In 530 BC, Cyrus, king of Persia, was the undisputed overlord of the world. At that time, 3/5 of the major civilizations of the known world had fallen into the hands of this legendary figure. The rest of the area is either not worth mentioning, and does not require the Imperial army to make a big fuss, or it is a remote area where the Empire itself is not aware of its existence. But in Cyrus's strategic vision, there is another goal that remains unresolved. That was the steppe region of Central Asia to the north, inhabited by what Herodotus called the Massagtai tribes.
It is to subdue this group of unruly nomads, the king of the world embarked on the final journey of his career. But he himself is about to face the most tragic end of his life.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="3" > unstable frontier</h1>
Map of the Persian Empire in the Cyrus era (orange)
Long before the Persian army annexed Babylon, they had been fighting all over Central Asia for 6 years. But after the initial upsurge, they soon found themselves not solving any key problems at all. Even the control of important cities such as Samarkand and the establishment of a series of colonial cities and fortresses along the Syr Darya River could not stop the nomadic peoples further north from continuing to harass them south. And these people are not only different from the many Iranian inhabitants living in Central Asia, but even farther away than their relatives who live in the nomadic steppes of southern Russia.
The herders the Persians met in the past would more or less grow some food and crops to ensure their livelihood. But for the tribes living north of the Syr Darya River, agriculture was a foreign and less important secondary matter, with the grazing economy, gathering culture, and hunting all they could earn a living.
The Masagatai people, who belong to the nomadic culture of the PanScythians
Due to the lack of iron ore and sophisticated smelting techniques, these nomadic tribes scattered north of the Syr Darya River still use bronze weapons and inlaid them with gold carvings. Noble warriors were often equipped with scale armor and Kuban-style helmets that protected the whole body, and each of them was a master archer who had been training since childhood. Whenever the climate changes slightly, an exceptionally fragile purely nomadic economy is prone to unsustainable dismal conditions. This forced the entire tribesmen to go south and plunder the rich farmland and urban areas.
Although the flanked area of Khwarazm was already protected by Persian garrisons, it was often overwhelmed by the flexible cavalry. Moreover, the Masaghites, like their Scythian relatives, had fierce infantry units using compound bows and battle axes that could be used to besiege Persian fortresses. Cyrus was therefore determined to wage a crusade against northern Central Asia to alleviate the frontier crisis for his own empire.
As a typical nomadic tribe, the women of the Masagatai also often participate in warfare
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="5" > the Empire's counterattack</h1>
Lead an army out of Cyrus in the city of Babylon
In 530 BC, the Empire's large armies crossed the Amu Darya River, supported by cities and fortresses along the way. However, the degree of agricultural development in Hezhong or Khwarazm is not high, and it is very reluctant to support the troops. If, as classical Western history suggests, Cyrus had mobilized as many as 200,000 soldiers for this campaign, the supply line would have spread all the way to the Medes or Bactrias to the south. As for the Massagtai who were crusaded, they also long obeyed the stronger Drabis tribe. It was only because the other party had just died the leader that he finally got a rare chance to turn around.
Thereafter, Cyrus offered marriage to the tribal chief's wife, Tomiris, in the hope of marrying the nomadic woman Haojie. Tomiris, who had already become queen in effect, naturally understood that once she succumbed to the power of the Persians, all her people and territories would become a secondary part of the empire. Therefore, he categorically refused to make peace with the emissaries, and left the other side with an excuse to send troops.
Tomiris's attitude laid the tone for the Persian army
Persian sappers soon erected pontoon bridges with towers over the Syr Darya River, sending large troops to the north shore battlefield one after another. Tomiris had to send another message, hoping that Cyrus would not act rashly. If war must be fought, then the choice is to dry anywhere at either end of the river. The latter did not want the nomadic army to cross the river to ravage the territory of the family, or chose to resolutely lead the troops across the river.
