Punic Nightmares by Carlin
Ref: Dan Carlin (2008). Punic Nightmares. Hardcore History.
___________________________________________________________________________
Summary
Mamertines: Mercenaries of Italian origin who had been hired from their home in Campania by Agathocles (361-289 BCE), the Tyrant of Syracuse and self-proclaimed King of Sicily. After Syracuse lost the 7th Sicilian War, the city of Messina was ceded to Carthage in 307 BCE. When Agathocles died in 289 BCE, he left many of his mercenaries idle and unemployed in Sicily. Most of them returned home but some, liking the climate and the prospect of adventure on a foreign island, remained (Wiki). The Mamertines that remained band together and began raiding, killing, and taking captives throughout Sicily and Southern Italy. One faction asks Carthage for help, the other asks Rome for help (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
___________________________________________________________________________
Barca Family
Hamilcar Barca: Leader of the Mercenaries uprising against Carthage following Roman victory in the first Punic War. Following the Mercenary War, Hamilcar goes to Spain with his troops and his three sons- ‘The Lions Brood’. Hamilcar dies fighting the natives in Spain.
Lions Brood: The sons of Hamilcar; Hannibal, Mago, and Hasdrubal.
___________________________________________________________________________
Misc
“The victor is not victorious if the enemy doesn’t consider himself defeated.”-Polybius.
“It is when the Romans stand in real danger, that they are most to be feared.”-Polybius.
The Romans called the Carthaginians Africans.
___________________________________________________________________________
Terminology
Crow (Raven): A mobile bridge atop Roman vessels used to board enemy vessels.
___________________________________________________________________________
Chronology
149-146 BCE: The Third Punic War; “The Punic Solution.” Roman forces entirely destroy the Carthaginian Empire (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
Spring, 146 BCE: The Carthaginian Solution; Roman forces under Scipio completely destroys Carthage, bringing an end to the Punic Wars and setting Rome up for the conquest of the Mediterranean. Some 450K are killed and Scipio sells the 50K survivors into slavery (Punic Nightmares by Carlin, Wiki).
149-146 BCE: Roman forces under Scipio siege Carthage (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
149 BCE: The Romans ask for 300 Carthaginian noble children as hostages. Just as Carthage lets its guard down, the Romans declare war and deploy an army of ~80K infantry and 4K cavalry to N. Africa to attack Carthage. Rome forces Carthage to disband its army, surrender its weapons and release its prisoners. The Carthaginians were told they had to leave the city of Carthage completely and resettle 16km from the coast. This is too much for Carthage so they begin preparing the city for siege (Ancient-Origins.net).
151-150 BCE: The Numidian-Carthaginian War is fought between the Numidians and the Carthaginians as a pretext for a Roman intervention. Numidia had been expanding their territory little by little, absorbing what had once been Carthage’s (Wiki).
150 BCE: The Numidians attack the Carthaginian ctity of Oroscopa. Carthage deploys 31K men to defend and attack the Numidians, however they lose nearly all of their army (Ancient-Origins.net).
153 BCE: The Romans send a senatorial delegation led by Cato to Carthage. Cato finds a powerful, prosperous state and begins advocating for the destruction of Carthage (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
183 BCE: Hannibal commits suicide with poison after being surrounded by Roman forces near the Black Sea. Ironically, Scipio Africanus, by now an outcast from Roman society, dies as well (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
192 BCE: Carthage offers to repay their 50y war indemnity only 10y after their defeat. Carthage prospers between the 2nd and 3rd Punic Wars (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
200-197 BCE: The Second Macedonian War; Macedonian forces led by Phillip V of Macedon are defeated by Roman forces allied with Pergamon and Rhodes. Phillip is defeated and forced to abandon all possessions in S. Greece, Thrace, and Asia Minor. The War eventually leads to the conquest of the entirety of Greece (Wiki).
