Posted on 05/12/2021 8:20:53 AM PDT by LuciusDomitiusAutelian
The Battle of Lake Trasimene is the 2nd greatest ambush in Western military history, IMO. The greatest was Arminius’ slaughter of the Roman legions at the Teutoburg Forest.
The Mongols had some good ones too.
My late father was a real history buff. He was fascinated with the Teutoberg Forest, the battle, and the Roman empire and discussed it in length. I look forward to that posting by yourself.
Another battle lost was that by Crassus when at his advancing age (50s) he decided to conquer large areas of the middle east and the Parthians to guarantee is fame in history. I found an early copy of a Roman history book by the French historian and educator first written in the early 1700s. It covered this very disastrous effort to conquer some of the same people we have been fighting there for the past 20 years. Young Cassius of Shakespear’s “Yon Cassius has a lean and hungry look, such men are dangerous.” was motivated to kill Julius Caesar because Caesar was planning to go back to the middle east to erase the shame of Crassus’ defeat. As a young officer Cassius had played a significant role in rescuing part of Crassus’ army which he took back across the middle east to the Mediterranian Sea, as he traveled strengthening the resolve of fortresses and settlements loyal to or controlled by Rome to resist defecting to the enemy. His role in Caesar’s assassination may have been the saving of Rome from another disastrous defeat. I have an idea for a play about Cassius and his motivation. I don’t know if I will ever find time to write it.
Yeah, Varro and Flamminius really screwed the pooch on that one.
I’d probably put Cannae above Trasemene but they are really part of the same battle.
Poor Crassus. He was the stooge of the Triumverate. He never got the military glory he wanted and actually should have been given prior to the Triumverate. Pompeii stole his rightful glory in taking down Spartacus. I always thought Cassius got the short straw in that deal but it’s hard to feel sorry for a guy like Crassus. He would stand outside of people’s burning homes with his private fire department and negotiate the cost of putting out the fire with the owner. By the property for penny on the dollar. He was a pretty crooked business man and the richest Roman by far.
Agreed. As a tactician i’d put him above Alexander the Great. Julius Caesar and Alexander the Great had both the tactical and the strategic mind. He’s in my top 5 field generals of history. In the Western World anyway. I’m just now taking on the eastern civilizations. A whole different world.
I read my own evening posts and i see that Irish wine and typing aren’t compatible. My 4th grade English teacher would take me to the woodshed.
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