The Battle of Thymbra (547 BCE) was the decisive engagement between Cyrus II (the Great, r. c. 550-530 BCE) of Persia and Croesus (r. 560-546 BCE), King of Lydia. The Persian victory ended the Kingdom of Lydia, which was then absorbed into the Persian empire, and enabled Cyrus to expand his territories and fully establish the Achaemenid Empire.
Croesus had arranged the marriage of his sister, Aryenis, to the king of the Medes, Astyages (r. 585-550 BCE), and maintained a cordial relationship with the Median kingdom, agreeing on the Halys River as the border between their territories. When Cyrus overthrew Astyages in c. 550 BCE, Croesus saw an opportunity to enrich himself while protecting his kingdom against possible Persian aggression and so launched a military campaign across the Halys.
An inconclusive battle was fought between the armies of Croesus and Cyrus at Pteria, and Croesus then retreated to his capital city of Sardis where he disbanded much of his army for the winter season, as was customary, and expected Cyrus to do the same. According to Xenophon (l. 430-c. 354 BCE), Cyrus was advised to follow suit by his advisers but chose instead to press on to an attack, marching on Sardis and meeting Croesus on the field of Thymbra.
Cyrus dispersed the Lydian cavalry by placing camels at the front of his army, which frightened the Lydians’ horses, and then drove his own cavalry through the breaks in the ranks, defeating Croesus and driving him back into the city. After a fourteen-day siege, Sardis fell, and Croesus was captured.
The battle is often cited as one of the most important in history as it put an end to Lydia, previously the richest and most powerful kingdom in Asia Minor, which was allied with Babylon. Once Lydia was conquered, Cyrus was able to take Babylon by 539 BCE, bringing Mesopotamia under Persian control, and founding the Achaemenid Empire.
The main sources on the battle are the Greek writers Herodotus (l. c. 484-425/413 BCE) and Xenophon though the fall of Sardis under Croesus is also addressed by Ctesias (l. 5th century BCE). Herodotus’ account in his Histories I.79-81 and I.84 is considered accurate while Xenophon’s, from his Cyropaedia (The Education of Cyrus, 2.1.6 and 7.1.23-28) is understood as a semi-fictionalized account based on earlier works. Xenophon’s account is still recognized as reliable at points although the numbers he gives for the armies have been challenged.
According to Xenophon, Cyrus was vastly outnumbered at Thymbra, leading 200,000 men against Croesus’ army of 420,000. It is more likely that Cyrus had between 20,000-50,000 and Croesus, even though he had sent home his mercenaries, twice that number, possibly over 100,000.
The Persian army was made up primarily of Persians with mercenaries from Armenia, Arabia, and Media and included infantry, cavalry, camel cavalry (seemingly a last-minute decision on Cyrus’ part), archers, slingers, 300 war chariots, and at least five siege towers. The Lydian army consisted of Lydian cavalry as well as infantry mercenaries from Babylon, Cappadocia, Egypt, and Phrygia. Croesus also had archers, slingers, and around 300 war chariots.
