Author Topic: Carrhae and it's failings  (Read 2119 times)

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Offline Crusader

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Carrhae and it's failings
« on: November 29, 2012, 10:51:22 pm »
Haven't seen much Roman history here and after all this is historical discussion and we do have the Romans to thank for a lot of things, so here is a rather long text which i wrote around a year back for a thesis essay using research and all sorts of sources to utilise what i had, to come to a sensible conclusion abaout Carrhae, and not the normal view that it was all Crassus' fault. Discuss!

If you like Roman history then you will enjoy this document

Spoiler
In 53 BC the Roman Republic was crumbling, this Republic was now led by three of the greatest minds Rome had ever witnessed, the militarily amazing Julius Caesar, the politically adept and military proficient Gaius Pompey and the wealthiest Roman of his time and in fact Rome’s history, Marcus Crassus. Rome was led by these three men in a triumvirate as it was known, however instead of ruling Rome with an equal hand each of these men continued to vie for control and power over the city, the greatest power that the World has ever known, conquering the known World in their relentless conquest and desire for new land to absorb into their growing Empire. However these three men were all petty rivals of each other, Crassus and his relationship with Pompey was exceptionally strained after the Spartacus rebellion in 73-71 BC. In a show of political brilliance Pompey managed to seize the victory from Crassus by sending a report to the Senate saying he had dealt with Spartacus and his army when all he did was destroy a routed group of 5,000 slaves, whereas Crassus had utterly annihilated Spartacus and his army, and slain Spartacus, this slight towards Crassus led to a continuous hatred and distrust towards Pompey. Concerning Caesar, Crassus was envious of his military conquest of Gaul (Modern day France), Britannia, and parts of Germania and was even to blame for Caesar’s rapid advancement within the World of politics and his military career, Crassus had invested in Caesar by lending him huge sums of money, which was in turn rapidly paid back due to the riches of war.

Upon hearing the military successes of the others within the triumvirate, Crassus decided it was time to equal his rival’s military prowess. With this thought Crassus decided to travel east and set his armies loose with the intent to invade Parthia, Rome’s age old rival with the idea of raiding the capital city, Seleucia and gaining even more riches, which he did not need, however his greed knew no bounds. This victory over Parthia would ensure Crassus’ popularity with the mob (plebeians) of Rome and he would gain his triumph, which was a march through the streets of Rome highlighting a military success, therefore increasing his position within the triumvirate and moving one step closer to becoming the dictator of Rome which he so desired and in fact craved for.

Crassus often said that ‘a man did not have enough money until he could buy an army’ and now Crassus had the chance to do just that. He sent envoys out to several legates (commander of a legion) in hope that they would respond to his summons, of course in return of being paid a substantial fund, as for Crassus he would spend all of his wealth to achieve his sole ambition of becoming the most important citizen in the Roman Republic. Therefore after sending many envoys, his army began to arrive at the port for the East, Brundisium. Crassus had managed to purchase, 35,000 legionaries – around 7 legions – and 4,000 light infantry. However it has always been said that Crassus’ biggest mistake was his lack of cavalry as the Parthians army makeup consisted of all mounted warriors and no foot, and in the end this hypothesis proved to be correct at Carrhae. Crassus arrived in Syria in late 55BC where he awaited his son Publius to arrive with 1,000 Gallic cavalry that he had commanded under Caesar in Gaul, this was a huge boost to Crassus and his army as it brought experienced veterans to his army and a competent commander, along with creating the total of 4,000 allied cavalry. Not only this but the King of Armenia, Artavasdes who had previously been annexed and made a client King of Rome, promised Crassus 6,000 cavalry to bring his host of cavalry to 10,000 which could match any Parthian army that was sent to hinder Crassus. Once arriving in Syria, Artavasdes offered Crassus this extra cavalry and a host of other cavalry if Crassus took the route through the mountains and through Armenia, however Crassus proved to commit a fatal mistake at this early stage by declining his allies aid.

