Third Mithridatic War (75 - 65 BC)

Mithridates VI had long been a thorn in Rome's side, having launched two wars against the Roman Republic, in the early 1st century B.C. In response to the chaos in Rome, following the terror of Marius and Sulla's dictatorship, the Empire was in total disorder. Gaius Marius (Latin: C·MARIVS·C·F·C·N)¹ (157 BC - January 13, 86 BC) was a Roman general and politician elected Consul an unprecedented seven times during his career. ... This page is about the Roman dictator Sulla, for the Brythonic goddess sometimes called Sulla, see Sul. ...

Launching an attack at the same time as a revolt swept through the Spanish provinces, Mithridates was initially virtually unopposed. The Senate acted, by sending the Consul Lucullus east to deal with the threat. The only other reliable general, Gnaeus Pompeius or Pompey, was in Gaul (now France), marching to Spain to help crush the revolt lead by Sertorius. This article refers to the General of the Roman republic. ...

Upon his arrival, Lucullus met up with several legions, which had been campaigning in Asia Minor, and marched against Mithridates, by moving east into Armenia. The veteran Roman legions proved superior in combat against Mithridates' army, which often used outdated weapons like chariots, to try and break through the Roman lines. Advancing deep into Armenia, Lucullus pursued Mithridates and his Armenian ally Tigranes relentlessly, eventually getting carried away with events. By 69 BC, as he raced for the Caucasus, fresh armies were being created behind him while his soldiers, many serving beyond their required service of twenty years, were growing angry with the endless marches over barren terrain.

Back in Rome, the Senate decided to replace Lucullus with Pompey, hoping to bring the war to a decisve and complete end. Pompey soon arrived in the east with his own veteran legions, and headed into Armenia, defeating feeble resistance along the way.

By this time, Mithridates' army had ceased to exist in anything other than name, while his Armenian allies were in total disarray. Pompey captured the Armenian capital, and Mithridates went to ground in the Caucasus, where he hid for two years. In 65 BC though, he realized that all hope was gone, and committed suicide, ending the third and final Mithridatic War.

(I will expand on this short summary in the near future)