1.
Sicily
–
Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is an autonomous Region of Italy, along with surrounding minor islands, Sicily is located in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula, from which it is separated by the narrow Strait of Messina. Its most prominent landmark is Mount Etna, the tallest active volcano in Europe, the island has a typical Mediterranean climate. The earliest archaeological evidence of activity on the island dates from as early as 12,000 BC. It became part of Italy in 1860 following the Expedition of the Thousand, a revolt led by Giuseppe Garibaldi during the Italian unification, Sicily was given special status as an autonomous region after the Italian constitutional referendum of 1946. Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially regard to the arts, music, literature, cuisine. It is also home to important archaeological and ancient sites, such as the Necropolis of Pantalica, the Valley of the Temples, Sicily has a roughly triangular shape, earning it the name Trinacria. To the east, it is separated from the Italian mainland by the Strait of Messina, about 3 km wide in the north, and about 16 km wide in the southern part. The northern and southern coasts are each about 280 km long measured as a line, while the eastern coast measures around 180 km. The total area of the island is 25,711 km2, the terrain of inland Sicily is mostly hilly and is intensively cultivated wherever possible. Along the northern coast, the ranges of Madonie,2,000 m, Nebrodi,1,800 m. The cone of Mount Etna dominates the eastern coast, in the southeast lie the lower Hyblaean Mountains,1,000 m. The mines of the Enna and Caltanissetta districts were part of a leading sulphur-producing area throughout the 19th century, Sicily and its surrounding small islands have some highly active volcanoes. Mount Etna is the largest active volcano in Europe and still casts black ash over the island with its ever-present eruptions and it currently stands 3,329 metres high, though this varies with summit eruptions, the mountain is 21 m lower now than it was in 1981. It is the highest mountain in Italy south of the Alps, Etna covers an area of 1,190 km2 with a basal circumference of 140 km. This makes it by far the largest of the three volcanoes in Italy, being about two and a half times the height of the next largest, Mount Vesuvius. In Greek Mythology, the deadly monster Typhon was trapped under the mountain by Zeus, Mount Etna is widely regarded as a cultural symbol and icon of Sicily. The Aeolian Islands in the Tyrrhenian Sea, to the northeast of mainland Sicily form a volcanic complex, the three volcanoes of Vulcano, Vulcanello and Lipari are also currently active, although the latter is usually dormant
Sicily
–
Mount Etna rising over suburbs of Catania
Sicily
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Sicily Sicilia
Sicily
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Sicilian landscape
Sicily
–
Location of the
Salso
2.
Roman Republic
–
It was during this period that Romes control expanded from the citys immediate surroundings to hegemony over the entire Mediterranean world. During the first two centuries of its existence, the Roman Republic expanded through a combination of conquest and alliance, by the following century, it included North Africa, most of the Iberian Peninsula, and what is now southern France. Two centuries after that, towards the end of the 1st century BC, it included the rest of modern France, Greece, and much of the eastern Mediterranean. By this time, internal tensions led to a series of wars, culminating with the assassination of Julius Caesar. The exact date of transition can be a matter of interpretation, Roman government was headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and advised by a senate composed of appointed magistrates. Over time, the laws that gave exclusive rights to Romes highest offices were repealed or weakened. The leaders of the Republic developed a tradition and morality requiring public service and patronage in peace and war, making military. Many of Romes legal and legislative structures can still be observed throughout Europe and much of the world in modern nation states, the exact causes and motivations for Romes military conflicts and expansions during the republic are subject to wide debate. While they can be seen as motivated by outright aggression and imperialism and they argue that Romes expansion was driven by short-term defensive and inter-state factors, and the new contingencies that these decisions created. In its early history, as Rome successfully defended itself against foreign threats in central and then northern Italy, with some important exceptions, successful wars in early republican Rome generally led not to annexation or military occupation, but to the restoration of the way things were. But the defeated city would be weakened and thus able to resist Romanizing influences. It was also able to defend itself against its non-Roman enemies. It was, therefore, more likely to seek an alliance of protection with Rome and this growing coalition expanded the potential enemies that Rome might face, and moved Rome closer to confrontation with major powers. The result was more alliance-seeking, on the part of both the Roman confederacy and city-states seeking membership within that confederacy. While there were exceptions to this, it was not until after the Second Punic War that these alliances started to harden into something more like an empire and this shift mainly took place in parts of the west, such as the southern Italian towns that sided with Hannibal. In contrast, Roman expansion into Spain and Gaul occurred as a mix of alliance-seeking, in the 2nd century BC, Roman involvement in the Greek east remained a matter of alliance-seeking, but this time in the face of major powers that could rival Rome. This had some important similarities to the events in Italy centuries earlier, with some major exceptions of outright military rule, the Roman Republic remained an alliance of independent city-states and kingdoms until it transitioned into the Roman Empire. It was not until the time of the Roman Empire that the entire Roman world was organized into provinces under explicit Roman control
Roman Republic
–
Route of Pyrrhus of Epirus
Roman Republic
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Roman consul accompanied by two
lictors
Roman Republic
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Gaius Gracchus, tribune of the people, presiding over the
Plebeian Council
Roman Republic
–
A Roman
denarius struck in 56 BC showing on one side the bust of the
Goddess Diana, and on the reverse the Roman general
Lucius Cornelius Sulla is offered an olive branch by his ally
Bocchus I as the captive
Jugurtha kneels beside Sulla with his hands bound.
3.
Roman consul
–
A consul was the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic, and the consulship was considered the highest level of the cursus honorum. Each year, two consuls were elected together, to serve for a one-year term, the consuls alternated in holding imperium each month, and a consuls imperium extended over Rome, Italy, and the provinces. Originally, consuls were called praetors, referring to their duties as the military commanders. By at least 300 BC the title of Consul was being used, in Greek, the title was originally rendered as στρατηγός ὕπατος, strategos hypatos, and later simply as ὕπατος. The consul was believed by the Romans to date back to the establishment of the Republic in 509 BC. These remained in place until the office was abolished in 367/366 BC, consuls had extensive powers in peacetime, and in wartime often held the highest military command. Additional religious duties included certain rites which, as a sign of their formal importance, consuls also read auguries, an essential step before leading armies into the field. Two consuls were elected each year, serving together, each with power over the others actions. It is thought that only patricians were eligible for the consulship. Consuls were elected by the Comitia Centuriata, which had a bias in its voting structure which only increased over the years from its foundation. If a consul died during his term or was removed from office, a consul elected to start the year - called a consul ordinarius - held more prestige than a suffect consul, partly because the year would be named for ordinary consuls. The first plebeian consul, Lucius Sextius, was elected the following year and it is possible that only the chronology has been distorted, but it seems that one of the first consuls, Lucius Junius Brutus, came from a plebeian family. Another possible explanation is that during the 5th century social struggles, during times of war, the primary qualification for consul was military skill and reputation, but at all times the selection was politically charged. With the passage of time, the became the normal endpoint of the cursus honorum. When Lucius Cornelius Sulla regulated the cursus by law, the age of election to consul became. Beginning in the late Republic, after finishing a year, a former consul would usually serve a lucrative term as a proconsul. The most commonly chosen province for the proconsulship was Cisalpine Gaul, throughout the early years of the Principate although the consuls were still formally elected by the Comitia Centuriata, they were in fact nominated by the princeps. It was a post that would be occupied by a man halfway through his career, in his early thirties for a patrician, emperors frequently appointed themselves, or their protégés or relatives, consuls, even without regard to the age requirements
Roman consul
–
Flavius Anastasius Paulus Probus Sabinianus Pompeius Anastasius (consul 517 AD) in consular garb, holding a sceptre and the mappa, a piece of cloth used to signal the start of
chariot races at the
Hippodrome. Ivory panel from his
consular diptych.
