Ceasar turns east

NIK PARMEN

Banned
If ceasar gets away from senate assination attempted in 44 BC? We know that had plans to deal with the parthians. Is it possible to follow the steps of Alexander the Great and rearch to India

729px-Parthia_001ad.jpg
 

Philip

Donor
If ceasar gets away from senate assination attempted in 44 BC? We know that had plans to deal with the parthians. Is it possible to follow the steps of Alexander the Great and rearch to India

No. It is not.

His goal was not to take all of Parthia. Had he been able to secure northern Mesopotamia, his goal was to turn north, circle the Black Sea, and attack Dacia from the east.

Even if he did manage to take all of Parthia, Rome would never be able to hold it.
 
There was indeed an expedition to Parthia planned to avenge the death of Crassus at Carrhae, but Parthia was too big to hold onto so I suspect Caesar would have settled for just Mesopotamia. Rome had enough trouble holding on to that later although Rome is admittedly more dynamic at this time than a few centuries later while the Parthians are not (when compared to the Sassanids). In spite of the political crises and civil wars, the 1st century BC still had economic growth. I think Caesar could have taken Mesopotamia, but those after him have to hold on to it.

If the Romans can hold onto Mesopotamia, it would weaken the Parthians (or whatever incarnation of the Persian Empire succeeds them). The region is an administrative centre with many cities (Babylon, Susa, Ctesiphon, Nineveh) and a big economic centre since trade routes run through here not to mention the fact that the area around the Tigris and Eufrates rivers are agricultural areas of big importance. The permanent loss of such a vital administrative, economic and quite densely populated region could render any eastern threat to a mere pest at worst or make the Parthians a Roman puppet at best. This secures the eastern border. If/when the Huns come, the Romans might be able to resist them better.

Then Caesar can turn to Germania and establish Eurofed's fabled Vistula-Carpathian mountains - Danube delta/Black Sea border:p. This could be done if Caesar had his hands free to conquer Germania.
 
If ceasar gets away from senate assination attempted in 44 BC? We know that had plans to deal with the parthians. Is it possible to follow the steps of Alexander the Great and rearch to India

No. Caesar was not embarking on a war of conquest, although I doubt he would have minded. His expedition was intended to avenge the humiliation suffered by Roman Arms at Carhae. His expedition will most likely look similar to Anthony's in the mid-30s, although perhaps better prepared and thus more successful. But conquering the Parthians is absurd. best case scenario (and all that rome could realistically hold) would be mesopotamia and some land up near armenia.
 
As others have said before me, Caesar's plans for Carrhae were not really to conquer, but basically to beat them into submission, take some land, (but not to conquer the whole thing) and make them say uncle to avenge their murder of Crassus and the Battle of Carrhae. Perhaps they'd become a vassal/buffer state for the empire?

And, Rome after Caesar would have a heck of a time holding on to it for any substantial length of time if he did choose to conquer all of Parthia and expand to India.
 
Top