Delphi Complete Works of Quintus Curtius Rufus

by Quintus Curtius Rufus

  At about the same time the Smyrneans recovered their ancient splendour. After old Smyrna was destroyed by the arms of the Lydians, the people had lived for 400 years in villages. The king restored the city about twenty stadia from the sea, as the result of a dream. Antigonus had the glory of finishing it, when Alexander a little later made him governor of Lydia, Phrygia, and the neighbouring regions. The Clasomenians dwell in the Gulf of Smyrna, where the land is narrowest and forms a peninsida by attaching to the mainland the lands which advance into the sea for about sixty stadia. Alexander, examining the nature of the place, decided to cut a canal and join the upper and the lower harbours (Plin. N.H. v. 29. 31 (116)). They say that this was the one thing that did not turn out according to the king’s desires, and hence gave currency to the proverb, “it is not lawful for men to change the form which Nature has given to places,” especially after others had tried to make similar changes without success.

  Alexander himself hastened to Miletus with the infantry which he had with him and with a squadron of cavalry, including the Companions. Hegesistratus, commander of the Milesian garrison, had held out hope of surrender (Arr i. 18. A), but after he knew that the Persian fleet was near, he tried to save the town for Darius. Alexander first took the outer city, for the citizens and the soldiers had withdrawn to the inner city to wait for the arrival of aid. But the coming of the Macedonian fleet, which under Nicanor had anchored at the island of Lade above Miletus (Arr l c.), made their hope vain, and Alexander gained possession of the city. He spared the Greek mercenaries and took them into his service; he made slaves of the barbarians, but restored freedom to the surviving Milesians, because of the ancient glory of the city. Many of the Milesians had won prizes in sacred contests; when Alexander saw the great number of statues of the victors, he said: “Where were the strong arms of these men when you received the Persian yoke?”

  Since the large fleet of the barbarians was sailing the seas and challenging the Macedonians to a sea-fight, and were often seen off the very harbour of the city in which the king had launched his ships, he sent Philotas with the cavalry and three cohorts of infantry to Mount Mycalê, where the Persians had their naval station, to prevent them from going inland and getting water, wood, and other necessities. This reduced the barbarians to the greatest straits, and after holding a council they went off to Samos (Arr i. 19. 8). Having got supplies from there, they returned to Miletus and lay before the mouth of the harbour in order of battle. After a vain attack on the Macedonian feet, in which they lost one ship, they left Miletus.

  Alexander, since he knew that his feet was not a match for that of the enemy, and was useless for other purposes, but yet required many heavy expenses, decided to disband it (Arr i. 20. 1), retaining only a few ships for carrying the artillery and other materials for besieging cities. Parmenion tried to dissuade him, and urged him to contend with the Persians in a sea-fight (Arr i. 18. 6 ff.). Alexander, however, insisted that Parmenion was mistaken in thinking it advisable to expose his ships, which were fewer in number and with inexperienced crews, to well-trained men, skilful in naval affairs. A defeat would have serious consequences; for all Asia would be encouraged if a disaster should be suffered early in the war, and even the Greeks could not be counted upon to remain faithful under such circumstances. It was more important to get control of the sea-coast cities (Plut. Alex, xviii. 6 ff.), which would make the enemy’s feet helpless.

  Accordingly, having disbanded his feet, he left Pontus and the adjacent regions to his generals to subjugate. He himself moved into Caria; for he knew that a great force of the enemy had gathered in that place. Halicarnassus, strongly fortified by nature and protected by a double citadel (Strabo xiv p. 657), offered hope that the Macedonians, rushing on like a torrent, might be checked by that city, as if by a dyke. The Persians entertained special hope from Memnon, who was preparing everything with the greatest care to stand a siege; for lately he had been appointed by Darius commander of the sea-coast and the whole fleet. But Alexander, on entering Caria, in a short time got possession of all the cities between Miletus and Halicarnassus; for most of them were inhabited by Greeks, to whom he was accustomed to restore immunity and their own laws, declaring that he had come into Asia to free them (Diod xvii. 24. 1). And he gained no less favour from the barbarians after he had courteously received Ada, a lady of royal blood who had implored his protection and begged him to restore her to her throne. When he had finally taken Halicarnassus, he ordered all Caria to obey her (Arr i. 23. 8). Meanwhile, the report of his kind reception of the queen won over to him numerous cities in that region, since many of them were ruled by her kinsmen or friends.

