The First Punic War - OverSimplified (Part 1) — Full Transcript

0:42

- [Dad] It bloody well is!

0:44

- [Timulus] Well, I was just wondering,

0:45

what makes us so great?

0:47

How did we come to be?

0:49

- [Dad] Wow. My son!

0:52

Boy, let me take you on a journey to this side of the room.

0:57

The story of Rome begins with these beautiful baby boys

1:02

going to town on some she-wolf mommy milkers.

1:04

- [Timulus] That's gross.

1:05

- [Dad] You're gross!

1:06

Sorry, son.

1:07

You're not gross. I love you.

1:09

They're called Romulus and Remus and when they grew up,

1:13

in 753 BC, they founded Rome

1:17

But there was just one problem.

1:19

They couldn't agree on which of them should be the king.

1:21

- [Timulus] But they worked it out peacefully, right?

1:24

- [Dad] Oh, heavens no!

1:25

Romulus caved Remus's skull in with a shovel.

1:27

Here's a picture.

1:28

- [Timulus] Our first king committed fratricide?

1:31

- [Dad] I know, look at his face!

1:33

- [Timulus] When's the part where we become

1:34

the greatest civilization, Dad?

1:36

- [Dad] Well, you see, at first Rome was full of men.

1:39

- Oh yeah! - I'm talking

1:40

like a real sausage party.

1:41

You know what I mean?

1:42

- [Timulus] Yes, sir.

1:43

- [Dad] So we invited some neighboring cities over

1:43

for a big feast and then we literally kidnapped all

1:47

of their women.

1:48

Here's a picture.

1:49

(laughs) Look at that one. She's like, bah!

1:54

(Dad laughs) - This is messed up.

1:55

- [Dad] You're messed up!

1:56

Ugh, sorry, sorry. I'll be a better father.

2:00

I promise.

2:01

So then, finally, after centuries of monarchy,

2:04

those tyrannical kings started getting a little too big

2:07

for their britches, so we overthrew the kings

2:09

and established Rome as a republic.

2:11

- [Timulus] Is that when all the killing stopped?

2:13

- [Dad] Oh, heavens no!

2:14

That's when the killing surged, baby!

2:16

We went wild and conquered the Latin League,

2:19

the Samnites, the Etruscans!

2:21

Woo, what a rush!

2:22

- [Timulus] Dad, Rome seems pretty barbaric.

2:25

- [Dad] You're barbaric!

2:26

Oh, I forgot to tell you about the time a prophet

2:28

told Saturn his son would one day overthrow him.

2:30

So Saturn literally ate his own son,

2:34

seconds after he was born.

2:36

- [Timulus] I don't wanna see a picture.

2:37

- [Dad] Here's a picture.

2:38

- [Timulus] Dad! Look at that!

2:40

- [Dad] Hmm?

2:41

- [Timulus] That's messed up, man.

2:42

Are we really this uncivilized?

2:43

- [Dad] Hey, hey, if we were so uncivilized,

2:46

would we use communal toilets where we all fart

2:48

and poo together in one big stinky, steamy,

2:50

dirty toilet room?

2:51

- [Timulus] Yeah, dad, we would!

2:53

- [Dad] Clean your butt with the sponge, Timulus!

2:55

- [Timulus] But all these guys just used it.

2:57

- [Roman] What's wrong with your son, bro?

2:58

- [Timulus] I don't wanna be Roman. This is so weird.

3:01

- [Dad] You're weird!

3:02

Sorry, you're not weird. I'm sure you're probably fine.

3:06

Huh?

3:08

(Timulus screams)

3:16

- [OverSimplified] The Roman Republic, the nation that,

3:18

since its foundation, had been stabbing necks

3:21

all the way down the Italian peninsula.

3:23

But this isn't the famous Roman Empire

3:25

that ruled the known world.

3:26

Not yet, anyway.

3:27

This is a relatively juvenile Rome,

3:30

(Rome passes gas) still just a regional power.

3:31

In 264 BC, the big daddy of the Western Mediterranean

3:36

was Carthage.

3:37

Let's rewind a bit.

3:39

Carthage was founded in 814 BC when some Phoenicians in Tyre

3:43

had mega surplus of goods and decided to export those goods

3:47

across the Mediterranean.

3:48

They became the dominant trading power in the region

3:51

and to support their growing trade network,

3:53

the Phoenicians established a number of colonies,

3:56

one of which was Carthage.

