Punic Wars Essays (Examples)

hen Hasdrubal was unable to keep Hispania, he abandoned that area and moved his troops to Italy to support Hannibal's campaign there. Like Hannibal had before him, Hasdrubal brought his army across the Alps. Knowing that those reinforcements could change the tide of the war, the Romans developed a plan to prevent Hasdrubal from reaching Hannibal. Using some of his soldiers as a distraction, Gaius Claudius Nero brought the remainder of his troops up behind Hasdrubal's troops, trapping them between two opposing fronts in a battle known as the Battle of the Metaurus River. The Romans were able to defeat the Carthaginian forces and kill Hasdrubal. They then took Hasdrubal's head and threw it into Hannibal's camp, which caused Hannibal to retreat. Hasdrubal's abandonment of Hispania allowed Scipio, the Roman commander who had been in charge of the war in Hispania, to invade Carthage. Hannibal left Italy to return to…

Second Punic War

The Punic wars, a total of three wars were violent clashes that took place between ome and Carthage and spanned across a timeline of almost a Century starting from 264 BC and ending in 146 BC with the destruction of Carthage. During this time, ome had established itself as the dominant power across the Italian Peninsula while Carthage was a powerful city state that was in Northern Africa had developed itself into a strong maritime power in the world at the time. In the context of this discussion however, the second Punic war will be the area of focus and in particular the causes of the war.

In the years leading to 237 BC, ome had taken over the control of Sardinia and Corsica. However, Carthage managed to establish another base of influence in Spain in 237 BC with the leadership of general Hamilcar Barca and after…

Another explanation and reason of the necessity of war in Ancient Rome is economical.

There are several different perspectives on this. First of all, the Roman society was essentially a society using extensively slave labor as the most important form of labor in existence. This basically ranged from constructions to simple chores around the house and often to farming as well, entertainment of its citizens and in other battles. A society relying so much on slaves for its own economic benefits could only necessarily force wars and battles in order to constantly keep a thorough supply of slaves available for work.

Indeed, in general, the population of a nation that had been defeated in battle would have either perished in the fights or would have been enslaved. Enslavement meant not only work in the city of Rome (or elsewhere in the empire), but also the possibility of being sold in…

S. administration after Truman's adopted Kennan's policy of 'containment' or its variation as a cornerstone of their foreign policy right until the eventual collapse of Communism in 1989. ("Kennan and Containment" n.d.)

eferences

Bell, P.M.H. (2001). The World since 1945 -- an International History. New York: Oxford University Press

George F. Kennan on the Web" (2005). History Politics and Future. etrieved on May 28, 2005 at http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/2496/future/kennan.html

Historian Walter Lefeber on Truman's Soviet Policy." (2000). PBS Online. etrieved on May 28, 2005 at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/truman/filmmore/it_1.html

Kennan and Containment." (n.d.) Bureau of Public Affairs: U.S. Department of State. etrieved on May 28, 2005 at http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ho/time/cwr/17601.htm

Legvold, . (2005). "Cold War." Article in Encyclopedia Encarta Online. etrieved on May 28, 2005 at http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761569374/Cold_War.html#p11

While the U.S. represented democracy, individual liberty and capitalism, the U.S.S.. was committed to the spread of the communist revolution among the 'down-trodden' masses of the world

The USS had…

trategy -- Rulers, tates and War

It is very difficult to look at the history of humanity and define a number of common, yet intangible philosophies of action that seem to be part of the overall human condition. One of these intangibles is the human capacity to produce both incredible beauty and horrific evil -- both of which occur during war. In fact, we may ask -- what is war? Every historical period from Ancient Mesopotamia to the present has added a new meaning to the word, but the very essence remains the same. War is a conflict between groups, a way to solve a political or social disagreement through force. Because war has been part of the human condition for millennia, however, we can look at it from both a theoretical and practical aspect of a way to use violence as a solution to problems. One of the most…

Olmec

Although scientists found artifacts and art objects of the Olmecs; until this century they did not know about the existence of the Olmecs. Most of the objects which were made by this community were associated with other civilizations, such as Mayan, Toltec or Chichimecan. The Olmec lived between 1600 B.C. And 1400 B.C. In South Mexico. The name of this tribe comes from an Aztec word "ollin" which means "land of rubber."

