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163-666: The Second Illyrian War lasted from 220 BC to 219 BC. In 219 BC, the Roman Republic was at war with the Celts of Cisalpine Gaul , and the Second Punic War with Carthage was beginning. These distractions gave Demetrius the time he needed to build a new Illyrian war fleet. Leading this fleet of 90 ships, Demetrius sailed south of Lissus , violating his earlier treaty and starting the war. Demetrius' fleet first attacked Pylos , where he captured 50 ships after several attempts. From Pylos,

326-612: A great victory for Metellus. Rome then besieged the last Carthaginian strongholds in Sicily, Lilybaeum and Drepana , but these cities were impregnable by land. Publius Claudius Pulcher , the consul of 249, recklessly tried to take the latter from the sea, but suffered a terrible defeat ; his colleague Lucius Junius Pullus likewise lost his fleet off Lilybaeum . Without the corvus , Roman warships had lost their advantage. By now, both sides were drained and could not undertake large-scale operations. The only military activity during this period

489-490: A torc around his head, and on the reverse in one case a thunderbolt and in the other a lembus , the typical Illyrian warship. Thus, according to an inventory made by the Romans, the state treasury had 27 pounds of gold, 19 of silver, 120,000 Illyrian drachmas and 13,000 Roman denarii on the eve of the war with Rome. Gentius and Perseus sent a joined embassy to invite Rhodes to join in the war against Rome. Gentius also built up

652-477: A call for help from Syracuse, where tyrant Thoenon was desperately fighting an invasion from Carthage . Pyrrhus could not let them take the whole island, as it would have compromised his ambitions in the western Mediterranean, and so declared war. The Carthaginians lifted the siege of Syracuse before his arrival, but he could not entirely oust them from the island as he failed to take their fortress of Lilybaeum . His harsh rule soon led to widespread antipathy among

815-544: A claim by Gentius' envoys that the charges were false. Ten years later, when Rome was gripped with war fever against Perseus of Macedon , Issa accused Gentius of plotting war with the king and so the Illyrian envoys were denied a hearing before the Senate. Instead, the Romans seized 54 Illyrian lembi at anchor in the harbor of Epidamnus. On the eve of war, a Roman senator was sent to Illyria to remind Gentius of his formal friendship with

978-517: A coalition of Illyrians and Acarnanians ; as a result, the Korkyreans were forced to accept an Illyrian garrison in their city, which was put under the command of Demetrius of Pharos. The Aetolians’ power increasingly magnified with the occupation of the lands of Ozoloi, Locrians and Phocians, as well as Boeotia. They then united under the power of their League in the areas of Tegea, Mantinea, Orchomenus, Psophida and Phigaleia. Between 220 and 217 BC,

1141-648: A fleet of 270 lembi, a fact showing that the enemy he was prepared to face would come across the Adriatic . An army of 15,000 men completed the military machine of the Ardiaean State. Gentius was now prepared to go to war with Rome. Having mustered his force of 15,000 men and his fleet of lembi at Lissus , the southernmost city of the State, Gentius advanced into Roman territory in January/February of 168 BC and laid siege to

1304-405: A folio of Livy's text is missing, little is known of this campaign. It seems that Anicius's fleets engaged Gentius' lembi and captured a number of them. Next, the Illyrian forces were defeated on land, allowing the Romans to advance to the heart of the state, where they won over the cities by humane and clement methods. Gentius concentrated his forces in his capital Shkodra , a well-fortified city in

1467-555: A garrison in Tarentum, to wage a new campaign in Greece against Antigonus II Gonatas of Macedonia . His death in battle at Argos in 272 BC forced Tarentum to surrender to Rome. Rome and Carthage were initially on friendly terms, lastly in an alliance against Pyrrhus, but tensions rapidly rose after the departure of the Epirote king. Between 288 and 283 BC, Messina in Sicily was taken by

1630-462: A language similar to the Macedonians. On the other hand, Thucydides claims that Eurytanians spoke a very difficult language and ate their food completely raw. They were semi-barbaric, warlike and predatory. They worshiped Apollo as god of tame nature and Artemis as goddess of wilderness. They also worshiped Athena , not as goddess of wisdom, but emphasizing the element of war – i.e. a goddess that

1793-520: A license to universal plunder. In 231 BC, the fleet and army attacked Elis and Messenia in the Peloponnese . On the way home, Teuta sent her general Scerdilaidas to capture the city of Phoenice in Epirus. The city was captured and the ensuing battle was won. A truce was agreed and Phoenice was returned for a price, along with the release of prisoners. The continued Illyrian success was another shock for

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1956-464: A long-lasting alliance with Rome. In 262 BC, the Romans moved to the southern coast and besieged Akragas . In order to raise the siege, Carthage sent reinforcements, including 60 elephants—the first time they used them—but still lost the battle . Nevertheless, Rome could not take all of Sicily because Carthage's naval superiority prevented it from effectively besieging coastal cities. Using a captured Carthaginian ship as blueprint, Rome therefore launched

2119-433: A massive construction program and built 100 quinqueremes in only two months. It also invented a new device, the corvus , a grappling engine that enabled a crew to board an enemy ship. The consul for 260 BC, Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Asina , lost the first naval skirmish of the war against Hannibal Gisco at Lipara , but his colleague Gaius Duilius won a great victory at Mylae . He destroyed or captured 44 ships and

2282-578: A number of Illyrian ships had engaged in privateering against Italian merchants. So many were robbed, murdered or captured that the Roman Senate, after ignoring earlier complaints, realized that something had to be done. Polybius (2.8) furnishes a suspiciously vivid account of a Roman embassy to Teuta, a version of events that was intended to justify the Roman invasion of Illyria. It was led by the brothers L. and C. Coruncanius. On arrival, they found Teuta celebrating

2445-511: A praetor. Anicius had crossed over from Italy to Apollonia with two legions totalling 600 cavalry and 10,400 infantry and of Italian allies, 800 cavalry and 10,000 infantry. His fleet, the size of which is not known, was strengthened by a draft of 5,000 sailors. To this imposing force, he added 200 cavalry and 2,000 infantry of the Parthini , an Illyrian kingdom allied to the Romans. These combined forces outnumbered those of Gentius's by two to one. As

2608-433: A renewed effort to tackle indebtedness; required the election of at least one plebeian consul each year; and prohibited magistrates from holding the same magistracy for the next ten years or two magistracies in the same year. In 339 BC, the plebeian consul and dictator Quintus Publilius Philo passed three laws extending the plebeians' powers. His first law followed the lex Genucia by reserving one censorship to plebeians,

2771-500: A result of the end of the patrician monopoly on senior magistracies, many small patrician gentes faded into history during the 4th and 3rd centuries BC due to the lack of available positions. About a dozen remaining patrician gentes and 20 plebeian ones thus formed a new elite, called the nobiles , or Nobilitas . By the early 3rd century BC, Rome had established itself as the major power in Italy, but had not yet come into conflict with

2934-569: A significant defeat at the Battle of the Cremera in 477 BC, wherein it fought against the most important Etruscan city, Veii ; this defeat was later avenged at the Battle of Veii in 396 BC, wherein Rome destroyed the city. By the end of this period, Rome had effectively completed the conquest of its immediate Etruscan and Latin neighbours and secured its position against the immediate threat posed by

3097-688: A similar revolt in Sardinia to seize the island from Carthage, in violation of the peace treaty. This led to permanent bitterness in Carthage. After its victory, the Republic shifted its attention to its northern border as the Insubres and Boii were threatening Italy. Meanwhile, Carthage compensated the loss of Sicily and Sardinia with the conquest of Southern Hispania (up to Salamanca ), and its rich silver mines. This rapid expansion worried Rome, which concluded

3260-634: A stalemate, with the Treaty of Phoenice signed in 205. In Hispania, Scipio continued his successful campaign at the battles of Carmona in 207, and Ilipa (now Seville ) in 206, which ended the Punic threat on the peninsula. Elected consul in 205, he convinced the Senate to invade Africa with the support of the Numidian king Masinissa , who had defected to Rome. Scipio landed in Africa in 204. He took Utica and then won

