies at this time. These men fought for Persian gold,

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and were armed with the round shield and short spear of hoplites.

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The Persians may have been unsure if they
could trust these men in combat against fellow Greeks,  and so placed them at the rear.

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Alexander, determined to attack and destroy
this Persian force before it could retreat, raced to the Granicus with his best troops.

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On his left wing, he posted Thessalian, Greek
and Thracian cavalry, under Parmenion's command.

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In the centre, were the massed spears of the
phalanx, its six divisions commanded by Perdikkas, Koinos, Amyntas, Philip, Meleager, and Krateros.

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On the right, Alexander himself, with the
Companion Cavalry under Philotas, as well

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as the elite hypaspists, the Agrianes javelin-throwers,
and the archers.

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Alexander, with 13,000 infantry, and 5,000
cavalry in all, was probably slightly outnumbered.

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But ignoring advice to wait until dawn to
cross the river, he ordered an immediate assault.

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He sent a squadron of Companion cavalry to
ford the river, followed by a regiment of hypaspists and the Paeonian light cavalry.

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Alexander, calling on his men to show their
courage, then led his right wing across the river.

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As they reached the middle of the river, the
Greeks came under a hail of javelins,

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darts and arrows from the Persian line. Those that
made it to the far bank were immediately charged by the Persian cavalry.

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🎶

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Alexander was in the thick of the fighting.

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“he attacked where the whole mass of their
cavalry and leaders were stationed.

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Around him a desperate conflict raged... horses were
jammed against horses and men against men,

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the Macedonians striving to drive the Persians
away from the river bank, the Persians determined to prevent them crossing

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and to push them
back into the river.”

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🎶

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Alexander's attack seemed reckless, but he
was buying time for the rest of his army to cross the river,

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including the irresistible
Macedonian phalanx.

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Then suddenly Alexander was fighting for his
life, charged by two Persian nobles.

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“Rhoesaces rode up to Alexander and struck
him on the head with his sword,

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breaking off a piece of his helmet. But the helmet broke
the force of the blow, and Alexander struck him down with his lance.

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Then, from behind,
Spithridates raised his sword against the king, but Black Cleitus,

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son of Dropidas,
anticipated his blow, struck his arm, and cut it off, sword and all.”

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Now the Greek army was across the river, and
the Persian cavalry faced a wall of Macedonian spears. Most turned and fled.

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🎶

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The speed and shock of Alexander's attack
meant Persia's Greek mercenaries hadn't even had time to join the battle.

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Alexander, in a blood-rage, or possibly regarding
these Greeks as traitors, ignored their appeals for mercy.

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The mercenaries were surrounded
on all sides, and massacred.

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Alexander had won a great victory. Asia Minor now lay at his mercy.

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But the Persian Empire was still a land of
immense wealth and power.

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Already it was mobilising  its vast resources to face him.

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If Alexander was to conquer this empire and
take his place in history, he'd next have to face Darius, King of Kings, himself...

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Now, as Alexander approached Sardis, capital
of the Persian province of Lydia, its  commander surrendered without a fight.

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But before Alexander could advance further,
he needed to neutralise Persian naval power

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Persia had a powerful fleet, with major naval
bases around the eastern Mediterranean - that

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could potentially cut his lines of communication
back to Greece.

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Rather than challenge the Persians at sea,
Alexander decided to attack their nearest bases:

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the Greek coastal cities of Miletus
and Halicarnassus.

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Both put up determined resistance, but were
taken by winter.

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The following spring of 333 BC, Alexander
continued his advance into Lycia... and Phrygia.

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At Gordium, he was shown the legendary 'Gordian
Knot' – a prophesy said that whoever could unpick it would rule all Asia.

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Alexander simply took his sword, and sliced
it in half.

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Meanwhile Memnon of Rhodes, a skilled Greek
general in Persian service, led Persian warships into the Aegean,

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and captured the islands
of Chios and Lesbos.

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But after Memnon's sudden death from illness,
the offensive was abandoned.

