Battle of Tigranocerta - Forces

Forces

Appian claims that Lucullus had embarked from Rome with only a single legion; upon entering Anatolia to make war against Mithridates, he added four more legions to his army. The overall size of this force consisted of 30,000 infantry and 1,600 cavalry. Following Mithridates' retreat to Armenia, Appian estimates Lucullus' invading force to be only two legions and 500 horsemen, although it is highly improbable that he would have undertaken the invasion of Armenia with such a small army. Historian Adrian Sherwin-White places the size of Lucullus' force to 12,000 seasoned legionaries (composed of three legions), and 4,000 provincial cavalry and light infantry. The Roman army was further bolstered by several thousand allied Gallic, Thracian, and Bithynian infantry and cavalry.

Tigranes' army clearly held a numerical superiority over that of Lucullus'. According to Appian, it numbered 250,000 infantry and 50,000 cavalry. Many scholars, however, doubt these figures accurately reflect the true number of Tigranes' army and are regarded to be highly inflated. Some historians, most notably Plutarch, wrote that Tigranes considered Lucullus' army to be far too small, and upon seeing it, is quoted to have said that "If they come as ambassadors, they are too many; if they are soldiers, too few," although some have expressed doubt on the veracity of this quote. Tigranes also possessed several thousand cataphracts, formidable heavily armored cavalry that were clad in mail armor and armed with lances, spears or bows.