  Already almost all Caria had submitted to Alexander; but the principal city of the kingdom, Halicarnassus, was held by a strong garrison. Conjecturing that the siege would be a long one, the king ordered provisions and engines for a siege to be brought there in ships. He himself with his infantry fortified a camp five stadia from the city (Arr i. 20. 2). When he was approaching the walls near the gate which faces My lassa, the inhabitants made a sudden sally; but the Macedonians resisted bravely and the enemy were repulsed without great difficulty with the loss of some of their men (Arr l c.). A few days later, when Alexander hoped to get possession of a town of the Myndenses by betrayal (Arr l c.), he set out on a stormy night with a part of his forces; but he had to attack the town without proper siege materials and the attempt to take it failed. The siege of Halicarnassus continued for a long time with various attacks and sallies, in one of which the veteran Atarrhias aroused the younger troops who were giving way and brought victory to the Macedonians (Curt, v. 2. 5; viii. 1. 36). After this contest, which exhausted the strength of the besieged, they set fire to the town; the strongest of the townsmen and soldiers took possession of a citadel situated on an island and the others retired to another citadel called Salmacis (Arr. 23. 3). Alexander destroyed the city itself and ordered Ptolemy to surround the citadel with a wall and a trench and keep watch of them, leaving him to protect Caria with 3000 foreign soldiers and 200 horsemen. Ptolemy not long afterwards joined his forces with Asander, governor of Lydia, and defeated Orontohates in battle. Finally the Macedonians, angry and wearied by the long delay, applied themselves vigorously to the attack, and took the two citadels (Curt iii. 7. 4; Arr ii. 5. 7).

  But the king, having in mind Phrygia and the adjacent provinces, sent Parmenion with the Companion Cavalry, the auxiliary horsemen, and the Thessalians which Alexander Lyncestes commanded, to Sardis; from there he was to force his way into Phrygia and get ready provisions and fodder from the enemy for the king’s coming. He sent home some of the Macedonian soldiers, whom he knew to have taken wives a little before that expedition, to pass the winter with their wives, and with them he sent two generals, Coenus and Meleager, who had recently taken wives. This gratified the soldiers and made them readier for long service. The generals were ordered, while they were in Macedonia, to hold many levies, and bring back at the beginning of spring the greatest possible number of infantry and cavalry, as well as those who were then leaving for home. Perceiving that the army was being infected with Asiatic habits, and that a great number of shameless men were kept in the camp, he ordered all these to be carefully hunted up and banished to a small island in the Gulf of Ceramicus; and the ill fame clung to the place, which is called Cinaedopolis (Plin. N.H. v. 31 (11)).

  Alexander, determined on his plan of getting all the sea-coast into his power and making the enemy’s fleet useless (Arr i, 24. 3), having received the Hypani, who had surrendered the citadel which they were holding as mercenaries, hastened into Lycia. There, having made friendship with the Telmessi and crossed the river Xanthus, he received in surrender a city of the same name as the river, as well as Pinara and Patara, famous cities of that region, and about thirty others, and having arranged matters sufficiently for the present, he advanced into Milyas. Milyas is a part of Greater Phrygia, but it had pleased the Persian kings to assign it to Lydia. While he was receiving it, envoy
s of the Phaselitae came, begging for friendship, and offered a golden crown as a gift of hospitality; and envoys from many cities of lower Lycia sought the same. Accordingly, the king sent men ahead, to whom the Phaselitae and the Lycians were to surrender their towns, and went a few days later to Phaselis. The people of that city were just at that time attacking a strong garrison which the Pisidae had constructed in their territory and which had inflicted many injuries upon the neighbours; this was quickly captured on the arrival of Alexander.

