Editing Pompey (section)

==Generalship==

Pompey's military glory was second to none for two decades, yet his decisions were occasionally criticized by some of his contemporaries. Sertorius or Lucullus, for instance, were especially critical.<ref>Plutarch, ''Life of Sertorius'' and ''Life of Lucullus''</ref> Pompey's tactics were usually efficient, albeit not particularly innovative or imaginative, and they could prove insufficient against greater tacticians. However, Pharsalus was his only decisive defeat.{{sfn|Leach|1978|p={{pn|date=September 2023}}}} At times, he was reluctant to risk an open battle. While not extremely charismatic, Pompey could display tremendous bravery and fighting skills on the battlefield, which inspired his men.{{sfn|Leach|1978|p={{pn|date=September 2023}}}} While being a superb commander, Pompey also earned a reputation for stealing other generals' victories.{{sfn|Brice|2014|p=145}}

On the other hand, Pompey is usually considered an outstanding strategist and organizer, who could win campaigns without displaying genius on the battlefield, but simply by constantly outmaneuvering his opponents and gradually pushing them into a desperate situation.{{sfn|Leach|1978|p={{pn|date=September 2023}}}} Pompey was a great planner, and had tremendous organizational skill, which allowed him to devise grand strategies and operate effectively with large armies.<ref name=":8">Si Sheppard, ''Pharsalus''</ref> During his campaigns in the east, he relentlessly pursued his enemies, choosing the ground for his battles.<ref>{{Cite book |title=History of the Ancient & Medieval World Vol. 6 |publisher=Marshall Cavendish Corporation |year=1996 |isbn=0761403574 |edition=Revised |location=Tarrytown, NY |pages=731 |language=English}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Hazel |first=John |title=Who's Who in the Roman World |publisher=Routledge Taylor & Francis Group |year=2001 |isbn=0415224101 |edition=2nd |location=New York |pages=247–248 |language=English}}</ref>

Above all, he was often able to adapt to his enemies and showed determination. On many occasions, he acted very swiftly and decisively, as he did during his campaigns in Sicily and Africa, or against the Cilician pirates. During the Sertorian war, on the other hand, Pompey was beaten several times by Sertorius. Despite an abysmal first year of the war for Pompey in 76&nbsp;BC, he continued to campaign vigorously and as a result defeated many of Sertorius' subordinates. After Sertorius' army was greatly diminished, Pompey then decided to conduct a [[war of attrition]], in which he would avoid open battles against his chief opponent but instead tried to gradually regain the strategic advantage by capturing his fortresses and cities and defeating his junior officers.{{sfn|Leach|1978|p={{pn|date=September 2023}}}} This strategy was unspectacular, but it led to constant territorial gains and did much to demoralize the Sertorian forces. By 73 or 72&nbsp;BC, when he was assassinated, Sertorius was already in a desperate situation and his troops were deserting. Against Perperna, a tactician far inferior to his former commander-in-chief, Pompey decided to revert to a more aggressive strategy and he scored a decisive victory that effectively ended the war.

Against Caesar too, his strategy was sound. During the campaign in Greece, he managed to regain the initiative, join his forces to those of Metellus Scipio (something that Caesar wanted to avoid) and trap his enemy. His strategic position was therefore much better than that of Caesar and he could have starved Caesar's army to death.<ref name=":8"/> However, he was finally compelled to fight an open battle by his allies, and his conventional tactics proved no match to those of Caesar (who also commanded the more experienced troops).