ipl-logo

The Importance Of Carthage In The Punic Wars

607 Words3 Pages

Introduction
It is to remember that Carthage inevitably is of great importance to the roman civilization. It is the fierce enemy to the Roman civilization. At the end of the Republic, Carthage became Rome’s biggest rival and enemy. The Punic Wars resulted in the ascendancy of Rome in the Mediterranean. Therefore, after the final battle “the Carthaginians were defeated by the Romans it becomes almost unknown to most students of Roman history,” (Wikipedia nd). In this assignment we are going to trace how Carthage became almost the equal of Rome. And then I will try to identify strengths of both and how this conflict led to Rome becoming a naval power.
Carthage is Rome's greatest and perhaps most mysterious enemy. It would be absurd for people to study the Roman Civilization without having a global view …show more content…

As each expanded its boundaries, ultimately there was no way that a clash of arms could be avoided.” As to talk about their strengths, the military of Carthage was one of the largest military forces in the ancient world. Its navy was its main military force. Carthage had a large, powerful navy, Rome did not. Rome had a large, powerful army, Carthage did not. Carthage had a massive trading power in Sicily and Sardinia however Rome did not expand its territory other than peninsula.
Introduction
The rivalry between the two nations was not just for conquering territories but it was also commercial. The city was strategically placed on the North African coast and the Romans sought to extend its control over the rest of Italy, something that cast its relationship with Carthage, increased competition, then ended to war, (Carthage and Rome- An Early Clash of Civilization, 2011). These battles were to identify which among the two that would rule over the world.

Show More
Related
264 Words | 2 Pages

The Punic Wars affected greatly the Roman Society. First, the dominance of the Roman’s lands expanded: Sicily, north coast of Africa, and Spain. This lead Rome to dominate the so wanted power in the western commerce of the Mediterranean world since Rome always envied the wealth that Carthage gained since they had the busiest trading post in the Mediterranean Sea. Rome was already an empire on terms of conquered territories. However, this expansion of territories gained by the Romans finishes tearing down the Roman Republic, initiating later the new period called the Roman Empire.

Read More
820 Words | 4 Pages

Located along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, Carthage was known for their seafaring and trading abilities.

Read More
1475 Words | 6 Pages

One is also left with the impression that the Romans made every attempt to maintain past treaties with Carthage but that the Carthaginians and Hannibal in particular were set on war. This is exactly what Livy intended when writing on the Second Punic War. The problem is that Livy seems to be writing propaganda more than history. His purpose is to thrust the blame for the war solely on Carthage and Hannibal and leave Rome blameless in the eyes of potential readers. Whether or not this was what Livy actually believed is impossible to know for

Read More
649 Words | 3 Pages

The Romans soon realized that they could not equal Carthage’s naval power so they turned the naval battle into a land battle. Carthage eventually surrendered Sicily to Rome and had to pay them a fine (Backman 185-186). This shows that the Romans were very resourceful and knew how to

Read More
897 Words | 4 Pages

When Rome was preoccupied with the second Punic war that was between it and Carthage,

Read More
664 Words | 3 Pages

The First Punic War occurred when Rome sent an army to Sicily. Carthage defended this island because they believed Sicily was rightfully theirs, and the Romans were threatening to overtake it. Carthage’s one advantage on Rome was their great navy. In order for Rome to be on equal footing with the Carthaginian navy,

Read More
272 Words | 2 Pages

Although the beginning of the second Punic war, Hannibal seemed to be leading victorious throughout Italy after crossing the Alps into Roman territory, the outcome of the Punic war led to the downfall of Carthage. During the second Punic war, Hannibal fought the Romans in the battle of Cannae, where “Poylbius estimates Hannibal had close to 40,000 infantry and 10,000 cavalry versus the Roman force of 80,000 infantry and 8,000 cavalry” (History Extra, 2009). It was one of the most famous battles in military history and is said to be taught in modern military colleges because of it's significance. Hannibal was outnumbered but used his cunning tactics to close his troops around the charging Roman soldiers to slaughter them in this battle.

