Page:History of India Vol 2.djvu/78

50 inhabitants of which, with those of other towns, had retired to the stronghold of Aornos near the Indus, the great mountain now known as Mahaban. The desire of Alexander to capture this position, believed to be impregnable, was based upon military exigencies, and fired by a legend that the demigod Herakles, whom he claimed as an ancestor, had been baffled by the defences.

The mountain, which is at least twelve miles in circumference, and rises to a height of more than seven thousand feet above the sea, or five thousand above the Indus, is washed on its southern face by that river, which at this point is of great depth, and enclosed by rugged and precipitous rocks, forbidding approach from that side. On the other sides, as at Massaga, ravines, cliffs, and swamps presented obstacles sufficient to daunt the bravest assailant. A single path gave access to the summit, which was well supplied with water, and comprised arable land requiring the labour of a thousand men for its cultivation. The summit was crowned by a steeply scarped mass of rock, which formed a natural citadel, and was doubtless further protected by art.

Before undertaking the siege of this formidable stronghold, Alexander, with his habitual foresight, secured his rear by placing garrisons in the towns of Ora, Massaga, Bazira, and Orobatis, in the hills of Suwat and Buner.

He further isolated the fortress by personally marching down into the plains, probably through the Shahkot