Rome's Disaster: The Battle of Carrhae, 53 BC ⚔ Roman-Parthian Wars

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The Battle of Carrhae in 53 BC unfolded between the Roman Republic and the Parthian Empire near Carrhae, modern-day Harran, Turkey. Marcus Licinius Crassus, the wealthiest man in Rome, led seven legions into the harsh Mesopotamian desert, driven by ambition for military success and wealth. The engagement featured Roman heavy infantry confronting Surena's Parthian cavalry, including cataphracts and horse archers. The battle's outcome not only shifted historical trajectories but also marked the demise of the First Triumvirate, altering power dynamics among Caesar, Pompey, and the late Crassus.
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🧾 Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
1:26 MyHeritage
2:37 Rome's Triumvirate
7:47 Battle of Carrhae
📚 Sources:
Written by House of History
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🖼 Photos, paintings and imagery: Public Domain, Wikicommons
🧾Machinima: Total War, Creative Assembly
#HouseofHistory #History

[@HoH]

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[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

Love your content man! You're amazing! Your narration truly elevates it!

[@dbfi01]

The subtitles are a wreck. They do not at all conform with what is said in the video... Please fix it.

[@ramtin5152]

15:25 I have an almost forgotten and interesting epic battle in mind The battle of Anglon 543 AD 4,000 Sassanids left their fortress to fight a Roman army of 30,000 men

[@rutufn0596]

What do you think about that one : battle of Helder 1795, (franco-dutch War).

[@notthefbi7932]

One man's ego led to the death of so many😬 I wonder how many times throughout history this has repeated itself 🤔 Another great video 👍

[@andraslibal]

Not only that but to centuries of warfare between these two parties and eventually their downfall as they exhausted each other ... that is when the Arabs and their religion could take over the region as both the successors of the Romans and the Parthians were severely weakened by fighting each other.

[@MarcusAgrippa390]

One of my favorite channels for historical content covering my favorite subject which is all things Rome. It's a good day!

[@clarkstartrek]

Mobility! Mobility! Mobility! The ONE THING that the mainly INFANTRY Legions lacked. It's Inability to move across the battlefield and "pin down" a purely Horse-Archer Force, which could go across a battlefield, anywhere in mere minutes. And strike and be gone, as soon as it showered the Legions with arrows.

[@brokenbridge6316]

I feel quite sorry for the soldiers that followed Crassus into that disaster

[@sotir9299]

This is my favourite historical battle channel on youtube. Keep up the good work man.

[@brokenbridge6316]

Fun Fact: The Parthian King eventually had Surena killed due to how popular he had become after defeating Crassus at Carrhae.

[@user-uq6bt8wc6j]

I never knew that ty for sharing

[@ramtin5152]

Plus Orodes II owed his throne and his victory over his brother to Surena

[@brokenbridge6316]

@@user-uq6bt8wc6j---your welcome

[@brokenbridge6316]

@@ramtin5152---Now that's a real duce bag way or repaying a debt to someone you owe so much too.

[@richardbradley2335]

Like thats never happened before or since !

[@ramtin5152]

15:25 I have an almost forgotten and interesting epic battle in mind The battle of Anglon 543 AD 4,000 Sassanids left their fortress to fight a Roman army of 30,000 men

[@LuisAldamiz]

Well done, Parthians. Revenging Spartacus and the Aquitani in a single defensive victory. The Crassus family were the worst!

[@KHK001]

Amazing video as always!

[@DrKarmo]

Great video! What are you guys gonna adapt next? I love your content

[@amlumber4U]

Keep up the great work.

[@ramtin5152]

Now that's the right size of the Parthian empire Finally someone who did it right The Parthian empire's eastern borders reached as far as Indus river and included most of modern day Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, parts of south Uzbekistan and parts of western Tajikistan Though Armenia was a Parthian vassal during the battle of Carrhae until Orodes II defeated the Armenian king in battle (before or during the battle of Carrhae) and completely conquered Armenia again (like Mithridates II the great did)

[@thecrusaderhistorian9820]

great video!

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

Ah yes, the end of crassus, member of the first Triumvirate and the richest man in rome. Love your Roman content man!

[@sagagis]

He is probably the richest person EVER lived

[@NothingIsNot]

By no way was he the richest man in Rome. At that time Pompey had been looting the various empires in the east and was way richer than Crassus. Owning tenement buildings, working with the publicanii would not provide you with more money than a successful general. Ceasar was way richer than Crassus half way through the Gallic wars. Just look at staggering costs, attested by Cicero for the forum Julia.

[@NothingIsNot]

Not even close 😅

[@kemodoemenem2587]

Amazing video. Thank you

[@calvanoni5443]

Thanks

[@dansmith4077]

Comment for the algorithm excellent video thanks

[@julio5prado]

Excellent!

