Battle of Cabira
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Cabira was fought in 72
or 71 BC
between the forces of the Roman Republic
under Consul
Lucius Licinius Lucullus
and those of the Kingdom of Pontus
under Mithridates the Great. It was a decisive Roman victory.
in 74 BC. Mithridates, who had long presumed the kingdom for himself, invaded the country in 73 BC, putting the small Roman garrison under pressure and isolating them from assistance. Lucullus was in Cilicia
and immediately set forth to confront the Pontic army.
Lucullus established a counter-siege during Mithridates investment of Cyzicus and successfully mounted a naval expedition against Mithridates's navy in the Black Sea
and crushed a contingent of Pontic troops at the Rhyndacus
. Having failed to take the city before the onset of winter, Mithridates was forced to withdraw. He fled via ship while his army was to make its way over land to the port of Lampsacus
. These men continued to be harried by Lucullus, who met them at the confluence of the Aesupus and the Granicus. Cotta then invested Heraclea Perinthus before returning to Rome.
, Lucullus moved east into Pontus. In the summer of 72 or 71 BC, he reached the Lycus valley
. Losing an initial skirmish against Mithridates's cavalry, he took up a defended position on the hills opposite Cabira
and both sides waited.
Lucullus's supply lines came north from Cappadocia
. A Pontic attack on a grain caravan turned into the decisive battle, when Lucullus realized the narrow valley at the scene limited the effectiveness of his opponent's cavalry. The Romans won tellingly, and the disorder caused by Mithridates's preparations to depart the area led to the complete destruction and looting of his camp.
of Armenia
. Lucullus continued the ongoing sieges throughout Pontus and organized it as a new Roman province
, while Appius Claudius
was sent to find Armenian allies and demand Mithridates from Tigranes. Tigranes refused, stating he would prepare for war against the Republic.
72 BC
Year 72 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Publicola and Lentulus...
or 71 BC
71 BC
Year 71 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Lentulus and Orestes...
between the forces of the Roman Republic
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
under Consul
Consul
Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...
Lucius Licinius Lucullus
Lucullus
Lucius Licinius Lucullus , was an optimate politician of the late Roman Republic, closely connected with Sulla Felix...
and those of the Kingdom of Pontus
Kingdom of Pontus
The Kingdom of Pontus or Pontic Empire was a state of Persian origin on the southern coast of the Black Sea. It was founded by Mithridates I in 291 BC and lasted until its conquest by the Roman Republic in 63 BC...
under Mithridates the Great. It was a decisive Roman victory.
Background
The Kingdom of Bithynia had been bequeathed to the Roman Republic on the death of King NicomedesNicomedes IV of Bithynia
Nicomedes IV Philopator, was the king of Bithynia, from c. 94 BC to 74 BC. He was the first son and successor of the Monarchs Nicomedes III of Bithynia and Nysa and had a sister called Nysa....
in 74 BC. Mithridates, who had long presumed the kingdom for himself, invaded the country in 73 BC, putting the small Roman garrison under pressure and isolating them from assistance. Lucullus was in Cilicia
Cilicia
In antiquity, Cilicia was the south coastal region of Asia Minor, south of the central Anatolian plateau. It existed as a political entity from Hittite times into the Byzantine empire...
and immediately set forth to confront the Pontic army.
Lucullus established a counter-siege during Mithridates investment of Cyzicus and successfully mounted a naval expedition against Mithridates's navy in the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
and crushed a contingent of Pontic troops at the Rhyndacus
Battle of the Rhyndacus (72 BC)
The Battle of the Rhyndacis occurred in 73 or 72 B.C. between the Roman Republican forces under Lucullus and the army of the Kingdom of Pontus as part of the Third Mithridatic War....
. Having failed to take the city before the onset of winter, Mithridates was forced to withdraw. He fled via ship while his army was to make its way over land to the port of Lampsacus
Lampsacus
Lampsacus was an ancient Greek city strategically located on the eastern side of the Hellespont in the northern Troad. An inhabitant of Lampsacus was called a Lampsacene. The name has been transmitted in the nearby modern town of Lapseki.-Ancient history:...
. These men continued to be harried by Lucullus, who met them at the confluence of the Aesupus and the Granicus. Cotta then invested Heraclea Perinthus before returning to Rome.
Battle
Without confirmation from the SenateRoman Senate
The Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...
, Lucullus moved east into Pontus. In the summer of 72 or 71 BC, he reached the Lycus valley
Lycus (river of Phrygia)
Lycus or Lykos was the name of a river in ancient Phrygia, a tributary of the Maeander, which it joins a few km south of Tripolis. It had its sources in the eastern parts of Mount Cadmus Lycus or Lykos was the name of a river in ancient Phrygia, a tributary of the Maeander, which it joins a few...
. Losing an initial skirmish against Mithridates's cavalry, he took up a defended position on the hills opposite Cabira
Cabira
Cabira , a place in Pontus, at the base of the range of Paryadres, about 150 stadia south of Eupatoria or Magnopolis, which was at the junction of the Iris and the Lycus. Eupatoria was in the midst of the plain, but Cabira, as Strabo says , was at the base of the Paryadres...
and both sides waited.
Lucullus's supply lines came north from Cappadocia
Cappadocia
Cappadocia is a historical region in Central Anatolia, largely in Nevşehir Province.In the time of Herodotus, the Cappadocians were reported as occupying the whole region from Mount Taurus to the vicinity of the Euxine...
. A Pontic attack on a grain caravan turned into the decisive battle, when Lucullus realized the narrow valley at the scene limited the effectiveness of his opponent's cavalry. The Romans won tellingly, and the disorder caused by Mithridates's preparations to depart the area led to the complete destruction and looting of his camp.
Aftermath
The battle was a key point in the war against Mithridates and forced him to retreat nearly penniless to his ally, TigranesTigranes the Great
Tigranes the Great was emperor of Armenia under whom the country became, for a short time, the strongest state east of the Roman Republic. He was a member of the Artaxiad Royal House...
of Armenia
Kingdom of Armenia
The ancient Kingdom of Armenia was an independent monarchy from 331 BC to AD 428. The peak of the kingdom's power and its integration in Hellenistic culture under Tigranes and his son Artavasdes is also referred to as Armenian Empire. After the fall of the Achaemenid Empire, the former Satrapy of...
. Lucullus continued the ongoing sieges throughout Pontus and organized it as a new Roman province
Bithynia et Pontus
Bithynia et Pontus was the name of a province of the Roman empire on the Black Sea coast of Anatolia . It was formed by the amalgamation of the former kingdoms of Bithynia and Pontus ....
, while Appius Claudius
Appius Claudius
There were a number of Romans named Appius Claudius:* Appius Claudius Sabinus Inregillensis, consul in 495 BC* Appius Claudius Crassus, a decemvir in 451 BC* Appius Claudius Caecus , censor in 312 BC...
was sent to find Armenian allies and demand Mithridates from Tigranes. Tigranes refused, stating he would prepare for war against the Republic.