punic wars

[kads]

can anyone tell me what the second punic war was all about

thanks

kads

[Philtaz]

This should get you started:

http://www.barca.fsnet.co.uk/punic2.htm

[kads]

thanks

[shaneystar2]

The Second Punic War was fought between Carthage and Rome from 218 to 202 BC. It was the second of three major wars fought between the former Phoenician colony of Carthage, and the Roman Republic, then still confined to the Italian Peninsula. The conflicts were called "Punic Wars" because Rome's name for Carthaginians was Punici (older Poenici, due to their Phoenician ancestry).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_punic_war

[jno]

in essence, between two nations that wanted to be number one in the Mediterranean. The Romans had an army, but the Carthaginians had a navy, which gave them a head start; it wasn't till the Romans captured a Carthaginian ship and worked out how to build them that they started to catch up. The links already posted should give you plenty of detail.

[redheap]

the last comment from JNO is specifically about the first Punic war not the second.

Look out for movies being made of the great event (believe "Hannibal" will star Vin Diesel).

Lots of different reasons really:

Hannibal (and his family's) enmity for Rome from losing the first war (personal vendetta they were able to realise after conquering imperial lands in Spain after the first war).

Cartage wanting to be back on the world scene again (after having many imperial possessions taken as war bounty after the first war by rome).

being successful at this after the first war, aroused the fears of Rome who either reacted to the threat or actually precipitated the war to stop them (depends on who you read/beleive).

Maybe also Rome looking longingly at the gold and silver mines (and possible slaves) in Spain.

basically an inevitable conflict between two major powers in the ancient world (eastern Mediterreanean seaboard), one had to give way to the other.

Hannibal Ad Portas!

[jno]

redheap's right, I wasn't specific enough. The whole series of wars was however about the balance of power in the Mediterranean - as it turned out, about Rome's expansion en route to becoming an empire. See the links for details.