The army marched through Asia in a single column, which was not, however, continuous, but was broken into three portions.

The first portion consisted of the baggage animals and about half of the contingents of the nations; the second was composed wholly of native Persians, who preceded and followed the emblems of religion and the king; the third was made up of the remaining national contingents.

The king himself rode alternately in a chariot and in a litter.

He was preceded immediately by ten sacred horses, and a sacred chariot drawn by eight milk-white steeds.

Round him and about him were the choicest troops of the whole army, twelve thousand horse and the same number of foot, all Persians, and those too not taken at random, but selected carefully from the whole mass of the native soldiery.