Download The Punic Wars

The Punic Wars
Ancient Rome
First Punic War
• Began with a dispute over Sicily (Port of Messina)
• Strengths at war:
• Carthage was superior fighting at sea
• Rome was superior fighting on land
• Rome used grappling hooks to pull in ships and fight “on
land”
• Rome takes control of Sicily and is ready to attack
Carthage
First Punic War
In Between the Wars
• Hamilcar Barca
• Leader of Carthage troops (mercenaries) during the first
Punic War
• Held a grudge against both Carthage and Rome
• Carthage because they didn’t pay his troops
• Rome because they defeated him in war
• Gathers another mercenary army and takes them to
Spain (unbeknownst to Carthage)
In Between Wars
• Makes his son Hannibal promise never to be a friend to Rome
• Hannibal attacks Saguntum  Rome does nothing for their
ally!
• Rome sent a delegation to Carthage
• The Carthaginian senate gave Rome a choice  war or peace
• The leader of the Roman delegation declared war!
• And so begins the unnecessary Second Punic War (Oh Rome,
you war loving people..)
Beginning of the
Second Punic War
Hannibal Invades
Italy
Hannibal Kicks Butt
• Leads his army from Spain, through southern France and the
Alps, and invades Italy from the north
• Defeats Roman armies sent to stop him several times but
hesitates to attack Rome itself
• Sees Rome as too well fortified
• Settles instead on war of attrition in hope of destroying Roman
economic base
HANNIBAL AD PORTAS!!
Scipio to the Rescue
• Rome is unable to defeat Hannibal in Italy 
• So…patrician general Scipio Aemilius Africanus
sailed a Roman army across the Mediterranean,
landed in North Africa, and headed for Carthage!
• Hannibal forced to leave Italy to protect Carthage
• Carthage is defeated at the Battle of Zama, fought
outside the walls of Carthage
Rome is Victorious!
• Carthaginians gave up
their land in Spain
• Handed over their
warships
• Agreed to another loss
to Rome
• The terms were meant
to cripple Carthage and
never allow them to
challenge Rome again
Roman Territory at the end of
the 2nd Punic war
Here We Go Again…
• 50 years of peace between Rome and Carthage
• Carthage has regained prosperity but is no threat to
Rome
• Basically, Rome wanted Carthage gone off the face of
the Earth
• This hatred for Carthage was headed by Cato, a
Roman senator
• “Carthago delenda est”
Third Punic War
• 146 BCE Rome burns Carthage
• Sells the living population into slavery
• Sowed the soil with salt so no crops could grow
• Rome is now in total control of the Mediterranean
End of the Punic
Wars
By the Death of
Julius Caesar