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The Battle of Issus

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18 months had passed since Alexander's army
crossed the Hellespont and invaded the Persian Empire.

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Now Alexander led his men into Cilicia...
and was soon poised to cross the Nur Mountains into Syria.

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But then the main Persian army, led by King
Darius III himself, emerged behind the Greek army, to the north.

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Darius was determined to trap and destroy
Alexander's army, which he outnumbered almost 2 to 1.

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So he blocked Alexander's only escape route,
by moving his army to the coastal plain near Issus,

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just 6 miles wide from mountains to
sea.

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The narrow battlefield would force Alexander
to fight, but it also prevented Darius exploiting his huge numerical advantage.

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His army, by some estimates, was up to 100,000
strong, and contained some of the finest soldiers in his vast empire

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- including 10,000 of his
own household troops, known as the Immortals.

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His best cavalry were massed on his right,
towards the sea, where the ground was better for horses.

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His best infantry, his Greek mercenary
hoplites, formed the centre.

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Persian infantry formed his left wing.

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Alexander deployed his own army for battle,
once again entrusting his left wing, nearest the sea, to Parmenion

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, with the Greek cavalry
and infantry.

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In the centre, as always, was the Macedonian
phalanx.

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Alexander positioned himself and his best
troops on the right wing, toward the mountain slopes –

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his elite Agriane javelin-throwers,
his archers, and behind them, the Hypaspists and the Companion cavalry.

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When Alexander saw the strength of the Persian
cavalry facing Parmenion on the left,

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he moved  across his Thessalian cavalry to reinforce
him.

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Despite his overwhelming numbers, Darius held
his position behind a small river, the Pinarus, and waited for Alexander to attack.

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He didn't have to wait long.

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Alexander called out to his men, urging them
to fight bravely, picking out some by name.

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Then, at the head of his army's right wing,
he charged.

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Once again, the speed and shock of the Macedonian
advance sent the enemy reeling back.

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But in the centre of the battlefield, the
Macedonian phalanx was in trouble.

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In its  effort to keep up with Alexander, its formation
had become disordered.

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Now, in fierce fighting, with Darius's Greek
mercenaries, the phalanx was slowly being driven back.

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Alexander, seeing the danger, regrouped, and
led the Companions in a headlong charge straight at the Persian centre.

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The Greek mercenaries,
threatened on their flank, were soon in disarray,

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and the Macedonian phalanx was able to resume
its advance.

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Alexander fought his way towards the Great
King, Darius himself.

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Rather than face this apparently mad and fearless
Macedonian king, Darius fled the  battlefield  in his royal chariot.

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Meanwhile the Macedonian left wing, under
Parmenion, was in a desperate fight against the best of the Persian cavalry.

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If the Persians could break through here, they could envelop Alexander's army, and snatch victory from
the jaws of defeat.

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But Parmenion and his troops fought doggedly,
and continued to hold the Persians at bay.

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As the news that Darius had fled spread among
his troops, they abandoned the fight, and tried to save themselves.

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The battle turned into a massacre.

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Ptolemy, one of the Macedonian commanders,
told Alexander there were so many Persian dead,

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his men had used them to fill a deep
ravine, so they could cross over it.

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Son of Amun

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The Battle of Issus was a stunning victory
for Alexander.

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And amongst the spoils of victory, were Darius's
wife, mother, and three children, all taken alive, and well treated by Alexander.

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With the Persian field army in retreat, Alexander
now turned to subduing the western territories of the Persian empire.

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The next year, 332,
the coastal cities of Phoenicia submitted to Alexander

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– ending Persian naval power
in the Mediterranean.

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But the island-city of Tyre resisted.

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Tyre's defenders fought bravely and skilfully
– even when Alexander began building a causeway to the island,

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protected by two giant siege
towers... which they counter-attacked with fire ships.

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But after seven months, the city walls were
breached, and Tyre fell. Most of its citizens were killed or enslaved.

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Gaza too was taken by siege.

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Alexander continued to Pelusium, on the Nile
Delta,

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where the Persian governor of Egypt surrendered the entire province to Alexander, along with the royal treasury.

