Evaluate the changes to Roman society due to the Punic Wars.
Keiran Byrne
The Punic Wars saw a number of important changes to Roman society and politics. These
changes had both immediate and long term effects. By the year 164 BC, Rome was a
vastly different country to what it was before the Punic Wars. Major changes included a
shift in political influence and wealth to the senatorial class, peasant community
dynamics were changing with many moving to the cities, while work and food became
scarcer. The wealthy benefited, with their lifestyles becoming more luxurious through the
Roman cultural exposure to Greek influence. From this stemmed a new social climate
that emerged after the many years of warfare.
A direct result of the First Punic War and the Romans decisive naval victory against the
Carthaginians at the Aegate Islands was that Rome gained full control of Sicily and
Corsica. The end of the First Punic War saw the beginning of the Roman expansion
beyond the Italian peninsula. Sicily was Rome’s first province and was governed by a
praetor, thus making it more than an ally. “Carthage surrendered to Rome her remaining
possessions in Sicily”.1 Significantly, Syracuse was granted nominal independence as an
ally during the lifetime of Hiero II, and it was not incorporated into the Roman province
of Sicily until it was sacked by Marcus Claudius Marcellus during the Second Punic War.
In the interval between the first and second Punic wars, both Rome and Carthage
consolidated their strength and power. However, both continued to expand and the two
powers knew that sooner or later they would again come into conflict. Rome found
herself for the first time in possession of a new territory outside Italy, which had to be
organized. She already had three kinds of territory; the Roman Domani, the Latin
colonies, and the Italian land.
Rome benefited greatly from the acquisition of Sicily. With their full control over Sicily
the Romans could now use its array of natural resources and minerals to gain profits.
Sicily would become very important to Rome as a source of grain. The Romans
introduced a new system in Sicily, where the people were made neither allies nor citizens,
1
Sinnigen and Boak, A History of Rome to AD 565
but instead subjects. Their land was generally confiscated and many inhabitants were
forced to pay a heavy tribute, especially those who had thrown their support behind the
Carthaginians in the First Punic War. The whole island with the exception of the
independent Syracuse was governed by a praetor sent from Rome. By this arrangement
Sicily became known as a “province” which became a term for any conquered territory
outside mainland Italy. This system allowed Rome to obtain important grain from Sicily
as well as profits from the tributes and natural resources they obtained.
In 260 BC a Roman fleet of approximately 140 ships won the naval battle at Mylae,
which saw the end of the Carthaginian naval supremacy and also marked the beginning of
Rome’s dominance over the Mediterranean. The Carthaginians were undoubtedly
superior sailors and shipwrights, so to enable them to compete the Romans utilised their
strength of hand to hand fighting by equipping their ships with a “corvus”. Instead of
maneuvering their ships to ram, which was the standard naval tactic at the time, the
Roman corvus equipped ships would pull alongside an enemy vessel, deploy the bridge
which would anchor to the enemy ship through spikes attached to its end, and send
legionaries across as boarding parties. The weapons effectiveness was proved in the
Battle of Mylae and, the first Roman naval victory, and continued to prove its worth in
following battle such as that of Econmus and the battle at the Aegate Islands. The
addition of the corvus forced Carthage to review its military tactics, and since they had
difficult in nullifying the corvus, Rome gained the naval advantage. “Whenever a hostile
ship came close enough to board or ram a Roman, the latter dropped a crane armed with
long spikes on the opponents deck. By this grappling the enemy, they enable legionaries,
who were serving as marines, the board the Carthaginian ships and capture them in hand
to hand fighting. The Romans thus neutralized the superior Carthaginian seamanship by
converting sea battles into land warfare.” 2
As a result of the Second Punic War, Rome gained control of all Carthaginian territory
within Spain. “The peace terms included the surrender of all Carthaginian territory in
2
Sinnegen and Boak, A History of Rome to AD 565
the Iberian Peninsula.”3 With the gain of Spain and the Iberian Peninsula Rome
prospered greatly as the region was known for its thriving export trade and rich resource
base. “From her Spanish territory Carthage obtained great quantities of silver, copper
and iron besides agricultural products and fish.”4 Pottery containers for transporting
Spanish wine, olive oil, and fish sauce have been found around the shores of the Western
Mediterranean. This evidence would support that upon Rome’s expansion into Spain and
the Iberian Peninsula, the Roman economy was stimulated by the increase in profits as a
result of its new prosperous land.
After the Second Punic War, Rome established itself as the most powerful nation in the
Mediterranean. “The destruction of the Carthaginian empire left Rome the mistress of the
Western Mediterranean and by far the greatest power of the time.”5 Carthage, which had
worked so hard and endeavored long, lost Hispania forever and was reduced to a mere
client state of Rome. Reparations of 10 000 talents were imposed upon the Carthaginians,
her navy reduced to ten ships and they were forbidden from raising an army without the
permission of Rome. Local rivals, such as the Numidians, took advantage of this and
