Mariners commit the craso error, lose 2-0

In the year 53 B.C.E., the Roman governor and general Marcus Licinius Crassus crossed the Euphrates river and invaded Parthia. Crassus was one third of the so-called first triumvirate, an informal political alliance between himself, Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, and Gaius Julius Caesar. The latter two were famed generals in their own right, while Crassus controlled vast wealth. He was eternally jealous of Pompey, however, and longed for a great military victory to his name.

Which is why he invaded Parthia immediately upon becoming the governor of Syria. Always thirsty for more wealth, Parthia’s integration to the republic would have brought gold, both to the Roman treasury and to Crassus himself.