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At Memphis, priests of this ancient land welcomed
Alexander as their liberator from Persian rule,  and crowned him Pharaoh.

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At the mouth of the Nile, he founded a new
city, Alexandria...

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then travelled to the  desert oracle of Siwah, where, according to some accounts, the priests welcomed

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him as  son of Amun, king of the gods.

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Alexander returned east to Tyre... where in
331 BC, he received news of trouble back home.

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Despite his great victories over the Persians,
many Greeks regarded Alexander as a tyrant.

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King Agis of Sparta, with Persian support,
now launched a revolt against Macedonia.

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Antipater, Alexander's commander in Greece,
was already dealing with rebellion in Thrace.

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But he quickly marched south... and met Agis
in battle near the city of Megalopolis.

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Even the legendary Spartans were now no match
for Macedonian military power.

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The Spartan army was crushed. King Agis himself was among the fallen.

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With his base in Greece secure once more,
Alexander advanced towards the Persian heartlands,

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seeking a final showdown with Darius.

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He received a letter from the Persian king,
offering him a fortune in gold,

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his daughter  in marriage, and half his empire in exchange for peace.

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But Alexander's stunning victories, all the
oracles and acclamations, had now convinced him that his destiny was to rule the world...

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He rejected the Persian king's offer. He didn't
want half the empire - he was coming to  take it all...

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In 334 BC, Alexander, 21 year-old ruler of
the small Greek kingdom of Macedonia,

00:27:26.500 --> 00:27:30.299
led an invasion of the vast Persian Empire.

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It seemed impossible odds, but thanks to Greek
military dominance, and Alexander's fearless leadership,

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he won two great battles against
the Persians… at the River Granicus, and at Issus.

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Having subdued Persian lands west of the Euphrates
River, he now headed east into the empire's heartlands,

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seeking a final showdown with
the Persian King, Darius III.

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Receiving news that a great Persian army,
led by Darius, had assembled at Gaugemela,

00:28:14.759 --> 00:28:19.119
near modern Mosul in Iraq – he made straight
for it.

00:28:20.880 --> 00:28:30.120
This was Darius's last chance to stop Alexander
– and Alexander's chance to smash Persian power once and for all.

00:28:31.519 --> 00:28:38.180
The Battle of Gaugamela

00:28:39.460 --> 00:28:45.400
Darius had chosen to fight on open ground,
where his advantage in numbers would be more telling.

00:28:46.740 --> 00:28:54.079
His soldiers had also worked hard to clear
and flatten the terrain, to make it suitable for Persian war chariots.

00:28:56.019 --> 00:29:01.119
By modern estimates, the Persian Army was
between 50 and 80,000 strong,

00:29:01.680 --> 00:29:04.799
and made  up of contingents from across the empire:

00:29:06.579 --> 00:29:09.799
infantry from Syria and Babylonia...

00:29:12.220 --> 00:29:16.319
cavalry from Armenia, India and Central Asia...

00:29:19.180 --> 00:29:26.820
up to 200 scythed chariots... even a handful
of war elephants.

00:29:29.460 --> 00:29:35.259
Alexander's army was smaller, and may have
been outnumbered by as much as two to one.

00:29:36.980 --> 00:29:40.000
He deployed his units in their usual formation:

00:29:40.859 --> 00:29:46.500
On the left flank, Thracian and Thessalian
cavalry, commanded by Parmenion.

00:29:49.279 --> 00:29:56.799
In the centre, the Macedonian veterans of
the phalanx – each armed with their 18 foot sarissa pike.

00:29:59.440 --> 00:30:07.720
On the right flank, Alexander with his elite
cavalry, the Companions; and his best infantry, the hypaspists.

00:30:09.259 --> 00:30:13.960
These were the units with
which Alexander planned to launch his main attack.

00:30:16.500 --> 00:30:22.380
Greek hoplites formed a second line, and supported
both wings – which were angled back,

00:30:22.720 --> 00:30:25.779
to guard against encirclement by the Persians.

