BATTLE // -333 BCE
Siege of Miletus
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Overview
The siege of Miletus was Alexander the Great's first siege and naval encounter with the Achaemenid Empire. This siege was directed against Miletus, a city in southern Ionia, which is now located in the Aydın province of modern-day Turkey. During the battle, Parmenion's son Philotas would be key in preventing the Persian Navy from finding safe anchorage. It was captured by Parmenion's son, Nicanor in 334 BC.
Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Significance
The Siege of Miletus was Alexander the Great's first siege operation and first naval encounter against the Achaemenid Empire during his campaign into Persia. Miletus, a city in southern Ionia, represented an early test of Macedonian combined-arms capability against a fortified Achaemenid-held position. Its capture by Nicanor, son of Parmenion, established Macedonian control over a significant Ionian city and demonstrated that Alexander's forces could prosecute siege warfare in addition to open-field engagements as the campaign moved deeper into Achaemenid-held territory.
Tactics
Macedonian forces under Nicanor took the city, while Philotas, also a son of Parmenion, played a key role in denying the Persian navy safe anchorage during the operation, combining land siege operations with naval interdiction to prevent Achaemenid naval forces from relieving or supplying the city.
Commanders (3)
Achaemenid Empire
Macedonian Empire
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