Atlas of Battles

battle, major, ancient

Battle of Magnesia

Battle of Magnesia was a battle fought in 190 BC at Manisa, in what is now Turkey. It was part of the Roman–Seleucid War, which ran from 192 BC to 188 BC. The recorded result: Roman-Pergamene victory.

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The Seleucid Empire in 200 BC. Author: Thomas A. Lessman. Source URL:https://www.worldhistorymaps.info/images/East-Hem_200bc.jpg. Image was created by me (Thomas Lessman) based on my map of Eastern He
The Seleucid Empire in 200 BC. Author: Thomas A. Lessman. Source URL:https://www.worldhistorymaps.info/images/East-Hem_200bc.jpg. Image was created by me (Thomas Lessman) based on my map of Eastern He. Thomas Lessman (Contact!), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought190 BC
WhereManisa, Turkey38.617N, 27.433E
OutcomeRoman-Pergamene victory
BelligerentsRoman Republic; Kingdom of PergamonagainstSeleucid Empire
Part ofRoman–Seleucid War192 BC to 188 BC

Where it sits in the Roman–Seleucid War

Battle of Thermopylae, 191 BCCapture of Pherae, 191 BCBattle of Corycus, 191 BCBattle of Magnesia, 190 BCBattle of the Eurymedon, 190 BCBattle of Myonessus, 190 BCBattle of Panhormus, 190 BCCapture of Phocaea, 190 BC191 BC190 BCBattle of Magnesia, 190 BC
8 placed engagements of the Roman–Seleucid War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date190 BC (year precision)
PlaceManisa, Turkey
38.617N, 27.433E
KindBattle, ancient
Strength30,000; (ancient sources); 30,000 – 50,000; (modern estimates); 16 war elephants72,000; (ancient sources); 50,000 – 72,000; (modern estimates); 54 war elephants
Casualties and losses349 dead and many wounded; (ancient sources); 5,000 dead; (modern estimates)53,000 dead as well as 1,400 and 15 war elephants captured; (ancient sources); 10,000 dead; (modern estimates)
Commanders
Battle of MagnesiaBattle of MagnesiaSiege of Magnesia ad SipylumBattle of CorupediumSiege of SmyrnaGreek landing at SmyrnaBattle of ThymbraSiege of SmyrnaGreek landing at SmyrnaBattle of ThymbraDenizliBalıkesirSökeMitiliniAydın100 km38.617N, 27.433E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Magnesia
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 50 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Magnesia today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2024-08-24. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024.

The recorded site stands at about 70 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 22 to 1,488 m, 1,466 m of relief, mountainous country and today it is 41% tree cover, 33% built-up, 19% cropland.

tree cover: 41%built-up: 33%cropland: 19%grassland: 6%tree cover 41%built-up 33%cropland 19%grassland 6%
west to east, 10.0 km29 to 97 mnorth to south, 10.0 km24 to 923 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 190 BC

Battle of Magnesia is one of 91 engagements of the 2nd century BC in the atlas and one of 622 in present-day Turkey.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q917811, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Magnesia, revision 1380641302, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.