Editing Roman Republic (section)

==History==

===Founding===
{{main|Overthrow of the Roman monarchy}}
Rome had been ruled by [[Roman Kingdom|monarchs]] since its [[Founding of Rome|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 was expelled from Rome in 509&nbsp;BC because his son, [[Sextus Tarquinius]], raped a noblewoman, [[Lucretia]].{{sfn|Cornell|1995|pp=215–218|ps=. Cornell offers a summary of "Livy's prose narrative" and derived literary works relating to the expulsion of the kings.}}{{Sfn|Dion. Hal. ''Ant. Rom.''|loc=4.64–85}}{{sfn|Livy|loc=1.57–60}} 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 [[Roman consul|consuls]] elected to office for a term of one year; each was capable of checking his [[Collegiality#Collegiality in the Roman Republic|colleague]] by {{lang|la|[[veto]]}}.{{sfn|Cornell|1995|pp=226–228}} Most modern scholarship describes these accounts as the quasi-mythological detailing of an aristocratic coup within Tarquin's own family{{sfnm|Cornell|1995|1pp=215–218, 377–378|Drummond|1989|2p=178}} or a consequence of an Etruscan occupation of Rome rather than a popular revolution.{{sfn|Forsythe|2005|pp=148–149}}

===Rome in Latium===
====Early campaigns====
[[File:Capitoline Brutus Musei Capitolini MC1183 02.jpg|upright=0.8|thumb|left|The "[[Capitoline Brutus]]", a [[Bust (sculpture)|bust]] possibly depicting [[Lucius Junius Brutus]], who led the revolt against Rome's last king and was a founder of the Republic.]]
[[File:Roman Empire map.ogv|thumb|left|Animated overview of the Roman territorial history from the Roman Republic until the fall of its last remnant the [[Byzantine Empire]] in 1453 at the end of the [[post-classical era]].]]

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 [[Roman–Etruscan Wars#War with Veii and Tarquinii, after the overthrow of the monarchy in 509 BC|war with Veii and Tarquinii]], and finally the [[Roman–Etruscan Wars#War with Clusium in 508 BC|war between Rome and Clusium]]. The attempts to restore the monarchy did not succeed.{{sfn|Cornell|1995|pp=215–217}}

The first Roman republican wars [[Roman expansion in Italy|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&nbsp;BC, the Battle of [[Ariccia]] in 495&nbsp;BC, the [[Battle of Mount Algidus]] in 458&nbsp;BC, and the [[Battle of Corbio]] in 446&nbsp;BC. But it suffered a significant defeat at the [[Battle of the Cremera]] in 477&nbsp;BC, wherein it fought against the most important Etruscan city, [[Veii]]; this defeat was later avenged at the [[Battle of Veii]] in 396&nbsp;BC, wherein Rome destroyed the city.{{sfn|Flor. ''Epit.'' |loc=i.11–12}}{{sfn|Grant|1978|pp=37–41}} By the end of this period, Rome had effectively [[Roman conquest of Italy|completed the conquest]] of its immediate Etruscan and Latin neighbours and secured its position against the immediate threat posed by the nearby Apennine hill tribes.

====Plebeians and patricians====
{{Main|Conflict of the Orders}}

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 [[Gens|''gentes'']], who monopolised Rome's magistracies, state priesthoods, and senior military posts. The most prominent of these families were 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 [[Patronage in ancient Rome|patrons]], and their numerous clients.{{sfn|Cornell|1995|pp=289–291}}

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 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.{{sfn|Cornell|1995|pp=256–259|ps=. ''Plebs'' ("the mass") was originally a disparaging term, but was adopted as a badge of pride by those whom it was meant to insult. It might not have referred to wealthier commoners.}} Plebeians had no access to high religious and civil office.{{efn|Several historians, notably [[Tim Cornell]], have challenged this view, saying that in the early Republic the [[Fasti Consulares]] bear names that are distinctively plebeian. Therefore, they claim that the plebeians were only excluded from higher offices by the Decemvirate in 451&nbsp;BC. More recently, [[Corey Brennan]] has dismissed this theory, arguing that the consular plebeians would not have let the Decemvirs take their power away that easily. Cf {{harnvb|Brennan|2000|pp=24–25}}. He attributes the "plebeian" names in the ''fasti'' to patrician ''gentes'' who later died out or became plebeians.}} For the poorest, one of the few effective political tools was their withdrawal of labour and services, in a ''[[secessio plebis]]''; the [[First secessio plebis|first such secession]] occurred in 494&nbsp;BC, in protest at the abusive treatment of plebeian debtors by the wealthy during a famine.{{efn|The traditional date for the first secession is given by Livy as 494; many other dates have been suggested, and several such events probably took place. See {{harvnb|Cornell|1995|pp=215–218, 256–261, 266}}.}} The patrician Senate was compelled to give them direct access to the written civil and religious laws and to the [[Elections in the Roman Republic|electoral]] and political process. To represent their interests, the ''plebs'' elected [[Tribune of the Plebs|tribunes]], who were personally sacrosanct, immune to [[arbitrary arrest]] by any magistrate, and had veto power over legislation.{{efn|For a discussion of the duties and legal status of plebeian tribunes and aediles, see {{harnvb|Lintott|1999b|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=QIKEpOP4lLIC&pg=PA92 92–101]}}}}

====Celtic invasion of Italy====
{{Campaignbox Roman-Gallic Wars}}

By 390&nbsp;BC, several [[Gauls|Gallic tribes]] were invading Italy from the north. The Romans met the Gauls in pitched battle at the [[Battle of the Allia|Battle of Allia River]] around 390–387&nbsp;BC. The battle was fought at the confluence of the [[Tiber]] and [[Allia]] rivers, 11 [[Roman miles]] ({{convert|10|mi|km|abbr=on|disp=or}}) north of Rome. The Romans were routed and subsequently Rome was sacked by the [[Senones]].{{Sfn|Kruta|2000|p=189}} There is no [[destruction layer]] at Rome around this time, indicating that if a sack occurred, it was largely superficial.{{Sfn|Treves|2012}}{{Better source needed|date=May 2024|reason=Though this is an accurate reflection of the Treves source, the description of 'superficial' may be a bit reductive. A lot could happen that doesn't necessarily leave a destruction layer.}}

===Roman expansion in Italy===
{{main|Roman expansion in Italy}}
[[File:Roman conquest of Italy.PNG|right|thumb|upright=1.5|[[Roman expansion in Italy]] from 500 to 218&nbsp;BC through the [[Latin War]] (light red), [[Samnite Wars]] (pink/orange), [[Pyrrhic War]] (beige), and [[First Punic War|First]] and [[Second Punic War|Second]] Punic wars (yellow and green). [[Cisalpine Gaul]] (238–146&nbsp;BC) and [[Alps|Alpine]] valleys (16–7&nbsp;BC) were later added. The Roman Republic in 500&nbsp;BC is marked with dark red.]]
====Wars against Italian neighbours====
[[File:Ligue-latine-carte.png|thumb|upright=1.5|The [[Latin League]] before Rome's expansion]]
{{Campaignbox Ancient Unification of Italy}}
{{Campaignbox Samnite Wars}}
From 343 to 341&nbsp;BC, Rome won [[First Samnite war|two battles]] against its [[Samnites|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&nbsp;BC), Rome defeated a coalition of Latins at the battles of [[Battle of Vesuvius|Vesuvius]] and the [[Battle of Trifanum|Trifanum]]. The Latins submitted to Roman rule.{{sfn|Grant|1978|pp=48–49}}

A [[Second Samnite War]] began in 327&nbsp;BC.{{sfn|Grant|1978|p=52}} The war ended with Samnite defeat at the [[Battle of Bovianum]] in 305&nbsp;BC. By 304&nbsp;BC, Rome had annexed most Samnite territory and begun to establish colonies there, but in 298&nbsp;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.{{sfn|Grant|1978|p=53}} The war ended with Roman victory in 290&nbsp;BC.

