Battle of Jaxartes

Date	October 329 BC
Location	Syr Darya
Result	Macedonian victory

Belligerents

Macedon
Greek allies

Scythians

Commanders and leaders

Alexander the Great

Satraces

Strength

6,000

15,000-20,000

Casualties and losses

160 killed
1,000 wounded

1,200

The Battle of Jaxartes was a battle fought in 329 BC by Alexander the Great and his Macedonian army against the Scythians at the Syr Darya River, the modern name for the River Jaxartes. Today the site of the battle straddles the borders of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, just southwest of the ancient city of Tashkent (the modern capital of Uzbekistan) and northeast of Khujand (a city in Tajikistan).

Crossing the Hellespont in 334 BCE Alexander was set on himself as the new monarch of the Achaemenid Empire. First at the Battle of the Granicus, and then at the Battle of Issus and then finally at the Battle of Gaugamela he struck a series of blows from which the Achaemenid royal house could not recover its fortunes.

During the latter two battles Alexander had been determined to capture Darius. However, Darius had been able to secure his escape in each of these battles. Had Alexander been able to secure his capture, Darius would have been extremely useful in securing the submission of the majority of the empire. Many of the Achaemenid provinces beyond Mesopotamia were fruitful and well populated - in both comparative terms and absolutely. The climate of Bactria and Sogdiana was materially different from today.

After Gaugamela, the Macedonians were obliged to leave the battlefield where they had been victorious almost immediately. The pestilence that the corpses would have wrought on his army could have destroyed it. Alexander marched on Babylon to secure his communications. His intention was to make this the administrative capital of his empire.

The Saccae had occupied the northern bank of the Jaxartes, confident that they could beat Alexander’s men as they disembarked, but underestimated the harmony with which the Macedonian artillery, fleet, cavalry, and infantry collaborated. Firstly Alexander ordered that the crossing would take place all at once, so that the mounted enemy archers would be faced with more targets than they could strike at; and he ordered his artillery to cover the soldiers in the ships. (Catapults have a longer range than bows.) This is the first recorded incident of such a thing occurring.

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Wikipedia