The Battle of The Granicus River 334 BCE

Troy --  May, 334 BCE With his affairs in Greece and Macedon in order, Alexander was now ready to begin what he believed to be his life's calling -- the subjugation of the vast Persian Empire.  The Persian monarch, Darius "The Great King", severely underestimated the threat Alexander posed to his reign.  The Persian empire had a vastly superior fleet, and it armies by sheer numbers alone should have been able to stop Alexander.   But the fabric of the empire was weak, various satraps fought amongst themselves, and Darius himself was far from universally loved and considered somewhat weak and not very bright.  This factionalism would be exploited by Alexander throughout the Persian campaign.

Alexander left Pella as a man expecting never to return.  The home army was entrusted to his father's minister, Antipater.  Alexander divided his royal domains, revenues, and forests among friends.  When asked by close friend Perdiccas what was left for himself, Alexander reportedly replied "hope."  Perdiccas renounced his portion, stating that those who will fight by Alexander's side need only share in the hope.  It is this degree of fealty that would provide the backbone of Alexander's success in Persia.

Parmenion established a beachhead at Sestus and ferried the Macedonian army across the Hellespont without incident.  Alexander's first stop was Ilium, where he paid homage to the Greek heroes of the Trojan War, notably by running naked around the traditional tomb of Achilles (as if YOU never thought of doing that!).    Alexander's armor was dedicated at the Temple of Athena, and a bull was sacrificed to Poseidon on the crossing.  With all of the ceremonial niceties observed, it was time to get to work.

Alexander proceeded eastward on the coastal plain along the Sea of Marmara, encountering his first resistance at the town of Lampsacus.  Attempting to remain loyal to the Persian cause, the town was spared utter destruction by the actions of an ambassador who negotiated a pardon. 

Meanwhile, the Persian army was gathering to make a stand along the shore of the river Granicus, east of Lampsacus.  Consisting of approximately 20,000 cavalry and nearly as many Greek mercenary infantry, the army was somewhat larger than that of Alexander.  The river itself is high banked and runs deep in the winter, but during May is considered easily fordable. 

The Persian forces were lead not by one man but a coalition of satraps and noblemen.  The exception was the commander of the Greek mercenary forces, Memnon of Rhodes, who was a respected battlefield general.  Memnon had suggested that the towns and farms be destroyed as they pulled back into a defensive position, so as to deprive the Macedonian army of ready rations.  Arsites, satrap in this region, declared he would not allow a single house to be burned.  The remainder of the Persians, suspicious of the motives of the Greek Memnon, supported Arsites.  It was this suspicion, as well as jealousy in regards to Memnon's status as a favorite of  the Great King, which would ultimately lead to their defeat.

The Persian army was deployed with all of its cavalry defending the opposite shore of the river against a crossing -- a most unusual and, as it turned out, ill-conceived use of cavalry.  The Greek mercenaries and other foot were positioned atop a rise about a kilometer back from the river plain.  This deployment was yet another example of how Persian politics overcame military common sense.  With a 4:1 cavalry advantage, a more prudent approach would have been to place the Greek infantry on the river, reserving the cavalry for a mobile counterstrike.  Persian cavalry was highly regarded for its offensive ability, in a purely defensive role, it was virtually useless.

It was near dusk when Alexander approached.  Dismissing the advice of Parmenion to wait until morning, Alexander perceived he had the initiative and launched the attack immediately.  (with an air of characteristic self-confidence, Alexander told Parmenion "I should be ashamed, having crossed the Hellespont, to be detained by a miserable stream like the Granicus.")

The Macedonian army was split into two independent wings.  The right, commanded by Alexander, consisted of the light cavalry, or prodromoi,  under Amyntas; the hypaspists under Nicanor; the Companion cavalry led by Parmenion's son Philotas and Ptolemy; archers and Agrian acontists; and the phalangical taxes of Perdiccas, Coenus, Amyntas (the infantry officer), and Philip.  The left, under Parmenion, was comprised of the Thessalian cavalry under Calas; allied Greek cavalry led by Philip, son of Menelaus; Thracian cavalry under Agatho; and the phalanxes of Craterus and Meleager.  Artillery was also placed on the left under Parmenion's command.

The Persian army, as mentioned earlier, deployed strictly cavalry on the line.   The generals Memnon and Arsames commanded a body of  cavalry opposite Alexander on the Persian left.  To their right, the satraps Spithridates and Arsites commanded the Phrygian, Paphlagonian, Hyrcanian, and Lydian horse. To their right, a body of Median and Bactrian cavalry.   On the right flank, the general Rheomithres opposed Parmenion.  All in all, more than forty high ranking generals, princes, and other Persian aristocrats took part in the battle.