3:58

Therefore, Carthage began its life

4:00

as a Phoenician trade colony

4:02

and the Carthaginians were actually Phoenicians,

4:05

or, if you're a Latin speaking Roman, they were Punic,

4:09

hence the name of the video.

4:10

- Oh! - Over the centuries,

4:12

Carthage gradually expanded

4:13

and became the region's base of power.

4:15

Just like Rome, Carthage was a semi-democratic Republic

4:18

with its own Senate and Judiciary.

4:21

But there were also some pretty hefty differences

4:23

between the two.

4:24

While Rome was big into farming and stabbing people

4:26

in the neck, the Carthaginians, on the other hand,

4:29

just like their Phoenician forefathers,

4:31

had built their power through trade

4:33

and navigating the waves.

4:35

They went here and there, selling ivory tusks,

4:38

gold, and slaves.

4:40

And as a result, (Carthaginians cheer)

4:41

they were rolling in it.

4:44

Whenever they weren't busy swimming around

4:45

in their copious hoards of money, in their spare time,

4:48

they also possibly enjoyed sacrificing their children

4:51

to Ba'al, the God of, let me just check my notes,

4:54

ah, yes, plant fertility.

4:57

- [Farmer] Oh boy, these figs aren't looking too hot.

4:59

Maybe if I throw my son into a burning pit of fire,

5:02

they'll grow.

5:03

- [Son] Have you tried watering them, Dad?

5:05

- [Farmer] Hmm.

5:07

No, we'll try that second.

5:08

- [OverSimplified] As a result of all their trading,

5:10

Carthage had emerged as one

5:11

of the Mediterranean superpowers.

5:13

"But wait," they said.

5:15

"Rome? What the heck is that?"

5:17

Well, I know it's a pretty obscure little country

5:20

that you've probably never heard of,

5:22

but this spunky young nation was about

5:24

to upset the entire region's balance of power.

5:27

Initially, the two sites enjoyed

5:28

relatively friendly relations

5:30

and it even signed a couple treaties.

5:32

But it was a relationship that was practically destined

5:35

to turn sour.

5:37

See, Rome had a thing where they liked

5:39

to aggressively expand their boundaries,

5:41

often viewing such expansion as a defensive act.

5:44

Kind of like when you could kill your neighbor

5:46

because you knew eventually they would've tried

5:48

to kill you first.

5:50

Meanwhile, Carthage was extremely protective

5:52

of its wealthy trade network.

5:54

So if you put a very strategically important island

5:57

between them, well, two plus two equals war.

6:01

Tensions rose and the two sides began viewing each other

6:05

with increasing disdain.

6:07

The hardworking Romans looked across the water

6:09

at the money-hungry Carthaginians and said,

6:11

"Look at those dishonest crooks.

6:13

Bet they've never done an honest day's work in their lives!"

6:16

And the Carthaginians looked back and said,

6:18

"Look at those simple-minded brutes.

6:20

Bet they've never sacrificed a baby in their lives!"

6:22

"Yeah!"

6:24

While war between the two superpowers seemed inevitable,

6:27

the event that finally triggered it was a little unexpected.

6:30

The whole thing began with a few simple mad lads

6:33

on a wild night out.

6:35

These mad lads are called the Mamertines.

6:38

They were Italian mercenaries employed

6:40

by the tyrant of Syracuse, here.

6:42

But when he died, his successor said,

6:45

"Sorry, fellas, we don't need any big burly men

6:47

with sharp sticks anymore.

6:48

You can all go home."

6:49

- [Mamertines] Aw.

6:51

- [OverSimplified] The Mamertines, as it turned out,

6:53

didn't want to go home.

6:54

So instead, they went to the nearby town of Messana

6:56

and said, "Hey man, we are but poor little buff boys

7:00

without a home.

7:01

May we come in?"

7:02

- [Guard] Aw, poor fellas. Sure thing!

7:05

Ah, ah, just so long as you promise

7:08

not to massacre all of us.

7:09

- [Mamertines] (laugh) We promise!

7:14

- [OverSimplified] The Mamertines

7:14

then massacred all of them.

7:15

Well, not all of them, just the men.

7:18

And they stole their homes and families.

7:20

- [Mamertine] Ha, this is my house now!

7:23

This is my Best Dad Ever mug now!

7:25

And you guys are my new family!

7:27

Son, wanna go play catch with your old papa?

7:31

- [Son] You're not my real dad!

