The Roman History of Ammianus Marcellinus Part 43

6. The emperor was enraged and indignant at this; he was now near the district of Ctesiphon, and had just reached a lofty and well-fortified castle. He went himself to reconnoitre it, being, as he fancied, concealed, as he rode with a small escort close to the walls; but as from too much eagerness he got within bowshot, he was soon noticed, and was immediately a.s.sailed by every kind of missile, and would have been killed by an arrow shot from an engine on the walls, if it had not struck his armour-bearer, who kept close by his side, and he himself, being protected by the closely-packed shields of his guards, fell back, after having been exposed to great danger.

7. At this he was greatly enraged, and determined to lay siege to the fort; but the garrison was very resolute to defend it, believing the place to be nearly inaccessible, and that the king, who was advancing with great speed at the head of a large army, would soon arrive to their a.s.sistance.

8. And now, the vineae and everything else required for the siege being prepared, at the second watch, when the night, which happened to be one of very bright moonlight, made everything visible to the defenders on the battlements, suddenly the whole mult.i.tude of the garrison formed into one body, threw open the gates and sallied out, and attacking a division of our men who were not expecting them, slew numbers, among whom one tribune was killed as he was endeavouring to repel the attack.

9. And while this was going on, the Persians, having attacked a portion of our men in the same manner as before from the opposite side of the river, slew some and took others prisoners. And our men, in alarm, and because they believed the enemy had come into the field in very superior numbers, behaved at first with but little spirit; but presently, when they recovered their courage, they flew again to arms, and being roused by the sound of the trumpets, they hastened to the charge with threatening cries, upon which the Persians retired to the garrison without further contest.

10. And the emperor, being terribly angry, reduced those of the cavalry who had shown a want of courage when attacked to serve in the infantry, which is a severer service and one of less honour.

11. Then, being very eager to take a castle where he had incurred so much danger, he devoted all his own labour and care to that end, never himself retiring from the front ranks of his men, in order that by fighting in the van he might be an example of gallantry to his soldiers, and might be also sure to see, and therefore able to reward, every gallant action. And when he had exposed himself a long time to imminent danger, the castle, having been a.s.sailed by every kind of manoeuvre, weapon, and engine, and by great valour on the part of the besiegers, was at length taken and burnt.

12. After this, in consideration of the great labour of the exploits which they had performed, and which were before them, he granted rest to his army, exhausted with its excessive toil, and distributed among them provisions in abundance. Then a rampart was raised round the camp, with dense rows of palisades, and a deep fosse, as sudden sallies and various formidable manoeuvres were dreaded, since they were very near Ctesiphon.

VI.

-- 1. From this place they advanced to a ca.n.a.l known as Naharmalcha, a name which means "The River of Kings." It was then dry. Long ago Trajan, and after him Severus, had caused the soil to be dug out, and had given great attention to constructing this as a ca.n.a.l of great size, so that, being filled with water from the Euphrates, it might enable vessels to pa.s.s into the Tigris.

2. And for every object in view it appeared best that this should now be cleaned out, as the Persians, fearing such an operation, had blocked it up with a ma.s.s of stones. After it had been cleared and the dams removed, a large body of water was let in, so that our fleet, after a safe voyage of thirty furlongs, pa.s.sed into the Tigris. There the army at once threw bridges across the river, and pa.s.sing over to the other side, marched upon Coche.

3. And that after our fatigue we might enjoy seasonable rest, we encamped in an open plain, rich with trees, vines, and cypresses, in the middle of which was a shady and delicious pavilion, having all over it, according to the fashion of the country, pictures of the king slaying wild beasts in the chase; for they never paint or in any way represent anything except different kinds of slaughter and war.

4. Having now finished everything according to his wish, the emperor, rising higher in spirit as his difficulties increased, and building such hopes on Fortune, which had not yet proved unfavourable to him, that he often pushed his boldness to the verge of temerity, unloaded some of the strongest of the vessels which were carrying provisions and warlike engines, and put on board of them eight hundred armed men; and keeping the main part of the fleet with him, which he divided into three squadrons, he settled that one under the command of Count Victor should start at nightfall, in order to cross the river with speed, and so seize on the bank in possession of the enemy.

5. The generals were greatly alarmed at this plan, and unanimously entreated him to forego it; but as they could not prevail, the signal for sailing was raised, as he commanded, and at once five ships hastened onwards out of sight; and when they drew near to the bank they were attacked with an incessant storm of fire-pots and every kind of contrivance to handle flames, and they would have been burnt soldiers and all if the emperor, being roused, had not with great energy hastened to the spot, shouting out that our men, as they were ordered, had made him a signal that they were now masters of the bank of the river, and ordering the whole fleet to hasten forward with all speed.

6. In consequence of which vigour the ships were saved, and the soldiers, though hara.s.sed by the enemy from their commanding ground with stones and every kind of missile, nevertheless after a fierce conflict made good their footing on the high bank of the river, and established themselves immovably.

