Latest / Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History / Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Parthian Captives
Transcript
- Lucas: So we've talked a lot about Marcus Aurelius's wars—the Marcomannic campaigns, the Parthian front—but we've never really dug into what happened to the people who lost. The captives. Luna: You mean the Parthian prisoners? Lucas: Exactly. When Lucius Verus sacked Ctesiphon in 165 CE, the Romans didn't just take treasure. They took people. Tens of thousands of them. Cassius Dio says the city's population was largely deported, and the Historia Augusta adds that entire communities from Seleucia on the Tigris were resettled within the empire. Luna: So they were scattered across Roman territory? Lucas: Deliberately. The Romans had a long tradition of mass deportation—think of the Jewish captives after the First Jewish-Roman War—but the Parthian deportations were on a huge scale. Many ended up in the Danubian frontier, where they were settled as farmers or recruited into auxiliary units. Others were sent to the east, to places like Commagene, a client kingdom that had been annexed a few decades earlier. Luna: That must have changed the local demographics. Lucas: It did, and not just socially. The captives included skilled artisans—metalworkers, weavers, even engineers. We know from archaeological finds at Dura-Europos, a Roman garrison town on the Euphrates, that Parthian-style weapons and armor show up in Roman contexts around this time. Some of those craftsmen were likely putting their skills to work for their new masters. Luna: Wait—did the Romans actually use Parthian archers? Lucas: Absolutely. The Parthians were famous for their mounted archers, and the Romans were quick to recruit them as auxiliaries. Units of equites sagittarii—horse archers—were formed from Parthian prisoners. We have inscriptions from Carnuntum on the Danube that mention a 'numerus Palmyrenorum sagittariorum'—but also evidence of Parthian-born soldiers serving in the legions. It's a classic Roman move: turn your enemy's strength into your own. Luna: But were they treated as equals, or more like slaves? Lucas: It varied. Some were enslaved outright, especially those captured in the initial sack. But many were settled as coloni—tenant farmers—on imperial estates. The Historia Augusta claims Marcus Aurelius granted land to 'barbarian' prisoners, though the term is vague. And we know from legal sources that some Parthian captives eventually gained citizenship, though it took generations. Luna: Did any try to rebel or escape? Lucas: There are hints, but no major revolts. One interesting case comes from Commagene, where a group of Parthian deportees apparently staged a small uprising in the 170s. It was put down quickly, but it shows the tensions. More often, though, they integrated. In fact, the Antonine Plague, which we've covered before, may have been spread in part by these captives. Galen mentions that the plague first appeared among troops returning from the Parthian war—and those troops were in close contact with prisoners. Luna: So the captives were vectors for disease too. Lucas: Exactly. The plague devastated the Roman population, and the mass movement of people from the east to the frontiers accelerated its spread. It's a grim irony: the same prisoners who were meant to bolster the empire's workforce ended up contributing to its demographic crisis. Luna: You know, it makes you think about how we remember wars. The battles and emperors, but not the people who were moved around like chess pieces. Lucas: That's exactly why I wanted to cover this. And it ties into something I've been thinking about lately. We're able to have these deep dives because of a small group of listeners who support the show directly. Luna: Yeah, it's ad-free and we don't have a big network behind us. Lucas: Right. So if you've been getting something out of these conversations—whether it's the Parthian captives or anything else—there's a way to keep them coming. A few folks already chip in through buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo, and that literally funds the research time for episodes like this. Luna: It's a simple way to support independent history. Lucas: Anyway—back to the captives. One of the most fascinating legacies is the cultural exchange. We have evidence that Parthian religious practices, like the cult of Mithras, gained popularity in the Roman army around this time. Some scholars think Parthian prisoners brought Mithraic ideas with them. Not certain, but plausible. Luna: So the empire wasn't just absorbing bodies, but beliefs. Lucas: Exactly. And there's a human story behind it all. Cassius Dio records that among the captives was a young Parthian noble named Apollophanes, who later became a trusted advisor to a Roman governor. His son eventually served in the Praetorian Guard. That's a microcosm of the whole process—displacement, adaptation, and eventual integration. Luna: Do we know what happened to the city of Ctesiphon after it was sacked? Lucas: It recovered, but never to its former glory. The Parthian capital moved briefly to Susa. The Romans didn't hold the city—they withdrew after the campaign. But the depopulation was severe. Dio says the Romans took so many prisoners that the city's slave market collapsed. Prices plummeted. Luna: That's brutal. Lucas: It is. And it's a reminder that the Pax Romana wasn't peaceful for everyone. Marcus Aurelius is often held up as the philosopher-king, but his reign saw massive violence and displacement. The captives are a part of that story we don't always tell. Luna: I'm glad we're telling it now.