Roman consul
–
Ancient Rome
4.
Third Servile War
–
The concentrated military effort of a single commander, Marcus Licinius Crassus, finally crushed the rebellion, though the war continued to have indirect effects on Roman politics for years to come. The Third Servile War had significance in the history of ancient Rome in its effect on the careers of Pompey. Their actions as Consuls greatly furthered the subversion of Roman political institutions, to varying degrees throughout Roman history, the existence of a pool of inexpensive labor in the form of slaves was an important factor in the economy. Slaves were acquired for the Roman workforce through a variety of means, including purchase from foreign merchants and the enslavement of foreign populations through military conquest. While there was limited use for slaves as servants, craftsmen, for the most part, slaves were treated harshly and oppressively during the Roman republican period. Under Republican law, a slave was not considered a person, owners could abuse, injure or even kill their own slaves without legal consequence. While there were many grades and types of slaves, the lowest—and most numerous—grades who worked in the fields and this high concentration and oppressive treatment of the slave population led to rebellions. While these were considered serious civil disturbances by the Roman Senate, taking years and direct intervention to quell. The Roman heartland had never seen a slave uprising, nor had ever been seen as a potential threat to the city of Rome. This would all change with the Third Servile War, in the Roman Republic of the 1st century, gladiatorial games were one of the more popular forms of entertainment. In order to supply gladiators for the contests, several training schools, in these schools, prisoners of war and condemned criminals—who were considered slaves—were taught the skills required to fight in gladiatorial games. In 73 BC, a group of some 200 gladiators in the Capuan school owned by Lentulus Batiatus plotted an escape. When their plot was betrayed, a force of about 70 men seized kitchen implements, fought their way free from the school, and seized several wagons of gladiatorial weapons and armor. These escaped slaves were able to defeat a force of troops sent after them from Capua. They initially viewed the revolt as more a major crime wave than an armed rebellion, however, later that year, Rome dispatched a military force under praetorian authority to put down the rebellion. Glabers forces besieged the slaves on Mount Vesuvius, blocking the only way down the mountain. With the slaves thus contained, Glaber was content to wait until starvation forced the slaves to surrender and they moved around the base of Vesuvius, outflanked the army, and annihilated Glabers men. A second expedition, under the praetor Publius Varinius, was dispatched against Spartacus
Third Servile War
–
The
Gladiator Mosaic at the
Galleria Borghese
Third Servile War
–
Italy and surrounding territory, 218 BC
Third Servile War
–
Spartacus, by
Denis Foyatier, c. 1830, displayed at the
Louvre. An example of a modern heroic depiction of Spartacus.
Third Servile War
–
The Fall of Spartacus.
5.
Second Catilinarian conspiracy
–
In 63 BC, Cicero exposed the plot, forcing Catiline to flee from Rome. The conspiracy was chronicled by Sallust in his work The Conspiracy of Catiline, Catiline had been an unsuccessful candidate in the consular election several times. His only remaining chance of attaining the consulship would be through an illegitimate means, so he started a conspiracy, winning the support of a great number of other men of senatorial and equestrian rank. Many of the leading conspirators had faced political problems similar to his in the Senate. Publius Autronius Paetus was also complicit in their plot, since he was banned from holding office in the Roman government. Another leading conspirator, Lucius Cassius Longinus, who was praetor in 66 BC with Cicero, by the time that the election came around, he was no longer even regarded as a viable candidate. Gaius Cethegus, a young man at the time of the conspiracy, was noted for his violent nature. His impatience for rapid political advancement may account for his involvement in the conspiracy, the ranks of the conspirators included a variety of other patricians and plebeians who had been cast out of the political system for various reasons. Many of them sought the restoration of their status as senators, promoting his policy of debt relief, Catiline initially also rallied many of the poor to his banner along with a large portion of Sulla’s veterans. Debt had never been greater than in 63 BC since the decades of war had led to an era of economic downturn across the Italian countryside. Numerous plebeian farmers lost their farms and were forced to move to the city, sullas veterans were in bad economic straits as well. Desiring to regain their fortunes, they were prepared to march to war under the banner of the next Sulla, thus, many of the plebs eagerly flocked to Catiline and supported him in the hope of the absolution of their debts. Catiline sent Gaius Manlius, a centurion from Sulla’s old army, others were sent to aid the conspiracy in important locations throughout Italy, and even a small slave revolt which had begun in Capua. While civil unrest was felt throughout the countryside, Catiline made the preparations for the conspiracy in Rome. Their plans included arson and the murder of a portion of the senators. Finally, they would return to Rome and take control of the government, fortunately for Cicero, he escaped death that morning by placing guards at the entrance of his house who scared the conspirators away. On the following day, Cicero convened the Senate in the Temple of Jupiter Stator, however, some sources suggest that the Senate didnt believe Cicero at all. He finally accused them of placing their faith in a homo novus, Cicero, over a nobilis, supposedly, Catiline violently concluded that he would put out his own fire with the general destruction of all
Second Catilinarian conspiracy
–
Cicero Denouncing Catiline by
Cesare Maccari
6.
Sicilian revolt
–
The Sicilian revolt was a revolt against the Second Triumvirate of the Roman Republic which occurred between 44 BC and 36 BC. The revolt was led by Sextus Pompey, and ended in a Triumvirate victory, Sextus father, Pompey, had been an enemy of Julius Caesar for many years, and this enmity finally boiled over in 49 BC with the beginning of Caesars Civil War. Pompey was executed in 48 BC by the Egyptians, but Sextus and his brother, Gnaeus Pompeius, continued fighting until 45 BC, after Munda Sextus brother was executed but Sextus himself escaped to Sicily. When Julius Caesar was assassinated on March 15,44 BC, Sextus name was placed on a proscription list formed by Marcus Lepidus, Marcus Antonius, and Octavian, the members of the Second Triumvirate. The list was designed not only to fill Romes treasury, but to help in the Second Triumvirates war on the Cassii and Bruti families, upon finding his name upon this list, Sextus decided to pick up where his father had left off. He selected Sicily as his base, capturing cities, including Tyndaris, Mylae. Other cities, such as Syracuse, gave in to Sextus revolt, Sextus soon became a serious force in the civil war following Caesars death. He amassed an army and a large fleet of warships. Many slaves and friends of his father joined his cause, hoping to preserve the Roman Republic, the multitudes of slaves joining Sextus often came from the villas of patricians, and this desertion hurt the Romans so much that the Vestal Virgins prayed for it to stop. This blockade was severely crippling to the Roman army as well as to the Italian Peninsula, Sextus agreed, and also agreed to stop accepting fugitive slaves to his cause. This treaty was called the Pact of Misenum after Misenum where it was negotiated, in 42 BC, the Triumvirate defeated Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus at the Battle of Philippi. Once the blockade was ended, the Triumvirate, especially Octavian and his right-hand man Marcus Agrippa, were able to turn their energies to Sextus, Octavian tried to invade Sicily in 38 BC, but the ships were forced to go back because of bad weather. Agrippa cut part of Via Ercolana and dug a channel to connect the Lucrine Lake to the sea, in order to change it into a harbour, the new harbour was used to train the ships for naval battles. A new fleet was built, with 20,000 oarsmen gathered by freeing slaves, the new ships were built much larger, in order to carry many more naval infantry units, which were being trained at the same time. Furthermore, Antony exchanged 20,000 infantry for his Parthian campaign with 120 ships, in July 36 BC the two fleets sailed from Italy, and another fleet, provided by the third triumvir Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, sailed from Africa, to attack Sextus stronghold in Sicily. In August, Agrippa was able to finally defeat Sextus in a battle near Mylae. At Naulochus, Agrippa met Sextus fleet, both fleets were composed of 300 ships, all with artillery, but Agrippa commanded heavier units, armed with the arpax and corvus. Agrippa succeeded in blocking the more manoeuvrable ships of Sextus and, after a long and bloody fight, Agrippa lost three ships, while 28 ships of Sextus were sunk,17 fled, and the others burnt or captured
Sicilian revolt
–
Sextus Pompeius' possessions (territories went over to Octavianus with Menodorus before the war are painted in pink and beige;
7.
