In the spring of 334 BC, the troops of the Western coalition, led by the most powerful power of those times - Macedonia, landed on the coast of Asia Minor in order to "take revenge on the Persian Empire for desecrating the Athenian shrines" and to bring the values of Greek democracy to the peoples of the East. Who could have imagined then that in the 21st century history will repeat itself …
This campaign cannot be pictured as a victory of a handful of brave men over millions. On the contrary, Alexander's army was the most numerous and organized, which only preceding ancient history knew. So wrote the Russian military theorist and historian A. A. Svechin about the Eastern campaign of Alexander the Great. Just as then, the overwhelming superiority in organization, weapons, technology and tactics allowed the Western coalition forces in a matter of weeks to suppress the resistance not only of the obviously weak Taliban formations, but also of Saddam Hussein's regular army in Iraq.
Let the strategists study Alexander's battles. But his fighters not only crushed the enemy in grandiose battles, but also carried out large-scale special operations against the distant ancestors of the current rebels and terrorists throughout the East. The methods of conducting all types of intelligence, counterintelligence, psychological warfare and raids of special forces, first used by Alexander in the East, are still relevant, interesting and instructive for specialized experts in this field. The sources are scarce, but upon careful study you begin to understand that the victories of the great commander were forged not only by the legendary phalanx and the deadly cavalry.
Intelligence kit
It is naive to think that the Eastern campaign was not prepared in advance, including through reconnaissance. The very idea of the Eastern campaign belonged to Alexander's father, Tsar Philip, and was implemented by him. In parallel with the creation of separate reconnaissance and assault units, residents were infiltrated into enemy headquarters, large cities and strategically important points, recruiting agents, identifying opponents of the regime and establishing a system of continuous and operational data transmission to the coalition headquarters. Alexander adopted an already ramified and effective reconnaissance system and special-purpose units prepared for action in special conditions.
The commander of his GRU from the beginning to the end of the campaign was the commander whom Alexander trusted most of all - the future Pharaoh of Egypt Ptolemy. As befits the head of the secret service, until then little was known about his work. Historians noted that he was "almost invisible" until the moment the army entered India. Apparently, secrecy was observed already in those distant times. Alexander's best friend Gefestion was his deputy and head of the counterintelligence service.
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In the conditions of a long campaign, it was important to monitor the state of affairs among comrades-in-arms and troops for possible conspiracies and riots. Counterintelligence has always been proactive and very tough, adhering to the principle "it is better to execute one innocent person than to leave two enemies alive." Historians are still arguing about the famous "conspiracy of Philota", when one of Alexander's closest friends was arrested "for passive participation in the conspiracy" of a certain Dimn against Alexander. One of the conspirators reported to him about the allegedly impending assassination of the tsar, but Filota did not give a move until the informer turned to another person. The methods of inquiry corresponded to the standards of those times. As Quintus Curtius Rufus wrote, “at first, when he was tormented first with whips, then with fire, and not in order to achieve the truth, but to punish him, he not only did not utter a sound, but also restrained groans. But when his body, swollen from many wounds, could no longer withstand the blows of the whip to the bare bones, he promised, if his suffering died, to say what they wanted."
There were also direct examples of Alexander's participation in “loyalty checks”. In his army “there was a Persian named Sisen, once sent to King Philip by the ruler of Egypt; having received gifts and honors of all kinds, he exchanged his homeland for exile, followed Alexander to Asia and was listed among his faithful friends. It was to him that the Cretan soldier handed a letter sealed with a ring with an unfamiliar seal. This letter was sent by the commander Darius Nabarzan, urging Sisen to do something worthy of his origin and disposition, in order to earn honor from Darius. The innocent Sisen often tried to convey this letter to Alexander, but seeing that the king was busy with various worries and preparations for war, he waited for an opportunity, and this increased the suspicion that he was plotting a crime. For the letter even earlier fell into the hands of Alexander, who,Having read it and sealed it with a ring unknown to Sisen, he ordered to give it to the Persian in order to test the barbarian's loyalty. But since the latter did not approach Alexander for several days, they decided that he had hidden the letter with a criminal purpose; on the campaign he was killed by the Cretans, no doubt by order of the king."
Of course, much more massive secret events were held. During the siege of Halicarnassus, in order to find out the real moods among the soldiers, Alexander allowed the soldiers, contrary to the established order, to write letters home. They were all read by counterintelligence. Information that discontent was growing in the army was documented, active agitators were identified and removed from the army. After that, postal censorship became mandatory.
Alexander did not change what was good before him. Having retained the efficiently working system of the diplomatic mail and courier service, he only introduced a new encryption scheme. He was also engaged in intelligence intelligence - during the siege of the city of Halicarnassus, he personally sent agents to establish contact with the local "underground".
But for the majority, of course, it will be much more interesting to know how effectively the military intelligence and assault units of Alexander acted.
It is no secret that the commander loved adventure and often conducted reconnaissance himself, as was the case before the battle of Gaugamela.
