Battle of the Hydaspes, 326 BCE: Alexander vs. Porus in India

The Macedonian army of Alexander the Great entered the Indian subcontinent in 327 BCE via the Khyber and Pir-Sar passes. Alexander’s advance was met with stiff resistance, but he was able to smash the opposition despite being greatly outnumbered. Having entered the modern Punjab region, Alexander sent out messages to the local rulers calling on them to submit. While many did, the powerful Indian king, Porus the Elder refused. Instead, he gathered his army to face Alexander at the Battle of Hydaspes.

The Macedonian advance through the Khyber and Pir-Sar passes was ferociously resisted by local tribes. Yet despite being outnumbered by 3:1 or even 5:1, the Macedonians successfully fought their way through. Rumors of Alexander and his conquests had traveled ahead of his advance. Areas in this part of the subcontinent had once been ruled by the Achaemenids.

Alexander sent out messengers ahead of his army to all the local rulers calling on them to swear allegiance or face destruction. He was also now joined by the powerful Indian ruler of Taxila or Takshasila. The king, whose real name was Ambhi but whom the Macedonians called Taxiles or Omphis, had first sent an ambassador to Alexander in Sogdiana.

Now with Alexander and his army in India, Taxiles came out to swear his allegiance and offer lavish gifts. While at Taxila or Takshasila, Alexander rested his army, received the submission of various local rulers, and planned the next phase of his campaign. Alexander also showered Taxiles with gifts and confirmed him as ruler, adding new lands to his domain.

However, not everyone was happy to welcome the arrival of Alexander and his army. Part of the reason why Taxiles had been so willing to welcome the Macedonians was that he was himself at war with a particularly powerful and dangerous foe.

Porus the Elder

Porus (or Poros) was the ruler of a neighboring kingdom between the Jhelum (Hydaspes) and Chenab (Acesines) rivers, said to contain at least 300 cities. Interestingly, he is not mentioned in any Indian sources; all we know of him was recorded by the Greeks and Macedonians. Some Indian scholars have argued that he was possibly a king of the Puru, an earlier Rigvedic confederation.

Others have noted that many Greek sources note his troops carrying banners of Herakles, which bore the image of a snake. They have, therefore, proposed that he be identified with the kingdom of Surasena. This kingdom was named for a mythical king who had married a Naga snake woman. However, the kingdom was some distance away.

What can be said with more certainty is that Porus was a powerful king who was very hostile towards Taxiles. The previous king, the uncle of Taxiles, had been assassinated by Porus some years earlier.

When he received Alexander’s command to surrender, Porus refused and prepared for war. This was a challenge that Alexander could not possibly ignore. Any show of weakness would encourage further resistance and those who had already submitted might rebel. It was also dangerous to leave such a strong opponent unchecked if the Macedonians were to continue their march. Both sides, therefore, were now prepared for war.

The armies that faced off at the battle of the Hydaspes were a unique mixture of troops from across the ancient world. Alexander had his Macedonians as the core of his forces. However, these were supplemented by Asiatic troops that he had recruited along the way.

Perhaps most notable of which were the horse archers that were recruited from among the Saka while Alexander was in Sogdiana and Bactria. There was also a sizable contingent of allied Indian troops under the command of Taxiles. All told the Macedonian army is believed to have consisted of around 40,000 infantry and 5,000-7,000 cavalry. However, it is unclear exactly how many of these troops actually participated in the battle.

Estimates of the troops under the command of Porus are even less clear. This is not helped by the fact that information about Indian armies during this period is difficult to come by as well. It is generally believed that Porus’s army was larger than that of Alexander, though potentially not by much. Most estimates place Porus’s army at around 50,000 to 54,000. The majority of these troops were infantry of inferior quality to that of the Macedonians. They did, however, wield powerful bows to great effect.

There was also a cavalry contingent of 2,000-4,000 horsemen and around 1,000 chariots. While these were largely considered obsolete in many places at this time, chariots were still an integral part of Indian warfare. Finally, the backbone of Porus’s army were his 200 war elephants. Porus himself commanded from the back of a particularly large war elephant.

The armies met on opposite sides of the Hydaspes River. Since the river was so deep and fast, if either army were caught while trying to cross, they would most likely have been destroyed. Alexander therefore spent days marching his army up and down the river looking for a suitable place to cross. On the opposite side of the river, the army of Porus shadowed the march.

Eventually, Alexander found a suitable spot to cross where a wooded island sat in the middle of the river and blocked the view. To deceive Porus, Alexander left most of his army in camp under the command of one of his generals who made a demonstration as if he intended to cross the river.

By the time Porus became aware of the crossing, Alexander had gotten 15,000-20,000 men across the river. Acting decisively, Porus dispatched a force of cavalry and chariots under the command of his son to either block the crossing or buy time for the rest of the army to redeploy. This rapid response appears to have caught Alexander somewhat off guard. He responded with a disorderly cavalry charge that was aided by the river mud which made it difficult for the Indian chariots to maneuver.

In the sharp fight that followed, Porus’s son was killed, and his forces were scattered. Realizing now that Alexander had crossed in force, Porus marched forth with his army leaving a small force to watch the Macedonian camp and prevent further crossings.