Upon hearing of this war to invade Parthia many senators of the Roman Republic were outraged as although Parthia and Rome had always had a strained history, Crassus’ action would shatter the current treaty that had been maintained for many years, and kept the eastern provinces of Roman territory safe. One senator, Cicero even stated ‘nulla causa’ which when translated means, with no justification. This supports the fact that Crassus truly was declaring war just to gain glory, as there had been no threats, no breaking of the treaty from Parthia instead it was Crassus’ greed and selfishness that ultimately led to the destabilisation of the East for decades to come and thousands of deaths all in the glory of one old senator.

As stated earlier Crassus main goal was that of Seleucia the capital of Parthia, and the centre of the Parthian Empires riches. And so in 54-53 BC, Crassus began his march towards the Parthian Empire’s borders, which was marked by the River Euphrates, this river also marked the end to Roman Civilization and beyond the desert of Mesopotamia. However in late 54BC Crassus decided instead of attacking directly he instead garrisoned a fifth of his army in towns that bordered the Euphrates, the only explanation that I myself can think of is that Crassus wished to purposefully antagonise the Parthians into sending a mighty host so Crassus could defeat this army and gain glory and fame from the mob in Rome, yet it proves throughout his campaign Crassus proved to be an inefficient and incompetent general, better suited to the deadly politics of Rome than the battlefield. During the winter of 54BC as every Roman Army, Crassus waited the winter rather than campaign. Therefore when 53BC Crassus crossed the Euphrates at Zeugma and began his disastrous journey.

Again Crassus was advised to go north and pass through the mountains where he would be safe from the Parthian cavalry as they would be unable to mobilise in the steep terrain. The offer of 6,000 allied cavalry did nothing to sway Crassus into taking the sensible option. Knowing that his commander would not take the safest route, Gaius Cassius Longinus, advised Crassus to follow the Euphrates to the city of Babylon which would be a start to the campaign, and would be a crushing blow to the Parthian’s morale. He also advised that this was the most sensible path as it would offer a natural border to prevent being outflanked by the Parthian cavalry and would secure fresh water supplies for the Roman army. But again Crassus declined all advice and instead decided to march across the desert of Mesopotamia and march straight to Seleucia, again this proved to be another fatal mistake by Crassus. It would be a discredit to Crassus to state that he didn’t listen to any advice, yet it was the wrong advice that he listened to that ultimately led to the deaths of so many men. Crassus instead of listening to his veteran general Cassius Longinus, instead he decided to listen to Ariamnes a chieftain guide who stated that his men had not scouted any Parthian host in the vicinity, and the best route was across the desert of Mesopotamia. With the use of hindsight, we now know that Ariamnes was in fact being paid by the Parthians to lead the Romans to the Parthian army. On the eve before the battle Ariamnes asked permission from Crassus to use his men to scout further than the Roman scouts, Crassus accepted this and used it as a means to lay his legates minds at rest. However come morning when the scouts were expected to return there was no sight of the traitorous chieftain. Instead Ariamnes had lead Crassus and his army directly to the Parthian host. A host that was not in any means intimidating.

This host of Parthians was led by General Surena, an exceptional general who fought under the banner of King Orodes II, King of Parthia. The host that Surena commanded was only meant as a scouting force that was to keep the Romans wary whilst Orodes II dealt with the Armenian Kings army in Armenia who a few weeks previously had sent a request to Crassus for aid in return to help conquer Parthia. It now seemed Crassus had sealed the fate of his army, and that of the Armenian Kings. Surena was sent to slow the advance of the Roman host and it was not intended for him to destroy and utterly rout the Roman legionaries whose feats had been described across the World. General Surena had 9,000 horse archers under his command and 1,000 cataphracts. Cataphracts were perceived as the greatest danger to Crassus as the rider and horse were mailed from head to foot, and were exceptionally dangerous in a full frontal charge; however this assumption would prove to be invalid, as Crassus would soon discover.
Upon seeing this Parthian host, that which he had anticipated Crassus again went against the advice of his legates and instead of allowing his exhausted men to rest the night before forcing battle in the morning he decided it was time to attack. He was encouraged further by learning that his army outnumbered that of the Parthians by 4 to 1. Upon hearing this Crassus formed his men up and began his advance, which he thought would lead to glory above all else but would ultimately lead to his untimely death.

