Gedrosian campaign
| Gedrosian campaign of Cyrus | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Campaigns of Cyrus the Great | |||||
| |||||
| Belligerents | |||||
| Hindus | Achaemenid Empire | ||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||
| Pukkusati | Cyrus | ||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||
| Unknown | Entire army annihilated (except Cyrus with 7 men escaped)[a][b] | ||||
The Gedrosian campaign of Cyrus the Great or Cyrus' Indian expedition was a military expedition of the Achaemenids which took place in Gedrosia (in the modern-day Balochistan region) against the Hindus or Indians.[3][4]
Background
According to Herodotus, after the rise of Cyrus the Great, he went on to conquer numerous states. He also built a city named Cyropolis which is located at Sogdia. Pliny suggests numerous campaigns of Cyrus the Great into the regions near Kabul.[5]
Campaign
The Achaemenid Army struggled greatly in the deserts of Gedrosia. In this expedition, he is said to have lost much of his army in the desert, marking a remarkable defeat and retreat of the Persians.[6][7][8][c]
Aftermath
There is no evidence of Cyrus subjugating Gedrosia, and it has been described by various historians that it was most likely under Darius the Great when this region came under Persian control.[10] The difficulties faced by Cyrus the great were also observed during the Gedrosrian campaign of Alexander the Great.[5]
Notes
- ^ "Now it is reasonable to suppose that Alexander believed such records because he was blinded by his numerous good fortunes; at any rate, Nearchus says that Alexander conceived an ambition to lead his army through Gedrosia when he learned that both Semiramis and Cyrus had made an expedition against the Indians, and that Semiramis had turned back in flight with only twenty people and Cyrus with seven; and that Alexander thought how grand it would be, when those had met with such reverses, if he himself should lead a whole victorious army safely through the same tribes and regions.³"[1]
- ^ "They say that Alexander, although aware of the difficulties, conceived an ambition, in view of the prevailing opinion that Semiramis escaped in flight from India with only about twenty men and Cyrus with seven, to see whether he himself could safely lead that large army of his through the same country and win this victory too.¹¹⁹"[2]
- ^ After the conquest of Lydia, Cyrus campaigned in the east between around 545 BC to 540 BC. Cyrus first tried to conquer Gedrosia, however he was decisively defeated and departed Gedrosia.[9]
Further reading
- Stein (1931). An Archaeological Tour in Gedrosia.
References
- ^ Strabo. The Geography of Strabo, Volume 7 of the Loeb Classical Library edition. Harvard University Press. p. Book XV, Chapter 1, Section 5.
- ^ Strabo. The Geography of Strabo, Volume 7 of the Loeb Classical Library edition. Harvard University Press. p. Book XV, Chapter 2, Section 5.
{{cite book}}: no-break space character in|page=at position 5 (help) - ^ Clare, Israel Smith (1906). Ancient history. Union Book Company.
- ^ Strabo. The Geography of Strabo, Volume 7 of the Loeb Classical Library edition. Harvard University Press. p. Book XV, Chapter 1, Section 5.
- ^ a b Clifford, John Herbert (1907). The Standard History of the World. University society Incorporated.
- ^ Rawlinson, George (2018-03-15). The Persian Empire. Endymion Press. ISBN 978-1-5312-9575-2.
- ^ M ́Clintock, John Strong, James (2020-04-17). Cyclopaedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature: Volume II. BoD – Books on Demand. ISBN 978-3-8460-5025-5.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Garvin, James Louis; Hooper, Franklin Henry; Cox, Warren E. (1929). The Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Company, Limited.
- ^ Ancient India, by Vidya Dhar Mahajan, 2019, pp. 203
- ^ Kellogg, Day Otis; Baynes, Thomas Spencer (1903). The Encyclopædia Britannica: A-ZYM. Werner.