Final War of the Roman Republic
–
After the Roman Senate declared war on the Egyptian queen Cleopatra, Antony, her lover and ally, betrayed the Roman government and joined the war on Cleopatra’s side. After the decisive victory for Octavian at the Battle of Actium, Cleopatra and Antony withdrew to Alexandria, following the end of the war, Octavian brought peace to the Roman state that had been plagued by a century of civil wars. Octavian became the most powerful man in the Roman world and the Senate bestowed upon him the name of Augustus in 27 BC, Octavian, now Augustus, would be the first Roman Emperor and would transform the oligarchic/democratic Republic into the autocratic Roman Empire. The last Republican Civil War would mark the beginning of the Pax Romana, the Caesarians Octavian, Mark Antony, and Marcus Lepidus under the Second Triumvirate had stepped in to fill the power vacuum caused by Julius Caesars assassination. Octavian took control of the west, including Hispania, Gaul, Italia, Antony received control of the east, including Graecia, Asia, Syria and Aegyptus. For a time, Rome saw peace, Octavian put down revolts in the west while Antony reorganized the east, however, the peace was short lived. Antony had been having an affair with the queen of Egypt, Rome, especially Octavian, took note of Antony’s actions. Since 40 BC, Antony had been married to Octavia Minor, Octavian seized the opportunity and had his minister Gaius Maecenas produce a propaganda campaign against Antony. All of Rome felt astonished when they heard word of Antony’s Donations of Alexandria, in these donations, Antony ceded much of Rome’s territory in the east to Cleopatra. Cleopatra took the title of Queen of Kings and Caesarion took the title of King of Kings, in response, Octavian increased the personal attacks against Antony, but the Senate and people of Rome were not convinced. Octavian’s chance came when Antony married Cleopatra in 32 BC before he divorced Octavia and that action combined with information that Antony was planning to establish a second Senate in Alexandria created the perfect environment for Octavian to strip Antony of his power. Octavian summoned the Senate and accused Antony of anti-Roman sentiments, Octavian had illegally seized Antony’s will from the Temple of Vesta. The Senators were not moved by Caesarion or Antony’s children but Antony’s desire to be buried outside of Rome invoked the Senate’s rage, Octavian, the natural politician he was, blamed Cleopatra and not Antony. The Senate declared war on Cleopatra, and Octavian knew that Antony would come to her aid, when Cleopatra received word that Rome had declared war, Antony threw his support to Egypt. Immediately, the Senate stripped Antony of all his power and labeled him as an outlaw. Octavian summoned all of his legions, numbered at almost 200,000 Roman legionaries, Cleopatra and Antony did the same, assembling roughly the same number in mixed heavy Roman and light Egyptian infantry. By mid-summer of 31 BC, Antony maneuvered his army into Greece, Octavian brought with him his chief military advisor and closest friend Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa to command his naval forces. Although the ground forces were comparable, Octavians fleet was superior, Antonys fleet was made up of large vessels, but with inexperienced crews and commanders
Final War of the Roman Republic
–
The
Battle of Actium by
Laureys a Castro. This was the decisive battle of the naval theater.
Final War of the Roman Republic
–
The Death of Cleopatra by Reginald Arthur.
Final War of the Roman Republic
–
Due to this war, Octavian would become Augustus and the first Roman Emperor.
8.
Slave revolt
–
A slave rebellion is an armed uprising by slaves. Slave rebellions have occurred in all societies that practice slavery or have practiced slavery in the past. Ancient Sparta had a type of serf called helots who were often treated harshly. According to Herodotus, helots were seven times as numerous as Spartans, in the Roman Empire, though the heterogeneous nature of the slave population worked against a strong sense of solidarity, slave revolts did occur and were severely punished. The most famous slave rebellion in Europe was led by Spartacus in Roman Italy and this war resulted in the 6000 surviving rebel slaves being crucified along the main roads leading into Rome. This was the third in a series of unrelated Servile Wars fought by slaves to the Romans, the English peasants revolt of 1381 led to calls for the reform of feudalism in England and an increase in rights for serfs. The Peasants Revolt was one of a number of revolts in late medieval Europe. Richard II agreed to reforms including fair rents and the abolition of serfdom, following the collapse of the revolt, the kings concessions were quickly revoked, but the rebellion is significant because it marked the beginning of the end of serfdom in medieval England. In Russia, the slaves were classified as kholops. A kholops master had unlimited power over his life, Slavery remained a major institution in Russia until 1723, when Peter the Great converted the household slaves into house serfs. Russian agricultural slaves were converted into serfs earlier in 1679. During the 16th and 17th centuries, runaway serfs and kholops known as Cossacks, between the end of the Pugachev rebellion and the beginning of the 19th century, there were hundreds of outbreaks across Russia. Numerous African slave rebellions and insurrections took place in North America during the 17th, 18th, there is documented evidence of more than 250 uprisings or attempted uprisings involving 10 or more slaves. Aptheker stressed how rebellions were rooted in the conditions of the southern slave system. He traversed libraries and archives throughout the South, managing to uncover roughly 250 similar instances, the Zanj Rebellion was the culmination of a series of small revolts. It took place near the city of Basra, in southern Iraq over fifteen years and it grew to involve over 500,000 slaves, who were imported from across the Muslim empire. The Servile Wars were a series of revolts against the Roman Republic during. The First and Second Servile War occurred in Sicily, the Third Servile War occurred in mainland Italy
Slave revolt
–
Haitian coin (20
gourdes) bearing the image of
François Mackandal, leader of a slave rebellion
Slave revolt
–
Slavery
Slave revolt
–
Demerara rebellion of 1823
9.
