Three Wars: The First Punic War

In 262 B.C., multiple sieges and short conflicts ended with the Roman victory at the battle of Agrigentum. This pushed the Carthaginians out of Sicily but they were far from defeat. Carthage had assembled their fleet and waited for the battle to come to them. The Romans countered this by building their own navy and crafting a new way to attack the Carthaginians. The superior ships of Carthage would fight by building speed and ramming the enemy ships. Seeing this, Rome created a small bridge that would allow infantry to board and seize opposing ships. This proved to be extremely effective during the naval engagements. Other than the major loss at the Battle of Tunis, Rome triumphed and ended the first Punic

The three Punic Wars demonstrated the Roman emperors’ power over Rome with laws over land, environment, and conflicts. In The three Punic Wars Carthage and Rome fought for power over Mediterranean Sea. Carthage was lead by hannibal. The first Punic War was in 264 BC when Rome and Carthage wanted power to rule Sicily. The wars started when when Mercenary soldiers surrounded the city of Messena which is now Messina in Sicily and requested aid from Rome and Carthage against Hiero II, the king of Syracuse. Carthage and Rome hadn't always been enemies, they were on friendly terms before the greek king Pyrrhus had entered Italy.

The three Punic Wars between Rome and Carthage went on for over a century. The wars started in 264 B.C. and ended with the Romans destroying Carthage in 146 B.C. The conflict between the countries came from the clash of economic interests. The wars were the first big wars of Roman expansion outside Italy. Carthage had a big empire along the coast of North America, southern Spain, and a few parts of Sicily. The purpose of these wars was to decide which power would become the dominant force around the Mediterranean Sea. The first war was the beginning of the Roman conquest of the Mediterranean sea, and lasted more than twenty years. The second was

In 288 B.C. a group of mercenaries known as the Mamertines was hired by the city of Syracuse that was undergoing a revolt. Soon they were defeated by the loyal inhabitants of Syracuse and applied to both Rome and Carthage for assistance. Carthage, acting first, offered a garrison to protect the Mamertines, but they found this offer to be unappealing and turned to Rome to see their offer. However at this point in time the rivalry between Carthage and Rome became so fierce that there would be no feasible way to accept assistance from both powers, Rome acted by sending two legions to occupy Sicily and defeat the

The Punic Wars were a defining moment in the expansion of the Roman Republic, with the Second Punic War (218 – 201 BC (Grant, 1960)) playing the part of a corner stone in the bridge to create the powerful Roman Empire. Moreover, this was the first time that Rome had expanded into territories outside of Italy which was pivotal in the development of the Roman Republic, and furthermore the Rome Empire, as it marks the beginning of an imperial Roman power (Rickard, 2001). Accordingly, this war has captured great interest as it triggered a number of significant modifications to the Roman Republic.

Carthage became the wealthiest city in the region by 265 B.C. and possessed the leading naval power (Punic Wars). While some clashes erupted between Carthage and other powers in the area, the relations between the city and the Romans remained generally peaceful. However, the relationship changed in 264 B.C. when Rome intervened in a dispute between the cities of Syracuse and Messina on the island of Sicily (Punic Wars). Rome supported Messina, while Carthage sided with Syracuse. The interactions between Carthage, Rome, and the two cities led to a direct conflict between Rome and Carthage (Punic Wars).

Polybius as well as Livy, wrote an important and fantastical anecdote depicting the hatred of the Barcas concerning Rome. Polybius uses this anecdote to convince his reader that Hamilcar indeed played a key role in the starting of the Second Punic War. On the opening page of book XXI in Livy, Hamilcar and his son Hannibal are arguing over letting Hannibal go to Spain with his father or not. Polybius does not mention an argument, but this should not detract from the anecdote. Hamilcar meanwhile had prepared to make a sacrifice to the gods for a successful outcome in his trip and possibly for another war against Rome, made his son swear with his hand on the sacrificial victim, “ When he was old enough, he would be the enemy of the Roman people.

The three Punic wars between Carthage and Rome took place over nearly a century, beginning in 263 B.C. and ending with the destruction if Carthage in 146 B.C. When the conflict began, Rome was a small city-state. By the end of it, Rome ruled the Mediterranean, with conquered lands stretching from Spain to Greece. However, this conquest came with a price. At the end of the Punic Wars, abuse of power, unemployed men roaming around the city, and corruption started the downfall of the Roman Republic.

These Campanian mercenaries, who called themselves Mamertines, or Sons of Mars, murdered the inhabitants and ravaged the surrounding country. The king of Syracuse attacked them, laid siege to their city, and reduced them to such an extremity that they felt obliged to look for help. The choice lay between Rome and Carthage. They finally decided to call upon Rome for help. The Roman senate hesitated to help these robbers against Syracuse, which was a friendly power. But when the question was left to the assembly, the people fearing that Carthage would be called upon if they refused, it was decided to help the Mamertines, and thus prevent the Carthaginians from getting possession of this part of Sicily. In this way began the first Punic war.

The ancient Rome Empire raises their empire by coquetting many lands by fighting and coquetting them. One on the things that made Rome special was their expansion of the territory. What was different of other empires is, when they conquer a foreign land, they let them keep their traditions and their own culture. Instead of teaching them religion and make them be a Roman, they made them swear fealty to Rome. Roma wanted to spread their territory and their trading zone. One example of this was the war of the Roman and the Carthaginians in 264 BC. After many battles of this war better know as the Punic Wars, finally the romans defeated the Carthaginians. It took 100 years to put and end to this war.

Many of the states of Italy that Rome had conquered a century before now joined Hannibal. This was a threat to Rome, so the Roman general Publius Cornelius Scipio took a Roman army to north Africa and then Hannibal went back to defend Carthage. In the battle at Zama, near Carthage, in 202 BC the Romans finally defeated Hannibal.

This began the Punic wars. There were three Punic wars. Rome and Carthage were the two strongest contenders of the central Mediterranean Sea of that time. In each of these wars Carthage lost. These wars lasted off and on from 246 BC to 149 BC, with Carthage eventually being destroyed.

The outcomes of the second Punic War was a profound turning point for Roman history. Immediately, the acquisition of the empire. Rome had acquired many new territories and the Republic had to figure out administrative, financial, foreign political systems to rule. “It seems self-evident, but it is worth stressing that these territories were indeed conquered lands, and Rome had to keep large numbers of men in the army in order to secure them.” (Bagnall). This meant that the army continued to have a huge influence and play a strong role in Roman society. Greece was the only power left until the First Macedonian War. The war with Hannibal was considered by the Romans to have mythic terms. Romans eventually saw this as Rome’s heroic age. Villains

In 264 B.C. the Romans became committed to their first over-seas conflict, when “Carthage attempted to gain control of the island of Sicily. The prospect of such a powerful neighbor only a few miles offshore from Italy worried the Romans. When Sicilian Greeks asked for Roman

The second Púnic war (herein after referred to as, “the War”) came to a close in 201 BCE, following Scípio’s victory over Hánnibal at the battle of Záma. After seventeen years of warfare, and at a great loss of life on both sides, Rome defeated Cárthage and came out on top as the new superpower in the Mediterránean region. The outcome of this war brought consequences to Cárthage and created opportunities for Rome (Morey, 1901).