Mithridates the Great: Rome's Indomitable Enemy

by Philip Matyszak

A military biography of Mithridates VI ‘the Great’ of Pontus, Rome’s most persistent enemy. The Mithridiatic wars stretched over half a century and two continents, and have a fascinating cast of pirates, rebels, turncoats and poisoners (though an unfortunate lack of heroes with untarnished motives). There are pitched battles, epic sieges, double-crosses and world-class political conniving, assassinations and general treachery. Through it all, the story is built about the dominant character of Mithridates, connoisseur of poisons, arch-schemer and strategist; resilient in defeat, savage and vindictive in victory. Almost by definition, this book will break new ground, in that nothing has been written on Mithridates for the general public for almost half a century, though scholarly journals have been adding a steady trickle of new evidence, which is drawn upon here.

Few enough leaders went to war with Rome and lived long to tell the tale, but in the first half of the first century BC, Mithridates did so three times. At the high point of his career his armies swept the Romans out of Asia Minor and Greece, reversing a century of Roman expansion in the region. Even once fortune had turned against him he would not submit. Upto the day he died, a fugitive drive to suicide by the treachery of his own son, he was still planning an overland invasion of Roman itself.

Genres: History, Biography, Ancient History, Nonfiction, World History, Roman History, Military History

208 pages, Hardcover

First published October 15, 2008

About the author

Philip Matyszak is a British nonfiction author, primarily of historical works relating to ancient Rome. Matyszak has a doctorate in Roman history from St. John's College, Oxford. In addition to being a professional author, he also teaches ancient history for Madingley Hall Institute of Continuing Education, Cambridge University.

Reviews

[Adam McPhee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Matyszak is great at this sort of popular history, creating vivid narratives that make sense of and provide context for ancient lives. Really like how his books use classical history to explore cultures outside of Greece and Rome.

[Truls Ljungström · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mithradates är en av de nordturkiska hjältekungarna från tiden då den nordturkiska kusten ännu var delad mellan greker, armenier och kelter. Han stod mot Rom, tidvis till och med framgångsrikt, och var på väg att bygga en Svarta-havsthalassokrati. Han är känd både för sin paranoia (han hade genom självmedicinering gjort sig immun mot gift, han mördade sin mor och lillebror för att göra sig av med rivaler, och bar enligt uppgift en kniv fäst vid sin penis för att aldrig vara obeväpnad) och för sin vision (han skapade en av de få koalitionerna mot rom som fungerade, såg sig enligt egna uttalanden som förenaren av grekisk och persisk tradition, och ingrep vid flera tillfällen för att ställa förhållanden till rätta efter Romerska övertramp i de grekiska städerna).

Denna biografi reflekterar både Mithradates framgångar och hans illdåd, och det gör att jag uppskattar den. Detta sagt är det en biografi som är väldigt ojämn - vissa delar, såsom Mithradates inrikespolitiska relationer och hans hantering av de ockuperade delarna av Ioniska kusten, hanteras med en klackspark. Andra delar, såsom hans försök att ockupera Kyzikos ges betydligt mer sidutrymme än de förtjänar - framförallt eftersom författaren gör klart att han inte tror på hypotesen om Mysien som Mithradeernas urhem (vilket hade rättfärdigat tiden, eftersom Kyzikos var en av Mysiens stora städer, och alltså kunde tillskrivas sentimentala värden för dynastin). Genomgående tillskrivs Mithradates ett närmast mekaniskt geni för geopolitik, en absolut järnvilja (vilket iofs kanske kan ses som befogat) och en förmåga till ett gränslöst cyniskt förhållningssätt där allt blir ett spel. Denna karaktärisering är inte självklart den rätta, men den är åtminstone inte gravt historierevisionistisk. Givet författarens intresse för slagfälten snarare än styresrummen är den begriplig.

Med det militärt orienterade fokuset i minnet, är detta en mycket läsvärd bok, om en fascinerande makthavare.

[Tim Fuhrman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite some poor basic editing, enjoying the book. Probably starting reading it too soon after finishing the Poison King which is probably why I'm giving it a lower rating. Mithridates is much more solid fact based than the other book which tended to accept myth and lore as actual events and included quite a bit of "this could have happened" senarios many of which this book holds in question.

[David Wollaston · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well written, fascinating book on the king of Pontus, enemy of the Romans. I didn't know much about his life and I found this book to be a great read.

[Tekken · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mithridates nr 6 oli kahtlemata kõvem vend kui kõik temast jutustavad legendid kokku. Pole ime, et viimase 21 sajandi jooksul on ajaloolased kõvasti vaeva näinud, et teda kuidagi paika panna. Ühelt poolt oli tegemist vabadusvõitlejaga, kes võitles oma ustava gängiga (ehk siis türannid, piraadid, filosoofid ja teenindav personal) Sherwoodi šerifi… sorry, hoopis Rooma riigi vastu. Teiselt poolt oli Mithridates ilmselt rikkam kui Midas ja Kröösus kokku, kaunite kunstide/daamide austaja, harrastuskeemik ja mitridaatsiumi leiutaja, kes oma vaenlaste infi kohaselt valdas 22 keelt. Mussolini oma nelja keelega oli tema kõrval ikka tagasihoidlik tegija.