  In the city of the Phaselitae the king gave several days to quiet, in order to refresh himself and his army. The time of year also invited this, for the winter had already made the roads difficult for advancing. But his peace was broken by a sad message from Parmenion. He had seized a Persian, Sisines by name, sent by Darius, ostensibly to visit Atizyes, satrap of Phrygia (Arr i. 25. 3), but with secret instructions to contrive secretly to meet Alexander Lyncestes, and to promise him, if he carried out his design, the rule of Macedonia and 1000 talents of gold. For Lyncestes had formed a wicked plot with the deserter Amyntas, and had taken upon himself the part of killing the king; for he hated him for other reasons, and also because he had put to death Heromenes and Arrabaeus, brothers of Lyncestes, as implicated in the assassination of Philip.

  When the matter had been taken into consultation, his friends blamed the king for his mild treatment of Lyncestes, against whom he had been warned by his mother (Diod xvii. 34. 2) as well as by a portent (Ael. Hist. Anim x. 34). Alexander thereupon, not wishing to trust to a letter, sent Amphoterus, the brother of Craterus, secretly to Parmenion, with instructions what to do. Lyncestes was arrested, but was not put to death until three years later in connexion with the conspiracy of Philotas (Curt vii. 1. 8 f.). Leaving Phaselis, Alexander sent a part of his forces through the mountains to Perga; he himself led the rest along the shore of the Pamphylian Sea, which is impassable with a south wind, but on the king’s arrival a strong north wind arose and opened a passage for the Macedonians (Arr i. 26.1 f). Even so, it was necessary to make one day’s march over unfamiliar shoals with the water up to their waists (Curt v. 3. 22; vi. 3. 16; cf. Plut. Alex xvii. 3f).

  Alexander’s great courage in times of danger was undoubtedly inborn; but I am inclined to believe that it was increased when he had learned from many prodigies and omens that he was destined by the will of a divine power for great and glorious deeds. While he was still in Macedonia, he saw in a dream a man more august and venerable than an ordinary human being, who advised Alexander to follow him to Asia, in order to overthrow the Persian empire as soon as possible (Josephus, Antiq xi. 5). When he was making war in Phoenicia, he was reminded of the dream, when a priest of the Jews came before him in whom he recognized the apparition which he had seen in his sleep. For when he was besieging Tyre, he had summoned the kings and peoples of the neighbourhood to surrender and to hold levies. But the Jews, who held the famous city of Jerusalem, rejected his friendship, giving as an excuse their treaty with Darius. To punish the obstinacy of the race, he moved his troops into Judaea, but the people of Jerusalem, in order to appease the king’s anger, poured out to meet him with their wives and children. The priests marched first, clad in linen robes, the people followed, also clad in white. The procession was led by Jaddus, who was then high priest, in his official attire.

  The king, admiring the grace and beauty of the procession, leaped from his horse and advanced alone to meet them, and venerating the name of God, which the pontifical mitre displayed, inscribed on a golden plate, he reverently saluted the high priest also. This unexpected act amazed all who had come with the king; the Jews, released from the fear of imminent death, surrounded him with mingled praises, thanks, and prayers. When Parmenion ventured to ask the king why he paid such honour to foreign ceremonials, Alexander told him of his dream. Then he entered the beautiful temple, sacrificed to God according to the native custom, and gave gifts to the temple. The king also inspected the sacred books of the race, in which were contained prophecies written long before, among them that Tyre would yield to the Macedonians (Isaiah xi. 5) and that the Persians would be conquered by a Greek (Daniel viii. 12). Alexander, referring this to himself granted the Jews permission to use their own laws and rites at home and abroad, and because every seventh year they did not work the earth, he relieved them of that proportion of their tribute. He made Andromachus governor of those regions; him the Samaritans, perpetual enemies of the Jews, a little later put to a cruel death (Curt. iv. 8. 9).

