PARTHIA. 
for his army, on account of their number, amounting to 
no fewer than 400,000, being obliged to feparate to fuch 
diftances as prevented them, in cafe of any fudden attack, 
from joining together, the inhabitants, whom they had 
mod cruelly oppreffed, taking; advantage of this fepara- 
tion, confpired with the Parthians to deltroy them. This 
was accordingly executed ; and.the vaft army of Antio- 
chus, with the monarch himfelf, were flaughtered in one 
day, fcarcely a Angle perfon efcaping to carry the news 
to Syria. Phraates elated with this fuccefs, propofed to 
invade Syria; but, in the mean time, happening to quar¬ 
rel with the Scythians, he was by them cut off with his 
whole army, and was fucceeded by his uncle Artabanus. 
The new king enjoyed his dignity but a very Ihort 
time, being, a few days after his acceffion, killed in ano¬ 
ther battle with the Scythians. He was fucceeded by 
Pacorus, who entered into an alliance with the Romans ; 
and he by Phraates III. This monarch took under his 
protection Tigranes, the fon of Tigranes the Great, king 
of Armenia, gave him his daughter in marriage, and in¬ 
vaded the kingdom with the defign to place the fon on 
the throne of Armenia; but, on the approach of Pompey, 
he thought proper to retire, and foon after folemnly re¬ 
newed the treaty with the Romans. 
Phraates was murdered by his children Mithridates and 
Orodes; and foon after the former was put to death by 
his brother, who thus became foie mailer of the Parthian 
empire. In his reign happened the memorable war with 
the Romans under Craffus. This was occafioned, not by 
any breach of treaty on the fide of the Parthians, but 
through the fhameful avarice of Craffus. The whole 
Roman empire at that time had been divided between 
Caefar, Pompey, and Craffus ; and, by virtue of that par¬ 
tition, the eallern provinces had fallen to the lot of Craf¬ 
fus. Nofooner was he in veiled with this dignity,than he re- 
folved to carry the war into Parthia, in order to enrich 
himfelf with the fpoils of that people, who were then 
looked upon to be very wealthy. Some of the tribunes 
oppofed him, as the Parthians had religioufly obferved 
the treaty; but Craffus having, by the alfiftance of Pom¬ 
pey, carried every thing before him, left Rome in the 
year 55 B. C. and purfued his march to Brundulium, 
where he immediately embarked his troops, though the 
wind blew very high; and, after a difficult paffage, where 
he loft many of his ffiips, he reached the ports of Galatia. 
From Galatia, Craffus haftened to Syria; and, palling 
through Judea, plundered the temple at Jerufalem in his 
way. He then marched with as great expedition as he 
could to the river Euphrates, which he croffed on a 
bridge of boats; and, entering the Parthian dominions, 
began hoftilities. 
As the Parthians had not expeCled an invafion, they 
were quite unprepared for refiftance; and therefore 
Craffus overran all Mefopotamia; and, if he had taken 
advantage of the confternation which the Parthians were 
in, might have alfo reduced Babylonia. But, inftead of 
this, early in the autumn he repaffed the Euphrates, 
leaving only 7000 foot and 1000 horfe to garrifon the 
places he had reduced ; and, putting his army into win¬ 
ter-quarters in Syria, gave himfelf totally up to his fa¬ 
vourite paffion of atnaffing money. Early in the fpring, 
the Roman general drew his forces out of their winter- 
uarters, in order to purfue the war with vigour; but, 
uring the winter, Orodes had collected a very nume¬ 
rous army, and was well prepared to oppofe him. Before 
he entered upon action, however, the Parthian monarch 
fent ambaffadors to Craffus, in order to expoftulate with 
him on his injuftice in attacking an ally of the Roman 
empire; but Craffus, without attending to what they 
faid, only returned for anfwer, that “they Ihould have 
his anfwer at Seleucia.” 