At the [[Battle of Populonia]], in 282&nbsp;BC, Rome finished off the last vestiges of Etruscan power in the region.

{{anchor|Middle Republic}}<!--linked-->
====Rise of the plebeian nobility====
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,{{efn|It has nevertheless been speculated that [[Lucius Atilius Luscus]] in 444, and [[Quintus Antonius Meranda]] in 422 were also plebeian.{{sfn|Brennan|2000|p=50}} }} but it was limited as patrician tribunes retained preeminence over their plebeian colleagues.{{Sfn|Cornell|1989a|p=338}} In 385&nbsp;BC, the former consul and saviour of the besieged capital, [[Marcus Manlius Capitolinus]], 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]].{{sfn|Livy|loc=vi.11, 13–30}}{{Sfn|Cornell|1989a|pp=331–332}}

Between 376 and 367&nbsp;BC, 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.{{sfn|Cornell|1989a|loc=p. 337. Cornell believes Livy confused the contents of the ''lex Licinia Sextia'' of 366&nbsp;BC the ''lex Genucia'' of 342&nbsp;BC}} 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 the plebs, resulting in a stalemate.{{efn|Livy mentions at least two patricians favourable to the tribunes: [[Marcus Fabius Ambustus (consular tribune 381)|Marcus Fabius Ambustus]], Stolo's father-in-law, and the dictator for 368&nbsp;BC [[Publius Manlius Capitolinus]], who appointed the first plebeian ''magister equitum'', Gaius Licinius Calvus.}} In 367&nbsp;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 [[Marcus Furius Camillus|Camillus]], who made a compromise with the tribunes: he agreed to their bills, and they in return consented to the creation of the offices of praetor and curule aediles, both reserved to patricians. Lateranus became the first plebeian consul in 366&nbsp;BC; Stolo followed in 361&nbsp;BC.{{Sfn|Livy|loc=vi.36–42}}{{sfn|Broughton|1952–1986|loc=vol. 1 pp. 108–114}}{{sfn|Brennan|2000|pp=59–61}}

Soon after, plebeians were able to hold both the [[roman dictator|dictatorship]] and the censorship. The four-time consul [[Gaius Marcius Rutilus]] became the first plebeian dictator in 356&nbsp;BC and censor in 351&nbsp;BC. In 342&nbsp;BC, the tribune of the plebs Lucius Genucius passed his ''[[leges Genuciae]]'', which abolished interest on loans, in 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.{{sfn|Livy|loc=[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0154%3Abook%3D7%3Achapter%3D42 vii.42]}}{{sfn|Cornell|1989a|p=337}}{{sfn|Brennan|2000|pp=65–67|ps=, showing that the ten-year rule was only temporary at this time.}} In 339&nbsp;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, 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.{{Sfn|Cornell|1989a|pp=342–343}}

During the early Republic, consuls chose senators from among their supporters. Shortly before 312&nbsp;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 the power of the Senate, which was by now protected from the influence of the consuls and became the central organ of government.{{sfn|Cornell|1989b|pp=393–394|ps=, giving an earlier date, before 318&nbsp;BC.}}{{sfn|Humm|2005|pp=[https://books.openedition.org/efr/1613#bodyftn15 185–226]}}{{efn|Appius Caecus is a complex character whose reforms are difficult to interpret. For example, Mommsen considered he was a revolutionary, but was puzzled by his opposition to the ''lex Ogulnia'', which contradicts his previous "democratic" policies. Taylor on the contrary thought he defended patricians' interests, as freedmen remained in the clientele of their patrons. More recently, Humm described his activity as the continuation of the reforms undertaken since Stolo and Lateranus.}} In 312&nbsp;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 programmee, building the first [[Aqueduct (bridge)|aqueduct]], the ''[[Aqua Appia]]'', and the first Roman road, the ''[[Via Appia]]''.{{sfn|MacBain|1980}}

In 300&nbsp;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.{{sfn|Cornell|1989a|p=343}} The Conflict of the Orders ended with the last secession of the plebs around 287. The dictator [[Quintus Hortensius]] passed the ''lex Hortensia'', which reenacted the law of 339&nbsp;BC, making plebiscites binding on all citizens, while also removing the requirement for prior Senate approval.{{sfn|Develin|1978}} 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.{{sfn|Cornell|1989a|pp=340–341}} As 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&nbsp;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''.{{sfn|Cornell|1995|p=342}}

====Pyrrhic War====
{{See also|Pyrrhic War}}
{{Campaignbox Pyrrhic War}}
[[File:Pyrrhus MAN Napoli Inv6150 n03.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Bust of Pyrrhus, found in the [[Villa of the Papyri]] at [[Herculaneum]], now in the [[Naples Archaeological Museum]]]]

By the early 3rd century&nbsp;BC, Rome had established itself as the major power in Italy, but had not yet come into conflict with the dominant military powers of the [[Mediterranean Basin|Mediterranean]]: [[Carthage]] and the Greek kingdoms.{{sfn|Grant|1978|p=78}} In 282, several Roman warships entered the harbour of [[Taranto|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.{{Sfn|Dion. Hal. ''Ant. Rom.''|loc=xix.5–6}} Facing a hopeless situation, the Tarentines (together with the Lucanians and Samnites) appealed to [[Pyrrhus of Epirus|Pyrrhus]], king of [[Epirus (ancient state)|Epirus]], for military aid. A cousin of [[Alexander the Great]], he was eager to build an empire for himself in the western Mediterranean and saw Tarentum's plea as a perfect opportunity.{{sfn|Franke|1989|pp=456–457}}

Pyrrhus and his army of 25,500 men (with 20 war elephants) landed in the Italian peninsula in 280&nbsp;BC. The Romans were defeated at [[Battle of Heraclea|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&nbsp;BC, Pyrrhus met the consuls [[Publius Decius Mus (consul 279 BC)|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 [[Pyrrhic victory|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."{{Sfnm|1a1=Dion. Hal. ''Ant. Rom.''|1loc=xx.3 |2a1=Plut. ''Pyrrh.''|2loc=21.9 |2ps=, source of the quote |3a1=Dio|3loc=x.5}}{{efn|There are significant differences between the accounts of Cassius Dio, Dionysius, and Plutarch, but the latter's is traditionally followed in the academic literature.}}

He escaped the Italian deadlock by answering a call for help from Syracuse, where tyrant Thoenon was desperately fighting an invasion from [[Ancient Carthage|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 (278 BC)|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]].{{sfn|Franke|1989|pp=473–480}} His harsh rule soon led to widespread antipathy among the Sicilians; some cities even defected to Carthage. In 275&nbsp;BC, Pyrrhus left the island before he had to face a full-scale rebellion.{{Sfn|Dion. Hal. ''Ant. Rom.''|loc=xx.8}} 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 (275 BC)|Battle of Beneventum]]. This time, the consul [[Manius Curius Dentatus|Manius Dentatus]] was victorious and even captured eight elephants. Pyrrhus then withdrew from Italy, but left a garrison in Tarentum, to wage a new campaign in Greece against [[Antigonus II Gonatas]] of [[Macedonia (ancient kingdom)|Macedonia]]. His death in battle at [[Argos, Peloponnese|Argos]] in 272&nbsp;BC forced Tarentum to surrender to Rome.