00:30:31.680 --> 00:30:38.440
The battle began when Alexander led his wing
out to the right – a move that took the Persians by surprise.

00:30:40.220 --> 00:30:44.620
Could Alexander really be trying to encircle
their huge army?

00:30:48.640 --> 00:30:54.900
The Persians mirrored his movement, taking
troops away from their centre, to outflank Alexander,

00:30:55.420 --> 00:30:59.580
and prevent him leaving the area
they'd cleared for the Persian chariots.

00:31:01.400 --> 00:31:07.920
But Alexander's unusual manoeuvre was a trap
- to entice the Persians to weaken their centre.

00:31:08.740 --> 00:31:15.680
When he saw that it had worked, he ordered
his Greek cavalry to charge, to keep the Persians fixed in position.

00:31:18.880 --> 00:31:22.600
A giant cavalry battle developed on the right
wing.

00:31:24.079 --> 00:31:29.819
Darius, meanwhile, judging this to be the
decisive moment, unleashed his chariots.

00:31:39.240 --> 00:31:43.759
But expert Agrianes javelin-throwers took out
horses and crews

00:31:45.980 --> 00:31:52.019
– while the Greek infantry opened lanes, allowing the chariots to pass harmlessly through.

00:31:59.859 --> 00:32:05.199
Now Alexander led his Companion cavalry, and
parts of the Macedonian phalanx,

00:32:05.500 --> 00:32:12.680
in a headlong charge straight at the weakened Persian centre, fighting his way towards Darius himself.

00:32:13.759 --> 00:32:17.920
The sudden ferocity of Alexander's assault
threw the Persians into panic

00:32:18.299 --> 00:32:24.839
– the centre of the army broke and ran - King Darius himself leading the rout.

00:32:30.059 --> 00:32:38.960
But Alexander's left wing was in serious trouble
– Parmenion, facing a huge onslaught by Persian cavalry,

00:32:39.200 --> 00:32:46.059
was virtually surrounded - Indian and Scythian 
horsemen had even ridden through a gap in the Greek line

00:32:46.900 --> 00:32:53.360
– but rather
than wheeling and attacking the Greeks from behind, they'd carried straight on to loot their camp.

00:32:58.799 --> 00:33:02.960
Parmenion sent a desperate appeal to Alexander
for help.

00:33:06.900 --> 00:33:13.180
The King abandoned his pursuit of Darius,
regrouped, and charged the Persian right wing.

00:33:22.900 --> 00:33:29.820
It was the hardest and bloodiest fighting
of the battle – claiming the lives of sixty of Alexander's Companions.

00:33:34.539 --> 00:33:42.559
Finally, as news of Darius's flight spread
across the battlefield, the last Persian horsemen turned and fled.

00:33:48.200 --> 00:33:53.440
The Battle of Gaugamela was a stunning and
complete victory for Alexander.

00:33:54.539 --> 00:34:02.099
According to ancient sources, he lost just
a few hundred men, while the Persians lost thousands.

00:34:07.160 --> 00:34:16.800
Alexander had routed Darius's great army,
and now the road to Babylon – the  empire's main capital - lay open.

00:34:18.619 --> 00:34:27.380
The Macedonian king entered the great city
in triumph, recognised by Persian officials as its new rightful ruler.

00:34:28.480 --> 00:34:35.920
So too at the city of Susa, where Alexander
ceremonially took his seat upon the royal throne of Persia.

00:34:38.400 --> 00:34:43.059
In the Zagros mountains, at a pass known as
the Persian Gates,

00:34:43.480 --> 00:34:47.940
a courageous Persian force  held up Alexander's army for a month.

00:34:49.880 --> 00:34:54.099
The Greeks eventually found a mountain path
that bypassed their position,

00:34:54.659 --> 00:34:58.079
allowing them  to encircle and wipe out the defenders.

00:34:59.260 --> 00:35:06.440
In early 330 BC, Alexander reached Persepolis,
the empire's ceremonial capital.

