Rome's transformation from a republic on the Italian peninsula to a vast empire was sudden and astonishing. The strength of the Roman Empire was also inseparable from Carthage, another great power on the Mediterranean coast, and Rome finally destroyed Carthage through three Punic wars, becoming the most powerful empire on the Mediterranean coast.
The First Punic War took place from 264 BC to 241 BC, and through the war with Carthage, the Romans built a powerful navy, defeated the Carthaginians, captured Sicily, and won a major victory in the First Punic War. By this time the deadly struggle between the two great powers was inevitable, the Romans spent 20 years conquering the Ceutes in the Po Valley thus increasing the number of peasants, and the soldiers' reserve army, Carthage, tightened its grip on Spain in order to compensate for the loss of Sicily.
In 218 BC, the great Carthaginian strategist Hannibal led an army across the Alps and boldly invaded Italy, thus beginning the Second Punic War, Carthage achieved great success in the Roman homeland battle, especially in the Cannes War, with few victories and many defeats to the Romans, but he ignored the loyalty of the Roman allies to Rome, thus further forcing Hannibal to not achieve the final victory in Italy, at the same time when the Roman army landed near Carthage, The invincible Hannibal was ordered to return from Italy to help, and in the local battle Hannibal was defeated, Rome once again defeated his opponents, Carthage was forced to forge a peace treaty, abandon all colonies, retain only a small piece of land, and the Second Punic War Rome won the victory. In 201 BC Carthage, despite its disastrous military defeat, achieved an extraordinary and rapid economic recovery. However, this was only to be frightened by Rome, and at the same time Rome ruthlessly launched the Third Punic War, that is, from 149 BC to 146 BC, the occupied cities of Carthage were completely destroyed, the remnants of the population were all reduced to slavery, and Carthage was destroyed.
With the victory of the three Punic wars, Rome became the number one power on the Mediterranean coast, began a frenzied expansion abroad, and finally established a large empire spanning Europe, Asia and Africa.