Hi there. You're listening to The Hellenistic Age podcast.

In our last episode, we discussed the first year of the Asian campaign, covering the year 334 to the summer of 333 BC.

Alexander had won his victory at the Granicus River and marched from city to city along the

southwestern shores of Asia Minor before stopping at the Silesian gates, which guarded

the pass into Syria and Egypt via the Torres Mountains. He had also suffered several near-death

experiences, both by the weapons of Persian ability and the ravages of disease.

Fortune seemed to be on the Kyeongh side, though, but it would take more than luck for Alexander

to break into the south, since he was finally ready to face off against Darius III in battle.

Since the word of Alexander's victory at the Granicus, Darius had been

marshalling a massive force to Babylon in order to challenge the invader. News of the death

of the commander Memnon reached the great king's year, and though it may have discouraged him,

he remained resolutely confident in the enormous quantity of men he can acquire.

Quinchus Kurchius has a passage delightfully describing the volume and diversity of the troops,

arranged in circles of that it could fit 10,000 men in order to make counting easier.

The style is clearly an attempt to emulate Herodus' description of the troops in Zerxes'

invasion some 150 years prior, and the sheer quantity of men, the sources claiming between 300 to 600,000

men, is clearly inaccurate, but it does show that Persian military logistic ability had not

faltered since the Greco-Persian Wars of old.

An anecdote of Diodorus and Curteus, while probably untrue but certainly enjoyable,

has Darius boasting to one Karademus, an Athenian in exile at the great king's court,

about the size and resplendence of his soldiers.

Asked of his opinion on Darius' chances, Karademus, the noble and wise Greek that he is,

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