THE FIRST PUNIC WAR: 264-241 BC And so it was “the Messana Affair” that sparked the 23-year ‘First Punic War’. Apart from a short intervention in North Africa by Rome, the war took place in and around SICILY.

Stages of the First Punic War The Opening Moves in Sicily (264 – 261 BC) A small Roman force, under Appius Claudius Caudex (as one of the two consuls of 264 BC), crossed over to Sicily and took Messana [now a Roman ally] - but allowed the Carthaginian garrison there to leave. But when a much larger force crossed over, Appius Claudius Caudex found himself confronted by two armies – that of Carthage and that of Syracuse, but he defeated each, since they didn’t work together. A very large number of communities, both some under Punic control and some under Syracusan control, now sought an agreement with Rome while the Carthaginians busied themselves raising a mercenary army.

1. Rome depended on set-piece LAND battles, while d) Carthage fortified AGRIGENTUM (half way along the south coast of Sicily), which the Romans then besieged. e) Somehow the Carthaginians there escaped; Rome took the city and butchered the civilian population. f) The Roman aim was now to clear Sicily of the Carthaginian presence BUT 1. Rome depended on set-piece LAND battles, while 2. Carthage could dominate coastal regions and coastal communities using its FLEET. 3. It was clear that Rome could not succeed against Carthage’s main base at LILYBAEUM (at the far western end of the island) without naval forces. Rome had to construct, for the first time, a substantial FLEET to make any real progress.

LILYBAEUM AGRIGENTUM

Conflict at Sea (260 – 256 BC) Rome hastily built a fleet: the source of their knowledge about how to go about this is controversial BUT what they did do was incorporate a new device on their warships – the CORVUS (‘the crow’) which enabled legionary soldiers to board enemy vessels. The corvus was first employed in 260 BC off MYLAE (west of Messana) when Carthage lost about half of its 130 or so ships and Rome lost very few of its 145. Rome then (questionably) divided its efforts and a) moved by land and sea against coastal communities in SICILY, while also b) attacking SARDINIA and CORSICA (where the Carthaginians had a presence in coastal regions) to stop raids on the coasts of Italy from there.

The corvus which joined ships together to permit boarding by Roman troops

War in North Africa (256 – 255 BC) 5. Despite some Roman successes over three years and the renewal of Carthaginian efforts in Sicily under HAMILCAR BARCA, by about 256 BC a stale mate had been reached. War in North Africa (256 – 255 BC) The Romans now decided to carry the war to North Africa to challenge the Carthaginians closer to home: A Roman fleet of perhaps 330 (transports and warships to protect them) sailed round eastern Sicily to PHINTIAS where two legions were waiting to join them. A large Carthaginian fleet left LILYBAEUM (at the western end) to meet the Romans as they set out. They clashed off ECNOMUS.

LILYBAEUM PHINTIAS and ECNOMUS

b) the Carthaginians retreated to Carthage itself. 4. Even though Rome lost 24 warships, the corvi (“crows”) saw 30 Carthaginian ships sunk and 64 captured. 5. a) The Romans now crossed to North Africa while ….. b) the Carthaginians retreated to Carthage itself. 6. a) CARTHAGE (the City) could only be taken by a blockade from both the sea side and from the land side. b) Roman forces, therefore, were active ravaging the Carthaginian countryside and moving elsewhere along the coast to attack some of the smaller communities that were loyal to Carthage.

CARTHAGE

b) All the Roman legionary troops and some 75,000 rowers 7. a) But winter was coming. b) All the Roman legionary troops and some 75,000 rowers would have to be fed if they all remained in Africa. 8. And so it was determined that a) the bulk of the forces and ships, including captured booty and, perhaps, 20,000 slaves taken in north Africa, would go back to Rome; and b) about 40 warships would remain with about 15,000 infantry and 500 cavalry. 9. BUT the consul who remained in Africa, M. Atilius Regulus, appears not to have known that a Spartan general, XANTHIPPUS, had come to Carthage and was organizing a good mercenary army there.

with 12,000 infantry, 4,000 cavalry, and elephants. 10. a) In 255 BC Xanthippus marched out from Carthage (the City) with 12,000 infantry, 4,000 cavalry, and elephants. b) The 15,000 Roman forces were routed. c) Only 2,000 escaped; 500 were taken prisoner; the rest were lost. 11. When the news reached Rome, ships were sent to rescue the survivors. 12. On the way they defeated a Carthaginian fleet off the coast of Carthage at Cape Bon but 13. a) on the return journey, off CAMARINA (in southern Sicily), nearly all the ships were lost in a huge storm. b) A very large number of men drowned – since the transports will have had a large number of rowers. Note: Rome did not use slaves as rowers. They will have been Roman citizens and free allies from states in Italy.

CAMERINA where most of Rome’s ships were lost owing to a huge storm

Extended Activity in Sicily (254 – 241 BC) A. Rome had had to replace its large losses – which (amazingly) it did in less than a year. Carthage, while replacing losses too, had to reassert its control in North Africa over areas that had broken away. By the fighting season of 254 BC each side was ready to renew the conflict - concentrating again on SICILY. The Main Developments The first six or so years of renewed activity saw: a) PANORMUS (modern Palermo), a major Carthaginian centre, taken by Rome. b) As a result various communities went over to the Roman side – leaving Carthage confined to the western end of Sicily.