The Battle
With the beginning of the Battle of Carrhae Crassus formed his men up into the traditional formation of cavalry on the wings and the infantry in a line and several ranks deep, as this had won countless battles before by previous Roman commanders it was a sure fire way to achieve victory at Carrhae. The Roman army continued its advance and again Crassus acting against his commander’s advice crossed the nearby river of Balissus (Balikh) and continued the advance. Noticing that his enemy consisted of all mounted units, Crassus ordered his men into hollow squares that would work against flanking but would enable the Parthians to run in-between the Roman squares and pepper them with arrows from all sides. Upon seeing the Romans halt Surena commanded his men to utilise his war drums and other instruments that would grate on the nerves of the Romans. As the crescendo came to a close he ordered his cataphracts to remove their cloth coverings, which revealed the intimidating site of mailed horse and man lining the ridge above the Romans. However this did not have the desired effect on the Romans as these were the most disciplined force on the Earth at this current time and were drilled to not waver nor run in the face of overwhelming odds. This mixed with their countless hours of training gave the Romans a sense of confidence that no other army felt whilst facing this mighty host which was the pride of the Roman army. Seeing that this had no effect, Surena ordered his cataphracts to charge the Roman lines. The cataphracts thundered down the ridge and lowering their lances charged full tilt at the waiting Roman lines. The Romans did not run, buckle nor give ground like any normal foe that faces the cataphracts. Surena used the traditional Parthian tactic of using his mailed cavalry to break the morale of the enemy army in one simple charge. Surena was impressed again by the resoluteness of the Romans as they beat back the determined cataphracts assault time and time again. Eventually Surena recalled his cataphracts and instead tried a different more terrifying and deadly tactic that would lead to the eventual ruin of Crassus and his host.

After recalling his 1,000 cataphracts he took count of losses and noticed that very few of his men had died, and so he ordered his horse archers of which there were 9,000 of forward. These horse archers were on extremely fast and mobile horses that were faster than that of the allied cavalry. The horse archers encompassed the Roman squares, and some even dared to run in between the squares shooting the romans as they passed. The Roman confidence fell dramatically as they watched as the Parthians arrows punched through shields and armour, and bit into the flesh beneath. Countless Romans fell in the first wave, and even more were wounded as feet were pinned to the floor and hands to shields. After the Parthians rode in and fired, then retreated the Romans thought they were safe, however they were not as the Parthians were able to shoot over their left shoulder and behind them. This shot has been branded the Parthian Shot and in later medieval times it led to the name of the ‘Passing Shot’. This led to a constant barrage of arrows that continued to kill, maim and wound the Roman infantry that were helpless before the onslaught. Crassus allowed his men to weather this storm of arrows as he knew the horse archers were not able to continue this amount of fire as they would soon run out of arrows.
Yet again Crassus had not anticipated the military ability of Surena. Surena had brought hundreds of laden camels along with his baggage train. Each of these camels was burdened with bundles of arrows that were used to replenish the stocks of Parthian archers who had run low or had expended their arrows. Upon seeing the Parthians retreat for the first time to go and reload, Crassus thought he had scared the Parthians into submission. Thinking he had already won he began to congratulate himself. However soon after he saw the Parthians returning, and again they began the onslaught with fresh arrows. This barrage of metal tipped death continued for most of the day, and all the Roman infantry could do was cower under their shields and pray to the Gods that they did not get hit.

Crassus tried several tactics including that of the testudo, this translates as the ‘turtle’. The testudo was a tactic used to weather storms of arrows and gave protection from all sides. It consisted of the front ranks crouching behind their shields and the ranks behind holding the shields above their heads to stop any arrows from being shot overhead, whilst the sides faced outwards to show a wall of shields to any enemy. At the beginning of Crassus using this, it was a huge success, few arrows met their targets and Roman casualties and wounded began to dwindle in number, and so Crassus began to feel a lot safer as he knew Roman discipline would last as long as the testudo formation held. Surena knowing that his arrows were having little effect now ordered his cataphracts to charge the Roman testudo formations. The Romans not being able to see what was heading their way waited patiently, the arrow storm then slackened as the cataphracts smashed into the testudo formations. These formations limited any fighting capability and were a prime target for charging cavalry as they dealt huge damage and caused many casualties. These testudo formations were smashed apart and as the Romans began to beat off these cataphracts the horse archers rushed back in and began firing again. This occurred several times until Crassus finally gave up and reformed his men into the squares.

