God Arises
The Challenge of The Qur’an
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might and power which he could muster went into
preparations for war. In the year 622, however,
when Heraclius set sail with a select band of five
thousand soldiers from Constantinople to
Trebizond, people felt they were witnessing the
final acts of the grand drama of the Roman Empire.
Heraclius, knowing that the Persian navy was
weak, first deployed his own fleet to take the enemy
from the rear. Charting a perilous course through
the Black Sea and braving the hazards of the
mountains of Armenia, he penetrated into the very
heart of Persia, to the very point where Alexander
the Great had defeated the Persians in the course of
his famous march from Syria to Egypt. This surprise
attack played havoc with the Persian army, and
before they could counter-attack with a strong
reserve force of theirs positioned in Asia Minor,
Heraclius launched another unexpected offensive
from the northern coast. Subsequently to this attack,
Heraclius returned
by a sea route to
Constantinople. On the way, he entered into a pact
with the Avars, who then helped in arresting the
advance of the Persian troops beyond their own
capital. These two Roman attacks were followed by