Before leaving, Cyrus deliberately sent his eldest son, Cambis, as crown prince, back to the old capital of Pasargard. At the same time, he sent his second son Mogda to Bactria, an important province in the eastern part of the empire. If something else happened to him, Gombis would immediately succeed him as King of Persia and King of Kings of Asia, while his brother would be responsible for the security of the eastern provinces of the Empire against a possible counterattack by the Masaghtai.
Cyrus the Great's military dress
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="7" > a twist and turn</h1>
Persian cavalry of the 5th century BC
After completing the river crossing, the Persian army marched north for another 3 days before beginning to camp for the next move. In order to attract the nomadic tribes that came and went without a trace to take the initiative to attack themselves, Cyrus ordered most of the supplies and herds to be left in the camp. Then he left with the main force, leaving only the old, weak, sick and disabled and some slave guards.
This move soon attracted the attention of the Prince of Massagtai, Spalgabis, who, without much thought, led his troops to sneak in. In the face of the sudden arrival of nomadic elites, the remaining personnel in the camp were quickly completely annihilated, and a large number of supplies were occupied by herders. The Masaghtai, who had won the first battle, simply camped in the Persian camp, enjoying wine filled with clay pots and herds of livestock carried with them. As a result, Cyrus's army quietly turned back in the night, slaughtering all the barbarians who had enough to eat and drink. Spalgabis himself was captured, and unwilling to face the humiliation of his arrest, found the opportunity to commit suicide to apologize.
The tragic death of his son made Tomiris furious
Therefore, the triumphant Cyrus led his troops deep into the northern wilderness. But as the long-distance pursuit continued, the troops and supplies also became more and more numerous. Various non-combat attrition problems, including hunger and disease, have seriously depleted the entire army,000 troops, and the Massagtai army gathered by Tomiris has been waiting for a long time.
The battle that followed was described by Herodotus as the worst battle between the non-Greeks. Two armies that excelled at using compound bows laid out battle formations in the vast wilderness. The Persians habitually placed their infantry in the center, with the most elite headquarters soldiers and horses at the heart of the front, and auxiliary troops from the Medes and other eastern provinces in turn to their left and right. The cavalry of the army was located on both flanks and rear of the infantry front.
The nobles of the Masagatai were heavily armored cavalry
In contrast, the Massagtai battle front is the opposite. The cavalry, composed of military elites, was mostly at the center of the line, and the two wings were infantry phalanxes from the poor class. The battle also begins with greeting each other with compound bows, and both sides shoot all the arrows in their quivers in one go. From time to time, the cavalry of the Masaghtai also rushed to their own positions and approached the Persians to shoot arrows. Then he calmly retreated from the flank of his own infantry phalanx and returned to his original position. Because the Persians' light arrows did little to the thick scales, and their horses protected their front chests and heads with thick fabrics, they rarely suffered losses during the interlocking phase.
Persian cavalry also approached the Masaghtai infantry from both flanks. However, neither the use of bows nor javelins can do a good job of killing the firing that hides behind a large shield. He also suffered heavy losses from the intense bow and arrow fire he received. It was not until all the arrows were exhausted that the Massagtai cavalry and infantry took turns to launch a fierce charge. Forcing the other side to close the formation and resist the onslaught of the northern barbarians with a dense formation. But they had been tortured enough by the weather in the north that they could not withstand the madness of the nomadic warriors. Even Cyrus himself, who had experienced hundreds of battles, was engulfed by the rebel army at the end of the melee.
Persian cavalry stubbornly blocked by nomadic infantry
According to Herodotus' retelling, the founder of the world empire ended up having the barbarian soldiers cut off their heads. The first level is packed into a leather bag full of blood, allowing Tomiris to fulfill his promise of feeding it with blood with practical actions. Although the Masaghtai themselves suffered heavy losses and did not have the energy to continue to counterattack the southern border, the Persian border was forever limited to the south of the Syr Darya River. Until Alexander the Great arrived here 2 centuries later with his troops, the boundaries established by the war remained basically the same...
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