3423-411: A strong natural position. When Anicius approached with his army in battle formation, Gentius fled into the city in panic. Gentius asked for, and was given, a three-day truce hoping that Caravantius would come at any moment with a large relieving army, but it did not happen. After his defeat, Gentius sent two prominent tribal leaders, Teuticus and Bellus, as envoys to negotiate with the Roman commander. On

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3586-564: A third term in 121 but was defeated. During violent protests over repeal of an ally's colonisation bill, the Senate moved the first senatus consultum ultimum against him, resulting in his death, with many others, on the Aventine. His legislation (like that of his brother) survived; the Roman aristocracy disliked the Gracchan agitation but accepted their policies. Aetolian Aetolia ( Greek : Αἰτωλία , romanized :  Aitōlía )

3749-664: A treaty with Hasdrubal in 226, stating that Carthage could not cross the Ebro river . But the city of Saguntum , south of the Ebro, appealed to Rome in 220 to act as arbitrator during a period of internal strife . Hannibal took the city in 219, triggering the Second Punic War. Initially, the Republic's plan was to carry war outside Italy, sending the consuls P. Cornelius Scipio to Hispania and Ti. Sempronius Longus to Africa, while their naval superiority prevented Carthage from attacking from

3912-632: A trusted councillor at the court of Philip V of Macedon , and remained there until his death at Messene in 214 BC. In 171 BC, the Illyrian king Gentius of the Labeatae was allied with the Romans against the Macedonians . But in 169 BC he changed sides and allied himself with Perseus of Macedon . During the Third Illyrian War , in 168 BC, he arrested two Roman legati and destroyed the cities of Apollonia and Dyrrhachium , which were allied to Rome. He

4075-716: Is a mountainous region of Greece on the north coast of the Gulf of Corinth , forming the eastern part of the modern regional unit of Aetolia-Acarnania . The Achelous River separates Aetolia from Acarnania to the west; on the north it had boundaries with Epirus and Thessaly ; on the east with the Ozolian Locrians ; and on the south the entrance to the Corinthian Gulf defined the limits of Aetolia. In classical times Aetolia comprised two parts: "Old Aetolia" ( Greek : Παλιά Αιτωλία , romanized :  Paliá Aitolía ) in

4238-480: Is said to have sided with the plebeians, ruined by the sack and largely indebted to patricians. According to Livy, Capitolinus sold his estate to repay the debt of many of them, and even went over to the plebs, the first patrician to do so. Nevertheless, the growing unrest he had caused led to his trial for seeking kingly power; he was sentenced to death and thrown from the Tarpeian Rock . Between 376 BC and 367 BC,

4401-595: The Aqua Appia , and the first Roman road, the Via Appia . In 300 BC, the two tribunes of the plebs Gnaeus and Quintus Ogulnius passed the lex Ogulnia , which created four plebeian pontiffs, equalling the number of patrician pontiffs, and five plebeian augurs, outnumbering the four patricians in the college. The Conflict of the Orders ended with the last secession of the plebs around 287. The dictator Quintus Hortensius passed

4564-533: The Battle of Actium in 31 BC, and the Senate's grant of extraordinary powers to Octavian as Augustus in 27 BC—which effectively made him the first Roman emperor —marked the end of the Republic. Rome had been ruled by monarchs since its foundation . These monarchs were elected, for life, by the men of the Roman Senate . The last Roman monarch was called Tarquin the Proud , who in traditional histories

4727-450: The Battle of Bovianum in 305 BC. By 304 BC, Rome had annexed most Samnite territory and begun to establish colonies there, but in 298 BC the Samnites rebelled, and defeated a Roman army, in a Third Samnite War . After this success, it built a coalition of several previous enemies of Rome. The war ended with Roman victory in 290 BC. At the Battle of Populonia , in 282 BC, Rome finished off

4890-772: The Battle of Zama in 202 BC, becoming the dominant power of the ancient Mediterranean world. It then embarked on a long series of difficult conquests, defeating Philip V and Perseus of Macedon , Antiochus III of the Seleucid Empire , the Lusitanian Viriathus , the Numidian Jugurtha , the Pontic king Mithridates VI , Vercingetorix of the Arverni tribe of Gaul , and the Egyptian queen Cleopatra . At home, during

5053-463: The Battle of the Great Plains , which prompted Carthage to open peace negotiations. The talks failed because Scipio wanted to impose harsher terms on Carthage to prevent it from rising again as a threat. Hannibal was therefore sent to face Scipio at Zama . Scipio could now use the heavy Numidian cavalry of Massinissa—which had hitherto been so successful against Rome—to rout the Punic wings, then flank

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5216-620: The Conflict of the Orders , the patricians , the closed oligarchic elite, came into conflict with the more numerous plebs ; this was resolved peacefully, with the plebs achieving political equality by the 4th century BC. The late Republic, from 133 BC onward, saw substantial domestic strife , often anachronistically seen as a conflict between optimates and populares , referring to conservative and reformist politicians, respectively. The Social War between Rome and its Italian allies over citizenship and Roman hegemony in Italy greatly expanded

5379-589: The Cornelii , Aemilii , Claudii , Fabii , and Valerii . The leading families' power, privilege and influence derived from their wealth, in particular from their landholdings, their position as patrons , and their numerous clients. The vast majority of Roman citizens were commoners of various social degrees. They formed the backbone of Rome's economy, as smallholding farmers, managers, artisans, traders, and tenants. In wartime, they could be summoned for military service. Most had little direct political influence. During

5542-734: The Cyclades , where he extorted tribute from some of the islands and plundered the others. Chased by Rhodian warships, Demetrius put into Cenchreae , the Aegean port of Corinth . At the same time, the Macedonian commander in Corinth, Taurion , learned of the invasion by Scerdilaidas and the Aetolians. Taking his cue from the Aetolians, Taurion agreed to drag Demetrius' ships across the Isthmus to bring them into play in

5705-480: The Mamertines , a band of mercenaries formerly employed by Agathocles . They plundered the surroundings until Hiero II , the new tyrant of Syracuse , defeated them (in either 269 or 265 BC). In effect under a Carthaginian protectorate, the remaining Mamertines appealed to Rome to regain their independence. Senators were divided on whether to help. A supporter of war, the consul Appius Claudius Caudex , turned to one of

5868-675: The Persian Wars . In 426 BC, led by Aegitios, they defeated the Athenians and their allies, who had turned against Apodotia and Ophioneia under the general command of Demosthenes. However, they failed to regain Naupaktos , which had meanwhile been conquered by the Corinthians with the aid of the Athenians. At the end of the Archidamian War , the Aetolians took part as mercenaries of the Athenians in

6031-581: The Seleucid Empire made increasingly aggressive and successful attempts to conquer the entire Greek world. Now not only Rome's allies against Philip, but even Philip himself, sought a Roman alliance against the Seleucids. The situation was exacerbated by the fact that Hannibal was now a chief military advisor to the Seleucid emperor, and the two were believed to be planning outright conquest not just of Greece, but also of Rome. The Seleucids were much stronger than

6194-538: The Seleucid Empire . In 202, internal problems led to a weakening of Egypt's position, disrupting the power balance among the successor states. Macedonia and the Seleucid Empire agreed to an alliance to conquer and divide Egypt. Fearing this increasingly unstable situation, several small Greek kingdoms sent delegations to Rome to seek an alliance. Rome gave Philip an ultimatum to cease his campaigns against Rome's new Greek allies. Doubting Rome's strength, Philip ignored

6357-967: The Social War broke out between the Achaean and Aetolian Leagues. The war was first started by the Aetolians with the help of the Spartans and Eleans. Allies of the Achaeans were the Macedonians, the Boeotians, the Phocians, the Epirotes, the Acarnanians and the Messenians. The Aetolians allied with the Romans, while Philip V destroyed the temple of Apollo Thermios and allied with the Carthaginians. The Aetolians continued to fight on