00:35:07.000 --> 00:35:13.480
Alexander wanted to appear as a liberator
to the Persians – as a legitimate  
 successor to King Darius

00:35:17.800 --> 00:35:25.039
- but now, he ordered Persepolis
to be pillaged and burnt – retribution for the Persian invasion of Greece,

00:35:25.260 --> 00:35:29.900
and the burning
of Athens' sacred temples in 480 BC.

00:35:35.340 --> 00:35:43.180
Alexander now headed north into Media, where
Darius had taken refuge in the royal city of Ecbatana.

00:35:44.420 --> 00:35:52.099
Alexander was determined to capture
Darius – but the fugitive king fled east in the hope of raising a new army

00:35:52.219 --> 00:35:56.399
in the provinces
of Parthia, Bactria, and Sogdia.

00:35:58.000 --> 00:36:05.619
It was not to be. As Alexander closed in,
the Persian king was murdered by one of his own governors,

00:36:05.940 --> 00:36:10.760
Bessus, who then proclaimed
himself the empire’s new ruler.

00:36:13.519 --> 00:36:21.440
Alexander gave orders for Darius to be buried
in the royal tombs of Persepolis, alongside his ancestors.

00:36:22.539 --> 00:36:26.739
Then he paused to organise his vast new empire.

00:36:28.199 --> 00:36:32.779
Alexander appointed viceroys to rule the provinces
on his behalf,

00:36:33.179 --> 00:36:37.559
keeping several Persians - who  had sworn loyalty - in their posts.

00:36:39.000 --> 00:36:46.559
Then he resumed his march east. His goal: to find and kill the usurper Bessus...

00:36:47.659 --> 00:36:55.920
subjugate the empire's eastern provinces... and reach the far edge of the world...

00:37:04.880 --> 00:37:10.480
In 330 BC, Alexander continued his march east.

00:37:11.900 --> 00:37:18.820
His goal: to find and kill Bessus - a Persian
usurper, claiming to be the rightful king

00:37:19.579 --> 00:37:23.659
– and to subjugate the empire's eastern
provinces...

00:37:28.500 --> 00:37:36.960
Alexander headed first for Aria, today part
of Afghanistan, where the Persian  governor  Satibarzanes

00:37:37.320 --> 00:37:42.380
had launched a revolt – after
initially pretending to submit to Alexander.

00:37:43.579 --> 00:37:51.059
The rebellion was crushed, and Satibarzanes
killed in single combat by a Greek cavalry officer.

00:37:52.360 --> 00:38:01.000
Nearby, Alexander founded the city of Alexandria
Ariana, modern Herat – one of around a dozen cities

00:38:01.099 --> 00:38:06.279
that Alexander would eventually found,
almost all bearing his name.

00:38:09.000 --> 00:38:12.420
Alexander marched on to Phrada.

00:38:14.139 --> 00:38:18.679
The Macedonian court had a long tradition
of plots and assassination.

00:38:20.460 --> 00:38:26.500
Six years before,  Alexander's own father, King Philip, had been murdered by his bodyguard.

00:38:28.719 --> 00:38:33.239
He was now informed that Philotas, commander
of his Companion Cavalry,

00:38:33.539 --> 00:38:37.840
had uncovered a  plot to assassinate Alexander, but kept it secret.

00:38:40.139 --> 00:38:45.900
Philotas, and his father Parmenion, were among
the most respected of Alexander's commanders,

00:38:46.239 --> 00:38:50.219
and had played crucial roles in all his great
victories.

00:38:52.420 --> 00:38:58.519
But when Philotas confessed under torture, Alexander had him executed.

00:38:58.820 --> 00:39:06.720
then sent assassins  back to Ecbatana, where Parmenion was governor, to kill him before he even heard of his son's death,

00:39:07.219 --> 00:39:10.159
and had a chance to turn against Alexander.

00:39:12.320 --> 00:39:16.740
In 329, Alexander resumed his pursuit of Bessus.

00:39:17.980 --> 00:39:24.639
En route, he founded the city of Alexandria
Arachosia – modern Kandahar, in southern Afghanistan.

