almost the entire Republican fleet perishes in the storm.
World of the Punic Wars. The third party to the conflict is Great Greece. Now this state entity belongs to the entire south of Italy and part of Sicily.
The fighting moves to Sicily, where the troops of Carthage are commanded by the commander Hamilcar Barca. The forces of the parties are extremely depleted. Toward the end of the day, the Carthaginian fleet is severely defeated by the Romans who have learned to fight at sea. Carthage pays Rome a hefty indemnity and renounces Sicily.
Second Punic War. Two centuries BC. The commander Hamilcar Barka dies, leaving the world, or rather the war, three sons – Hannibal, Magon and Hasdrubal. Their goal is the same as that of their father – Rome must be destroyed.
Hannibal transports his troops to Italy across the icy Alps and, among other things, inflicts a cruel defeat on the Romans at Cannes. 60 thousand Romans die here. A year later, having pacified three quarters of Italy, Hannibal tries to take the city of Rome. Due to unpleasant omens for both sides, the assault will not take place. The Romans capture the Greek city of Syracuse, allied to Carthage. At the same time, the great scientist of antiquity, Archimedes, perishes. The 30,000th Roman Expeditionary Force under the command of Scipio Africanus sets foot on the land of Africa. The commander makes an alliance with the Libyan tribes and defeats the army of Carthage at Zama. Hannibal flees to the king of Antioch, in the south of modern Turkey. This commander more than once participates in battles against Rome and the second time he personally meets with Scipio. Then he moved to Armenia, which became independent from the Seleucids, where he supervised the construction of the capital near modern Yerevan. In Bithynia (northern Turkey), the local king, not wanting unnecessary complications, decides to extradite Hannibal to Rome. The Carthaginian general takes poison.
Sunset of Carthage. Medieval engraving
Fifty years of peace. Carthage pays indemnities, which seemed to the Romans themselves simply unaffordable. He is still rich and dangerous. Having violated the terms of the treaty, the Carthaginians rebuff the official ally of Rome, a certain Libyan tribe. The thought of Cato the Elder, «Carthage Dilindum Essay -“ Carthage must be destroyed», repeated at the Senate meeting, now acquires energy and flesh. The third Punic War begins. Legionnaires disembarking in Africa lay siege to the capital of the African and Asian empires. Three years later, the civilization of the Pun-Phoenicians-Canaanites ceases to exist on the physical plane.
Rome during the Civil War
…The Roman Republic is experiencing the tyrannies of Sulla and Gaius Maria, who almost became kings, with difficulty reflecting the large-scale invasion of the Gauls and Teutons. Only by calling in troops from the provinces, the Romans suppress the uprising of the gladiators led by Spartacus. Ten years after the suppression of this rebellion, the Caesar-Pompey-Crassus triumvirate is formed. Dreaming no longer of money (he has it), but of military glory Crassus with four legions perishes in Parthia, (modern Iran and Turkmenistan) formed from the Seleucid state.
Fifty years BC e. An all-out war of the Romans under the leadership of Guy Julius Caesar against the Gauls begins throughout the territory of modern France. There is a brief invasion of Britain. With the death of the wife of Gnaeus Pompey (the Great), daughter of Caesar, the family ties between the Roman consuls disappear. The ambitious Gaius Julius crosses the Rubicon River (not alone, but with legions of hardened loyal soldiers) and captures Rome. The Civil War, which broke out on all sides of the world, takes away at least a quarter of the Roman male citizens. The loser of everything, Pompey tries to find refuge in Egypt, but dies off the coast of the Mediterranean Sea at the hands of a traitor.
Guy Julius Caesar (100—44 BC) on a Roman coin
Caesar starts an affair with the heiress of the pharaohs, the Egyptian queen Cleopatra, which, in the end, leads to the inclusion of Egypt in the structure of the not republican, but not yet imperial Rome.
…Gaius Julius Caesar, dictator, great pontiff (literally «Builder of bridges»), high priest, willingly or unwillingly, the founder of the famous title Caesar – Ksar – King. A representative of the patrician estate, beloved by ordinary people (including soldiers). It is not known for sure whether Gaius Julius was involved in suppressing the uprising of the world’s most famous gladiator Spartacus. At this time, he, the military tribune, prepares new recruits. From 63 BC – thanks to his popularity and big money, the young Caesar becomes the Great Pontiff. From 58 BC the Gallic War starts. In something more like genocide, a million Gauls die. Ten years later, Caesar and his ambitions are against the Republic. Four years of the Civil War culminate in the Battle of Munda (Spain), the hardest of all that Caesar fought. This time, 30,000 rebel supporters of the republican system are killed. The dictator first triumphs after the victory of the Romans over the Romans, which is considered not comme il faut. In the same year, for the first time, an image of a living person appears on coins – of course, Caesar.
A year later, Gaius Julius Caesar, already dreaming of an invasion of Arabia, is killed by conspirators, led by Mark Brutus, possibly the illegitimate son of the dictator. At the stake of judges’ chairs and benches, the body of the beloved dictator burns the people. After the fiery speech of Gaius Julius’ comrade-in-arms, Mark Antony, here, over the ashes, the Civil War in the bleeding country breaks out with renewed vigor.
Ancient israel
The first Hebrew tribes, in the manner described in the Bible, or in some other way, appear in the territory with the general name Canaan forty-two centuries ago. This is followed by a series of periods of assimilation or isolation of the Jews among other nations.
Canaan, «the Promised Land» on the map of the Ancient World
The Epoch of Judges, interpreters of the law, lasts three hundred years, marked, at the end, by a certain decline in morals. The last of the Judges, Samuel creates a kind of school of prophets who speak the truth to the rulers in the face, not caring about the consequences. He anoints the kingdom of the chosen one of God, Saul. His successor, the shepherd David, who ascended to the very pinnacle of power because of his decisive disposition, has the capital in Jerusalem. Having finally dealt with the Ammonites, Philistines and other tribes that have inhabited Canaan since ancient times, he created a mono-ethnic Jewish state. The son of David, Solomon erects the First Temple – the only legal place for God to serve among the Jews. After the death of the king, the country is divided into Israel with the capital Samaria, where ten tribes of Jews find shelter and Judea with the center of power – Jerusalem.
Judea (Jerusalem), Israel (Samaria) and Assyria (ancient capital – Ashur), eighth century BC
Seven centuries BC. The first superpower of antiquity, Assyria, turns Israel into a scorched desert. Ten of the twelve tribes are taken prisoner by the invaders. Their traces are lost. Later, Judea, which remained aloof from the battle, includes Babylon into its empire. Residents are taken away into slavery. After some time, thanks to the beloved wife of King Esther, the Babylonians declare them equal and allow them to return to their historical homeland. The liberated Jews build the Second Temple on the ruins
