Battle of Gaugamela

E76845

battle military conflict

The Battle of Gaugamela was a decisive 331 BC clash in which Alexander the Great defeated Persian king Darius III, effectively leading to the fall of the Achaemenid Empire and securing Macedonian dominance in the Near East.

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Observed surface forms (3)

Surface form	Occurrences
Battle of Arbela	1
Battle of Gaugamela (as part of Alexander’s empire)	1
Wars of Alexander the Great	1

Statements (52)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	battle ⓘ military conflict ⓘ
AlexanderRole	commanded Macedonian right wing ⓘ personally led Companion cavalry ⓘ
alsoKnownAs	Battle of Gaugamela ⓘ surface form: Battle of Arbela
belligerent	Achaemenid Empire ⓘ Greek allied contingents ⓘ Indian contingents of the Achaemenid Empire ⓘ Macedon ⓘ Persian satrapal contingents ⓘ
combatantStrength	Macedonian army smaller than Persian army ⓘ
commander	Alexander the Great ⓘ Darius III ⓘ
conflictBetween	Achaemenid Empire ⓘ Macedon ⓘ surface form: Macedonian Empire
DariusOutcome	fled the battlefield ⓘ
DariusRole	commanded Persian center ⓘ
date	1 October 331 BC ⓘ 331 BC ⓘ
followedBy	Battle of the Persian Gate ⓘ Siege of Babylon (331 BC) ⓘ capture of Persepolis ⓘ Siege of Susa ⓘ surface form: capture of Susa
historicalContext	Macedonian conquest of the Achaemenid Empire ⓘ
historicalPeriod	Hellenistic period ⓘ surface form: Hellenistic period (early phase)
legacy	considered one of Alexander the Great’s greatest victories ⓘ studied as a classic example of outnumbered victory through tactics ⓘ
location	Assyria ⓘ Mesopotamia ⓘ near Gaugamela ⓘ near modern Mosul ⓘ
notableUnit	Macedonian army ⓘ surface form: Macedonian Companion cavalry Macedonian phalanx ⓘ Persian army ⓘ surface form: Persian Immortals
partOf	Wars of Alexander the Great ⓘ
PersianForcesIncluded	scythed chariots ⓘ war chariots ⓘ war elephants ⓘ
precededBy	Battle of Issus ⓘ
result	collapse of effective Achaemenid resistance ⓘ decisive Macedonian victory ⓘ defeat of Darius III ⓘ
strategicSignificance	decisive blow to Achaemenid imperial power ⓘ opened the way to Babylon ⓘ opened the way to Susa and Persepolis ⓘ secured Macedonian dominance in the Near East ⓘ
tacticsUsed	hammer and anvil tactic ⓘ oblique advance by Macedonian right wing ⓘ use of Companion cavalry charge ⓘ use of Macedonian phalanx ⓘ
terrain	ground leveled by Persians for chariot use ⓘ open plain ⓘ

Referenced by (6)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Battle of Gaugamela → alsoKnownAs → Battle of Gaugamela ⓘ

this entity surface form: Battle of Arbela

Macedon → battle → Battle of Gaugamela ⓘ

this entity surface form: Battle of Gaugamela (as part of Alexander’s empire)

Battle of Issus → followedBy → Battle of Gaugamela ⓘ

Asian campaign → includesEvent → Battle of Gaugamela ⓘ

Achaemenid Empire → majorConflict → Battle of Gaugamela ⓘ

this entity surface form: Wars of Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great → notableBattle → Battle of Gaugamela ⓘ