The story of Alexander the Great in Afghanistan would turn out to be one of hostile natives waging a war of national resistance, threatening his dream of conquest and world empire. The terrain, embracing parts of modern Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, was mountainous and scarred by deserts. The rugged Northeast Frontier, particularly the satrapies of Bactria and Sogdia, had to be subjugated. He could not abide that any lands of the former empire should lie outside his grasp. Further, Alexander styled himself to be not merely the King of Persia, but something greater, Lord of Asia. As long as these areas lay outside of Alexander’s grasp, they might yet prove a threat to the consolidation of the empire under his rule. The eastern territories of the empire were not under his control and several of the most distant provinces, or satrapies, traditionally contributed some of the finest fighting men to the Persian army. His victory left him the master of the western and central portions of the old Persian Empire, but Alexander was not satisfied with the enormous territories he had won.
Gaugamela was the last of series of great battles, including Granicus in 334 and Issus in 333, by which the armies of the Persians were smashed to pieces. The battle was the conclusion of his epic campaign to avenge the Persian invasion of Greece 150 years before. In the autumn of 331 bc, Alexander the Great won a decisive victory over the Great King Darius III of Persia at the Battle of Gaugamela.
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