7. History marvels that Sertorius swam across the Rhone with his arms and his breastplate; but on this occasion, some soldiers, though disordered, fearing to remain behind after the signal for battle was raised, clinging firmly to their shields, which are broad and concave, and guiding them, though without much skill, kept pace with the speed of the vessels through a river full of currents.

8. The Persians resisted this attack with squadrons of cuira.s.sier cavalry in such close order that their bodies dazzled the eye, fitting together, as it seemed, with their brilliant armour; while their horses were all protected with a covering of stout leather. As a reserve to support them several maniples of infantry were stationed, protected by crooked, oblong shields, made of wicker-work and raw hides, behind which they moved in compact order. Behind them were elephants, like so many walking hills, which by every motion of their huge bodies threatened destruction to all who came near them, and our men had been taught to fear them by past experience.

9. On this the emperor, according to the arrangement of the Greek army as mentioned by Homer,[150] allotted the centre s.p.a.ce between his two lines to his weakest infantry, lest if they were placed in the front rank, and should then misbehave, they should disorder the whole of his line; or lest, on the other hand, if posted in the rear, behind all the other centuries, they should flee without shame, since there would be no one to check them: he with his light-armed auxiliaries moving as might be required between the lines.

10. Therefore when the two armies beheld each other, the Romans glittering with their crested helmets, and brandishing their shields, proceeded slowly, their bands playing an anapaestic measure; and after a preliminary skirmish, carried on by the missiles of the front rank, they rushed to battle with such vehemence that the earth trembled beneath them.

11. The battle-shout was raised on all sides, as was usual, the braying trumpets encouraged the eagerness of the men: all fought in close combat with spears and drawn swords, so that the soldiers were free from all danger of arrows the more rapidly they pressed onwards. Meanwhile, Julian, like a gallant comrade, at the same time that he was a skilful general, hasten to support his hardly-pressed battalions with reserves, and to cheer on the laggards.

12. So the front line of the Persians wavered, having been never very fierce; and at last, no longer able to support the heat of their armour, they retreated in haste to their city, which was near: they were pursued by our soldiers, weary as they were with having fought in those torrid plains from daybreak to sunset; and we, pressing close on their heels, drove them, with their choicest generals, Pigranes, the Surena, and Na.r.s.es, right up to the walls of Ctesiphon, inflicting many wounds on their legs and backs.

13. And we should have forced our entrance into the city if a general named Victor had not, by lifting up his hands and his voice, checked us, being himself pierced through the shoulder with an arrow, and fearing lest if the soldiers allowed themselves to be hurried within the walls without any order, and could then find no means of returning, they might be overwhelmed by the ma.s.s of their enemies.

14. Let the poets celebrate the ancient battles of Hector, or extol the valour of the Thessalian Achilles; let past ages tell the praises of Sophanes, and Aminias, and Callimachus, and Cynaegirus, those thunderbolts of war in the struggles of the Greeks against Persia; but it is evident by the confession of all men that the gallantry displayed by some of our troops on that day was equal to any of their exploits.

15. After having laid aside their fears, and trampled on the carcases of their enemies, the soldiers, still stained with the blood so justly shed, collected round the tent of the emperor, loading him with praises and thanks, because, while behaving with such bravery that it was hard to say whether he had been more a general or a soldier, he had conducted the affair with such success that not above seventy of our men had fallen, while nearly two thousand five hundred of the Persians had been slain. And he in his turn addressed by name most of those whose steady courage and gallant actions he had witnessed, presenting them with naval, civic, and military crowns.

16. Thinking that this achievement would surely be followed by other similar successes, he prepared a large sacrifice to Mars the Avenger.

Ten most beautiful bulls were brought for the purpose, nine of which, even before they reached the altars, lay down of their own accord with mournful countenances, but the tenth broke his bonds and escaped, and was with difficulty brought back at all; and when sacrificed displayed very unfavourable omens; but when he saw this, Julian became very indignant, and exclaimed, calling Jupiter to witness, that henceforth he would offer no sacrifices to Mars. Nor did he recall his vow, being cut off by a speedy death.

VII.

-- 1. Julian, having discussed with his chief officers the plan for the siege of Ctesiphon, it appeared to some of them that it would be an act of unseasonable temerity to attack that city, both because its situation made it almost impregnable, and also because King Sapor was believed to be hastening to its protection with a formidable army.

2. The better opinion prevailed; and the sagacious emperor being convinced of its wisdom, sent Arinthaeus with a division of light infantry, to lay waste the surrounding districts, which were rich both in herds and in crops, with orders also to pursue the enemy with equal energy, for many of them were wandering about, concealed amid overgrown by-ways, and lurking-places known only to themselves. The booty was abundant.

3. But Julian himself, being always eager to extend his conquests, disregarded the advice of those who remonstrated against his advance; and reproaching his chiefs, as men who out of mere laziness and a love of ease advised him to let go the kingdom of Persia when he had almost made himself master of it, left the river on his left hand, and led by unlucky guides, determined to proceed towards the inland parts of the country by forced marches.