6520-533: The Thermaic Gulf . A formal parade of the Macedonian cavalry was held, which may have impressed the Illyrians; the cavalry may have represented the Macedonians in the ratification of the treaty. The 300 talents were counted out of the royal treasure at Pella and the Illyrians were permitted to mark it with their own stamp. An advance of this money was forwarded to Gentius; and when this was passed over by Pantauchus,

6683-427: The lex Hortensia , which reenacted the law of 339 BC, making plebiscites binding on all citizens, while also removing the requirement for prior Senate approval. These events were a political victory of the wealthy plebeian elite, who exploited the economic difficulties of the plebs for their own gain: Stolo, Lateranus, and Genucius bound their bills attacking patricians' political supremacy with debt-relief measures. As

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6846-529: The Ardiaean State is transmitted by Livy in a ceremonial manner of the triumph of Anicius in Rome: In a few days, both on land and sea did he defeat the brave Illyrian tribe, who had relied on their knowledge of their own territory and fortifications This part of the campaign had only lasted 30 days. There were certainly further operations in the northern part of the Ardiaean State, for Anicius placed garrisons in some towns, citadels and fortresses. These include

7009-724: The Atintani further south. Moreover, not only were the Ardiaei prevented from moving at will by land and sea into Epirus and western Greece, but they were now cut off from the inland route to Macedonia , their patron and ally against the Greek Leagues. The decade after 229 BC witnessed a revival of Illyrian power under Demetrius, who succeeded Teuta. Following the war, Demetrius married Triteuta , Agron's first wife and mother of Pinnes , in or around 222 BC, which consolidated his position. His marriage to Triteuta meant that Demetrius formally took over

7172-456: The Boii ambushed the army of the consul-elect for 215, L. Postumius Albinus , who died with all his army of 25,000 men in the Battle of Silva Litana . These disasters triggered a wave of defection among Roman allies, with the rebellions of the Samnites, Oscans, Lucanians, and Greek cities of Southern Italy. In Macedonia, Philip V also made an alliance with Hannibal in order to take Illyria and

7335-526: The Epirotes to establish a new center at Phoenice . Besieged at Medion , the Acarnanians sought assistance from Demetrius II of Macedonia , who for the most of his reign had been at war with the Aetolian and Achaean Leagues. In response, the king requested assistance from Agron to relieve the siege. The Illyrian attack under Agron was mounted in either 232 or 231 BC. One hundred lembi, with 5000 men on board, sailed up to land at Medion. They then formed up in

7498-597: The Great , he was eager to build an empire for himself in the western Mediterranean and saw Tarentum's plea as a perfect opportunity. Pyrrhus and his army of 25,500 men (with 20 war elephants) landed in Italy in 280 BC. The Romans were defeated at Heraclea , as their cavalry were afraid of Pyrrhus's elephants. Pyrrhus then marched on Rome, but the Romans concluded a peace in the north and moved south with reinforcements, placing Pyrrhus in danger of being flanked by two consular armies; Pyrrhus withdrew to Tarentum. In 279 BC, Pyrrhus met

7661-560: The Greeks. The Epirotes signified their acceptance of the Illyrian victory by sending envoys to Teuta promising cooperation with them and hostility towards the Leagues of Greece. Phoenice was the most prosperous city in Epirus, and the centre for the growing commerce with Italy . It was Illyrian interference with that commerce that brought Roman forces across the Adriatic for the first time. Nevertheless,

7824-580: The Gulf of Corinth, in return for Demetrius' assistance against the Aetolians. Although Demetrius conducted a few raids on the Aetolian coast, he was too late to hinder the Aetolians' return from Achaea. After returning to the Ardiaean Kingdom, Demetrius continued operations during the following winter, attacking and seizing Roman allied cities and communities in southern Illyria. The Romans, who had hitherto ignored

7987-424: The Illyrian city of Bassania, a Roman ally that refused to yield, although it was only 5 miles from Lissus. His half-brother Caravantius detached 1,000 infantry and 50 horsemen and attacked the Cavii , failing to capture one of their cities while ravaging the fields of the city of Caravandis. A fleet of eight lembi set off a little later to attack the coastal colonial cities of Epidamnus and Appolonia . Meanwhile,

8150-405: The Illyrian commander, Scerdilaidas , sailed south of Lissus with 90 lembi . An assault on Pylos in the western Peloponnese initially failed, but Demetrius eventually captured 50 ships. Afterwards, the Illyrians separated their forces; Demetrius and his forces plundered the Cyclades , while Scerdilaidas' forces returned north to Illyria. On putting in at Naupactus with forty ships, Scerdilaidas

8313-411: The Illyrian peoples of the hinterland. Here, the Romans received delegations from many peoples, including the Atintani and Parthini , from whom a formal surrender was accepted. At sea, the blockade of Issa was raised and the city also received Roman protection. As the Romans approached the Illyrian heartlands, opposition stiffened. The fleet moved northwards and attacked coastal towns, one of which being

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8476-423: The Illyrians had to withdraw from Phoenice in order to deal with an internal rebellion. Roman Republic After Roman Intervention: Even before the war with Carthage (264–241 BC), the Romans had been aware of the danger to the Adriatic coast of Italy from seaborne attack. In 246 BC, a colony of Roman citizens was settled at Brundisium to keep a watch on the Ionian gulf . During their occupation of Phoenice,

8639-536: The Illyrians took four triremes and sank a quinquereme , while the rest of the Greeks managed to escape. Corcyra was surrendered and was occupied by a garrison under the command of Demetrius of Pharos . The main Illyrian force sailed north for another attack on Epidamnos. The Illyrians were now on the point of controlling all of the coastline north of the Gulf of Corinth , including all of the sea routes to Sicily and Italy via Corcyra. The Roman consul Gnaeus Fulvius Centumalus sailed his 200 ships to Corcyra to raise

8802-410: The Illyrians, having carried out the orders of Agron, conveyed their baggage and the rest of their booty to their boats and immediately set sail for their own country. This defeat of the Aetolians, who were famed for their victory over the invading Gauls a generation before, caused a sensation in Greece. Illyrian success continued when command passed to Agron's widow Teuta , who granted individual ships

8965-424: The Illyrians, whose numbers and close order gave them irresistible weight, served to dislodge the light-armed troops, and forced the cavalry who were on the ground with them to retire to the hoplites. The Medionians joined the action by sallying out of the town and charging the Aetolians, thus, after killing a great number, and taking a still greater number prisoners, and becoming masters also of their arms and baggage,

9128-416: The Macedonians had ever been, because they controlled much of the former Persian Empire and had almost entirely reassembled Alexander the Great's former empire. Fearing the worst, the Romans began a major mobilization, all but pulling out of recently conquered Spain and Gaul. This fear was shared by Rome's Greek allies, who now followed Rome again for the first time since that war. A major Roman-Greek force

9291-485: The Macedonians won a conclusive victory over the Spartans. After Sellasia, Demetrius began attempting to extend his control over Illyria at the expense of Rome. Before then, when Rome was preoccupied with a war against the Celtic peoples of the Po Valley in northern Italy from 225 to 222 BC, Demetrius detached the Illyrian Atintani from their Roman alliance. In addition, he sailed south of Lissus, Lezhë in present-day Albania , and engaged in piracy in contravention of

9454-403: The Punic army—and confronted Hannibal, who was encamped at Cannae , in Apulia . Despite his numerical disadvantage, Hannibal used his heavier cavalry to rout the Roman wings and envelop their infantry, which he annihilated. In terms of casualties, the Battle of Cannae was the worst defeat in Roman history: only 14,500 soldiers escaped, and Paullus was killed as well as 80 senators. Soon after,

9617-444: The Rhone, sent his elder brother Gnaeus with the main part of his army in Hispania according to the initial plan, and went back to Italy with the rest to resist Hannibal in Italy, but he was defeated and wounded near the Ticino river . Hannibal then marched south and won three outstanding victories. The first one was on the banks of the Trebia in December 218, where he defeated the other consul Ti. Sempronius Longus. More than half

