Editing Roman Republic (section)

=== 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-->