344:), reconnoitered and reinforced a neighboring spur to the west with a stockade and ditch. His signal fire to Alexander also alerted the defenders of Pir-Sar, and it took two days of skirmishing in the narrow ravines for Alexander to regroup. At the vulnerable north side leading to the fort, Alexander and his catapults were stopped by a deep ravine. To bring the siege engines within reach, an earthwork mound was constructed to bridge the ravine with carpentry, brush, and earth. The first day's work brought the siege mound 50 metres (55 yd) closer, but as the sides of the ravine fell away steeply below, progress rapidly slowed; nevertheless, at the end of the third day, a low hill connected to the nearest tip of Pir-Sar was within reach and was taken. Afterwards, Alexander in the vanguard and his first force were repelled by boulders rolled down from above. Three days of drumbeats marked the defenders' celebration of the initial repulse, followed by a surprise retreat. Alexander hauled himself up the last rockface on a rope. Alexander cleared the summit, slaying some fugitives (Lane Fox), inflated by Arrian to a massacre, and erected altars to
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word, such as *awarana "fortified place". According to Arrian, the rock had a flat summit well-supplied with natural springs and wide enough to grow crops: it could not be starved into submission. Neighboring tribesmen who surrendered to
Alexander offered to lead him to the best point of access.
258:'s last siege, which took place on April 326 BC, at a mountain site located in modern Pakistan. Aornos offered the last threat to Alexander's supply line, which stretched, dangerously vulnerable, over the
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The Rock of Aornos, Shangla
District, Khyber Pakhtun Khwa (KPK), Pakistan
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Place associated with
Alexander the Great, identified in modern Pakistan
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and
Alexander's secretary Myllinas (rather than the famous
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A 19th century painting of the Siege of the Aornos.
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351:Alexander was now free to pursue his journey into
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228:The Aornos is located to the north of
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282:(according to Arrian and Diodorus;
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326:province. However, the Indologist
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286:according to Curtius; elsewhere
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421:Age of the Nandas and Mauryas
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503:Military history of Pakistan
357:Battle of the Hydaspes River
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450:IV chapters 28.1–30.4
318:River, just to the west of
310:was located on Pir Sar – a
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474:31.0000000°N 74.0000000°E
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387:Lane Fox (1973); Arrian.
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416:Sastri, K. A. Nilakanta
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508:Sieges of antiquity
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430:Motilal Banarsidass
424:(Second ed.),
402:Alexander the Great
359:lay in the future.
256:Alexander the Great
176:Indian subcontinent
52:Alexander the Great
355:. The devastating
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254:) was the site of
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144:Persian Gate
138:Uxian Defile
71:Mount Haemus
50:Campaigns of
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477: /
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462:31°0′0.00″N
452:(in French)
376:Sastri 1988
346:Athena Nike
304:Aurel Stein
276:Macedonians
492:Categories
395:References
292:corruption
260:Hindu Kush
332:Elum Ghar
266:, though
150:Cyropolis
132:Gaugamela
448:Anabasis
446:Arrian,
272:Heracles
262:back to
203:(326 BC)
197:(326 BC)
195:Hydaspes
191:(326 BC)
185:(327 BC)
170:(327 BC)
164:(328 BC)
158:(329 BC)
156:Jaxartes
152:(329 BC)
146:(330 BC)
140:(331 BC)
134:(331 BC)
128:(332 BC)
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116:(333 BC)
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98:(334 BC)
96:Granicus
85:(335 BC)
79:(335 BC)
73:(335 BC)
342:Eumenes
338:Ptolemy
102:Miletus
64:Balkans
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353:Punjab
320:Thakot
308:Aornos
294:of an
288:Aornus
284:Aornis
280:Aornos
268:Arrian
252:Ἄορνος
244:Aornos
230:Taxila
189:Aornos
183:Cophen
90:Persia
83:Thebes
77:Pelium
426:Delhi
363:Notes
316:Indus
264:Balkh
162:Gabai
114:Issus
434:ISBN
406:ISBN
126:Gaza
120:Tyre
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432:,
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41:e
34:t
27:v
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