Qualla: Battle of the Persian Gate: Persia's Thermopylae

Battle of the Persian Gate: Persia's Thermopylae: Introduction

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Jona Lendering at English Wikipedia, Public domain. Alexander the Great had conquered everything in his path for four years. Granicus, Issus, Gaugamela -- each battle a decisive Macedonian victory, each defeat another crack in the Achaemenid Empire. By the winter of 330 BC, he had taken Babylon and Susa and was marching toward Persepolis, the ceremonial heart of the Persian world and home to the largest concentration of wealth on earth. Between him and that treasure stood a narrow mountain pass in the Zagros range, a gap only a few meters wide at its tightest point. Here, a Persian commander named Ariobarzanes was waiting. For an entire month, with a force that may have numbered no more than a few thousand, Ariobarzanes stopped Alexander cold.

Image: Jona Lendering at English Wikipedia | Public domain

Battle of the Persian Gate: Persia's Thermopylae: The Trap in the Mountains

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Uwe Dedering, CC BY-SA 3.0. Alexander split his army after taking Susa. His general Parmenion took half the force along the Royal Road, the safer route. Alexander chose the direct path into Persis, through the Persian Gates. He had just subdued the Uxii hill people, who had demanded tribute for safe passage...

Image: Uwe Dedering | CC BY-SA 3.0

Battle of the Persian Gate: Persia's Thermopylae: Boulders and Arrows

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Jona Lendering at English Wikipedia, Public domain. Once the Macedonians pushed deep enough into the pass, the ambush began. From the northern slopes, Persian soldiers rolled boulders down onto the column below. From the southern ridge, archers loosed volleys into the packed formation. Entire platoons were destroyed at once. The M...

Image: Jona Lendering at English Wikipedia | Public domain

Battle of the Persian Gate: Persia's Thermopylae: A Month of Defiance

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Jona Lendering at English Wikipedia, Public domain. Ariobarzanes held the pass for roughly thirty days. He had reason to hope the stand could change the war. If Alexander could not break through, he would be forced onto longer alternate routes through the Zagros, buying time for King Darius III to raise a new army at Ecbatana. But...

Image: Jona Lendering at English Wikipedia | Public domain

Battle of the Persian Gate: Persia's Thermopylae: The Last Charge

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Jona Lendering at English Wikipedia, Public domain. When the Persians realized they were surrounded, the fighting turned desperate. Ancient sources describe Persian soldiers, disarmed and cornered, seizing Macedonian soldiers in their arms, dragging them to the ground, and stabbing them with their own weapons. Ariobarzanes and his...

Image: Jona Lendering at English Wikipedia | Public domain

Battle of the Persian Gate: Persia's Thermopylae: What Fell With the Gate

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. Ancient and modern writers have recognized the parallel with Thermopylae. In 480 BC, a small Greek force held a narrow pass against a vastly larger Persian army. At the Persian Gate, 150 years later, the roles reversed. A small Persian force held a narrow pass against the Macedon...

Image: Unknown author | Public domain