tired to Shechem, under Mount Gerizim; and from this time that place became the head seat of this people, and the metropolis of the Samaritan sect, and so continues even to this day. And whereas eight thousand Samaritans had joined him at Tyre, and followed his camp ever since, that they might not, on their retun, revive this mutinous temper of their countrymen, to the creating of new disturbances, he sent them into Thebais, the remotest province of Egypt, and settled them on such lands as he there caused to be divided unto them.

m

On Alexander's return into Phoenicia,1 he staid some time at Tyre, that he might there settle the affairs of those countries which he was to leave behind him before he did set forward to acquire more. And, when he had there ordered all matters as he thought fit, he marched with his whole army to Thapsacus, and, having there passed the Euphrates, directed his course towards the Tigris, in quest of the enemy. Darius, in the interim, having solicited Alexander for peace three several times, and finding, by his answers, that none was to be expected from him but on the terms of yielding to him the whole empire, applied himself to provide for another battle; in order whereto, he got together at Babylon a numerous army, it being by one half bigger than that with which he fought at Issus, and from thence took the field with it, and marched towards Nineveh. Thither Alexander followed after him, and, having passed the Tigris, got up with him at a small village called Gaugamela; where it came to a decisive battle between them; in which Alexander, with fifty thousand men (for that was the utmost of his number at that battle,) van-' quished the vast army of the Persians, which was above twenty times as big, and this in an open plain country, without having the advantage of straits to secure his flanks, as in the battle of Issus; and hereby the fate of the Persian empire was determined; for

k Joseph. Antiq. lib. 11, c. 8.

1 Plutarch. in Alexandro. Q. Curtius, lib. 4, c. 8. Arrian. lib. 3. Diod. Sic. lib. 17.

m Darius had in this battle about one million one hundred thousand.

none after this could to any purpose make head against him, but all were forced to submit to the conqueror; and he thenceforth became absolute lord of that empire in the utmost extent in which it was ever possessed by any of the Persian kings. And hereby was fully accomplished all that which, in the prophecies" of Daniel, was foretold concerning him. This battle happened in the month of October, much about the same time of the year in which was fought the battle of Issus two years before; and the place where it was fought was Gaugamela in Assyria; but that being a small village, and of no note, they would not denominate so famous a battle from so contemptible a place, but called it the battle of Arbela, because that was the next town of any note, though it were at the distance of above twelve miles from the field where the blow was struck.

Darius, after this defeat, fled into Media, intending from thence, and the rest of the northern provinces of his empire, to draw together other forces for the farther trial of his fortune in another battle. Alexander pursued him as far as Arbela; but, before his arrival thither, he was, by the quickness of his flight, got out of his reach. However, he there took his treasure, and his royal equipage and furniture, which was of vast value, and then returned to his camp; where, having allowed his army such time of rest as was necessary for their refreshment after the fatigue of the battle, he marched towards Babylon. Mazæus was governour of that city and the province belonging to it, and had been one of Darius' generals in the late battle; where, after the defeat, having gathered together as many of the scattered forces of the Persians as he could, he retreated with them to that place. But, on Alexander's approach with his victorious army, he had not the courage to stand out against him; but, going forth to meet him, surrendered himself and all under his charge to him; and Bagaphanes, the gov ernour of the castle, where the greatest part of Da

n Dan. vii, 6; viii, 5 6, 7, 20, 21; x, 20; xi, 3. o Plutarch. in Alexandro. Q. Curtius, lib. 5. Siculus, lib. 17.

Arrian. lib. 3. Diodorus

rius' treasure was kept, did the same; and both acted herein as if they were at strife which of them should' be most forward to cast off their old master and receive the new. After thirty days tarrying in that city, he continued Mazæus, for the reward of his treachery, in the government of the province; but, placing a Macedonian in the command of the castle, he took Bagaphanes along with him, and marched to Susa, and from thence, after the taking of that city, to Persepolis, the capital of the empire, carrying victory with him over all the provinces and places in the way. Arriving at Persepolis about the middle of December, he gave the city to be sacked by his army, reserving only the castle and palace to himself. Hence followed a vast slaughter upon the inhabitants, and all other barbarities which in this case use to be acted by soldiers let loose to their rage and licentiousness. This city being the metropolis of the Persian empire, and that which of all others bore the greatest enmity to Greece, he did this, he said, to execute the revenge of Greece upon it. After the cruelty of this execution was over, leaving Parmenio and Craterus in the place with the greatest part of his forces, he made a range with the rest over the neighbouring countries, and, having reduced them all to a submission to him, returned again to Persepolis, after thirty days, and there took up his winter quarters.

