While Alexander was still in Ephesos , the
Persian governor of Miletus Miletus was the largest Greek city on the eastern
shore of the Aegean Sea .
Its origins go back to
Mycenaean times in the 11th century BC. In 670 BC Miletus
started colonizing the coast of the Black Sea, the Mediterranean and the Sea of Marmara . Just like Priene and the other cities
belonging to the Ionic League, Miletus suffered from the repeated Persian
invasions and occupations, the most memorable of which happened when Cyrus defeated Croesus of Lydia
causing the fall of Miletus Miletus
So, by the time Alexander arrived in 334 BC, Miletus
was in the hands of Persia were it only because its excellent harbour was their
main base, ideally situated to control the other cities of Asia Minor or to
launch a counter-attack on mainland Greece. Miletus
In this context, Alexander marched towards Miletus
Meanwhile Alexander’s own fleet of 160 ships commanded by Nicanor (brother of Parmenion) had anchored on the island
of Lade , just off Miletus 15 km south of Miletus Miletus
For the time being, Alexander made himself comfortable in
nearby Priene and directed the siege operations from there. It is here
that he was approached by an unexpected embassy led by Glaucippus, a well respected citizen of Miletus Miletus Miletus
to remain available to the Persians who from there had access to the entire
coast of Asia Minor .
Early next morning Alexander moved his siege engines forward,
including probably his stone-throwing catapults. Artillery was used to chase
the defenders from the walls and than the battering rams and scaling ladders
were brought in. The wall crumbled soon enough and the city quickly was taken.
The Greek fleet which had positioned itself as a ring around the city
successfully prevented the Persians from giving Miletus
Panic broke out among the
citizens of Miletus Miletus
With Miletus Mycale , preventing the
Persians from landing and getting new provisions and fresh water from the
River Maeander. The fleet withdrew, seeking protection on the island of Samos
This being settled, Alexander elected a democratic leader,
cancelled all taxes and boosted commerce – in short, he started a new period of
prosperity for Miletus Miletus
Today the antique city is to
be found 10 km
inland and in springtime the once so busy port is covered by extensive
marshlands filled with reed and blooming irises. In a way this helps to imagine
what this huge harbour must have looked like. There is the old rotunda that was
part of the Harbour Monument 7.5 meters high and may
have carried a huge iron pot on top, part of which is now on display at the Pergamon Museum in Berlin Miletus
In historical literature, Miletus
The most striking building is
of course the theatre sitting on the hilltop commanding the entire city of Miletus 140 meters long and 30 meters high. It is
hard to imagine the full impact of this theatre since the stones of the upper tiers
have been taken to build of the Byzantine church on top, leaving a merely
seating space for 15,000 people.
From up here, one can easily
see the lay-out of the entire city. Following the marshy water line from the
harbour, I find the Delphinium, the
open air Temple of Apollo Delphinius
The remains of the adjacent Hellenistic Gymnasium are rather poor and the colossal Nympheion from the 2nd century AD that flanks it on the other side requires lots of imagination to
picture it. Across from the Nympheion
are the remains of the Bouleuterion,
built between 175 and 164 BC. But here as elsewhere, the parts belonging to the
Hellenistic period blend in very harmoniously with those that were added later
on by the Romans.
Further south, past the South Agora, the Baths of Faustina, Marcus Aurelius’ wife,are visible; rough brick arches and walls that don’t do justice to
the once so lavish building whose ornamental statues are now in the Archaeological Museum
of Istanbul Pergamon Museum
in Berlin
It definitely is worthwhile to
visit Miletus
Between the Baths of Faustina and the South Agora
lies the Temple of Serapis
That brings me to the most
exciting location in Miletus Sacred Road Sacred Road temple of Didyma British Museum
in London ,
the Archaeological Museum
in Istanbul ,
or to the local Museum ofMiletus 16.5 kilometres
long road was entirely paved and had a width varying between 5 and 7 meters . Both in Miletus
I have not found any
indication about the road used by Alexander
on his way from Miletus Sacred
Road
[Click here for more pictures of Miletus]
[Click here for more pictures of Miletus]