Battle of Thymbra

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Battle of Thymbra
date 541 BC Chr.
place Thymbra ( Troas ), Northwest Anatolia
output Decisive victory for the Persians
consequences Conquest of Lydia by the Achaemenid Empire
Parties to the conflict

Lydia

Achaemenid Empire

Commander

Croesus

Cyrus II
Arshama I.
Artabazos I.
Megabyzos II.
Harpagos
Gobryas I.
u. a.

Troop strength
420,000 (according to Xenophon );
100,000 infantry, 300 chariots (modern estimate) 		196,000 (according to Xenophon);
30,000–50,000 infantry, 300 camel cavalry , 700 chariots, 5–6 siege towers (modern estimate)
losses

high

light

Campaigns of Cyrus the Great

Persian Revolt
Hybra - Persian Frontier

Invasion of Anatolia
Pteria - Thymbra - Sardis

Invasion of Babylonia
Opis - Babylon

The battle of Thymbra was the decisive battle between Croesus and Cyrus the Great in 541 BC. After the defeat of the Lydian king at Pteria , Cyrus persecuted Croesus and was finally able to place him at Thymbra. The only sources of battle are Herodotus and Xenophon's semi-historical account . After the defeat of Croesus at Thymbra and the subsequent successful siege of Sardis , the Persian great king was able to incorporate all of Lydia into his empire.

Starting position

Cyrus' plan was to hit the Lydian king with a surprise attack. At Thymbra, however, in anticipation of the Persian attack, he was able to pull together almost twice as many men as Cyrus. According to Xenophon, Cyrus had almost 200,000 men, consisting of approx. 31,000–70,000 Persians and 126,000 Arab, Armenian and Median auxiliary troops. The Persians under Cyrus' command consisted of about 20,000 archers and stone throwers, 20,000 Peltasts , 20,000 spearmen and 10,000 men of elite infantry / cavalry, which probably also included the immortals . In addition, Cyrus brought in 300 chariots , 5-6 siege towers and 300 camel cavalry men from supply units.

According to Xenophon, the troops of Croesus comprised 420,000 men. These are said to have consisted of 60,000 Babylonians , Lydians, Phrygians , Cappadocians and members of the cities of the Hellespont . In addition to these 300,000 soldiers, Croesus is said to have led another 120,000 Egyptians and 300 chariots into battle.

The battle

Cyrus formed his troops into a square and placed the cavalry and his best units behind the square on the flanks. As expected of him, the Lydian king and his cavalry attacked the center of this square via the wings. Here, however, the Lydian cavalry was already awaited by the siege towers and the archers, and put to flight. Now Cyrus attacked the already defeated cavalry of Croesus and finally put his army to flight.

consequences

With the defeat at Thymbra, Cyrus was able to conquer large parts of Lydia, including the Greek cities in Ionia and the Aeolis , which would later lead to revolts by the Greeks against the repressive policies of the Persians. After the subsequent successful Persian siege of Sardis and the capture of Croesus, the Lydian kingdom ceased to exist.

swell

  • Paul K. Davis (1999): 100 Decisive Battles: From Ancient Times to the Present . Santa Barbara, California. ISBN 1-57607-075-1 .
  • Alexander Campbell (1830): The Millennial Harbinger , Vol. I, No. IX.
  • Dorling Kindersley (2005): Grant, RG Battle, a Visual Journey Through 5000 Years of Combat pg 19. London, England.

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