G R E 
pnicleiitly batliing, when heated, in the cold wnters of 
tlie Cydniis, which flows through t!ie city. Philip the 
Acarnanian was the only perfon who defpaired not of 
his life. While this fKilful phyfician adminiflered a 
drauglu to his royal patient, a letter came from Parme- 
nlo, warning Alexander to beware of Piiilip, who had 
been bribed by Darius to poifon him. Alexander took 
the potion, and gave Philip the letter ; fo that the phy¬ 
fician read, wiiile the king drank ; a tranfaiSlion v.'hich 
proved either his contempt of death, or his unlhaken 
confidence in his friends; but which, by the admira¬ 
tion ot his contemporaries and poftcrity, lias been con. 
ftrued into a proof of both. The ficknefsof Alexander, 
however, interrupted not the operations of the army. 
Parnienio was difpatchcd to feize the only pafs on 
mount Amanus, wliich divides Cilicia from AtTyria. 
The king foon followed, having in one day’s march 
readied Anchialos, an ancient city of vail extent, and fur- 
rounded witli walls of prodigious thicknefs. The great- 
eft curiofity of Andiialos was the tomb of Sardanap.a- 
lus, diftinguiflied by the ftatue of that elFeminate tyrant, 
in the attitude of clapping his hands ; with the follow¬ 
ing infeription : “ Sardanapaius, fort of Anacyndaraxas, 
huilt Anchialos and Tarfus in one day. As to you, 
Hranger ! eat, drink, and fport^ for other human things 
are not worth this-," alluding to the clap of his iiands. 
Having arrived at Mallos, an Argive colony at the 
eaftern extremity of Cilicia, Alexander learned that 
Darius lay with his army in the extenfive plain of So- 
chos, diftaiit only two days march from the Ciliciaii 
frontier. The lioftile armies were feparated by the 
mountains which divide Cilicia and Syria. Alexander 
liafiened to pafs the ftraits called the Syrian Gates, pro¬ 
ceeding fouthwards along the bay of Iiruspaiid encamped 
before the city Mariandrus. His delay in Cilicia, 
which had been occafioned by ficknefs, and by other 
iinforefeen events, was aferibed to very different mo¬ 
tives by Darius and his flatterers. That perfidious 
race, the eternal bane of kings, eafily perfuaded the 
Perliaii monarch that Alexander dreaded his approach. 
The haughty Darius was elated at the imagined fears 
of his adverfary ; with impatience he longed to come 
to aiflion ; and not lufpedting that Alexander would 
traverfe the Syrian Gates, he haftily determined to pafs 
the ftraits of Amanus, in a difterent diredtion, in queft 
ot Alexander. Tliis fatal mealure was carried into in- 
ftant execution, notwithftanding the reprefentations of 
Amyntas the Macedonian, and of all Darius’s Grecian 
adherents, who unanimoufly exhorted him to wait the 
enemy in his prefent advantageous pofition. In the lan¬ 
guage of antiquity, an irrefiftible fate, which had de¬ 
termined that the"Greeks Ihould conquer the Perlians, 
as the Perfians had the Medes, and the Medes the Af- 
fyrians, impelled Darius to his ruin. Having palled 
the defiles of Amanus, he di'redted his march fouthward 
to the bay of Illus, and took the city of that name, 
which contained, under a feeble guard, the fick and 
wounded Macedonians, who had not been able to fol- 
]ov/ the army in its expeditious march acrofs the moun¬ 
tains. The Perfians put thefe unhappy men to death 
witli (hocking circumftances of cruelty, little thinking 
that Alexander was in their rear, preparing to avenge 
their fate. 