Having crossed the river, the armies of Alexander and Porus now formed up for battle. The Indian army was deployed with the cavalry on both wings fronted by the chariots, while the infantry formed the center fronted by war elephants. Alexander massed his cavalry on his right wing, while the rest of his line consisted of the Macedonian infantry.

The Indian infantry outnumbered their Macedonian counterparts by about 5:1; a numerical advantage that was further strengthened by the presence of the war elephants. Alexander therefore determined that the Indian center was the strongest part of Porus’s line. So, Alexander decided to open the battle by engaging Porus’s cavalry with his own. The battle commenced with Alexander sending his horse archers to harass the Indian cavalry on the right, while Alexander himself led a charge against the cavalry on the Indian left.

Realizing that their compatriots were in danger, the cavalry on the Indian right rode to the rescue. However, they were followed by the rest of the Macedonian cavalry, who ended up almost riding around both armies. Now encircled by the Macedonians, the Indian cavalry tried to resist by forming a cavalry circle. However, the complex maneuver resulted in even more chaos.

Unable to withstand the Macedonian onslaught, the Indian cavalry was routed and fled to the protection of their war elephants. Horses are notoriously skittish around elephants and require special training to become accustomed to their presence. Porus now led his war elephants against Alexander’s cavalry, only to be confronted by the advancing Macedonian infantry.

Porus’s war elephants were heavily armored and were ridden by a trio of archers and javelin men. While they outnumbered the Macedonian infantry significantly, the Indian infantry was not as heavily armored and were at a distinct disadvantage when facing the long Macedonian sarissas. Yet when the Indian war elephants collided with the Macedonian phalanx, they were able to inflict heavy casualties.

Macedonian soldiers were impaled on the tusks of the elephants and trampled into the ground, and some men were even grabbed by the elephant’s trunks and heaved through the air. The Macedonian infantry fought back bravely, striking the elephants and their mahouts when they could. By now, Porus’s cavalry had rallied and sallied forth once again to charge the Macedonian cavalry.

This new cavalry charge was met by Alexander once again and repulsed, causing the Indian cavalry to flee from the battlefield. At the same time, the Macedonian infantry finally began to make headway against the elephants driving them back into their own infantry. The maddened beast trampled many of their own men to death during their flight.

While the tide of battle was now turning in the Macedonians’ favor, they were still significantly outnumbered by Porus’s infantry and surviving elephants. Thus, the Macedonians locked their shields and advanced on the Indian infantry. With the Indians now engaged with the infantry to their front, Alexander led a decisive cavalry charge into their rear. The Indian infantry effectively disintegrated and began to flee. It was at this moment that the Macedonians who had been left guarding the camp crossed the river and appeared on the battlefield.

Throughout the battle, Porus had conducted himself with great valor. Even now, as the rest of his army fled, Porus continued to fight on from the back of his elephant. It was clear to everyone that he intended to die in combat rather than be taken prisoner. Alexander had observed Porus with growing admiration. He never shrank from combat and refused to flee. Such behavior was unlike the conduct of other kings Alexander had faced.

In recognition of Porus’s conduct, Alexander sent Taxiles to him to call for his surrender. However, the sight of Taxiles, his hated enemy, caused Porus to fly into a further fit of rage. Porus hurled a spear at Taxiles causing him to flee. Further messengers were sent to Porus and received similar treatment. Finally, a friend of Porus convinced him to listen to Alexander’s proposal.

Dismounting from his elephant and overcome by thirst, Porus first demanded a drink before allowing himself to be led before Alexander. Porus cut an impressive figure, he was tall and well-muscled. When Alexander asked Porus how he wished to be treated, Porus replied, “Treat me as a king would treat another king.” 
Porus’s boldness and spirit struck a chord with Alexander. Not only did Alexander agree to Porus’s proposal, but he also allowed him to retain his throne and all of his lands and even granted him some newly conquered lands as well. Alexander also saw to it that Porus and Taxiles were reconciled.

Aftermath and Legacy

The Battle of the Hydaspes was the bloodiest of Alexander’s career. Macedonian casualties are estimated at 200 to 1,000 surpassing those suffered at the earlier Battle of Gaugamela. Indian casualties are even more difficult to estimate, but most scholars place them at around 20,000. Following the battle, Alexander appears to have acquired around 150 war elephants.

It was also during or after this battle that Alexander suffered one of his greatest personal losses. His horse, Bucephalus, whom he had tamed as a young boy in Macedonia, was killed in the fighting. It was a devastating loss for the king. Following the battle, Alexander founded two new cities. The city of Nikaia was founded near or on the site of the battle. Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the river, Alexander founded the city of Boukephala which he named for Bucephalus.

Alexander, Taxiles, and Porus campaigned against another Indian ruler in the region before the Macedonians marched on. However, the battle disrupted the political situation of the entire region and set the stage for many changes in the Indian subcontinent. For the Macedonians, the bloody battle made the prospect of further conflict with more powerful Indian kingdoms far less attractive. It also led to the blending of Greek and Indian cultures that would produce some of antiquity’s most fabulous works of art. So, while the Battle of the Hydaspes was one of Alexander’s bloodiest and hard-fought victories, it was also one with the most profound and far-reaching results.