7:32

- [Mamertine] Ugh, teenagers, am I right, dear?

7:35

- [Woman] You're not my real husband.

7:37

- [Mamertine] Ugh, I'm so trapped in this marriage.

7:40

- [Woman] Then get out!

7:43

- [Mamertine] No.

7:44

- [OverSimplified] Messana was now controlled

7:45

by the Mamertines and they began raiding

7:47

up and down the Syracuse coastline.

7:49

When the new ruler of Syracuse saw this, he wasn't happy.

7:52

The Syracusans began fighting back and in response,

7:56

the Mamertines said, "Oh, crap, they're fighting back?

7:59

What do we do?"

8:00

- [Mamertine] Quick, we'll convince the Carthaginians

8:02

to come and save us.

8:04

Oh no! We're in trouble!

8:07

And we need a big, strong empire to come

8:10

and rub our bellies.

8:12

- [Mamertine Leader] Why are you saying it like that?

8:14

- [Mamertine] If I was a big, strong empire,

8:16

I think I'd like to be seduced.

8:18

(Carthaginians murmur)

8:19

See, it's working!

8:23

- [OverSimplified] The Carthaginians had long dreamed

8:24

of controlling all of Sicily.

8:25

They had been fighting Syracuse and their Greek influence

8:28

on the island for centuries

8:29

and now here was a great opportunity

8:31

to get one over on them.

8:33

So Carthage promptly answered the Mamertines's cry for help

8:35

and sent a force to garrison Messana.

8:38

As it turned out, however, some within the ranks

8:40

of the Mamertines weren't too happy

8:41

with the occupying Carthaginians

8:43

and they sent out a second cry for help to Rome.

8:46

When it reached the Roman Senate,

8:48

they were a little more hesitant.

8:50

Going to help the Mamertines ran the risk

8:52

of triggering an all-out war with Carthage

8:55

and they had only just finished

8:56

conquering the Italian peninsula,

8:58

so they were kind of tired.

8:59

Plus the Mamertines were all the way across the water.

9:02

They had never made a leap like that before.

9:05

So you would assume that to avoid any conflict

9:07

with Carthage, the exhausted Romans

9:09

would probably sit this one out,

9:11

But you would assume wrong.

9:14

Rome just couldn't resist a good chance for war. Why?

9:19

Well, there's something you gotta understand about Rome.

9:22

See, as a Republic, they were hell-bent

9:24

on preventing any one man from ever gaining too much power.

9:28

And so rather than having one leader,

9:30

Rome had two, called Consuls, who shared power.

9:33

These Consuls could also only serve for one year at a time

9:36

before new Consuls were elected.

9:38

These measures, to limit the powers of the Consuls,

9:41

were noble, but had an interesting side effect.

9:44

The Consuls knew they had just one year

9:47

to try and gain as much glory and prestige as possible,

9:50

something that was very important in Roman society.

9:54

And the best way of gaining glory and prestige?

9:56

Military victory, of course.

9:59

The Roman political system basically ended up

10:01

encouraging these Consuls to go out and be as aggressive

10:05

as your Italian grandmother

10:07

when you don't eat all the spaghett.

10:09

And so the glory-seeking Consuls convinced the people

10:12

to vote in favor of going to Messana.

10:15

And in they went.

10:17

Upon the arrival of the Romans,

10:19

the Carthaginians in the city, amongst the confusion,

10:22

were forced to leave.

10:23

Now in contrast to Roman aggression,

10:25

the Carthaginian military

10:26

had a slightly different philosophy.

10:29

- [Teacher] All right, kids, listen up.

10:31

If you wanna grow up to be Carthaginian military leaders,

10:33

there's a few things you have to understand.

10:36

If you fail to succeed on the battlefield,

10:38

that's a crucifixion.

10:39

Showing cowardice, that's a crucifixion.

10:42

- [Warrior] Hello, sir.

10:43

- [Teacher] Huh? What are you doing here?

10:45

Aren't you meant to be in Messana?

10:46

- [Warrior] Yeah, but the Romans showed up.

10:48

- [Teacher] So you just left?

10:50

- [Warrior] Sure did.

10:52

- [Teacher] Oh, you better believe that's a crucifixion.

10:55

(class cheers)

10:57

- [OverSimplified] The Roman Consuls were awarded

10:58

for victory and therefore tended

11:00

to be aggressive go-getters.

