Around the year, Parthia was one of the four empires spanning the entire Eurasian continent. It has been intertwined with Rome’s hundreds of years of grievances, and it also constitutes the history of Eastern Mediterranean-Western Asia-Central Asia relations in the middle and late classical era. The military force dominated by elite cavalry, although in foreign wars, loses more and wins less, it is always dead and not stiff like a centipede.
In fact, the long-term survival of the Parthian Empire is due to its unique overall military deployment. looks weak on the surface, but in fact it is foresight and has its own uniqueness. If it weren't for a terrible opponent at the Rome level, the final total collapse time may be delayed a lot.
Natural origin
Early Parthian forces caught between Seleucid and Bactria
The military strategy of the Parthian Empire can be seen from its appearance and rise. Because it was a conqueror who went southward, the early Parthian forces had very typical habits of nomadic conquerors. Although there have been capitals built in regional cities such as Nissa, the basic model has always been to control the core pastures and enslave the surrounding cities.
Throughout the 3rd century BC, they faced counterattacks from the Hellenistic armies from the east and the west at any time. The biggest opponent is undoubtedly the Seleucid Empire, which moved its capital to Antioch but also wanted to control the Mesopotamia. As for the Bactrian regime that broke away from the Seleucid system almost at the same time, because of its cultural affiliation and economic interests, it often maintains strategic interaction with the former suzerain of Syria. Therefore, Parthians often need to carry out large-scale migration at this stage. He had just occupied the city with his forefoot, and in a blink of an eye he had to prepare to withdraw softly. The cavalry naturally became the only object of military power building, and only in the original Parthia province were the indigenous agricultural militias of Eastern Iran retained.
The early Parthian cavalry adopted the tactics of hit and run
but in the 2nd century BC, The Parthian's external geopolitical pattern suddenly changed. After the death of Antioch IV, the Seleucid Empire fell into an eternal internal struggle between the pro-Romans and the Syrian conservatives. Serious conflicts broke out in many places, including the Jewish quarter, and the Ptolemaic dynasty as far away as Egypt contained the main energy of the empire. Coupled with the involvement of Roman forces in Asia Minor, the Antiochian court was unable to successfully recruit a sufficient number of Greek troops, resulting in a rapid decline in the strength of the Seleucid army. Under the leadership of King Mithradati I, the Parthians succeeded in occupying Seleucia and fulfilled their dream of entering the Mesopotamia. At the same time, the outbreak of the civil war in the Kingdom of Bactria gave the Parthians a chance to expand in the east. Therefore, the original crisis situation was completely achieved by major benefits.
Since many Hellenistic cities have been surrendered, the Parthian army once began a partial Hellenistic structural change. In addition to paying heavy taxes, most cities also provide the original militia system to the new owner. As a result, the Parthians also learned to line up with all kinds of light and heavy infantry, and then use cavalry to outflank the wings. It's just that the level of coordination and the effect of use were not satisfactory, and it quickly collapsed after the next major impact.
The Parthian Empire once wanted to swallow the entire Hellenized military system
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Seleucid Greece and other forces in the 2nd century BC launched the final counterattack
In 127 BC, Parthia encountered a major crisis since its founding. They were successively counterattacked by Seleucid forces from the West, and later faced a large number of Seleucus and Yue nomadic tribes from the east. The Parthian monarch was disappointed to find that the army he had pieced together with his own cavalry and vassal infantry had no power to fight back in the face of the storm.
In the Western Battlefield of Two Rivers, the Seleucid army in the era of Antioch VII was not as good as before, but it still defeated the Parthians in two frontal battles. Then, the city rebellion, including Celiusia and Susa, blasted the Parthian tax collector and prison army out. Finally, Parthia relied on the atrocities of his opponents in the occupied area to instigate, and then succeeded in ambushing Antioch VII with cavalry. Thus avoiding the embarrassment of being expelled from half of the Iranian plateau. But they were lucky enough to win, but they were still chilled by the pro-Greek stance of many Persian residents.
Eastern Cypriots and Yueshi also invaded Parthian territory
Then the Parthians turned their heads to fight Eastern nomadic cavalry without a salary. Although their troops have the same configuration and combat mode, they still bring a large number of Seleucid soldiers who have just surrendered to the front. As a result, the Greek infantry turned in front of the battle, which in turn caused the tragedy of King Parthia being killed by the enemy. There were even Hellenized Arab warlords from the Persian Gulf who took the opportunity to send troops to occupy the Mesopotamia.