Orodes, finding that a war was not to be avoided, di- 
dided his army into two bodies. One he commanded in 
perfon, and marched toward Armenia, in order to oppofe 
the king of that country, who had raifed a confiderable 
651 
army to affift the Romans. The other he fent into Mefo¬ 
potamia, under the command of Surenas, a moll expe¬ 
rienced general, by whofe condufl all the cities which 
Cralfus had reduced were quickly retaken. On this, 
fome Roman foldiers who made their efcape, and fled to 
the camp of Craffus, filled the mind of his army with 
terror at the accounts of the number, power, and ftrength, 
of the enemy. They told their fellow-foldiers, that the 
Parthians were very numerous, brave, and well difcipli- 
ned; that it was impoflible to overtake them when they 
fled, or efcape them when they purfued ; that their de- 
fenfive weapons were proof againft the Roman darts, and 
their oflenfive weapons fo lharp, that no buckler was 
proof againft them, See. Cralfus looked upon all this 
as the effect of cowardice: but the common foldiers, 
and even many of the chief officers, were fo dilheartened, 
that Caffius, the fame who afterwards confpired againft 
Caefar, and moft of the legionary tribunes, advifed Craf¬ 
fus to fufpend his march, and confider better of the en- 
terprife before he proceeded farther in it. But Craffus 
obftinately perfifted in his former refolution, being en¬ 
couraged by the arrival of Artabazus king of Armenia, 
who brought with him 6000 horfe, and promifed to fend 
io,ooo cuiraffiers and 30,000 foot, whenever he Ihould 
Hand in need of them. At the lame time, he advifed 
him by no means to march his army through the plains 
of Mefopotamia, but to take his route over the moun¬ 
tains of Armenia. He told him, that, as Armenia was 
a mountainous country, the enemy’s cavalry, in which 
their main ftrength confided, would there be entirely 
ufelefs ; and belides, his army would there be plenti¬ 
fully fupplied with all manner of neceffaries : whereas, 
if he marched by the way of Mefopotamia, he would 
be perpetually haraffed by the Parthian horfe, and fre¬ 
quently be obliged to lead his army through fandy de- 
ferts, where he would be diftrefled for want of water 
and all other provilions. This falutary advice, how¬ 
ever, was rejedled ; and Cralfus entered Mefopotamia 
with an army of about 40,000 men. 
The Romans had no fooner croffed the Euphrates, 
than Caffius advifed his general to advance to lome of 
thofe towns in which the garrifons yet remained, in or¬ 
der fo halt and refreili his troops: or, if he did not choofe 
to follow this advice, he faid that his bell way would be 
to march along the banks of the Euphrates to Seleucia ; 
as by this method he would prevent the Parthians from 
furrounding him, at the fame time he would be plenti¬ 
fully fupplied with provifions from his Ihips. Of this 
advice Cralfus feemed to approve; but was diffuaded by 
Abgarus king of Edeffa, whom the Romans took for an 
ally, but who was in reality a traitor fent by Surenas to 
bring about the dellruftion of the Roman army. 
Under thecondufl of this faithlefs guide, the Romans 
entered a vaft green plain divided by many rivulets. 
Their march proved very eafy through this fine country; 
but the farther they advanced, the worfe the roads be¬ 
came, infomuch that they were at laft obliged to climb 
up rocky mountains, which brought them to a dry and 
fandy plain, where they could neither find food to fa- 
tisfy their hunger, nor water to quench their thirft. Ab¬ 
garus then began to be fulpebted by the tribunes and 
other officers, who earneftly entreated Craffus not to 
follow him any longer, but to retreat to the mountains ; 
at the fame time an exprefs arrived from Artabazus, ac¬ 
quainting the Roman general that Orodes had invaded 
his dominions with a great army, and that he was 
obliged to keep his troops at home in order to defend his 
own dominions. The fame melfenger advifed Cralfus in 
his mailer’s name to avoid by all means the barren plains-, 
where his army would certainly perilh with hunger and 
fatigue, and by all means to approach Armenia, that 
they might join their forces againft the common enemy. 
But all was to no purpofe; Cralfus, inftead of hearken¬ 
ing either to the advice of the king or his own officers, 
firll flew into a violent paffion with the meffengers of 
Artabazus, 