At first they ate fish and they later start to farm, and that made it possible for them to "develop the first major civilization in Mesoamerica." (The Olmec Civilization) Thanks to the steady food supplies the Olmec population grew and some came to have other occupations. "Some became potters or weavers. Others became priests or teachers." (Ibidem) Once the population grew, so did their farming villages which developed into cities. The present-day city of San Lorenzo was…

The consul was wounded in the battle. It was here that the one who will become Hannibal's greatest rival, the consul's son Publius Cornelius Scipio, did his first deed of valor, when he helped save his father (Livius also gives the alternate account of the Consul's rescue by a Ligurian slave, but he says he wishes the most popular account, accepted by most of the historians, to be correct). After this, the Roman cavalry retreated and their army broke camp the same night and crossed the Po River to the town of Placentia (Piacenza). Pursued by Hannibal, the Consul and his army retreated further over the river Trebia and set camp in a strong position, to await the arrival of his colleague, the Consul Tiberius Sempronius Longus, who had been recalled from the operations in Sicily.

On the front in Sicily, the actions were fought mainly by the navies, with…

Summary of the Punic Wars

The Punic Wars refer to the collective names of a series of three separate wars between Carthage and ome, which took place from 264 to 146 BC. The wars were fought between the two strongest contenders for control over the central Mediterranean Sea of the time. These wars ended with the destruction of Carthage, thus ending the city's period as an independent power and an important trade center. The city would later become an important trading center inside the oman Empire.

eferences

Bagnall, N. 2002. The Punic Wars: 264-146 BC. Botley, Oxford: Osprey Publishing.

Cottrell, L. 1992. Hannibal: Enemy of ome. Philadelphia, PA: Da Capo Press.

Goldsworthy, a. 2002. The Punic Wars. London: Cassell Publications.

Goldsworthy, a. 2004. The Fall of Carthage: The Punic Wars 265-146 BC. London: Cassell Publications.

Huby, P. 2003. Carthage. Stockport, England: Dewi Lewis Publishing.

Lazenby, J.F. 1998. Hannibal's War. Norman,…

Carthage and Rome

Comparing Carthage and Rome

One of the greatest wars Rome ever fought was against Carthage -- and it was actually a war that happened three times. Called the Punic Wars (Punic another name for Phoenician -- the nationality of the men who founded Carthage), the contests revealed much about both nations, and created heroes and legends for all antiquity to marvel over. This paper will compare and contrast the two civilizations of Rome and Carthage from the standpoint of "persons within the community," showing just how such persons helped both powers came to be and how they went on to fare when they both began to war with one another.

Beginnings

Started near Tunis at around the end of the ninth century BC, Carthage took over the rule of "leader" amongst the colonies of Phoenicia nearly three hundred years later when in the sixth century BC Tyre…

Carthage Empire

The origin of the Carthaginian Empire can be traced back to 814 C, North Africa where Carthage was situated towards the east of Lake Tunis where we can locate Tunisia today. Carthage was basically founded by Phoenician settlers which came from Tyre city which is now known as Sur in Lebanon. Queen Dido was credited with being the founder of this city and since the establishment of this empire; there are numerous myths that can be traced back to the association with Romans and Greeks, essentially their literature (owman).

Success of the Carthage Empire

The Carthage city was famous for trade and that proved to be the means of their survival and helped the Carthaginians gain massive amounts of power and spreading the trade routes and networking all along the Mediterranean. In the early 6th century C, Hanno, a famous Carthaginian explorer went on his trip sailing till…

(Polybius 6.42). He contrasted this with the Greeks, who placed their camps according to the advantages and disadvantages conferred by the terrain. (Polybius 6.42). In this way, the Roman soldiers could rely on military protocol and camp life being the same even no matter where they were and who was commanding.

Another outcome of Rome's system of military organization was the remarkable discipline of the Roman army. Only property-owners were allowed to serve in the Roman military, which meant that all Roman soldiers had extra incentive to obey commands, to never retreat and to never desert, for fear of squandering their property and reputation back home.

Roman military units were designed in a Gestalt style which reduced the effect of externalities such as inadequate troop strength, partial routs, or bad commanders. Polybius described the virtues of the Roman Maniple:

"The order of a Roman force in battle makes it very…

After this, there could have been very little perceived threat left; not only were the Carthaginian's surrendering rather peacefully, but they were even giving up their means of waging war effectively. The giving up of weapons in an age when manufacture and shipping -- the two methods by which any commodity, military or otherwise, can be obtained -- took an extended period of time meant that the Carthaginians were showing themselves to desire peace not only in the short-term, but as a general social principle.

