BATTLE REPORT #6 - Battle of Granicus 334BC.

[AUSTERLITZ]

Battle of Granicus 334 BC.



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Background:

Philip The one eyed,had successfully created in macedonia a powerful and centralized state,and subdued greece under him, intending to launch a campaign against persia in asia minor.He is however assasinated before he can set out.
On the wake of his death,many of the subject nations- the thracians,illyrians and the greek city states of thebes and athens rebel.His son and successor alexander conducts a lightning campaign in the north suppressing the northern tribes,then swings south and razes thebes to the ground.Athens is shocked into submission by the fate of thebes.


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After consolidating his position,alexander has himself elected leader of greeks for an expedition into persia.Leaving his father's experienced general antipater in charge as regent of macedon,he embarks on a 20 day march on the hellespont,and crosses into asia with perhaps 30,000 heavy and light infantry and 5000 cavalry.He then moves to achieve his initial aim-the end of persian rule over the greek cities of asia minor.

The Persian Response :

The Persian satraps[or regional governors] to whom darius III had entrusted the defence of asia minor had initially ignored the threat,only belatedly did they muster a force of 10,000+ cavalry plus 10,000 infantry.Almost the entire infantry component were greek mercenaries under Memnon of Rhodes.The persians had almost no infantry of their own has they didn't have time to complete mobilization.
Memnon proposes a scorched earth policy-to deny alexander's army forage.Macedonia was in serious financial trouble due to ceaseless wars and couldn't support a massive standing army plus pay mercenaries and the allied greek navy as well.Alexander had to make this campaign pay for itself.The persian satraps however reject this advice as they were suspicious of memnon's nationality and also they didn't want to devastate their own satrapies, and prepare to give battle.They choose to make their stand at the granicus-where the riverbank they believe would break up the cohesion of the macedonian army and negate the persians disadvantage in infantry.


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As alexander's army approached his scouts located the persian forces lined up for battle guarding the granicus.

 

[AUSTERLITZ]

Armies and tactics-

Persian Army -
Strength- 20,000-25,000
[10,000+ Cavalry,10,000 Mercenary Infantry.]
Commanders - Mithridates & Satraps,Memnon of Rhodes

The persian army at granicus was a little unusual,lacking infantry of its own.Its primary strength consisted in its cavalry which was first rate.They were supported by Greek mercenaries-both hoplites and light peltasts.



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The common persian cavalryman of the time,usually fought with javelins or bows,swords and axes.They were not shock cavalry as such.They were excellent at harrying the enemy with missiles and then closing weakened formations for melee combat with axes,swords or short spears.Superbly mounted and born horsemen they were a force to be reckoned with.



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Elite achaemenid Cavalry.Equipped with scale armour,javelins,short spears,swords and axes.These multinational contingents were not as disciplined as the macedonian elite cavalry but superb horsemen nonetheless.



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Greek Mercenaries.Shown here without the spear,they fought in hoplite fashion as heavy infantry or used their swords in loose order.

Macedonian Army:

Strength-30,000-35,000
25,000-30,000 infantry +5,100 cavalry.
Commander - Alexander of Macedon.

The macedonian war machine was the creation of Philip.The first professional standing army of its time,it was drilled and battle hardened from years of campaigning under philip.It was a versatile force composed of various elements.


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The macedonian phalanx,a block of pikemen with 18 foot spears called sarissas they represented a mobile forest of spears that could hold an enemy at bay as well as push him back constantly,it could however move only frontally and was terribly vulnerable from the flanks.Most phalangites wore light armour and a small shield,and relied on the reach of their pikes for protection.The rear ranks held their pikes up as a shield against projectiles.
This fearsome formation was invented by philip.Philip had inherited a macedonia,that was bankrupt and without a army worthy of the name,though with plenty of manpower available and natural resources as well.It was under imminent threat of invasion by the illyrians who had sacked macedonia multiple times before,Philip didn't have the resources to equip his hastily organized infantry with expensive cuirasses like the hoplites wore,neither was there time to drill them .A theory goes that on one boar hunt,philip saw one of his squires keep the boar at bay by using the length of his spear.This may have been the spark that led to the creation of the phalangite,who with enormous sarissa could keep enemies at length thus negating the need for expensive cuirasses.Also he made it so that the phalanx would concentrate on moving forward only,lessening drilling problems.
Light armour meant his heavy infantry was extremely mobile and could conduct forced marches.
The phalanx proved its superiority over shorter greek hoplite spears over and over,and now it was the persians turn to feel its power.At granicus alexander had six phalanx battalions.[10,000+]



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The elite of the Macedonian infantry-the hypaspist foot companions.They were composed of the fittest men in the kingdom and were rigorously drilled.They numbered exactly 3000.The hypaspists could fight as phalangites,hoplites,swordsmen or skirmishers-but were most ususally employed to run alongside the cavalry and establish a link between the cavalry and the phalanx which they could with their incredible fitness and agility.