“Taking the tsar's silt, one detachment of 'friends', and from the peon prodrome, Alexander rushed forward swiftly, ordering the rest of the army to follow them at their usual pace. The Persian horsemen, seeing the rapidly advancing army of Alexander, rushed back at full speed; Alexander began a stubborn pursuit. Most were saved; some - those whose horses had docked were killed; some, along with the horses, were captured. It was from them that we learned that Darius with a large army was nearby."
What kind of prodrome is this? In Greek, floridly "running ahead". Literally, intelligence. So for the first time in history, the mission of the light cavalry brigade was correctly determined, with a total number of about 900 spears, which initially consisted of four to five squadrons. Intelligence worked both with the tsar and independently.
“On the fourth day after the crossing, the scouts told Alexander that there, on the plain, the enemy horsemen were visible, but it is difficult to guess how many there are. He went ahead, building up the army in battle formation. Other scouts rushed in; these have seen more accurately: according to them, the riders, it seems, will not be more than a thousand …"
Who were they?
Compatriots of Spartak
It is this type of reconnaissance of Alexander's army that is easy to define.
Back in the last century, a fresco with a single image of the commander of a mounted reconnaissance unit of the Macedonian army finally crumbled from the walls of an ancient crypt in Macedonia. At the last moment, they managed to copy the figure of a horseman in a pink cloak, beating a Persian infantryman with a spear. They identified him by his cloak. It is known that, among other things, even in the army of Alexander's father - Philip, all types of troops began to be distinguished by the color of their "uniforms". Intelligence got pink.
It is interesting that the rider from the crypt was depicted with a beard. This meant that he gave his life for his homeland back in the days of Philip. Why? It is known that Alexander, before the Eastern campaign, obliged all his soldiers to shave their beards, "so that the enemy had nothing to grab them for." It was especially difficult for intelligence to carry out this order. The fact is that only commanders were Macedonians here. But ordinary prodrome-scouts were not Greeks or Macedonians, but Thracians, which indicates that Alexander chose people for himself not according to their passports, but according to their abilities. It is about them that the ancient historian writes:
“Alexander at this time approached the river Granik, leading an army in formation; he built the hoplites in a double phalanx, placed the riders on the flanks, and ordered the wagon train to go behind. Intelligence was commanded by Hegeloch; with him were horsemen, armed with sarissa, and about 5,000 lightly armed men … Alexander was already near the river Granik, when scouts came to him with the news that the Persians were standing behind Granik, ready for battle."
As now, the scouts had a reputation for being dashing people, but fame was hard to get. Separated from the main forces, they clashed with the enemy, conducted raids and ambushed, cut communications, intercepted messengers, took tongues and counted enemy forces. Just as now, they did not wear "armor", but instead of blankets they put leopard skins on the backs of horses. Prodroma never once allowed the enemy to suddenly attack the main forces of Alexander's army. Sometimes the prodrome is compared to the Cossacks, but, unlike the Cossack troops, they were commanded by foreign Macedonians. Of course, the people were specific. Before the decisive battle with the Persians, Alexander promised eternal glory to the Macedonians and Greeks. And here is what he said to his northern neighbors in his homeland:
“Illyrians and Thracians, accustomed to living by plunder, he ordered to look at the enemy army, sparkling with gold and purple, carrying booty, not weapons; let them, like men, take the gold from these feminine weak peoples and exchange their bare rocks, frozen from the eternal cold, for the rich fields and meadows of the Persians.
And each in this battle fought for his own. And, as you know, successfully.
In addition to the "mobile units", the intelligence kit of the Macedonian king also included real attack aircraft.
Agriane - "flying warriors"
"But against those whom Darius sent ahead to occupy the mountain range, Alexander put the Agrian, recently brought from Greece."
There were only about a thousand of them in Alexander's army. Light infantry, which fantastically repulsed the attack of the heavy Persian cavalry at the Gaugamela. Agrians - also a Thracian tribe, highlanders, northern neighbors of Macedonia, not only participated in all major battles, but were the first to occupy the passes and narrow passages in the mountains, stormed the cities. Probably, the historian Arrian has them in mind, describing the legendary "flying warriors" who distinguished themselves during the assault on the Rock - an impregnable mountain fortress in Central Asia:
“When Alexander approached the Rock, he saw sheer walls inaccessible for an assault … Nevertheless, Alexander decided to take this place by storm. He offered to start negotiations and promised that they would return home safe and sound if they surrendered this place. Those with laughter, in a barbaric manner, advised Alexander to look for winged soldiers who would take this mountain to him: ordinary people have nothing to think about. Then Alexander ordered to announce that the first one to climb the Rock will receive 12 talents as a reward, the second will receive the second award, the third - the third, and so on …
Soldiers were gathered, accustomed during sieges to climb the rocks, numbering about 300. They prepared small iron crutches, with which they fixed tents in the ground … who are in one place, who are in another. During this ascent, about 30 people died … The rest occupied the top of the mountain at dawn; having climbed there, they began waving their handkerchiefs towards the Macedonian camp: so they were ordered by Alexander. He sent a herald and told him to shout to the barbarian guards not to pull further, but to surrender, because winged people were found and had already occupied the top of their mountain. And the herald immediately showed the soldiers at the top.
