Aelius Gallus's expedition to Arabia
Aelius Gallus's expedition to Arabia was a Roman military campaign of about 24 BCE that tried to seize the source of frankincense and myrrh in southern Arabia. It failed, largely because of thirst, disease and distance, but it changed who controlled the incense trade. The story links war, trade, geography and the history of medicine.
Why Rome went
According to James F. Hancock, Rome was troubled by how much money the incense trade drained from its economy. Aelius Gallus, the prefect of Egypt, decided to cut out the middlemen by conquering the lands where incense grew. The Nabataeans, who carried much of the trade, were obliged to support him. Hancock argues they came round to the idea because an invasion would weaken the incense kingdoms of Saba, Ma'in and Hadhramaut and help their own trading partner, the small kingdom of Himyar. The Nabataean king's brother, Syllaeus, was appointed as guide.[1]
The march
A scouting fleet judged that a naval attack on southern Arabia was impossible, so the army went by land. About 10,000 Romans, 500 Jewish soldiers sent by Herod and 1,000 Nabataeans under Syllaeus set out from the Red Sea port of Leuke Kome.[1] Leuke Kome was the Nabataeans' main port, where Rome later kept a garrison and a customs post taking a 25 per cent tax.[2] The Red Sea crossing and the march south went badly. Thousands died of exposure and disease, and it took 80 days, moving from oasis to oasis, to reach the borders of Saba.[1]
Disease and retreat
The army destroyed key cities in Ma'in and Hadhramaut, but was forced to turn back outside the walls of Ma'rib, the Sabaean capital beside the Ma'rib Dam. Many soldiers suffered paralysis of the limbs caused by scurvy. The Romans did not know the cause and blamed the local water.[1] Hancock calls the 1,000-mile return an "unmitigated disaster"; Syllaeus was later executed for failing to help the army.[1]
Consequences
Although Rome failed, the balance of power in Arabia shifted. Himyar defeated the weakened incense kingdoms: Saba fell in 25 BCE, Qataban in 50 CE and Hadhramaut in 100 CE. Himyar became almost the only source of frankincense and myrrh, and the Nabataeans gained a monopoly on the Red Sea trade between southern Arabia and the Mediterranean.[1] The Nabataeans had already begun moving incense by sea, loading it at island ports near today's Yemen, where Himyarites floated the resin out on rafts of animal skins, out of sight of the mainland, and shipping it north to Aila (modern Aqaba) and Leuke Kome. Strong northerly winds in the upper Red Sea meant many ships unloaded at Leuke Kome, and caravans went on to Petra.[2]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Hancock, James F. (2021). "Land of Punt and the Incense Routes". Spices, Scents and Silk: Catalysts of World Trade. CABI. section "Roman Invasion of the Incense Route". ISBN 9781789249774.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Hancock, James F. (2021). "Land of Punt and the Incense Routes". Spices, Scents and Silk: Catalysts of World Trade. CABI. section "Maritime Incense Trade". ISBN 9781789249774.