An. 330.

Alex. 2,

While Alexander lay at this place,P he gave himself much to feasting and drinking, for joy of his victories, and the great conquests he had made. In one of his feasts, wherein he entertained his chief commanders, he invited also their misses to accompany them; one of which was Thais, a famous Athenian courtesan, and then miss to Ptolemy; who was afterwards king of Egypt. This woman, in the heat of their carousals, proposed to Alexander the burning down of the city and palace of Persepolis, for the revenging of Greece upon the Persians, especially for the burning of Athens by Xerxes. The whole company being drunk, the proposal was received with

p Plutarch. in Alexandro. Q. Curtius, lib. 5. Arrian. lib. 3. Diodorus Siculus, lib. 17. Justin, lib. 11.

a general applause, and Alexander himself, in the heat of his wine, running into the same humour, immediately took a torch, and all the rest of the company doing the same, they all went thus armed with him at their head, and, setting fire to the city and palace, burned both to the ground; which Alexander, when he came again to his senses, exceedingly repented of; but then it was too late to help it. Thus, at the motion of a drunken strumpet, was destroyed by this drunken king, one of the finest palaces in the world. That this at Persapolis was such, the ruins of it sufficiently shew, which are still remainig even to this day, at a place called Chehel-Minar, near Shiras, in Persia. The name signifieth, in the Persian language, forty pillars, and the place is so called, because such a number of pillars, as well as other stately ruins of this palace, are there still remaining even to this day.

r

In the interim Darius, being fled to Ecbatana in Media, there gathered together as many of his broken forces as fled that way, and endeavoured all he could to raise others to add to them, for the making up of another army. But Alexander having, by the beginning of the spring, settled all his affairs in Persia, made after him into Media. Of this, Darius having received intelligence, left Ecbatana, with intentions to march into Bactria, there to strengthen and augment his army with new recruits. But he had not gone far ere he altered his purpose: for, fearing lest Alexander should overtake him before he could reach Bactria, he stopped his march, and resolved to stand the brunt of another battle with the forces then about him, which amounted to about forty thousand men, horse and foot. But while he was preparing for it, Bessus governour of Bactria, and Nabarzanes another Persian nobleman, confederated with him in the treason, seized the poor unfortunate prince, and, making him their prisoner, put him in chains, and then, shutting him up in a close cart, fled with him towards Bactria, purposing, if Alex

q See the Travels of Herbert, Thevenot, and Chardin.

r Vide Golii Notas ad Alfraganum, p. 113.

s Arrian. lib. 3. Diodor. Sic. lib. 17. Plutarch. in Alexandro. Curtius, lib. 5.

ander pursued after them, to purchase their peace with him, by delivering him alive into his hands; but, if he did not pursue after them, then their intentions were to kill him, and seize his kingdom, and renew the war. Alexander, on his coming to Ecbatana, found Darius was gone from thence about eight days before; however, he pursued hard after him for eleven days together, till he came to Rages, a city of Media, often mentionedt in Tobit, and which was the place where Nabuchodonosor, king of Assyria, is said in the book" of Judith, to have slain Arphaxad king of Media. Here finding that it was in vain to pursue after Darius any farther, he staid in this place several days for the refreshing of his army, and for the settling of the affairs of Media. Of which having made Oxidates, a noble Persian, governour, he marched into Parthia; where, having received intelligence of Darius' case, and what danger he was in from those traitors who had made him their prisoner, he put himself again upon the pursuit after him with part of his army, leaving the rest, under the command of Craterus, to follow after him: and, after several days hard march, he at last came up with the traitors: whereon they would have persuaded Darius to mount on horseback for his more speedy flight with them; but he refusing thus to do, they gave him several mortal wounds, and left him a dying in his cart. Philistratus, one of Alexander's soldiers, found him in this condition; but he expired before Alexander himself came up to him. When he saw his corpse, he could not forbear shedding of tears at so melancholy a spectacle; and, having cast his cloak over it, he commanded it to be wrapped up therein, and carried to Sysigambis at Susa (where he had left her with the other captive ladies,) to be buried by her with a royal funeral, in the burying-place of the kings of Persia, and allowed the expenses necessary for it. And this was the end of this great king, and also of the empire over which he reigned, after it had lasted, from the first of Cyrus, two hundred and nine years. After this fact, Nabarzanes fled into Hyrcania, and Bessus into

t Tobit i, 14; iv, 1.

u Judith i, 15.