Rome, Parthia & India

Rome, Parthia & India PDF Author: John D. Grainger
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1473830133
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
Between 152 and 138 BC a series of wars from Africa to India produced a radically new geopolitical situation. In 150 Rome was confined to the western Mediterranean, and the largest state was the Seleukid empire. By 140 Rome had spread to the borders of Asia Minor and the Seleukid empire was confined to Syria. The new great power in the Middle East was Parthia, stretching from Babylonia to Baktria. These two divided the western world between them until the Arab conquests in the seventh century AD.These wars have generally been treated separately, but they were connected. The crisis began in Syria with the arrival of the pretender Alexander Balas; his example was copied by Andriskos in Macedon, formerly in Seleukid service; the reaction of Rome to defiance in Macedon, Greece and Africa produced conquest and destruction. The preoccupation of Seleukid kings with holding on to their thrones allowed Mithradates I of Parthia to conquer Iran and Babylonia, and in Judaea an insurrection was partly successful. Mithradates was able conquer in part because his other enemy, Baktria, was preoccupied with the nomad invasions which led to the destruction of Ai Khanum. One of the reasons for the nomad success in Baktria was the siphoning off of Greek strength into India, where a major expedition in these very years breifly conquered and sacked the old Indian imperial capital of Pataliputra.In the process the great cities of Carthage, Corinth, Ai Khanum, and Pataliputra were destroyed, while Antioch and Seleukeia-on-the-Tigris were extensively damaged. John Grainger's lucid narrative shows how these seismic events, stretching from India to the Western Meditteranean, interconnected to recast the ancient world.

Rome, Parthia & India

Rome, Parthia & India PDF Author: John D. Grainger
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1473830133
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 200

Get Book Here

Book Description
Between 152 and 138 BC a series of wars from Africa to India produced a radically new geopolitical situation. In 150 Rome was confined to the western Mediterranean, and the largest state was the Seleukid empire. By 140 Rome had spread to the borders of Asia Minor and the Seleukid empire was confined to Syria. The new great power in the Middle East was Parthia, stretching from Babylonia to Baktria. These two divided the western world between them until the Arab conquests in the seventh century AD.These wars have generally been treated separately, but they were connected. The crisis began in Syria with the arrival of the pretender Alexander Balas; his example was copied by Andriskos in Macedon, formerly in Seleukid service; the reaction of Rome to defiance in Macedon, Greece and Africa produced conquest and destruction. The preoccupation of Seleukid kings with holding on to their thrones allowed Mithradates I of Parthia to conquer Iran and Babylonia, and in Judaea an insurrection was partly successful. Mithradates was able conquer in part because his other enemy, Baktria, was preoccupied with the nomad invasions which led to the destruction of Ai Khanum. One of the reasons for the nomad success in Baktria was the siphoning off of Greek strength into India, where a major expedition in these very years breifly conquered and sacked the old Indian imperial capital of Pataliputra.In the process the great cities of Carthage, Corinth, Ai Khanum, and Pataliputra were destroyed, while Antioch and Seleukeia-on-the-Tigris were extensively damaged. John Grainger's lucid narrative shows how these seismic events, stretching from India to the Western Meditteranean, interconnected to recast the ancient world.

Rome, Parthia, and the Politics of Peace

Rome, Parthia, and the Politics of Peace PDF Author: Jason M. Schlude
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351135708
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 239

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Book Description
This volume offers an informed survey of the problematic relationship between the ancient empires of Rome and Parthia from c. 96/95 BCE to 224 CE. Schlude explores the rhythms of this relationship and invites its readers to reconsider the past and our relationship with it. Some have looked to this confrontation to help explain the roots of the long-lived conflict between the West and the Middle East. It is a reading symptomatic of most scholarship on the subject, which emphasizes fundamental incompatibility and bellicosity in Roman–Parthian relations. Rather than focusing on the relationship as a series of conflicts, Rome, Parthia, and the Politics of Peace responds to this common misconception by highlighting instead the more cooperative elements in the relationship and shows how a reconciliation of these two perspectives is possible. There was, in fact, a cyclical pattern in the Roman–Parthian interaction, where a reality of peace and collaboration became overshadowed by images of aggressive posturing projected by powerful Roman statesmen and emperors for a domestic population conditioned to expect conflict. The result was the eventual realization of these images by later Roman opportunists who, unsatisfied with imagined war, sought active conflict with Parthia. Rome, Parthia, and the Politics of Peace is a fascinating new study of these two superpowers that will be of interest not only to students of Rome and the Near East but also to anyone with an interest in diplomatic relations and conflict in the ancient world and today.

