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Alexander The Great in Erbil: The Military Battle at Gaugamel -331 B.C.- The political Victory at Arbela
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About Alexander The Great In Erbil: The Military Battle
The book deals with the battle of Gaugamela that took place on 1st October 331 B.C. between Alexander’s Macedonian army and the armies of the Persian Empire. The date of the battle is an important date since its result shaped world history. On that date the first ever civilization ( The Mesopotamian Civilization), which expressed itself in cuneiform writing, was overaken by a second one ( The Classical Greek Civilization) which expressed itself through alphabets. The result of the battle was to establish Hellenism in the East and bring together two unique and equally brilliant cultures and civilizations which managed to coexist and establish a truly meaningful and productive exhange of ideas from a much closer proximity. At Gaugamela Alexander won a decisive military battle but at Arbela, modern Erbil, he achieved and manifested a major political victory. At Arbela Alexander was proclaimed King of Asia, the Persian Empire was officially declared utterly disolved and he demonstrated to the Greeks the justification of his campaign by giving back to the Greek cities their freedom. During the official proclamations Alexander performed magnificent sacrifices to the Gods most probabaly at the acropolis of Arbela , at the mound where the Erbil ciatadel is situated today. Therefore the victory celebrations were performed at the majestic mound in the centre of Arbela where the local Goddess of war and victory, Ishtar of Arbela, had her temple. Alexander named the mound where Ishtar Arbela had her sanctuary “ Nikatorion” meaning the hill of victory. The book gives a detailed account of the actual battle where the Macedonians defeated a numerically superior Persian army. The Macedonians depended on their unbeatable sarissa phalanx and the Royal Companions commanded by Alexander while the Persians relied on their cavallry. The brilliant tactics employed by Alexander and his ferocious counterattack right at the point where a gap was created in the Persian cavalry line gave the final victory to the Macedonians. Darius was also well prepared and he based his strategy on the mobility of his superior army. His encirclement tactics almost succeded. He was unlucky that he had to face Alexander, a genious strategist and one of the most brilliant generals in world military history. In the first chapters of the book , before the battle, there is a comprehensive descrition of the Persian Empire and their military strength as well as a corresponding one for the Macedonian kingdom. There is also a detailed analysis of the local environment and on the build up and approach of two armies towards Arbela and Gaugamela. Finally the last chapters , after the battle, deal with the Alexander’s Kingship of Asia which was first proclaimed at Arbela, and how the ideology of Alexander’s Kingship that was bestowed on him at Arbela had influenced his behaviour later on and how his successors used his kingship and ideology to advance their own kingship and regional claims and interests.
