The Age of Mediterranean Conquest Imperialism and Its Consequences Early Roman Expansion Romans in War: sometimes vanquished in battle, always victorious in war. (Edward Gibbon) Roman Army War with Pyrrhus (280s BCE) Protection, Citizenship, Contribution
Punic Wars Rise of Founded by Phoenicians (700 BCE) Mediterranean Empire First Punic War It is 264 BCE, and Carthage has laid siege to Messana, a town in northern Sicily. Many within the Senate are calling for a war with Carthage to put them in their place. What do you propose we do? 1. Rome should send soldiers to invade Spain to weaken the Carthaginian Empire. 2. Rome should attack the Carthaginian force located at Messana, then force Messana to become a dependent province of Rome. 3.Rome should send a fleet to harass the Carthaginian supply lines and cut off the force laying siege to Messana. First Punic War It is 238 BCE, and the Carthaginian garrison on the Island of Sardinia has rebelled against their overlords in Carthage. What do you propose we do? 1. Invade the island, and take its neighbor, the Island of Corsica. 2. Send a navy to support the Sardinian rebellion and wait for Carthage to attack first. 3. Send an army into Carthage-controlled Spain to overtake their trading outposts while they are distracted and weak.
Hannibal of Carthage has just destroyed the allied city of Sarguntum, and Rome has declared war. In the last war, a quick strike into Carthaginian territory brought Carthage to its knees. You are the Roman Consul Publius Scipio. What do you propose we do? 1. Overtake Hannibal s army in Spain by throwing the entire Roman might into a massive attack, therefore leaving Carthage open to attack. 2. Divide your forces and send one army through Spain and use the other as an amphibious invasion of Carthage itself. 3. Wait for Hannibal s forces to reach Northern Italy, and hit him after his army is weak and tired from an impossibly long march. It is autumn 218 BCE, and you are the Carthaginian general Hannibal. You have decided to make a preemptive attack on Rome by invading north of Spain, but you must take 50,000 men and 37 war elephants through 1,500 miles of enemy territory to get there. An army under Publius Scipio has just landed at Marseilles in southern France which blocks the coastal roads. Winter is approaching and your army is getting weaker by the day. What do you do? 1. Avoid a conflict and take the more difficult roads north through France, then cross through the rocky terrain of the Alps. 2. Take Scipio and his men by surprise and attack their army while they are pinned up against the sea. 3. Spend the winter re-supplying your forces and seeking alliances with barbarian tribes that are hostile to Rome. Battle of Trebia
Lake Trasimene Fabius Maximus appt. Dictator Values of Fabius plan? Problems? Does Fabius make Rome look weak? It is 216 BCE, and you have just successfully isolated and cut off the Roman grain supply at Cannae. The Romans are sending an army of 85,000 men to attack you. How do you plan to defeat your foe despite the fact that you have less than half that many men? 1. Evade the Roman army and wait for other allied provinces and barbarian tribes to join your side. 2. Attack the Romans head on with your infantry and war elephants, but use the cavalry to attack the right wing of the Romans and turn their flank toward the river. 3. Pull the middle of your infantry lines back, then use the wings of your infantry and cavalry to envelop the Roman force.
It is 209 BCE, and you are the 26 year old Publius Cornelius Scipio. Your father s forces were brutally defeated at Cannae, and you narrowly escaped with your life. Now you have been given command of a new Roman Army. Hannibal s forces are pillaging the Roman countryside undeterred. What is your plan? 1. Ignore Hannibal, invade his territories in Spain, and then invade Africa while he is away from his country. 2. Attack Hannibal outside of Rome, and annihilate his forces once and for all. 3. Place your army in defense of Rome while you send a fleet to raid the lands surrounding Carthage in order to draw Hannibal s attention away from Italy. New Carthage Battle of It is 202 BCE, and you are Publius Conelius Scipio. Your army has is prepared to fight Hannibal s forces at Zama. Hannibal has outwitted and out fought every Roman army up to this point. How do you plan to outsmart Hannibal and destroy his army? 1. Pull your infantry back as Hannibal attacks and envelop his forces, just as he did to the Romans at Cannae. 2. Fire your catapults at the Carthaginian forces before they attack in order to create disarray and create holes in the enemy lines. 3. Wait for his war elephants to attack and move your men to create lanes for the beasts to run through.
Results Carthage Alliance with King Masinissa (Numidia) Carthaginian resistance : Anti-Carthage Campaign of Punishment Third Punic War (149-146 BCE) Fate of Carthage