Issus, Battle of

(333 BC) Battle on the Issus plain near the Gulf of Iskenderun (in present-day southern Turkey) in which Alexander the Great, on the offensive, defeated Darius III, last king of the Achaemenian dynasty.

The Macedonians were said to have lost only 450 men. Darius escaped, but the victory led to Alexander's victories over Phoenicia and Egypt.

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▪ Persian history

      (333 BC), conflict early in Alexander the Great's (Alexander the Great) invasion of Asia in which he defeated a Persian army under King Darius III. This was one of the decisive victories by which Alexander conquered the Achaemenian Empire. Issus is a plain on the coast of the Gulf of İskenderun, in present-day southern Turkey. The Macedonian forces, with an infantry phalanx in the centre and cavalry on the sides, approached the army of Darius, which was drawn up on the opposite bank of the Pinarus River (possibly present-day Yakacık Çayı or Deli Çay). Alexander led the charge across the river, shattering the Persian left wing before turning against the Greek mercenaries who formed the Persian centre. His army in confusion, Darius escaped, but his family was captured. Arrian, Alexander's biographer (2nd century AD), claimed the Macedonians lost only 450 men, with Alexander himself being wounded. Most of the Persians retreated to safety while the Macedonians sacked Darius's camp.

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