Page 120 - Le Operazioni Interforze e Multinazionali nella Storia Militare - ACTA Tomo I

120 XXXIX Congresso della CommIssIone InternazIonale dI storIa mIlItare • CIHm

Alexander the Great (336-323BC)
Alexander’s Campaign in the Aimos Peninsula (335 BC): The strategic vision of Alex-
ander the Great was permeated by the joint warfare orientation of conducting operations
and that concept was evident in all the manifestations of his strategic thought, through a
dynamic combination, when necessary, of land and naval forces. In the spring of 335 BC,
the Macedonian King initiated a campaign against the Thracians and the Trivallians, in an
attempt to secure his northern borders, ahead of his coming invasion to the Persian Em-
pire. Even though the battles of that campaign cannot match the campaigns that followed,
those nevertheless were hard and of great importance, requiring substantial military com-
petencies and the coordinated action since the fleet sailed to the Dardanelles while the land
forces moved through Thrace. When Alexander reached the river Istros (Danube), he met
with the ships he had ordered to sail through Byzantium, due to the precise geographical
knowledge that he possessed. The Macedonians used the ships to build an expeditionary
bridge, through which, men and horses crossed the river. The ships were loaded with arch-
ers and heavily armed infantry and they likely carried siege engines and supplies that were
hard to transport from the land.
The passage to Asia Minor (334 BC): A year later, Alexander set off for his great
achievement. When he reached the European side of Hellespont, he offered sacrifice wish-
ing that his campaign be more successful from that of the Greeks in the Trojan War. At
the same time, his entire expeditionary corps was transported in 160 galleys and “several
other round ships”. Alexander himself led the “flagship” and as tradition says, he launched
his spear to the ground before landing, symbolically declaring the capturing of the land,
from the sea.
The Siege and Fall of the city of Miletus (334 BC): After liberating the cities of Ionia
on the Asia Minor coast, Alexander advanced with his infantry, the archers and his cav-
alry, settled his camp and decided to break down the walls of the Miletus Acropolis. The
city’s siege was achieved by its coordinated isolation from land and the sea; the siege
engines were already arranged around the walls, while the fleet was entering the harbour.
The Siege and Fall of the city of Tyre (332 BC): During the winter of 334/3 BC, while
Alexander was crossing the mountainous regions of south and central Asia Minor, the Per-
sians decided to mobilize their fleet in an attempt to launch a counterattack in the Aegean,
in the mainland of Greece and Macedonia. They had the conviction that Alexander was
struggling in the interior of the Persian Empire. Although Alexander had captured and he
was occupying the whole Asia Minor western coast, the Persian initiative in the Aegean
could act as to cut off the main expeditionary corps from mainland Greece and to isolate
it in the Asia Minor land; especially if the control of the Hellespont Straits was lost. Alex-
ander became exceptionally worried by this development and he ordered the reformation
of his fleet. He judged that chasing Darius further inside Persia was not sensible, before
securing his rear by establishing his control in eastern Mediterranean. However, he could
not secure the dominance of that region for as long the Persians maintained Egypt and Cy-
prus under their control and Tyre’s stance was in doubt. Were the Greek army to advance
towards Babylon and Sousa, the Persians could transfer the war to Greece. By occupying
Tyre, they were securing the dominance of Phoenicia and the shift of the Phoenician fleet