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In 74 BC another kingdom was bequeathed to Rome, this time the
eastern kingdom of Bithynia. With Sulla dead, Mithridates once again
decided to take an ambitious chance. A Roman army was soon upon him
however, and he was forced to flee after a series of crushing
defeats. By 70 BC Pontus was a roman territory, although the Romans
found themselves able to make only little gain further into the east.
In 66 BC Rome sent another general to ensure Mithridates demise.
Pompey, Sulla's capable successor, was fresh from a successful
anti-piracy campaign. Pompey pursued his enemy through his fevered
escape into Armenia and then beyond. In 63 BC Mithridates
committed suicide after he and his allies had suffered numerous
defeats at the hands of Pompey. Armenia surrendered and Rome gained
an even stronger hold on the east.
Pompey returned to Rome and disbanded his army, and was soon
approached by a politician who had been gaining rapid success, Julius
Caesar Together with Crassus, one of the most wealthy Romans, they
supported each other in attaining further power through Roman
politics. Caesar was appointed consul to Gaul in 58 BC, and
immediatly began a campaign to eject the celtic tribes migrating to
the region. By 53 BC Caesar had conquered the entirety of Gaul and
had even made two expeditions to Great Britain, although he decided
that the island wasn't worth the effort. Meanwhile in Rome, violence
between political parties was spilling on to the streets. Pompey was
made sole consul of Rome in 52BC in order to quell the escalating
violence, leaving him with incredible power over the politics of the republic.
While Caesar and Pompey were busy in the west, Crassus had been
taking charge in the east. He achieved the consulship of Syria and
formed an army, most likely in an attempt to gain some military
victories for himself. He struck into Mesopotamia in 54 BC against
the long time enemy of Rome, Parthia. His army was defeated by the
Parthian king's cavalry the next year, and Crassus was killed. Back
in the west Pompey and Caesar clashed with each other, Pompey
attempting to deprive Caesar of power long enough for him to be
convicted for the methods he utilized in Gaul. In 49 BC, left with a
choice between fighting against Pompey or destruction, Caesar marched
his forces across the Rubicon, out of the province of Gaul and on to
Rome. Pompey retreated and sailed east to muster more forces while
Caesar took control of Rome as dictator.
By 48 BC most of Pompey's forces had either joined with Caesar or
been destroyed. Pompey fled to Egypt, where he was assassinated by
the egyptian goverment. Caesar gave chase and landed in Egypt as
well, only to learn of his target's death. He was soon swept up into
Egyptian politics, and then into a war with the royal guard. In 47
BC, a force allied to Caesar crushed the Egyptian King's forces, and
Caesar soon put the king's sister on the throne. He left Egypt that
year and continued compaigns against the allies of Pompey in Africa
and Spain until 45 BC, when at long last they were all defeated. In
44 BC Caesar was killed in Rome, for fear of his wanting complete
power over the republic.
With Caesar's death the republic was once again fractured. His
assassins, fearing for their safety, barricaded themselves in the
outskirts of the republic. Marcus Antonius (Marc Antony), Caesar's
top lieutenant, was ready to take control for himself. However, Gaius
Julius Caesar Octavianus, Caesar great-nephew that Caesar had
designated as his heir, soon arrived on the scene and threatened the
future of both Antony and the senators who had killed his
great-uncle. Antony and Octavius put together a tentative alliance
and crushed their opposition. They then divided the empire, Octavius
in the west and Antony in the east. This was not to last however, for
in 32 BC Antony rejected his marriage with Octavian's sister and
married the Egyptian Cleopatra instead. Octavian declared war and
chased Antony and his lover into Egypt. In 30 BC both Antony and
Cleopatra killed themselves, leaving Octavian the sole ruler of Rome. |