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Both sides would have had light troops,alexander's elite light troops consisted of the Agrainian javelin men and cretan archers-there would have been 2000 of each.Alexander's army also had some thracian auxillaries and greek allied infantry.



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The companion cavalry- The elite of the macedonian army they served a shock assault cavalry to tear open an enemy line.They can be said to be the first real shock cavalry in history,Again another creation of philip.They fought in tight formation-a trait philip took from the thebans during his days asa hostage and charged in wedges,a feature philip absorbed from the thracians.Charging with long lances in a age without stirrups was revolutionary for the time.Armed with long lances,helmets and armoured with corselets and extremely well drilled-a formidable force.The companion cavalry consisted of the cream of macedonias nobility and was led by alexander in person.In granicus they numbered around 1600 and took the position of honour on the right flank.
To complement the companions were the thessalian heavy cavalry,who fought defensively on the left flank and were armoured and nearly as good as the companions.
The macedonians also had some unarmoured light allied greek cavalry,light lancers and scouts .

Tactics-
Persian tactics will not be useful here as they were not used,but persian as a rule deployed thier best troops in the centre flanked by cavalry.They favoured long range missile fire to close combat to wither down the enemy.



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Advantage of the wedge formation employed by the companion cavalry.



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Standard macedonian battle formation.


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The companion cavalry headed by alexander,charged and routed the enemy left wing and fell upon the enemy centre from rear and flanks as the phalanx advanced and pinned it in place.The phalanx serving as anvil and heavy cavalry hammer to crush the enemy in between.Popularly called hammer and anvil.The left flank had a defensive role and was sometimes refused.

Next: The battle itself.

 

[AUSTERLITZ]

BATTLE OF GRANICUS


As alexander and his second-in-command,the senior general of philip-Parmenion survey the persian lines parmenion offers alexander advice to attack at dawn instead of so late in the day.Now accounts are varied on whether alexander attacks immediately disregarding parmenion or waits and attacks at dawn[more likely account].Apart from his daring nature the probable reason of him doing this was likelty that waiting could lead to persians recieving reinforcements.


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Deployment of the armies -

The persians deploy their multinational cavalry in loose formations along the higher riverbank,with their mercenary infantry some distance back on higher ground.Their right flank is secured by a marsh and left side by the granicus and its tributaries thus making outflanking extremely difficult.The persian nobility place their cavalry in front to rain down their missile son the macedonians as they cross and also as they refuse to fight behind what they consider mercenary 'hirelings'.

1.The persian cavalry consists of some 9 squadrons of over 10,000 cavalry.The left wing under rheomithres commands the medes and the bactrians.
2.Satrap Mithridates,son-in-law of darius commands the centre 2 squadrons.
3.Satrap Spithridates with the hyrcanians
4.Satrap Arsites with the paphlagonians
5.Satrap Arsames with the cilicians.
6.Memnon with greek cavalry plus light mercenary infantry.
7.The agrainians and archers covering the cavalry as a screen.
8.Alexander with the companion cavalry.


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9.Light lancers,scouts and prodromoi light cavalry-Alexander alters the standard macedonian battle formation slightly to position these along with his companions on seeing the persian formations.
10.Hypaspists.
11.6 Phalanx battalions[Note-in the diagram it may seem that persian army is equal or bigger than macedonian army-this is because i made a mistake in scaling the units in comparison.i.e persian cavalry squadrons a little smaller in size and also because macedonians fought in close formations unlike persian cavalry occupying less space]
12.Parmenion commanding the left flank with thessalian cavalry and thracians.
13.Greek mercenaries on high ground.



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Close up of the Macedonian Right wing as the battle begins.
Alexander moves to dislodge the persians from their strong position.
1.The agrainians and archers engage memnon's cavalry and light infantry and the cavalry under arsames with missile projectiles.
2.Simultaneously alexander sends 3 formations of cavalry-allied greek prodromoi light cavalry under amyntas,scouts and lancers led by a squadron of companions under socrates to cross the river and engage the persian cavalry on the other bank,using them as a bait.As they cross the river they are assaulted by a flurry of arrows and javelins and take heavy casualities and are forced back.
3.The cavalry under spithridates and arsites jubiliantly rush to crush the retreating macedonian force into the riverbed,thus abandoning the high ground.


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4.Alexander seizes the moment ,conducts a rapid turning move and smashes his companions headlong into the flanks of arsites and his paplaghonians.
5.Arsites and his cavalry are unable to withstand this sudden assault from the flank and are routed.
6.Seeing alexander visible in his shining armour,mithridates from the centre abandons his position and hurries towards him at the head of his cavalry-intent on killing him.
7.The hypaspists begin to attempt to cross the river and establish a beachhead and link up with the cavalry by exploiting the gaps formed by the movements of persian cavalry.



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1.Mithridates charges into the fray at the head of his cavalry-going straight for alexander.
2.A desperate melee ensues,The companions using their heavier armour,better discipline and most importantly their longer lances steadily pushing the persian cavalry back.
3.The hypaspists under nicanor cross the river.


