Thirteen Roman Defeats

Roman military history is often organised around conquest, but this study examines defeats that forced changes in strategy, institutions and collective memory. The cases range from the Allia and the Caudine Forks through the Pyrrhic and Punic wars to Arausio, Carrhae and the Teutoburg Forest. For each battle Hughes reconstructs the available evidence, the forces and terrain, the decisions of commanders and the political consequences of failure.

The later chapters follow the army through the imperial centuries: Abritus, Edessa, Amida, Julian’s Persian expedition, the Frigidus and the destruction of the Roman fleet at Cape Bon in 468. The selection is based not simply on casualties but on strategic or psychological effect. Taken together, the battles show how Roman forces adapted to Celts, Samnites, Hellenistic armies, Carthaginians, Germans, Parthians, Sasanians, Goths and Vandals while remaining vulnerable to poor intelligence, logistics and command.