Battle of the Lycus

Battle of the Lycus
	Part of Third Mithridatic War
Date	66 BC
Location	Lycus River, Ionia; (modern-day Kelkit River, Turkey)
Result	Roman decisive victory End of the Mithridatic Wars;
Belligerents
Roman Republic	Pontic Empire
Commanders and leaders
Pompey the Great	Mithridates VI
Strength
c. 50,000	c. 30,000 infantry and 2,000-3,000 cavalry
Casualties and losses
unknown	more than 10,000

The Battle of the Lycus was fought in 66 BC between an army of Roman Republic under the command of Pompey the great and the forces of Mithridates VI of Pontus. The Romans won the battle with few losses; their victory turned out to be decisive with Mithridates fleeing to the Kingdom of the Bosporus (north of the Black Sea) and committing suicide a few years later (in 63 BC), finally ending the Third Mithridatic War.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4]

^ Lee L., Brice (2014). Warfare in the Roman Republic: From the Etruscan Wars to the Battle of Actium. California: ABC-CLIO. p. 292. ISBN 978-1-61069-298-4.
^ Appian, Mithridatica, 100; Plutarch, Life of Pompey, 32; Cassius Dio, 36.48; Livy, Epitome, 101
^ John Leach, Pompey the Great, p. 80
^ Philip Matyszak, Mithridates the Great, Rome's Indomitable Enemy, 10
^ Leach, John (1978). Pompey the Great (Routledge Revivals). New York: Routledge. p. 76. ISBN 978-0-41574-733-2.
^ John Leach (1978). Pompey the Great page 76.
^ Appian Historia Romana. Book XII (12th), The Mithridatic Wars, section 97
^ Appian, Historia Romana, Book XII (12th), The Mithridatic Wars, section 100