Rivalling Rome

Rivalling Rome PDF Author: Vesta Curtis
Publisher: Spink Books
ISBN: 9781912667444
Category : Antiques & Collectibles
Languages : en
Pages : 128

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Book Description
One hundred years after the conquest of the Persian Empire by Alexander of Macedon, we see the emergence of a new Iranian dynasty that, by 140 BC, has extended its rule to Western Iran and Mesopotamia. The Arsacid Parthians, famous for their riding and archery skills, became Rome's most dangerous enemy east of the River Euphrates. Encounters between Roman generals and Parthian envoys are vividly described in Classical accounts of a biased nature, and unfortunately no such sources are available from the Parthian side. Here, the most important primary source is the coinage of the period c. 248 BC - AD 224. These coins reveal important information about the development of the Parthian state, its expansion and the role of the king, who, by 111 BC, had adopted the ancient Persian title of King of Kings. Rome's interference in the region begins during the reign of Mithradates II's and culminates in the devastating defeat of the Roman army under the General Crassus at the Battle of Carrhae in 53 BC. Over the next 300 years these two superpowers fight for territorial control in the region, particularly over Mesopotamia and Armenia. This book will highlight the rise to power of the Parthians, the long conflict with Rome, as well as the culture and religion of the Parthian Empire as seen through the coinage of this period. It is co-published with the British Museum to accompany an exhibition of the same name which opens there in April 2020.

The Roman Empire and the Indian Ocean

The Roman Empire and the Indian Ocean PDF Author: Raoul McLaughlin
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1473840953
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 513

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Book Description
This study of ancient Roman shipping and trade across continents reveals the Roman Empire’s far-reaching impact in the ancient world. In ancient times, large fleets of Roman merchant ships set sail from Egypt on voyages across the Indian Ocean. They sailed from Roman ports on the Red Sea to distant kingdoms on the east coast of Africa and southern Arabia. Many continued their voyages across the ocean to trade with the rich kingdoms of ancient India. Along these routes, the Roman Empire traded bullion for valuable goods, including exotic African products, Arabian incense, and eastern spices. This book examines Roman commerce with Indian kingdoms from the Indus region to the Tamil lands. It investigates contacts between the Roman Empire and powerful African kingdoms, including the Nilotic regime that ruled Meroe and the rising Axumite Realm. Further chapters explore Roman dealings with the Arab kingdoms of southern Arabia, including the Saba-Himyarites and the Hadramaut Regime, which sent caravans along the incense trail to the ancient rock-carved city of Petra. The first book to bring these subjects together in a single comprehensive study, The Roman Empire and the Indian Ocean reveals Rome’s impact on the ancient world and explains how international trade funded the legions that maintained imperial rule.

The Roman Empire and the Silk Routes

The Roman Empire and the Silk Routes PDF Author: Raoul McLaughlin
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1473889812
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 219

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Book Description
A fascinating history of the intricate web of trade routes connecting ancient Rome to Eastern civilizations, including its powerful rival, the Han Empire. The Roman Empire and the Silk Routes investigates the trade routes between Rome and the powerful empires of inner Asia, including the Parthian Empire of ancient Persia, and the Kushan Empire which seized power in Bactria (Afghanistan), laying claim to the Indus Kingdoms. Further chapters examine the development of Palmyra as a leading caravan city on the edge of Roman Syria. Raoul McLaughlin also delves deeply into Rome’s trade ventures through the Tarim territories, which led its merchants to the Han Empire of ancient China. Having established a system of Central Asian trade routes known as the Silk Road, the Han carried eastern products as far as Persia and the frontiers of the Roman Empire. Though they were matched in scale, the Han surpassed its European rival in military technology. The first book to address these subjects in a single comprehensive study, The Roman Empire and the Silk Routes explores Rome’s impact on the ancient world economy and reveals what the Chinese and Romans knew about their rival Empires.

