Was this the greatest rival of the Roman empire?

Was this the greatest rival of the Roman empire?

>Goyman
>Goyim
>Goy

On topic, I'd say the Carthaginian empire was. Even though that might be seen as a meme.

But Carthage always lost, while the Sassanids manage to bully Rome's eastern front until they collopsed

Rome never had a psychological enemy on the level of Carthage (excepting maybe the Gauls), but Carthage at its height wasn't as great as Rome at its height, when it was facing greater enemies than during its republican phase.

I see your point, in that the pressures of the Germanic hordes and the Sassanids along with internal strife that ultimately caused their downfall. But the fact that Carthage itself had threatened the young republic at its gates is a big one for me, not to mention 3 wars. One of which was for a stupid island.

While I agree that Carthage at its height isn't nearly as powerful as Rome at its height. I believe that conflicting powers should be measured at the time of the conflicts. And it depends on which century you are talking about, as I hardly consider post third century as the height of Rome anymore.

>Was this the greatest rival of the Roman empire?

I would say the Rashidun caliphate was. BTFO both of those two.

The post-Achaemenid Persia's are really not that impressive desu.

Most Persians/Iranians I meet are all a bunch of closet fags who turn agnostic/atheist the moment they leave EEYRAUN and just wanna take it up the ass and do MDMA.
They are and were too interested in literal faggotry, poetry and mind altering.

Parthian Iran (Parthians weren't Persian) was weak.
Sassanid Persia however became very well organized and a powerful rival to Rome.

Rome started facing problems immediately after the establishment of Sassanid Persia, resulting in the crisis of the third century. In the fourth and fifth century Western Rome was neglected because they needed troops in the East against the Sassanids, many more than what the Parthians required.

The crisis of the third century, fall of the western Roman empire and loss of Egypt and Syria to the Arabs, can all be attributed to the Sassanids.

Rome was only great in the years 146 BC - 224 AD, when the Parthians ruled in the east. When they actually got a powerful enemy, it collapsed.

Rome was its own greatest rival

Bullshit.
The Byzantines managed to fight a number of wars with them with the Sassanids not gaining anything out of it, even after Rome was cucked by proto-Genghis and snowniggers.