captured and plundered Carthaginian territory. Half a century later, when Carthage raised
an army to defend itself from these incursions, it was destroyed by Rome in the Third
Punic War. Rome, on the other hand, had taken a key step towards her domination of the
Mediterranean.
The people of North Africa and Southern Gaul were held by treaties and alliances to
Rome. Rome imposed harsher peace terms on Carthage than they had after the First
Punic War, which could only be expected. At this time however, Rome showed no
interest in destroying Carthage. “Zama did not decide the outcome of the war, but it did
determine the kind of peace terms that Rome would impose upon her defeated enemy.
These were: the surrender of all territory except the city of Carthage and the surrounding
3
Victor Duruy, History of Rome and of the Roman People: From Its Origin to the Establishment of the
Christian Empire
4
5
Sinnegen and Boak, A History of Rome to AD 565
Victor Duruy, History of Rome and of the Roman People: From Its Origin to the Establishment of the
Christian Empire
country in Africa, an indemnity of 10 000 talents, the surrender of all vessels of war
except 10 triremes, and of all war elephants, and the obligation not to make war
anywhere without Rome’s consent.”6
The pressures that Rome faced during the Second Punic War resulted in significant
changes to the Roman political system. For example, Rome allowed their military leaders
to have extended command and there was an expansion in the number of magistrates to
accommodate the growth of Roman territories. “But also democratic leaders lost prestige
when they could not successfully oppose Hannibal.”7 Hannibal’s dominance over the
democratic leaders was resultant in their downfall. Senators who had backed clientele
that had supported the patron were able to improve their positions within the Senate. The
Senate also imposed policy on the popular assemblies. Democracy was troubled but
Rome’s constitutional arrangements were kept.
After the Second Punic War, due to unfavourable conditions in Italy and Sicily and the
loss of so many men from agricultural occupations, Rome experienced a period of
inflation and the possibility of a grain famine. The Romans were able to find another
source of grain, from Egypt, at three times the normal price. “An additional burden was
inflation and the danger of a grain famine caused by disturbed conditions in Italy and
Sicily.”8 As many farmers were forced to enter military service during the invasion of
Hannibal, many farms were neglected or destroyed by Hannibal’s army, causing not only
the possibility of a grain famine but also the threat of inflation to compensate for poor
conditions.
One significant and lasting change to Rome as a result of the Punic Wars was an increase
in the use of slaves. Before the Second Punic War slaves, while not uncommon, were
employed on a relatively small scale. However, by the end of the second century, large
numbers of slaves were pouring into Rome, either as prisoners of war or purchased
6
Sinnegen and Boak, A History of Rome to AD 565
Roberts, Excel Ancient History Book 2
8
Sinnegen and Boak, A History of Rome to AD 565
7
abroad by the new wealthy class of Romans who now employed large staffs of domestic
servants or invested as slaves as business ventures. “They used the slaves who came onto
the market in their thousands as a result of Rome’s overseas conquests as agricultural
labourers and herdsmen.”9 The Punic Wars brought vast expansion of the Roman
Empire and with it large numbers of slaves from their various conquests.
The war with Hannibal had a number of unforeseen consequences. For fifteen years
Hannibal marched over Italian farmlands, and the legionaries who were employed to
fight against him were often farmers. Neglect and devastation left their farms in ruins and
many could not afford to repair them. Consequently, driven out soldier-farmers drifted to
the towns and cities. “And in the cities the displaced peasants and veterans returned from
the wars swelled the numbers of unemployed, without property or prospects.”10 Some
historians say that these small populations of unemployed formed never before seen
ghettos within Rome.
The Punic Wars left the Senate with increased prestige, greater wealth, and more
influence in Roman government. Rule by Senate was consolidated due to the success
with which they conducted the Second Punic War and the economic power they held
through the control of huge estates many senators established after the war. These were
known as “Latifunda” and were farmed for profitable crops by slaves. “There was a
renewed ascendancy of the Senate.”11 This renewed ascendancy came as a direct result
from their involvement and success in the Punic Wars, in particular the Second Punic
War.
Rome not only survived the period during the Punic Wars, they conquered and prospered.
This was due to the way in which Rome conducted its peace arrangements with its
defeated states and the strength of its republican institutions. A famous line concerning
Rome was that it would usually lose the first battle, but always win the last. In light of
this idea, Rome manipulated its post war dominance in order to give as well as take. The
9
Appian, Civil War I
Livy
11
Tingay and Badcock, These were the Romans, Second Edition
10
system of alliances, treaties, protectorates and provinces forged the basis of a highly
successful empire.
Bibliography:

A History of Rome to AD 565, Sinnigen and Boak

History of Rome and of the Roman People: From Its Origin to the Establishment
of the Christian Empire, Victor Duruy

Excel Ancient History Book 2, Peter Roberts

Civil War I, Appian

The Penguin History Atlas of Ancient Rome, Chris Scarre

Livy