Publius Ventidius ( 89–38 BC) was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

and one of

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...

's protégés. He won key victories against the Parthians which resulted in the deaths of key leaders – victories which redeemed the losses of Crassus and paved the way for Antony's incursions. According to Plutarch in his " Life of Antony", the three military victories of Ventidius over the Parthians singularly resulted in the only award (up to the time of Plutarch's writing) to a Roman general of the triumphal ceremony for victory over Parthians.

History

Ventidius was from Picenum. He and his mother were captured during the Social War, and both were marched as prisoners in Pompey Strabo's

triumph The Roman triumph (Latin triumphus) was a celebration for a victorious military commander in ancient Rome. For later imitations, in life or in art, see Trionfo. Numerous later uses of the term, up to the present, are derived directly or indirectl ...

through the streets of

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. He was forced to work as a muleteer and quickly saw the

Roman army The Roman army (Latin: ) was the armed forces deployed by the Romans throughout the duration of Ancient Rome, from the Roman Kingdom (c. 500 BC) to the Roman Republic (500–31 BC) and the Roman Empire (31 BC–395 AD), and its medieval contin ...

as his path to advancement. Ventidius attracted Caesar's notice during the

Gallic Wars The Gallic Wars were waged between 58 and 50 BC by the Roman general Julius Caesar against the peoples of Gaul (present-day France, Belgium, Germany and Switzerland). Gallic, Germanic, and British tribes fought to defend their homel ...

, and while he does not receive mention in Caesar's commentaries, he did execute Caesar's orders with ability during

Caesar's civil war Caesar's civil war (49–45 BC) was one of the last politico-military conflicts of the Roman Republic before its reorganization into the Roman Empire. It began as a series of political and military confrontations between Gaius Julius Caesar and ...

, and became one of Caesar's favorites. Ventidius chose to stand back during the early stages of

Mark Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the au ...

's struggle with

Octavian Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...

, eventually throwing his lot in with Antony. After the formation of the Second Triumvirate, Ventidius was appointed suffect consul. During Antony's absence in Egypt in 41 BC, Ventidius did nothing to support Antony's brother Lucius Antonius or Antony's wife

Fulvia Fulvia (; c. 83 BC – 40 BC) was an aristocratic Roman woman who lived during the Late Roman Republic. Fulvia's birth into an important political dynasty facilitated her relationships and, later on, marriages to Publius Clodius Pulcher, Gai ...

during their struggle with Octavian. After Antony had come to an agreement with Octavian off of Cape Misenum (probably in August 39), he sent Ventidius with several legions in response to a Parthian invasion launched in 40 BC. Ventidius' first major success came when he defeated

Quintus Labienus Quintus Labienus Parthicus (died 39 BC) was a Roman general in the Late Republic period. The son of Titus Labienus, he made an alliance with Parthia and invaded the Roman provinces in the eastern Mediterranean which were under the control of Mark ...

and Phranipates (the best of King Orodes' military commanders) at the Battle of the Cilician Gates and the Amanus Pass. After hearing of the battles while in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, Antony put on a public feast in the town, then proceeded to the

Levant The Levant () is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia. In its narrowest sense, which is in use today in archaeology and other cultural contexts, it is ...

to join him. Despite this setback, the Parthians launched another invasion into Syria led by Pacorus, the son of King Orodes. Ventidius met Pacorus' huge army in the Battle of Cyrrhestica where he inflicted an overwhelming defeat which resulted in the death of Pacorus. This victory was the culmination of Ventidius' campaigns, which confined the Parthians within Media (Medes) and

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

, and psychologically avenged the losses of Crassus, particularly at Carrhae. Ventidius could have pursued the Parthians even further: but, according to Plutarch, Ventidius had concerns regarding the possible jealousy of Antony; and, he preferred to subdue those who had rebelled against Roman authority to pursuing the Parthians with his forces. One such rebel was Antiochus of

Commagene Commagene ( grc-gre, Κομμαγηνή) was an ancient Greco-Iranian kingdom ruled by a Hellenized branch of the Iranian Orontid dynasty that had ruled over Armenia. The kingdom was located in and around the ancient city of Samosata, which s ...

, whom he besieged in

Samosata Samsat ( ku, Samîsad), formerly Samosata ( grc, Σαμόσατα) is a small town in the Adıyaman Province of Turkey, situated on the upper Euphrates river. It is the seat of Samsat District.indemnity In contract law, an indemnity is a contractual obligation of one party (the ''indemnitor'') to compensate the loss incurred by another party (the ''indemnitee'') due to the relevant acts of the indemnitor or any other party. The duty to indemni ...

of 1,000 talents, the final treaty with Antony had an indemnity of only 300 talents. After peace was concluded, Antony sent Ventidius back to Rome where he celebrated a

, the first Roman to triumph over the Parthians. After celebrating his triumph, Ventidius is not mentioned again.

In Shakespeare

Ventidius appears briefly in

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

's play '' Antony and Cleopatra'', where he is shown leading the Roman forces against Parthia. He muses over whether to risk rousing his superior's jealousy by going further than he has; after which he disappears from the play.

Citations

References

External links

Dictionary of Greek and Romans – 1867
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ventidius, Publius 1st-century BC Roman governors of Syria 1st-century BC Roman consuls Ancient Roman generals People of the Roman–Parthian Wars Ventidii