Sykes' History of Persia - Heritage Institute

276
HISTORY OF PERSIA
grooms in rear. The charge of the Persian left wing and
the reinforcements sent to it had caused a gap in the line
near Darius, and towards this Alexander charged at the
head of the Companion Cavalry, supported by part of
the phalanx. A short hand-to-hand fight ensued, which
was ended by the flight of the dastardly Darius, who,
craven as he was, turned to flee while the issue still
hung in the balance.
The field of battle was so enormous that the news did
not
spread
at once. Parmenio was enveloped by masses
of the enemy, and being hard pressed sent a message to
Alexander,^ who returned to his aid, meeting on the way
bodies of Parthian, Indian, and Persian cavalry now in full
flight. Their desperate efforts to break through caused
the heaviest losses of the day to the Macedonians. Upon
reaching the phalanx, Alexander found that Parmenio,
with the assistance of the Thessalian cavalry, had de-
feated the Persian right wing, which was in full flight.
He therefore started again in pursuit of Darius, and
reached the Great Zab that night, where he bivouacked
for a few hours to rest his men and horses. The next
day he continued the pursuit as far as Arbela, seventy
miles from the field of battle ; but he failed to capture
Darius, and men and horses being worn out, he allowec
the defeated monarch to retreat towards Ecbatana without
further molestation.
The issue of the battle of Arbela, though on a fiel(
chosen by the Great King, who was supported by the entire
force of his empire, was, from a military point of viewj
almost a foregone conclusion, but for the chance that
Alexander might be struck down in the m^lee. Thereaftei
the armed f-esistance of Darius was a thing of the past, an(
the capitals of the Empire, particularly Susa and greaj
Babylon, with all their hoarded wealth and materij
resources, lay at the victor's mercy. Darius thenceforward
was a
fugitive, and could not hope to do more than
maintain a
guerilla warfare on the outskirts of the empire.
Even this was denied to the last of the Achaemenian line,
1
Perhaps Parmenio sent these messages to prevent pursuit until the victory was
won. Forgetfulness of this precaution lost the Greeks Cunaxa.