=== Punic Wars and expansion in the Mediterranean ===
{{Redirect|Rise of Rome|other uses|The Rise of Rome (disambiguation){{!}}The Rise of Rome}}
{{main|Punic Wars}}

====First Punic War (264–241 BC)====
{{main|First Punic War}}
[[File:Roman Republic before the First Punic War.png|thumb|left|upright=0.8|The Roman Republic before the First Punic War]]
{{Campaignbox First Punic War}}
[[File:Dinastie della grecia occidentale, hieron II, 32 litri di siracusa, 274-216 ac ca.JPG|thumb|upright=0.8|Coin of [[Hiero II of Syracuse]]]]

Rome and [[Carthage]] were initially on friendly terms, lastly in an alliance against Pyrrhus,{{Sfn|Polyb.|loc=iii.22–26}}{{sfn|Livy|loc=vii.27}}{{sfn|Scullard|1989a|pp=517–537}} but tensions rapidly rose after the departure of the Epirote king. Between 288 and 283&nbsp;BC, [[Messina]] in Sicily was taken by the [[Mamertines]], a band of mercenaries formerly employed by [[Agathocles of Syracuse|Agathocles]]. They plundered the surroundings until [[Hiero II]], the new tyrant of [[Syracuse, Sicily|Syracuse]], defeated them (in either 269 or 265&nbsp;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 the popular assemblies to get a favourable vote by promising plunder to the voters.{{efn|The specific assembly consulted has led to many discussions in the academic literature. {{harvnb|Goldsworthy|2001|p=69}} favours the [[Centuriate Assembly]]. {{harvnb|Scullard|1989a|p=542}} similarly prefers the ''centuria'' over the tribes. It is unclear whether the Romans formally declared war; they may have justified the conflict in terms of fulfilling the newly-ratified Mamertine alliance.}} After the assembly ratified an alliance with the Mamertines, Caudex was dispatched to cross the strait and lend aid.{{sfn|Scullard|1989a|p=542}}

[[File:Corvus.svg|thumb|left|upright=0.8|Diagram of a ''corvus'']]
Messina fell under Roman control quickly.{{sfn|Scullard|1989a|p=543}} 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.{{sfn|Polyb.|loc=1.11–12}}{{sfn|Scullard|1989a|p=545|ps=, however, claims that Caudex failed to break the blockade; he did not receive a triumph and was succeeded in command by [[Manius Valerius Maximus Messalla|Manius Valerius Maximus]], who triumphed instead and gained the cognomen "Messalla".}} His successor, [[Manius Valerius Maximus Messalla|Manius Valerius Maximus]], landed with an army of 40,000 men and conquered eastern Sicily, which prompted Hiero to shift his allegiance and forge a long-lasting alliance with Rome. In 262&nbsp;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 of Agrigentum|battle]].{{sfn|Scullard|1989a|p=547}} 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 a massive construction programme and built 100 [[quinquereme]]s in only two months. It also invented a new device, the ''[[Corvus (boarding device)|corvus]]'', a grappling engine that enabled a crew to board an enemy ship.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2001|p=113}} The consul for 260&nbsp;BC, [[Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Asina]], lost the first [[Battle of the Lipari Islands|naval skirmish]] of the war against [[Hannibal Gisco]] at [[Lipara]], but his colleague [[Gaius Duilius]] won a [[Battle of Mylae|great victory]] at [[Mylae]]. He destroyed or captured 44 ships and was the first Roman to receive a naval triumph, which also included captive Carthaginians for the first time.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2001|p=84}} Although Carthage was victorious on land at [[Battle of Thermae|Thermae]] in Sicily, the ''corvus'' gave a strong advantage to Rome on the waters. The consul [[Lucius Cornelius Scipio (consul 259 BC)|Lucius Cornelius Scipio]] (Asina's brother) captured [[Corsica]] in 259&nbsp;BC; his successors won the naval battles of [[Battle of Sulci|Sulci]] in 258, [[Battle of Tyndaris|Tyndaris]] in 257&nbsp;BC, and [[Battle of Cape Ecnomus|Cape Ecnomus]] in 256.{{sfn|Scullard|1989a|pp=548–554}}
[[File:San Nicola Giano.JPG|thumb|upright=0.8|[[Temple of Janus (Forum Holitorium)|Temple of Janus]] as seen in the present church of [[San Nicola in Carcere]], in the ''[[Forum Holitorium]]'' of Rome, Italy, dedicated by [[Gaius Duilius]] after his naval victory at the [[Battle of Mylae]] in 260&nbsp;BC<ref>[[Tacitus]]. ''[[Annals (Tacitus)|Annales]]''. II.49.</ref>]]

To hasten the end of the war, the consuls for 256&nbsp;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 [[Siege of Aspis|Aspis]], repulsed Carthage's counterattack at [[Adys]], and took [[Tunis]]. The Carthaginians hired Spartan mercenaries, led by [[Xanthippus of Carthage|Xanthippus]], to command their troops.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2001|p=88}} In 255, the Spartan general marched on Regulus, [[Battle of the Bagradas River (255 BC)|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 was abandoned after another similar catastrophe in 253&nbsp;BC. These disasters prevented any significant campaign between 254 and 252&nbsp;BC.{{sfn|Scullard|1989a|pp=554–557}}

[[File:C._Caecilius_Metellus_Caprarius,_denarius,_125_BC,_RRC_269-1.jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|Denarius of [[Gaius Caecilius Metellus Caprarius]], 125&nbsp;BC. The reverse depicts the triumph of his great-grandfather [[Lucius Caecilius Metellus (consul 251 BC)|Lucius]], with the elephants he had captured at [[Battle of Panormus|Panormos]]. The elephant had thence become the emblem of the powerful [[Caecilii]] Metelli.{{Sfn|Crawford|1974|pp=292–293}}]]
Hostilities in Sicily resumed in 252 &nbsp;BC, with Rome's taking of Thermae. The next year, Carthage besieged [[Lucius Caecilius Metellus (consul 251 BC)|Lucius Caecilius Metellus]], who held [[Palermo|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 a [[Battle of Panormus|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 (consul 249 BC)|Publius Claudius Pulcher]], the consul of 249, recklessly tried to take the latter from the sea, but suffered a terrible [[Battle of Drepana|defeat]]; his colleague [[Lucius Junius Pullus]] likewise lost his fleet off [[Siege of Lilybaeum (250 BC)|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 was the landing in Sicily of [[Hamilcar Barca]] in 247&nbsp;BC, who harassed the Romans with a mercenary army from a citadel he built on [[Monte Erice|Mt. Eryx]].{{sfn|Scullard|1989a|pp=559–564}}

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&nbsp;BC, 200 quinqueremes under consul [[Gaius Lutatius Catulus]] blockaded Drepana. The rescue fleet from Carthage was [[Battle of the Aegates|soundly defeated]] by Catulus. Exhausted and unable to bring supplies to Sicily, Carthage sued for peace. Carthage had to pay 1,000 [[Talents of silver|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 a similar revolt in [[Sardinia]] to seize the island from Carthage, in violation of the peace treaty. This led to permanent bitterness in Carthage.{{sfn|Scullard|1989a|pp=565–569}}

====Second Punic War====
{{Main|Second Punic War}}
[[File:Second Punic War full-en.svg|thumb|upright=1.35|Principal offensives of the war: Rome (red), Hannibal (green), Hasdrubal (purple)]]
{{Campaignbox Second Punic War}}