11:02

By contrast, the Carthaginian generals

11:04

were brutally punished for failure

11:06

and so they tended to be more cautious and restrained.

11:09

This dynamic is helpful for understanding some

11:12

of the crazy things that happened during the Punic Wars.

11:15

So the Romans have crossed over to Messana

11:18

and now there was some red on the island.

11:21

Hit that panic button.

11:22

(crowd screams)

11:24

This turn of events was unacceptable

11:26

to both Carthage and Syracuse.

11:28

So the traditional enemies teamed up

11:30

to kick the Romans off their island.

11:32

They surrounded the city and said,

11:34

"Hey, you jerks, this isn't your island!

11:37

Come out of there at once!"

11:39

- [Romans] Okay, we're coming!

11:41

- [Carthaginian] See, Phil.

11:41

You just gotta speak with authority.

11:43

That's what being an alpha male's all about.

11:46

- [Romans] Hey man.

11:48

- [Carthaginian] Oh, you brought your weapons and armor?

11:50

No, I didn't mean. Oh, crap.

11:53

- [OverSimplified] Out the Roman legions came

11:55

to engage the Carthaginians in battle

11:58

and they sent them packing.

12:00

With the battle of Messana, whether intended or not,

12:03

by going to help the Mamertines,

12:05

the two sides had just slipped into an all-out war.

12:10

With the initial Roman victory, towns across Sicily,

12:14

including Syracuse began switching allegiance.

12:17

Because being a winner is more fun.

12:20

But the Carthaginians weren't about

12:21

to just give up that easily.

12:23

In 262 BC, they began building up their forces

12:27

at Agrigentum.

12:28

So the Romans, being aggressive go-getters,

12:30

aggressively go got them.

12:32

The Romans immediately laid siege,

12:34

hoping to starve out the Carthaginian garrison.

12:37

However, because this was the first time Rome

12:39

had been fighting outside the Italian peninsula,

12:42

across the water, they struggled to supply their forces.

12:45

And before long, the Romans were

12:47

as starving as the Carthaginians they were besieging.

12:51

They had to forage for food, leaving them open to ambush.

12:54

And when Carthaginian reinforcement arrived,

12:57

creating a double siege, things got really bad.

13:00

Everybody starved each other for months

13:02

until nobody could take it anymore

13:04

and they all finally came out for battle, which Rome won.

13:08

- [War Counselor] Here's the report

13:09

from the recent siege at Agrigentum, sir.

13:11

- [Senate Member] We killed 30,000

13:13

while only suffering 7,000 losses?

13:16

That's amazing! We're the best!

13:18

- [War Counselor] Yes, sir.

13:19

Whoops, those are the wrong way around.

13:21

- [Senate Member] What? We lost 30,000?

13:24

We're the worst! But we won, right?

13:27

- [War Counselor] Yes, sir.

13:28

- [Senate Member] But we also got our asses kicked?

13:31

- [War Counselor] Yes, sir.

13:32

- [Senate Member] So are we the best or the worst?

13:35

- [War Counselor] Yes, sir.

13:36

(Senate murmurs)

13:37

- [OverSimplified] The Romans wanted Agrigentum

13:39

because they were aggressive go-getters

13:41

and they now began eyeing up the possibility

13:43

of conquering the entire island.

13:45

But they also suffered very heavy losses

13:48

and it was clear they couldn't sustain a campaign

13:51

if they couldn't supply their troops.

13:53

Here's the issue. Sicily was an island.

13:56

Islands are surrounded by water.

13:59

A strong navy would be vital for supplying troops

14:02

and winning the war.

14:03

Here was Carthage's navy and here was Rome's.

14:08

(water splashes) I think you

14:09

can see the problem.

14:10

Historians debate just how much naval experience Rome

14:13

had at this point.

14:15

Presumably, they must have had something

14:17

to defend their shoreline.

14:18

But whatever it was, it would've paled in comparison

14:22

to the Carthaginian juggernaut.

14:24

And so Rome had to figure out exactly what to do

14:27

about all this water.

14:29

- [Roman General] Come on, men!

14:30

We're not gonna let some pansy,

14:32

candy-ass water get in the way

14:33

of our glorious victory against Carthage!

14:36

Charge!

14:39

(Roman General sputters)

14:41

Tell my kids I love them!

14:46

- [Roman Leader] We're gonna need a bigger boat.

14:48

- [Roman Warrior] What's a boat?

