 |
| Battle of Issus | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Year of the Five Emperors | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| forces of Septimius Severus | forces of Pescennius Niger | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Publius Cornelius Anullinus | Pescennius Niger | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 20,000 according to Cassius Dio | |||||||
The Battle of Issus was the third major battle in AD 194 between the forces of Emperor Septimius Severus and his rival, Pescennius Niger, part of the Year of the Five Emperors. Severus won the battle, and Niger was captured and killed shortly afterwards.
Pescennius Niger was the Roman governor of Syria who had been acclaimed Emperor by his troops, like Severus, following the death of Pertinax.
Following its successive defeats at Cyzicus and Battle of Nicaea in 193, Niger's army successfully withdrew to the Taurus Mountains, where it fiercely defended the Cilician pass. At this time, the commander of the Severan troops, Tiberius Claudius Candidus, was replaced by Publius Cornelius Anullinus, perhaps due to the failure of the former to prevent the withdrawal of the rival army. [1]
Eventually, Anullinus entered Syria, and the final battle took place in May 194, near Issus, the place where Alexander the Great had defeated the Persian King Darius III in 332 BC. [1] Severus took advantage of the control he had on the lives of the children of the provincial governors, who were left at Rome, and of the rivalries of the cities in the region, thus encouraging governors to change sides, one legion to desert to him, and some cities to revolt. [1]
Severan troops attacked first, while Niger's forces were hurling missiles onto them. According to Dio, Severan legionaries applied testudo, using their shields for protecting either themselves [2] or their own missile shooters [3] (however, it seems that it was not the real testudo that was used in sieges or against highly mobile attackers [2] ). At the same time, the Severan cavalry attacked from the rear. [3] The fight was hard, but in the end, Severus won decisively and Niger fled back to Antioch. A sudden thunderstorm played some role in lowering the morale of Niger's troops, who were directly facing it, because they had attributed it to divine intervention. [4]
A triumphal arch was set on site, commemorating the victory of Severus. [1]
While this battle concluded hostilities on the field between the two rivals for control of the East (Niger was captured and killed, a few days later), the city of Byzantium withstood a siege by Severan troops until AD 196, possibly on the hope that a third rival to the principate, the governor of Britain Clodius Albinus, nominally allied with Niger, would defeat Severus in the West. The opposite occurred at the Battle of Lugdunum.
Lucius Septimius Severus was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary succession of offices under the reigns of Marcus Aurelius and Commodus. Severus seized power after the death of the emperor Pertinax in 193 during the Year of the Five Emperors.
The 2nd century is the period from 101 (CI) through 200 (CC) in accordance with the Julian calendar. It is considered part of the Classical era, epoch, or historical period.
The 190s decade ran from January 1, 190, to December 31, 199.
Year 193 (CXCIII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sosius and Ericius. The denomination 193 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Year 194 (CXCIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Septimius and Septimius. The denomination 194 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Gaius Pescennius Niger was Roman Emperor from 193 to 194 during the Year of the Five Emperors. He claimed the imperial throne in response to the murder of Pertinax and the elevation of Didius Julianus, but was defeated by a rival claimant, Septimius Severus, and killed while attempting to flee from Antioch.
Decimus Clodius Albinus was a Roman imperial pretender between 193 and 197. He was proclaimed emperor by the legions in Britain and Hispania after the murder of Pertinax in 193, and proclaimed himself emperor again in 196, before his final defeat the following year.
Legio II Traiana, was a legion of the Imperial Roman army raised by emperor Trajan, along with XXX Ulpia Victrix, for the campaigns in Dacia. Records of the II Traiana Fortis have been recovered from Egypt dating to the middle of the 5th century. The legion's emblem was the demi-god Hercules.
Legio III Cyrenaica, was a legion of the Imperial Roman army. The legion had its origins among the forces of Mark Antony during the civil wars of late first century BC. In the Imperial period it was stationed in Egypt, where it played a key role in campaigns against the Nubians and Jews. In the first century AD, it was usually located in Arabia Petraea. There are still records of the legion in Syria at the beginning of the 5th century. The legion symbol is unknown.
Julia Domna was Roman empress from 193 to 211 as the wife of Emperor Septimius Severus. She was the first empress of the Severan dynasty. Domna was born in Emesa in Roman Syria to an Arab family of priests of the deity Elagabalus. In 187, she married Severus, who at the time was governor of the Roman province of Gallia Lugdunensis. They had two sons, Caracalla and Geta. A civil war over the Roman throne broke out in 193, and shortly afterwards Severus declared himself emperor. The war ended in 197 with the defeat of the last of Severus's opponents.
Roman Syria was an early Roman province annexed to the Roman Republic in 64 BC by Pompey in the Third Mithridatic War following the defeat of King of Armenia Tigranes the Great.
The Battle of Lugdunum, also called the Battle of Lyon, was fought on 19 February 197 at Lugdunum, between the armies of the Roman emperor Septimius Severus and of the Roman usurper Clodius Albinus. Severus' victory finally established him as the sole emperor of the Roman Empire following the Year of the Five Emperors and immediate aftermath.
Issus or Issos is an ancient settlement on the strategic coastal plain straddling the small Pinarus river below the navigationally difficult inland mountains towering above to the east in the Turkish Province of Hatay, near the border with Syria. It can be identified with Kinet Höyük in the village of Yeṣilköy near Dörtyol in the Hatay province of Turkey. Excavations on the mound occurred between 1992 and 2012 by Bilkent University. It is most notable for being the place of no fewer than three decisive ancient or medieval battles each called in their own era the Battle of Issus:
The Battle of Nicaea was fought in 193 between the forces of Septimius Severus and his eastern rival, Pescennius Niger. It took place at Nicaea in Asia Minor. Severus defeated his rival, and ended his bid for the Roman Empire the next year at Issus.
The Battle of Cyzicus was fought in 193 between the forces of Septimius Severus and his rival for the empire, Pescennius Niger, who was defeated.
The Year of the Five Emperors was AD 193, in which five men claimed the title of Roman emperor: Pertinax, Didius Julianus, Pescennius Niger, Clodius Albinus, and Septimius Severus. This year started a period of civil war when multiple rulers vied for the chance to become Caesar.
Battle of Issus may refer to:
Publius Cornelius Anullinus was one of the generals of the Roman emperor Septimius Severus. He was from the city of Iliberis, and, while there is no clear information around this, it is believed he was not of a patrician family but was one of the equites.
Tiberius Claudius Candidus was a Roman general and senator. He played an important role supporting Septimius Severus in the struggle for succession following the assassination of the emperor Pertinax in 193 CE.