Trajan's Parthian War — Rome's Greatest Eastern Conquest
The pretext for Trajan's eastern war was a dispute over the Armenian throne, where the Parthian king Osroes I had installed his own candidate without Roman consent — a violation of the settlement under Nero. Trajan, the greatest military emperor since Augustus, used this as the trigger for a war of conquest. In 114 CE Trajan annexed Armenia as a Roman province. In 115 CE he invaded Mesopotamia, taking the great city of Nisibis and wintering on the Tigris. In 116 CE he advanced south, capturing the Parthian winter capital Ctesiphon and reaching the Persian Gulf — the furthest east any Roman emperor would ever reach. He reportedly said that if he were younger he would cross to India as Alexander had done. At the peak of his conquests, however, everything began to unravel. A massive Jewish revolt broke out simultaneously in Cyprus, Egypt, and Cyrene — the Kitos War — requiring major forces to suppress. In Mesopotamia the newly conquered territories rose in rebellion. Trajan died at Selinus in Cilicia in August 117 CE, probably of a stroke. His adopted heir Hadrian immediately reversed course, abandoning the new provinces.
- Year: 114 CE
- Category: Military
