Atlas of Battles

battle, ancient

Battle of Zela

Battle of Zela was a battle fought in 67 BC at Zile, in what is now Turkey. It was part of Third Mithridatic War, which ran from 73 BC to 63 BC. The recorded result: Armenian–Pontic victory. Recorded strength: Unknown, but a considerable force of cavalry against 2 legions and an unknown number of auxiliaries and allied troops.

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Fought67 BC
WhereZile, Turkey40.300N, 35.883E
OutcomeArmenian–Pontic victory
BelligerentsKingdom of Pontus; Kingdom of ArmeniaagainstRoman Republic
Casualties and lossesUnknownand7,000 men; 24 tribunes; 150 centurions
Part ofThird Mithridatic War73 BC to 63 BC

Where it sits in Third Mithridatic War

Battle of Chalcedon, 74 BCSiege of Cyzicus, 73 BCBattle of the Rhyndacus, 73 BCBattle of Tenedos, 73 BCBattle of Lemnos, 73 BCSiege of Amisus, 73 BCBattle of Neae, 73 BCBattle of Cabira, 72 BCSiege of Amaseia, 72 BCSiege of Sinope, 71 BCSiege of Themiscyra, 71 BCBattle of Tigranocerta, 69 BCBattle of Artaxata, 68 BCSiege of Nisibis, 68 BCBattle of Zela, 67 BCBattle of the Lycus, 66 BC74 BC66 BCBattle of Zela, 67 BC
17 placed engagements of Third Mithridatic War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date67 BC (year precision)
PlaceZile, Turkey
40.300N, 35.883E
KindBattle, ancient
StrengthUnknown, but a considerable force of cavalry2 legions and an unknown number of auxiliaries and allied troops
Casualties and lossesUnknown7,000 men; 24 tribunes; 150 centurions
Commanders
  • Mithridates VI
  • Gaius Valerius Triarius
Battle of ZelaBattle of ZelaBattle of ZelaBattle of AnzenSiege of AmaseiaBattle of PteriaBattle of Bathys RyaxBattle of ZelaBattle of AnzenSiege of AmaseiaBattle of PteriaBattle of Bathys RyaxSamsunOrduCorumKırşehirYozgatKastamonu100 km40.300N, 35.883E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 67 BC

Battle of Zela is one of 159 engagements of the 1st century BC in the atlas and one of 622 in present-day Turkey.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q2464364, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Zela (67 BC), revision 1370596569, 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.