Battle of Timbra

The main source for the battle of Timbra is the work of Herodotus "History" . The story of Herodotus contains a minimum of details: the composition and number of troops are not given, and the course of the battle is described in the most general terms. In addition, Xenophon in the “Cyropedia” contains a description of the battle between the Persians and Lydians, which he called the Battle of Fimbrara ( dr. Greek Θύμβραρα ), the details of which suggest that this is the same event as Herodotus. However, the work of Xenophon is more of a didactic work in which the author freely addresses historical facts ^[1] . Therefore, with a high probability, his description of the battle contains an element of author's fiction.

Description of Herodotus

The battle took place shortly after the bloody and inconclusive battle at Ptery . Cyrus, fearing the beautiful cavalry of the Lydians, ordered, on the advice of the Medean Harpag, to put part of the soldiers on convoyed camels and put them on the first line, counting on the fact that the horses are afraid of camels and cannot stand their appearance and smell. For the camels, he built the bulk of the infantry, and behind it - the rest of the army.

Xenophon Description

From a spy named Arasp, Cyrus became aware of the military order and strength of the enemy. Before the battle, Cyrus built the infantry in four lines. In the first - heavy, in the second - javelin throwers, in the third - light infantry , in the fourth - reserve regiment, then military chariots , battle towers, convoys , riders on the flanks of the convoy 1 thousand and 1 thousand infantry - to cover. On the left flank, he placed 600 camels with two arrows on each. Cavalry covered the flanks of the first line. Xenophon estimates the strength of the Persians at 196 thousand people, and the Lydians at 420 thousand people (both of which are a clear exaggeration).

Description of Herodotus

As soon as the horses of the Lydians sensed and saw the Persian camels, they took to flight. But the Lydians dismounted and continued the battle. After huge losses on both sides, the Persians managed to achieve victory.

Xenophon Description

Croesus, who had a longer battle formation, ordered to cover the enemy. Seeing this, Cyrus ordered the enemy to be attacked by camels and strike at Croesus' cavalry. Cyrus rushed with his cavalry and attacked the left wing of the enemy on the flank, the infantry following him overturned the Assyrian infantry. Then camels attacking the Creus cavalry were attacked from the left wing. The infantry of the Persians attacked, but it was stopped by the Egyptian infantry and thrown back to the towers. Clouds of arrows fell on the heads of the Egyptians from the towers, and the Persian reserve stopped the riflemen. Now Cyrus appeared in the rear and attacked the Egyptians. The enemy fled everywhere, and the Egyptians, alone, made up a circle, putting up their weapons and hiding behind large shields. Cyrus invited them to go to his side, and they agreed.

After the defeat, Croesus with the remnants of the army fled to his capital - Sardis . After a 14-day siege, the citadel of the city fell, Croesus was captured and taken to Cyrus, and the Lydian kingdom became part of the Achaemenid Empire ^[2] .

• Description of the battle of Herodotus (History, I, 80). Publication on the site “History of Ancient Rome”
• Description of the Battle of Fimbrara at Xenophon (Cyroopedia, VII, 1). Publication on the site “History of Ancient Rome”