So, after Mithrada Ti II, who was in danger, took office, Parthia immediately reformed his overall military strategy. Based on the previous experience of defeating the Seleucid army, they gave up the use of a large number of infantry in the frontal decisive battle, but returned to the state of full cavalry. Correspondingly, cities that were originally small states received partial concessions. The condition is that they need to protect the safety of the city themselves, and they will soon be bound to the Parthian royal family because of economic interests.
Parthian heavy cavalry officially switched to Greek-style equipment
b is familiar The army of the Parthian Empire was shaped in this reform. Mithradates II also advocated the introduction of Greek-style mounted cavalry to replace the original Scythian nomadic heavy cavalry. The elite warriors and their mounts were replaced with Hellenized armor with a larger defense area. They must also give up the use of compound bows for travel harassment tactics, and delegate the relevant responsibilities to their light-armed archers.
In addition, the Parthians' defense strategy has also undergone tremendous changes. In the past, they would tend to initiate a full blockade after the enemy entered the country. After the reform, they saved the burden of protecting individual cities, and instead deployed mobile forces more flexibly to counterattack. The opponent will find that he has successfully controlled a certain area, but will be attacked by the local city and the Parthian Central Cavalry. Not only is it easy to fall into a time-consuming siege, but it is also in danger of being cut off at any time.
The main force of the Parthian army is still the lightly equipped archer
05588b#05588 Exceptionally successful. Whether it is a Serbian or Yue nomadic tribe, they all need to face fortified cities with local garrisons and village-level fortresses built temporarily by the Parthians. However, due to the siege, the troops fell into supply difficulties, and the troops were gradually dispersed to a wider area for local supply. The main cavalry of Parthia regularly eliminates the small rations to recruit troops, and instigates a strong counterattack after the opponent is weakened. Finally, relying on the advantages of Hellenistic cavalry equipment, the nomadic opponents can be cut off.
Of course, such a flexible defense strategy requires the Parthians to create a broader strategic depth for themselves. So inAfter overcoming the dual threats of Seleucid and Eastern nomads, the imperial power quickly advanced to eastern Syria, the middle of the river and the Indus Valley. By the late 1st century BC, the front line of national defense had been pushed to the east bank of the Euphrates River and the five river basins of Punjab. The tax revenue obtained by monopolizing international trade has also been used in large quantities to buy over local rulers and instigate the unsteady inside hostile forces. These measures will also give full play to the original intention of the planners in the upcoming war against Rome.
Parthian sphere of influence at the beginning of the 1st century AD
The Battle of Calle is undoubtedly the highlight of Parthian resilient defense
The Battle of Calle in AD 53 is undoubtedly the parthian resilient defense system The highlight moment. But before the war officially broke out, the Parthians had supported Mithrada VI of Pontus and Tigran II of Armenia through financial support. These two militant monarchs also basically completed their historical missions, and held Rome for decades for the gold master. More importantly, they provided the Romans with an illusion: Although the Eastern cavalry tactics are powerful, they still cannot pose a deadly threat to the Legion.
Based on the above superficial understanding, the seven Roman legions of Crassus stepped onto the road of the Eastern Expedition in a near bewilderment. Under the guidance of the Osloni prince at both ends of the rat head, he went straight from the desert plain to the two fortified cities of Edessa and Kalai. At the same time, it was also supported by the Armenians in the north. In theory, there is the possibility of a two-way attack.
The big city support allows the Parthian cavalry to obtain a large amount of weapon supplies
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b248b Human countermeasures are also very realistic. Based in the populous city of Celiusia, two mobile units with a capacity of over 10,000 are concentrated. The king himself led his army northward and brought some vassal troops to attack Armenia. The high-ranking Sulenas blocked the Romans in eastern Syria. Although the latter has only 1,000 equipped cavalry and 9,000 cavalry archers under his command, he can rely on many cities and fortresses to provide adequate materials and strategic warning. Therefore, Krasu's every move was understood by his opponents, and there was no psychological preparation for the fighting endurance of the Parthian army.When tens of thousands of Roman troops were divided and surrounded in the hot plain, they realized that they were encountering an unprecedented opponent. A large number of camel teams set off from Celiusia provided a steady stream of arrows for the Parthian cavalry, and the morale of the Romans plummeted after seeing it. If it weren't for the first-class quality of the army at the end of the Republic, it would completely be wiped out on the Eastern battlefield.
