Hence one can, like the famous historian Eckhardt, draw the conclusion that the Armenians managed, in the best way possible, to take advantage of the occasion given to them by the Armenian winter and prepare themselves for the coming defence of their land. The war of 69 BCwas a surprise attack, while the war of 68 BC would be an arranged and well prepared one.
Lucullus spent the winter with his army in the south of the Taurus Mountains, in the surroundings of Tigranakert. The region Gordin, which was in his control, provided him and his men with provisions. He planned to end the Armenian campaign during 68 B.C., by passing the Taurus Mountains in the spring and come to Moush, where he would crush Tigran's army.
There were two routes between Tigranakert and Moush: either through Sasoun or via the present cities of Siirt and Bitlis. Lucullus chose the path through Sasoun, since it was first of all shorter, and secondly, it was less mountainous. This alternative was also better as it had a number of side roads, while the other route would make it much easier for the Armenians to cut off the road for and lead Lucullus' army into a trap, by closing the only way to Bitlis and turning it into some kind of Trimopil. 74
At the end of the February 68 B.C., Lucullus started to march towards Moush which he reached after having covered 175 kilometres in 10 days, three of which involved going through mountainous passages.
The choice of battle ground was Lucullus' first actual mistake. The wheatfields on the plain had ripened, while the plains in Moush, due to the higher altitude, were still not ready. Lucullus' men had tremendous difficulties in finding food. Their problems were compounded by the division of Tigran's army into two, following Mithradates'advice: the cavalry which was led by Tigran himself and the infantry led by Mithradates. These two armies fought independently but in coordination with each other. This tied the Romans down. While the Romans soldiers repelled an attack from one Armenian army, that army would retreat while the other struck from another flank. 75
Lucullus surrounded Mithradates's camp , but Mithradates avoided a direct confrontation with him. At the same time Tigran's horsemen continuously disrupted the Roman army by sporadic attacks which weakened them.
The war took on a vengeful character. As Mommsen noted 76 the natural shape of Armenia and the structure of the new army, which was more or less entirely made up of Armenians fighting on their native soil against a foreign intruder, were two very important factors combining toward greater efficiency on the part of the Armenians.
Lucullus, who wanted to end the war and force Tigran to a direct confrontation, turned his army towards the old capital of Armenia, Artaxata, where Tigran had moved his wives and treasures. This would force Tigran to repeat the attack he had made on Tigranakert.
Lucullus marched upwards alongside the Euphrates River and was able to conquer the cities of Manazkert and Gharakilisa, but Tigran managed to stop him between Gharakilisa and Diadin. The two armies encountered each other and it was here that the outcome of the war was decided. There are no certain evidence about this battle, but can only rely on the undoubtedly biased accounts given by Roman historians.
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