Carthaginian Empire Free Essays

Abstract The Cartage Empire was formed in 814 B. C. According to legend, this was when Princess Dido, of Tore fled from her home, current day Lebanon. We will write a custom essay sample on Carthaginian Empire or any similar topic only for you Order Now This was to escape from the clutches of her brother Pygmalion who had killed her husband, heir to the throne of Tore after her father died. She fled across the Mediterranean with some citizens of Tore and landed at the tip of Northern Africa, Cartage or current day Tunisia. There, she saw that Cartage was almost like an island Jutting out into the Mediterranean, with 2 inlets on either side. It had natural defenses, Just like Tore, Dido’s homeland. This was the reason why Princess Dido chose this as the place for her new city, Cartage. Thus, Cartage was founded. By 500 BC, It had become a major Mediterranean power establishing colonies in Corsica, Pizza, North Africa, The Ballerina Islands and Sardinia. It had a population of over 300 000. Its reign started to decline when Hannibal lost the 2nd Punic War. Therefore, we will be focusing on the time period starting from 500 BC till the end of the 2nd Punic War (202 SC). Under Commerce, we are focusing on international trade (trade between The Cartage Empire, North Africa and other cities of the Iberian Peninsula) and how it became an international metropolis due to its strategic location near the Mediterranean trade routes. Under Conflict, we are focusing on military (advanced navy) and territorial expansion (Punic Wars). We will be focusing on Cartage’s advanced shipbuilding techniques and how they managed to hold their own against a bigger and stronger enemy (Rome) during the 2nd Punic War. Under Culture, we are focusing on religion and practices. The Carthaginian worshipped most of the gods that were worshipped y the Phoenicians. Also, they had practices like killing their own children. Under Community, we are focusing on government. The government of Cartage was an oligarchic republic, which relied on a system of checks and balances and ensured a form of public accountability. Our hypothesis is that the extent of the Carthaginian Navy and weaponry managed to hold up a superior empire, namely the Romans, for such a long time. We intend to prove that our hypothesis is true. Community Introduction In this portion we will be talking about Carthaginian government and governing styles. Aristotle himself ranks this republic as one of the best and as an example for all to follow. He says this due to the fact that from Cartage’s formation to his time, no considerable sedition had disturbed the peace, nor had any big tyrant arisen. Therefore, let us take a closer look at Cartage’s government and governing style. Government The government of Cartage was made of 3 main authorities. They were the 2 supreme magistrates called suffers, 600 people in the senate and the common public. The suffers played the role of king, dictator and consul. They were elected annually from the most wealthy and influential families. These suffers were empowered to elect the senate and presided over them. One example of a successful this dynasty and brought much success to the Carthaginian through their countless victories against Rome which allowed Cartage to sustain itself as their offensive nature delayed Romeos invasion into Cartage. The senate formed the very soul of the government and were honored on basis of their age, experience, birth, riches, and most importantly their merit. Public Involvement in Politics When there was no clear majority in the number of votes, the matter was brought to the people of the public. This can be seen as an effective way to crush factions, produce harmony and to enforce and corroborate good counsel. As a result of this, the Carthaginian forces could be funneled into the war efforts instead of busying themselves with major internal conflicts. Their people had confidence in the government, therefore there were no major rebellions during the Cartage golden era. Disadvantages Although Cartage’s government had many advantages, no government is perfect. The Cartage government had two big flaws. Firstly, the government invested the same person with different employments. However, this is highly prejudicial to the community. Bestowing too many responsibilities on one person makes him proud and dazzles him, while making other people Jealous. This might have been so in the case of the Ammonias as Hannibal controlled the army and his family were part of the suffers and the senate. Secondly, the senate was chosen on base of birth while the suffers were chosen on base of wealth. Therefore, poverty may exclude people with enormous merit. This is considered as a great evil in a government as virtue is wholly disregarded while money is all prevalent. Conclusion The well- organized oligarch republic of Cartage helped to maintain peace and stability within the empire so that more attention could be given to further ventures to expand the empire instead of focusing too much on internal problems. Culture The culture of the Carthaginian was very much like their ancestors the Phoenicians. Like every ancient city, Cartage had a large number of gods and goddesses. Also, they were notoriously known for child- sacrifice. Gods and Goddesses The chief god of the Carthaginian was Baa’ al Hammond while their deity of protection was Maltreat. Baa’ al Hammond and Tania were considered as the supreme divine people. Most gods of Cartage came from their predecessors, the Phoenicians. Therefore, culture was not a defining feature of Cartage, though it helped to unify the people. Surviving Punic texts give a detailed description of the temples present in Cartage. They say that there was a well-organized caste of temple priests and acolytes performing various duties for a variety of prices. Child Sacrifice debate about whether child- sacrifice is mere propaganda or true. Urns taken from these sites have shown to contain ashes of footsies, newborn children and bones of young sheep and goats. These children were sacrificed to their chief god Baa’ al Hammond to help them win the various wars that they participated in. Conclusion In conclusion, the religion of Cartage was not an important factor to its success. The gods and goddesses of Cartage brought hope and security to the people. Each god had a specific role to play be it war, agriculture or rain. The people regarded their gods highly and this can be seen in their coins as they depict their most common god, Tania. The gods and goddesses of Cartage brought hope and security to the people. Each god had a specific