9780-447: The Roman Empire, throughout the republican era Rome was in a state of near-perpetual war. Its first enemies were its Latin and Etruscan neighbours, as well as the Gauls , who sacked Rome in 387 BC. After the Gallic sack, Rome conquered the whole Italian Peninsula in a century and thus became a major power in the Mediterranean. Its greatest strategic rival was Carthage , against which it waged three wars . Rome defeated Carthage at

9943-428: The Roman Republic. In 169 BC, Gentius arranged the murder of his brother, Plator , because Plator's plan to marry Etuta , daughter of the Dardanian king, Monunius II of Dardania , would have made him too powerful. Gentius then married Plator's fiancée for himself, securing the alliance of the powerful Dardanian State. Perseus of Macedon, having recaptured several Roman outposts in Roman occupied Illyria, controlled

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10106-425: The Roman army was lost. Hannibal then ravaged the country around Arretium to lure the new consul C. Flaminius into a trap at Lake Trasimene . This clever ambush resulted in the death of the consul and the complete destruction of his army of 30,000 men. In 216, the new consuls L. Aemilius Paullus and C. Terentius Varro mustered the biggest army possible, with eight legions—some 80,000 soldiers, twice as many as

10269-489: The Roman province of Achaea . When the Roman garrisons were withdrawn because of the civil wars in Rome, the Aetolians, too, began to fight each other. Following Octavius’ victory at the Battle of Actium , the Aetolians who had sided with Antony disbanded completely. Octavius handed Calydon over to the Achaeans, who devastated it entirely and moved the statue of Artemis Laphria to Patras . There were subsequent invasions by Goths , Huns , and Vandals several centuries later at

10432-453: The Romans to prepare for war: legions were raised and a fleet assembled, and there was general indignation at 'the queen's violation of the law of nations'. The Roman invasion of Illyria in 229 BC appears to have caught Teuta completely off guard. As soon as the weather permitted, Teuta had ordered south a naval expedition even larger than those of previous years, with most of the ships heading to attack Corcyra. Some landed at Epidamnos, entered

10595-400: The Romans under Appius Claudius had heard of the alliance that Gentius had made with Perseus of Macedon and the arrest of the Roman envoys. He therefore moved his army out of their winter quarters at Nymphaeum , added to it troops from Byllis , Epidamnus, and Appolonia, as he marched north, and encamped by the river Genesus. There, he met with the new Roman commander, Lucius Anicius Gallus ,

10758-415: The Romans' inability to conceive of plausible alternatives to the traditional republican system in a "crisis without alternative". The second instead stresses the continuity of the republic: until its disruption by Caesar's civil war and the following two decades of civil war created conditions for autocratic rule and made return to republican politics impossible: and, per Erich S. Gruen , "civil war caused

10921-557: The Senate, C. Cassius Longinus gave these vessels taken from Gentius to the inhabitants of Corcyra , Appolonia and Epidamnus. The year of Gentius' death is not known, but there are ruins of what is perhaps his tomb. The Roman punishment of Illyria spared only those kingdoms that had backed Rome openly in the war. For those who had been enemies, their cities, buildings and public institutions were burned and thoroughly looted. Those spared retained their previous manner of administration, with officials elected every year, and paid Rome only half

11084-412: The Sicilians; some cities even defected to Carthage. In 275 BC, Pyrrhus left the island before he had to face a full-scale rebellion. He returned to Italy, where his Samnite allies were on the verge of losing the war. Pyrrhus again met the Romans at the Battle of Beneventum . This time, the consul Manius Dentatus was victorious and even captured eight elephants. Pyrrhus then withdrew from Italy, but left

11247-487: The Spartan general marched on Regulus, crushing the Roman infantry on the Bagradas plain ; only 2,000 soldiers escaped, and Regulus was captured. The consuls for 255 nonetheless won a naval victory at Cape Hermaeum, where they captured 114 warships. This success was spoilt by a storm that annihilated the victorious navy: 184 ships of 264 sank, 25,000 soldiers and 75,000 rowers drowned. The corvus considerably hindered ships' navigation and made them vulnerable during tempest. It

11410-464: The abusive treatment of plebeian debtors by the wealthy during a famine. The patrician Senate was compelled to give them direct access to the written civil and religious laws and to the electoral and political process. To represent their interests, the plebs elected tribunes , who were personally sacrosanct, immune to arbitrary arrest by any magistrate, and had veto power over legislation. By 390 BC, several Gallic tribes were invading Italy from

11573-568: The activities of their former ally, decided that the harbors on the Ardiaean Kingdom's coast now had to be made secure, in view of the threat of another war with Carthage . These events precipitated the Second Illyrian War . Unlike Teuta in 229 BC, Demetrius was well prepared for the Roman invasion. He first placed a garrison in Dimallum , an Illyrian city-fortress from Apollonia. He eliminated his opponents in other places, those Illyrians who opposed his rule, and stationed 6,000 of his best forces on his home island of Pharos. As before, both consuls of

11736-519: The aftermath of the Social War. In the winter of 138–137 BC, a first slave uprising, known as the First Servile War , broke out in Sicily. After initial successes, the slaves led by Eunus and Cleon were defeated by Marcus Perperna and Publius Rupilius in 132 BC. In this context, Tiberius Gracchus was elected plebeian tribune in 133 BC. He attempted to enact a law to limit

11899-471: The agreement when Philip's emissaries were captured by a Roman fleet. The First Macedonian War saw the Romans involved directly in only limited land operations, but they achieved their objective of occupying Philip and preventing him from aiding Hannibal. The past century had seen the Greek world dominated by the three primary successor kingdoms of Alexander the Great 's empire: Ptolemaic Egypt , Macedonia and

12062-485: The amount of land anyone could own and establish a commission to distribute public lands to poor rural plebs. The aristocrats, who stood to lose an enormous amount of money, bitterly opposed this proposal. Tiberius submitted this law to the Plebeian Council , but it was vetoed by fellow tribune Marcus Octavius . Tiberius induced the plebs to depose Octavius from his office on the grounds that Octavius acted contrary to

12225-614: The area around Epidamnus , occupied by Rome. His attack on Apollonia started the First Macedonian War . In 215, Hiero II of Syracuse died of old age, and his young grandson Hieronymus broke the long alliance with Rome to side with Carthage. At this desperate point, the aggressive strategy against Hannibal the Scipiones advocated was abandoned in favour of a slow reconquest of the lost territories, since Hannibal could not be everywhere to defend them. Although he remained invincible on

12388-570: The area, the other consul remained in Illyria to keep watch on the Ardiaei and the peoples under Roman protection. Before the end of winter, Teuta's envoys appeared in Rome and a treaty was concluded. According to its terms, the queen would pay tribute (or perhaps an indemnity) to Rome, abandon Illyria, except for a few places, and promise not to sail south of Lissus at the mouth of the Drin with more than two ships, and even those had to be unarmed. The terms of

12551-452: The area. In 180 BC, a Roman praetor responsible for coastal protection arrived in Brundisium with some of Gentius's ships that were said to have been caught in the act of piracy. An embassy to Illyria failed to locate the king; but the praetor discovered that Romans were being held for ransom at Corcyra Nigra . No outcome of the affair is reported and it may well be that the Senate accepted

12714-408: The battlefield, defeating all the Roman armies on his way, he could not prevent Claudius Marcellus from taking Syracuse in 212 after a long siege , nor the fall of his bases of Capua and Tarentum in 211 and 209 . In Hispania, Publius and Gnaeus Scipio won the battles of Cissa in 218, soon after Hannibal's departure, and Dertosa against his brother Hasdrubal in 215, which enabled them to conquer

12877-510: The cities of Issa , Rhizon and Olcinium and the tribal states of the Daorsi and the Pirustae . Some came over to Rome on their own accord, while other places, such as Pharos , were reduced by force and their property looted. Rome's triumph included the capture of many royal flags, other booty, the furniture of the king himself and the treasure mentioned above. Millions of sestercii were gained from

13040-454: The city, with weapons concealed, to procure food and water, almost capturing it; but were thrown out after a fight. These ships now joined the main Illyrian force in the siege of Corcyra. The Corcyraeans, along with Appolonia and Epidamnos, sought assistance from the Leagues of Greece. Ten Achaean ships were engaged by the Illyrian fleet, reinforced by seven warships of the Acarnanians, off the island Paxos south of Corcyra. By superior tactics,