Publius, Crassus’ son requested command of a contingent of cavalry and infantry and charge the horse archers to beat them back, and give the infantry time to reform. This was aimed to begin Publius military career, as he was an aspiring young man who it is believed would have had a distinguished career if it weren’t for Carrhae. Crassus relented and allowed his son to foolishly charge the enemy ranks. Publius was given around 1,300 cavalry, including his loyal Gallic cavalry, five hundred archers and 8 cohorts of infantry, reaching a total of around 4,000 men.

Publius led these men towards Parthian ranks, at first it seemed a huge success as his contingent chased after the fleeing Parthians. At around a mile from the main force and out of view of the main body of the army the Parthians who had been feigning retreat, turned around and with the help of the cataphracts ended up encircling Publius and his men. Publius and his 4,000 men were now surrounded, and completely cut off from the main force. The horse archers showered the Romans with a relentless storm of arrows, slaughtering all who were struck. Publius and his men charged in amongst the Parthian ranks hoping to break out and be reunited with the main force. As Publius charged the cataphracts charged in to meet Publius and his men. Publius and his men fought bravely, but fought to the death and managed to kill very few Parthians by pulling them off their horses or hamstringing their horses, or maiming them. Publius and his survivors of the initial onslaught took refuge on a hill and Publius requested that he be killed by one of his men, rather than be taking alive. It is also rumoured that some men were allowed to return to the main body of the army as they showed outstanding bravery, however it was only 20 men of the original of 4,000.

This small column of men returned to the main force and instantly the news spread that Publius had been slain in battle and his 4,000 man force were utterly destroyed. Again Surena showed his military brilliance. He ordered Publius head to be decapitated and placed on a spear. This was then paraded in front of the Roman force and more importantly in front of Crassus, who upon seeing his sons bloody head on a spear, was so shocked that he faltered upon what to do next, and let his men weather the storm of arrows that had relentlessly continued. Surena not only showed his military brilliance through feats on the battlefield but he had now utterly crushed the will and resolve of the Roman commander.

The storm of arrows continued until nightfall, when at last the Parthians withdrew as it became too dark to shoot. Crassus ordered the retreat back to the town of Carrhae where he reformed his men and the small garrison there. However upon retreating he had left 4,000 Roman wounded behind. Some of these men opted for a mercy death whilst others offered to hold the Parthians off for as long as they could. Crassus now was mentally and physically drained after his son’s death, he no longer had the mental capacity to continue on with the campaign and was so swallowed in his own grief that he was no longer seen as in command of his army which he had paid for. His subordinates Longinus and another commander, Octavius led the men back to Carrhae where they stayed some of the night. Knowing that Carrhae could not hold out for a relief column as the majority of the army was made up of the legions from the East, and that there were limited provisions. Longinus and his legion that were loyal to him and him alone, went around the Roman camp telling men that they were heading back West towards Rome, and anyone was welcome to follow and they needn’t worry about the charge of desertion. Therefore in the midst of night, Longinus along with around 6,000-10,000 men broke camp and headed back to Roman territory. The rest of the commanders including Octavius decided that the rest of the Roman army should head north to Armenia where the Armenian King they thought was waiting for them, to aid them in their conquest. Little did they know that the Armenian King had been defeated by Orodes, King of Parthia and had secured an alliance with Orodes. A Parthian sympathizer named Andromachus, offered to guide the Romans to the hills in the north. Octavius along with around 500 men fled before the Roman army could mobilise and reached the hills to the North and waited on a ridge for the remaining forces, which would never arrive.

Crassus still grieving for his son, agreed with his commander’s suggestion and at early morning, the remaining forces of the Roman army formed up and at dawn began the short march to the hills. However again this Roman army was beseeched by a traitor in their midst, it was their guide, Andromachus. He led them far from the hills but still in the general direction so the Romans believed they were getting closer. The Parthian caught up with the Romans as they were just a mile away from safety. Upon seeing the Parthian army catching the Roman army up, Octavius and his 500 men moved down from the mountains and were reunited with the main force.