Their submission to the Romans, then, should have been the end of the war. If the reason behind Rome's military invasion of the Carthaginian territory was the possible threat the area presented to Rome, then its disarmament would have solved that problem. The Romans refused to let the issue go, however, demanding that the entire city of Carthage be destroyed right to the ground.

It…

There were was much more to the conflict than a small battle
over Sicily exploding into an all out Naval conflict. It just so happened
that a local conflict involved two powers, but like many other wars
throughout history, it only took a spark to ignite a much bigger battle
that was waiting to be instigated.
From the perspective of an ancient historian Polybius leaves out very
little necessary information and his level of information is consistent
with that of ancient histories. However, to modern historians it would be
helpful if other information was included. Some statistics as the nature
of Rome's growth and expansion perhaps would help to show how Rome was a
burgeoning power rising to the level of the Carthaginians. There must have
been much more to the conflict than just the military tactical maneuvers
and subsequent domestic responses that were made to the events of the…

rise of Rome and how it differed from other empires of the ancient world. There are six references used for this paper.

There have been a number of different empires since the beginning of time. It is interesting to look at how Rome broke with the Etruscans and succeeded as a powerful empire, as well as its differences from other empires of the time.

The Etruscans

The Etruscans settled into central Italy prior to 800 B.C, dominating the lands from the PO valley to Campania, and "established a prosperous empire with a complex culture, while reducing the indigenous population to servile status (unknown, Italy)."

The Greek culture was a strong influence on the Etruscans, "their city-states were ruled by kings and their territory included Rome until it shrugged of the Etruscan yoke (Cavendish, foundation)." They were driven from the Po Valley by the Celts in the 4th century B.C.

Breaking…

Sumptuary Laws in the Roman Empire

The Roman Republic and the Roman Empire were both grandiose and both are a major part of the history of the world. However, they were quite different in many significant ways but they were also similar in some ways as it relates to social structure, the way people dressed and how society proceeded and developed. The major difference between the two was that the Senate and people had a lot of power in the Republic while the Emperor reigned supreme in the Roman Empire. However, the differences are a lot deeper than that in some ways. hile some people conflate the Roman Empire and Roman Republic, there is a lot more than meets the eye when it comes to Roman History.

Analysis

The main differences between the Roman Empire and the Roman Republic are fairly easy to list. hen it came to the Roman…

Abraham to Jesus with other Major Historical Events

2100 BC: Abraham moves to Canaan under a direct order from God. Canaan later becomes Israel.

2000 BC: Jacob, grandson of Abraham, is born in Canaan. Jacob is later renamed Israel. His 12 sons become the heads of the 12 Tribes of Israel.

Hammurabi builds up Babylon in the Fertile Crescent.

The Minoan Bronze Age in Crete.

1900 BC: One of Jacob's sons (Joseph) is sold into slavery. Joseph rises to power in Egypt.

1500 BC: The Indian Hindu Scriptures the Rig-Veda are completed.

1400 BC: The Israelites (after being enslaved for four centuries by Pharaoh) are led by Moses out of Egypt. Joshua takes the lead after Moses dies. It is to Moses that the first five books of the Old Testament are attributed.

1200 BC: The Trojan War.

1000 BC: Saul becomes king of the Israelites. David is anointed. David…

His work on levers caused him to remark: "Give me a place to stand on, and I will move the Earth (Biography (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archimedes#Biography)."

One of today's industries that Archimedes is well-known for helping to develop and advance is the field of engineering. Engineering uses a significant amount of mathematics to develop and design countless elements of life, and industry. Archimedes has long since been credited with many of the concepts still used in the engineering field today.

At one point in his life a king commissioned him to design a very large ship that could be used for travel as well as a naval warship.

He did so and it was reputed to be an amazing vessel with garden decorations and a work out area.

Archimedes was well-known for developing concepts that were used much later in society. One of the many concepts that he developed and used during his…

New scholarship suggests that Byzantine Empire was as successful as was ome in shaping modern Europe (Angelov, 2001).

