Marcus Licinius Crassus was a Roman statesman, politician and military commander who was born in 115 BC and died in 53 BC, during the period of the late Roman republic.
The career of Marcus Crassus took off when he supported Lucius Cornelius Sulla and his march on Rome in 88 BC. When control of the city was wrested away from Sulla in 87 BC, Crassus had his wealth confiscated and was exiled to Hispania, where he slowly built a power base of his own.
He participated in Sulla’s civil war in Rome in 83 BC, on the side of Sulla. Along with the help of Pompey the Great and others, Crassus helped Sulla win the civil war, where Sulla was made a dictator of the eternal city. This victory allowed Crassus and other supporters to become wealthy by enabling them to purchase land and possessions that were confiscated from Sulla’s opponents at a huge discount. This led to Crassus being dubbed, ‘the richest man in Rome’.
After rebuilding his wealth, he set his sights on power. For this, he needed to command an army. He got his wish when he led several Roman Legions in the Third Servile War. The Third Servile War is most notable in that it was also known as the War of Spartacus (a name given by historian, Plutarch).
After suffering several defeats against the armies of Spartacus and Crixus, Crassus was called upon by the senate to end the revolt. Crassus took up the challenge and proceeded towards southern Italy to round up the two leaders, the rest of the freed gladiators and their supporters.
Putting down the revolt, however, was proving to be quite difficult, with the rebel armies proving elusive and had a canny ability to evade battles when necessary. Crassus tried to pin down Spartacus by digging ditches “three hundred furlongs in length and fifteen feet in width and depth alike” (as noted by Plutarch) along a peninsula in the southwest of Italy. This is approximately 37 miles (60km) long and 4.5 meters wide and deep.
However, Spartacus managed to find a way through the defensive structure, filling in part of the ditch with dirt and breaking through during the cover of darkness.
Fearing further revolts and uprisings, the senate recalled Pompey and Varro Lucullus, who were overseas at the time, to help Crassus end the war. Crassus had written to the senate asking for assistance.
This request for assistance was perhaps made in haste as Crassus now wanted to end the war before the two generals and their armies arrived in southern Italy. This was because Crassus wanted the recognition of victory, rather than have it stolen from one of the other two generals.
As fate would have it, that’s exactly what happened. The final battle saw Crassus finally come face to face with Spartacus. Crassus won the battle convincingly and Spartacus likely perished in the battle. Pompey was able to clean up a few of the fugitives as they fled the battle. This led Pompey to write to the senate to claim victory and celebrate the military triumph.
Crassus and Pompey then entered a powerful alliance with another up-and-coming military commander, Julius Caesar, in what became known as the First Triumvirate. This enabled the three men to build a power base and allowed each man to pursue their goals and ambitions with the support of the other two.
The alliance allowed Caesar to take up command in Gaul, Pompey in Spain and Crassus in Syria. For Crassus though, he still craved his major military victory.
From his command in Syria, Crassus was able to launch his ill-fated invasion of the Parthian Empire. His need for military glory led Crassus to cross the Euphrates with his army at the behest of a local chieftain, Ariamnes, who said that the Parthians were weak and ripe for the taking.
However, Ariamnes was funded by the Parthians and led Crassus into a trap. This resulted in the Roman army confronting a strong and well-prepared Parthian army. This is known as the battle or Carrhae. The Parthian army was mainly made up of horse archers, while the Romans were comprised of mostly infantry, with a smaller amount of cavalry in support.
Crassus deployed a box formation for his legions, allowing them to defend themselves on all sides. However, this severely restricted their mobility. After destroying most of the Roman cavalry forces and killing the of Crassus’ son, Publius, the Parthian horse archers pummeled the Roman forces with a series of hit and run raids. The archers were re-supplied by camels who were stocked with arrows, allowing the slaughter to continue throughout the day.
Nightfall allowed the remaining troops to return to the city of Carrhae. The next day, the Parthians pursued the Romans, killing any injured soldiers along the way. The Parthians eventually found the Romans at Carrhae and surrounded the city.
The Parthians were willing to meet with Crassus to discuss terms of peace. Crassus, under pressure from his decimated troops to strike a deal, went out to meet the Parthians. However, a fight broke out and the Roman envoy was killed, along with Crassus.
According to legend, the Parthians wanted to mock Crassus, known for his extreme wealth. According to this legend, the Parthians poured molten gold down his throat. Some sources say that that was how he was killed, some say that he was killed and then had the gold poured down his throat, while others contend that there was no gold involved at all.
This remains one of the largest defeats in Roman history.
I found a fascinating video by the YouTube channel, Invicta, that details the final battle of Carrhae and what happened immediately after the annihilation of the Roman army.