Gaius Marius
–
Gaius Marius was a Roman general and statesman. He held the office of consul an unprecedented seven times during his career, Marius defeated the invading Germanic tribes, for which he was called the third founder of Rome. His life and career were significant in Romes transformation from Republic to Empire, Marius was born in 157 BC in the town of Arpinum in southern Latium. The town had been conquered by the Romans in the late 4th century BC and was given Roman citizenship without voting rights, only in 188 BC did the town receive full citizenship. The problems he faced in his career in Rome show the difficulties that faced a new man. Since eagles were considered sacred animals of Jupiter, the god of the Romans. Later, as consul, he decreed that the eagle would be the symbol of the Senate, in 134 BC, he was serving with the army at Numantia and his good services brought him to the attention of Publius Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus Africanus. Whether he arrived with Scipio Aemilianus or was already serving in the army that Scipio Aemilianus took over at Numantia is not clear. According to Plutarch, during a conversation after dinner, when the conversation turned to generals, Aemilianus then gently tapped on Marius shoulder, saying, Perhaps this is the man. It would seem that even at this stage in his army career. He ran for election as one of the special military tribunes of the first four legions who were elected. Sallust tells us that he was unknown by sight to the electors but was returned by all the tribes on the basis of his accomplishments, next, he ran for the quaestorship after losing an election for local office in Arpinum. The military tribunate shows that he was interested in Roman politics before the quaestorship. Perhaps he simply ran for office as a means of gaining support back home. Nothing is known of his actions while quaestor, in 120 BC, Marius was returned as plebeian tribune for the following year. He won with the support of Quintus Caecilius Metellus, who was an inherited patronus, the Metelli, though neither ancient nor patrician, were one of the most powerful families in Rome at this time. During his tribunate, Marius pursued a populares line and he passed a law that restricted the interference of the wealthy in elections. In the 130s voting by ballot had been introduced in elections for choosing magistrates, passing laws and deciding legal cases, in the passage of this law, Marius alienated the Metelli, who opposed it
Gaius Marius
–
Bust of Gaius Marius at
Munich Glyptothek
Gaius Marius
–
"Marius Amid the Ruins of Carthage" by
John Vanderlyn
10.
Cimbri
–
The Cimbri were an ancient people, either Germanic or Celtic who, together with the Teutones and the Ambrones, fought the Roman Republic between 113 and 101 BC. The Cimbri were initially successful, particularly at the Battle of Arausio, in which a large Roman army was routed, after which they raided areas in Gaul. In 101 BC, during an invasion of Italy, the Cimbri were decisively defeated by Gaius Marius. Some of the captives are reported to have been among the rebelling Gladiators in the Third Servile War. Roman sources such as Strabo and Tacitus identify these Cimbri with a living in Jutland. Archaeologists have not found any clear indications of a migration from Jutland in the early Iron Age. Advocates for a northern point to Greek and Roman sources that associate the Cimbri with the peninsula of Jutland. On the map of Ptolemy, the Kimbroi are placed on the northernmost part of the peninsula of Jutland, I. e. in the modern landscape of Himmerland south of Limfjorden. Himmerland is generally thought to preserve their name, in a form without Grimms law. Alternatively, Latin c- represents an attempt to render the unfamiliar Proto-Germanic h =, the origin of the name Cimbri is unknown. One etymology is PIE *tḱim-ro- inhabitant, from home, itself a derivation from tḱei- live, then. Because of the similarity of the names, the Cimbri have been at times associated with Cymry, however, this word is derived from Brittonic *Kombrogi, meaning “compatriots”, and is unrelated to Cimbri. The name has also related to the word kimme meaning “rim”. Finally, since Antiquity, the name has been related to that of the Cimmerians, moreover, an assumption exists that the Cimbri as the Cimmerians too were an Iranian people. Some time before 100 BC many of the Cimbri, as well as the Teutons, after several unsuccessful battles with the Boii and other Celtic tribes, they appeared ca 113 BC in Noricum, where they invaded the lands of one of Romes allies, the Taurisci. Only a storm, which separated the combatants, saved the Roman forces from complete annihilation, now the road to Italy was open, but they turned west towards Gaul. They came into frequent conflict with the Romans, who came out the losers. In Commentarii de Bello Gallico the Aduaticii—Belgians of Cimbrian origin—repeatedly sided with Romes enemies, in 109 BC, they defeated a Roman army under the consul Marcus Junius Silanus, who was the commander of Gallia Narbonensis
Cimbri
–
The Roman empire under
Augustus (ruled 27 BC-14 AD), showing the location of the Cimbri in their original home in the northern part of the
Jutland peninsula.
Cimbri
–
The Defeat of the Cimbri by
Alexandre-Gabriel Décamps
Cimbri
–
Gundestrup cauldron, Plate E
11.
Cisalpine Gaul
–
Cisalpine Gaul, also called Gallia Citerior or Gallia Togata, was the part of Italy inhabited by Celts during the 4th and 3rd centuries BC. Conquered by the Roman Republic in the 220s BC, it was a Roman province from c.81 BC until 42 BC, when it was merged into Roman Italy. Until that time, it was considered part of Gaul, precisely that part of Gaul on the side of the Alps. Gallia Cisalpina was further subdivided into Gallia Cispadana and Gallia Transpadana, i. e. its portions south and north of the Po River and they brought a new funerary practice—cremation—which supplanted inhumation. Livy has the Insubres, led by Bellovesus, arrive in northern Italy during the reign of Tarquinius Priscus, Milan itself is presumably a Gaulish foundation of the early 6th century BC, its name having a Celtic etymology of in the middle of the plain. Polybius in the 2nd century BC wrote about co-existence of the Celts in northern Italy with Etruscan nations in the period before the Sack of Rome in 390 BC. Ligures lived in Northern Mediterranean Coast straddling South-east French and North-west Italian coasts, including parts of Tuscany, Elba island, Ligurian tribes were also present in Latium and in Samnium. According to Plutarch they called themselves Ambrones, which could indicate a relationship with the Ambrones of northern Europe, little is known of the Ligurian language. Only place-names and personal names remain and it appears to be an Indo-European branch with both Italic and particularly strong Celtic affinities. Because of the strong Celtic influences on their language and culture, modern linguists, like Xavier Delamarre argues that Ligurian was a Celtic language, similar to, but not the same as Gaulish. The Ligurian-Celtic question is discussed by Barruol. Ancient Ligurian is either listed as Celtic, or Para-Celtic, the Veneti were an Indo-European people who inhabited north-eastern Italy, in an area corresponding to the modern-day region of the Veneto. By the 4th century BC the Veneti had been so Celticized that Polybius wrote that the Veneti of the 2nd century BC were identical to the Gauls except for language. He further suggested that the identification of the Adriatic Veneti with the Paphlagonian Enetoi led by Antenor — which he attributes to Sophocles — was a due to the similarity of the names. The Roman army was routed in the battle of Allia, the defeat of the combined Samnite, Celtic and Etruscan alliance by the Romans in the Third Samnite War ending in 290 BC sounded the beginning of the end of the Celtic domination in mainland Europe. At the Battle of Telamon in 225 BC, a large Celtic army was trapped between two Roman forces and crushed, in the Second Punic War, the Boii and Insubres allied themselves with the Carthaginians, laying siege to Mutina. In response, Rome sent an expedition led by L. Manlius Vulso, vulsos army was ambushed twice, and the Senate sent Scipio with an additional force to provide support. These were the Roman forces encountered by Hannibal after his crossing of the Alps, the Romans were defeated in the Battle of the Ticinus, leading to all the Gauls except for the Cenomani to join the insurgency
Cisalpine Gaul
–
Detail of the
Tabula Peutingeriana showing northern Italy between Augusta Pretoria (
Aosta) and Placentia (
Piacenza); the Insubres are marked as inhabiting the
Po Valley upstream of Ticeno (
Pavia) and downstream of the Trumpli and Mesiates which occupy the upper reaches of the
Sesia and
Agogna rivers.