13203-459: The consuls Publius Decius Mus and Publius Sulpicius Saverrio at the Battle of Asculum , which remained undecided for two days. Finally, Pyrrhus personally charged into the melee and won the battle but at the cost of an important part of his troops ; he allegedly said, "if we are victorious in one more battle with the Romans, we shall be utterly ruined." He escaped the Italian deadlock by answering

13366-488: The disagreement between the two Macedonian generals and Perdiccas. The Acarnanians then attempted to invade their land, but the Aetolians were able to force them to flee. The Aetolians set up a united league, the Aetolian League , in early times. It soon became a powerful confederation ( sympoliteia ) and by c. 340 BC it became one of the leading military powers in ancient Greece. It had originally been organized during

13529-704: The dominant military powers of the Mediterranean : Carthage and the Greek kingdoms. In 282, several Roman warships entered the harbour of Tarentum , triggering a violent reaction from the Tarentine democrats, who sank some. The Roman embassy sent to investigate the affair was insulted and war was promptly declared. Facing a hopeless situation, the Tarentines (together with the Lucanians and Samnites) appealed to Pyrrhus , king of Epirus , for military aid. A cousin of Alexander

13692-439: The early Republic, the plebs (or plebeians) emerged as a self-organised, culturally distinct group of commoners, with its own internal hierarchy, laws, customs, and interests. Plebeians had no access to high religious and civil office. For the poorest, one of the few effective political tools was their withdrawal of labour and services, in a " secessio plebis "; the first such secession occurred in 494 BC, in protest at

13855-609: The eastern coast of Hispania. But in 211, Hasdrubal and Mago Barca successfully turned the Celtiberian tribes that supported the Scipiones, and attacked them simultaneously at the Battle of the Upper Baetis , in which the Scipiones died. Publius's son, the future Scipio Africanus , was then elected with a special proconsulship to lead the Hispanic campaign, winning a series of battles with ingenious tactics. In 209, he took Carthago Nova ,

14018-467: The end of a rebellion in Illyria and engaged in laying siege to the Greek island of Issa, 'the last town which held out'. When the ambassadors complained of injuries to Romans, Teuta promised that no royal forces would harm them, but said that she was unable to put an end to the tradition of private enterprise. One of the ambassadors lost his temper; in response, the queen arranged for the insolent envoy to be murdered on his homeward voyage. News of this caused

14181-648: The end of the Roman Empire . Aetolia's reputation has suffered from a rather hostile treatment in the sources. Polybius is considered now to have a heavy anti-Aetolian bias due to his having relied on Aetolia's opponent Aratus of Achaea, but mainly because of his origin in Megalopolis , a major centre of the rival Achaean League. During the Middle Ages, Aetolia was part of the Byzantine Empire and later passed to

14344-452: The end of the war, the consuls for 256 BC decided to carry the operations to Africa, on Carthage's homeland. The consul Marcus Atilius Regulus landed on the Cap Bon peninsula with about 18,000 soldiers. He captured the city of Aspis , repulsed Carthage's counterattack at Adys , and took Tunis . The Carthaginians hired Spartan mercenaries, led by Xanthippus , to command their troops. In 255,

14507-515: The expedition against Syracuse. Then the Achaeans occupied Calydon , but the Aetolians recovered it in 361 BC. In 338 BC, Naupaktos was again taken by the Aetolians, with the help of Philip II. During the Lamian War , the Aetolians helped the Athenian general Leosthenes defeat Antipater . As a result, they came into conflict with Antipater and Craterus , taking great risks, but were eventually saved by

14670-518: The fall of the republic, not vice versa". A core cause of the Republic's eventual demise was the loss of elite's cohesion from c.  133 BC : the ancient sources called this moral decay from wealth and the hubris of Rome's domination of the Mediterranean. Modern sources have proposed multiple reasons why the elite lost cohesion, including wealth inequality and a growing willingness by aristocrats to transgress political norms, especially in

14833-453: The finances by establishing a single tax over all the subjects and by taking royal control of the monetary workshops, or mints, of Lissus and Scodra, the two cities where he resided. At this time, Gentius was issuing bronze coins. In the Selcë hoard, there are two coins of Gentius with Macedonian emblems. The other coins of Gentius have what is probably his head with a cap not unlike the petasos , and

14996-471: The first time a Roman army had ever entered Asia . The decisive engagement was fought at the Battle of Magnesia , resulting in complete Roman victory. The Seleucids sued for peace, and Rome forced them to give up their recent Greek conquests. Rome again withdrew from Greece, assuming (or hoping) that the lack of a major Greek power would ensure a stable peace. In fact, it did the opposite. In 179, Philip died. His talented and ambitious son, Perseus , took

15159-410: The fleet sailed to the Cyclades , quelling any resistance that they found on the way. Demetrius foolishly sent a fleet across the Adriatic, and, with the Illyrian forces divided, the fortified city of Dimale was captured by the Roman fleet under Lucius Aemilius Paulus . From Dimale the navy went towards Pharos . The forces of Rome routed the Illyrians and Demetrius fled to Macedon , where he became

15322-541: The fortifications of Pharos and before the summer was over Aemilius was back in Rome receiving congratulations for a job well done. Any threat to Roman holdings in Illyria had been eliminated, all the gains of the First Illyrian War had been secured, and the old restrictions on movement imposed on Illyrian kings. Demetrius may have returned to the Ardiaeian State and have been attacked by another Roman force, although

15485-526: The infantry, as Hannibal had done at Cannae. Defeated for the first time, Hannibal convinced the Carthaginian Senate to pay the war indemnity, which was even harsher than that of 241: 10,000 talents in 50 instalments. Carthage also had to give up all its elephants, all its fleet but ten triremes , and all its possessions outside its core territory in Africa (what is now Tunisia ), and it could not declare war without Roman authorisation. In effect, Carthage

15648-440: The island, the Illyrian army was forced to give battle, as they were cut off from their city. Attacked on two sides, and cut off from the protection of the city walls, the battle was lost. In 218 BC, the Illyrian forces soon surrendered, while Demetrius deserted the island and fled to Macedonia, making his way to the court of Philip V of Macedon , who was now the Macedonian king following the death of Antigonus. The Romans destroyed

15811-411: The king to promise a subsidy to Gentius, whose ships might be employed to attack the Romans. A sum of 300 talents was mentioned and Perseus sent his companion Pantauchus to make the arrangements. In the city of Meteon, hostages were agreed and Gentius accepted the oath of the king. He sent Olympio with a delegation to Perseus to collect the money, and the treaty was concluded with some ceremony at Dium on

15974-405: The king was urged to commence hostilities against the Romans. When Gentius imprisoned two Roman envoys sent by Appius Claudius at Lychnidus, Perseus recalled the rest of the subsidy in the belief that Gentius was now his ally, come what may. Gentius accompanied the new anti-Roman orientation in Illyrian foreign policy with a series of measures to strengthen the Ardiaean State. First, he concentrated

16137-437: The last vestiges of Etruscan power in the region. In the 4th century, plebeians gradually obtained political equality with patricians. The first plebeian consular tribunes were elected in 400. The reason behind this sudden gain is unknown, but it was limited as patrician tribunes retained preeminence over their plebeian colleagues. In 385 BC, the former consul and saviour of the besieged capital, Marcus Manlius Capitolinus ,

16300-500: The league's surrender. Rome decided to divide Macedonia into two new, directly administered Roman provinces, Achaea and Macedonia . For Carthage, the Third Punic War was a simple punitive mission after the neighbouring Numidians allied to Rome robbed and attacked Carthaginian merchants. Treaties had forbidden any war with Roman allies; viewing defence against banditry as "war action", Rome decided to annihilate Carthage. Carthage