Read More
574 Words | 3 Pages

Carthage was the first foreign opponent to come in touch with Rome, they fought series of war against Rome. Carthage rose to become a major force to be reckoned with, during the Punic Wars, which made Rome nervous since there existed the unknown possibility of Rome being knocked off its throne of power. Carthage was known for its strong naval army that no other army dared to go to battle against without having a serious battle plan to overtake them. Most of the momentum to power is much to the credit of Alexander the Great during his conquests after 332 BCE. After the fall of the Phoenician city of Tyre most citizens fled and were spared their lives by Alexander; being the efficient traders they were, they were able to quickly re-establish the wealth they had, which greatly helped them build their defenses and forces to rival that of Rome’s.

Read More
117 Words | 1 Pages

In conclusion, the Barcas held the power or partial power in Carthage essentially from the end of the First Punic war until Hannibal went into exile in 195 B.C. Although they did not hold political positions until the end of Hannibal’s time in Carthage, they still shaped the politics of Carthage for more than fifty years. Moreover, the way in which they conducted their political maneuverings, either led others to love them, in the case of Hasdrubal, or hate them in the case of Hanno. Their rivalry with Hanno and his faction clearly weakened their cause in unifying Carthage against Rome. Had they not possessed the arrogance and power hunger, they most likely would have defeated Rome.

Read More
188 Words | 1 Pages

The Second Punic War between Carthage and Rome ended with the Battle of Zama. The Carthaginian army, led by Hannibal, was defeated during this fateful battle (Morey, 1901b). As a result, Rome's Scipio Africanus imposed the following peace terms on Carthage: Carthage was to release all of Spain and all islands between Africa and Italy to Rome. Masinissa would be recognized as king of Numidia and an ally to Rome. For the next fifty years, Carthage would pay 200 talents to Rome Carthage would be forbidden from engaging in wars without Rome's explicit permission (Morey, 1901b).

Read More
1277 Words | 6 Pages

Therefore, Rome would have to deal with “communities in Italy that sided with the Carthaginians” giving Hannibal a significant advantage, as he had eliminated those allies from acting as buffers. Hannibal should have marched on Rome after the battle in Cannae, since he was outnumbered 40,000 to 80,000 and managed to succeed, therefore he would be able to take on 2

Read More
556 Words | 3 Pages

The Punic Wars changed the way the Romans viewed the world, it created change and caused many difficulties. The biggest change that occurred in Rome was the virtues of Rome. As Sallust stated, the virtues of Rome were destroyed after the Punic War because of the lust for power and for the growing love for money. After conquering many lands, Rome's greed and integrity caused a desire for strength; however, with that strength came evil. In the document, “Decline of the Republic”, we see greed and lust when it states, growing love for money, and the lust for power which followed it engendered every kind of evil.

Read More
547 Words | 3 Pages

However, most people aren’t taught that Carthage was once equal to Rome in its power. Carthage is a city in North Africa, in the country of Tunisia, while Rome is the capital of Italy. Rome and Carthage battled for power of the western Mediterranean, for nearly a century! The battle was known as the Punic Wars, there

Read More
146 Words | 1 Pages

I learned in this weeks learning that governments of Rome and Carthage were many aspects alike but did differ in a few areas. Rome real power was in its consul, senate and elders and Carthage did have a similar structure to Rome in this respect. However, Carthage real power of the country was dominated by a few wealthy and influential families. The Carthaginian didn’t comprehend the form of incorporated other cites and countries that Rome did so well.

Read More
728 Words | 3 Pages

The conflict between Rome and Macedon began in the third century BC, when the two nations competed for control of the Mediterranean region. The competition between Rome and Macedon exploded into four key wars between 214 BC and 148 BC. The causes of the battle between Rome and Macedon will be examined in this assignment. Body: What caused the wars between Rome and Macedon?

Read More

More about The Importance Of Carthage In The Punic Wars

Related Topics

Open Document