Punic Wars• Between 264 B.C. and 146 B.C., Rome fought three wars against Carthage• Punicus is the Latin word for Phoenician• In the First Punic War, Rome defeated Carthage and won Sicily, Corsica,

and Sardinia• The Carthaginians sought revenge in the Second Punic War• In 218 B.C., the Carthaginian general Hannibal led his army, including

dozens of war elephants, on an epic march across the Pyrenees mountains, through France, and over the Alps into Italy

• The trek cost Hannibal nearly half of his army• However, the Carthaginian general had surprised the Romans who had

expected an invasion from the south• For 15 years, Hannibal and his army moved across Italy, winning battle

after battle

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Summary of Punic Wars

• The main cause of the Punic Wars was the clash of interests 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 on the Mediterranean, with an extensive maritime empire, while Rome was the rapidly ascending power in Italy

• Carthaginian General = Hannibal• Roman General = Scipio Africanus • By the end of the third war, after the deaths of many hundreds of

thousands of soldiers from both sides, Rome had conquered Carthage's empire and destroyed the city, becoming the most powerful state of the Western Mediterranean

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Hannibal• 247 B.C. – 183 B.C.• was a Carthaginian military commander and

tactician who is popularly credited as one of the finest commanders in history

• He is one of the best-known Carthaginian commanders

• His most famous achievement was at the outbreak of the Second Punic War, when he marched an army, which included war elephants, over the Pyrenees and the Alps into northern Italy

• Hannibal is universally ranked as one of the greatest military commanders and tacticians in history

• In the same company as Alexander the Great and Napoleon Bonaparte

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2nd Punic War

• The Carthaginians failed to capture Rome itself

• In the end, the Romans outflanked Hannibal by sending an army to attack Carthage

• The Roman General was named Scipio Africanus – Best known for defeating Hannibal

• Hannibal returned to defend his homeland, where the Romans defeated him at last

• Carthage gave up all its lands except those in Africa

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3rd Punic War

• Even though Carthage gave up most of its land, many Romans still saw Carthage as a rival and wanted revenge for the terrible destruction that Hannibal’s army had brought to Italy

• A popular saying was, “Carthage must be destroyed”.• Finally, in the Third Punic War, Rome completely destroyed

Carthage• Survivors were killed or sold into slavery• The Romans even poured salt over the earth so that nothing would

grow in the city of Carthage again• The Romans were now the masters of the Western Mediterranean

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Summary of Punic Wars

• The main cause of the Punic Wars was the clash of interests 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 on the Mediterranean, with an extensive maritime empire, while Rome was the rapidly ascending power in Italy

• Carthaginian General = Hannibal• Roman General = Scipio Africanus • By the end of the third war, after the deaths of many hundreds of

thousands of soldiers from both sides, Rome had conquered Carthage's empire and destroyed the city, becoming the most powerful state of the Western Mediterranean

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Roman Conquests

• After Rome defeated Carthage, it seemed no Mediterranean force could stop the Romans

• Rome then launched a series of wars on the Eastern Mediterranean• One by one, Macedonia, Greece, and parts of Asia Minor (Turkey)

surrendered and became Roman provinces• Other regions, like Egypt, allied with Rome instead of fighting• By 133 B.C., Roman power extended from Spain to Egypt• Truly, the Romans were justified in calling the Mediterranean Mare

Nostrum, or “Our Sea”

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Social & Economic Effects of Imperialism

• Imperialism: establishing control over foreign lands and peoples• As the Romans conquered more and more lands, they forced people

captured in war to work as slaves on their large farms• This widespread use of slave labor hurt small farms• Why?• Also, large quantities of grain were pouring in from the conquered lands,

which also hurt small farms• Many farmers fell into debt and had to sell their land• In despair, landless farmers flocked to Rome in search of Jobs• As the gap between rich and poor grew, angry mobs began to riot• The new wealth of the empire also produced corruption• Greed and self-interest replaced virtues such as simplicity, hard work, and

devotion to Rome

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Attempts to Reform• Two young patrician brothers named Tiberius

and Gaius Gracchus were among the first to attempt reform

• Both Gracchus brothers were Tribunes• Tiberius called on the state to distribute land

to poor farmers• Gaius, sought a wider range of reforms,

including the use of public funds to buy grain to feed the poor

• The proposed reforms by the Gracchus brothers angered the senate, which saw them as a threat to its power

• The brothers, along with thousands of their followers, were killed in waves of street violence set off by senators and their hired thugs

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Decline of Roman Republic• Unable to resolve its problems peacefully, Rome

fell into a series of civil wars• The main issue concerned who should hold the

power• Some thought the Senate should be in charge, like

past times• Others wanted popular political leaders to take

charge who aimed at weakening the senate and making large reforms

• The turmoil sparked slave uprisings and revolts• Meanwhile, the old legions of Roman citizen-

soldiers became professional armies whose first loyalty was to their commanders

• Rival generals marched their armies into Rome to advance their ambitions

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First Triumvirate• Roman political alliance between three powerful Romans:• -Julius Caesar: Military and political leader, later Ruler of Rome• -Pompey: Military and Political leader• -Crassus: a Roman General and politician; very wealthy

• Basically, this group of three men tried to work together as an “unofficial” or secret alliance• They thought they could accomplish more as a whole as compared to going about it individually• However, their arguments and personal rivalries would eventually prove to be to strong to

prolong this alliance especially between Pompey & Crassus• This intense disagreement eventually turned into a civil war between Caesar’s troops and Crassus’

troops• Caesar’s army defeated Crassus’ army and Crassus was slain in battle• Next, in fear of his life, Pompey fled to Egypt• In time, assassins caught up with him and he was stabbed to death, thus ending the first

triumvirate• The First Triumvirate proved to be politically effective for a short while, but ego and greed got in

the way• The death’s of Pompey & Crassus left Julius Caesar as the leader of Rome