After its victory, the Republic shifted its attention to its northern border as the [[Insubres]] and [[Boii]] were threatening Italy.{{sfn|Hoyos|2011a|p=217}} Meanwhile, Carthage compensated the loss of Sicily and Sardinia with the [[Barcid conquest of Hispania|conquest]] of Southern [[Hispania]] (up to [[Salamanca]]), and its rich silver mines.{{sfn|Hoyos|2011a|p=215}} This rapid expansion worried Rome, which concluded a treaty with Hasdrubal in 226, stating that Carthage could not cross the [[Ebro river]].{{sfn|Scullard|1989b|pp=28–31}}{{sfn|Hoyos|2011a|pp=216–219}} But the city of [[Saguntum]], south of the Ebro, appealed to Rome in 220 to act as arbitrator during a [[Stasis (political history)|period of internal strife]]. Hannibal took the city in 219,{{sfn|Scullard|1989b|pp=33–36}} triggering the Second Punic War.{{sfn|Scullard|1989b|p=39}}

Initially, the Republic's plan was to carry war outside Italy, sending the consuls [[Publius Cornelius Scipio (consul 218 BC)|P. Cornelius Scipio]] to Hispania and [[Tiberius Sempronius Longus (consul 218 BCE)|Ti. Sempronius Longus]] to Africa, while their naval superiority prevented Carthage from attacking from the sea.{{sfn|Briscoe|1989|p=46}} 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.{{sfn|Fronda|2011|pp=251–252}} He passed in [[Gaul]], [[Battle of Rhone Crossing|crossed the Rhone]], then the [[Hannibal's crossing of the Alps|Alps]], possibly through the [[Col de Clapier]].{{sfn|Briscoe|1989|p=47}} This exploit cost him almost half of his troops,{{sfn|Livy|loc=xxi.38|ps=, referencing [[L. Cincius Alimentus]] who reported a personal discussion with Hannibal, in which he said he lost 38,000 men by crossing the Alps.}} but he could now rely on the Boii and Insubres, still at war with Rome.{{sfn|Briscoe|1989|p=48}} Publius Scipio, who had failed to block Hannibal on the Rhone, sent his elder brother [[Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus|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 [[Battle of Ticinus|Ticino river]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/scipione-l-africano_%28Enciclopedia-dei-ragazzi%29/ |title=Scipione l'Africano |access-date=12 August 2023 |language=it}}</ref>

[[File:Carthage, quarter shekel, 237-209 BC, SNG BM Spain 102.jpg|thumb|A Carthaginian [[Carthaginian currency|quarter shekel]], perhaps minted in Spain. The obverse may depict [[Hannibal]] with the traits of a young [[Melqart]]. The reverse features a [[war elephant]], which were included in Hannibal's army during the [[Second Punic War]].<ref>''Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum, Great Britain, Volume IX, British Museum, Part 2: Spain'', London, 2002, n. 102.</ref>]]
Hannibal then marched south and won three outstanding victories. The first one was on the banks of the [[Battle of the Trebia|Trebia]] in December 218, where he defeated the other consul Ti. Sempronius Longus. More than half 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 [[Battle of Lake Trasimene|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 [[Lucius Aemilius Paullus (consul 219 BC)|L. Aemilius Paullus]] and [[Gaius Terentius Varro|C. Terentius Varro]] mustered the biggest army possible, with eight legions—some 80,000 soldiers, twice as many as 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.{{sfn|Briscoe|1989|p=51}}{{efn|{{harvnb|Polyb.|loc=iii.117}} reports 70,000 dead. {{harvnb|Livy|loc=xxii.49}} reports 47,700 dead and 19,300 prisoners.}} Soon after, 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]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.archeobologna.beniculturali.it/mostre/re_silva_litana_2014.htm |title=Reggio Emilia, Mito e realtà nella battaglia della Silva Litana |access-date=12 August 2023 |language=it}}</ref>

These disasters triggered a wave of defection among Roman allies, with the rebellions of the Samnites, Oscans, Lucanians, and Greek cities of Southern Italy.{{sfn|Briscoe|1989|pp=52–53}} In Macedonia, [[Philip V of Macedon|Philip V]] also made an [[Macedonian–Carthaginian Treaty|alliance]] with Hannibal in order to take [[Illyria]] and the area around [[Epidamnus]], occupied by Rome. His attack on [[Apollonia (Illyria)|Apollonia]] started the [[First Macedonian War]]. In 215, [[Hiero II of Syracuse]] died of old age, and his young grandson [[Hieronymus of Syracuse|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.{{sfn|Briscoe|1989|pp=49–50}} Although he remained invincible on the battlefield, defeating all the Roman armies on his way, he could not prevent Claudius Marcellus from taking Syracuse in 212 after a [[Siege of Syracuse (213–212 BC)|long siege]], nor the fall of his bases of Capua and Tarentum in [[Siege of Capua (211 BC)|211]] and [[Battle of Tarentum (209 BC)|209]].

In Hispania, Publius and Gnaeus Scipio won the battles of [[Battle of Cissa|Cissa]] in 218, soon after Hannibal's departure, and [[Battle of Dertosa|Dertosa]] against his brother Hasdrubal in 215, which enabled them to conquer the eastern coast of Hispania. But in 211, Hasdrubal and Mago Barca successfully turned the [[Celtiberians|Celtiberian tribes]] that supported the Scipiones, and attacked them simultaneously at the [[Battle of the Upper Baetis]], in which the Scipiones died.{{sfn|Briscoe|1989|p=59}} 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 [[Battle of Cartagena (209 BC)|Carthago Nova]], the main Punic base in Hispania. The next year, he defeated Hasdrubal at the [[Battle of Baecula]].{{sfn|Briscoe|1989|p=59}} 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 [[Marcus Livius Salinator|M. Livius Salinator]] and [[Gaius Claudius Nero|C. Claudius Nero]] were awaiting him and defeated him in the [[Battle of the Metaurus]], where Hasdrubal died.{{sfn|Briscoe|1989|p=55}} It 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 [[Calabria|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 a stalemate, with the [[Treaty of Phoenice]] signed in 205.

{{Campaignbox First Macedonian War}}

In Hispania, Scipio continued his successful campaign at the battles of [[Battle of Carmona|Carmona]] in 207, and [[Battle of Ilipa|Ilipa]] (now [[Seville]]) in 206, which ended the Punic threat on the peninsula.{{sfn|Briscoe|1989|p=60}} 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 [[Battle of Utica (203 BC)|Utica]] and then won 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 [[Battle of Zama|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 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 [[trireme]]s, 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 was condemned to be a minor power, while Rome recovered from a desperate situation to dominate the western Mediterranean.

====Roman supremacy in the Greek East====
{|class="toccolours" style="float:right; margin:0 0 1em 1em;"
|style="background:#ddd; text-align:center;"|'''[[Macedonian Wars]]'''
|-
|[[File:Macedonia and the Aegean World c.200.png|center|thumb|upright=1.35|Macedonia, Greece and Asia at the outbreak of the Second Macedonian War, 200&nbsp;BC]]
|-
|{{Campaignbox Macedonian Wars}}
|}

Rome's preoccupation with its war with Carthage provided an opportunity for [[Philip V of Macedon|Philip V]] of [[Macedonia (ancient kingdom)|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.{{sfn|Matyszak|2004|p=47}} But Rome discovered the agreement when Philip's emissaries were captured by a Roman fleet.{{sfn|Matyszak|2004|p=47}} 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 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.{{sfn|Eckstein|2012|p=42}} Fearing this increasingly unstable situation, several small Greek kingdoms sent delegations to Rome to seek an alliance.{{sfn|Eckstein|2012|p=43}} Rome gave Philip an ultimatum to cease his campaigns against Rome's new Greek allies. Doubting Rome's strength, Philip ignored the request, and Rome sent an army of Romans and Greek allies, beginning the [[Second Macedonian War]].{{sfn|Matyszak|2004|p=49}} In 197, the Romans decisively defeated Philip at the [[Battle of Cynoscephalae]], and Philip was forced to give up his recent Greek conquests.{{sfn|Errington|1989|pp=268–269}} 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.{{sfn|Eckstein|2012|p=48}}