Cisalpine Gaul
–
Map of Cisalpine Gaul, extending from
Venice on the Adriatic, to
Pisa and
Nice on the Mediterranean, to
Lake Geneva in the west, and the
Alps in the North, from Abraham Ortelius' Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, the first modern atlas of the world. Antwerp, 1608.
Cisalpine Gaul
–
Gallic Phalerae (a type of military decoration) found in Lombardy; Santa Giulia Museum (Brescia).
Cisalpine Gaul
–
The oldest known Lepontic inscription (from
Castelletto sopra Ticino), dated ca. 575 BC.
12.
Slaves
–
A slave is unable to withdraw unilaterally from such an arrangement and works without remuneration. Many scholars now use the chattel slavery to refer to this specific sense of legalised. In a broader sense, however, the word slavery may also refer to any situation in which an individual is de facto forced to work against his or her will. Scholars also use the generic terms such as unfree labour or forced labour. However – and especially under slavery in broader senses of the word – slaves may have some rights and/or protections, Slavery began to exist before written history, in many cultures. A person could become a slave from the time of their birth, capture, while slavery was institutionally recognized by most societies, it has now been outlawed in all recognized countries, the last being Mauritania in 2007. Nevertheless, there are still more slaves today than at any point in history. The most common form of the trade is now commonly referred to as human trafficking. Chattel slavery is still practiced in the Islamic State of Iraq. An older interpretation connected it to the Greek verb skyleúo to strip a slain enemy, there is a dispute among historians about whether terms such as unfree labourer or enslaved person, rather than slave, should be used when describing the victims of slavery. Chattel slavery, also called traditional slavery, is so named because people are treated as the chattel of the owner and are bought, although it dominated many societies in the past, this form of slavery has been formally abolished and is very rare today. Even when it can be said to survive, it is not upheld by the system of any internationally recognized government. Indenture, otherwise known as bonded labour or debt bondage is a form of labour under which a person pledges himself or herself against a loan. The services required to repay the debt, and their duration, debt bondage can be passed on from generation to generation, with children required to pay off their parents debt. It is the most widespread form of slavery today, debt bondage is most prevalent in South Asia. This may also include institutions not commonly classified as slavery, such as serfdom, conscription, Human trafficking primarily involves women and children forced into prostitution. And is the fastest growing form of forced labour, with Thailand, Cambodia, India, Brazil, in 2007, Human Rights Watch estimated that 200,000 to 300,000 children served as soldiers in current conflicts. A forced marriage may be regarded as a form of slavery by one or more of the involved in the marriage
Slaves
–
Photograph of a slave boy in
Zanzibar. 'An Arab master's punishment for a slight offence.' c. 1890.
Slaves
–
Slavery
Slaves
–
Thousands of children work as bonded labourers in
Asia, particularly in the Indian subcontinent.
Slaves
–
A world map showing countries by prevalence of female trafficking
13.
Eunus
–
Eunus was a slave from Apamea in Syria who became leader of the slave uprising in the First Servile War in the Roman province of Sicily. Eunus rose to prominence in the movement through his reputation as a prophet, said to blow fire from his mouth, Eunus claimed to receive visions and communications from the goddess Atargatis, a prominent goddess in his homeland, he identified her with the Sicilian Demeter. One of his prophecies was that the slaves would successfully capture the city of Enna. Eunus participated in the storming of Enna, Diodorus Siculus describes him standing in the front ranks of the assault, blowing fire from his mouth. Upon the capture of Enna, Eunus was crowned king and he subsequently took the name Antiochus, a name used by the Seleucids who ruled Syria. He called his followers, who numbered in the tens of thousands, Syrians and his armies took several cities in central. Eunus seems to have attempted to build an independent of Rome, minting his own coins and evolving a command. He was successful in defeating Roman forces sent against him for several years, after the slave army was defeated by a Roman army under the leadership of Perperna, Eunus, with members of his court, took refuge in a cavern, where he was subsequently captured. Most of the evidence for Eunus and the First Servile War comes from the writings of Diodorus Siculus. Florus Epitome, which provides excerpts from lost portions of Livy, is the most detailed account in Latin, both Diodorus and Posidonius were sympathetic to the Romans. Diodorus lived in Rome, and Cicero asked Posidonius to write an account of the formers consulate, since Eunus was a defeated enemy of Rome, their accounts of both the slave uprising and its leader were likely biased. Like Eunus, Posidonius was from the Syrian town of Apamea and he likely based his details about Eunus worship of Atargatis in his personal knowledge of the goddesss mendicant priests. Archaeologists have found a bronze coin, minted at Enna. It is likely that the Antiochus in question is Eunus
Eunus
–
A statue of Eunus at Enna, Sicily
14.
Diodotus Tryphon
–
Originally from Casiana, a dependent town of the city of Apamea, he had served as a general for Alexander Balas and along with the Egyptian Heirax was given command of the city of Antioch. Demetrius on the hand held sway in the outer regions of the empire, including Cilicia. It was made easier for Jonathan to ally with Antiochus VI due to his association with his father Balas, in 142 or 141 BC Antiochus VI Dionysus died, supposedly during a medical operation, however accusations were made against Diodotus that he was himself behind the young king’s death. Despite this he convinced the army to elect him king, taking the titles of Basileus, as was tradition for Hellenistic kings, but also that of Autokrator. The term Autokrator is unique in the fact that it is not included on the coinage of any other Greek ruler from this period, as king he took the regal name of Tryphon. Having been made king Diodotus, Tryphon expanded his control to at least Ptolemais-Akke, to further legitimize his position and extend his connection to the army, many of his coins depicted on their obverse the national helmet of the Greco-Macedonian soldiery. Luring Jonathan to Ptolemais with a guard, Diodotus kidnapped him. He eventually had Jonathan executed and initiated an invasion of Judea, Demetrius, meanwhile, had journeyed east to combat the encroachment of the Parthians, but in 139 BC was captured and forced into captivity in Parthia. With the detested Demetrius gone, his brother, Antiochus VII Sidetes, left his home in Rhodes and married the wife of Demetrius, Cleopatra Thea, Tryphon’s support began to deteriorate with Antiochus now the leader of the Seleucid dynastic faction in the empire. Antiochus successfully pushed back Tryphon’s forces and besieged him in the fortress-city of Dor on the coast, Tryphon escaped by sea to Orthosia and made his way to his home-region of Apamea, where, being chased by Antiochus, he was either put to death or committed suicide
Diodotus Tryphon
–
Coin of Diodotus Tryphon.