The barbarians, shocked by the unexpected sight, decided that the mountain was occupied by a much larger number of fully armed people, and surrendered."
It was they who chased Darius for 600 kilometers, then drove Bessa for two days and 110 kilometers. And then there was "Skala-2" - 200 meters vertically during the assault on Mount Aorn in present-day Pakistan. According to the law, the commander of Alexander's "flying warriors" was, naturally, the Macedonian - Attal.
"Two in one": DShB and marines
But among the units of Alexander's special operations forces there were also purely Macedonian formations. During the siege of Tire, Alexander went to attack the city from the ship of "shield-bearers" - hypaspists. There were few of them - three thousand, and in his army they were divided into three brigades - chiliarchies.
“Three days later, after waiting for calm weather, Alexander, calling on the chiefs of the infantry to fight, brought vehicles on ships to the city. First, a significant part of the wall was loosened; when the breach was wide enough, Alexander ordered the ships with cars to sail away and approach the other two who were carrying the bridges: he hoped to throw them into the breach of the wall. On one of these ships were the shield-bearers under the command of Admet, and on the other Ken's regiment: the so-called "foot friends". He himself was going, together with the shield-bearers, to climb the wall wherever needed … When the ships with Alexander approached the city and the bridges were thrown from them to the wall, the shield-bearers cheerfully rushed along them to the wall … Alexander followed the soldiers, taking an active part in the case … First the wall was taken from the place where Alexander ordered; he easily threw away the Tyrians,as soon as the Macedonians crossed the bridges and became a firm foot on the ground; Admet was the first to climb the wall; calling his followers after him, he immediately fell, struck by a spear."
As historians write, these were elite warriors, specially trained to storm cities and to operate in rough terrain. After the capture of Tire, it turned out that they knew how to take cities from the sea.
Where did they come from? The entire corps of the hypaspists was originally formed from the foot squires (shield-bearers) of the royal companions, the Getair. At first they were called so - "the shield-bearers of the Getair". An elite subdivision of hypaspists - argiraspids - "silver shield", was also part of the royal guard - agema.
It is interesting that in battle they acted together with the gaiters, effectively covering the vulnerable lower part of their horsemen and the hull of their horses.
Centuries and millennia have passed. But aren't the words of the Roman Quintus Curtius about the fate of the soldiers of the expeditionary forces in the East relevant now:
“They will again be scorched by the merciless sun, and they will be driven to places that nature itself has not intended for the gaze of mortals. Because all the time new weapons, new enemies appear. Even if they pass through these lands and get involved in a new war, what reward awaits them ahead?"
From our dossier
His father Philip, after spending many years in Thebes as a hostage, scouted out all the details of the then novelties in military affairs, from the construction and training of the phalanx and ending with the Persian combat technique. But Alexander himself was a great master of becoming "his own among strangers."
The headache for the leaders of expeditionary forces in distant countries is always the legitimization of their actions. In those days, in practice, neither the advice of the "humanist" Aristotle was useful: "Treat the Hellenes as a leader, and with barbarians as a despot, take care of the former as friends and relatives, and use those as animals or plants", nor the slogans "international duty "And" the establishment of a democratic order. " In order to impress the local tribes, an impressive biography and family ties with their rulers were required from the conqueror. Alexander in this business is an unattainable value. Depending on the situation, he appeared to be a god, as was the case in Egypt, or the legal heir to the thrones of all captured countries and territories. In addition to the already widely known facts, one more can be cited.
… While preparing for the Persian campaign, Alexander suddenly wanted to marry the daughter of the Carian governor Pixador Ade. Until now, it was not clear why Papa Philip was so angry with his son Sasha. Moreover, he did not mind at all that his other son from another wife married her. Further more. Having taken the city of Halicarnassus, Alexander handed Caria into the possession of the satrap's elderly sister, who in gratitude adopted him.
This story is considered just a strange quirk of the young king. But it is worth digging a little deeper and it turns out that Alexander did nothing for nothing.
His great-great-grandfather and namesake Alexander I, a faithful ally of Xerxes in the fight against the Greeks and three hundred Spartans, gave his own sister Hygea in marriage to the Persian satrap Bagoi. Their son, Aminta, was even given control of the city by the Persian king, after which this branch of the Macedonian dynasty disappeared forever from the pages of history. But, as it turned out later, Bagoi was a relative of the great king Darius I. And the sister of the satrap of Caria, who adopted Alexander, was from the family of Aminta. Thus, Alexander elegantly and legally became … a relative of the Persian royal dynasty of Achaemenids, and with the same rights as the current king Darius, after which he quite legally began to demand the crown of the Persian Empire.
The frames from Ridley Scott's film "Alexander" used in the article reflect the general opinion of experts - the weapons of that era in it, unlike the ambiguous plot, are conveyed as authentically as possible. In the photo - options for the armor of the Macedonian rider - shiny steel armor and a canvas shell. Such shells were made from several layers of linen, sewn together and soaked in a saturated solution of salt. The canvas was so saturated with salt that, when it dried, it was difficult to cut it even with an ax. It was not for nothing that Alexander preferred to wear it in battle.
Author: Vadim Fersovich