[@mohammedsaysrashid3587]

Thank you very much for sharing this magnificent narration and informative introduction about the carrhae battle between the Parthian Empire and the Roman Empire in 53 BC, which ended through remarkable Roman disaster ..and (Parthian ) victory ✌️ . When Horse 🏹 Archery units through highly mobilization and several times Roman surrendering.. they subdued Romanian infantry units..in exhausting battlefields.

[@cristiantomlinson5945]

Great stuff ! You guys should cover the English civil war. Two battles were fought in my hometown, Newbury. Donnington castle still stands, with canon shot

[@robbabcock_]

What a pivotal battle of the ancient world!

[@johnypsilantis2442]

Your map is incorrect. Egypt was not part of the Roman Republic/Empire in 53 BC. It was incorporated after the battle of Actium in 31 BC.

[@soorenaildari8142]

It's amazing that it took 400 years for Romans to adopt Heavy Cataphract/knight cavalry, and it cost them their empire against Atilla.

[@blockmasterscott]

From what I read, it seemed like this expedition was basically a privately run treasure hunt.

[@paladinbob1236]

great video...the only nikpick[and it is a nikpick] is that the map at the end, when crassus is killed, [15:23] doesnt have gaul conquered, as i think Ceaser had already conquered most of it as part of the empire....for i think thats why Crassus sought his own miltary victories in the east? other than that little miniscule detail, the video was first rate :)

[@nonye0]

4:31 pompey being a dick right there.

[@giod6266]

Yeah, make video about battle of Didgori!

[@Raphael-pt7rx]

i like your videos, but this one sounds like sped up, some small breaks just like in the past would make it easier to understand it for me as a foreigner thanks and keep up the nice work

[@Raphael-pt7rx]

i loved your prussian videos, the pace was perfect

[@HoH]

Thanks for the feedback!!

[@napoleonibonaparte7198]

I would like to believe that in Crassus's final moments, he uttered, "I hate sand...".

[@JGreen1]

Feigned retreats gets them again and again and again and again and again and again.

[@truckingandfarmingmentor]

Would it be possible to make a video for the Odryssian country and other Thracian tribes? Something about their area of population and culture as well

[@wiggydj100]

Great video, but l found the background music distractingly loud.

[@HoH]

Thanks for the feedback, I'll try to tweak it in the future!

[@macellaio5452]

No 1 mention Cassius. Crassus lost the bulk of the army during the retreat by choosing the wrong path while CASSIUS retreated in order with his 2 or 3 legions.

[@boushido1]

this would make a great war movie... 🧐

[@grooveconductor6818]

The crazy thing is you make no mention of what they did to Crassus' son. C'mon dude that's the coolest part.

[@nynkevanderheide5903]

Wow!

[@vincenzoditommaso9596]

I think youtube didn’t show me this one. Weird

[@larinzonbruno9126]

Wonderful video, thank you for sharing with us your knowledge about this famous battle. Would you mind to share with us your viewpoint of Crassus thinking and feelings about the status quo and future of the Roman republic, do you think he was doing like Sulla, he wanted to be the princeps of Rome. A second topic, is Surena, what do you think was the reason his family doesn't revolt against Orodes II, why do you think we don't know the real name of him, what would be his relationship with the parthian aristocracy.....

[@volkervonalzey2770]

When will you finish the series on the War of 1866?

[@HoH]

Next week!

[@LuckyBird551]

The worst part is that it didn't end there. Rome tried to conquer the Parthians again and again and every time they were defeated in an incredibly humiliating way. Parthians: "HOW MANY TIMES DO WE NEED TO TEACH YOU THIS LESSON OLD MAN!"

[@lennart266]

11:57 I thought I died in game... lmao

[@ohNojames]

I wonder if Crassus had a massive ego? Kind of seems like it, but this also seems to kind of be Roman SOP when facing a new enemy.

[@recoil53]

Well yeah, a lot of the Romans had huge egos. But Crassus was out for military glory while not being a great military mind. He needed victories credited to him to keep public standing vs Pompeii and Caesar. Only a bad general would push tired troops for no reason, nor give them water. He did so because of his son? Yeah, tell junior to sit tf down. Then he fell for the fake retreat? Oldest nomad trick in the book. It shows a personal lack of discipline and lack of general knowledge in the Roman staff.

[@user-ej1gv1so3m]

Did you mention that Surena only had a few thousand troops against 40k?🤔🤫

[@mikhailiagacesa3406]

The Roman's adoption of Auxilliary (read Barbarian horseman) to solve their lack of cavalry led to defeats like Teutoberg Forrest; imho. What happened to the Eagles at Carrhae?

