Rome and Parthia: Empires at War

In the mid-first century BC, despite its military victories elsewhere, the Roman Empire faced a rival power in the east; the Parthian Empire. The first war between two superpowers of the ancient world had resulted in the total defeat of Rome and the death of Marcus Crassus. When Rome collapsed into Civil War in the 40s BC, the Parthians took the opportunity to invade and conquer the Middle East and drive Rome back into Europe. What followed was two decades of war which saw victories and defeats on both sides. The Romans were finally able to gain a victory over the Parthians thanks to the great, but now neglected, general Publius Ventidius. These victories acted as a springboard for Marc Antony's plans to conquer the Parthian Empire, which ended in ignominious defeat. Gareth Sampson analyses the military campaigns and the various battles between the two superpowers of the ancient world and the war which defined the shape and division of the Middle East for the next 650 years. AUTHOR: After a career in corporate finance, Gareth C Sampson returned to the study of ancient Rome and gained his PHD from the University of Manchester, where he taught for a number of years. He now lives in Plymouth with his wife and children. 20 illustrations

“"Chronologically arranged, each chapter is nicely interspersed with the classical sources used to construct the narrative. The author, moreover, is scrupulously honest in mentioning the limitations of the (primarily) textual sources, their sometimes contradictory nature, and the decisions taken to reconstruct a historically accurate and coherent picture of what happened. Recommended. General readers, lower-level undergraduates, and two-year program students."”

--R. T. Ingoglia, St.Thomas Aquinas College "CHOICE, May 2021 Vol. 58 No. 9"
"A good read for those interested in Roman history, and particularly for Sampson's "rescue" of Ventidius from obscurity."-- "The NYMAS Review"

After a career in corporate finance, Gareth C Sampson returned to the study of ancient Rome and gained his PHD from the University of Manchester, where he taught for a number of years. He now lives in Plymouth with his wife and children.

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