Alexander's Route from Granicus to Sardis

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Pedrocolombier
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Joined: Tue May 18, 2021 8:19 am

Re: Alexander's Route from Granicus to Sardis

Post by Pedrocolombier »

Two important things that have not being really discussed.
I will show why the coastal route doesn't have any sense.

FIRST PART

First, Alexander didn't created Alexandria Troas, it was Lysimachos later on. First mistake by Engels.
The only think Alexander did while in Troad was to do stuff while the army was crossing the Hellespont.
He grant privileges to Ilion, do some religious stuff. He never found any cities here.

Importantly, it is said that Alexander ordered to his army to spare all the lands of Memnon. Thus, until Granicus battle, Memnon "chora" is untouched by Macedonian.
You can read "Achaemenid Grants of Cities and Lands to Greeks: The Case of Mentor and Memnon of Rhodes" to see clearly that Memnon territory was in Troad, more specifically in center Troad, around Kebren and Skepsis and Gergis. Maybe also the coast of Tenedos ancient Peraia. In any cases, Alexander didn't went as far south while he disembarked in Troad.

What happened next ? After Granicus, Alexander went directly south to Lydia. Even if the terrain is harsh and not easy as a lot of view said, you need to remember that it would just be few days of bad terrain. The MAJORITY of the direct route would still be in Lydian plain, which is absolutely flat and full of cities like Thyateira.
There is nothing against taking such route. Most of it is perfectly fine.
Moreover, we can really assume that a royal achaemenid road was existing here. Daskyleion and Sardes were the 2 proeminent capitals of western Anatolia for persian empire. No doubt they built road system between the two without having to take the coastal route. Why ? Because coastal route is much longer, and is full of greek poleis that were nothing like friendly to persian.
It would be much more dangerous for persian to take coastal route, not even considering all times when this all coast was under athenian or spartan control.

During all the Delian league, the coastal route was under greek control. What were doing the persian to go from Daskyleion to Sardes ? They surely took this inland route.

SECOND PART

Secondly, Arrian specifically write that while at Ephesos, Alexander sent Parmenion to take Tralles and Magnesia AND ALSO sent Lysimachos with equal forces to take "aeolic and ionian cities" still under Persian. He also sent Calas, satrap of Phrygia Hellespontine, to take Memnon lands.

This implies that, as we said, Macedonian didn't had taken Memnon lands before Granicus.
But moreover, while at Sardes, they still didn't took it.
And finally, while at Ephesos, Ionian and Aeolian cities were still not macedonian.

But if the army had taken the coastal route, then they would have taken Memnon lands on the road while in Troad, they would have then taken Aeolian cities along the route and finally ionian cities.

You see that there is absolutely no sense to send Calas in Troad, Lysimachos in Aeolia and Ionia if the army had just passed through these regions.

CONCLUSION
The army took the inland route.
Once Sardes taken, and informed that Memnon was still a threat, Alexander ordered to Calas to go back to his new satrapy and put it in order by taking the lands of Memnon that could still be a threat and a base for him in the future. Calas therefore went back to Daskyleion and then in Troad to secure his satrapy.

Once at Ephesos, on the coast, Alexander very logically sent Parmenion to take the Meander valley (Ephesos is at the end of it) by taking Magnesia and Tralles (both greek cities). He had to do this now before continuing along the coast southward.
In the same time, he sent Lysimachos to take all the coast north of Ephesos, which is Ionia and Aeolia.

After these orders, Alexander would have secured both satrapies of Phrygia Hellespontica and Lydia completely.
He would now control all the coast from Hellespontos (Cyzikos) to Ephesos (so Controlling Hellespontine Coast, Troad, Aeolia and Ionia).
He could now safely continue south toward Milet (ending control over Ionia) and then taking Caria (Halikarnassos), Lycia, etc.

Pierre Palomar
Pedrocolombier
Posts: 2
Joined: Tue May 18, 2021 8:19 am

Re: Alexander's Route from Granicus to Sardis

Post by Pedrocolombier »

On a side note, there is an other claim by Engels that no armies ever took this Daskyleion-Thyateira road.
That's not really a true and legitimate claim.

Agesilaus II campaign

Firstly, Agesilaus II, king of Sparta, made an anatolian campaign some decades before Alexander (just before Corinthian war).
He went from Ephesus to Adramyttion plain, and then east into Mysia (Apian Plain), Olympene to Phrygia.
If he did not take the North-South route, he took the West-East route.

The Apian Plain is where the roman city Hadrianoutherai will be founded later.

The inland route that Alexander would have take would have passed by this Apian plain but from North to South.

What can we conclude ?
-> We have a record of a greek army taking the inland mysian routes, direction west-east, before Alexander.
Yes, this is not the same route that Alexander would have take (North-South), but is passing by the same area, while Engels is claiming that this area was wild and not civilized.

It's true that mysian of inland areas were "wild tribes", at least without "poleis", as greeks writers are telling us. Maybe pastoral people in the mountains. But it's also pretty obvious that there were some agricultural mysian people like in Apian plain.


We could add that after reaching the Apian plain, Agesilaus II and his army went further east into Olympene region, which is a very mountainous region highly impassable for armies. This Olympene is WAY more difficult for armies than the Daskyleion-Apian Plain route.
They were ambushed, and had to be guided by local mysian to find their way.
And we talk about an army, which was smaller than Alexander's one, but also with way less logistic capabilities.

So to conclude, if a greek army could cross the entire inland Mysia even in Olympene region, I highly doubt that the Alexander's army would have any problems to cross Mysia North-South.

While in Zeleia, Alexander would have met Mysian people while asking to all population of Phrygia Hellespontine satrapy to go back to their homes and leave the mountains were they had taken refuge to avoid the destructions of the war.
He would have had contact with local population,like Agesilaus II before him, to be sure to be guided into Mysia safelly.

Catalan Company

This is way later, but in medieval era, the Catalan Company did an expedition from Cyzikos-Daskyleon (wasn't existing at this time, but from a city in the same era) to Philadelphia in Lydia.
They had to rescue Philadelphia, sieged by turks.
Because of the need to be quick, they took the inland road, exactly the same as Alexander would have taken.

They went from Cyzikos -> Hadrianoutherai -> Hiera Germe -> Thyateira, etc.

They were guided by greeks/byzantine.

Apart the different era, we still have record of an army of mercenaries taking the Daskyleion->Thyateira inland route.
Yes, there were cities like Hadrianoutherai (but in what state, considering the devastation of Anatolia by turks?) ; but as I said, even in classical era, the Apian plain was well know by greeks and could sustain an army like Agesilaus II.

The only last problem, according to Engels, was the route in Macestos valley, between Daskyleion and Apian Plain (Hadrianoutherai).
But this Catalan company took this route without any problem.

So again, an evidence that it's very hard to discard the inland route just based on the statement that it was too difficult for armies.

It was by far the quickest route from Daskyleion to Sardes, and is the only logical route if reading Arrian properly (see my post above).

Thanks,

Pierre
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