Islamic Golden Age

The Islamic Golden Age (also called the Caliphate of Islam or the Islamic enaissance) was a center of government and political, cultural and religious traditions that arose in the early 6th century AD from the teachings of the Prophet Mohammed and reached its height between the 8th to 13th centuries (Kraemer, 1992). The Golden Age was centered around the Saudi Arabian peninsula. Its first capital was Media; at its greatest extent, the Caliphate controlled all of the present day Middle East, northern Africa and parts of Spain, and extending to the Indus Valley. It was thus one of the few empires that rules over three continents (Kennedy, 2001).

After the end of the classical empires of the Middle East (such as Egypt and Assyria) the region was politically and…

For example, in the United States, the Civil War occurred less than 150 years ago, and yet different historians provide conflicting perspectives about the causes of the war, why it was lost, and the consequences of the war for America's history. Moreover, it was only after the Civil War and the end of slavery that one began to see widespread, reliable publication about various slave rebellions that had occurred in the antebellum South. This is interesting, because it makes one wonder if that information would be available or suppressed had the war ended differently. Moreover, the vast majority of Americans are unaware that some northern states were slaveholding states. Furthermore, when one looks at the number of Holocaust deniers, despite the overwhelming physical evidence and documentation regarding the Holocaust, one can see how intentional misrepresentation can play a role in history; there are entire countries that believe it is a…

Such self-righteousness coupled with overwhelming military prowess is an intoxicating brew; forcing their way of life on others, usually "for the good of such less developed societies" is the next logical step. In case of ome's annexation of Greece and Asia Minor, the desire of the oman aristocratic elite for personal glory was also an important factor. In the oman society, the greatest fame was bestowed on the commanders who won wars abroad and such opportunities could only arise if the oman Army was busy fighting a foreign war; it is no surprise, therefore, that the oman elite chose to annex Greece and Asia Minor in the 2nd century BC even though they faced no imminent threat from their neighbors to the East. (Ibid.)

eferences

Muhlbereger, S. (1998). "The oman Conquest of Greece." History 2055 -- Ancient Civilizations: Nipissing University. etrieved on September 14, 2006 at http://www.nipissingu.ca/department/history/muhlberger/2055/l33anc.htm

Cannae

Robert L. O'Connell. The Ghosts of Cannae: Hannibal and the Darkest Hour of the Roman Republic (Random House, 2010).

Robert O'Connell's The Ghosts of Cannae is a narrative history for a general audience, based on ancient sources like the historians Polybius and Livy. It describes the invasion of Italy by the Carthaginian armies of Hannibal during the Second Punic War and the battle of Cannae on August 2, 216 C in which the Roman armies were surrounded and annihilated. One of the bloodiest battles in history, nearly 50,000 Romans died that day and 20,000 were captured and sold into slavery, compared to Hannibal's losses of 6-8,000.[footnoteRef:1] Although the Romans were temporarily demoralized by this immense defeat, they rebounded and eventually pushed Hannibal out of Italy by using a guerilla warfare strategy under Fabius Maximus. In the end, Hannibal went down in history as the type of commander who "won…

Unfortunately, the support gained by these two divisions were not based on the opinion, instead immoral activities including bribes were offered in exchange for the support of individuals, irrespective of their class and affiliation. The failure of the Gracchus brothers highlighted the failure of the constitution, the people and class emerged which was involved in such immoral activities, and lauded corruption for the political gain including influence Senate. The removal of the Tarquins was responsible for the social and political unrest, and after the election of the Tiberius Gracchus by the assembly as the tribunes, different policies with reference to the land allocation and ownership were restricted to 640 acres, and therefore the rich had to compromise, and lost their part of the wealth through different imposition and restriction. The rich compromised over their wealth and the state and poor were considered to be the beneficiary, therefore previously where the…

"When he had reduced the whole area of land between the river Iberus and the Pyrenees to a hollow, resentful, and temporary obedience, he turned his attention to administrative reforms, and increased the revenues"

3. Cato's success in the Roman Empire

For centuries now, historians have searched for answers as to why was Cato able to reach such powerful positions within the Roman Senate. First of all, there was the rather permissive constitution which allowed members of the plebeians to overcome their social status and participate in the process of ruling. This of course with the condition that they prove worthy of it.