The experience of the Battle of Calle has almost become the dogma of the Parthian army
At the same time, a large number of complex siege weapon technologies were lost in the eastern region, which caused the Parthians to suffer a lot in the subsequent battles. Therefore, in several counterattack against Syria after the Battle of Kalai, PatiThe Asian army actually needed to rely on Roman rebels and mercenaries to encircle the city. Apart from hunger, bribery and intimidation, there is almost no other way to get local towns open. In the frontal battle with the Roman legions, they were repeatedly defeated due to lack of infantry support, and even the crown prince was killed on the front line. The empire’s national fortune also entered a downward path after this trauma.
The Parthians always lag behind Rome in terms of technical weapons
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The Two Rivers School and the Central Asian School caused Parthian internal division
After entering the 1st century AD, the Empire’s Decay is inevitable. Although he won the victory of Kalai in the defense, he lost a large number of elite population because of the failure of the counterattack. At the same time, the highly Hellenistic Lianghe faction and the Central Asian faction who adhere to the nomadic traditions also caused serious internal friction due to their intrigue. When the new Kushan Empire emerged in the last 50 years of this century, the power of the Parthians was driven back to Sistan from the entire Indus Valley.
The Parthian Empire of this era still maintains the previously left flexible defense system and roughly has three strategic lines of defense. First rely on Osloni, Adiyabeni and other subject powers to defend the upper reaches of the Euphrates and Euphrates. In the middle reaches of the Euphrates River to the south, there are the city of Dura Europos, which is defended by Greek officers, and the city of Harat, which is extremely geographically encouraged. Only when the Roman army conquered all the above areas would they approach the empire’s economic capital, Celiusia. On the edge of this prosperous city, is the monarch's winter residence-Taixi Fengcheng.
The overall military defense pattern of the Parthian Empire
05588 Then the Parthian monarch will withdraw to Ekbatana, east of the Zagros Mountains. Relying on the help of mountain terrain, the footpaths that can only be passed by few people can be defended. If the opponent insists on going his own way, he will break through the natural barrier along the coastal plain of the Persian Gulf. But that also means that the Parthians have enough time to regroup in the north. If in the end even the Medes province fell into the enemy's hands, then the Parthians could return to Nissa in the Land of Longxing to make the final resistance. Correspondingly, if the enemy is killed from the east, the empire can also use Sistan as the front line and Mesopotamia as the final base.
In 115 AD, the famous Roman emperor Trajan began to march eastward, determined to completely shred the elastic defense of the Parthians. The latter also discovered during the specific operation that the beautiful plan he originally envisioned had many flaws and loopholes. Because Armenia has been occupied, the Roman army can choose to launch a pincer offensive against Mesopotamia from two directions. Trajan also dispatched 10 legions and almost the same number of auxiliary forces to directly crush Parthia's western defense line. Several vassal monarchs quickly surrendered, and the defenders of Dura Ouropos also witnessed the defeat of the mobile cavalry at the head of the city. In the end, the Romans forced Celiusia to surrender in the second year, and occupied and ransacked the capital of Parthia, Tessifon.
Rome in the time of Trajan was a powerful enemy that Parth had never encountered
Due to the Parthian internal Still divided into two factions torn each other and constantly shirking, Trajan's army easily traveled south along the Tigris River and directly arrived at Chalaseni, a small state in the Persian Gulf with strong independent attributes. This free city used to be an important bridgehead for trade between the East and Rome, and it was also IndiaThe largest port in the ocean. Whether it was most of the political elites in the city or the ordinary civic class, they immediately fell into the arms of Rome. In the end, the legion even entered the Eland region eastward. With the surrender of the regional capital Susa, the second defense line of the Parthian Empire was directly penetrated.
Fortunately, because Trajan’s ambitions were too collided, the autonomy of many small eastern countries and cities was returned to the province. Through continuous lobbying and bribery, the Parthians caused a siege of the Roman garrison in various cities. even assisted Jews in their operations, causing mass vendettas and riots in Rome, Egypt, Cyrene, and Cyprus. In the end, Trajan died of illness in his unpaid aspirations, and his successor Hadrian chose to withdraw from more than half of the occupation. The Parthian had recovered half his life in the face of the disaster. However, important border cities, including Nisibis, became the garrison point of the Roman province of Mesopotami.
