Sawak ( ancient Greek ; IV century BC. er ) - the Persian satrap of Egypt
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Biography
The successor of Ferendat , who became the first Persian satrap of Egypt after the new subordination of the country by the Achaemenid Power by King Artaxerx Oh .
Shortly after the defeat of the Asian satraps in the Battle of Granik , held in May 334 BC. e., Sawak made an army from Egypt in order to unite with the army of Darius III .
In the midst of the battle of Issus , which occurred in November 333 BC. e., Alexander the Great, along with a detachment of those close to him, after stubbornly advancing through the ranks of his opponents, was in close proximity to Darius. Togo was defended by the most distinguished Persians, among whom was the governor of Egypt. In the ensuing clash Sawak was killed. As Arrian writes, “around the chariot of Darius lay his most glorious commanders, who died honorably in front of their king, they all lay prone as they fell, fighting and getting wounds in the chest.” Darius himself left the battlefield.
Mazak became the new ruler of Egypt. But due to the fact that many Persian warriors went to Syria with Sawak, Mazak did not have enough forces to organize a successful resistance to the Macodonians. Therefore, Egypt in 332 BC. e. got Alexander without a fight
Literature
- Primary sources
- Arrian . Anabasis Alexandra (II.11.8.)
- Diodorus Sicilian . Historical Library (XVII.34.5.)
- Quint Curtius Ruf . The story of Alexander the Great (III.11.10, IV.1.28, IV.7.4.)
- Research
- Smith W. Sabaces // Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology . - Boston, 1870.