Second of all, Cato's social ascension was also aided by his and his family's military career and reputation. Cato himself, his father and his grandfather had courageously fought in the Roman legions, facts which later on supported Cato's political career as both the Senate and the people…

Economics

Why that Dollar in Your Pocket is More than just a Piece of Paper

Money in contemporary society has taken a primary role in life. It affects everything from the quality of a person's social life to the quality and quantity of available food. elow the history, value and use of money are considered.

The first system of economy was a barter system. ecause of issues such as double coincidence of wants as a necessary condition of trade, acquiring goods by this system was often costly in terms of time and effort. In order to reduce transaction time, a money system emerged. The first money emerged in the form of goods. Goods that evolved into money were those that were generally accepted in exchange for goods. Livestock and grain are examples of goods that became money during the years of around 9000-6000 C. Cattle are estimated to probably be…

The Roman people regarded themselves as highly religious. They linked their success as a powerful force in the world to their cordial relations with the gods. The victory by the Romans was essentially a religious occasion in which the generals exhibited their piety and zeal to serve society by dedicating a fraction of their fortunes to the gods. Jupiter was particularly called to attention in such circumstances because he was the god of justice in leadership. Following the Punic wars fought between 264 BC and 146 BC in which Rome fought hard to assert its power as a dominating authority, magistrates built many temples in honor of a deity who they depended on to guarantee success in the war (Religion in ancient Rome) (Roman mythology).

How Ancient Rome Practiced Religion

Ancient Romans recognized and offered prayer too many gods and goddesses. Some of the gods were of Roman origin but…

Bust of Antinous

The piece of Roman art being discussed is the bust of Antinous Mondragone, which is now in the Louvre in Paris, and it came from the Mondragone villa, located in Frascati, Italy. The artist is unknown, but it is thought to have been sculpted around 130 AD. This beautiful sculpture represents much of Roman art at the time, and it represents a larger cultural context, as well.

The arts were becoming popular during this time in the Roman Republic, and sculpture was becoming increasingly popular after the Romans captured Syracuse during the Second Punic Wars and brought back much of the island's sculpture to display in Rome. Roman sculpture often copied classic Greek statutes, because the artists and people admired Greek art. The sculptures were often of Roman rulers, indicating how important they were to the culture, and how they were held up by the people as…

Greeks in Western Civilization. There are five references used for this paper.

It is felt that 'Captive Greece made ome captive'. It is important to examine what is meant by this belief in terms of literature, art and philosophy.

Two Captive Countries

When ome conquered the Levant at the end of the Hellenistic era, and "ruled the civilized world, conquered Greece took captive her rude conqueror (Gutzman, 2004)." The poet Horace noted that "the omans conquered Greece only themselves to be enslaved by the superior culture of their captives (Morris, 2002)."

During the era of the "poets Homer and Hesiod, the ancient Greeks associated their polytheistic, anthropomorphic deities with their cities, states, and regions (Matthews, 2000)." The Greeks often symbolized cities on coins with a god or goddess on one side, and their representation on the other. An example of this was the representation of Athens with Athena and her…

In Bellum Iugurthinum he claimed that the state will gain more advantage from his otium than from the negotium of contemporary politicians

SALLUST'S HISTOICAL WOKS

Sallust wrote several historical works, but the two monographs that remain intact are the Bellum Catilinae and the Bellum Jugurthinum. There are also four speeches and two letters as well as approximately 500 parts of his Historiae that was published in five books. It is believed by historians that "Sallust's merits as an artist have obscured, or made his readers willing to forget, his faults. As a historical authority he is at best second rank…Yet Sallust's value to us is considerable, mainly because his writings contain an interpretation of oman history during the late epublic often differing from that in our other sources and opposed to optimate tradition."

Even his speeches are valuable historically, adds Laistner,

for they are full of ethos and convey Sallust's…

Estruscans refers to a sophisticated and seafaring persons from Asia Minor who appeared in Italy about 800 BC settling in Etruia, North of Latium. This group soon gained control of the Latins thus the introduction of the Greek cultur to the more primitive Romans. The influence was vital in the domination of the Roman interaction and way of life for two critical centuries. The group was also great at business transactions thus the opportunity to utilize its interactions while trading with other entities or culture in the form of maritime system. They also contributed towards the development of sewer systems, construction of the temples, and paved streets hence realization of the rapid development of the society. Estruscan were vital in teaching the Romans how to work in pottery, metal, and leather industry. They also participated in the development of crafted weapons, and furniture as well as implementation of the alphabet…