With Egypt and Macedonia weakened, the [[Seleucid Empire]] made increasingly aggressive and successful attempts to conquer the entire Greek world.{{sfn|Eckstein|2012|p=51}} Now not only Rome's allies against Philip, but even Philip himself, sought a Roman alliance against the Seleucids.{{sfn|Grant|1978|p=119}} 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.{{sfn|Eckstein|2012|p=52}} The Seleucids were much stronger than 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.{{sfn|Eckstein|2012|p=52}}

Fearing the worst, the Romans began a major mobilisation, all but pulling out of recently conquered Spain and Gaul.{{sfn|Eckstein|2012|p=52}} This fear was shared by Rome's Greek allies, who now followed Rome again for the first time since that war.{{sfn|Eckstein|2012|p=52}} A major Roman-Greek force was mobilised 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 (191 BC)|Battle of Thermopylae]], but were forced to evacuate Greece.{{sfn|Grant|1978|p=119}} The Romans pursued the Seleucids by crossing the [[Hellespont]], the first time a Roman army had ever entered [[Asia]].{{sfn|Grant|1978|p=119}} The decisive engagement was fought at the [[Battle of Magnesia]], resulting in complete Roman victory.{{sfn|Grant|1978|p=119}}{{sfn|Lane Fox|2006|p=326}} 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.{{sfn|Eckstein|2012|p=55}}

====Conquest of Greece====
{{Main|Achaean War}}
[[File:Tony robert-fleury, l'ultimo giorno di corinto, ante 1870.JPG|thumb|upright=1.35|Scene of the [[Battle of Corinth (146&nbsp;BC)]]: last day before the Roman legions looted and burned the Greek city of [[Corinth]]. ''The last day on Corinth'', [[Tony Robert-Fleury]], 1870.]]
[[File:RomaTempioRotondoForoBoarioJPG.JPG|thumb|The [[Temple of Hercules Victor]], Rome, built in the mid-2nd century&nbsp;BC, most likely by [[Lucius Mummius Achaicus]], victor of the [[Achaean War]]{{sfn|Ziolkowski|1988|pp=314ff, 316ff}}]]

In 179, Philip died.{{sfn|Derow|1989|p=301}} His talented and ambitious son, [[Perseus of Macedon|Perseus]], took the throne and showed a renewed interest in conquering Greece.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2016|p=84}} 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.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2016|pp=90 et seq}} The Macedonians capitulated, ending the war.{{sfn|Matyszak|2004|p=53}}

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.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2016|p=105}} Yet Macedonian agitation continued. The [[Fourth Macedonian War]], 150 to 148&nbsp;BC, was fought against a Macedonian pretender to the throne who was again destabilising Greece by trying to reestablish the old kingdom. The Romans swiftly defeated the Macedonians at the [[Battle of Pydna (148 BC)|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".{{sfn|Derow|1989|loc=p. 323, citing {{harvnb|Polyb.|loc=38.12.5}}.}} It was swiftly defeated: in 146, the same year as the destruction of [[Carthage]], [[Roman Corinth|Corinth]] was [[Battle of Corinth (146 BC)|besieged and destroyed]], forcing the league's surrender. Rome decided to divide the Greek territories into two new, directly administered Roman provinces, [[Achaea (Roman province)|Achaea]] and [[Macedonia (Roman province)|Macedonia]].{{sfn|Derow|1989|p=323}}

====Third Punic War====
{{Main|Third Punic War}}
{{Campaignbox Third Punic War}}

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.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2001|p=338}} Carthage was almost defenceless, and submitted when besieged.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2001|p=339}} 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 [[Siege of Carthage (c. 149–146 BC)|besieged and completely destroyed]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.capitolivm.it/storia-romana/roma-e-cartagine-lotta-per-la-supremazia/ |title=Roma e Cartagine: lotta per la supremazia |date=10 August 2015 |access-date=14 August 2023 |language=it}}</ref> 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 the most important cities in the Roman Empire.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://tribunus.it/2023/01/06/breve-storia-della-cartagine-romana-i-sec-a-c-vii-sec-d-c/ |title=Breve storia della Cartagine romana (I sec. a.C.-VII sec. d.C.) |date=6 January 2023 |access-date=14 August 2023 |language=it}}</ref>

{{anchor|Late Republic}}<!--linked-->

===Social troubles and first civil war===
Views on the structural causes of the Republic's collapse differ. One enduring thesis is that Rome's expansion destabilised its social organisation 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.{{sfn|Morstein-Marx|Rosenstein|2006|p=627|ps=, citing {{harvnb|Brunt|1971}} }} Two other theses have challenged this view. The first blames the Romans' inability to conceive of plausible alternatives to the traditional republican system in a "crisis without alternative".{{sfn|Morstein-Marx|Rosenstein|2006|pp=627–628|ps=, citing {{harvnb|Meier|1997}}. See also, on the crisis without alternative, {{harvnb|Meier|1995|pp=491–496}}}} 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 the fall of the republic, not vice versa".{{sfn|Morstein-Marx|Rosenstein|2006|p=628|ps=, citing {{harvnb|Gruen|1995|p=504}}. }}

A core cause of the Republic's eventual demise was the loss of elite's cohesion from {{circa|133&nbsp;BC}}: the ancient sources called this moral decay from wealth and the hubris of Rome's domination of the Mediterranean.{{sfn|Morstein-Marx|Rosenstein|2006|p=634}} 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 the aftermath of the Social War.{{sfnm|1a1=Morstein-Marx|1a2=Rosenstein|1y=2006|1pp=634–635|2a1=Mouritsen|2y=2017|2pp=171–172}}

====Gracchan period====
{{Campaignbox Servile Wars}}
{{Main|Gracchi brothers}}

In the winter of 138–137&nbsp;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 (Roman rebel)|Cleon]] were defeated by [[Marcus Perperna (consul 130 BC)|Marcus Perperna]] and [[Publius Rupilius]] in 132&nbsp;BC.{{sfn|Lintott|1992a|pp=25–26}}

In this context, [[Tiberius Gracchus]] was elected plebeian tribune in 133&nbsp;BC. He attempted to enact a law to limit the amount of land anyone could own and establish a commission to distribute public lands to poor rural plebs.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|p=62}} 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]].{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|p=66}} Tiberius induced the plebs to depose Octavius from his office on the grounds that Octavius acted contrary to the manifest will of the people, a position that was unprecedented and constitutionally dubious.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|p=67}}{{sfn|Abbott|2001|p=96}} His law was enacted and took effect,{{efn|The activities of the Gracchan land commission are archaeologically documented on recovered boundary stones listing the members of the commission.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|p=68}} With the find locations, scholars estimate distribution of more than 3,200 square kilometres of public lands, mostly concentrated in southern Italy.{{sfn|Roselaar|2010|pp=252–254}} }} but, when Tiberius ostentatiously stood for reelection to the tribunate, he was murdered by his enemies.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|pp=72–73}}

Tiberius's brother [[Gaius Gracchus|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 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".{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|p=78}} 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.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|pp=82–83}} He stood for election to a third term in 121 but was defeated. During violent protests over repeal of an ally's colonisation bill, the Senate moved the first {{lang|la|[[senatus consultum ultimum]]}} against him, resulting in his death, with many others, on the Aventine.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|p=84}} His legislation (like that of his brother) survived; the Roman aristocracy disliked the Gracchan agitation but accepted their policies.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|p=65}}