Again the Romans were faced by the Parthian horde on a low dune in front of them. However this time discipline cracked and they demanded that Crassus demand terms. Facing revolt from his troops Crassus relented and agreed to meet Surena under a white flag. Surena rode down halfway and with a small bodyguard waited for Crassus and his commanders. There are many reports on what happened when Crassus met Surena. The first is that a scuffle broke out and Crassus along with his commanders was slain, and upon seeing their commanders cut down the remaining troops scattered or surrendered, leading to the end of Crassus campaign. However the differing idea is that Crassus was in fact wounded and captured along with 10,000 of his men and marched to Seleucia where they were paraded through the streets and Crassus was executed. It has been said that molten gold was poured down his throat as a final insult and mockery of his greed.

Aftermath of the Battle
The total butchers bill for Carrhae was a huge blow for Roman prestige and led to several myths being created that were believed for many centuries. The death toll for the Romans included 20,000 dead, 10,000 escaped and 10,000 captured. Not only were 10,000 legionaries captured but also several eagle standards of these legions. These eagles not only represented the spirit and soul of a Roman army but they also inspired many legionaries to commit brave acts, and to drop or even allow the eagle to be captured was seen as the highest dishonour any legion could experience. These eagles were taken further east and later decorated the throne room of King Orodes II. In the year of 20 BC, the Roman eagles that were captured were returned to Rome during the reign of Emperor Augustus, thus marking a huge diplomatic success for the Roman Empire, and increasing the Emperor Augustus’ prestige. These captured men totalled to around one and a half to two legions strength. These captured legionaries were marched to Margiana (modern day Pakistan) and were used as slaves or were even used as border guards and were used to beat back Parthia’s many enemies such as the Scythians.

Unfortunately after the battle of Carrhae, the situation became dire for the adept General Surena. After all his force was only meant to slow the Roman advance, and was not meant to crush the Romans into submission and eventually the annihilation of Crassus and his army. Therefore after King Orodes who had just beaten the King of Armenia and had made Armenia a kingdom under Parthian rule this King not only recognised Surena as a mastermind tactician but he also regarded him as a threat to his rule. As Orodes had only a few years previous claimed the Parthian throne through a struggle of civil war, he saw Surena as a threat to his succession and therefore had him executed.

The myths that were created were that no Roman army could beat the Parthians in a pitched battle, which was proved to be false time and time again as Parthia in retaliation invaded Syria and were eventually beaten back. However this myth was reinforced in the year of 40 BC when Prince Pacorus of Parthia invaded Syria and defeating the governor of Syria and thus overrunning the entire province, not only did they capture the province of Syria but Pacorus and the rebel Romans general Labienus also placed a puppet King on the throne, Antigonus, who became ‘King of the Jews’. Although this was short lived as the Roman general Ventidius retook Syria for the Roman Empire it was still used as an example where the foot infantry of the Roman Empire were unable to combat against the highly mobile Parthian forces.

In conclusion and after extensive research, this essay has been able to answer the question of ‘was the Battle of Carrhae truly a military disaster or was it down to the military genius of General Surena’? General Surena although in the minds of many has been branded as a military genius and that his tactics throughout the Battle of Carrhae thwarted any Roman attempts to engage and defeat the Parthians in a pitched battle; however this is not entirely true. Although Surena had the ability to predict the notion that his horse archers would need countless bundles of arrows to enable them to shower the Roman army in a continuous hail of iron and wood. However the general tactics that he used were not only outdated but in many ways they were the traditional Parthian tactics. His initial cataphracts charge which was characteristic of many Parthian generals as the cataphracts were designed to crush the discipline and morale of any opposing army, however when this did not work he merely sent in his archers to ‘soften’ up the Roman infantry. Not only that but when the Romans under the command of Publius charged the horse archers merely fell back, as this again was the traditional tactic. The horse archers were never well armed or had heavy armour that could deflect weapon thrusts, instead they wore cloth and leather to offer minimal protection without weighting down their horses, therefore when charged by heavily armed cavalry they would have fallen back to protect themselves, and to lure the enemy cavalry into a trap where they could be surrounded and picked off.

