Legendary Battles: The Most Impossible Siege in History – How Alexander Took the Untakable Island of Tyre In 332 BC, Alexander the Great stood on the shores of Phoenicia staring at an “impossible” target: the island city of Tyre, half a mile offshore, ringed by walls up to 45 meters high rising straight out of the sea, defended by a powerful fleet and mercenary garrison. No battering ram could reach those sea‑cliffs, no ladders could touch the walls, and every traditional siege tactic failed the