In 121, the province of Gallia Narbonensis was established after the victory of [[Quintus Fabius Maximus Allobrogicus|Quintus Fabius Maximus]] over a coalition of Arverni and Allobroges in southern Gaul in 123. [[Lucius Licinius Crassus]] founded the city of [[Narbo]] there in 118.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/lucio-licinio-crasso_%28Enciclopedia-Italiana%29/ |title=CRASSO, Lucio Licinio |access-date=14 August 2023 |language=it}}</ref>

====Rise of Marius====
{{Campaignbox Jugurthine War}}
[[File:Marius Glyptothek Munich 319.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Bust, traditionally identified as [[Gaius Marius]], elected consul seven times]]
[[File:Sulla Coin2.jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|[[Denarius]] of [[Faustus Cornelius Sulla (quaestor 54 BC)|Faustus Cornelius Sulla]], 56&nbsp;BC. It shows [[Diana (mythology)|Diana]] on the obverse, while the reverse depicts Sulla being offered an olive branch by his ally [[Bocchus I]]. [[Jugurtha]] is shown captive on the right.{{Sfn|Crawford|1974|pp=449–451}}]]
Rome fought the [[Jugurthine War]] from 111 to 104&nbsp;BC against the North African kingdom of [[Numidia]] (in what is now Algeria and Tunisia). In 118, its king, [[Micipsa]], died, and an illegitimate son, [[Jugurtha]], usurped the throne.{{sfn|Lintott|1992a|pp=28–29}} Numidia had been a loyal ally of Rome since the Punic Wars.{{sfn|Matyszak|2004|p=64}} Initially, Rome mediated a division of the country. But Jugurtha renewed his offensive, leading to a long and inconclusive war with Rome.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|p=88}} [[Gaius Marius]] was a legate under the consul directing the war and was elected consul in 107&nbsp;BC over the objections of the aristocratic senators, relying on support from the businessmen and poor. Marius had the Numidian command reassigned to himself through the popular assembly and, with the capture of Jugurtha at the end of a long campaign, ended the war; in the aftermath, the Romans largely withdrew from the province after installing a client king.{{sfnm|Lintott|1992a|1p=30|Lintott|1992b|2p=92}} Marius's victory played on existing themes of senatorial corruption and incompetence, contrasted especially against the military failure of senatorial leadership in the Cimbrian War.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|p=94}}

{{Campaignbox Cimbrian War}}

The [[Cimbrian War]] (113–101) was a far more serious affair than the earlier Gallic clashes in 121. The [[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] tribes of the [[Cimbri]] and the [[Teutons]]{{sfn|App. ''BCiv.''|loc=6}} migrated from northern Europe into Rome's northern territories,{{sfn|Matyszak|2004|p=75}} and clashed with Rome and its allies. The defeat of various aristocrats in the conflict, along with Marius's reputation for military victory, led to his holding five successive consulships with little to enable him to lead armies against the threat.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|p={{pn|date=July 2023}}}} At the [[Battle of Aquae Sextiae]] and the [[Battle of Vercellae]], Marius led the Roman armies, which virtually annihilated both tribes, ending the threat.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|p=96}}

During the Cimbrian War, further conflicts embroiled the Republic: A Second Servile War waged in Sicily from 104 to 101;{{sfn|Lintott|1992a|pp=25–26}} a campaign was waged against pirates in Cilicia; Rome campaigned in Thrace, adding lands to the province of Macedonia; and [[Lycaonia]] was annexed to Rome.{{sfn|Lintott|1992b|pp=96–97}}

====First civil wars====
{{Campaignbox Ancient Unification of Italy}}
{{Campaignbox First Mithridatic War}}
{{Campaignbox Sulla's Second Civil War}}

In 91, the [[Social War (91–87 BC)|Social War]] broke out between Rome and its former allies in Italy: the main causes of the war were Roman encroachment on allied lands due to the Republic's land redistribution programmes, harsh Roman treatment of the non-citizen allies, and Roman unwillingness to share in the spoils of the empire.{{sfn|Gabba|1992|pp=104–111}} After the assassination, in Rome, of a conservative tribune who sought to grant the Italians citizenship, the allies took up arms:{{sfn|Gabba|1992|pp=113–114}} most ancient writers explain the conflict in terms of demands for full citizenship, but contemporary rebel propaganda coins indicate it may have been a primarily anti-Roman secessionist movement.{{sfn|Beard|2015|p=238}} The Romans were able to stave off military defeat by conceding the main point almost immediately, tripling the number of citizens.{{sfn|Beard|2015|pp=238–239}} More recent scholarship also has stressed the importance of the war on the allies in destabilising Roman military affairs by blurring the distinction between Romans and foreign enemies.{{sfn|Beard|2015|p=244}}

Further civil conflict emerged, starting in 88. One of the consuls that year, [[L. Cornelius Sulla]], was assigned to take an army against the [[Pontus (kingdom)|Pontic]] king [[Mithradates VI Eupator|Mithridates]]. The local governor there was defeated, but [[C. Marius]] induced a tribune to promulgate legislation reassigning Sulla's command to Marius. Sulla responded by suborning his army, marching on Rome (the city was undefended but politically outraged), and declaring Marius and 11 of his allies outlaws before departing east to [[First Mithridatic War|war with Mithridates]].{{sfn|Seager|1992a|p=171}} Marius, who had escaped into exile, returned, and with [[Lucius Cornelius Cinna|L. Cornelius Cinna]], took control of the city.{{sfn|Beard|2015|pp=241–242}}

After the Marians took control of the city, they started to purge their political enemies.{{sfn|Seager|1992a|p=178}} They elected, in irregular fashion, Marius and Cinna to the consulship of 86&nbsp;BC. Marius died a fortnight after assuming office. Cinna took control of the state: his policies are unclear and the record is muddled by Sulla's eventual victory.{{sfn|Seager|1992a|p=180}} The Cinnan regime declared Sulla a public enemy and ostensibly replaced him in command in the east. Instead of cooperating with his replacement, which Sulla viewed as illegitimate, he made peace with Mithridates and prepared to return to Italy.{{sfn|Seager|1992a|p=182}} By 85&nbsp;BC, the Cinnans in Rome started preparations to defend the peninsula from invasion.{{sfn|Seager|1992a|p=182}}

In 83, he returned from the east with a small but experienced army.{{sfn|Seager|1992a|p=187}} Initial reactions were negative across the peninsula, but after winning a number of victories he was able to overcome resistance and capture the city. In the [[Battle of the Colline Gate]], just outside Rome,{{sfn|Seager|1992a|pp=194–195}} Sulla's army defeated the Marian defenders and then proceeded to "run riot... killing for profit, pleasure, or personal vengeance anyone they pleased".{{sfn|Seager|1992a|p=197}} He then instituted procedures to centralise the killing, creating [[Proscription|lists of proscribed persons]] who could be killed for their property without punishment.{{sfn|Seager|1992a|pp=197–199|ps=, also citing ancient accounts that some 80 senators and 1,600 equites were targeted in the first round before being joined by two additional rounds of 220 names.}} After establishing political control, Sulla had himself made [[Roman dictator|dictator]] and passed a series of [[Constitutional reforms of Sulla|constitutional reforms]] intended to strengthen the position of the magistrates and the senate in the state and replace custom with new rigid statute laws enforced by new permanent courts.{{sfn|Beard|2015|p=246}}{{sfn|Steel|2014}} Sulla resigned the dictatorship in 81 after election as consul for 80. He then retired, and died in 78&nbsp;BC.{{sfn|Seager|1992a|pp=205–207}}

