Which battle was Romes greatest military defeat?

Answer 1

Ask any group of historians and you will get several different answers all with valid reasons for being the "greatest" defeat. Three Roman losses come to mind, the Battle of Cannae, the Teutoburg disaster, and Andrianople. However which one was the greatest is a matter of debate.

Answer 2

The greatest military defeat of the Romans was the battle of Adrianople (in the present day European part of Turkey). Emperor Valens was defeated by Visigoth rebels (who had been allowed to settle in the lower Danube area of the empire two years earlier) in 378 AD. Valens decided to engage in battle without waiting for reinforcements from the army of co-emperor Gratian which had won a battle in Gaul. His army was estimated at 10,000 infantry and 5,000 cavalry. The Visigoths delayed the battle to wait for the arrival of their cavalry. The Roman infantry were exhausted because of a quick march to Adrianople and were ill disciplined. The Visigoth cavalry surrounded them and routed them. It is difficult to estimate the number of Roman soldiers who were killed. It was at least 1/3. The core of the veteran army of the Eastern Roman Empire was destroyed. Many high ranking officials died and the emperor lost his life, too. This empire's military power was temporarily crippled. The eastern empire had to recruit barbarian soldiers, most of whom were the Visigoths themselves who, through this, gained considerable political influence in the eastern empire.

A defeat of comparable size was the Battle of Edessa (in present today southeaster Turkey) where a Roman army was defeated by the Persians and captured in its entirety, including emperor Valerian in 260 AD.

Answer 3

The two worse military defeats of the Romans were the Battle of Cannae (216 BC) and the Battle of Adrianople (378 AD). More Romans and their allies died in the former, but the latter seriously weakened the Roman army of the Late Empire.

Answer 4

Corinth in 146 BCE

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