00:39:27.659 --> 00:39:34.619
As he reached Kunduz, Bessus was betrayed
by his own men, and handed over in chains.

00:39:35.760 --> 00:39:41.020
Alexander sent him back to Persia for execution,
as a king-slayer.

00:39:44.639 --> 00:39:50.960
Alexander pushed on into modern Tajikistan,
where the Sogdians rose up against him.

00:39:53.280 --> 00:39:58.460
He  had to fight off attacks by local tribes,
and take several towns by assault.

00:40:03.219 --> 00:40:11.859
On the banks of the Jaxartes River, he founded
the city of Alexandria-Eschate, meaning Alexandria  'the Furthest'

00:40:12.539 --> 00:40:18.300
– so-named because he had,
at last, reached the limit of the Persian Empire.

00:40:23.039 --> 00:40:29.059
This frontier was frequently raided by nomads,
known to the Greeks as Scythians.

00:40:30.739 --> 00:40:35.559
Alexander lured them into a decisive battle
near the Jaxartes.

00:40:45.760 --> 00:40:51.240
The result was a crushing  victory for the Macedonian king, that put an end to the raids.

00:40:54.000 --> 00:40:59.559
But fighting against Bactrian and Sogdian
tribes continued, frustrating Alexander,

00:41:00.000 --> 00:41:03.820
and tying him down in a difficult guerilla war.

00:41:05.400 --> 00:41:10.460
Tyrant

00:41:11.019 --> 00:41:15.780
By now, many of the Macedonian troops were
unhappy with Alexander.

00:41:16.619 --> 00:41:22.940
Most had not seen  their homes in years, but their king seemed bent on conquest without end.

00:41:23.719 --> 00:41:29.759
What was worse,  he'd begun to adopt the rituals and dress of their defeated Persian enemy

00:41:30.239 --> 00:41:33.839
– customs they viewed as effeminate, and decadent.

00:41:39.440 --> 00:41:47.880
At Maracanda, modern Samarkand, after a furious,
drunken argument, Alexander killed Cleitus the Black.

00:41:50.960 --> 00:41:58.280
Cleitus had been one of Alexander's best generals,
and the man who'd saved his life at the Battle of the Granicus.

00:41:59.739 --> 00:42:06.819
Alexander was full of remorse, but his growing
arrogance was alienating more and more old comrades.

00:42:09.199 --> 00:42:14.480
When he tried to make his countrymen perform
the traditional Persian ritual of proskynesis

00:42:15.159 --> 00:42:19.500
– prostrating themselves before the king
- he crossed a line.

00:42:20.940 --> 00:42:29.700
To Greeks this was blasphemy – only a god
was worthy of such respect - and Alexander was forced to back down.

00:42:33.139 --> 00:42:42.539
In Bactria, another plot to assassinate Alexander
was uncovered. This time the ringleader was a royal page

00:42:43.059 --> 00:42:46.980
– one of the sons of Macedonian
nobility who attended the king.

00:42:48.380 --> 00:42:57.680
Hermolaus had become murderously bitter towards Alexander over a perceived injustice. He and his accomplices were tortured,

00:42:58.159 --> 00:43:00.639
and then stoned to death.

00:43:02.880 --> 00:43:08.800
Callisthenes, Alexander's official historian,
was also implicated in the conspiracy.

00:43:10.219 --> 00:43:13.659
He  was thrown in prison, where he later died.

00:43:15.099 --> 00:43:25.199
That summer, in 327 - according to legend
- Alexander became captivated by the beauty of Roxana,  daughter of a Bactrian lord.

00:43:26.559 --> 00:43:33.199
Their marriage was also a sound political
move, helping to end local revolt against his rule

00:43:33.840 --> 00:43:40.720
– and allowing him to continue
his advance... into modern Pakistan, and India.

00:43:44.820 --> 00:43:51.460
To the Edge of the World

00:43:51.920 --> 00:44:00.920
Alexander now prepared to subdue the Persian
Empire's most eastern provinces, which had yet to recognise his kingship.