14:49

- [Roman Leader] I don't know.

14:50

- [OverSimplified] If the Romans wanted to win this war

14:52

and obtain Sicily, there was only one thing for them to do.

14:56

- [Roman General] I guess we're just gonna have

14:57

to go ahead and build ourselves a war fleet, aren't we?

15:00

- [Hank] From scratch?

15:01

- [Roman General] From scratch.

15:02

- [Hank] But we don't even know how,

15:04

never mind how to fight with one.

15:05

- [Roman General] Don't worry, Hank.

15:07

We're up to the challenge. Come on, guys.

15:09

We're Romans and Romans aren't afraid of anything! (screams)

15:13

- [OverSimplified] And so the Romans worked long and hard,

15:15

trying to figure out how on earth you actually built

15:18

the latest style of warship.

15:19

In the end, they had a bit of luck on their side.

15:22

A Carthaginian quinquireme ended up

15:24

accidentally grounding on Italian soil.

15:26

The Romans found it and copied the design.

15:29

While the new fleet was being built,

15:31

the Romans trained rowers on land and, would you believe it,

15:34

the Romans put together a full fighting fleet

15:37

of 120 warships in just two months, a staggering feat.

15:43

Now, I know what you're thinking.

15:45

"But OverSimplified, if the Romans can build a war fleet

15:48

from scratch in two months,

15:49

then why does it take you half a year to make a video?"

15:52

Well, my valued subscriber, I think you should shut up.

15:57

- [Carthaginian General] What the heck?

15:58

How on earth did the Romans learn how to build a war fleet?

16:02

This shouldn't be happening!

16:04

- [Carl] From what I hear,

16:05

they copied the design from us, sir.

16:07

- [Carthaginian General] Well, how on earth

16:08

did they get the blueprint, Carl?

16:10

- [Carl] I don't know, sir.

16:12

But I'll tell you what.

16:13

If you're worried about people stealing your data?

16:15

- [Carthaginian General] No.

16:16

- [Carl] And you wanna protect yourself

16:17

from outside threats--

16:18

- [Carthaginian General] Don't you dare!

16:19

- [Carl] Then you, my friend--

16:20

- [Carthaginian General] If you mention NordVPN,

16:21

I'll scream!

16:23

- Should use NordVPN! (Carthaginian General screams)

16:26

- [OverSimplified] Do you like corporations

16:27

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16:30

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16:32

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16:35

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And as always, you'll be supporting my channel.

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So thank you.

17:24

Now, where were we?

17:26

Oh yeah, the siege at Agrigentum, supply issues,

17:29

and building a war fleet.

17:32

So now the Romans have a navy and it's time

17:35

to put it to the test.

17:37

But how does one wage ancient naval warfare?

17:40

Easy! (bell dings)

17:41

All of the ships had giant bronze rams on the front,

17:43

so all you had to do was out-maneuver the enemy

17:46

and give them the jimmies.

17:47

Easy as pie.

17:49

And so the aggressive Romans set out

17:51

for some good old fashioned jimmy-giving.

17:54

The Consul Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio set out for the town

17:58

of Lipara, believing the garrison there wanted

18:00

to join the Romans.

18:01

As he entered the harbor, however, he found himself trapped

18:05

by a Carthaginian fleet and, in the following skirmish,

18:08

he was completely outmatched.

18:11

The Romans may have had a brand new fleet,

18:13

but when it came to engaging in actual combat,

18:16

their inexperience showed.

18:18

There was just something better

18:19

about the Carthaginian ships.

18:21

The Carthaginian rowers had nicer abs.

18:24

The entire Carthaginian Empire had been built

18:27

on expert seamanship.

18:29

So when it came to water, the Carthaginians were better

18:33

and the Romans were wetter.

18:35

In their initial skirmish, the Romans were beaten so badly

18:39

that the Consul, Scipio, was given a nickname, Asina.

18:43

And if you're wondering what that means, just drop the -ina.

18:46

(donkey hee-haws)

18:47

So what were the Romans to do?

18:49

How could they possibly stand up

18:51

to this Carthaginian superpower?

18:53

Well, there's something you gotta understand

18:57

about the Romans.

18:58

Back when they found that Carthaginian ship

19:00

and copied its design, that wasn't a one-off thing.

19:03

Copying their enemies was as Roman as punishing murderers

19:07

by sewing them into a leather pouch with a monkey, snake,

19:09

and rooster and then throwing them into a river,

19:12

which is a thing they did.