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4.Alexander is confronted by the satraps in person.He unhorses and kills mithridates with his lance,but is engaged by spithridates and his brother rhoeasces at once.While he is battling rhoeasces whom he kills,alexander is struck in the head with an axe by spithridates and stunned,saved only by his now cracked helmet.Just as spithridates is about to deliver the killing blow,clietus the black-a senior commander of philip's generation chopped his arm off saving alexander's life.
5.The agrainians and cretans also begin to cross the river,outflanking memnon's force by exploiting gaps created by the persian cavalry all concentrating on the alexander.
6.Memnon retreats with his survivors to higher ground to make a stand with his mercenaries there.


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1.Assaulted by the macedonian heavy cavalry in front and the now crossed agrainians and hypaspits from sides,the persian cavalry routs.
2.The phalanx crosses the river,brushing aside now meagre persian resistance-after the death of its commanders.
3.Parmenion leads the left flank cavalry across as the persians demoralized with the death of their leaders quit the field.
4.The macedonians surround the greek mercenaries on the hill from all sides.They offer to surrender and enter alexander's service,but alexander refuses and has the whole force destroyed for aiding the persians against greeks.2000 survivors are enslaved.Memnon escapes.

Losses-
Persians lost 1,000 cavalry killed and perhaps 3,000 infantry killed.Apart from these around 6,000-8,000 heavy mercenaries were killed and 2000 taken prisoner.
Macedonians suffered 400 killed and around 1500 wounded.Alexander had a statue made for 26 companions killed in the battle.

Aftermath:
The defeat at granicus opened up asia minor to the macedonians-Alexander would go on to defeat darius at 2 more battles-issus and gaugamela,conquering the persian empire and forging one his own.The largest yet seen.

 

[AUSTERLITZ]

Battle Analysis -

Reasons for persian defeat and macedonian success -

1]Faulty Deployment - The persians faulty deployment of their heavy infantry meant their cavalry was given a job for which cavalry is most unsuited -Holding ground.They also didn't bring their heavy greek mercenaries into the battle.If they had concentrated the cavalry on both flanks instead of spreading it out all along the bank,they could have countered any macedonian cavalry thrust by an attack of cavalry squadrons deployed in depth rather than scattered.
This deployment led to many cavalry squadrons leaving their positions to attack alexander,creating gaps through which macedonians crossed the river in waves.
2]Discipline - The various multinational cavalry contingents were not as disciplined as the macedonian companions.Their lack of discipline led to them abandoning the high ground to chase soctrates squadron thus opening up their ranks for alexander's attack,and also they were unable to withstand the macedonians fighting in close order in melee combat.
3]Seize the moment - The ability to recognize a decisive moment on the battlefield and act upon it is a prized ability in a commander-called coup'd'oeil.Alexander seized his moment with a perfectly timed flank attack on the impetous persian cavalry.
4]Equipment Superiority - The persian cavalry were at a serious disadvantage to the macedonian cavalry due to their heavier armour cuirasses and most importantly -the longer lances which outreached the persian short spears,swordsand axes.
5]Luck- ''There is but one step from the sublime to the ridiculous''-Napoleon.
Alexander's tactics in this battle has been criticized often.It was impetous and reckless.Fighting with a river on his back and charging a prepared enemy position.If the persians had a proper defense with reserves it could have been a catastrophe.
Alexander survived himself by the skin of his teeth through sheer luck,if cleitus had been a moment late-alexander would not be known as alexander the great,but alexander the vainglorious,son of philip.Luck thus was in alexander's favour.
6]Death of persian commanders - The death of the satraps totally demoralized and disorganized the persians,and led to their rout.
7]Deception - Alexander used his initial cavalry force as a bait to lure the persians down employing excellent use of deception.

 

[scorpionx]

The battle of Granicus was of immeasurable significance in Alexander's entire expedition throughout Asia. The Macedonian treasury was literally bankrupt and A had to feed his men with a quick success in a profitable war. There are several reasons behind his miraculous victory which have quite explicitly been expressed by @AUSTERLITZ above. But to me,the worst mistake the Persians made was to disregard the appropriate and pragmatic advices by the veteran Memnon of Rhodes,the best General Darius could have. If his inputs were taken the world would never heard of A the great.

The boy king of Macedonia displayed his great skill of psychological warfare too for the first time by not disturbing the Persian style of governance and unaltered rate of taxes the cities used to pay under Darius III.By showing calculated mercy to the town of Zeleia,he sent an unwritten message to the rest of unconquered cities of Asia minor that upon submission this ruthless invader would bestow his full mercy upon them. His brilliantly adopted tactics after the battle of Granicus had severe effects during rest of his campaign and also lies beneath these minor administrative decisions,the monumental consequences of the Greek expedition across the unknown World after Alexander's death.

 

[AUSTERLITZ]

A caesar battle very soon,then 2nd battle panipat.