PANORMUS (on the north coast) was taken by Roman forces in 254.

to weaken Carthaginian control over its allies, but 2. a) In 253 BC Roman forces crossed to north Africa again to weaken Carthaginian control over its allies, but b) on their way back another 150 Roman ships out of 200 were lost in a storm. 3. Roman efforts in SICILY were only half-hearted during the next two years (253 – 251), especially since reinforced Carthaginian forces under Hasdrubal, son of Hanno, were able to ravage the countryside around Lilybaeum at the western end of the island. 4. In 249 BC Rome returned to the sea in a major way and attempted to destroy a Carthaginian fleet off DREPANA, but the 120 ships under P. Claudius Pulcher, became trapped between the shore and Carthage’s fleet.

The Roman fleet (of 120) was almost totally annihilated with Naval battle of DREPANA (249 BC) The Roman fleet (of 120) was almost totally annihilated with the loss, perhaps, of 20,000 lives. Roman commanders still did not understand seafaring!

a) In 248 BC the seriousness of the situation saw Rome appoint a dictator, A. Atilius Calatinus. b) He set out from MESSANA with 120 warships and 800 transports and confronted a Carthaginian fleet off Cape PACHYNUS (off the extreme south-east of Sicily). c) But the Carthaginian fleet broke away to take shelter because of an impending storm, in which … d) the Roman fleet was almost TOTALLY wiped out. 6. The next few years saw inconclusive fighting, both sides at a very low ebb.

CAPE PACHYNUS: Again Rome suffered huge losses because of a storm

The Carthaginian cause in Sicily was particularly poorly served. Why was this so? i) Hamilcar Barca could engage in little more than guerilla tactics because of very limited resources; a major political upheaval at Carthage had seen the “war party” ousted by large landowners who saw their interests closer to home than in places like Sicily. The Final Years Building a new fleet in 243 BC, the Romans determined that in 242 BC they would make a concerted effort against LILYBAEUM (at the western end of Sicily) by sea to dislodge the Carthaginians. Although slow to recognize the threat, the Carthaginian state did finally decide to return to Sicilian waters.

i) Both parties “slogged it out” until the Carthaginian 3. The decisive battle occurred off the AEGATES ISLANDS [off the western end of Sicily] with about 200 ships on each side. i) Both parties “slogged it out” until the Carthaginian fleet, having lost over 50 ships, conceded. ii) Their remaining forces returned to Carthage. iii) It was left to HAMILCAR BARCA to negotiate the best terms he could obtain for Carthage. AEGATES ISLANDS (off the west coast of Sicily)

The Terms of the Treaty of 241 BC Carthage would retain its arms. Carthage would withdraw from Sicily (and the small islands between Sicily and Africa). Carthage would recognize Roman possession of the small islands north of Sicily. Carthage would not attack the state of Syracuse (in SE Sicily) Neither side would attack the other or its allies. Neither side would recruit troops in the territory of the other. Carthage would restore Roman war prisoners without ransom but would have to pay a ransom for the return of Carthaginian prisoners. Carthage would pay a war indemnity of 1,000 talents of silver (30 tons) immediately and a further 2,200 talents (66 tons) over ten years in equal annual instalments to Rome.

The Immediate Aftermath of the War 1.a) The ROMAN STATE, unlike its practice in ITALY, did not make ALLIES (socii) of the city-states and peoples of SICILY [other than the kingdom of Syracuse for the lifetime of its ‘king’ Hiero II]. b) Instead, Sicily was declared Rome’s first “PROVINCE” (PROVINCIA) – an overseas possession subject to direct annual taxation. c) To Sicily was sent a praetor to act as “governor” for a year – to oversee the “province”. 2. Carthage found itself in immediate difficulty without sufficient funds to pay the MERCENARIES who had fought for them (the bulk of its armed forces) for their services. 3. This led to “the Mercenary War” in North Africa which took some years to bring to an end.

a) During this war Rome (generously!) suspended the clause which said that troops could not be recruited by Carthage in “Roman” territory (or so we are told); BUT b) took advantage of the difficulties Carthage was experiencing to force Carthage to abandon all claims it had to SARDINIA and CORSICA. c) By 238 BC the two islands together became Rome’s second overseas “possession” or “province” (provincia) – subject to direct taxation and the oversight of a “governor” (again a praetor).

There are two principal (but contradictory) interpretations of this act by Rome. It has been argued either that the Roman state, after acquiring Sicily [if not before], had very rapidly developed a taste for “empire”; or, aware that Carthage was very weak and unlikely to reassert its control over Sardinia and Corsica (especially since it had lost its navy), the Roman state moved in to prevent the islands’ coastal regions becoming havens for pirates - taking on its shoulders responsibility for stability in the central Mediterranean, particularly perhaps to keep its old maritime ally Massilia (Marseilles) [the Greek state] happy. So, within a very short time of the “First Punic War” ending, Rome had two overseas possessions [“provinces”]: SICILY (SICILIA) and SARDINIA-CORSICA (SARDINIA-ET-CORSICA).