[@MCorpReview]

Love the total war Rome graphic when bruttii green formed testudo against the Parthian archers. They didn’t show the Roman’s getting butchered though😂

[@PhatCunt]

1 side marches into fire, the other runs away and shoots it

[@ramtin5152]

Little error : It was actually 9,000 horse archers (and 1,000 cataphracts) not 10,000 Crassus had 35,000 Legionaries, 4,000 cavalry and 4,000 light infantry, numbering 43,000 in total not 36,000

[@macellaio5452]

And there is another error. Many people think that Horse Archers kill all but thats not the case. Crassus lost the bulk of the army during the retreat ( insted of stay into the city of Carrhae as Cassius suggested ) . Crassus choosed the wrong path, while Cassius retreated in order with his 2or3 legions. If all the legionnaires had mutinied, most of them would have returned home

[@macellaio5452]

I guess you took numbers from wikipedia XD such precise numbers are often false

[@ramtin5152]

@@macellaio5452 Who hurt you little one ? You seem a little, angry And what does all of this has anything to do with what I said ? If you got anything to say about how the outcome could have been then say it in the main comments to the one who made the video

[@ramtin5152]

@@macellaio5452 The numbers are from the ancient sources such as Plutarch Life of Crassus chapter 23 or Cassius Dio Roman History Book XL chapter 20 which are considered accurate until now Crassus had 7 legions Each legion is made of 5,000-6,000 men The numbers of the non legionaries are also mentioned in the sources

[@user-uq6bt8wc6j]

@@ramtin5152 you just listed 2 historian who didnt even live during Crassus life cmon man

[@beepboop204]

[@shaolindreams]

When did they realise the horse archer is OP and their conventional way of fighting wasn't going to work against it. Oh this battle :D

[@Holybatman3603]

They quite new to it, eventually horse archers were defeated by Byzantine Phalanx in battles like Dara.

[@collincollar1398]

For the algorithm

[@HoH]

Thanks 🙏

[@hamishegi9993]

Surena🇮🇷 🖤

[@theatervoyager]

Spartacus finally been avenged....

[@laurensnefkens2077]

Typical. The richest man wants more money

[@nebulairan1494]

ای کاش ترجمه فارسی هم داشت

[@cjclark1208]

More like The Parthian bear trap. Such is fate, a fickle mistress.

[@movie30000]

Perhaps a warning to the greedy west

[@arya1357]

This is where the world “partisan” comes from

[@user-ej1gv1so3m]

Imagine how powerful Iran was that their king be like: Surena do you mind holding the Romans I'm going to invade Armenia 🤣😂😅

[@gregorylittle1461]

Enjoyed the recounting of this battle, but what happened to the legendary “parting (Parthian) shot,” the rain of arrows that the Parthian cavalry suddenly shot at the pursuing and subsequently shocked Roman cavalry? Has this been debunked and, if so, by whom?

[@CptSlow89]

And we have never saw Rome in Parthia because traitors killed Ceasar...

[@ramtin5152]

Even if he did invade Parthian empire, the possibility of his success would have been way lower than his campaigns in Gaul and Brittain We know what happened to Antony even though he attacked the Parthian empire from Armenia Plus the Parthians were unlike any enemies he faced during his campaigns and wars This time Caesar wasn't facing tribal people with inferior battle equipments and disorganised tribes The Parthians had more unified armies than Gauls and Germans, better tactics, better battle equipments than them which were as good as Romans', more manoeuvrable armies, better terrain that could use to their advantage, more resources that they could use for a retaliation campaign, natural barriers like Zagros and Alborz mountains which protected most of their resources from Roman invasions Don't let Trajan's campaign fool you He attacked the Parthians when their empire was in total chaos and divided in two because of the civil war between Vologases III who had most of the Eastern half of the empire and a usurper called Osroes I who had Mesopotamia, Khuzistan, Media Atropatene, some of the central provinces and finally Armenia (which gave Trajan the excuse he needed) But even he couldn't hold the lands he conquered He even got wounded during the siege of Hatra, which he failed to conquer and didn't even face any Parthian armies during his campaign He only besieged cities The locals revolted, some of his garrisons were taken out, his puppet king was defeated, his troops were harassed by the Parthians and in the end he was forced to retreat with his main army while the Parthians retook everything

[@macellaio5452]

@@ramtin5152 Romans were superior. Thats why Parthia only tried to attack the eastern provinces , provinces that once belonged to Parthia but were conquered by the Romans.