00:44:04.900 --> 00:44:12.079
To do so he would first have to cross the
Hindu Kush mountains and reach the Indus river valley.

00:44:18.380 --> 00:44:26.400
Advancing in two columns, his army won a series
of skirmishes against the Aspasii and Assaceni,

00:44:27.760 --> 00:44:32.060
as they fought their way into what's now the
Swat Valley of northern Pakistan.

00:44:34.480 --> 00:44:40.000
After a fierce siege, Alexander took the Assacenian
capital of Massaga.

00:44:41.760 --> 00:44:50.360
According to legend it was ruled by a beautiful
queen, Cleophis, who bore Alexander a  son, and was allowed to keep her throne.

00:44:53.119 --> 00:44:58.960
The ruler of Taxila, near modern Islamabad,
had formed an alliance with Alexander.

00:45:00.119 --> 00:45:06.500
Together they marched to face Porus, king
of Pauravas, at the Battle of the Hydaspes.

00:45:11.360 --> 00:45:19.400
It was Alexander's costliest battle, as Porus's
war elephants inflicted terrible casualties amongst the Greeks.

00:45:20.940 --> 00:45:30.079
But despite Porus's fearless leadership, the
battle ended in a decisive victory for Alexander, winning him control of the Punjab.

00:45:32.780 --> 00:45:42.180
Alexander wanted to push on into India, to
reach the great river which ancient Greek geographers said formed the edge of the world.

00:45:43.139 --> 00:45:49.359
But at the River Hyphasis, known today as
the Beas, his army mutinied.

00:45:52.079 --> 00:46:00.719
His men had marched thousands of miles, fought
countless battles, and not seen their homes in 8 years.

00:46:01.599 --> 00:46:05.980
They'd heard rumours of gigantic
armies waiting for them in India.

00:46:07.000 --> 00:46:09.659
They refused to go any further.

00:46:14.940 --> 00:46:19.360
Alexander was furious, but had to turn the
army around.

00:46:20.300 --> 00:46:25.860
He followed the rivers of the Punjab to the
sea – a journey that took 10 months.

00:46:26.699 --> 00:46:35.219
On the way, he defeated the Mahlians, but while
leading the assault on their capital, was wounded in the chest and nearly killed.

00:46:41.880 --> 00:46:50.140
After reaching the coast, part of the army under
Nearchus, she boarded and returned by sea to Persia.

00:46:51.000 --> 00:46:56.139
sailing through the Strait
Hormuz and swam to the Persian Gulf.

00:46:58.960 --> 00:47:06.699
It was one of the great ancient voyages of
exploration, as these waters had been previously unknown to Greeks.

00:47:09.599 --> 00:47:15.819
Meanwhile Alexander led the rest of the army
back by land through the Gedrosian desert,

00:47:16.179 --> 00:47:25.019
today in southern Pakistan. But extreme heat
and shortages of food and water led to terrible suffering,

00:47:25.400 --> 00:47:27.940
and many deaths among his army.

00:47:30.139 --> 00:47:36.299
On his return to Persia, Alexander executed
several of his viceroys and governors

00:47:37.059 --> 00:47:44.119
- men accused of ruling unjustly, and robbing temples
and tombs, during his long absence in the east.

00:47:47.380 --> 00:47:54.920
At Susa, he arranged a magnificent mass-marriage
of Macedonian officers to 80 Persian  noblewomen,

00:47:55.440 --> 00:47:58.539
to strengthen bonds between his two kingdoms.

00:47:59.079 --> 00:48:03.380
Alexander himself married two Persian princesses.

00:48:04.059 --> 00:48:13.779
He also paid all his soldiers debts, and ordered
30,000 youths from across the empire to be trained  in the Macedonian art of war.

00:48:19.880 --> 00:48:23.900
But at Opis, his Macedonian troops mutinied.

00:48:25.059 --> 00:48:34.019
They were offended by Alexander's apparent preference for Persian advisors and Persian ways. Alexander had the ringleaders executed,

00:48:34.320 --> 00:48:38.900
and made a speech to the men, reminding them
of the glories they'd won together,

00:48:39.480 --> 00:48:43.599
and leading eventually to an emotional reconciliation.

