Chapter 164: The Spice War
< 164. The Spice War >
The conquest of Mecca was easier than expected.
The tribes that occupied Mecca had no intention of fighting against the huge army of Nabataea that came to them.
Some of them abandoned the city and fled, while others surrendered one by one.
There were some who resisted to the end, but all they could do was harass the supply units in the rear.
That was also impossible after the superior archers of the Roman army were deployed in the back.
In fact, after the minority of Bedouins who lived near Mecca were crushed by the rear units without even seeing the main force, the number of resisting tribes decreased rapidly.
At this time, the Roman state was almost an unknown entity to the nomadic peoples of the Arabian Peninsula.
The peoples of northern Arabia near Syria and the natives of southern Arabia knew Rome well.
But among the nomads near Mecca, there were many who had never heard of the name Rome.
It was not because they were particularly ignorant, but because they had never had any contact with Rome until now.
Many tribes only knew Rome by rumor.
To them, the Roman army led by Marcus was a shock that could be summed up in one word.
They had already gone through a war with Parthia and learned how to cross the desert land stably.
There was no way to stop them.
In the end, Marcus entered Mecca almost bloodlessly.
He first started working to calm down the anxious local tribes.
He did not loot, which was a natural right of the victor.
The soldiers who knew that Marcus always gave more compensation than what he could get from looting accepted it without complaint.
Next was the issue of religion.
At this time, Mecca was a city with a polytheistic tendency.
Marcus announced that he would respect this culture.
Then he called the tribal chiefs who surrendered to the Kaaba, a sanctuary where various gods were worshiped.
And he bowed respectfully in front of the statue of Hubal, the moon god worshiped by the Arab tribes.
“Rome will acknowledge as much as possible the religion, culture, and customs that the tribes of Mecca have enjoyed so far. All we want is one thing. That you do not oppose Rome and recognize Rome’s hegemony.”
As expected, there was a lot of noise here and there.
The performance of bowing to Hubal as soon as he occupied the city was effective.
The Arab tribes were very religious people, both historically and now.
He occupied the city but did not loot, and he paid respect to their god.
There was no reason to be hostile, let alone friendly.
He came to help Nabataea and led an army, but this also meant that he gave generous support for his allies.
“I heard that Rome has already conquered all the lands in the north, east, and west.”
“Does that mean our region is the last? Then shouldn’t we just surrender to Rome sooner rather than later?”
“But can we really trust them?”
Naturally, opinions were divided among the tribes.
Marcus did not interfere in these discussions and point out mistakes or explain new facts in detail.
He just asked an interpreter to make his intentions clear.
“Among the tribesmen who want to completely submit to Rome, speak at any time. The tribal chiefs will be granted Roman citizenship and will be able to enjoy the benefits of Rome’s projects first. A person who becomes a citizen of Rome and his tribe will not have to worry about food problems within five years.”
Mecca was a city with a lot of development potential in Arabia because it was located at a transportation hub.
It was convenient to connect with sea trade routes because it was close to the Red Sea coast, and it was also a good place to rest for those who crossed the desert by land.
If Rome took over the Red Sea coast, it would be in a perfect position to control nearby regions.
It was also one of the few places where people could live in the barren central part of Arabia.
Marcus planned to expand Rome’s plan for Arabia with Mecca as its center.
Meanwhile, while the Roman army occupied Mecca, chaos swept over southern Arabia.
The kingdoms that had been fiercely opposed shook violently.
People were confused and panicked without knowing what to do.
Nabataea’s army was not so scary.
They had tried to extend their influence to southern regions before, but they failed because they were checked by Saba and Ma’in kingdoms.
But now it was different.
It was news that a Roman legion came to support Nabataea and reached Mecca.
They would reach south in a few weeks.
Saba Kingdom, which was geographically closest to Mecca, reacted first.
They were different from the nomadic peoples in the north.
They lived on agriculture and trade, so they could not leave their place and run away when they saw a strong opponent.
But it was also impossible to do nothing and surrender.
Of course, there were some who said that.