16463-572: The main Punic base in Hispania. The next year, he defeated Hasdrubal at the Battle of Baecula . After his defeat, Carthage ordered Hasdrubal to reinforce his brother in Italy. Since he could not use ships, he followed the same route as his brother through the Alps, but the consuls M. Livius Salinator and C. Claudius Nero were awaiting him and defeated him in the Battle of the Metaurus , where Hasdrubal died. It

16626-477: The manifest will of the people, a position that was unprecedented and constitutionally dubious. His law was enacted and took effect, but, when Tiberius ostentatiously stood for reelection to the tribunate, he was murdered by his enemies. Tiberius's brother Gaius was elected tribune ten years later in 123 and reelected for 122. He induced the plebs to reinforce rights of appeal to the people against capital extrajudicial punishments and institute reforms to improve

16789-443: The modern port city of Stari Grad . To avoid a long siege, Aemilius decided to risk another frontal attack. The Roman army moved from the mainland to a wooded area of the island. Meanwhile, the next day, a small force of ships was sent out to tempt Demetrius from behind his fortifications. Demetrius marched down to the harbor to oppose the Roman landing. The strategy worked, and when the main Roman army appeared from another direction on

16952-448: The monarchy did not succeed. The first Roman republican wars were wars of expansion . One by one, Rome defeated both the persistent Sabines and the local cities. Rome defeated its rival Latin cities in the Battle of Lake Regillus in 496 BC, the Battle of Ariccia in 495 BC, the Battle of Mount Algidus in 458 BC, and the Battle of Corbio in 446 BC. But it suffered

17115-527: The most important cities in the Roman Empire. Views on the structural causes of the Republic's collapse differ. One enduring thesis is that Rome's expansion destabilized its social organization between conflicting interests; the Senate's policymaking, blinded by its own short-term self-interest, alienated large portions of society, who then joined powerful generals who sought to overthrow the system. Two other theses have challenged this view. The first blames

17278-422: The nearby Apennine hill tribes. Beginning with their revolt against Tarquin, and continuing through the early years of the Republic, Rome's patrician aristocrats were the dominant force in politics and society. They initially formed a closed group of about 50 large families, called gentes , who monopolised Rome's magistracies, state priesthoods, and senior military posts. The most prominent of these families were

17441-534: The north and west. Among the islands, the Greek city of Issa had retained some form of independence under Roman protection but Pharos remained an Illyrian possession. On the mainland, the Delmatae and the Daorsi were at one time subjects, but the former defected soon after the accession of Gentius. Illyrian strength lay in its navy and it was their interference with Adriatic shipping that once more aroused Roman interest in

17604-438: The north-western Greeks. What was new was the use of a land army to follow up and profit from the victories gained by the navy. The Greek cities ( poleis ) on the coast of Illyria were systematically attacked and perhaps already conquered by Agron's forces. Rome answered an appeal from the island of Issa , threatened by Agron, by sending envoys. They never got there. They were attacked en route by Illyrian vessels, and one of them

17767-558: The north. The Romans met the Gauls in pitched battle at the Battle of Allia River around 390–387 BC. The battle was fought at the confluence of the Tiber and Allia rivers, 11 Roman miles (10 mi or 16 km) north of Rome. The Romans were routed and subsequently Rome was sacked by the Senones . There is no destruction layer at Rome around this time, indicating that if a sack occurred, it

17930-473: The offices of praetor and curule aediles, both reserved to patricians. Lateranus became the first plebeian consul in 366 BC; Stolo followed in 361 BC. Soon after, plebeians were able to hold both the dictatorship and the censorship. The four-time consul Gaius Marcius Rutilus became the first plebeian dictator in 356 BC and censor in 351 BC. In 342 BC, the tribune of the plebs Lucius Genucius passed his leges Genuciae , which abolished interest on loans, in

18093-415: The old kingdom. The Romans swiftly defeated the Macedonians at the second battle of Pydna . The Achaean League , seeing the direction of Roman policy trending towards direct administration, met at Corinth and declared war "nominally against Sparta but in reality, against Rome". It was swiftly defeated: in 146, the same year as the destruction of Carthage , Corinth was besieged and destroyed , forcing

18256-437: The order that was usual in their own country, and advanced in their several companies against the Aetolian lines. The Aetolians drew up the greater part of their hoplites and cavalry in front of their own lines on the level ground and, with a portion of their cavalry and their light infantry , they hastened to occupy some rising ground in front of their camp, which nature had made easily defensible. A single charge, however, by

18419-485: The people's welfare. While ancient sources tend to "conceive Gracchus' legislation as an elaborate plot against the authority of the Senate... he showed no sign of wanting to replace the Senate in its normal functions". Amid wide-ranging and popular reforms to create grain subsidies, change jury pools, establish and require the Senate to assign provinces before elections, Gaius proposed a law that would grant citizenship rights to Rome's Italian allies. He stood for election to

18582-456: The plebs, resulting in a stalemate. In 367 BC, they carried a bill creating the Decemviri sacris faciundis , a college of ten priests, of whom five had to be plebeians, thereby breaking patricians' monopoly on priesthoods. The resolution of the crisis came from the dictator Camillus , who made a compromise with the tribunes: he agreed to their bills, and they in return consented to the creation of

18745-633: The popular assemblies to get a favourable vote by promising plunder to the voters. After the assembly ratified an alliance with the Mamertines, Caudex was dispatched to cross the strait and lend aid. Messina fell under Roman control quickly. Syracuse and Carthage, at war for centuries, responded with an alliance to counter the invasion and blockaded Messina, but Caudex defeated Hiero and Carthage separately. His successor, Manius Valerius Maximus , landed with an army of 40,000 men and conquered eastern Sicily, which prompted Hiero to shift his allegiance and forge

18908-413: The power of the Senate, which was by now protected from the influence of the consuls and became the central organ of government. In 312 BC, following this law, the patrician censor Appius Claudius Caecus appointed many more senators to fill the new limit of 300, including descendants of freedmen, which was deemed scandalous. Caecus also launched a vast construction program, building the first aqueduct ,

19071-550: The quasi-mythological detailing of an aristocratic coup within Tarquin's own family or a consequence of an Etruscan occupation of Rome rather than a popular revolution. According to Rome's traditional histories, Tarquin made several attempts to retake the throne, including the Tarquinian conspiracy , which involved Brutus's own sons, the war with Veii and Tarquinii , and finally the war between Rome and Clusium . The attempts to restore

19234-403: The regency of the Ardiaean Kingdom. Demetrius' own influence was thereby greatly extended, and the fundamental weakness of the Ardiaean Kingdom after 229 BC, that there was no competent regent for Pinnes, was relieved. The king began to renew traditional Illyrian ties with Macedonia. In 222 BC, an Illyrian corps of 1,600 men fought with distinction under the command of Demetrius at Sellasia , where

19397-401: The regime of Pinnes , now confirmed as king, was left intact. Rome supported a small Ardiaeian State ruled by Pinnes and his successors. The Roman Republic called for the extradition of Demetrius, but Phillip refused. Pinnes was ordered to pay the arrears of tribute, reparations imposed after the war. The weak Ardiaeian state soon fell prey to Macedonia, while the partial destruction brought onto

19560-585: The reign of Philip II by the cities of Aetolia for their mutual benefit and protection and became a formidable rival to the Macedonian monarchs and the Achaean League . The great courage shown by the Aetolians during the fighting against the Macedonians increased their glamour and fame, especially after winning the last Amphictyonic war and even more after repulsing the Gallic invasion under Brennus and rescuing

19723-466: The republican system was an elective oligarchy , not a democracy ; a small number of powerful families largely monopolised the magistracies. Roman institutions underwent considerable changes throughout the Republic to adapt to the difficulties it faced, such as the creation of promagistracies to rule its conquered provinces , and differences in the composition of the senate. Unlike the Pax Romana of

19886-497: The request, and Rome sent an army of Romans and Greek allies, beginning the Second Macedonian War . In 197, the Romans decisively defeated Philip at the Battle of Cynoscephalae , and Philip was forced to give up his recent Greek conquests. The Romans declared the "Peace of the Greeks", believing that Philip's defeat now meant that Greece would be stable, and pulled out of Greece entirely. With Egypt and Macedonia weakened,