That fagaciotis prince, who could fcarcely believe 
the folly of Darius, fent a fwift-failing velfel to recon¬ 
noitre his motions. This veffel fpeedily returned to' 
Alexander, with tlie agreeable news that his enemies 
were now in his hands. Having fummoned an alfembly, 
the king forgot none of thofe topics of encouragement 
which the occafion fo naturally fuggefted, fince the i 
meaneft Macedonian foldier could difeern the injudi¬ 
cious movements of the Perfians, who had quitted a 
ipacious plain, t6 entangle themfelves among intricate 
mountains, where their numerous cavalry, in which 
they chiefly excelled, could perform no effential fer- 
E C E. 
vice. In preparing his troops for this important con- 
teft, Alexander commanded them firft to refreflt their 
bodies ; and immediately, difpatched fome horfe and 
archers to clear the road to Iffus. In the evening lie 
followed with his whole army, and about midnight 
took pofieflion of the Syrian ftraits. The Ibldiers w'ere 
tlien allowed a fliort repofe, fuflicient guards being 
polled on the furroiinding eminences. At dawn of day 
the army was in motion, marching by its flank while 
the paffage continued narrow ; and new columns being 
fuccellively brought up, as the mountains gradually 
opened. Before reaching the river Pinanis, on the o]i- 
pofite bank of which the enemy were encamped, the 
Macedonians had formed in order of battle ; Alexan¬ 
der leading the right w’ing, the left being committed to 
Parmenio. They continued to advance, till their right 
was flanked by a mountain, and tlieir left by the Tea, 
from which Parmenio was ordered not to recede. Da¬ 
rius, being apprifed of tlie enemy’s approach, detached 
a body of fifty thoufand cavalry and light infantry 
acrofs the Pinarus, that the remainder might have room 
to form witliout confufion. His Greek mercenaries, 
amounting to thirty tlioufand, he pofted direflly oppo- 
fite to the Macedonian phalanx ; and thefe were flanked 
on both fides by double that number of barbarians, 
alfo heavy armed. Thf nature of the ground admitted 
not more troops to be ranged in front ; but as the 
mountain on Alexander’s left (loped inw’ards, Darius 
placed on that finuofity twenty thoufand men, who 
could fee the enemy’s rear, though it appears not that 
they could approacli or annoy it. Behind the firft line 
tlie reft of the barbarians were ranged, according to 
their various nations, in clofe but unlerviceable ranks ; 
Darius being every-where encumbered by the vaftnefs 
of an army which he had not (kill to diredl. 
When Darius perceived the Macedonians advancing, 
he commanded his men to maintain their poft on the Pi¬ 
narus, the bank of which was in fome places high and 
deep ; where the accefs feemed eafier, he gave orders 
to raife a rampart ; precautions which (hewed the ene¬ 
my, that even before the battle began, the mind of the 
Perfian king was already conquered. Alexander, mean¬ 
while, rode along the ranks, exh.orting, by name, not 
only the commanders of the I'everal brigades, but the 
tribunes and inferior officers, and even fuch captains of 
the auxiliaries as were diftinguiflied by rank, or enno¬ 
bled by merit. Perceiving it necclfary to moderate tlie 
martial ardour that prevailed, he commanded his forces 
to advance with a regular and flow Hep, left the pha¬ 
lanx (hould flu6tuate through too eager a contention. 
Their motion quickened when they proceeded within 
reach of the enemy’s darts. Alexander, with thofe 
around him, then fprung into tiie river. Their impe- 
tuofity aftoniflied the barbarians, who fcarcely waited 
the firft Ihock. But (he Greek mercenaries perceiving 
that by the rapidity and fuccefs of Alexander’s ali'aull, 
the Macedonians were bent towards the right wing, 
which was feparated from the centre, they leized the 
decilive moment of rufhing into the interval, where tlie 
phalanx was disjointed. A fierce engagement enfued ; 
the Greeks eager to regain the honour of their name, 
the Macedonians ambitious to maintain the unfullied 
glory of the phalapx. This defperate aiflion proved 
fatal to Ptolemy the fon of Seleucus, and other officers 
of dillincfion, to the number of an Imndred and twenty. 
Meanwhile tiie Macedonian right wing, liaving repelled 
the enemy with great llaughter, wheeled to the left, 
and, animated by recent victory, finally prevailed againit 
the Greek mercenaries. A body of Perlian horfe Hill 
maintained the battle againft the Thell'alian cavalry, 
and did not quit the field, till informed that Darius had 
betaken himfelf to flight. 
The overthrow of the Perfians was now manifefl on 
all fides. Their cavalry and infantry fullered equally 
in the rout; for their horfemen were heavy-armed, and 
encumbered. 