00:48:47.820 --> 00:48:54.940
At Ecbatana, Alexander's closest and most
trusted friend, Hephaestion, died of fever.

00:48:56.360 --> 00:49:05.640
The king was grief stricken, went days without
eating, and ordered a period of public mourning across the empire.

00:49:10.159 --> 00:49:15.619
Alexander waged a successful campaign against
the mountain raiders of Cossaea,

00:49:16.300 --> 00:49:19.700
who not even the Persian kings had been able to subdue.

00:49:21.900 --> 00:49:26.559
Returning to Babylon, he was met by embassies
from distant peoples,

00:49:26.980 --> 00:49:41.039
come to recognise his greatness – Aethiopians, Libyans, European Scythians, Lucanians, Etruscans, Gauls and Iberians.

00:49:44.139 --> 00:49:48.659
Alexander's Bactrian wife Roxana was now pregnant...

00:49:49.380 --> 00:49:56.039
But as he planned his next campaign, to Arabia
and beyond, he developed a sudden fever,

00:49:57.199 --> 00:50:02.259
and died days later, aged just 32.

00:50:05.219 --> 00:50:15.919
The cause of Alexander's death has never been
established. It may have been malaria, cholera, typhus... or poison.

00:50:18.960 --> 00:50:25.079
The Successors

00:50:26.280 --> 00:50:36.180
Alexander died undefeated in battle. His reputation
as a brilliant, fearless and daring military commander remains undimmed.

00:50:37.219 --> 00:50:45.119
His decade long campaign created one of the
largest empires ever known, stretching from Greece to Pakistan.

00:50:46.139 --> 00:50:52.420
But it was vast and unstable, held together
only by his own brilliance and name.

00:50:53.380 --> 00:50:59.920
Alexander left no plans for his succession,
and his generals soon began fighting among themselves

00:51:00.400 --> 00:51:03.160
to carve out their own empires.

00:51:04.420 --> 00:51:10.680
In the Wars of the Successors, Alexander's
widow Roxana and his young son were murdered.

00:51:13.239 --> 00:51:23.119
His own gold sarcophagus, en route to Macedonia
for burial was hijacked, and ended up in Alexandria, in Egypt.

00:51:23.860 --> 00:51:29.660
Today, it's location remains one of the world's
great unsolved mysteries.

00:51:31.860 --> 00:51:38.519
Few men have ever had such an impact on the
course of history as Alexander the Great.

00:51:39.500 --> 00:51:44.519
The breath-taking achievements of his short
life ushered in the Hellenistic Age,

00:51:45.039 --> 00:51:51.659
as Greek  ideas spread across the territory of his former
empire, fusing with local traditions to trigger

00:51:51.880 --> 00:51:55.940
new developments in art, science, government
and language.

00:51:59.340 --> 00:52:04.079
Some of the successor kingdoms to his great
empire were short-lived

00:52:04.500 --> 00:52:19.579
– others endured for centuries.. but all, in turn, would fall to new forces... and in the west, to the rising power of Rome.

00:52:28.019 --> 00:52:34.780
Research and artwork for this video comes
from Osprey Publishing's extensive range of books on ancient history.

00:52:35.380 --> 00:52:42.780
Every Osprey book examines a particular battle, campaign or combat unit in authoritative,
meticulous detail.

00:52:43.500 --> 00:52:49.039
And with more than 3,000 titles, they cover
everything from ancient warfare to modern conflict.

00:52:49.460 --> 00:52:52.760
Visit their website to see their online catalogue.

00:52:53.800 --> 00:52:59.880
Thank you to all the Patreon supporters who
made this video possible, and to the  channel ‘Invicta’

00:53:00.420 --> 00:53:05.139
– find out more about key
moments from the past in their ‘Moments in History’ series.

00:53:07.019 --> 00:53:10.360
Joachim wrote and translated

00:53:15.400 --> 00:53:15.900
He writes and translates into several languages: Joachim Moczko