214-205 BCE: The First Macedonian War; Roman forces allied with the Aetolian League and Attalus I of Pergamon against Phillip V of Macedon, allied with Carthage. There were no decisive engagements and the war ended in a stalemate. During the war, Macedon attempted to gain control over parts of Ilyria, without success. The Peace of Phoenice formally ended the war in 205 BCE (Wiki).
218-201 BCE: The Second Punic War; Hannibal crosses the Alps from Spain and attacks Italy from the North while Rome splits its force and attacks both Spain and Hannibal’s forces throughout N. Italy. The peace treaty the Romans subsequently impose on the Carthaginians strips them of their overseas territories and some African ones, places an indemnity of 10K silver talents to be paid over 50y; Carthage was forbidden to possess war elephants, and its fleet was restricted to 10 warships; it was prohibited from waging war outside Africa and in Africa only with Rome’s express permission (Wiki).
19 Oct, 202 BCE: The Battle of Zama; Roman forces under Scipio Africanus defeat Hannibal’s Carthaginian forces. The victory grants Scipio (previously Sulla) the title “Africanus”- “conqueror of Africa.” The Romans use Numidian cavalry against Carthage (Hannibals tactic) to collapse Hannibal’s flanks and fully defeat the Carthaginians (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
203 BCE: Hannibal is recalled to Carthage to defend it from Rome (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
Spring, 203 BCE: The Battle of Utica; Roman forces under Scipio Africanus conduct a night attack on Numidian and Carthaginian encampments, setting fire to their encampments and slaughtering throughout the night. The Romans kill, wound, or cause to flee some 40-50K soldiers (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
204 BCE: Roman forces under Scipio Africanus land in N. Africa and march on Carthage (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
206 BCE: The Battle of Ilipa; Roman forces under Scipio Africanus defeat Carthaginian forces under Hasdrubal and Mago Barca in Spain (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
207 BCE: Hannibal’s brother Hasdrubal deploys a second Carthaginian army across the Alps to N. Italy to reinforce his brother. Rome deploys forces to various alpine valleys to stop him. Hasdrubal’s forces are defeated at the Battle of Metauro River (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
208 BCE: Carthaginian forces kill both Roman consuls (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
210 BCE: Scipio Africanus takes command of the faltering Roman war effort in the Iberian Peninsula and clears it of enemies within 5y (Wiki).
211 BCE: Hannibal marches on Rome as a feint to draw Roman legions from attacking Carthaginian friendly strongholds throughout the Italy (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
215 BCE: Carthage deploys reinforcements to Hannibal while both Capua, the Macedonians, and Syracuse defect to Hannibal’s side. For the next decade, Hannibal attempts to secure newly switched Carthaginian cities from smaller Roman legions (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
216 BCE: The Roman senate votes not to sue for peace or to negotiate with the Carthaginian’s until they leave the Italian Peninsula. Hannibal opts against marching on Rome. He splits his force sending his brother Mago to S. Italy to gather forces. Mago returns to Carthage, makes a spectacle of their victories by emptying a bag of rings of the Roman elite; he asks for reinforcements and money (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
2 Aug, 216 BCE: The Battle of Cannae; ~89K Roman forces under Consuls Varro & Paulus are encircled and almost entirely destroyed by <50K Carthaginian forces under Hannibal. Rome loses Consul Paulus, both of last year’s consuls, 29 military tribunes, 80 senators, 300 elites, and ~80K soldiers (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
216 BCE: Fabius relinquishes his Roman dictatorship and Paulus and Varro are elected consul. They raise combined armies of 90K and march for Hannibal near Cannae (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
217 BCE: Rome makes Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus dictator of Rome. Fabius employs a “Fabian strategy” but relinquishes dictatorship the following year (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
