Battle of the Hydaspes | |||||||||
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Part of Alexander's Indian campaign | |||||||||
![]() Alexander the Great and Porus Francesco Fontebasso | |||||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||||
Macedonian Empire Hellenic League Gandhara | Pauravas[1] | ||||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Strength | |||||||||
45,000–47,000 total |
22,000–54,000 total | ||||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||||
~1,000 total[12] |
21,000–23,000 total | ||||||||
The Battle of the Hydaspes also known as Battle of Jhelum, or First Battle of Jhelum, was fought between Alexander the Great and Porus in May of 326 BCE. It took place on the banks of the Hydaspes River in what is now the Punjab province of Pakistan,[17] as part of Alexander's Indian campaign. In what was possibly their most costly engagement,[18] the Macedonian army secured a decisive victory over the Pauravas and captured Porus.[e] Large areas of Punjab were subsequently absorbed into the Macedonian Empire; Porus was reinstated as the region's ruler after Alexander, having developed a newfound respect for the fierce resistance put up by Porus and his army, appointed him as a satrap.
In spite of close Indian surveillance, Alexander's decision to cross the monsoon-swollen Hydaspes in order to catch Porus's army in the flank has been referred to as one of his "masterpieces" in combat.[20] The Macedonians' engagement with the Indians at Hydaspes remains a very significant historical event with regard to the Wars of Alexander the Great, as it resulted in the exposure of Greek political and cultural influences to the Indian subcontinent, which would continue to affect Greeks and Indians for centuries to come.
Arrian 5.14
was invoked but never defined (see the help page).Diodorus 17.89.3
was invoked but never defined (see the help page).Diodorus 17.89.1-3
was invoked but never defined (see the help page).The elephants of Puru's army were overwhelmed by the Greeks' horses in 326 BC on the left bank of the Hydaspes, a river - also known as the Jhelum or Jhelam - that is located in what is today Pakistan
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