Craterus soon arrived on the field with fresh troops, turning the battle into a slaughter. Then his infantry and cavalry attacked in concert. Porus rallied his troops into a phalanx to meet Alexander’s frontal infantry attack, so Alexander ordered his cavalry to encircle the packed Indian phalanx.
Alexander sent his heavy cavalry into the gap while the Greek cavalry riding behind the battle line shattered Porus’ left. Porus extended his left to block the envelopment, which created a gap in his line.
Alexander then shifted his 1,000 horse-archers against Porus’ left while moving his heavy cavalry to envelop the Indian infantry. Porus ordered the cavalry on his right to circle behind the battle line and reinforce his left, so Alexander’s 2,000 Greek cavalry simply followed them. Porus then switched to the defensive, deploying his infantry in a line, each wing protected by only 1,000 cavalry and some elephants.Īlexander attacked Porus’ left with 4,000 cavalry and his right with 2,000 horsemen. Alexander destroyed the Indian cavalry and continued his advance. Was this a feint or the main attack? Porus sent 2,000 of his cavalry to intercept Alexander, reserving his main force to deal with Craterus’ expected attack. With Alexander approaching, Porus faced a dilemma. By dawn Alexander’s force had crossed the river and begun moving toward Porus’ camp. His chosen crossing point was a headland that jutted into the river toward a wooded island, providing concealment for his landing craft. Using the weather as a screen, Alexander moved his turning force into position 17 miles upstream.
One night a terrible storm arose, with rain, wind and thunder. Alexander led the turning force of 5,000 cavalry and 10,500 infantry, including 2,000 archers, while a reserve force of 1,000 cavalry and 4,500 infantry under Meleager waited for Alexander’s force to secure the far bank. A force of 3,000 cavalry and 8,000 infantry under Craterus stayed directly opposite Porus’ position. Alexander’s forces now roamed the riverbank unchallenged.Īlexander divided his army into three parts. At first Porus moved to keep him in check, but after concluding that Alexander had no intention of crossing, Porus remained in camp. For several nights Alexander marched his cavalry up and down the riverbank as if searching for a crossing point. While calling up his landing craft, he sent for large supplies of wheat to persuade Porus that he would wait until the rainy season ended before crossing. Alexander faced a forced river crossing opposed by a strong enemy.Īlexander’s army comprised 23,000 Greek heavy infantry, 1,000 Iranian horse-archers and 8,000 heavy cavalry. Alexander marched his army 110 miles from Taxila to the Hydaspes, where Porus’ army of 30,000 infantry, 4,000 cavalry, 300 chariots and 200 elephants waited on the far bank. Here he learned that Porus, an Indian prince, was marshaling his army on the banks of the Hydaspes. In March 326 bc, Alexander crossed the Indus and seized Taxila, establishing a base for the invasion. Now, planning to attack India itself, he ordered shipwrights to prepare landing craft for use on the Hydaspes and Indus Rivers, which flanked the border. from the Hydaspes RiverĪlexander the Great had come 2,500 miles since crossing the Hellespont in 334 bc and conquering the Persian Empire to the Indian frontier. I also found a follow-up to the Battle of Hydaspes River
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