20049-421: The rest of the war. Meanwhile, the consul Lucius Postumius Albinus brought an army of 20,000 infantry and 2,000 cavalry across from Brundisium to Apollonia, which now joined the Roman alliance. The fleet under Fulvius reached Apollonia and the two forces advanced toward Epidamnos, causing the Illyrians to abandon the siege and disperse. The city was received into Roman protection and the army now moved inland among

20212-522: The route leading west to the Ardiaean State. At this point, Perseus sent his first embassy to Gentius, consisting of the Illyrian exile Pleuratus, for his command of the Illyrian language, and the Macedonians Adaeus and Beroea. They found Gentius at Lissus and informed him of Perseus' successes against the Romans and Dardanians and his recent victory against the Penestae. Gentius replied that he lacked not

20375-419: The sale of the booty, in addition to the gold and silver that went to the state treasury. By decision of the Senate, Gentius and his family were sent to Spoletum, to be kept under observation. The other captives were imprisoned in Rome. But the inhabitants of Spoletum refused to keep the royal family under watch, so they were transferred to Iguvium . The booty seized in Illyria included 220 vessels. By decree of

20538-505: The sanctuary of Delphi . Subsequently, the Sotiria Games were established by the Aetolians, in honour of Zeus the Saviour. In 232 BC, the Illyrians under Agron attacked the Aetolians, and managed to take many prisoners and booty. In 229 BC, the Aetolians participated in a naval battle off the island of Paxos in a coalition with Korkyra and the Achaean League , and were defeated by

20701-605: The scene of the hunt for the Calydonian Boar , also called the Aetolian Boar. Tribes known as Curetes – named after the nearby mountain Kourion, or just to stand out from the Acarnanians, who were called so because they were unshorn – and Leleges originally inhabited the country, but at an early period Greeks from Elis , led by the mythical eponym Aetolus , set up colonies. Dionysius of Halicarnassus mentions that Curetes

20864-481: The scene the urban koina of the Parthini, Byllines, Amantini and others. By 181 BC, the loyal Pleuratus III had been succeeded by his son Gentius . During his reign, relations with the Ardiaean State and Rome started to deteriorate. The coast and hinterland south of the Drin remained under Roman control since the First Illyrian War against Teuta . Gentius moved to increase Illyrian power over kindred peoples living to

21027-602: The scope of civil violence. Mass slavery also contributed to three Servile Wars . Tensions at home coupled with ambitions abroad led to further civil wars . The first involved Marius and Sulla . After a generation, the Republic fell into civil war again in 49 BC between Julius Caesar and Pompey . Despite his victory and appointment as dictator for life , Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC. Caesar's heir Octavian and lieutenant Mark Antony defeated Caesar's assassins in 42 BC, but they eventually split. Antony's defeat alongside his ally and lover Cleopatra at

21190-620: The sea. This plan was thwarted by Hannibal's bold move to Italy. In May 218, he crossed the Ebro with a large army of about 100,000 soldiers and 37 elephants. He passed in Gaul , crossed the Rhone , then the Alps , possibly through the Col de Clapier . This exploit cost him almost half of his troops, but he could now rely on the Boii and Insubres, still at war with Rome. Publius Scipio, who had failed to block Hannibal on

21353-464: The second made plebiscites binding on all citizens (including patricians), and the third required the Senate to give its prior approval to plebiscites before they became binding on all citizens. During the early Republic, consuls chose senators from among their supporters. Shortly before 312 BC, the lex Ovinia transferred this power to the censors, who could only remove senators for misconduct, thus appointing them for life. This law strongly increased

21516-608: The settlement in 228 BC. In 221 BC, Demetrius also created an alliance with the Illyrian Histri at the head of the Adriatic, which tribe was interfering with Roman supply ships. A Roman fleet soon attacked the Histri. Early in the summer of 221 BC, when tension was rising in Greece as Macedonia made an alliance with the Achaean League against the Aetolian League , the Illyrians attacked in their traditional manner. In 220 BC, Demetrius and

21679-526: The settlement were conveyed to the Leagues in Greece, where they were well received. The Illyrians had been forced to give up all their recent conquests south of the Drin. The Romans had gained control of the strategic ports of Epidamnos, Apollonia and Corcyra. In the hinterland, several of the Illyrian tribes now had the status of Rome clients, as was certainly the case with the Parthini in the Gensus ( Shkumbin ) valley and

21842-416: The side of the Romans even in the Battle of Cynoscephalae (196 BC), ignoring the great dangers looming for Greece as a result of this alliance. The Aetolians took the side of Antiochus III against the Roman Republic , and on the defeat of that monarch in 189 BC, they became virtually the subjects of Rome . Following the conquest of the Achaeans by Lucius Mummius Achaicus in 146 BC, Aetolia became part of

22005-416: The siege, despite having learned that the island had already surrendered. He was in secret negotiations with Demetrius, who had fallen out of favour with Teuta, so Corcyra welcomed the Romans and, with the aid of Demetrius, surrendered its garrison. The city became a 'friend of Rome' and would henceforward rely on Roman protection from the Illyrians. Demetrius now served as an adviser to the Roman commanders for

22168-541: The taxes that they had previously paid to Gentius. The federation-based kingdoms were dissolved and each unit was recognized as a separate kingdom, enjoying local autonomy and often the right to mint its own coins. While the southern Illyrian lands had been subjected once and for all, the Roman legions continued for about another hundred years with attempts to conquer the northern and eastern territories. Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( Latin : Res publica Romana [ˈreːs ˈpuːblɪka roːˈmaːna] )

22331-467: The third day of the truce, Gentius surrendered to the Romans, who gave him a dinner with full honours and then put him under arrest. The Illyrians in Shkodra surrendered and the Roman envoys were liberated. The Roman army marched north of Scutari Lake where, at Meteon , they captured Gentius' queen Etuta , his brother Caravantius, his sons Scerdilaides and Pleuratus along with leading Illyrians. The fall of

22494-462: The throne and showed a renewed interest in conquering Greece. With its Greek allies facing a major new threat, Rome declared war on Macedonia again, starting the Third Macedonian War . Perseus initially had some success against the Romans, but Rome responded by sending a stronger army which decisively defeated the Macedonians at the Battle of Pydna in 168. The Macedonians capitulated, ending

22657-493: The tribunes of the plebs Gaius Licinius Stolo and Lucius Sextius Lateranus continued the plebeian agitation and pushed for an ambitious legislation, known as the Leges Liciniae Sextiae . The most important bill opened the consulship to plebeians. Other tribunes controlled by the patricians vetoed the bills, but Stolo and Lateranus retaliated by vetoing the elections for five years while being continuously reelected by

22820-496: The unidentified Noutria. Roman losses included a magistrate of the Republic and some military tribunes, although 20 ships laden with plunder were intercepted. The besiegers of Issa fled to Arbo and Teuta retreated to her capital, Rhizon in the Gulf of Kotor . The Romans decided enough had been achieved and hostilities ceased. The consuls handed over the kingdom to Demetrius and withdrew the fleet and army to Italy under Fulvius. Having assembled 40 ships and some troops from allies in

22983-443: The war. Convinced now that the Greeks (and therefore the rest of the region) would not have peace if left alone, Rome decided to establish its first permanent foothold in the Greek world, and divided Macedonia into four client republics. Yet Macedonian agitation continued. The Fourth Macedonian War , 150 to 148 BC, was fought against a Macedonian pretender to the throne who was again destabilizing Greece by trying to reestablish

23146-743: The west, from the Achelous to the Evenus and Calydon ; and "New Aetolia" ( Greek : Νέα Αιτωλία , romanized :  Néa Aitolía ) or "Acquired Aetolia" ( Greek : Αἰτωλία Ἐπίκτητος , romanized :  Aitolía Epíktitos ) in the east, from the Evenus and Calydon to the Ozolian Locrians. The country has a level and fruitful coastal region, but an unproductive and mountainous interior. The mountains contained many wild beasts, and acquired fame in Greek mythology as

