No matter which Turkish river you identify as the Granicus, the village of Dimetoka is probably close to the site of the battle. A traveller arriving in Istanbul by air may also visit the Istambul Museum, which contains the famous Alexander sarcophagus with sculptured reliefs perhaps representing the Granicus battle. It should be noticed that Erdek – a quiet Turkish tourist resort on the south Marmara coast – is five hours distant by sea or road from Istanbul; Dimetoka is about 35 miles west of Erdek.
The battle of Issus was fought in what is now a small Turkish administrative district (isanjakl), named Iskanderun after its chief town, a seaport near the Syrian frontier. ‘Iskander’ is both Turkish and Arabic for Alexander – hence the name. Iskanderun, previously known in the west as Alexandretta, was the city Alexander founded after his Issus campaign. The battlefield of Issus lies about twenty miles farther north, probably on the River Payas – the Pinarus of our ancient texts. But Payas or Pinarus, the river’s course has inevitably changed since 333BC, and so has the adjacent coastline.
Tyre is on the southern coast of Lebanon. It is now no longer an island, being united with the mainland on the sector where Alexander’s mole was built. There are many ancient ruins both on the original island and on the mainland coast, but these are not survivals of the Phoenician city that resisted Alexander; most are of Roman or Byzantine date. In more peaceful times, Tyre could be approached either from Beirut or from Israel. Our present suggestion is that the visit should be postponed.
With regard to Gaugamela, one notes that Baghdad is an international airport. It is connected by rail with Mosul and (over a metre-gauge track) with Kirkuk and Arbil (Arbela). Tel Gomel, which has been identified with Gaugamela, the site of Alexander’s victory, lies about twenty miles northeast of Mosul. Approach to the battlefield would be made easier by a knowledge of Arabic. At the time of writing, difficulty may be experienced in obtaining an entry visa for Iraq or Syria.
The landmarks of Alexander’s Indian campaigns are located with misleading precision by some writers. The rivers of the Punjab have wandered widely in their courses since Alexander’s day, with resulting transformations of terrain. The whole area now lies within Pakistan. Tourism has been enthusiastically developed here, and Taxila with its important archaeological museum may be reached from Rawalpindi by mini-bus. Rawalpindi itself is in the heart of the ‘Alexander country’. Islamabad-Rawalpindi is a major Pakistani airport, second only to the international air-junction of Karachi.
Please note that all reasonable care has been taken to check the accuracy of the above information at the time of writing (January 1990). Beyond that, no guarantee can he given.