Kolmandaks oli antiikaja bin Laden pragmaatiline mees, kes korraldas Aasia vespri (vähemalt 50 000 ohvrit), laskis tõenäoliselt mõrvata oma ema ja venna, päris kindlasti kaks õde, kogu oma haaremi ja hulga meessoost järeltulijaid/lähisugulasi. See, mis Manius Aquilliusega juhtus, peaks „Troonide mängu“ vaatajatel hästi meeles olema. Nojah, kui mõtlema hakata, siis George Martin laenas Mithridateselt rohkemgi kui selle episoodi, aga see selleks. Kui ajas rändamine kõigile taskukohaseks muutub, siis mina kavatsen küll kohale sõita ja asjaosalisele ühe korraliku tou anda. Ehk õnnestub enne ihukaitse saabumist veel teinegi tohlakas anda, näiteks Monime eest? Nojah, selle ettevõtmise detailide kallal pean ma veel natuke vaeva nägema.

Philip Matyszaki raamatu leidsin „Ancient Warfare’i“ arvustuse järgi, kus väideti järjekordselt, et Mithridates oli Rooma riigi kõige suurem vaenlane... aga eks neid oli teisigi. Matyszaki lähenemine on märksa tasakaalukam. Autor kirjeldab paralleelselt kuni neljas eri riigis toimuvaid sündmuseid, hoiab kõiki palle õhus ega pilla korrakski maha. Ei mingit tüütut heietamist, ei mingeid kulunud klišeesid, vaid erapooletu ja sageli uus inf, mis on vaimukalt ja selgelt esitatud. Sellega seoses meenus mulle „1242: Müüti murdes“, kahjuks mitte positiivses võtmes.

Meie ajalookirjanduses valitseb ikka veel sedasorti kuvand, et antiikajal oli ratsavägi nagu tank, mis jalaväest vähimagi vaevata läbi/üle sõitis. Nojah, Chaironeia lahing peaks näitama, et ka sellel reeglil oli erandeid.

Mõne koha peal leidus ka huumorit, nt kogu Kyzikose piiramise lugu või kurikuulus mitridaatsium, mille kohta autor oletab, et see lõi lihtsalt kasutajal põhja alt, enne kui sissevõetud mürk jõudis mõjuma hakata. Selgub, et imerohu retsept pärineb tegelikult Mithridatese enda roomlaste kätte langenud kirjavahetusest.

Kui millegi kallal norida, siis on see jällegi kujundus, mille kallal ka „Ancient Warfare’i“ arvustuses keelt teritati. Kui autori omalooming välja arvata, on illustratsioone häbematult vähe, needki ammu tuntud marmorist pead ja loppis mündid… Pen ja Sword oleks võinud ikka paar arvutimeest appi võtta ja heale tekstile omalt poolt värve lisada.

[Anibal · Rating 4 out of 5]

The confluence of two distinct cultures—Persian and Hellenistic—created a unique man: Mithridates VI Eupator. He wasn’t a hero, not by a long shot, but he was an ambitious, stubborn, brave, visionary, and ruthless ruler. Undaunted by the most gruesome defeats, he was always ready for another fight. In defeat, Mithridates managed to raise armies, boost morale, and secure supplies in ways never seen before—even the Romans never mastered logistics and manpower recruitment like he did! It’s absolutely impressive how many men he managed to recruit, even after being decisively defeated multiple times.

He adapted his armies, quelled internal dissensions, temporarily eliminated the Roman presence in Asia Minor, and managed to win several minor engagements against small Roman forces. Rome had many mediocre generals, and if Mithridates had fought most of them, he probably would have had much better results. But the ruler of Pontus had the enormous misfortune of facing not one, but three great Roman generals: Sulla, Lucullus, and Pompey... what are the odds of that?! Facing such great commanders leading the most powerful army of that age, his downfall seemed inevitable. Or was it? Mithridates was also a capable diplomat who knew how to force a region into having only one option—help him—like when he massacred Roman civilians. He skillfully exploited crises in Roman internal politics (the Socii wars, Sertorius, etc.). The author argues that Mithridates was one of the most dangerous and indomitable foes Rome ever faced, and I wholeheartedly agree.

In this remarkable book, you follow the extraordinary life and career of Mithridates. The writing is fabulous; Matyszak has “discovered” the perfect way to bring history to the public—almost like hearing a friendly scholar chatting in a café! He explains with a fantastic sense of humor while maintaining academic rigor.

This book clearly deserves five stars. It doesn’t get them only because of the mistake in the first sentence and several typos, excusable perhaps in a seventies or eighties publication without modern proofreading tools, but such errors shouldn’t appear in a 21st-century book by an excellent publisher like Pen & Sword. The book features a great cover, nice internal plates, very good maps, and battle descriptions (Philip consulted one of the best—okay, the best, in my opinion—Roman-era battle scholars, Adrian Goldsworthy).

Highly recommended.