24 Jun, 217 BCE: A 4K strong contingent of Roman cavalry sent to support Flaminius’ forces is entirely destroyed by Carthaginian forces (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
21 Jun, 217 BCE: The Battle of Lake Trasimene; Hannibal ambushes a Roman army commanded by Gaius Flaminius, resulting in a heavy defeat for the Romans. Some 15K Romans including Flaminius are killed in the battle (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
Dec, 218 BCE: The Battle of Trebia; Hannibal feigns an attack on the Roman encampment at Trebia, getting the Romans to deploy their forces against him across the Trebia River. Hannibal had left his brother with his best troops on the other side of the river to Rome’s rear. Hannibal’s cavalry attack Roman cavalry, driving them off the battlefield and leaving the Roman infantry without protection on their flanks. The Carthaginian cavalry, infantry, and Mago’s forces pivot and attack from all sides, forcing Roman forces to retreat. Some 20K Romans are killed and Longus returns to Rome, hoping to spin the news of the battle (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
Nov, 218 BCE: The Battle of Ticinus; Carthaginian forces under Hannibal defeat a Roman army under Publius Cornelius Scipio near the right bank of the river Ticinus. Hannibal led 6000 Libyan and Iberian cavalries while Scipio led 3600 Roman, Italian, and Gallic cavalry and a large number of light infantry javelmen. Scipio is badly wounded in battle and saved by his teenage son before retreating to a fortified camp to await reinforcements under his co-consul Longus (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
218 BCE: Hannibal marches his Carthaginian force from Spain across the Alps into N. Italy. He reaches the Alps with ~50K forces with the intention of mustering Gallic and other anti-Roman forces into his army. Hannibal loses nearly half his army crossing the Alps over 2 weeks (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
May-Dec, 219 BCE: Carthaginian Forces led by Hannibal siege and sack Saguntum, killing and enslaving everyone (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
221 BCE: Hannibal is placed in charge of Spain’s Carthaginian Army. He marches his army towards the Roman town of Saguntum. Rome sends diplomats to Carthage to ask about Hannibal and the Carthaginian Senate responds with anger, describing all the ways the Romans had wronged the Carthaginians. The Roman Ambassador responds- “I hold within the folds of my toga both peace and war. Which shall I let drop.” “Whichever you want.” “I choose war.” “We except it!” (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
241-238 BCE: The Mercenary War; Carthage’s unpaid mercenaries led by Hamilcar Barca rise in revolt but are put down by Carthaginian forces. During the war, Rome takes Sardinia and demands additional tribute after Carthage complains (Punic Nightmares by Carlin, Wiki).
264-241 BCE: The First Punic War; Rome defeats Carthage in several battles on and off the coast of Sicily. Carthage cedes Sicily and agrees to pay tribute to Rome. At the outset of the war, Carthage had the worlds largest navy while Rome had none (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
10 Mar, 241 BCE: The Naval battle of the Aegates; the Roman fleet under the command of Gaius Lutatius Catulus and Quintus Valerius Falto, defeat a Carthaginian force led by Hanno (Wiki).
255 BCE: During a single storm, the Romans lose 300 ships and 80K men (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
256 BCE: The Naval Battle of Cape Ecnomus; with 150K soldiers each, Roman forces defeat Carthaginian forces off S. Sicily. Some 40K people die/drown during the battle (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
280 BCE: Greek General Pyrrhus invades Italy with the Carthaginians. The people of Rhegium in Southern Italy ask Rome for protection. Rome sends a Campanian garrison of 4K men to protect the city but they plunder it instead. The Roman army was punished 9 years later in 271 BCE and the city was returned to the surviving citizens (www.bibleplaces.com).
289 BCE: Death of self-proclaimed Sicilian King Agathocles. His mercenaries, the Mamertines, band together and began raiding, killing, and taking captives throughout Sicily (Wiki).
307 BCE: The City of Messina is ceded from Sicily to Carthage at the end of the 7th Sicilian War (Wiki).
~800-700 BCE: The Phoenicians establish the colony of Carthage in modern Tunisia (Punic Nightmares by Carlin).
___________________________________________________________________________