Saba Kingdom was a country that had been founded for 800 years, and it was not an exaggeration to say that it was the first civilized country in Arabia.
They had prospered through spice trade for a long time, and they were sensitive to international order and situation.
They were not able to maintain their past glory and were pushed by Himyar and Hadhramaut, but they still had information power.
In Marib, the capital of the Sabaean Kingdom and the richest city in southern Arabia, heated debates continued day after day.
The local nobles who knew well how powerful Rome was raised their voices to stop the pointless fight and submit to Rome.
“This is rather an opportunity. Our kingdom is currently unable to maintain its former wealth due to the change of trade routes. If we go on like this, we will be pushed by the kingdoms that occupy the southern sea routes.”
“Do you mean to give up our country and crawl under Rome?”
“We are bound to decline anyway if we stay still. Wouldn’t it be better to join Rome and look for a chance?”
If the Sabaean Kingdom was the only country in southern Arabia, they might have surrendered to Rome as it was.
But unlike the Sabaean Kingdom, which was declining, the Himyarite Kingdom and the Hadhramaut Kingdom, which were rising in power, had no intention of giving up easily.
They were trying to accumulate an enormous wealth through the sea trade routes that were developing now.
Originally, the center of trade in the BC era was the caravans that pulled camels and traded on land.
But from around the 1st century BC, sea trade surpassed land trade in scale as ports developed.
This was why the Sabaean Kingdom, which focused on land trade, declined and the Himyarite and Hadhramaut in the south rose.
The two countries, who knew what Rome’s southward advance meant, decided to wage war to protect their interests.
They might not have dared to fight Rome if they were alone, but as always, people naturally gained courage when they formed alliances.
The Himyarite and Hadhramaut temporarily buried their past of fighting for the monopoly of the southern sea routes.
They declared that they would drive out the invaders Rome and Nabataea and gathered their armies.
Then, Qataban, which was sandwiched between the two kingdoms, also announced its participation in the war.
The battlefield would be the northern kingdoms of Saba and Ma’in anyway.
There was nothing to lose for the three kingdoms that bordered the sea.
They sent envoys to Saba and Ma’in and pressured them to join the alliance.
The Sabaean Kingdom, which saw an opportunity to surrender to Rome, was caught in a dilemma.
But if they did not respond here, they might be attacked by the southern three kingdoms first.
The pro-war faction, which had been suppressed by the pro-peace faction, strongly argued that they should fight Rome.
The king’s mind was naturally shaken.
If five kingdoms, including Ma’in, joined forces, they might be able to repel Rome’s army.
Eventually, the Sabaean Kingdom formally ignored Rome’s demand to send an envoy and surrender.
At the same time, they sent a letter to Himyar and Hadhramaut asking them to support them with almost all their military forces.
“If we want to fight Rome, we have to gather all our forces as one. If we don’t have teeth, our gums will naturally hurt. If the Sabaean Kingdom falls into Rome’s hands, Himyar will have to face Rome’s border. It is not enough to just support us with your army. Mobilize all your available forces and help us repel Rome’s army.”
The Himyarite and Hadhramaut who received the letter from Saba could not argue much.
They were the ones who strongly advocated for war from the beginning, so they could not skimp on their troop support now.
Himyar, Hadhramaut, and Qataban sent more than 50,000 troops as reinforcements.
Adding up the forces of Saba and Ma’in, the number exceeded 80,000 by far.
They thought this was enough to compete with Rome’s army.
As always, they would fend off the invasion of foreign nations and return to competing with each other.
They were confident that they could make it happen.
※※※
Marcus did not think that the southern kingdoms would surrender easily even though he sent an envoy.
As expected, he received an answer and immediately raised his legions and marched southward.
“The southern kingdoms have rejected our alliance offer and chosen to become enemies of Rome. If we leave them alone, they will try to monopolize spices and commit excessive tyranny beyond their limits like Parthia did. I will remove their roots before they threaten Rome’s economy.”
At noon when intense sunlight shone down, Marcus’s sword pointed straight up at the sky.