4. And he ordered all his ships to be burnt, as if with the fatal torch of Bellona herself, except twelve of the smaller vessels, which he arranged should be carried on waggons, as likely to be of use for building bridges. And he thought this a most excellently conceived plan, to prevent his fleet if left behind from being of any use to the enemy, or on the other hand to prevent what happened at the outset of the expedition, nearly twenty thousand men being occupied in moving and managing the vessels.

5. Then, as the men began in their alarm to grumble to themselves (as indeed manifest truth pointed out), that the soldiers if hindered from advancing by the height of the mountains or the dryness of the country, would have no means of returning to get water, and when the deserters, on being put to the torture openly confessed that they had made a false report, he ordered all hands to labour to extinguish the flames. But the fire, having got to a great head, had consumed most of them, so that only the twelve could be preserved unhurt, which were set apart to be taken care of.

6. In this way the fleet being unseasonably destroyed, Julian, relying on his army which was now all united, having none of its divisions diverted to other occupations, and so being strong in numbers, advanced inland, the rich district through which he marched supplying him with an abundance of provisions.

7. When this was known, the enemy, with a view to distressing us by want of supplies, burnt up all the gra.s.s and the nearly ripe crops; and we, being unable to advance by reason of the conflagration, remained stationary in our camp till the fire was exhausted. And the Persians, insulting us from a distance, sometimes spread themselves widely on purpose, sometimes offered us resistance in a compact body; so that to us who beheld them from a distance it might seem that the reinforcements of the king had come up, and we might imagine that it was on that account that they had ventured on their audacious sallies and unwonted enterprises.

8. Both the emperor and the troops were greatly vexed at this, because they had no means of constructing a bridge, since the ships had been inconsiderately destroyed, nor could any check be offered to the movements of the strange enemy, whom the glistening brilliancy of their arms showed to be close at hand; this armour of theirs being singularly adapted to all the inflections of their body. There was another evil of no small weight, that the reinforcements which we were expecting to arrive under the command of Arsaces and some of our own generals, did not make their appearance, being detained by the causes already mentioned.

VIII.

-- 1. The emperor, to comfort his soldiers who were made anxious by these events, ordered the prisoners who were of slender make, as the Persians usually are, and who were now more than usually emaciated, to be brought before the army; and looking at our men he said, "Behold what those warlike spirits consider men, little ugly dirty goats; and creatures who, as many events have shown, throw away their arms and take to flight before they can come to blows."

2. And when he had said this, and had ordered the prisoners to be removed, he held a consultation on what was to be done; and after many opinions of different kinds had been delivered, the common soldiers inconsiderately crying out that it was best to return by the same way they had advanced, the emperor steadily opposed this idea, and was joined by several officers who contended that this could not be done, since all the forage and crops had been destroyed throughout the plain, and the remains of the villages which had been burnt were all in complete dest.i.tution, and could afford no supplies; because also the whole soil was soaked everywhere from the snows of winter, and the rivers had overflowed their banks and were now formidable torrents.

3. There was this further difficulty, that in those districts where the heat and evaporation are great, every place is infested with swarms of flies and gnats, and in such numbers that the light of the sun and of the stars is completely hidden by them.

4. And as human sagacity was of no avail in such a state of affairs, we were long in doubt and perplexity; and raising altars and sacrificing victims we consulted the will of the G.o.ds; inquiring whether it was their will that we should return through a.s.syria, or advancing slowly along the foot of the mountain chain, should surprise and plunder Chiliocomum near Corduena; but neither of these plans was conformable to the omens presented by an inspection of the sacrifices.

5. However it was decided, that since there was no better prospect before us, to seize on Corduena; and on the 16th June we struck our camp, and at daybreak the emperor set forth, when suddenly was seen either smoke or a great cloud of dust; so that many thought it was caused by herds of wild a.s.ses, of which there are countless numbers in those regions, and who were now moving in a troop, in order by their compactness to ward off the ferocious attacks of lions.

6. Some, however, fancied that it was caused by the approach of the Saracen chieftains, our allies, who had heard that the emperor was besieging Ctesiphon in great force: some again affirmed that the Persians were lying in wait for us on our march.

7. Therefore amid all these doubtful opinions, the trumpets sounded a halt, in order to guard against any reverse, and we halted in a gra.s.sy valley near a stream, where, packing our shields in close order and in a circular figure, we pitched our camp and rested in safety. Nor, so dark did it continue till evening, could we distinguish what it was that had so long obscured the view.

[149] Small boats made of wicker and covered with hide; still used in Wales, where they are also called thorricle, truckle, or cobble.

[150] See Il. iv. 297:--

?pp?a? ?? p??pa s?? ?pp??s?? ?a? ???sf??

pe???? d' e??p??e? st?se? p???a? te ?a? ?s?????

????? ?e? p??????, ?a???? d' e?? ?ss?? ??a.s.se?.

Thus translated by Pope:--

"The horse and chariots to the front a.s.signed, The foot (the strength of war) he placed behind; The middle s.p.a.ce suspected troops supply, Enclosed by both, nor left the power to fly."