<< Previous

By now, in my mind I was King of Asia, but only once I took over Persia’s major cities would I be King of Persia. Yet I needed to be King of Persia in order to become King of Asia.

As I migrated ever closer to the heart of the Persian Empire, my vision of a unified and global empire was becoming more and more reality.

From Issus, Darius fled to Babylon. From Babylon, he fled to Gaugamela, in modern day Iraq, near Mosul. It was in Gaugamela that I dealt him a crushing, but not yet final and lethal blow.

Gaugamela is where Darius’ nerve was broken and his fate sealed. Darius probably expected my men to grow complacent in Babylon and slow our pace, but this was not the case.

This was the straw that broke the camel’s back; for major cities – and riches – at the heart of Persia were now within my striking distance.

But it was also in Guagamela that the relationship between my men and I began to change. By now, I was so deep into Persian soil that the sheer number of those I was conquering would entail me to adopt their ways. To my Macedonian brethren, this was treasonous.

To them, my task in Asia was complete: I had freed Asia Minor. To me, I had done nothing of the sort: for Persepolis was still not mine.

Macedonia was far away and my men wanted to return. To me, Persepolis was too close to turn back.

Continue >>