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Battle of Gaugamela Part 3
Then they also captured the other main city of Susa. Their next target was the ancient capital of Iran, “Persipolis”, the remains of which still exist today, sixty-one kilometers north of the Iranian city of Shiraz. There was an army of about twenty seven thousand to defend the city. Persepolis’ route passed through narrow mountain passes. In one of these important passes, the Iranian army took up a position at a considerable height. When the Greek army tried to enter this pass, the Iranians showered arrows on them and forced them to retreat.
But in the meantime, the Greeks had somehow captured some Iranian soldiers. One of the prisoners became a guide to the Greek forces. With his help, Alexander the Great with half of his army reached the rear of the enemy by detouring through a hill. The remaining half of his army was positioned in front of the enemy. Coming back, Iskandar Azam launched a full attack. The Greek army in front of the Iranians also attacked them. In this way, the Iranian army was caught between two forces and badly destroyed.
Kurulus Osman S4 Episode 128 Urdu Dubbed
Only seven or eight hundred soldiers out of twenty seven thousand were able to escape with their lives. This battle is called The Battle of the Persian Gate. After this victory, Persepolis was also captured by the Greeks. In Persepolis, the Greek army looted enormously. Alexander the Great gave his soldiers the authority to kill every adult Iranian male and loot the house. Every house was brutally ransacked. Apart from gold and silver, valuable pictures, statues and vessels were also broken and gold, silver and diamonds were also found among them.
In many places, there were fights and killings among the Greek soldiers on the issue of plunder, which was a common thing in that period. According to Plutarch, so much loot was taken from Persepolis that it was loaded on four thousand mules and five hundred camels. After some time Alexander burned this beautiful city to ashes. They did this so that the city would not become a symbol of Iranian resistance to their rule. Persepolis was a great holy city for Iranians.
There were large temples and magnificent palaces. It was considered a symbol of the great political and religious power of the Iranians. Therefore, it could easily become the center of rebellion against the Greek occupation. The destruction of Persepolis began with the palace of Xerxes I, a former Iranian emperor who had launched a major invasion of Greece in the past. First, Alexander threw a burning torch into the palace, which set the building on fire. Then the Greek army started burning the surrounding buildings as well.
Thus, this historic city became a ruin. Alexander the Great then proceeded towards Afghanistan, where he was informed that Darius III was on his way. Meanwhile, friends, what happened was that Commander Basis, who was with the Iranian emperor, rebelled and arrested the Iranian emperor and declared himself the new emperor of Iran. Now he took the captive emperor and marched towards northern Afghanistan where he was also the governor.
Bessus had Darius III chained and placed in a cage. A cloth was wrapped around the chakda so that the emperor could not be seen by the rest of the caravan. On the other hand, Alexander the Great had also become aware of Bessus’ claim to the emperorship and other actions. They continued to pursue Bessus and Darius. During this pursuit, Alexander took the route you see on screen. After covering hundreds of miles in a few days, Iskandar Azam finally reached this caravan.
Somewhere near western Afghanistan, they attacked this convoy. But before they arrived, a tragedy had occurred. Alexander the Great galloped his horse into the enemy’s camp, looking for Darius III and Bessus. Bessus, however, fled with his army before Alexander the Great arrived. But the Greek soldiers found Darius III. But unfortunately, the former Iranian emperor did not come into his hands alive. When the soldiers reached them, they were dead.
Bessus pierced his body with spears before escaping. But the important news for Alexander the Great was that Darius III had reportedly accepted his obedience in his last moments. This was reported to Alexander the Great. He came to the body of Darius III, took off his robe and put it on the body and expressed his sorrow. After that, the last rites of Darius III were performed. After that, Alexander the Great entered Afghanistan with his army in pursuit of Basis.
They came south from western Afghanistan and founded the city of Kandahar. After that, they moved northwards and reached the Afghan region of Bactria. They also conquered the capital of Bactria, Balkh, without any resistance. After a long pursuit, Bessus was finally captured by them. They were tied between two trees and torn apart. After that, Alexander the Great continued to crush the rebellions of the local people in the regions of Northern Afghanistan and Central Asia for a long time.
He also married Rukhsana, the daughter of an Afghan chief, and ended the rebellion by making many Afghan chiefs his friends. You have seen this whole story with many details in the first video of History of Afghanistan season one. If you haven’t seen it, there is a link at the end of the video and there is also a link on the I button here, you can watch it by clicking.
Part 1
Having completed his campaigns in Afghanistan and Central Asia, Alexander the Great now turned his attention to India. Probably in 327 BCE they entered India through present Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. First occupied Swat then moved towards Punjab. But in Punjab he came in contact with a ruler who surprised him. This ruler was Raja Porus. This led to the last major battle of Alexander the Great, the story of which we will show you in the next final episode of Alexander the Great.
