So thoroughly was Carthage destroyed that our knowledge of its rich culture relies almost exclusively on the writings of its enemies. The Hannibalic war was to be the last serious challenge to the power of Rome until, six centuries later, the barbarians crossed the frozen Rhine to set in train the events that brought an end to the Roman empire in the west.Īll histories of Carthage start from the moment of its eclipse. Two generations later, on the slightest of pretexts, Rome again declared war on the Carthaginians and in 146 BC Carthage was destroyed. The humiliating terms that Rome inflicted on Carthage were not, however, enough to break the city. This was Rome’s great patriotic war, the moment at which the Roman character appeared to be at its strongest and to which all future generations would look back with pride.
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