[Koeneman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many times over I have read books about the Roman Republic and as a sub chapter you read about Mithridates or the wars in particular but I have not yet had the pleasure of reading a biography about the man himself til now.

The book read really well and was written in sometimes a funny way, so more or less a modern way of historical writing. A overall good chronological story about the man himself and the events around him.

A archenemy of Rome but never had the potential to exactly defeat them. For especially his enemy generals were the high level: Sulla, Lucullus and Pompey. The Romans were also not keen on losing because of his genocide of 80.000 Romans (men, women and children).

His end is truly fascinating because till the last second he was still plotting and thinking of a way out.

This was definitely a fun read!

[Peter C Lyon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matyszak is an incredibly well-versed historian of the Roman world in the first century BC. This book is cheescake for the historian -- delicious but heavy in that it's so detailed. However, those aspects of the work are not problematic to me, just factors to be aware of.

As with many history books, I find the only drawbacks are: 1) the lack of a timeline; and 2) the maps. On Kindle format at least, they cannot be magnified and were difficult to read. I hope the publisher considers more -- and improved -- maps in the future.

But this is an excellent read for fans of Roman -- and its nemeses.

[Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

History - So much better than a Marvel film.

Not that I would ever watch a Marvel film.

There is enough action, drama, and historical contributions to make at least three superb films for people with brain stems.

Also, the author combines stories that explain the complicated politics going on in Rome during the Pontic Wars in the east.

Good introduction to the significance of Sulla, Lucullus, and Pompey and their military genius and extraordinary personalities.

Not to mention a great historical account of Rome’s formidable enemy, Mithridates

Fun times.

[Альберто Лорэдо · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic account of this fascinating character. It's a shame that the only surviving sources are Roman but even so, the author writes a really vibrant and well researched book. The only lowlight is that it might confuse the readers that are looking for a more in depth description of Mithridates as a person as this book is more focused on his reign rather than his person. In any case, a brilliant read

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Matyszak's writing. It is direct and conversational, he weaves plenty of asides about how Mithridates' exploits brushed with other household Roman names without detracting from his focus. It sheds light on an interesting and unfamiliar rival to the nascent power of the Roman Empire. I docked a star because his diagrams and maps could use some love, though I certainly appreciated their inclusion.

[Victor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book, not just for the history of the Roman Republic and what would become Turkey, but it included several details on how General Sulla, and others, won their conflicts. The difficulty with this history is that it is difficult to root for anyone. Mithridates did some horrible things, but whenever the Romans show up, they commit horrible acts as well.

[David Hollywood · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great history book about a very enigmatic character who in my opinion deserves more exposure than is given to him. I found every chapter to be full of descriptive details and convincing conjecture, and consequently highly recommend it to any ancient history enthusiast.

[Charlie V · Rating 5 out of 5]

"From the beginning of their existence, they have nothing, not homes, wives, nor empire, which they have not stolen". Mithridates what a guy, Warrior and Poison King, shame about that genocide he did but oh well

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

While 'Empire of the Black Sea' is still my favorite book on this subject, this is the best biography specifically on its greatest ruler, Mithradates VI. Particularly in the military and strategic aspects as well as the often glossed over final guerilla-style campaigns.

[Drake McCrary · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is presented in the driest way possible but actual meat of the book book is filled a richness which is truly delectable.

[Wilmington · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great

The life and deeds of the man who unified Anatolia and defied Rome. Ultimately his demise would bring the whole of Anatolia under Roman control.

[Anupam Nirvikar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice

[Bobby24 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Educates and informs the reader, exactly as one would expect.

[Nick Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this, well written and gives you a great overview of a king who was a thorn to the Romans for a generation.

Will be reading the Poison King now as well!

[David Pulliam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun read, I didn't learn a lot other than don't give up, and patience can get you far. (other then a lot of really interesting history about the late Roman Republic)

[aedile · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a good book but I honestly think Alfred Duggan's book is better - Also, the book ism ore about the mithridatic wars themselves rather than the man's life.

[Tom O · Rating 4 out of 5]

Does a decent job of presenting Mithridates VI from a Pontic viewpoint but suffers inevitably from a lack of non-Roman sources. Obviously this is not entirely the author's fault but he fails to add anything new to the table - essentially it's just a summary of Roman evidence from a non-Roman perspective. Readers who aren't already familiar with the history and the sources for it should keep a critical eye as he presents as accepted fact things which aren't so clear-cut in the historiographical debates. Overall a good and fun refresher (don't expect to be able to use it as reference material) for someone who already knows the history from the Roman perspective.

[Tobias Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating history of an often overlooked person of note. This is the history of another 'upstart' empire contemporary with Rome's rise. Mithridates is a rare enemy of Rome who lived into old age.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely brilliant. An excellent read on a too oft neglected bigger than life personality.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, solid narrative history, but there was no overall point or relevance to today, no lessons that the author particularly draws out for us to learn.

[Elentarri · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of a military history of all the squabbles between Rome and Mithridates than a biography, but good enough.

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid and brief overview of Mithridates that doesn't bog down too much in theory and story.