The Indian Ocean Trade in Antiquity

The Indian Ocean Trade in Antiquity PDF Author: Matthew Adam Cobb
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351732447
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 265

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Book Description
The period from the death of Alexander the Great to the rise of the Islam (c. late fourth century BCE to seventh century CE) saw a significant growth in economic, diplomatic and cultural exchange between various civilisations in Africa, Europe and Asia. This was in large part thanks to the Indian Ocean trade. Peoples living in the Roman Empire, Parthia, India and South East Asia increasingly had access to exotic foreign products, while the lands from which they derived, and the peoples inhabiting these lands, also captured the imagination, finding expression in a number of literary and poetic works. The Indian Ocean Trade in Antiquity provides a range of chapters that explore the economic, political and cultural impact of this trade on these diverse societies, written by international experts working in the fields of Classics, Archaeology, South Asian studies, Near Eastern studies and Art History. The three major themes of the book are the development of this trade, how consumption and exchange impacted on societal developments, and how the Indian Ocean trade influenced the literary creations of Graeco-Roman and Indian authors. This volume will be of interest not only to academics and students of antiquity, but also to scholars working on later periods of Indian Ocean history who will find this work a valuable resource.

Roman Soldier vs Parthian Warrior

Roman Soldier vs Parthian Warrior PDF Author: Si Sheppard
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1472838270
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 81

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Book Description
In 53 BC, Roman and Parthian forces collided in a confrontation that would reshape the geopolitical map and establish a frontier between East and West that would endure for the next 700 years. From the initial clash at Carrhae through to the battle of Nisibis more than 250 years later, Roman and Parthian forces fought a series of bloody campaigns for mastery of the Fertile Crescent. As Roman forces thrust ever deeper into the East, they encountered a civilization unlike any they had crossed swords with before. Originating in the steppes of Central Asia, the Parthians ruled a federated state stretching from the Euphrates to the Indus. Although Rome's legions were masters of the battlefield in the Mediterranean, the Parthians refused to fight by the rules as Rome understood them. Harnessing the power of the composite bow and their superior manoeuvrability, the Parthians' mode of warfare focused exclusively on the horse. They inflicted a bloody defeat on the legions at Carrhae and launched their own invasion of Roman territory, countered only with great difficulty by Rome's surviving forces. The Parthians were eventually thrown out, but neither side could sustain a permanent ascendancy over the other and the conflict continued. Packed with stunning artwork, including battlescenes, maps and photographs, this title examines the conflict through the lens of three key battles, revealing a clash between two armies alien to each other not only in culture but also in their radical approaches to warfare.

The Oxford Handbook of Iranian History

The Oxford Handbook of Iranian History PDF Author: Touraj Daryaee
Publisher: OUP USA
ISBN: 0199732159
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 433

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Book Description
This handbook is a guide to Iran's complex history. The book emphasizes the large-scale continuities of Iranian history while also describing the important patterns of transformation that have characterized Iran's past.

Rome & Parthia: Empires at War

Rome & Parthia: Empires at War PDF Author: Gareth C. Sampson
Publisher: Pen and Sword Military
ISBN: 1526710153
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 248

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Book Description
A Roman historian examines the motivation and strategy behind Marc Anthony’s invasion of Parthia and the reasons for its ultimate defeat. In the mid-first century BC, the Roman Empire was rivaled only by the Parthian Empire to the east. The first war between these two ancient superpowers resulted in the total defeat of Rome and the death of Marcus Crassus. When Rome collapsed into Civil War in the 1st century, BC, the Parthians took the opportunity 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 general Publius Ventidius. These victories acted as a springboard for Marc Antony’s plans to conquer the Parthian Empire, which ended in ignominious defeat. In this authoritative history, Gareth Sampson analyses the military campaigns and the various battles between Rome and Parthia. He provides fascinating insight into the war that in many ways defined the Middle East for the next 650 years.

Rome and the Distant East

Rome and the Distant East PDF Author: Raoul McLaughlin
Publisher: A&C Black
ISBN: 1847252354
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 262

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Book Description
Studies the complex system of trade exchanges and commerce that profoundly changed Roman society.