Europe 49 AD: Bosporan War

In the late 40s AD the Bosporan Kingdom—a Roman client state on the Black Sea—was thrown into crisis when the deposed King Mithridates III allied with the Siraces in an attempt to regain his throne. However, King Cotys and the commander of the small Roman garrison countered this move by calling on the Aorsi (soon to become known as or replaced by the Alans), defeating both Mithridates and the Siraces.

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Main Events

47?–49 AD Bosporan War ▲

In 45 AD Emperor Claudius deposed Mithridates III of the Bosporan Kingdom, replacing him with his younger brother, Cotys I. When Claudius later reduced the kingdom’s Roman garrison to a few cohorts, Mithridates seized the opportunity to raise an army and ally with Zorsines of the Siraces. In response, Cotys and the Roman garrison commander, Julius Aquila, turned to Eunones of the Aorsi for support, and together the three defeated Mithridates and invaded the Siraces. Suing for peace, both Mithridates and Zorsines accepted Roman terms. in wikipedia

47–48 AD Corbulo’s subjugation of the Frisii ▲

Awed by the Roman commander Corbulo’s campaign against Gannascus and the Chauci in 47 AD, the neighboring Frisii agreed to submit to Rome for the first time since the Battle of Baduhenna Wood (28 AD) and provided hostages. In response, Corbulo crossed the Rhine into Frisian land, where he built a fort and began imposing Roman law. However, when word of Corbulo’s actions reached Claudius in Rome, the emperor, fearing both Corbulo’s ambitions and the destabilization of the frontier, ordered the general to end his hostilities in Germania. Upon receiving these commands in the spring of 48, Corbulo promptly withdrew back across the Rhine, where he instead focused his energies on building canals for the Roman river fleet. in wikipedia

47–52 AD British campaigns of Ostorius Scapula ▲

In the winter of 47 AD Publius Ostorius Scapula was appointed governor of Roman Britain and, despite the season, immediately moved against native resistance. When he declared the disarmament of all Britons south and east of the Trent and Severn, the Iceni revolted but were swiftly crushed. He then led an expedition to the west, where Caratacus of the Catuvellauni still held out with his allies among the Silures and Ordovices. After being beaten at Caer Caradoc (50 AD), Caratacus fled to the territory of the Brigantes, whose queen, Cartimandua, promptly handed him over to the Romans. in wikipedia

48 AD Alpes Poeninae ▲

When the Romans conquered the Celtic Alpine region of Poeninus Mons (Great St Bernard Pass) in 15 BC, it was incorporated into Raetia. By the time of Emperor Claudius (41–54 AD) the tribes were sufficiently Romanized to be granted Latin Rights, so in 48 AD the district was turned into the tiny province of Alpes Poeninae, with a new capital established at Octodurus (Martigny, Switzerland). in wikipedia

49 AD Parthian Civil War of 49 ▲

Gotarzes II’s cruel and profligate regime in Parthia spurred his subjects to call on the Roman emperor Claudius to release the Arsacid prince Meherdates—living as a hostage in Rome—so that he could mount his own claim on the throne. Claudius obliged and Meherdates crossed the Euphrates in 49 AD, entering Parthia via Osroene and capturing Nineveh with the aid of the kings of Araba and Adiabene. He then proceeded to the River Corma (a tributary of the Tigris) to meet Gotarzes in battle, only to be betrayed by his fickle allies and defeated. Receiving his rival in chains, Gotarzes had Meherdate’s ears cut off but allowed him to live on in disgrace. in wikipedia