Alexander's "Persian Guards"

[Andreas Johansson]

The DBMM army list for Alexander's latter years includes a "Persian Guard" of Bows (X) (archers shooting from behind a front rank of spearmen), additional too but presumably of a kind with the mixed phalanx of Macedonian pikemen and Asiatic missile troops.

Asking for a friend who's doing the army, do we have any idea what they should look like? And from a more historical perspective, where are they from? A brief perusal of Arrian found a description of the mixed phalanx but not anything identifiable as the "Persian Guard".

(Given that another local seems to have set himself on collecting every army that can have substantial numbers of Bows (X), I wouldn't be too surprised if we soon enough have these guys twice over.)

[Duncan Head]

Polyaenus, Stratagems:

[4.3.24] When deciding legal cases among the Macedonians or the Greeks, Alexander preferred to have a modest and common courtroom, but among the barbarians he preferred a brilliant courtroom suitable for a general, astonishing the barbarians even by the courtroom's appearance. When deciding cases among the Bactrians, Hyrcanians, and Indians, he had a tent made as follows: the tent was large enough for 100 couches; fifty gold pillars supported it; embroidered gold canopies, stretched out above, covered the place. Inside the tent 500 Persian Apple Bearers  stood first, dressed in purple and yellow clothing. After the Apple Bearers stood an equal number of archers in different clothing, for some wore flame-colored, some dark blue, and some scarlet. In front of these stood Macedonian Silver Shields, 500 of the tallest men. In the middle of the room stood the gold throne, on which Alexander sat to give audiences. Bodyguards stood on each side when the king heard cases.

In a circle around the tent stood the corps of elephants Alexander had equipped, and 1,000 Macedonians wearing Macedonian apparel. Next to these were 500 Elamites dressed in purple, and after them, in a circle around them, 10,000 Persians, the handsomest and tallest of them, adorned with Persian decorations, and all carrying short swords. Such was Alexander's courtroom among the barbarians.

Aelian:

Alexander himself had a Tent that held a hundred Couches; the partitions made by fifty Pillars of Gold which upheld the Roof: the Roof itself was of Gold curiously wrought. Within it round about were placed first five hundred Persians, called Melophori, clothed in purple and yellow Coats. Next those a thousand Archers in flame-colour and light red. Withall a hundred Macedonian Squires with silver Shields. In the middle of the Tent was placed a Golden Throne, upon which Alexander sat and heard suits, encompassed round about with this Guard. The Tent itself was surrounded with a thousand Macedonians, and ten thousand Persians.

There may be something in Curtius as well? The uniforms are discussed in one of Nick Sekunda's Ospreys, probably the Persian one.

[Andreas Johansson]

Thanks. The online version of Curtius I find (at Hathi) isn't very browse-friendly, so I sort of gave up trying to find out if he had something to say on the subject.

[Patrick Waterson]

Interesting - given the recent discussion of a conceptually silver-shielded later Seleucid 'royal ala/royal cohort' - that Alexander had 100 silver-shield-bearing 'squires' and/or 500 of the tallest 'Macedonian Silver Shields' specifically as guards for his tent.  I wonder if we are seeing a tradition here.

[Swampster]

I think the 'squires' may be a translator's addition - the Latin Aelian just says Macedonians with silver shields and I think the Greek is much the same (the version I'm looking at has rather an odd typeface). In this version, https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=zzBBAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false (page 529) the number of silver shields is given as 500 rather than 100 - from what I can gather from the notes, there are two manuscripts with differing numbers. 500 would match the other account.

As for a Persian 'guard' (though not described as mixed with archers), Arrian 7.11 mentions a taxis of Persian argyraspides as well as Companions including a royal agema (of cavalry). In 7.29. he mentions the incorporation of the 'golden apples' into the army.

[Patrick Waterson]

Thanks for that, Peter: it looks as if the accounts are thus reconcilable.

Apologies for anyone who prefers not to consider this particular subject, but there does seem to be a certain correlation between Alexander's arrangements and Antiochus' royal units at Magnesia.

On his right, we find the equivalents of Alexander's 'inside the tent' forces: 500 men with silver shields guard the royal personage and a Persian (or Median) agema of 1,000 also accompany the king.

On his left, with young Seleucus (his heir) are the 'outside the tent' guards, namely 1,000 Companions.  Alexander's 10,000 Persians ringing the tent (or their successors) were presumably found other roles by the Seleucids but one might see the survival of their equivalents in the 1,000 high-quality unspecified cavalry at Daphnae (additional to the Companions, Agema and philoi).  The question then arises whether we can draw a straight line between Alexander and Antiochus IV and assume the continuity of a Persian-ish unit of 'outside the tent' royal guards who guard the king at a distance rather than, as do the silver shield cavalry and agema, directly.

I make the assumption that the silver-shielded men guarding the king were cavalry.  Given that Macedonian royal bodyguards in other known circumstances appear to be cavalrymen, not least on account of social status, I think it a reasonable assumption to make.

Getting back to the topic in hand,

As for a Persian 'guard' (though not described as mixed with archers), Arrian 7.11 mentions a taxis of Persian argyraspides as well as Companions including a royal agema (of cavalry). In 7.29. he mentions the incorporation of the 'golden apples' into the army.

Specifically he mentions - inter alia - an 'arguraspidōn taxis Persikē', a taxis of Persian Silver Shields and an 'allo agēma basilikon', another royal agema.  These would seem to be copies of the originals, intended to replace fractious and recalcitrant Macedonians with whole formations of dedicated and loyal Persians.