CHAPTER XVI.

ESCAPE OF DARIUS INTO MEDIA.—MARCH OF ALEXANDER TO BABYLON AND SUSA.

Immediately after the battle, Darius marched through the mountains

of Armenia towards Media, accompanied in his flight by the Bactrian

cavalry, as they had then been posted with him in the battle; also by

those Persians who were called the king’s kinsmen, and by a few of the

men called apple-bearers.[428] About 2,000 of his Grecian mercenaries

also accompanied him in his flight, under the command of Paron the

Phocian, and Glaucus the Aetolian. He fled towards Media for this

reason, because he thought Alexander would take the road to Susa and

Babylon immediately after the battle, inasmuch as the whole of that

country was inhabited and the road was not difficult for the transit

of baggage; and besides Babylon and Susa appeared to be the prizes of

the war; whereas the road towards Media was by no means easy for the

march of a large army. In this conjecture Darius was mistaken; for when

Alexander started from Arbela, he advanced straight towards Babylon;

and when he was now not far from that city, he drew up his army in

order of battle and marched forward. The Babylonians came out to meet

him in mass, with their priests and rulers, each of whom individually

brought gifts, and offered to surrender their city, citadel, and

money.[429] Entering the city, he commanded the Babylonians to rebuild

all the temples which Xerxes had destroyed, and especially that of

Belus, whom the Babylonians venerate more than any other god.[430]

He then appointed Mazaeus viceroy of the Babylonians, Apollodorus

the Amphipolitan general of the soldiers who were left behind with

Mazaeus, and Asclepiodorus, son of Philo, collector of the revenue. He

also sent Mithrines, who had surrendered to him the citadel of Sardis,

down into Armenia to be viceroy there.[431] Here also he met with

the Chaldaeans; and whatever they directed in regard to the religious

rites of Babylon he performed, and in particular he offered sacrifice

to Belus according to their instructions.[432] He then marched away

to Susa[433]; and on the way he was met by the son of the viceroy of

the Susians,[434] and a man bearing a letter from Philoxenus, whom

he had despatched to Susa directly after the battle. In the letter

Philoxenus had written that the Susians had surrendered their city to

him, and that all the money was safe for Alexander. In twenty days

the king arrived at Susa from Babylon; and entering the city he took

possession of the money, which amounted to 50,000 talents, as well

as the rest of the royal property.[435] Many other things were also

captured there, which Xerxes brought with him from Greece, especially

the brazen statues of Harmodius and Aristogeiton.[436] These Alexander

sent back to the Athenians, and they are now standing at Athens in

the Ceramicus, where we go up into the Acropolis,[437] right opposite

the temple of Rhea, the mother of the gods, not far from the altar

of the Eudanemi. Whoever has been initiated in the mysteries of the

two goddesses[438] at Eleusis, knows the altar of Eudanemus which is

upon the plain. At Susa Alexander offered sacrifice after the custom

of his fathers, and celebrated a torch race and a gymnastic contest;

and then, leaving Abulites, a Persian, as viceroy of Susiana, Mazarus,

one of his Companions, as commander of the garrison in the citadel

of Susa, and Archelaüs, son of Theodorus, as general, he advanced

towards the land of the Persians. He also sent Menes down to the sea,

as governor of Syria, Phœnicia, and Cilicia, giving him 3,000 talents

of silver[439] to convey to the sea, with orders to despatch as many

of them to Antipater as he might need to carry on the war against the

Lacedaemonians.[440] There also Amyntas, son of Andromenes, reached

him with the forces which he was leading from Macedonia[441]; of whom

Alexander placed the horsemen in the ranks of the Companion cavalry,

and the foot he added to the various regiments of infantry, arranging

each according to nationalities. He also established two companies in

each squadron of cavalry, whereas before this time companies did not

exist in the cavalry; and over them he set as captains those of the

Companions who were pre-eminent for merit.