Editing Punic Wars (section)

===Navies===
[[File:Corvus.svg|thumb|left|alt=A diagram showing the location and usage of a corvus on a Roman galley.|{{center|The ''[[corvus (weapon)|corvus]]'', the Roman [[Naval boarding|ship boarding]] device}}]]
[[Quinqueremes]] were large and powerful-for-their-time warships{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2006|p=98}} which provided the main components of the Roman and Carthaginian fleets throughout the Punic Wars.{{sfn|Lazenby|1996|pp=27–28}} So ubiquitous was the type that Polybius uses it as a shorthand for "warship" in general.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2006|p=104}} A quinquereme carried a crew of 300: 280 oarsmen and 20 deck crew and officers.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2006|p=100}} It would also normally carry a complement of 40 marines;{{sfn|Tipps|1985|p=435}} if battle was thought to be imminent this would be increased to as many as 120.{{sfn|Casson|1995|p=121}}{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2006|pp=102–103}}

In 260{{spaces}}BC the Romans set out to construct a [[Roman navy|fleet]] and used a shipwrecked Carthaginian quinquereme as a blueprint for their own.{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2006|pp=97, 99–100}}{{sfn|Tipps|1985|p=436 n. 6}} The Romans and their allies were unaccustomed to building quinqueremes and their early efforts were heavier than the Carthaginian vessels; thus they were slower and less manoeuvrable.{{sfn|Murray|2011|p=69}} Getting the oarsmen to row as a unit, let alone to execute more complex battle manoeuvres, required long and arduous training.{{sfn|Casson|1995|pp=278–280}}{{sfn|de Souza|2008|p=359}} As a result, the Romans were initially at a disadvantage against the more experienced Carthaginians. To counter this, the Romans introduced the [[corvus (weapon)|corvus]], a bridge {{convert|1.2|m|ft|sigfig=1|abbr=off}} wide and {{convert|11|m|ft|abbr=off}} long, with a heavy spike on the underside, designed to pierce and anchor into an enemy ship's deck.{{sfn|Casson|1995|p=121}} This allowed Roman legionaries acting as marines to [[Naval boarding|board enemy ships]] and capture them, rather than employing the previously [[Naval tactics in the Age of Galleys|more common tactic]] of [[ramming]].{{sfn|Miles|2011|p=178}}

All warships were equipped with rams, a triple set of {{convert|60|cm|ft|sigfig=1|adj=mid|-wide}} bronze blades weighing up to {{convert|270|kg|lb|sigfig=2}} positioned at the waterline. In the century prior to the Punic Wars, boarding had become increasingly common and ramming had declined, as the [[Hellenistic-era warships|larger and heavier vessels]] adopted in this period increasingly lacked the speed and manoeuvrability necessary to ram effectively, while their sturdier construction reduced a ram's effect on them even in case of a successful attack. The Roman adaptation of the corvus was a continuation of this trend and compensated for their initial disadvantage in ship-manoeuvring skills. The added weight in the prow compromised both the ship's manoeuvrability and its seaworthiness, and in rough sea conditions the corvus became useless; part way through the First Punic War the Romans ceased using it.{{sfn|Miles|2011|p=178}}{{sfn|Wallinga|1956|pp=77–90}}{{sfn|Goldsworthy|2006|pp=100–101, 103}}