Parthia can only rely on inciting the self-government forces of the cities to fight against Rome
However, only 2 years of war. Let Parthia's defense system almost completely disintegrate. The defensive strategy designed by Mithradati II that year can almost only cope with attacks from a single direction. Once the Romans could launch an offensive from two directions, the limited mobile force would be overwhelmed. In addition, the Romans greatly increased the number and quality of auxiliary forces, and they were not weak in long-range firepower and cavalry, and the Parthians' military advantage disappeared.
What's more, as long as the Mesopotamia falls, the agricultural income and trade taxes that maintain most of the empire will fall into the hands of the occupiers. Therefore, the so-called strategic depth and three-line deployment are nothing but idealized wishful thinking. In the face of a real powerful enemy, there are still loopholes. The only part that can play a role is the regional self-government forces that the Parthian nobles want to desperately suppress but cannot completely eliminate.
Trajan Roma annexed the entire two river basins into a province
complete bankruptcy
Fighting Parthia in Rome became politically correct The nightmare has just begun. If the battle of Calle that year erected the image of the Parthian power in the heart of Rome, then the expedition in the 2nd century AD has proved that it is nothing but a giant with mud feet. The more terrible problem also comes from within Rome, the stagnation of economic development, so that they need a foreign war to release internal conflicts. Several emperors also realized that fighting against Parthia was a very good political correctness.
So in 197 AD, Emperor Severus began his own Parthian war. When the Parthian army tried to recapture the city of Nisibis, they encountered a joint counterattack from the Roman-Oslone-Armenian forces. In the second year, the coalition continued to move south, and once again captured Celiusia and Tessie, forcing the Parthian monarch to lead the remnants to the east in embarrassment.
Facing the threat of Rome, Parthia’s military power has been overwhelmed.
is different from the previous conquest operations at this time. Rome no longer has a special interest in eastern cities. As a result, Parthia’s economic capital, Celiusia, was looted, and its prosperity plummeted, and the empire’s economy further became depressed. By 216 AD, Severus’ successor, Caracalla, led the army again. Although it did not conquer important cities, soldiers were allowed to ravage the entire agricultural villages and towns between the two rivers. The Parthian army is powerless to stop it, and can only sit and watch the harvest this year turn into enemy assets. Such bloodletting destruction is precisely the fragile late empireThe most feared.
Due to the need to reward soldiers with trophies, Caracalla also ordered the army to attack the Atlopatni area and excavated the tombs of several Parthian monarchs. The furious Parthian nobles still made up their minds to counterattack Nisibis after the death of the culprit. Due to the shortage of cavalry troops, even temporarily armed camels were brought to the front. Finally, relying on the cavalry army recruited by almost the whole country, finally repelled the temporary successor Emperor Makrinus. But the huge casualties caused the empire to lose a generation of military and political elites. The dilapidated Mesopotamia is not enough to help them quickly restore their national strength.
The late Parthian army even temporarily developed a camel cavalry
So, in the new Persian warlord Aldahir After its appearance, the 400-year-old Parthian power of Guozuo was finally completely overthrown. Except for a small number of noble members who ran to Rome or Armenia in advance, most of the rest of the elite were brutally liquidated. Although the Parthians’ flexible defense strategy has helped them to withstand several large-scale foreign attacks to a large extent, they have not been able to fundamentally alleviate their geopolitical difficulties.
From a technical perspective, the Parthian Empire has also formed many inherent contradictions in addition to its inclusiveness. Although its economy and military technology are mostly derived from Hellenization, the pro-Greek metropolis is regarded as politically incorrect traitors by the upper-level groups.
Severus and his son will complete a draw from Parthia
Although there will soon be a two river basin group with Taixifeng as the core, they have not been able to fight in the fight. China beats more Central Asian conservatives. They will also become enemies with Rome because of trade issues, and they have become the common targets of both domestic and foreign opponents. But these people precisely control the empire’s main tax sources and economic lifeline, and will cause a larger economic depression because of their own chaos. It is not surprising that it took several generations for Rome to turn the original east-west trade routes to the sea.
With the adjustment of the international industrial chain, Parthia has also completely lost the capital it had to carry with its strong enemies in the East and the West. The new Sassanid dynasty will be more conservative and tyrannical than its polite predecessor. Because as long as the political vision of the Persian Empire always exists, all monarchs will burn the flames of war to the surrounding areas and eventually self-immolate because the fire is out of control.
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