Darius III

Darius III commanded the Persian army against Alexander the Great at Issus in Cilicia. Alexander's forces defeated the larger Persian army, and Darius fled the battlefield, leaving his family and baggage train to be captured.

Darius III assembled a massive army from across the empire to confront Alexander near Arbela. Alexander's tactical brilliance led to a decisive Persian defeat, and Darius again fled the field, effectively ending Achaemenid resistance.

Alexander the Great captured and sacked Persepolis, the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire. The palace complex was burned, symbolizing the end of Persian imperial power and the transfer of hegemony to Macedonia.

After Gaugamela, Darius fled eastward through Media and Parthia. He was deposed and imprisoned by his own satrap Bessus, then murdered by Bessus's followers near Hecatompylos. Alexander later gave Darius a royal burial at Persepolis.