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Julius Caesar, Crassus, Pompey

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Julius Caesar• 100 B.C. – 44 B.C.• Roman General, Politician, and Emperor• One of the most influential men in all of

world history• He played the most important role in

transforming Rome from a republic to an Empire

• Brilliant Military leader• As a General, Caesar conquered all of

Gaul (modern day France)• He also, invaded and conquered much

of Great Britain• Greatly expanded the Roman empire

and led to the spread of Roman culture

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Julius Caesar• After Caesar crushed Pompey and his

supporters, he then swept around the Mediterranean, suppression rebellions

• “Veni, vidi, vici” – “I came, I saw, I conquered”

• A famous quote by Caesar after winning a battle

• Later, returning to Rome, he forced the senate to make him dictator

• His soldiers were loyal to him, not to Rome

• Although he kept the senate and other features of the republic, he was in fact the absolute ruler of Rome

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Caesar’s Reforms• Between 48 B.C. and 44 B.C., Caesar pushed

through a number of reforms to deal with Rome’s many problems

• He launched a program of public works to employ the jobless and gave public land to the poor

• He also reorganized the government of the provinces and granted Roman citizenship to more people

• Caesar’s most lasting reform was the introduction of a new calendar based on Egyptian knowledge – 365 day/year calendar

• The Julian calendar, as it was later called, was used in western Europe for over 1,600 years

• With minor changes, it is still our calendar today• Caesar was also the first living Roman to be used on

Roman coins

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Caesar & Cleopatra• While in Egypt with his armies, Caesar

formed a relationship with the Egyptian Queen, Cleopatra

• Cleopatra ruled as Queen of Egypt with her Brother Ptolemy

• She realized that a friendly relationship with Caesar and favor among Rome would give her more power

• Eventually, Caesar and Cleopatra fell in love• Nine months after their first meeting,

Cleopatra gave birth to their son, Caesarion• Cleopatra and Caesarion traveled to Rome

later to live with Caesar, but then something unexpected happened….

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Assassination• Caesar’s enemies worried that he

planned to make himself King of Rome• In order to save the republic, they

plotted against him• Ides of March: As Caesar walked into

the Senate, he was attacked by some 60 Senators led by Brutus and Cassius

• Brutus had been a close friend of Caesar’s

• Caesar was murdered by the men• He was stabbed 23 times

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Aftermath of Caesar’s Assassination• The death of Caesar plunged Rome

into a new round of civil wars• Mark Antony, Caesar’s chief general,

and Octavian, Caesar’s grand-nephew, joined forces to hunt down the murderers and succeeded

• In a meeting near Bologna in October of 43 BC, Octavian, Mark Antony, and Marcus Lepidus formed the Second Triumvirate

• This was an explicit grant of special powers lasting five years

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Second Triumvirate

• 1. Octavian = Caesar’s Grand-Nephew

• 2. Marc Antony = Caesar’s favorite general

• 3. Marcus Lepidus = Politician, Caesar’s Vice Dictator

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The Second Triumvirate: Octavian, Mark Antony, Marcus Lepidus

The 2nd Triumvirate Falls

• The Triumvirate was eventually torn apart under the competing ambitions of its three rulers

• After a political mistake, Lepidus was forced into retirement and exiled

• However, the feud between Octavian and Mark Antony was much more intense

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Antony & Cleopatra• While in Egypt, Mark Antony began a romantic relationship with Cleopatra (the

mother of Caesar’s child)• However, other factors were involved• Antony wanted Cleopatra for Egypt’s wealth, and Cleopatra wanted Antony for

his Roman armies• The two soon married and had twins• Later, they would have another child• This marriage outraged Octavian since Antony was already married to his sister

Octavia, a Roman woman• Also, rumors spread that Antony & Cleopatra planned to form their own empire• Antony soon declared that Caesarian, the son of Julius Caesar and Cleopatra

was the true heir to the Roman throne• This, combined with greed and ambition, pitted the two men against each other

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Octavian v. Antony & Cleopatra• The Battle of Actium: off the Coast of Greece• The opposing fleets of Octavian and Antony met outside the Gulf of Actium, on the morning

of September 2, 31 BC, with Mark Antony leading 220 warships through the straits toward the open sea

• There he met the fleet of Octavian• Unfortunately for Antony, many of his ships were undermanned due to a severe malaria

outbreak that had struck his forces while he was waiting for Octavian's fleet to arrive• Seeing that the battle was going against Antony, Cleopatra's fleet retreated to open sea –

Mark Antony retreated soon after• Once back in Egypt, the two reunited shortly• However, Octavian’s forces followed and Antony & Cleopatra knew their hours were

numbered• Having been separated, Octavian believes than Cleopatra had been murdered so he

commits suicide by falling on his sword• Cleopatra does as well, by putting her hand in a basket of asps• Shortly after, Octavian has Caesarian murdered saying, “there is no room for two Caesars”

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Octavian becomes Augustus• After Marcus Lepidus was exiled and after the

deaths of Antony & Cleopatra, Octavian was left as the soul ruler of Rome

• The senate gave the triumphant Octavian the title of Augustus, or Exalted One, and declared him first citizen of Rome

• Although he was careful not to call himself King, Augustus exercised absolute power and named his successor, just as a King would do

• Under Augustus, who ruled from 31 B.C. to A.D. 14, the 500-year-old Roman republic came to an end

• Romans did not know it at the time, but a new age had dawned—the age of the Roman Empire

• Augustus' reign laid the foundations of a regime that lasted hundreds of years until the ultimate decline of the Roman Empire

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