{{Campaignbox Second Mithridatic War}}{{Campaignbox Roman–Parthian Wars}}

====Sullan republic====

[[Pompey|Cn. Pompey Magnus]] served the Sullan regime during a short conflict triggered by the republic's own consul, [[Marcus Aemilius Lepidus (consul 78 BC)|M. Aemilius Lepidus]], in 77&nbsp;BC{{sfn|Seager|1992b|pp=208–210}} and afterwards led troops successfully against the remaining anti-Sullan forces in the [[Sertorian War]]; he brought the war successfully to a close in 72&nbsp;BC. While Pompey was in Spain, the Republic faced agitation both foreign and domestic. The main domestic political struggle was the restoration of tribunician powers stripped during Sulla's dictatorship.{{sfn|Seager|1992b|pp=210–211}} After rumours of a pact between [[Quintus Sertorius|Q. Sertorius]]'s ostensible republic-in-exile,{{sfn|Seager|1992b|p=220|ps=, describing Sertorius' administration of Spain as a "Rome-in-exile".}} Mithridates, and various Mediterranean pirate groups, the Sullan regime feared encirclement and stepped up efforts against the threats: they reinforced Pompey in Spain and fortified Bithynia. In spring 73&nbsp;BC, Mithridates did so, invading Bithynia.{{sfn|Seager|1992b|p=213}}

In 73, a slave uprising started in southern Italy under Spartacus, a gladiator, who defeated the local Roman garrisons and four legions under the consuls of 72.{{sfn|Seager|1992b|p=222}} At the head of some 70,000 men, Spartacus led them in a [[Third Servile War]]—they sought freedom by escape from Italy—before being defeated by troops raised by [[Marcus Licinius Crassus|M. Licinius Crassus]].{{sfn|Seager|1992b|pp=221–222}} Although Pompey and Crassus were rivals, they were elected to a joint consulship in 70. During their consulship, they brought—with little opposition—legislation to dismantle the tribunician disabilities imposed by Sulla's constitutional reforms.{{sfn|Seager|1992b|pp=224–225}} They also shepherded legislation to settle the contentious matter of jury reform.{{sfn|Seager|1992b|pp=225–226}}

{{Campaignbox Third Mithridatic War}}
{{Campaignbox Rome against the Cilician Pirates}}

[[Lucullus|L. Licinius Lucullus]], one of Sulla's ablest lieutenants, had fought against Mithridates during the first Mithridatic war before Sulla's civil war. Mithridates also had fought Rome in a second Mithridatic war (83–82&nbsp;BC).{{sfn|Sherwin-White|1992|p=229}} Rome for its part seemed equally eager for war and the spoils and prestige that it might bring.{{sfn|Matyszak|2004|p=76}} After his invasion of Bithynia in 73, Lucullus was assigned against Mithridates and his Armenian ally [[Tigranes the Great]] in Asia Minor.{{sfn|Sherwin-White|1992|pp=234–235}} Fighting a war of manoeuvre against Mithridates' supply lines, Lucullus was able force Mithridates from an attempted siege of [[Cyzicus]] and pursue him into Pontus and thence into Armenia.{{sfn|Sherwin-White|1992|pp=236, 239}} After defeat forced the Romans from large parts of Armenia and Pontus in 67, Lucullus was replaced in command by Pompey.{{sfn|Sherwin-White|1992|p=244}} Pompey moved against Mithridates in 66.{{sfn|Sherwin-White|1992|p=252}} Defeating him in battle and securing the submission of Tigranes,{{sfn|Sherwin-White|1992|p=253}} Mithridates fled to Crimea, where he was betrayed and killed by his son Pharnaces in 63.{{sfn|Sherwin-White|1992|p=254}} Pompey remained in the East to [[Pompey's eastern settlement|pacify and settle Roman conquests in the region]], also extending Roman control south to Judaea.{{sfn|Sherwin-White|1992|pp=255–262}}

===End of the Republic===

====First Triumvirate====
{{Ancient Rome and the fall of the Republic}}
{{Main|First Triumvirate}}

Pompey returned from the [[Third Mithridatic War]] at the end of 62&nbsp;BC. In the interim, before his return to Italy, the senate had successfully suppressed a [[Catilinarian conspiracy|conspiracy and insurrection]] led by a senator, [[Lucius Sergius Catilina]], to overthrow that year's consuls.{{sfn|Gruen|1995|pp=422–425 (supporters), 429–431 (goals and failure) }} In the aftermath of the conspiracy, which was abetted by popular discontent, the Senate moved legislation to temper unrest in Italy: expanding the grain dole and implementing other reforms.{{sfn|Gruen|1995|pp=432–433}} Pompey, landing in [[Brundisium]], publicly dismissed his troops, indicating that he had no desire to follow Sulla's example and dominate the republic by force, as some conservative senators had feared.{{sfn|Wiseman|1992|pp=360–361}} He attempted to have his eastern settlements passed by the Senate; ratification was not forthcoming, due to the opposition of Lucullus, [[Crassus]], and [[Cato the Younger]].{{sfn|Wiseman|1992|p=364}}

After Julius Caesar's election as one of the consuls of 59&nbsp;BC, Pompey, Caesar, and Crassus engaged in a political alliance (traditionally dubbed by scholars as the [[First Triumvirate]]).{{sfn|Morstein-Marx|2021|p=120}} The alliance greatly benefited the three men: Caesar passed legislation to distribute state lands as poor relief while also providing land for Pompey's veterans; he also had Pompey's eastern settlements ratified; for Crassus, he secured relief for tax farmers and a place on agrarian commission.{{sfnm|Gruen|1995|1p=90|Wiseman|1992|2p=364}} Caesar won for himself the political support needed to acquire a profitable provincial command in Gaul and secure his political future.{{sfn|Gruen|1995|p=89}}

Attempting first to pass portions of his programme through the Senate, Caesar found the curia obstinate. He thus unveiled his alliance with Pompey and Crassus and moved his legislation before the people instead.{{sfn|Gruen|1995|p=91}} Political opposition to the allies was immense.{{sfn|Gruen|1995|p=92}}

Caesar also facilitated the election of the former patrician [[Publius Clodius Pulcher]] to the tribunate for 58. Clodius set about depriving Caesar's senatorial enemies of two of their more obstinate leaders in [[Cato the Younger|Cato]] and Cicero. Clodius attempted to try Cicero for executing citizens without a trial during the Catiline conspiracy, resulting in Cicero going into self-imposed exile. Clodius also passed a bill that forced Cato to lead the invasion of Cyprus, which would keep him away from Rome for some years. Clodius also passed a law to expand the previous partial grain subsidy to a fully free grain dole for citizens.{{sfn|Abbott|2001|p=113}}

[[File:Caesar campaigns gaul-en.svg|right|thumb|Map of the Gallic Wars]]
{{Campaignbox Gallic Wars}}
After his term as consul in 59, Caesar was appointed to a five-year term as the proconsular Governor of Cisalpine Gaul (part of current northern Italy), Transalpine Gaul (current southern France) and Illyria (part of the modern Balkans).{{sfn|Santosuosso|2008|p=58}} Caesar sought cause to invade Gaul (modern France and Belgium), which would give him the dramatic military success he sought. When two local tribes began to migrate on a route that would take them near (not into) the Roman province of Transalpine Gaul, Caesar had the barely sufficient excuse he needed for his [[Gallic Wars]], fought between 58 and 49.

Caesar defeated large armies at major battles 58 and 57. In 55 and 54 he made [[Caesar's invasions of Britain|two expeditions into Britain]], the first Roman to do so. Caesar then defeated a union of Gauls at the [[Battle of Alesia]],{{sfn|Santosuosso|2008|p=62}}{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2016|p=212}} completing the Roman conquest of Transalpine Gaul. By 50, all of Gaul lay in Roman hands.

