# data[].attributes.body
146 BC- Rome finally destroyed rival in Third Punic War

Roman soldiers burned Carthage

enslaved 50,000 men, women and children

Carthage-Roman province

148 BC- Macedonia came under Roman rule

Two years later- Greece became Roman

129 BC - Rome gained first province in Asia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Roman Dominance of Italy

By the mid-third century BCE, the Romans reigned supreme in Italy. They'd squashed the Sabines, vanquished the Volsci, trounced the Etruscans, slaughtered the Samnites, unmanned the Umbrians, messed up the Messapians and even grappled with Greeks. They only stopped fighting because they'd run out of land to conquer. Italy was now entirely under the control of the Roman Republic.

Yet, a threat to Roman supremacy was growing right at their doorstep. Just off the toe of Italy sits the island of Sicily. And, that island was being conquered by another ambitious city-state with its own imperial designs. Just across the Mediterranean, on the shores of Africa, stood Carthage.

Rome and Carthage: Similarities and Differences

Carthage is, in many ways, a mirror of Rome. Carthage was founded as a Phoenician Colony around 800 BCE; Rome was founded fewer than 50 years later. As a result of this slight delay, the Carthaginians had a small head start on the Romans, and the fact that theirs was a naval empire while Rome was a land empire gave them a still greater advantage. But, Carthage's greatest advantage was that it was a Phoenician colony trying to unify other Phoenician colonies, with whom they shared a common language and culture. By contrast, the Romans were invaders forced to fight against dozens of independent peoples who all spoke different languages.

Carthage's many advantages meant that Carthage was the capital of a prosperous coastal empire that dominated the western Mediterranean. They controlled the northern coast of Africa, the southern coast of Spain and most of the islands of the western Mediterranean, including half of Sicily.

By contrast, Rome was the capital of a mere peninsula, albeit a densely populated one. Yet, relative size was not the only difference between the Carthaginians and the Romans. Carthage was a city of traders. They were ruled by a council of merchant princes. They were highly civilized, literate and scientifically advanced, though they also may have engaged in human sacrifice. What's important to know now is that the Carthaginians had built their empire through trade and wealth as much as through force.

By contrast, Rome was a nation of soldiers and farmers. Their republic was run, in many respects, like an oversized military camp. Roman culture was relatively primitive compared to the advanced Carthaginians. They did not have Carthage's wealth or intercontinental trade routes at their disposal. But, what the Romans lacked in money and refinement, they made up for in manpower, strict organization and ferocity. Combining these attributes, the Romans had built their empire through conquest and bloodshed.

The First Punic War

In 264 BCE, the ambitious Roman Republic and the wealthy Carthaginian Empire collided on the island of Sicily in the first Punic War. This war was very similar to Athens' battle with Sparta in the Peloponnesian War in that it pitted a powerful army against a large and maneuverable navy. It was a drawn-out, bloody affair, with the Carthaginians trying to keep the battle at sea, and the Romans trying to force the battle to land.

After 24 years of continuous warfare that exhausted both cities, Carthage was driven from Sicily and forced to pay Rome a huge war indemnity, or fine. Bankrupted by the war and the indemnity and unable to pay its mercenaries, the Carthaginian Empire was thrown into a mercenary war. Rome took advantage of the chaos to add the islands of Corsica and Sardinia to its growing Mediterranean empire.

The Second Punic War: Causes

After a while, the Carthaginians got their house in order and sought to expand their empire again. Frustrated at sea by growing Roman dominance, the Carthaginians instead started colonizing the Iberian Peninsula. The native Iberians weren't nearly so viciously organized as the Romans, and the Carthaginians spread easily.

The Romans were once again nervous about the growing power of Carthage, or at least that's what the Roman historians say. Personally, I think that Rome was just looking for a new target for their annual warfare since they'd just finished conquering Illyria across the Adriatic in 219 BCE.

Whatever the reason, in 218 BCE, Rome declared war, and the Second Punic War began. The Roman navy had improved significantly since the beginning of the last Punic War, and they were confident they could hold off any Carthaginian invasion. Yet, while the Romans had been beefing up their navy, the Carthaginians had been building up a huge army in Spain.

Rome was so fixated on rebuffing the Carthaginian navy that it never occurred to them that someone might be crazy enough to march that big Spanish army over the Alps and invade Italy by land. Yet, that is just what the Carthaginian general did.

The Second Punic War: Hannibal

That general's name was Hannibal, and his military genius made him one of the most fearful figures in Roman history. When Hannibal's army, which included dozens of war elephants, descended from the Alps, he must have felt much like those first Latins had felt looking down on the Italian peninsula a thousand years earlier. Here was a lush land just begging to be conquered. Indeed, had Hannibal not lost his siege engines during his passage through the Alps, he very well might have conquered all of Italy.

Hannibal smashed every army the Romans put in front of him, but without siege equipment, he was unable to take Rome itself. Instead, Hannibal laid waste across the countryside and tried to entice other Italian cities to rebel. For some reason, not one Italian city took up arms against Rome. Perhaps it was loyalty, or perhaps these cities feared Rome more than they feared this invader. Whatever the reason, Hannibal's plan to turn Rome's subjects against it failed. Nevertheless, through his military genius, Hannibal ravaged Italy for 16 years.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
summary & hannibal - video & lesson transcript | study.com

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Punic Wars: Causes, Summary & Hannibal - Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.com

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
By the mid-third century BCE, the Romans reigned supreme in Italy. They'd squashed the Sabines, vanquished the Volsci, trounced the Etruscans, slaughtered the Samnites, unmanned the Umbrians, messed up the Messapians and even grappled with Greeks. They only stopped fighting because they'd run out of land to conquer.

# data[].attributes.body
Carthage expanded empire to

southern Spain

helped people living in Spain to

rebel against Carthage

to punish Rome, Carthage sent

Hannibal (their greatest general)

to attack Rome in 218 BC

Second Punic War

take fighting into Italy

Hannibal- army of about 46,000 men,

horse and 37 elephants

landed forces in Spain and marched

east to attack Italy

before reaching Italy, Hannibal's forces

suffered severe losses crossing steep,

snowy Alps

almost half of soldiers killed as well as

most of elephants

Romans suffered severe loss 216 BC

Battle of Cannae- overpowered the Roman

force and began raiding much of Italy

Romans- raised another army

202 BC- Roman force led by Scipio invaded

Carthage

Hannibal- no choice but to return home

to defend land

Battle of Zama- Scipio's troops defeated

Carthaginians

Carthage- gave up Spain to Rome, also gave

up navy and had to pay large fine

# data[].attributes.body
Carthage and Rome wanted to

control Sicily

264 BC- dispute brought powers

to blows

First Punic War

Punicus- Phoenician

started Romans sent army to Sicily

to prevent Carthaginian takeover

Carthaginians determined to stop

invasion

Romans- realized could not defeat

sea power like Carthage without navy

built large fleet of ships, confronted

Carthage at sea

war- dragged on more than 20 years

241 BC- Rome crushed Carthage's navy

off coast of Sicily

Carthage- forced to leave Sicily and pay

huge fine to Romans

Sicily- Roman rule

# data[].attributes.body
As Rome developed government, faced problems

abroad

powerful rival in Mediterranean area

state of Carthage- coast of North Africa

founded around 800 BC by Phoenicians (sea traders)

Carthage- ruled great trading empire included parts

of Northern Africa and Southern Europe

controlling movement of goods, Carthage became

richest city in western Mediterranean

# data[].attributes.body
Rome slowly destroyed the

Carthaginian Empire and took

control of the entire

Mediterranean region