19:13

Wait, what was I talking about?

19:15

Oh yeah, copying their enemies.

19:17

Many of the most famous Roman inventions

19:20

were actually borrowed.

19:21

Aqueducts, chariot racing, their gods.

19:24

Even in warfare, the Romans would get pierced

19:27

by a Sabine javelin and they'd be like, "Wow!"

19:30

They'd get hacked to bits by an Iberian sword

19:32

and they'd be like, "Wow!"

19:34

And they'd copy the designs for themselves.

19:37

However, they wouldn't just copy it.

19:39

They would advance it, finding ways to adapt it

19:42

as perfectly as possible.

19:45

And in the case of naval warfare, the Romans realized

19:48

if they wanted to beat the Carthaginians at their own game,

19:51

they would have to adapt.

19:53

The Romans excelled at combat on land, not on water.

19:57

"But what if," they said, "We could somehow

20:00

turn a sea battle into a land battle?"

20:03

Sounds crazy, right?

20:05

Well, they made a couple of tweaks

20:08

to their warship and--

20:09

- [Carthaginian General] Look, here they come again!

20:12

They must love getting their asses kicked!

20:14

- [Carthaginian] Uh, sir, almost that tall thing

20:16

sticking out of their ships?

20:18

- [Carthaginian General] (laughs) They really are idiots!

20:23

Look at that thing! That'll make them blow over!

20:26

I mean, look at... (laughs)

20:30

Bob, get your camera out!

20:34

(laughs) Take a picture of it.

20:39

I mean, how stupid can you be?

20:41

Let's just add a big wooden tower to our ship

20:44

that'll weigh us down and blow us over in the wind!

20:49

I mean, what does that thing even do?

20:51

(ship crunches)

20:52

(men yell)

20:56

- [OverSimplified] The Romans had built

20:57

a big swinging spiked gangway called the Corvus.

21:01

So when the Carthaginian ships approached to ram them,

21:03

the Romans would just slam them.

21:06

The Carthaginians tried going around. No problem.

21:09

The Corvus could swivel.

21:11

Try going behind, the Romans would huddle to the coastline.

21:14

It was foolproof. (Romans cheer)

21:17

Those big sexy Carthaginian rowing muscles

21:19

could flex all they want, but they were no match

21:22

for the Roman mind.

21:24

So ladies, you see?

21:26

What really matters is what's on the inside.

21:30

Please go out with me.

21:31

And with that, the Romans, who had only just recently

21:34

began dabbling in the art of naval combat,

21:37

thanks to their ingenious Corvus, had just managed

21:40

to outclass the Mediterranean seafaring superpower.

21:44

The Carthaginians were stunned.

21:46

And the general in charge

21:48

of the defeated Carthaginian fleet?

21:50

Well, you better believe that's a crucifixion.

21:54

(kids cheer)

21:56

With their newfound control of the seas,

21:58

the Romans could now more easily blockade coastal cities

22:01

and supply their legions on land.

22:03

Surely the Romans were now free

22:05

to unleash their aggression all over the island.

22:09

- [Roman General] Haha! Hey Carthaginians!

22:11

What are you gonna do now that we're free

22:13

to rampage across the island?

22:15

- [Carthaginian General] We're gonna go inside these walls

22:17

and close this gate.

22:20

- [Roman General] Oh, come on guys.

22:21

Stop messing around. Come out so we can kill you!

22:23

- [Carthaginian General] No.

22:24

- [Roman General] Oh, come on!

22:25

- [Carthaginian General] No.

22:27

- [Roman General] Oh no!

22:29

- [OverSimplified] To counter the new Romans supremacy,

22:31

the Carthaginians decided to engage

22:33

in a defensive war of attrition,

22:35

forcing the Romans to engage in siege after lengthy siege.

22:38

The war in Sicily became a long, hard, back and forth slug.

22:43

One by one, cities slowly fell as the Romans gained ground.

22:47

Occasionally, the Carthaginians countered

22:49

and even pushed them back,

22:51

only for the Romans to rebound again.

22:53

And whenever a city did finally fall,

22:55

the Romans could delight

22:57

in slaughtering the entire population

22:59

and selling any survivors into slavery,

23:02

which was pretty standard procedure at the time.

23:04

In general, the campaign on land was progressing much slower

23:08

than the Romans had hoped.

23:09

And quite frankly, they were getting sick of it.

