Atlas of Battles

battle, landmark, ancient

Battle of Issus

Battle of Issus was a battle fought on 5 November 333 BC at Issus, in what is now Turkey. It was part of the Wars of Alexander the Great, which ran from 336 BC to 323 BC. The recorded result: Macedonian victory.

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de
de. Albrecht Altdorfer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought5 November 333 BC
WhereIssus, Turkey36.838N, 36.211E
OutcomeMacedonian victory
BelligerentsMacedon; Hellenic LeagueagainstAchaemenid Empire
Casualties and losses150 killed; 4,500 wounded; 302 missingand~20,000–40,000 casualties
Part ofWars of Alexander the Great336 BC to 323 BC

Where it sits in the Wars of Alexander the Great

Battle of Thessaly, 336 BCBattle of Thebes, 335 BCAlexander's Balkan campaign, 335 BCBattle of Shipka Pass, 335 BCBattle of Mount Haemus, 335 BCSiege of Pelium, 335 BCSiege of Halicarnassus, 334 BCSiege of Miletus, 334 BCSiege of Termessos, 334 BCBattle of the Granicus, 334 BCBattle of Issus, 333 BCSiege of Tyre, 332 BCSiege of Gaza, 332 BCBattle of Gaugamela, 331 BCBattle of the Uxian Defile, 331 BCBattle of the Persian Gate on the Mountain, 330 BCSiege of Cyropolis, 329 BCBattle of Polytimetus, 329 BCBattle of Jaxartes, 329 BCBattle of Gabai, 328 BCSiege of the Sogdian Rock, 327 BC336 BC327 BCBattle of Issus, 333 BC
21 placed engagements of the Wars of Alexander the Great in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date5 November 333 BC
PlaceIssus, Turkey
36.838N, 36.211E
KindBattle, ancient
Territorial changeAlexander captures southern Asia Minor
StrengthTotal: about 37,000; 24,000 heavy infantry: 9,000 phalangites; 3,000 hypaspists; 7,000 allied hoplites; 5,000 mercenary hoplites; 8,000 light infantry: 7,000 Thracians and Illyrians; 1,000 Agrianians and archers; 5,100 heavy cavalry: 1,800 Macedonian cavalry; 1,800 Greek Thessalian cavalry; 600 other Greek cavalry; 900 light cavalry (Thracians and Paeonians)Modern estimate: 108,000–158,000; Ancient sources: 250,000–600,000; 30,000–80,000 light infantry; 11,000 cavalry; 10,000 Persian Immortals; 40,000 infantry Armenians and 7,000 Armenian cavalry; 10,000 Greek mercenaries
Casualties and losses150 killed; 4,500 wounded; 302 missing~20,000–40,000 casualties
Commanders
  • Darius III
  • Sabaces
  • Arsames (satrap of Cilicia)
  • Rheomithres
  • Atizyes
  • Oxyathres of Persia
Battle of IssusBattle of IssusBattle of IssusHeraclius' campaign of 622Battle of AlexandrettaBattle of MariBattle of Amanus PassBattle of IssusBattle of AlexandrettaBattle of MariBattle of Amanus PassAleppoAdanaGaziantepTarsusSamandagiKahramanmaraşIdlibManbij100 km36.838N, 36.211E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Issus
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 50 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Issus today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2024-06-03. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024.

The recorded site stands at about 42 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 0 to 649 m, 649 m of relief, steep country and today it is 61% tree cover, 29% built-up, 4% grassland.

tree cover: 61%built-up: 29%grassland: 4%cropland: 4%tree cover 61%built-up 29%grassland 4%cropland 4%
west to east, 10.0 km0 to 435 mnorth to south, 10.0 km32 to 75 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 3 times between 333 BC and AD 622.

In the same war

Battle of Issus is one of 143 engagements of the 4th century BC in the atlas and one of 687 in present-day Turkey.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q201526, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Issus, revision 1385025359, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.