The war had finally begun.
Marcus looked at the map that detailed the terrain of the region and searched for a suitable place to execute a flanking maneuver.
Only three people were guarding his position.
Shaqilat, who was in charge of the Nabataean army, and Surenas and Spartacus, who could be called Marcus’s confidants.
Shaqilat cautiously expressed his opinion with a worried expression.
“But governor, the enemy’s numbers are definitely greater than ours. I’m sorry to say this, but our forces are not strong enough to repel them.”
“That’s not a problem. You just have to hold your ground and make sure the line doesn’t break when the battle begins. I’ll give you an extra legion as support, so don’t worry too much. A difference of 10,000 to 20,000 troops is not hard to overcome.”
Spartacus agreed with Marcus’s opinion.
“Of course. We never had a numerical advantage over the enemy except when we fought Parthia.”
Surenas nodded his head without taking his eyes off the map.
“If we have a qualitative difference in our soldiers, we can easily reverse a gap of 10,000 troops. As long as we fight in a plain where we can set up our camp properly. The important thing is whether the enemy will engage us in a flanking maneuver or not.”
“They will. They are an alliance of five countries’ forces. They will inevitably face various problems if they stay holed up in their fortresses and defend. And they are confident in their numbers, so they have no choice but to attack.”
Spartacus looked puzzled at Marcus’s words.
“Will they really come out? They can’t be unaware of what it means to fight us on the plain…”
“If they had ever fought Rome’s army before, they would avoid flanking. But they don’t. They only heard by word of mouth that Rome’s army is strong, but they don’t know how we fight. And they are used to fighting stubbornly in open places, not enjoying siege warfare. How likely is it that such an army will be afraid and avoid fighting us from the start?”
“I see. That makes sense. They don’t know much about us, and they are not a single unit with a system.”
Spartacus showed a reaction of understanding, and Surenas added another word.
“Once we win the flanking maneuver, it is important to quickly get the enemy’s surrender. The alliance will easily collapse if only two out of five countries surrender. The occupation will also be much easier.”
“I’ll leave that to you. And Spartacus, your legion will have to take charge of our center this time.”
“Wasn’t I supposed to be placed on the left or right wing?”
The 12th Legion that Spartacus belonged to was the best elite among the legions that Marcus led.
Marcus usually placed them where they could maximize their offensive power.
Spartacus thought it would be the same this time.
“This time, we have to fight with Nabataea’s army as well. They will take care of the left or right wing. If there is a risk of them being breached, we have to rotate the troops placed in the center, so we need to strengthen the center more than usual. So you and the 12th Legion have to secure the center firmly.”
“I understand. I will fortify the defense like iron and stop the enemy’s breakthrough.”
In fact, there was another reason why Marcus turned Spartacus to defense.
It was Spartacus’s first battle as a legion commander after taking over.
He had fought in countless battles before, but none of them felt like this one.
A legion commander had to keep an eye on the whole movement of the legion unlike a centurion.
Spartacus decided to share this role with the centurion of the first cohort while holding his weapon and going to the front line.
Still, there were many more things to worry about than when he was a regular centurion.
A brave warrior was not guaranteed to be a good commander.
There were countless examples of that in history.
There was no rule that Spartacus would not make a mistake in his first battle.
If something went wrong when he led an offensive unit and penetrated deep into the enemy lines, it could be dangerous no matter how great he was.
It was less risky to fight in the center where he had to hold his position while fighting fiercely.
The possibility was almost nil, but if Spartacus failed to perform his duties as a legion commander, it would not only tarnish Marcus’s face.
It was the Triumvirate who made the radical decision to make Spartacus a legion commander.
If it turned out that this was a wrong appointment, there would be no end to the complaints from behind.
‘I’ll have to see how he fights this battle and decide on the future policy.’
He had repeatedly advised him to pay more attention to troop command than direct combat, but he was still uneasy.
Marcus looked at Spartacus’s side profile, who was steeling himself for the battle, and hoped that this battle would pass without any unexpected variables.
< 164. Spice War > End
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