Clodius formed armed gangs that terrorised the city and eventually began to attack Pompey's followers, who in response funded counter-gangs formed by [[Titus Annius Milo]]. The political alliance of the triumvirate was crumbling. Domitius [[Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus (consul 54 BC)|Ahenobarbus]] ran for the consulship in 55, promising to take Caesar's command from him. Eventually, the triumvirate was renewed at Lucca. Pompey and Crassus were promised the consulship in 55, and Caesar's term as governor was extended for five years. Beginning in the summer of 54, a wave of political corruption and violence swept Rome.{{sfn|Abbott|2001|p=114}} This chaos reached a climax in January of 52, when Milo murdered Clodius in a gang war.

In 53, Crassus launched a Roman invasion of the Parthian Empire (modern Iraq and Iran). After initial successes,{{sfn|Matyszak|2004|p=133}} his army was cut off deep in enemy territory, surrounded and slaughtered at the [[Battle of Carrhae]], in which Crassus himself perished. Crassus's death destabilised the Triumvirate. While Caesar was fighting in Gaul, Pompey proceeded with a legislative agenda for Rome that revealed that he was at best ambivalent towards Caesar.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2016|p=214}} Pompey's wife, Julia, who was Caesar's daughter, died in childbirth. This event severed the last remaining bond between Pompey and Caesar. In 51, some Roman senators demanded that Caesar not be permitted to stand for consul unless he turned over control of his armies to the state. Caesar chose civil war over laying down his command and facing trial.

====Caesar's civil war and dictatorship====
{{Campaignbox Caesar's civil war}}
{{Main|Caesar's civil war}}

[[File:Retrato de Julio César (26724093101).jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|The [[Tusculum portrait]], a [[Roman sculpture]] of [[Julius Caesar]]]]

On 1 January 49, an agent of Caesar presented an ultimatum to the senate. The ultimatum was rejected, and the senate then passed a resolution declaring that if Caesar did not lay down his arms by July of that year, he would be considered an enemy of the Republic.{{sfn|Abbott|2001|p=115}} Meanwhile, the senators adopted Pompey as their new champion against Caesar, passing a {{lang|la|senatus consultum ultimum}} that vested Pompey with dictatorial powers. On 10 January, Caesar with his veteran army crossed the river [[Rubicon]], the legal boundary of Roman Italy beyond which no commander might bring his army, in violation of Roman laws, and by the spring of 49 swept down the Italian peninsula towards Rome. His rapid advance forced Pompey, the consuls and the senate to abandon Rome for Greece. Caesar entered the city unopposed. Afterwards Caesar turned his attention to the Pompeian stronghold of Hispania (modern Spain){{sfn|Goldsworthy|2016|p=217}} but decided to tackle Pompey himself in Greece.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2016|p=218}} Pompey initially defeated Caesar, but failed to follow up on the victory, and was decisively defeated at the [[Battle of Pharsalus]] in 48.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2016|p=227}}{{sfn|Lane Fox|2006|p=403}} Pompey fled again, this time to Egypt, where he was murdered.

Pompey's death did not end the civil war. In 46 Caesar lost perhaps as much as a third of his army, but ultimately came back to defeat the Pompeian army of [[Metellus Scipio]] in the [[Battle of Thapsus]], after which the Pompeians retreated yet again to Hispania. Caesar then defeated the combined Pompeian forces at the [[Battle of Munda]].

With Pompey defeated and order restored, Caesar wanted to achieve undisputed control over the government. The powers he gave himself were later assumed by his imperial successors.{{sfn|Abbott|2001|p=134}} Caesar held both the dictatorship and the tribunate, and alternated between the consulship and the proconsulship.{{sfn|Abbott|2001|p=134}} In 48, he was given permanent tribunician powers. This made his person sacrosanct, gave him the power to veto the senate, and allowed him to dominate the Plebeian Council. In 46, Caesar was given censorial powers,{{sfn|Abbott|2001|p=135}} which he used to fill the senate with his partisans. He then raised the membership of the Senate to 900.{{sfn|Abbott|2001|p=137}} This robbed the senatorial aristocracy of its prestige, and made it increasingly subservient to him.{{sfn|Abbott|2001|p=138}} Caesar began to prepare for a war against the [[Parthian Empire]]. Since his absence from Rome would limit his ability to install consuls, he passed a law that allowed him to appoint all magistrates, and later all consuls and tribunes. This transformed the magistrates from representatives of the people to representatives of the dictator.{{sfn|Abbott|2001|p=137}}

Caesar was now the primary figure of the Roman state, enforcing and entrenching his powers. His enemies feared that he had ambitions to become an autocratic ruler. Arguing that the Roman Republic was in danger, a group of senators led by [[Gaius Cassius]] and [[Marcus Brutus]] hatched a conspiracy and [[Assassination of Julius Caesar|assassinated Caesar]] at a meeting of the Senate on 15 March 44. Virtually all the conspirators fled the city after Caesar's death in fear of retaliation.

====Second Triumvirate====
{{Main|Second Triumvirate|Liberators' civil war|War of Actium}}
{{multiple image|total_width=400
|image1=Venus and Cupid from the House of Marcus Fabius Rufus at Pompeii, most likely a depiction of Cleopatra VII (2).jpg
|image2=Venus and Cupid from the House of Marcus Fabius Rufus at Pompeii, most likely a depiction of Cleopatra VII (5).jpg
|footer=This mid-1st-century&nbsp;BC [[Roman wall painting]] in [[Pompeii]] is probably a depiction of [[Cleopatra VII]] as [[Venus (mythology)#Epithets|Venus Genetrix]], with her son [[Caesarion]] as [[Cupid]]. Its owner Marcus Fabius Rufus most likely ordered its concealment behind a wall in reaction to the execution of Caesarion on orders of [[Octavian]] in 30&nbsp;BC.{{sfn|Roller|2010|p=175}}{{sfn|Walker|2008}}}}
The civil wars that followed destroyed what was left of the Republic.{{sfn|Abbott|2001|p=133}}

After the assassination, Caesar's three most important associates, [[Mark Antony]], Caesar's co-consul, [[Octavian]], Caesar's adopted son and great-nephew, and [[Lepidus]], Caesar's {{lang|la|[[magister equitum]]}}, formed an alliance known as the [[Second Triumvirate]].{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2003|p=237}} The conspirators were defeated at the [[Battle of Philippi]] in 42.

Following Philippi, Rome's territories were divided between the triumvirs, but the agreement was fragile. Antony detested Octavian and spent most of his time in the East, while Lepidus favoured Antony but felt himself obscured by his colleagues. Following [[Bellum Siculum|the defeat]] of [[Sextus Pompeius]], a dispute between Lepidus and Octavian regarding the allocation of lands broke out and, in 36&nbsp;BC, Lepidus was forced into exile in [[Circeii]] and stripped of all his offices except that of {{lang|la|[[pontifex maximus]]}}. His former provinces were awarded to Octavian.

Antony, meanwhile, married Caesar's lover, [[Cleopatra]] of [[Ptolemaic Egypt]], intending to use wealthy Egypt as a base to dominate Rome. The ambitious Octavian built a power base of patronage and then launched a campaign against Antony. Another [[War of Actium|civil war]] broke out between Octavian on one hand and Antony and Cleopatra on the other. This culminated in the latter's [[Battle of Actium|defeat at Actium]] in 31&nbsp;BC; Octavian's forces then chased Antony and Cleopatra to [[Battle of Alexandria (30 BC)|Alexandria]], where they both [[Death of Cleopatra|committed suicide]] in 30&nbsp;BC.

Octavian was granted a series of special powers, including sole {{lang|la|imperium}} within the city of Rome, permanent consular powers, and credit for every Roman military victory. In 27, he was granted the use of the name "Augustus", from which point he is generally considered the first Roman emperor.{{sfn|Luttwak|1976|p=7}}