the romans, carthaginians and ancient macedonians occasionally used elephants for executions while also making use of war elephants for military purposes, most famously in the case of hannibal. deserters, prisoners of war and military criminals are recorded by ancient chroniclers to have been put to death under the foot of an elephant. perdiccas, who became regent of macedon on the death of alexander the great in 323 bc, had mutineers from the faction of meleager thrown to the elephants to be crushed in the city of babylon. the roman writer quintus curtius rufus relates the story in his historiae alexandri magni: