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— CH. 1 · ORIGINS AND ESCALATION —

First Punic War

~7 min read · Ch. 1 of 7
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  • In 264 BC, a group of Italian mercenaries known as Mamertines occupied the city of Messana on the north-eastern tip of Sicily. Hard-pressed by Syracuse, these soldiers appealed to both Rome and Carthage for assistance in 265 BC. The Carthaginians acted first, pressing Hiero II, king of Syracuse, into taking no further action and convincing the Mamertines to accept a Carthaginian garrison. A considerable debate then took place in Rome regarding whether to accept the Mamertines' appeal for assistance. As the Carthaginians had already garrisoned Messana, acceptance could easily lead to war with Carthage. The Romans had not previously displayed any interest in Sicily and did not wish to come to the aid of soldiers who had unjustly stolen a city from its rightful owners. However, many saw strategic and monetary advantages in gaining a foothold in Sicily. The deadlocked Roman Senate put the matter before the popular assembly in 264 BC. Appius Claudius Caudex encouraged a vote for action and held out the prospect of plentiful booty. The popular assembly decided to accept the Mamertines' request. Caudex was appointed commander of a military expedition with orders to cross to Sicily and place a Roman garrison in Messana.

  • The Romans built 120 warships and despatched them to Sicily in 260 BC for their crews to carry out basic training. To counter their disadvantage against more experienced Carthaginian crews, they introduced the corvus, a bridge twelve paces wide and one hundred twenty feet long. This device featured a heavy spike on the underside designed to pierce and anchor into an enemy ship's deck. It allowed Roman legionaries acting as marines to board enemy ships and capture them rather than employing traditional ramming tactics. A quinquereme carried a crew of three hundred men including two hundred eighty oarsmen and twenty deck crew and officers. Normally it also carried a complement of forty marines which increased to as many as one hundred twenty if battle seemed imminent. All warships were equipped with rams consisting of triple sets of bronze blades weighing up to six thousand pounds positioned at the waterline. The added weight in the prow compromised both the ship's manoeuvrability and its seaworthiness. In rough sea conditions the corvus became useless. Despite these flaws, the adaptation compensated for Rome's initial lack of skill in ship handling. At the Battle of Mylae, Hannibal had one hundred thirty ships while Duilius commanded approximately the same number. The first thirty Carthaginian ships were grappled by the corvus and successfully boarded by the Romans.

  • In 263 BC both consuls were sent to Sicily with a force of forty thousand men. Syracuse rapidly made peace with the Romans after being besieged again. It agreed to help supply the Roman army in Sicily and paid an indemnity of one hundred talents of silver. Akragas was chosen by the Carthaginians as their strategic centre on the south coast of Sicily. The Romans marched on it in 262 BC and besieged it. An inadequate supply system partly because the Carthaginian naval supremacy prevented them from shipping supplies by sea hampered the Romans. At harvest time most of the army was dispersed over a wide area to harvest crops and forage. Hanno son of Hannibal led a Carthaginian relief force composed of fifty thousand infantry six thousand cavalry and sixty elephants. Five months after the siege began he marched to Akragas's relief but merely camped on high ground. Two months later in spring 261 BC he attacked and was defeated with heavy losses at the Battle of Akragas. The Romans captured the Carthaginian elephants and baggage train that night while the garrison escaped. The next day they seized the city and sold twenty-five thousand inhabitants into slavery.

  • In early 256 BC Rome launched an invasion of North Africa with a fleet of three hundred thirty warships sailing from Ostia. Marcus Atilius Regulus commanded the Roman forces which embarked approximately twenty-six thousand legionaries from Sicily. The Carthaginians mustered all their three hundred fifty warships under Hanno the Great and Hamilcar off the south coast of Sicily to intercept them. With a combined total of about six hundred eighty warships carrying up to two hundred ninety thousand crew and marines, the ensuing Battle of Cape Ecnomus was possibly the largest naval battle in history by number of combatants involved. After victory, Regulus landed near Aspis and captured it. He laid siege to Adys and then captured Tunis only twelve miles from Carthage. In despair, the Carthaginians sued for peace but Regulus offered such harsh terms that they decided to fight on. Charge of training their army was given to Spartan mercenary commander Xanthippus. In 255 BC he led an army of twelve thousand infantry four thousand cavalry and one hundred elephants against the Romans. They defeated them at the Battle of Tunis where five hundred including Regulus were captured and the rest killed. Approximately two thousand Romans retreated to Aspis.

  • Having lost most of their fleet in the storm of 255 BC, the Romans rapidly rebuilt it adding two hundred twenty new ships. In 249 BC they besieged Lilybaeum with two hundred ships blockading the harbour. Early in the blockade fifty Carthaginian quinqueremes gathered off the Aegates Islands which lie thirty miles west of Sicily. Once there was a strong west wind they sailed into Lilybaeum before the Romans could react. The Roman fleet under Publius Claudius Pulcher attacked the Carthaginian fleet in the harbour of Drepana but became scattered in the dark. The Carthaginian commander Adherbal counter-attacked in the Battle of Drepana and heavily defeated the more manoeuvrable Carthaginian ships. It was Carthage's greatest naval victory of the war. By 248 BC the Carthaginians held only two cities on Sicily: Lilybaeum and Drepana. When Hamilcar Barca took command in 247 BC he employed combined arms tactics from his base at Eryx. This guerrilla warfare kept the Roman legions pinned down for seven years until Rome built a new fleet.

  • In the hard-fought Battle of the Aegates Islands, the better-trained Romans defeated the undermanned and ill-trained Carthaginian fleet. The Treaty of Lutatius brought the First Punic War to its end. Carthage evacuated Sicily, handed over all prisoners taken during the war, and paid an indemnity of three thousand two hundred talents over ten years. In its aftermath Carthage attempted to avoid paying foreign troops who had fought its war. They rebelled and were joined by many disgruntled local groups which were put down with great difficulty. In 237 BC Carthage prepared an expedition to recover Sardinia which had been lost to rebels. Cynically, the Romans stated they considered this an act of war. Their peace terms included ceding Sardinia and Corsica plus payment of an additional one thousand two hundred talent indemnity. Weakened by thirty years of war, Carthage agreed rather than enter into conflict again. These actions fuelled resentment in Carthage and are considered contributory factors in the outbreak of the Second Punic War.

  • The main source for almost every aspect of the First Punic War is the historian Polybius who lived from 200 BC to 118 BC. He was a Greek sent to Rome in 167 BC as a hostage. His works include The Histories written sometime after 146 BC or about a century after the end of the war. Polybius's work is considered broadly objective and largely neutral between Carthaginian and Roman points of view. Carthaginian written records were destroyed along with their capital in 146 BC so his account relies on now-lost Greek and Latin sources. Since 2010 archaeologists have found nineteen bronze warship rams off the west coast of Sicily. Ten bronze helmets and hundreds of amphorae have also been recovered. The location of these artefacts supports Polybius's account of where the Battle of the Aegates Islands took place. Based on dimensions of the recovered rams, archaeologists believe they came from triremes contrary to Polybius's claim that all ships involved were quinqueremes. Modern historians consider Polybius fairly reliable while Craige B. Champion describes him as remarkably well-informed.

Common questions

When did the First Punic War begin and end?

The First Punic War began in 264 BC and ended in 241 BC. The conflict concluded with the Treaty of Lutatius which required Carthage to evacuate Sicily and pay an indemnity.

Who were the main combatants in the First Punic War?

The war was fought between Rome and Carthage over control of Sicily. Syracuse initially allied with Carthage before making peace with Rome in 263 BC.

What tactical device did Romans use against Carthaginian ships during the First Punic War?

Romans introduced the corvus a bridge twelve paces wide and one hundred twenty feet long to board enemy vessels. This device featured a heavy spike designed to pierce and anchor into an enemy ship's deck allowing Roman legionaries to capture ships rather than using traditional ramming tactics.

Where did the Battle of Cape Ecnomus take place and how many ships participated?

The Battle of Cape Ecnomus occurred off the south coast of Sicily in early 256 BC. Approximately six hundred eighty warships carrying up to two hundred ninety thousand crew and marines engaged in what may be the largest naval battle in history by number of combatants involved.

Why did the First Punic War end and what were the terms for Carthage?

The Treaty of Lutatius ended the First Punic War after the Battle of the Aegates Islands in 241 BC. Carthage evacuated Sicily handed over all prisoners taken during the war and paid an indemnity of three thousand two hundred talents over ten years.

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All sources

41 references cited across the entry

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