Battle of Bedriacum

[Bradley]

I may end up making the Battle of Bedriacum the subject of a research paper, and so I was hoping for some suggestions for reference material. I have Tacitus and Plutarch as primary sources, and Morgan's 69 AD as starting point... does anyone know of a reliable map of the battle, orders of battle, or other books?

Thanks in advance. Long time lurker, as you see. :-)

[AMELIANVS]

Try also Cassius Dio.

I think it would be best for you to create your own map but There are two(this is of second battle as there were two battles around that place in 69)-but certainly you must make sure yourself how reliable these are or not.

[Vindex]

As memory serves and as already mentioned, there were two battles of Bedriacum so you either have to pick one or do both.

Primary source is certainly Cassius Dio and there are modern commentaries such as PAL Greenhalgh from which Morgan is derivative. There's another author I am struggling to remember...I'll get back to you!

[Vindex]

Doh! Suetonius, of course.

The other author is Sancery, but I will have to check if he covers Bedriacum or just concentrates on Galba and Vindex. His book is also in French but well worth the effort (if your French is not very good, like mine!)

[Nathan Ross]

Also Kenneth Wellesley's 1975 The Long Year AD69 (later reprinted, confusingly, as The Year of Four Emperors, same as Greenhaulgh's and Morgan's books... :dizzy: ). Morgan mentions that Wellesley spends a lot of time trying to debunk Tacitus, but he has a strong military focus, so definitely worth a look.

[Bradley]

Many thanks for the responses.

What particularly interests me about these battles, and what would interest my professor, I believe, is the hodgepodge of cultures of the combatants we see come to blows. Batavians whipping Praetorians, Galba's Spaniards coming to blows with legions from the Rhine, Syrian legions hailing the sunrise... heck, Nero's marines capture an eagle not too long after having been decimated!

[Vindex]

Wellesley - that's the one! Thanks Nathan (not sure how I could forget a name like that - wonder if he is related to Arthur?)

The Year of the Four Emperors is fascinating in many, many ways and was my favourite element of my degree eaons ago.

I would love to know what Vindex and Verginius Rufus agreed between them before the Legions took the law into their own hands.

There's also a very interesting link between Gaius Julius Vindex and the Cynics (school of philosophy) - studied this for some time (hence my forum pseudonym).