23:12

So in 256 BC, they decided that something had to change.

23:18

- [Marcus] Hey everyone, my name's Marcus Atilius Regulus

23:21

and I'll be one of your Consuls for this year.

23:23

Look as I'm sure you all know,

23:25

Sicily's being a bit of a drag.

23:27

Sure, I could go and spend my entire year as Consul

23:30

besieging one single city, but they'll never make

23:32

a naked statue of me for that.

23:34

So here's the new plan.

23:36

I'm gonna skip Sicily entirely, take my army,

23:39

and go right for the heart of Carthage itself.

23:42

I'll slaughter the men, enslave all the women and children,

23:45

and when I return, you'll all build

23:48

1,000 naked statues of me.

23:50

(crowd cheers)

23:53

- [Jim] Marcus, that woman and children stuff.

23:56

That seems pretty evil and barbaric.

23:58

- [Marcus] No, Jim, it's perfectly normal

24:00

in the ancient world.

24:01

Sometimes we even chop their pets in half.

24:03

(crowd cheers)

24:05

- [Carthaginian General] Okay guys, looks like the Romans

24:07

are coming straight for us this time.

24:09

And what will they do when they get here?

24:10

They'll kill us all.

24:12

(crowd gasps)

24:13

They'll massacre each and every last one of us.

24:14

They may even chop our pets in half.

24:16

- [Rob] That's barbaric!

24:18

- [Carthaginian General] No, Rob,

24:19

it's actually pretty normal for the time.

24:20

We'd do the same to them.

24:22

- [Mary] Who will protect us?

24:23

- [Carthaginian General] Funny you should ask, Mary.

24:25

That's kind of why I called this meeting.

24:27

Who will protect us?

24:29

Protect our families, our homes, our children?

24:35

You guys? Ha, don't make me laugh.

24:40

Why, you're just a bunch of stupid and weak farmers.

24:45

Simple-minded buffoons, cowards, fools.

24:50

Rob here thinks enslaving women and children is barbaric.

24:54

You're a snowflake, Rob. Yes, you are.

24:58

The fact is if the Romans manage to land on African soil,

25:03

we're all gonna die a terrifying, hideous,

25:09

unspeakably painful death.

25:16

- [Rob] Is that the end of that speech?

25:19

- [Carthaginian General] Yes.

25:20

(crowd screams)

25:24

- [OverSimplified] The Carthaginians had to stop the Romans

25:26

from ever landing in Africa because they believed

25:29

that would be the end.

25:30

So as the Romans were building an invasion fleet

25:32

the size of which the world had never seen before,

25:35

the Carthaginians were preparing an even bigger one

25:38

to stop them.

25:39

And in 256 BC, as the Roman invasion fleet

25:43

made its way south, the stage was set

25:45

for a humongous battle that saw 680 warships,

25:50

around 300,000 men, fighting to decide

25:53

the course of the war.

25:55

To this day, the Battle of Cape Ecnomus

25:57

remains possibly the largest naval battle in human history,

26:02

all the way back in ancient times.

26:04

So the next time your granddad tells you

26:06

about the time he sank a Japanese aircraft carrier,

26:09

kick him in the nuts.

26:10

The Romans had a lot riding on this battle.

26:12

They weren't just sending their warships,

26:14

but transports as well, full of supplies and horses

26:17

for their invasion of Africa.

26:19

They therefore formed a protective wedge-like formation

26:22

to punch through the long, thin Carthaginian line.

26:25

The Carthaginian generals, however, desperate

26:28

to prevent the Romans from reaching Africa,

26:30

had a plan of their own.

26:32

As the Roman fleet approached, the Carthaginian center

26:35

feigned a retreat luring the Romans in

26:38

so their outstretched flanks could envelop them

26:41

and get around the Roman Corvus, a clever plan.

26:45

But with such a huge battle

26:47

and so many ships crowded together,

26:49

the Carthaginians struggled to maneuver as hoped

26:52

and in the chaos, three separate battles emerged

26:56

across the huge battle space.

26:58

With the number of ships limiting their ability to maneuver,

27:01

the Carthaginians became sitting ducks

27:04

and all the Romans had to do was start swinging.

27:07

The Roman center came out on top and were then able

27:10

to turn around and rescue their pinned-down flanks.

27:13

The battle of Cape Ecnomus was a Roman victory.

27:20

(epic music)

The First Punic War - OverSimplified (Part 1)

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