Marcus Lucinius Crassus was the richest man in Rome and yet he still craved power to go along with it. He had helped Sulla become dictator by defeating the forces of Marius outside Rome and later ended the slave rebellion by defeating Spartacus. He imagined himself to be a great general. He became a member of the First Triumvirate with Pompey and Julius Caesar. Caesar went off to conquer Gaul to gain the support of the public and Crassus needed to match that. He went off to Syria in 55 B.C. to conquer the Parthian Empire. When he left Rome, he promised to bring back Orodes II for a triumph. When Crassus arrived in Syria, he marched into Mesopotamia, taking cities and leaving garrisons. He retired to Syria for the winter. He was joined by his Publius, who had fought in Gaul. Publius brought 1,000 Gallic cavalry. When an envoy from Orodes arrived and offered to negotiate, Crassus told him he would negotiate in the Parthian capital of Seleucia. The envoy said that would happen when hair grew on his palms.
The 62-year-old Crassus marched in April, 53 B.C. with 7 legions of 36,000 heavy infantry, 4,000 cavalry, and 4,000 light infantry. He was joined by an army from Armenia, but when he refused the advice to go to Armenia and fight a defensive battle, they left. Before marching, Crassus dropped the sacrificial guts. He tried to laugh it off, but his soldiers were perturbed. It was a bad omen. An Arab ally convinced him to take a route that was across a plain and then he disappeared. The army marched in a hollow square. The destination was the Roman garrison in Carrhae. Blocking the path was a Parthian army led by their best general, Surena. He had 10,000 light cavalry and 1,000 cataphracts. These were heavy cavalry who were armed with pikes. They wore gleaming armor, as did their horses. The light cavalry were armed with composite bows that could penetrate armor.
The cataphracts opened the battle with a shock charge, but the horses shied away from the shield wall. However, the light cavalry swooped around the Romans losing a blizzard of arrows. Most were deflected by shields and helmets, but some found their mark. The Romans expected the blizzard to end after while, but Surena had brought 1,000 camels loaded with many more arrows. Publius made a charge with his Gallic cavalry which appeared to be successful as the Parthian cavalry fled. He was followed by 3,000 legionaries. His cavalry kept going, chasing the cowardly Parthians. But it was a feigned retreat and Publius fell for it as he pursued far from his father,. As they rode away, the Parthians fired arrows backwards. This was the famous Parthian shot which became the “parting shot” we fire at people when we mic drop and leave a discussion. It was a trap as Publius ran into the cataphracts. A melee ensued where their armor gave the Parthians an advantage. Publius was surrounded on a hill and committed suicide. The infantry was decimated.
Crassus found out about his son’s fate when he was shown his head on a pike. He and his men were surrounded and the legionaries had expended all their pila (javelins). Their morale was at rock bottom and they were exhausted and thirsty. But night fell and the two sides settled in. The Parthians camped nearby and celebrated their victory. During the night, the surviving Romans snuck away, leaving 4,000 wounded to be killed. Most of the men with Crassus were picked off, but he made it to Carrhae. From there, he continued his retreat with the garrison. A guide purposely misled them and they ended up surrounded on a hill. Surena offered to parley and promised to let Crassus go if Rome gave up its Parthian territory. During the discussion, a fight broke out and Crassus was killed. According to legend, Crassus’ skull was filled with molten gold. Plutarch wrote that the head was used as a prop in a play. A prisoner who resembled Crassus was dressed as a woman and paraded through the streets of the Parthian capital. Not exactly the triumph Crassus had imagined. The Romans lost 20,000 killed and 10,000 captured in the campaign. With Cannae and Teutoberg Forest, Carrhae was one of Rome’s most humiliating defeats. And now the stage was set for the civil war between Caesar and Pompey.
https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/roman-disaster-at-carrhae/
https://www.historynet.com/what-we-learned-from-the-battle-of-carrhae/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Carrhae
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