MAIN POINTS ON THE SIEGE OF TYRE PAGE 1 Tyre was a strategically critical site and captured.

It was an island half a mile off Phoenicia, about two and three quarter miles in walls up to 150 ft high and surrounded by water of 600 ft.

1 so had to be the coast of diameter with up to a depth

2 The Tyrians had done well under Persian rule and when Alex approached using a wish to worship at the shrine of Heracles as a pretext for entering the city, the citizens refused and threw his heralds off the walls. 3 Before the siege Alex had a dream in which Heracles featured. This was interpreted to mean that the city would be taken but with great labour. 4 Alex decided to build a mole (or pier) from the mainland out to the city. He chose a place where the water was shallowest (at its deepest, 18 ft). It was built using stakes and stones. It was very hard work but the men's enthusiasm was heightened by Alex's praise and rewards. 5 Problems arose as they got closer to the city and were more open to attack from the city and from the strong Tyrian fleet. So the Macedonians set up two siege towers on the mole covered with hides. 6 The Tyrians fitted up a ship with pitch, timber and brushwood with cauldrons hanging of oil...etc. hanging over them. They sailed it over to the siege towers and both of them and the mole were destroyed in the blaze. 7 It is a measure of Alex's leadership qualities that the men were willing to start straight away on another mole, this time broader, with new siege engines. 8 Alex now went to Sidon to collect 200 warships and 4,000 Greek reinforcements. Later he got 120 more ships from Cyprus. 9 The Tyrians were shocked to see so many ships and decided to blockade the two harbours. Alex then mounted a counter blockade. By now there were siege engines on some of the

warships as well as on the mole. 10 The Tyrian towers were about 180 ft high and also they now threw boulders into the sea to keep the Macedonian ships away. These were hauled out. Also the Tyrians got close to some of the Macedonian ships and cut their cables. So these ships had to be protected and the cables replaced with chains. MAIN POINTS ON THE SIEGE OF TYRE PAGE 2. 11 The Tyrians made a surprise attack on the Cypriot ships from the Sidonian harbour, from behind sails stretched across its entrance. It was at noon when they believed Alex would be in his tent resting. He was in his tent, but not asleep.

12 At first they did well and sank 3 ships, but Alex after securing the other harbour, hurried around to the Sidonian harbour with several ships and despite shouted warnings from the defenders on the walls, the Tyrians were caught unawares and most of the ships taken. Most of the crews escaped.

13 Now Alex began a varied and concerted approach. This involved attacking the walls in 3 places (Sidonian side, at the mole and the south side facing Egypt). Then he brought ships with gangways up to the walls where there was a breach. At the same time he sent ships around to both harbours in the hope of entering while the Tyrians were distracted. Ships were deployed all around the walls for total bombardment. Some of the methods used by the Tyrians were: bags of seaweed, marble wheels, rocks hot sand and fire-arrows. 14 Admetus and Alex were among the first over the wall, Admetus died. Meanwhile the Phoenician ships had entered the Egyptian harbour and the Cypriots the Sidonian harbour. The Tyrians made a stand at a shrine in the city and there was an enormous slaughter, the Macedonians were bitter at the length of the siege (April to July), and at the treatment of some of their comrades. About 8,000 Tyrians died. Some were spared but about 30,000 were sold into slavery. 15 Alex sacrificed to Heracles and held a great festival in his honour.