British Museum.
Diodotus Tryphon
–
Coin of Diodotus Tryphon.
15.
Seleucid
–
Seleucus received Babylonia and, from there, expanded his dominions to include much of Alexanders near eastern territories. At the height of its power, it included central Anatolia, Persia, the Levant, Mesopotamia, and what is now Kuwait, Afghanistan, and parts of Pakistan and Turkmenistan. The Seleucid Empire was a center of Hellenistic culture that maintained the preeminence of Greek customs where a Greek political elite dominated. The Greek population of the cities who formed the dominant elite were reinforced by immigration from Greece, Seleucid expansion into Anatolia and Greece was abruptly halted after decisive defeats at the hands of the Roman army. Their attempts to defeat their old enemy Ptolemaic Egypt were frustrated by Roman demands, contemporary sources, such as a loyalist degree from Ilium, in Greek language define the Seleucid state both as an empire and as a kingdom. Similarly, Seleucid rulers were described as kings in Babylonia and he refers to either Alexander Balas or Alexander II Zabinas as a ruler. Alexander, who conquered the Persian Empire under its last Achaemenid dynast, Darius III, died young in 323 BC. Alexanders generals jostled for supremacy over parts of his empire, Ptolemy, a former general and the satrap of Egypt, was the first to challenge the new system, this led to the demise of Perdiccas. Ptolemys revolt led to a new subdivision of the empire with the Partition of Triparadisus in 320 BC, Seleucus, who had been Commander-in-Chief of the Companion cavalry and appointed first or court chiliarch received Babylonia and, from that point, continued to expand his dominions ruthlessly. Seleucus established himself in Babylon in 312 BC, the used as the foundation date of the Seleucid Empire. The whole region from Phrygia to the Indus was subject to Seleucus, but Seleucus Nicator gave them to Sandrocottus in consequence of a marriage contract, and received in return five hundred elephants. Following his and Lysimachus victory over Antigonus Monophthalmus at the decisive Battle of Ipsus in 301 BC, Seleucus took control over eastern Anatolia, in the latter area, he founded a new capital at Antioch on the Orontes, a city he named after his father. An alternative capital was established at Seleucia on the Tigris, north of Babylon, Seleucuss empire reached its greatest extent following his defeat of his erstwhile ally, Lysimachus, at Corupedion in 281 BC, after which Seleucus expanded his control to encompass western Anatolia. He hoped further to take control of Lysimachuss lands in Europe – primarily Thrace and even Macedonia itself, nevertheless, even before Seleucus death, it was difficult to assert control over the vast eastern domains of the Seleucids. Seleucus invaded the Punjab region of India in 305 BC, confronting Chandragupta Maurya and it is said that Chandragupta fielded an army of 600,000 men and 9,000 war elephants. Archaeologically, concrete indications of Mauryan rule, such as the inscriptions of the Edicts of Ashoka, are known as far as Kandahar in southern Afghanistan and it is generally thought that Chandragupta married Seleucuss daughter, or a Macedonian princess, a gift from Seleucus to formalize an alliance. In a return gesture, Chandragupta sent 500 war elephants, an asset which would play a decisive role at the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BC. In addition to this treaty, Seleucus dispatched an ambassador, Megasthenes, to Chandragupta, Megasthenes wrote detailed descriptions of India and Chandraguptas reign, which have been partly preserved to us through Diodorus Siculus
Seleucid
–
Tetradrachm of
Seleucus I, the horned horse, the
elephant and the anchor were all used as symbols of the Seleucid monarchy.
Seleucid
Seleucid
–
Coin of
Seleucus I Nicator
Seleucid
–
In
Bactria, the satrap
Diodotus asserted independence to form the
Greco-Bactrian kingdom c.245 BC.
16.
Campaign history of the Roman military
–
These accounts were written by various authors throughout and after the history of the Empire. The Roman army battled first against its neighbours and Etruscan towns within Italy. From the outset, Romes military typified this pattern, and the majority of Romes campaigns were characterised by one of two types, the second is the civil war, which plagued Rome from its foundation to its eventual demise. Roman armies were not invincible, despite their reputation and host of victories. Nevertheless, it was generally the fate of even the greatest of Romes enemies, such as Pyrrhus and Hannibal, to win the battle, the history of Romes campaigning is, if nothing else, a history of obstinate persistence overcoming appalling losses. Knowledge of Roman history stands apart from other civilizations in the ancient world and its chronicles, military and otherwise, document the citys very foundation to its eventual demise. Romes earliest history, from the time of its founding as a tribal village. Although the early Romans were literate to some degree, this void may be due to the lack of will to record their history at that time, or such histories as they did record were lost. Although the Roman historian Livy lists a series of seven kings of early Rome in his work Ab urbe condita, from its establishment through its earliest years, a number of points of view have been proposed. Very little is known of Romes military history from this era, traditionally, Romulus, after founding the city, fortified the Palatine Hill, and shortly thereafter, Rome was equal to any of the surrounding cities in her prowess in war. The first of the campaigns fought by the Romans in this account are the wars with various Latin cities. According to Livy, the Latin village of Caenina responded to the event of the abduction of the Sabine women by invading Roman territory, the Latins of Antemnae and those of Crustumerium were defeated next in a similar fashion. The remaining main body of the Sabines attacked Rome and briefly captured the citadel, there was a further war in the 8th century BC against Fidenae and Veii. In the 7th century BC there was a war with Alba Longa, a war with Fidenae and Veii. Ancus Marcius led Rome to victory against the Latins and, according to the Fasti Triumphales, Lucius Tarquinius Priscus first war was waged against the Latins. Tarquinius took the Latin town of Apiolae by storm and took great booty from there back to Rome, according to the Fasti Triumphales, the war occurred prior to 588 BC. His military ability was tested by an attack from the Sabines, Tarquinius doubled the numbers of equites to help the war effort, and defeat the Sabines. Tarquinius returned to Rome and celebrated a triumph for his victories that, according to the Fasti Triumphales, subsequently, the Latin cities of Corniculum, old Ficulea, Cameria, Crustumerium, Ameriola, Medullia and Nomentum were subdued and became Roman
Campaign history of the Roman military
–
Rape of the Sabine Women, by
Nicolas Poussin, Rome, 1637–38 (
Louvre Museum)
Campaign history of the Roman military
Campaign history of the Roman military
–
Apennine hills around Samnium
Campaign history of the Roman military
–
The Battle of the Milvian Bridge by
Giulio Romano (1499–1546)
17.