role to play be it war, agriculture or rain. The people regarded their gods highly and this can be seen in their coins as they depict their most common god, Tania. Commerce Commerce, for Cartage was its occupation and the very reason why its army and Ana were so powerful. It formed Cartage’s greatest strength and was the chief support of the commonwealth. Cartage’s commerce flourished as it was situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, stretching out wide. Cartage trade took place all over the world, and they traded in a huge variety of goods. Strategic Location Cartage was located in the centre of the Mediterranean and its colonies spread both east and west. Therefore, it made trade with both Africa and Europe easier. Also, due to Cartage’s formidable harbor containing more than 70 commercial ships, it was the best way for Cartage to sail to other parts of the Mediterranean and also Europe to trade. Goods Bought and Sold The Carthaginian sailed to all countries to buy the superfluities of every nation and sold these goods to fulfill the wants of other nation. From Egypt the Carthaginian bought fine flax, paper, corn, sails, and cables for ships. From the coast of the Red Sea they bought spices, frankincense, perfumes, gold, pearls and other precious stones. From Tore and Phoenicia, they bought purple and scarlet, rich stuffs, tapestry, costly furniture and exquisite works of art. They brought back from the western world in exchange for all these luxurious items, iron, tin lead and copper. In thus doing so, Cartage became the lord of the seas and sort of the agents of all nations and held east, west and south together. Limitations However, there was a problem with this arrangement. Once Cartage lost control of islands such as Sicily and Sardinia to Rome, they were not able to conduct maritime trade, which was their primary source of income. Thus they were not able to support the vast expenses incurred by the Carthaginian army. Conclusion In conclusion, we can see that Cartage’s commercial activities were their primary source of income and enabled them to wage such prolonged wars against an equally if not stronger opponent, the Romans. However, due to their lack of diversity and flexibility and adapting to changing times, they were not able to conduct trade for an extended period of time. This eventually led to their downfall. The mighty forces of the Carthaginian army were constantly locking horns with other forces in and around the Mediterranean. The lure of the control of trade in the Mediterranean would ultimately lead to Cartage’s untimely demise at the hands of the Romans in the third and final Punic War. Harbor The most magnificent aspect of Cartage was its harbor named Cotton. It was what Cartage was all about; its heart. The harbor had a common entrance from the sea which was 70 Ft wide and could be closed with iron chains. Inside these chains, there were 2 harbors, one commercial and the other military. Firstly, its large harbor was able to store the huge warships whose design the Carthaginian took from Greece during the 1st Punic War. These warships helped the Carthaginian to gain an upper hand over the Romans until the Romans stole the design of these warships and improved them to ultimately defeat the Carthaginian. Secondly, Cotton helped house warships and could dock a maximum of 220 warships. This ensured that Cartage will be ready for battle and its army was always prepared. Having a large naval base would cause other countries to be intimidated and prevent them from attacking Cartage. The Battle of Canaan In the spring of BBC, Hannibal moved from his camp at Geranium and occupied the detailed of a town called Canaan. He planned to attack Canaan so as to be one step closer to his dream of crushing the Roman Empire. Hannibal used a superior strategy against the Roman’s strategy of weakening the centre and in a fast and furious bloodbath, The Carthaginian defeated the Romans in a few hours. He faced off against the Romans with an army of 50000 and he was met by a roman army on the fields of battle numbering roughly 76000. The death toll slowly rose as the day wore on . Thus, Hannibal won the Battle of Canaan. Significance of Canaan Canaan was storehouse for grains such as corn. These grains were then delivered to the frontline of the army as and when needed. Although the town itself had been destroyed in the past few years, its capture caused huge commotion in Rome. This was because they not only lost the stores but also the fact that Canaan commanded the surrounding districts. Thus by conquering Canaan, Hannibal disadvantaged Rome in two ways. Firstly, the army that Rome sent to face Hannibal was the biggest they ever did and when they lost 80% of their army, it made a huge dent in their forces. This bought time for Cartage to rethink their strategy and reorganize their roofs. Secondly, by cutting off food supply to the frontline, the Roman army would be short of food and thus not at full strength. This presented another window of opportunity for Hannibal to strike. Another important factor was that Hannibal was able to capture Roman troops and get intelligence about the Roman strategy. In conclusion, we feel that conflict was extremely important in sustaining as going offensive on Rome prevented Rome from invading and destroying Cartage much earlier. Conflict was also major as it brought wealth to Cartage and enabled them to strengthen their military even more. Community, culture, commerce and conflict. All four define a nation in one way or another across the continents. Conflict, in this case, has been the defining factor in Cartage’s history. It changed the way Cartage was looked upon by the world by proving itself to be a force to be reckoned with. Besides a certain amount of aesthetic value for Cartage, conflict also served to extend Cartage’s reach down in to Africa as well as territories encompassing the Mediterranean Sea. This can be seen by their rate of territorial expansion. In a matter of a few hundred years, they had grown into n empire that could only be outmatched by Rome, and had a military harbor to be like no other. Their generals and weaponry was of high quality, seen by their bronze battering ram- like warship during the 1st Punic War. They also had clever and strategic generals like Hazardous, Whimsical, Hanna and of course Hannibal. Therefore, it can be seen that Cartage’s reason for success was its military strength and prowess. Although they were extinguished in the end, they will always be remembered as the Lord of the Seas and as the only empire to outmatch Rome. How to cite Carthaginian Empire, Papers