page_title: Ancient Carthage
section_title: First Sicilian War (480 BC)
hierarchical_section_title: Ancient Carthage / History / Conflict with the Greeks (580–265 BC) / First Sicilian War (480 BC)
caption_attribution_description: Italiano: Oplita cartaginese del Battaglione Sacro. Ricostruzione artistica ottenuta a partire da una moneta siracusana della fine del quarto secolo a.C. English: The Sacred Band Carthaginian Hoplite; artistic reconstruction obtained from a coin of Syracuse (end of the fourth century BC).
context_page_description: Carthage was an ancient Phoenician city-state and civilization located in present-day Tunisia. Founded around 814 BC as a colony of Tyre, within centuries it grew to become the center of the Carthaginian Empire, a major commercial and maritime power that dominated the western Mediterranean until the mid third century BC.
  After gaining independence in the seventh century BC, Carthage gradually expanded its economic and political hegemony across northwest Africa, Iberia, and the major islands of the western Mediterranean. By 300 BC, through a sprawling patchwork of colonies, vassals, and satellite states, it controlled more territory than any other polity in the region, and was one of the largest and richest cities in antiquity. Carthage's wealth and power rested primarily on its strategic location, which provided access to abundant fertile land and major trade routes. Its vast mercantile network, which extended as far as west Africa and northern Europe, provided an array of commodities from all over the ancient world, as well as lucrative exports of agricultural goods and manufactured products.
context_section_description: Carthage's economic successes, buoyed by its vast maritime trade network, led to the development of a powerful navy to protect and secure vital shipping lanes. Its hegemony brought it into increasing conflict with the Greeks of Syracuse, who also sought control of central Mediterranean. Founded in the mid seventh century BC, Syracuse had risen to become one of the wealthiest and most powerful Greek city states, and the preeminent Greek polity in the region.
  The island of Sicily, lying at Carthage's doorstep, became the main arena on which this conflict played out. From their earliest days, both the Greeks and Phoenicians had been attracted to the large, centrally-located island, each establishing a large number of colonies and trading posts along its coasts; battles raged between these settlements for centuries, with neither side ever having total, long-term control over the island.
  In 480 BC, Gelo, the tyrant of Syracuse, attempted to unite the island under his rule with the backing of other Greek city-states. Threatened by the potential power of a united Sicily, Carthage intervened militarily, led by King Hamilcar of the Magonid dynasty. Traditional accounts, including by Herodotus and Diodorus, number Hamilcar's army at around 3,000; though likely exaggerated, it was likely of formidable strength.
  While sailing to Sicily, Hamilcar suffered losses due to poor weather. Landing at Panormus (modern-day Palermo), he spent three days reorganizing his forces and repairing his battered fleet. The Carthaginians marched along the coast to Himera, making camp before engaging in battle against the forces of Syracuse and its ally Agrigentum. The Greeks won a decisive victory, inflicting heavy losses on the Carthaginians, including their leader Hamilcar, who was either killed during the battle or committed suicide in shame. As a result, the Carthaginian nobility sued for peace.
  The conflict proved to be a major turning point for Carthage. Though it would retain some presence in Sicily, most of the island would remain in Greek (and later Roman) hands. The Carthaginians would never again expand their territory or sphere of influence on the island to any meaningful degree, instead turning their attention to securing or increasing their hold in North Africa and Iberia. The death of King Hamilcar and the disastrous conduct of the war also prompted political reforms that established an oligarchic republic. Carthage would henceforth constrain its rulers through assemblies of both nobles and the common people.
caption: The Sacred Band Carthaginian Hoplite, utilized during the Sicilian Wars. Artistic reconstruction based on a coin of Syracuse (late fourth century BC).
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