Samnite Wars
–
The First, Second, and Third Samnite Wars were fought between the Roman Republic and the Samnites, who lived on a stretch of the Apennine Mountains to the south of Rome and the north of the Lucanians. The first of these wars was the result of Romes intervening to rescue the Campanian city of Capua from a Samnite attack. The second one was the result of Romes intervention in the politics of the city of Naples and developed into a contest over the control of much of central, the third war also involved a struggle over the control of this part of Italy. The Samnites were one of early Romes most formidable rivals, by the time of the first of these wars, the southward expansion of Rome’s territory had reached the River Liris, which was the boundary between Latium and Campania. This river is now called Garigliano and it is the boundary between the regions of Lazio and Campania. In those days the name Campania referred to the plain between the coast and the Apennine Mountains which stretched from the River Liris down to the bays of Naples, the northern part of this area was inhabited by the Sidicini, the Aurunci and the Ausoni. The central and southern part was inhabited by the Campanians, who were people who had migrated from Samnium and were related to the Samnites. The Samnites were a confederation of four tribes who lived on the mountains to the east of Campania and were the most powerful people in the area, the Samnites, Campanians and Sidicini spoke Oscan languages. Their languages were part of the Osco-Umbrian linguistic family which also included Umbrian, the Lucanians who lived to the south were also Oscan speakers. Diodorus Siculus and Livy report that in 354 BC Rome and the Samnites concluded a treaty, modern historians have proposed that the treaty established the river Liris as the boundary between their spheres of influence, with Romes lying to its north and the Samnites to its south. This arrangement broke down when the Romans intervened south of the Liris to rescue the Campanian city of Capua from an attack by the Samnites. Livy is the only preserved source to give an account of the war which has become known in modern historiography as the First Samnite War. In addition, the Fasti Triumphales records two Roman triumphs dating to this war and some of the described by Livy are also mentioned by other ancient writers. According to Livy, the First Samnite War started not because of any enmity between Rome and the Samnites, but due to outside events, the spark came when the Samnites without provocation attacked the Sidicini, a tribe living north of Campania with their chief settlement at Teanum Sidicinum. Unable to stand against the Samnites, the Sidicini sought help from the Campanians, However, Livy continues, the Samnites defeated the Campanians in a battle in Sidicine territory and then turned their attention toward Campania. First they seized the Tifata hills overlooking Capua and, having left a force to hold them. There they defeated the Campanians in a battle and drove them within their walls. This compelled the Campanians to ask Rome for help, at Rome, the Campanian ambassadors were admitted to an audience with the Senate
Samnite Wars
–
Samnite soldiers from a tomb frieze in Nola 4th century BC
Samnite Wars
–
Map showing Roman territory before and after the Samnite wars.
Samnite Wars
–
A ceremonial Attic helmet typical of many found in Samnite tombs, ca. 300 BC
18.
Pyrrhic War
–
The Pyrrhic War was a war fought by Pyrrhus, the king of Epirus. Pyrrhus was asked by the people of the Greek city of Tarentum in southern Italy to help them in their war with the Roman Republic. A skilled commander, with a strong army fortified by war elephants, Pyrrhus enjoyed initial success against the Roman legions, but suffered heavy losses even in these victories. Plutarch wrote that Pyrrhus said after the battle of the war, If we are victorious in one more battle with the Romans. He could not call up more men from home and his allies in Italy were becoming indifferent, the Romans, by contrast, had a very large pool of military manpower and could replenish their legions even if their forces were depleted in many battles. This has led to the expression Pyrrhic victory, a term for a victory that inflicts losses the victor cannot afford in the long term, worn down by the battles against Rome, Pyrrhus moved his army to Sicily to instead war against the Carthaginians. After several years of campaigning there, he returned to Italy in 275 BC, following this, Pyrrhus returned to Epirus, ending the war. Three years later, in 272 BC, the Romans captured Tarentum, the Pyrrhic War was the first time that Rome confronted the professional mercenary armies of the Hellenistic states of the eastern Mediterranean. Romes victory drew the attention of states to the emerging power of Rome. Ptolemy II, the king of Egypt, established relations with Rome. After the war, Rome asserted her hegemony over southern Italy, to the south of the Roman sphere of influence in Italy there were a number of city-states founded by Greek settlers from the 8th to the 6th century BC. Tarentum was the largest and most powerful Greek city in Italy, the Tarentines attacked a Roman fleet off their coast, sinking some of their ships and capturing some prisoners. As a result, Rome declared war, there are different versions of the events which led to the declaration of war. Appian, Cassius Dio and Zonaras appear to have been intent on blaming the war on the Tarentines, the part of the text of Dionysius of Halicarnassus which deals with the events in the run-up to the declaration war has been lost and Plutarch did mention them. In Appians version, in 282 BC ten Roman ships appeared close to Tarentum, according to Appian, Publius Cornelius Dolabella was sailing along the coast of Magna Graecia, sight-seeing. A demagogue reminded the townsfolk about an old treaty in which Romans had bound themselves not to sail beyond the promontory of Lacinium and he persuaded them to attack the ships, four were sunk and one was captured with all on board. This would have happened in 282 BC, the year after Dolabellas consulship, Appian did not explain why the consul was sight-seeing with so many ships. Neither Cassius Dio nor Zonaras mentioned any treaties between the Romans and the Tarentines, however, the Tarentines had not participated in these battles
Pyrrhic War
–
Caricature from The Comic History of Rome by Gilbert Abbott a Beckett: "Pyrrhus arrives in Italy with his Troupe."
Pyrrhic War
–
The route of
Pyrrhus of Epirus during his campaigns in southern
Italy and
Sicily.
19.
Punic Wars
–
The Punic Wars were a series of three wars fought between Rome and Carthage from 264 BC to 146 BC. At the time, they were probably the largest wars that had taken place. The term Punic comes from the Latin word Punicus, meaning Carthaginian, the main cause of the Punic Wars was the conflicts of interest between the existing Carthaginian Empire and the expanding Roman Republic. The Romans were initially interested in expansion via Sicily, part of which lay under Carthaginian control, at the start of the first Punic War, Carthage was the dominant power of the Western Mediterranean, with an extensive maritime empire. Rome was a rapidly ascending power in Italy, but it lacked the power of Carthage. The Roman victories over Carthage in these wars gave Rome a preeminent status it would retain until the 5th century AD, during the mid-3rd century BC, Carthage was a large city located on the coast of modern Tunisia. Founded by the Phoenicians in the mid-9th century BC, it was a powerful thalassocratic city-state with a vast commercial network, of the great city-states in the western Mediterranean, only Rome rivaled it in power, wealth, and population. While Carthages navy was the largest in the ancient world at the time, it did not maintain a large, permanent, instead, Carthage relied mostly on mercenaries, especially the indigenous Numidians, to fight its wars. However, most of the officers who commanded the armies were Carthaginian citizens, in 200 BC, the Roman Republic had gained control of the Italian peninsula south of the Po river. Unlike Carthage, Rome had large disciplined armed forces, on the other hand, at the start of the First Punic War, the Romans had no navy, and were thus at a disadvantage until they began to construct their own large fleets during the war. The First Punic War was fought partly on land in Sicily and Africa and it began as a local conflict in Sicily between Hiero II of Syracuse and the Mamertines of Messina. The Mamertines enlisted the aid of the Carthaginian navy, and then subsequently betrayed them by entreating the Roman Senate for aid against Carthage, the Romans sent a garrison to secure Messina, so the outraged Carthaginians then lent aid to Syracuse. With the two powers now embroiled in the conflict, tensions escalated into a full-scale war between Carthage and Rome for the control of Sicily. In 260 BC, they defeated the fledgling Roman navy at the Battle of the Lipari Islands, Rome responded by drastically expanding its navy in a very short time. Within two months, the Romans had a fleet of one hundred warships. Because they knew that they could not defeat the Carthaginians in the tactics of ramming and sinking enemy ships, the Romans added the corvus. The hinged bridge would swing onto enemy vessels with a sharp spike, Roman legionaries could then board and capture Carthaginian ships. This innovative Roman tactic reduced the Carthaginian navys advantage in ship-to-ship engagements, however, the corvus was also cumbersome and dangerous, and was eventually phased out as the Roman navy became more experienced and tactically proficient
Punic Wars
–
Depiction of
Hannibal and his army crossing the
Alps during the Second Punic War.