23309-460: The will to fight the Romans, but only the money. No promises were made on this point either by this embassy or another sent from Stuberra shortly afterwards. Perseus continued his efforts to involve Gentius in the war—preferably, it was said, at no cost to his treasury. The Illyrian exile Pleuratus raised 1,000 infantry and 200 cavalry from the Penestae . The Roman invasion of Macedonia in 168 BC forced

23472-457: The year accompanied the Roman expedition, but the leading role was played by Aemilius Paullus , who was to be killed in the great Roman disaster at Cannae three years later. The Adriatic took on particular importance in Rome's preparations for the Second Punic War from 218 to 201 BC. Anticipating a long and difficult war far away from Rome, the Roman Senate decided first to set matters right in Illyria. In 219 BC, having decided that Dimallum

23635-496: Was soundly defeated by Catulus. Exhausted and unable to bring supplies to Sicily, Carthage sued for peace. Carthage had to pay 1,000 talents immediately and 2,200 over ten years and evacuate Sicily. The fine was so high that Carthage could not pay Hamilcar's mercenaries, who had been shipped back to Africa. They revolted during the Mercenary War , which Carthage suppressed with enormous difficulty. Meanwhile, Rome took advantage of

23798-437: Was a counterbalance to the god Ares . They called Apollo and Artemis "Laphrios gods," i.e. patrons of the spoils and loot of war. In addition, they worshiped Hercules, the river Achelous and Bacchus. In Thermos, an area north of Trichonis lake, there was after the 7th century a shrine of Apollo “Thermios,” which became a significant religious center during the time of the Aetolian League . The Aetolians refused to participate in

23961-431: Was abandoned after another similar catastrophe in 253 BC. These disasters prevented any significant campaign between 254 and 252 BC. Hostilities in Sicily resumed in 252 BC, with Rome's taking of Thermae. The next year, Carthage besieged Lucius Caecilius Metellus , who held Panormos (now Palermo). The consul had dug trenches to counter the elephants, which once hurt by missiles turned back on their own army, resulting in

24124-458: Was almost defenceless, and submitted when besieged. But the Romans demanded complete surrender and removal of the city into the desert hinterland, far from any coastal or harbour region; the Carthaginians refused. The city was besieged and completely destroyed . Rome acquired all of Carthage's North African and Iberian territories. The Romans rebuilt Carthage 100 years later as a Roman colony, by order of Julius Caesar. It flourished, becoming one of

24287-428: Was condemned to be a minor power, while Rome recovered from a desperate situation to dominate the western Mediterranean. Rome's preoccupation with its war with Carthage provided an opportunity for Philip V of Macedonia , in the north of the Greek peninsula , to attempt to extend his power westward. He sent ambassadors to Hannibal's camp in Italy, to negotiate an alliance as common enemies of Rome. But Rome discovered

24450-471: Was crucial to Demetrius' power in the region, the consul prepared to besiege the city, but was able to take it by direct assault within seven days. As a result, all the Illyrian towns and cities of the area submitted to Roman protection, each receiving the appropriate terms and conditions. Next, the Romans moved against Demetrius on the island of Pharos, who awaited the attack with good troops, ample provisions and war materials behind strong fortifications, that of

24613-528: Was defeated at Scodra by a Roman force under L. Anicius Gallus , and in 167 BC he was brought to Rome as a captive to participate in Gallus' triumph , after which he was interned at Iguvium . In the second half of the third century BC, the Ardiaei kingdom was transformed into a formidable power under the leadership of Agron . During this time, Agron invaded part of Corcyra, Epidamnos and Pharos in succession, establishing garrisons in them. An invasion towards Epirus

24776-590: Was encouraged by his brother-in-law Amynas , king of the Athamanes , to join the Aetolians in their planned invasion of Achaea . With help from Cynaethan traitors, they attacked, seized and burned Cynaetha , a town in northern Arcadia located on the northern slope of the Aroanian Mountains . They also attacked, but failed to take, Cleitor . Meanwhile, Demetrius continued on into the Aegean with 50 ships. He sailed to

24939-455: Was expelled from Rome in 509 BC because his son, Sextus Tarquinius , raped a noblewoman, Lucretia . The tradition asserted that the monarchy was abolished in a revolution led by the semi-mythical Lucius Junius Brutus and the king's powers were then transferred to two separate consuls elected to office for a term of one year; each was capable of checking his colleague by veto . Most modern scholarship describes these accounts as

25102-525: Was killed, together with an Issaean ambassador. That time a number of political events marked the adjacent Greek states. In 234 BC, the royal succession in Epirus came to an end, and a federal republic was instituted. In the south, the western part of Acarnania seceded from this arrangement. Their independence was soon threatened by the Aetolians , who began to occupy territory around the Gulf of Ambracia , including Pyrrhus' old capital, Ambracia , which forced

25265-580: Was largely superficial. Second Samnite War Third Samnite War From 343 to 341 BC, Rome won two battles against its Samnite neighbours, but was unable to consolidate its gains, due to the outbreak of war with former Latin allies. In the Latin War (340–338 BC), Rome defeated a coalition of Latins at the battles of Vesuvius and the Trifanum . The Latins submitted to Roman rule. A Second Samnite War began in 327 BC. The war ended with Samnite defeat at

25428-524: Was mobilized under the command of the great hero of the Second Punic War, Scipio Africanus , and set out for Greece, beginning the Roman–Seleucid War . After initial fighting that revealed serious Seleucid weaknesses, the Seleucids tried to turn the Roman strength against them at the Battle of Thermopylae , but were forced to evacuate Greece. The Romans pursued the Seleucids by crossing the Hellespont ,

25591-517: Was primarily a cultural mix of Latin and Etruscan societies, as well as of Sabine, Oscan, and Greek cultural elements, which is especially visible in the Ancient Roman religion and its pantheon . Its political organization developed at around the same time as direct democracy in Ancient Greece , with collective and annual magistracies, overseen by a senate . There were annual elections, but

25754-400: Was repulsed. The new force disposed of 'the most powerful which could carry 50 soldiers in addition to the rowersforce, both by land and sea, of any of the kings who had reigned in Illyria before him', according to Polybius (2.2). The Illyrians used the lembus , a small and fast warship with a single bank of oars. Raids by sea from the Adriatic and Ionian were probably a familiar threat to

25917-501: Was the era of classical Roman civilization beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establishment of the Roman Empire following the War of Actium . During this period, Rome's control expanded from the city's immediate surroundings to hegemony over the entire Mediterranean world . Roman society at the time

26080-438: Was the first Roman to receive a naval triumph, which also included captive Carthaginians for the first time. Although Carthage was victorious on land at Thermae in Sicily, the corvus gave a strong advantage to Rome on the waters. The consul Lucius Cornelius Scipio (Asina's brother) captured Corsica in 259 BC; his successors won the naval battles of Sulci in 258, Tyndaris in 257 BC, and Cape Ecnomus in 256. To hasten

26243-409: Was the landing in Sicily of Hamilcar Barca in 247 BC, who harassed the Romans with a mercenary army from a citadel he built on Mt. Eryx . Unable to take the Punic fortresses in Sicily, Rome tried to decide the war at sea and built a new navy, thanks to a forced borrowing from the rich. In 242 BC, 200 quinqueremes under consul Gaius Lutatius Catulus blockaded Drepana. The rescue fleet from Carthage

26406-790: Was the old name of the Aetolians and Leleges the old name of the Locrians . The Aetolians took part in the Trojan War , under their king Thoas . The mountain tribes of Aetolia were the Ophioneis, the Apodotoi, the Agraeis, the Aperantoi and the Eurytanians. The primitive lifestyle of those tribes made an impression on ancient historians. Polybius doubted their Greek heritage, while Livy reports that they spoke

26569-416: Was the turning point of the war. The campaign of attrition had worked well: Hannibal's troops were now depleted; he only had one elephant left ( Surus ) and retreated to Bruttium , on the defensive. In Greece, Rome contained Philip V without devoting too many forces by allying with the Aetolian League , Sparta , and Pergamon , which also prevented Philip from aiding Hannibal. The war with Macedon resulted in

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