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Contents ( 111)
  1. BY ADRIAN GOLDSWORTHY
  2. CONTENTS
  3. MAP
  4. PROLOGUE
  5. I
  6. In the hill country
  7. Nearer the Euphrates
  8. The same night
  9. II
  10. The temporary camp of Legio VIIII Hispana, Fifty-five miles east of Cyrrhus
  11. Fifteen days before the Kalends of March
  12. III
  13. On the training grounds outside Zeugma
  14. Fifth day before the Nones of March
  15. In the house of Simon the merchant, Nicopolis
  16. The next day
  17. IV
  18. The temporary camp of Legio VIIII Hispana
  19. V
  20. Outside Nicopolis
  21. Eleventh day before the Kalends of April
  22. Nicopolis
  23. The same day
  24. VI
  25. On the road to the crossing at Zeugma
  26. Tenth day before the Kalends of April
  27. VII
  28. Zeugma
  29. Seventh day before the Kalends of April
  30. VIII
  31. The camp of VIIII Hispana
  32. One day before the Nones of April
  33. Nicopolis
  34. The same day, late afternoon
  35. IX
  36. Outside Nicopolis
  37. Eighth Day before the Ides of April
  38. X
  39. Near Nicopolis
  40. A little later
  41. XI
  42. In the plain in front of Nicopolis
  43. The Ides of April
  44. Nicopolis
  45. The same night
  46. XII
  47. In front of Nicopolis
  48. Eighteenth day before the Kalends of May First day of the siege
  49. XIII
  50. Outside Nicopolis
  51. Seventeenth day before the Kalends of May Second day of the siege
  52. XIV
  53. Outside Nicopolis
  54. Fifteenth day before the Kalends of May The fourth day of the siege
  55. Nicopolis
  56. The sixth day of the siege
  57. XV
  58. Up country
  59. Thirteenth day before the Kalends of May The eighth day of the siege
  60. XVI
  61. Zeugma
  62. That same night
  63. XVII
  64. The siege lines outside Nicopolis
  65. Eleventh day before the Kalends of May The tenth day of the siege
  66. XVIII
  67. The large camp to the east of Nicopolis
  68. Tenth day before the Kalends of May The eleventh day of the siege
  69. Nicopolis
  70. Late on the fourteenth night of the siege
  71. XIX
  72. Before Nicopolis
  73. Fifth day before the Kalends of April Sixteenth day of the siege
  74. XX
  75. Outside Nicopolis
  76. The Kalends of May The twenty-first day of the siege
  77. XXI
  78. Before Nicopolis
  79. The day before the Nones of May The twenty-sixth day of the siege
  80. Nicopolis
  81. The next day The twenty-seventh day of the siege
  82. XXII
  83. North west of Nicopolis, some miles from the road
  84. Fifth day before the Ides of May The thirty-second day of the siege
  85. XXIII
  86. In front of Nicopolis
  87. The day before the Ides of May The thirty-fifth day of the siege
  88. XXIV
  89. Outside Nicopolis
  90. The Ides of May
  91. The thirty-sixth day of the siege
  92. XXV
  93. The breach in the western wall
  94. XXVI
  95. Outside Nicopolis
  96. Seventeenth day before the Kalends of June The thirty-seventh day of the siege
  97. The prison at Nicopolis
  98. Three days later
  99. The forty-first day of the siege
  100. XXVII
  101. The citadel at Nicopolis
  102. The last hours of the fourteenth day before the Kalends of June
  103. The forty-first day of the siege
  104. XXVIII
  105. Nicopolis
  106. The same night
  107. EPILOGUE
  108. The next morning
  109. HISTORICAL NOTE
  110. GLOSSARY
  111. CAST OF CHARACTERS

‘And what are they doing?’

Rufus glanced at Caecilius who gestured for him to answer. ‘Building a rampart. Mix of earth and timber, probably beams stripped from houses. They’re trying to block the breach up.’

‘And we’re making it hard for them, I presume?’ Crispinus asked.

‘Much as we can.’ Caecilius’ gruffness had returned. ‘Anyone and anything that can shoot is shooting. But the angle’s wrong. They’re still uphill and we don’t have the advantage of the tower anymore.’

‘So the longer we wait then the harder it will get?’

The primus pilus nodded.

‘It’s a race,’ Rufus said. ‘They’ll never make it as strong as a real wall, but they can make it strong. And it takes us time to get the sheds back into place or bring new ones up, then to bring the earth and pack it down to complete the ramp.’

‘Sacks!’ Hadrian’s interruption surprised everyone. ‘My apologies. But I wonder whether work could be saved if we get a lot of sacks and pack them with fleeces or straw. This ramp does not need to last forever. Pile in a lot of sacks and you can fill up the gaps and get across much faster. Be a surprise to them as well.’

Caecilius drew breath. ‘Maybe,’ he conceded, then thought for a little longer. ‘It could work.’ Rufus picked up a tablet and began writing some figures.

‘We go tonight,’ Crispinus decided. He paid no visible attention to Hadrian, who was sitting slightly behind him, so did not see the acting governor nod in approval. ‘Is midnight possible? Your honest opinion, primus?’

‘No, sir. As late as we can.’

‘Then two hours before dawn. Good. Now that is settled, we must make it happen.’

One hundred volunteers drawn from the entire army led by a centurion would lead the attack, backed by the first cohort, followed by the best men from two more, and as many auxiliaries. Ferox was more than a little surprised that his men were not involved, although shortly after receiving that news he was told that he and ten of them were to guide the men carrying the sacks, who inevitably had to precede everyone else.

‘You are so good at finding your way in the dark,’ Crispinus assured him. ‘But I don’t want to lose you, so once you have got the bags in place, get out of the way, and let the storming party do their job.’

‘Where will we go, my lord?’ Vindex asked, his face as innocent as he could make it. ‘They’ll be hundreds of big lads coming up behind us.’

‘Oh, just slip off the side of the ramp. We can always fish you out of the ditch once it is all over, can’t we?’

Vindex and Bran insisted on coming with him, and to his amazement all of his men volunteered and they had to draw lots to pick the remaining eight.

‘Need to look after you,’ Vindex assured him.

‘Don’t believe a word of it,’ Bran said. ‘He’s been listening to stories of the royal harem inside the city.’