Punic Wars
–
Carthaginian possessions through the Punic Wars
Punic Wars
–
Hannibal's feat in crossing the Alps with war elephants, though many of them did not survive, passed into European legend: detail of a fresco by
Jacopo Ripanda, ca. 1510,
Capitoline Museums, Rome
20.
First Punic War
–
The First Punic War was the first of three wars fought between Ancient Carthage and the Roman Republic. For more than 20 years, the two struggled for supremacy, primarily on the Mediterranean island of Sicily and its surrounding waters. The war signaled the beginning of a transformation in the western Mediterranean. Carthage began the war as the great sea-power of the western Mediterranean, while Rome had, the series of wars between Rome and Carthage took the name Punic from the Latin name for the Carthaginians, Punici. This is derived from Phoenicis, and it refers to the Carthaginian heritage as Phoenician colonists, a Carthaginian name for the conflicts does not survive in any records. Rome had recently emerged as the leading city-state in the Italian Peninsula, over the past one hundred years, Rome had come into conflict, and defeated rivals on the Italian peninsula, then incorporated them into the Roman political world. By the beginning of the First Punic War, the Romans had secured the whole of the Italian peninsula and it originated as a Phoenician colony in Africa, near modern Tunis. At the height of power, just before the First Punic War, North African peoples such as the Berbers in the area around Carthage were loosely associated with Carthage. In the midst of the First Punic War some tribes would rebel against Carthage, the rich, strategically influential, and well-fortified Greek colony of Syracuse was politically independent of Rome and Carthage. Hostilities of the First Punic War began with developments involving the Romans, Carthaginians, at the same time, a group of Roman troops made up of Campanian citizens without the vote also seized control of Rhegium, lying across the Straits of Messina on the mainland of Italy. In 270 BC, the Romans regained control of Rhegium and severely punished the survivors of the revolt, in Sicily, the Mamertines ravaged the countryside and collided with the expanding regional empire of the independent city of Syracuse. Hiero II, tyrant of Syracuse, defeated the Mamertines near Mylae on the Longanus River, following their defeat, the Mamertines appealed to both Rome and Carthage for assistance. The Carthaginians acted first, approached Hiero to take no further action, however, the rivalry between Rome and Carthage had grown since the war with Pyrrhus and that alliance was simply no longer feasible. According to the historian Polybius, considerable debate took place in Rome on the question as to whether to accept the Mamertines appeal for help, however, many were also unwilling to see Carthaginian power in Sicily expand even further. Leaving them at Messana would give the Carthaginians a free hand to deal with Syracuse, after the Syracusans had been defeated, the Carthaginian takeover of Sicily would essentially be complete. Sicily is a volcanic island, with geographical obstacles and rough terrain making lines of communication difficult to maintain. For this reason, land warfare played a role in the First Punic War. Land operations were confined to small raids and skirmishes, with few pitched battles
First Punic War
–
Roman arrival and neutralization of Syracuse.
First Punic War
–
Western Mediterranean Sea in 264 BC. Rome is shown in red, Carthage in purple, and Syracuse in green.
First Punic War
–
Hamilcar's attack.
First Punic War
–
Continued Roman advance 260–256 BC.
21.
Second Punic War
–
The Second Punic War, also referred to as The Hannibalic War and the War Against Hannibal, lasted from 218 to 201 BC and involved combatants in the western and eastern Mediterranean. This was the major war between Carthage and the Roman Republic and its allied Italic socii, with the crucial participation of Numidian-Berber armies and tribes on both sides. The two states three major wars with each other over the course of their existence. They are called the Punic Wars because Romes name for Carthaginians was Poeni, derived from Poenici, in the following year, Hannibals army defeated the Romans again, this time in southern Italy at Cannae. In consequence of these defeats, many Roman allies went over to Carthage, against Hannibals skill on the battlefield, the Romans deployed the Fabian strategy. A sideshow of this war was the indecisive First Macedonian War in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Second Punic War was fought between Carthage and Rome and was ignited by the dispute over the hegemony of Saguntum, a Hellenized Iberian coastal city with diplomatic contacts with Rome. After great tension within the city government, culminating in the assassination of the supporters of Carthage, the city called for Roman aid, but the pleas fell on deaf ears. Following a prolonged siege and a struggle, in which Hannibal himself was wounded and the army practically destroyed. Many of the Saguntians chose to commit suicide rather than face subjugation by the Carthaginians, before the war, Rome and Hasdrubal the Fair had made a treaty. Livy reports that it was agreed that the Iber should be the boundary between the two empires and that the liberty of the Saguntines should be preserved, Hannibal departed with this army from New Carthage northwards along the coast in late spring of 218 BC. At the Ebro, he split the army into three columns and subdued the tribes there to the Pyrenees within weeks, but with severe losses. At the Pyrenees, he left a detachment of 11,000 Iberian troops, Hannibal reportedly entered Gaul with 50,000 infantry and 9,000 cavalry. He took his army by a route, avoiding the Roman allies along the coast. In the meantime, a Roman fleet with a force was underway to northern Iberia. A scouting party of 300 cavalry was sent to discover the whereabouts of the enemy and these eventually defeated a Carthaginian scouting troop of 500 mounted Numidians and chased them back to their main camp. Thus, with knowledge of the location of the enemy, the Romans marched upstream, Hannibal evaded this force and by an unknown route reached the Isère or the Durance at the foot of the Alps in autumn. He also received messengers from his Gallic allies in Italy that urged him to come to their aid, before setting out to cross the Alps, he was re-supplied by a native tribe, some of whose hereditary disputes he had helped solve. Their other commander, Publius Cornelius Scipio, returned to Rome, realizing the danger of an invasion of Italy where the tribes of the Boii, after 217 BC, he moved to Iberia
Second Punic War
–
Iberian warrior from bas-relief c. 200 BC. The warrior is armed with a
falcata and an oval shield.
National Archaeological Museum of Spain,
Madrid
Second Punic War
–
Western Mediterranean, 218 BC. Italian cities and Celtic tribes that joined Hannibal after the invasion of Italy are depicted in blue.
Second Punic War
–
Iberian
falcata, 4th/3rd century BC. This weapon, a scythe-shaped sword, was unique to Iberia [
citation needed]. By its inherent weight distribution, it could deliver blows as powerful as an axe. National Archaeological Museum of Spain, Madrid
Second Punic War
–
Detail of frieze showing the equipment of a soldier in the
manipular Roman legion (left). Note mail armour, oval shield and helmet with plume (probably horsehair). The soldier in the centre is an officer (bronze cuirass, mantle), prob. a tribunus militum. From an altar built by
Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus, consul in 122 BC.
Musée du Louvre, Paris