Alexander began the battle himself, leading a small group of about 1000 light cavalry and lancers across the river.   This feint triggered a flurry of spears being hurled by the defenders.  The anxious Persians immediately engaged the small force in a disorganized melee.   The Macedonians, however, had not thrown their spears and now had the edge, the long reach of their weapons keeping the Persians out of short arms range.  A group of Persian officers made their way to Alexander himself, and  Spithridates even got in a blow to Alexander's helmet.

At this point, the bulk of the Companion cavalry crossed the river and outflanked the Persian left.  Unable to detach from the melee in an orderly fashion, the Persian cavalry was unable to protect themselves.  When the infantry crossed the river, the whole of the Persian cavalry broke en masse and retreated.  The entire battle to this point took only a few minutes.  Rather than pursue the cavalry, Alexander ordered the army advance upon the Greek mercenaries who, under the command of Omares, occupied the high ground beyond the river plain.   (what little Persian infantry was present ran off with the cavalry).  The Greeks asked for mercy, but Alexander would have none of it.  Alexander seems to have felt personally betrayed by each and every Greek who would take up arms against him, and reserved the worst of his wrath for these mercenaries.  The phalanx met the Greek defenders head on, with the Companions outflanking the Greek left and the Thessalian cavalry circling around the right to attack from the rear.  Only two thousand of the approximately 20,000 Greeks were spared and sent back as slaves to work the Thracian silver mines.

Persian losses numbered around 1000 cavalry, but a large percentage of their leaders fell in battle.  The generals Niphates and Petines, the satraps Spithridates and Mithrobarzanes, the nobles Arbupales, Mithridates and Pharnaces (the son, son-in-law, and brother-in-law of Darius, respectively), and the Greek mercenary commander Omares all were among the notable that fell in the battle.  Arsites, who arrogantly defied the consul of Memnon, took responsibility for the defeat and committed suicide.

Macedonian losses were negligible, less than 100 cavalry and 50 foot.

In the aftermath of the battle, the satrapy of Lydia was restored to a Hellenistic state.  Neglected cities such as Ilium were refurbished, tax levies that once flowed from the region into imperial Persian coffers were instead reinvested into the communities.  Although pro-Persian uprisings were immediately and harshly quelled, it was important for Alexander to leave a reasonably satisfied populace in his wake.  He had neither the troops nor the funds to maintain an oppressive garrison to ensure his lines of communications throughout his Persian expedition.

Jeff Vitous

Further Reading

A History of Greece to the Death of Alexander the Great
J.B. Bury and Russell Meiggs
St. Martin's Press, 1980  ISBN 0 312 37940 4

Alexander
Theodore Ayrault Dodge
De Capo Press, 1996  ISBN 0 306 80690 8

History of the Persian Empire
Albert T. Olmstead
University of Chicago Press, 1948  ISBN 0 226 62777 2

The Game

Favored Side:  Macedon
Suitability for Solitaire:  Good   The computer basically holds firm until the Macedonians attack.  As usual, its best played as the Macedonian.
Suitability for Multiplayer:  Excellent  Greek has the numbers advantage, the Macedonians,  the leadership and power.

Strategy - Greek
Tend to your flanks.  When the Macedonians cross the river, they will usually attempt a flanking maneuver.  If you can manage to create an effective cavalry reserve, you can set upon the Macedonians as they come crawling out of the river.   It is generally not a good idea to send your own troops across the river, but look for opportunities to sneak a few units across and harass the phalanx from behind.   Keep your eye on the Macedonian archers, they will snipe at your numerous leaders if given the opportunity.

Strategy - Macedonian
Doing what Alexander did isn't such a bad idea (hell, it worked spectacularly for him!)  Try and tie up the Persian left with your light cavalry and acontists.  Use your archers to snipe at Persian nobles that get too close to the action (although it is considered bad form to shoot at Memnon before he has his fist turn -- the odds of success is otherwise the effort, and if he goes down, the Persians basically stand no chance.  Poor scenario design makes him vulnerable before he has a chance to move).  The game is almost always won or lost on your right, so move Philotas there to assist from the start.  Parmenion should advance to the river and keep the Persians honest on their right, but often doesn't have the numbers to get across the river and inflict the sort of damage Alexander can do on the right.  Take time to restore cohesion to your damaged units.  Alexander and Philotas often do well in gaining momentum attacks (if they fail to do so, then you are probably doomed), and the game is plenty long enough to take your time.  It is rare that the Persian will be able to use his superior numbers against you...traffic jams along a limited river front will hinder his cause.

Notes
   1.  Greek phalanx units are two-hex hoplite HI and are listed as phalanx to distinguish them from standard HI.
  
   

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