  These things happened after the storming of Tyre and Gaza; we have anticipated them since the occasion a suggested it.

  After subduing various peoples, the king went on to Phrygia along the lake of Ascania (Arr i. 29. I) and in five days reached Celaenae. While this was going on, Memnon got together from all sides the remains of his forces and, in order to divert Alexander’s attention from Asia, turned his thoughts to making war on Greece and Macedonia; for Darius, feeling the most confidence in him after he had at Halicarnassus by his valour and skill delayed the victor’s onset, had given him supreme command and a great sum of money. Memnon had assembled as great a force of mercenaries as he could and with a fleet of 300 ships was sailing the seas. He seized the places which were less carefully guarded, including Lampsacus, and attacked the islands, which for lack of ships the Macedonians could not protect. He was aided also by dissensions; for although the greater number favoured Alexander as the author of their freedom, many who had gained wealth under the Persians preferred their own power under their former masters to a republic in which all men were equal. For that reason Athenagoras and Apollonides received Memnon in Chios and in consequence the city was taken and a garrison placed there.

  From there going to Lesbos Memnon easily took Antissa, Pyrrha, and Eressus (Diod xvii. 29. 2; Arr ii. I). He made Aristonicus tyrant of Methymné (Curt iv. 5. 19) and reduced the whole island except Mitylenê. While he was besieging Mitylenê, he fell ill and died, and thus disappointed the great hopes of the Persians with irreparable loss to them (Diod l c.). When he was near death he turned over his command to Pharnabazus, his sister’s son, whose father was Arlabazus, to hold until Darius, on hearing of Memnon’s death, should decide otherwise. Pharnabazus, having shared the duties with Autophradates, commander of the fleet, at length drove the besieged so far that, having stipulated that the garrison should go out safely, they overthrew the pillars on which the treaty with Alexander had been recorded, and on promising loyalty to Darius received half of their citizens who had been banished (Arr ii. 1. 4). The Persians, however, did not abide by the agreement, but having led soldiers into the city, made Lycomedes of Rhodes its commander; Diogenes, who had been exiled because of his devotion to the Persians, was made tyrant over his native city. Then money was taken by force from the richest citizens, but, in spite of that, a tribute was imposed, to be paid by the people of Mitlenê in general (Arr l c.).

  CONTENTS OF BOOK III

  While Darius was mustering his forces at the Euphrates, Alexander had conquered the greater part of the western and south-western coasts of Asia Minor. After settling the affairs of Lycia and Pamphylia, he took Celaenae in Phrygia and at Gordium loosed the fateful Gordian knot; he then marched to meet Darius (i).

  Darius, having encamped near Babylon, numbered his force after the example of Xerxes. He put to death Charidemus, an Athenian, because he had expressed too free an opinion of the Persian army (ii).

  Darius put Thymondas in command of the Greek troops and gave Pharnabazus the power formerly held by Memnon, The king has a dream, which is variously interpreted. The Persian army is described and compared with that of the Macedonians (iii).

  Alexander reached the entrance to Cilicia, called “the Gates.” Arsames, governor of that province, instead of holding the narrow pass, was laying waste the whole country with fire and sword. Alexander enters Cilicia, marvelling at his good fortune, and arrives at Tarsus in time to save it from destruction by fire (iv).

  When Alexander, while overhe
ated, bathed in the cold waters of the river Cydnus, he was taken seriously ill. The anxiety of the army was great, since the king was unwilling to wait for the effect of slow remedies, seeking rather an opportunity to make war than an escape from death (v).

  Philip, a faithful friend and skilful physician, promised to lessen the violence of the ailment by a medicated draught. Although Alexander received a letter from Parmenion in which he warned the king not to trust his safety to Philip, he drank the potion unterrified and was cured (vi).

  Darius, on learning of Alexander’s illness, hastened to take possession of Cilicia. Alexander came to Soli, where he paid by games to Aesculapius and Minerva the vows which he had made for his safety. He then went on to Issus and decided to fight a decisive battle there (vii).