However some credit must go to Surena as the idea of playing the psychological warfare on Crassus by parading the decapitated head of his son, was indeed a stroke of genius as it reduced Crassus to nothing more than a mourning wreck whom had very little control or authority left over his army and commanders. The disaster as that is all Carrhae can be referred to as, was also down to the idiocy of Crassus for several deciding factors. Firstly he did not in any form take heed of advice that was given to him from experienced commanders such as his deputy Longinus. He trusted guides and chieftains who were not of a Roman bloodline and who subsequently led him into two traps in two days. Not only this but although advised by Longinus and several other legates of his army he took the shortest yet most dangerous route to his goal: Seleucia. Instead of accepting aid in Armenia where around 4,000 extra cavalry was promised to him and travelling through the mountains he instead made his army trek the wastelands of Mesopotamia. If he had have accepted Armenia’s aid then he would have been safe from Parthian attack on an open plain where their full mobility could be utilised, also although not known to Crassus but he would most likely have ended up engaging King Orodes army which if Crassus won then he would have had a bargaining chip with the Parthians as their ruler was in Roman control.
Overall Carrhae can be described as a military disaster due to the inability for Crassus to command and his idiotic mistakes which were abundant before and during the battle.



Bibliography
Books
The Forgotten legion – Ben Kane (2008)
The Defeat of Rome in the East: Crassus, the Parthians, and the Disastrous Battle of Carrhae, 53 BC – Gareth C. Sampson (2008)
Internet Sites
http://www.silk-road.com/artl/carrhae.shtml - The Deadly Banners of Carrhae – Robert Collins
http://www.livius.org/ha-hd/harran/carrhae-battle.html
http://www.livius.org/su-sz/surena/surena.html
http://www.historynet.com/roman-persian-wars-battle-of-carrhae.htm
http://penelope.uchicago.edu/~grout/encyclopaedia_romana/miscellanea/trivia/carrhae.html
http://www.cais-soas.com/CAIS/History/ashkanian/surena.htm
Videos
Part 1 -
Part 2 -
Part 3 -
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Offline Rogov

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Re: Carrhae and it's failings
« Reply #1 on: December 01, 2012, 06:37:56 am »
I believe we do have a thread on the Classical Age somewhere...

A very enjoyable read. ;)

Carrhae is certainly one of the finer examples of Roman hubris and its consequences. Just goes to show that just because you have the money and clout, doesn't mean you can always get your way, and politicians who lack military experience should never lead armies. :P

Crassus' complete ignorance of logistics and use of terrain crippled him. His refusal to accept advice from his subordinates and the Armenian King, and military assistance from the latter, makes one wonder if his pride was such that he felt he had to make each and every decision himself and make use of only his own forces. Likely because he had no desire to share the glory and spoils of war, especially if he was to compare himself to Caesar and Pompey.

Although it's doubtful either of those two could have won the battle in the same circumstances, they would likely have avoided it in the first place, or at the least would have been able to extricate themselves before their armies were annihilated.

Sorry it took me so long to get around to reading it, school's piling up and it completely slipped my mind.
« Last Edit: December 05, 2012, 06:33:36 am by Rogov »

Offline Crusader

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Re: Carrhae and it's failings
« Reply #2 on: December 05, 2012, 10:31:17 pm »
Never thought about analysing Caesar or Pompey's way of handling this, however both Pompey and Caesar never faced such an advanced foe.

Caesar's legions in Gaul merely had to hold the line to assure victory whereas Crassus had to push forward, yet both Caesar and Pompey were always looking to gain allies so to assure support of troops and money, they would have helped the King of Aremenia which would have meant that they would have engaged Orodes and that would have been a very entertaining  fight to watch!
I hereby present Crusader with the Blobdominican medal for Bravery above and beyond the call of duty in his role as AdminBorn of the FSE servers. We have also arranged some lovely flowers & a kitten to commemorate the occasion.
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