THE SIEGE OF TYRE

A historian focuses on a key victory that cemented the Macedonian king’s “reputation for invincibility.”

In an absorbing, meticulously researched study, Guenther hones in on Alexander’s 332 BC siege of what was once a Phoenician island—now attached to the coast of Lebanon. In hot pursuit of the Persian emperor, Darius, Alexander made the strategic move to disband the Macedonian-Greek navy, as it was no match for the powerful Persian navy, and instead concentrate on striking by land the string of Phoenician coastal towns that made, supplied, and repaired the great Persian ships. After enduring a long march into Asia Minor, then clashing with and scattering Persian troops in the battles of Granicus and Issus, Alexander moved down the Phoenician coast to subdue the home ports, from Arados to Sidon—and all except Tyre accommodated him. The Tyrians resisted and killed Alexander’s envoys, ensuring a violent outcome. The author undertakes in detail the elaborate engineering feats that Alexander and his army used to besiege the recalcitrant Tyre, starting with the “mole,” a kind of massive pier to reach the city’s walls. Despite the ingenious resistance of the Tyrians, Alexander now had a reinforced navy arrive to block the harbor, as well as the use of his catapults and rams, and perhaps “ladders” (the author rather humorously debates the various historians on the scholarly interpretation of certain ancient Greek words), to breach the walls at last. Drawing from ancient sources as well as from modern historians, Guenther dwells extensively on the makeup of Alexander’s army and marvelous engineering for a surprisingly readable adventure.

Suspense and action galore in this original, accessible study of an otherwise well-known historical personage.