[@ramtin5152]

@@macellaio5452 Syria, Judea and Anatolia were never part of the Parthian empire even before the arrival of Romans Give me the name of a battle in which Romans defeated a Parthian army that outnumbered them over 4 to 1 or even 3 to 1 And don't even think of bringing up sack of Ctesiphon which was one out of SEVEN Parthian capitals and was only two cities away from the eastern borders of Rome

[@macellaio5452]

@@ramtin5152 Parthia was nothing for Rome,apart from a few sporadic victories they were always defeated. the Sassanids were a great enemy

[@ramtin5152]

@@macellaio5452 They were formidable enough Just because all you Roman fanboys hear is 1 of their 7 capitals being sacked 3 times and because you only talk about Ventidius campaign, doesn't mean they didn't gain any other victory other than Carrhae Let's see what battles they've won (against Romans only) Battle of Carrhae, Romans lost even though they outnumbered the Parthians more than 4-1 in open lands and after that, the Parthians plundered the lands of Judea, Syria, and southern Anatolia before being fought off by Cassius and another Roman commander Few years later after that setback in a skirmish with Cassius and another Roman commander, Pacorus forces heavily defeated Lucius Decidius Saxa near Antioch He fled to Cilicia where he was captured and executed by the Parthians His legions reportedly suffered heavy defeats again and several of his aquilae were seized, being returned to Rome first after a brief Roman war against Parthia and negotiations after the disastrous defeats of Mark Antony Mark Antony Atropatene campaign, 32,000-45,000 of 127,000 Romans were killed by the Parthians while the Parthians had only 40,000-50,000 soldiers Mark Antony came back for another campaign against the Parthians with the help of a Median king but was again pushed back and also forced to go back to Roman lands (he captured the Armenian king in a campaign in Armenia though) They also won against Romans at the battle of Urumia 36 BC The Parthians were victorious at the battle of Rhandeia as well and inflicted a heavy defeat on the Romans Walagash I (Vologases I) made them build him a bridge so he can cross while sitting on a royal elephant, which was humiliating for Romans Even made Romans pass under their spears, which was the MOST humiliating thing for Roman legions in ancient times Trajan attacked when the Parthians were in a civil war (both because of the Parthian usurper king Osroes I who betrayed the treaty of Rhandeia) and still lost all the conquered cities to Iranian rebels after he left Even during Trajan's invasion, the Parthians gained some victories Trajan failed to take Hatra, which avoided a total Parthian defeat and he himself was wounded during the siege The Parthian forces attacked key Roman positions, and Roman garrisons at Seleucia, Nisibis and Edessa were evicted by the local populaces and the Romans were pushed out of Mesopotamia with the defeat of Trajan's puppet king The Parthians may have been defeated at the end of the Roman Parthian war of 161-166 but before that, they defeated and routed two Roman armies in Armenia and Syria and they might have won in the end if it wasn't for a plague The Parthians were also victorious in war of Caracalla and the battle of Nisibis 217 AD and the Romans were forced to pay heavy tribute The tribute was 200 million sesterces which also equals the amount of wealth the richest man of the Roman republic, Crassus, the Roman general at the battle of Carrhae had

[@aryamehr1]

As a Parthian: If we had a wiser king than Orodes II at that time, there would be no such thing as the Roman Empire in the Middle East history any more. And the poor people of this region did not have to endure these bloodthirsty rulers for centuries.

[@wilsontheconqueror8101]

Crassus was a fool! Caesar would have never marched his men into a negative military position like that!

[@ramtin5152]

Yeah but look what happened to Antony even though he attacked the Parthians from Armenia

[@macellaio5452]

@@ramtin5152 Antony wasnt a really good commander, the war with Mark Antony is proof of this.

[@ramtin5152]

@@macellaio5452 The Triumvirates won the battle of Philippi because of him and he lead them them to victory in the Liberators' civil war He had gained enough experience while campaigning with Caesar in Gaul and Caesar's civil war Plus despite losing 45,000 men during his Atropatene campaign, he prevented a route and retreated in order with the rest of his men He won the battle of Forum Gallorum, did pretty well at the battle of Mutina and fought off a large portion of the Gaulic army at the battle of Alesia twice with his heavily outnumbered legions He also had a successful campaign against the Armenian king Don't forget the Parthians were fighting him in mountainous terrain and cold lands where they weren't used to usually fight in

[@Moon-li9ki]

too bad crassus rejected armenian help for the war agains the persians.

[@ramtin5152]

Armenians paid for that offer of assistance Orodes II invaded Armenia with his main army, defeated the Armenian army and conquered Armenia

[@ramtin5152]

​@@Tracchofyre He did actually The Armenian king offered Crassus 16,000 cavalry and 30,000 infantry Crassus didn't want to share the glory or the spoils of war like he did with Pompey back then neither wanted to risk allying himself with an army that outnumbered his in an unfamiliar enemy territory in a campaign