In 212 BC, Syracuse, which had been at its peak, was captured by the Roman army. The largest city in Sicily was immediately destroyed on the largest scale ever. Not only were tens of thousands of people taken captive to Italy sold as slaves, but the centuries-old wealth and artwork were emptied in an instant.
However, only 3 years ago, Syracuse was Rome's most important ally. It was also the strongest buffer zone for the Republic to resist Carthaginian forces to the south. But many long-standing deep-seated contradictions have contributed to a social crisis against strong partners. And then all the glory is gone.
<h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > historic regional overlord</h2>
Syracuse was an important achievement in the spread of Greek civilization
As early as the 8th century BC, Syracuse was founded by Greek immigrants from the seafaring city of Corinth. Visitors at that time did not foresee how much their crystallization would be in the future. After all, most Greek seafarers of the same period would have chosen to stay in the southern part of the Italian peninsula and build a rich city like Tallington. Instead, staying in a corner of eastern Sicily could easily be the target of the Quadripartite Strategy.
However, it is the relative embarrassment of the geographical location that allows Syracuse to practice the bitter truth of wealth and wealth. The first is that Sicily itself has a large space, making the usable land area higher than in the early Greeks or Italy. Not only did the Syracuses have plenty of room to accumulate strength, but they also had abundant food output as a means of earning foreign exchange. Coupled with the fact that the navigation technology at that time was very primitive, most merchant ships had to choose the safest economic route between land. The southeast cape of the vast island has successfully become a crossroads of the Mediterranean world. To the north it leads to Italy, Marseille or the Adriatic Sea, to the east it is accessible to mainland Greece, to the south is Malta and the entire North African continent, and to the west is Sardinia, Corsica and the Catalan coast.
Syracuse's greatest rival was Carthage from North Africa
After the 6th century BC, Syracuse soon encountered Carthage, a lifelong rival. The latter originated from the Phoenician city-states, which were naturally at odds with the Greeks, and relied on the excellent ports on the Tunisian coast to extract the rich resources of half of North Africa. After expelling the Greeks from Sardinia and Corsica, they were busy establishing colonial bases on the other side of Sicily. Similar sizes, operating models and self-positioning inevitably led them to a never-ending confrontation with Syracuse. Fortunately, the king of Sicily at that time was already a strong hand who could send a hundred warships and 20,000 army expeditions. Moreover, the human environment of the Greek world is far more suitable for the development of science and technology than the Phoenician culture that favors Asia. Therefore, no matter how the battle is won or lost, it can escape with the defense of the city.
However, Syracuse also has its own fatal flaws. As the quintessential Greek city-states, their political structure was simply ill-suited to maintaining an imperialized territorial area. Thus, the result of long-term participation in the war for hegemony is to promote the differentiation of tyrants, oligarchic elites, inner circle citizens and foreign mercenaries. They are politically interdependent, but they are competing for the cake economically. So always at the critical moment, the result of the conquest that has been working hard for a long time before disintegrating. Only a Machiavellian politician with a very high skill can sit on the country calmly. Otherwise, it may withdraw from the stage of history in the invasion of foreign enemies, internal coups or assassinations of all kinds.
The battle with Carthage left Syracuse obsessed with siege weapons and mercenaries
<h2 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > a master trader</h2>
The attack from Athens heralded more threats from Syracuse
In 415 BC, Syracuse first encountered the threat of killing from the second direction. Since their ancestors originated in Corinth, they supported the Spartan camp in the Peloponnesian War that broke out in mainland Greece. The Sicilian rations they provided were successfully hedged against The Ukrainian reserves that Athens imported from crimea. The latter, at the time of the decline of the Middle Way, launched an apocalyptic offensive against Syracuse. Although the defenders persevered stubbornly, it also exposed the sad fact that the core group was no longer good at fighting. But they still need to maintain the political manipulation of the quartet, and inevitably open the latest battlefield with the Latins on the Italian peninsula.
As a result, Syracuse could only rely on money and super high political manipulators to recruit Celtic barbarians or Macedonian soldiers to support him. But when the standing army must also be filled entirely by foreign mercenaries, any disturbance at the level of treatment can lead to terrible disasters. For example, in 264 AD, the Sons of War rebelled, crushing the citizens of their own country who had gone to conquest, and even asked for help from both Carthage and Rome at the same time. The first Punic War in history broke out because of this small bug inside Syracuse. The whole history of the world began to change channels, not to mention the Sicilian city-states that were only sandwiched between them. Fortunately, the trader at that time, Sheeran II, was a realist with a feminine personality. It was wise to hitchhik rome and become the victor of this 23-year battle.
The meeting of Carthage and Rome foreshadowed the decline of Syracuse
This cycle of history, brewed by Syracuse himself, did not end with a temporary truce. Frustrated, the Carthaginian general Hamilka demanded that his son Hannibal vow to destroy Rome. The latter also did not fail in his mission, and in 218 AD led an army into the Italian mainland. As a third-party spectator, Sheeren categorically judged that the roundabout strategy of the two sides was beneficial to Syracuse himself. Even though the Carthaginian army was victorious in the north, it always chose to be friendly to Rome, and even tailored lightly armored auxiliary units such as archers for old friends. He was also in his own country, asking the famous scientific master Archimedes to come out of the mountains to improve the original city defense system. It seems that as long as the war is deadlocked, then Syracuse can gain his life in a chaotic world.
Soon, things were radically converging in 215 BC. First, Hannibal annihilated 80,000 Roman elites at the Battle of Canny, followed by the death of the elderly Helen in Sicily. Hannibal, who began to move into southern Italy, also duly sent 2 descendants of the Syracuse exiles to persuade the new lord of the city-state to recognize the situation of the change of camp. In return, Carthage would recognize their ownership of the entire island. Hironimos, who had just ascended to the throne, obviously could not stand the ears of the anti-Roman elite at home, and instantly abandoned the foreign policy that his grandfather had maintained for many years. Although he himself was soon assassinated, Epekudes, who represented Carthaginian interests, soon bought the support of a large number of mercenaries in the outlying cities. With their return and capture of Syracuse, it was only a matter of time before the Roman army arrived.
After the outbreak of the Second Punic War, Archimedes began to manage the defense of the ancient city of Syracus
<h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > the technological legacy of the great ancestors</h2>
Syracuse's defection led Rome to send in the famous general Marcellus
In 213 AD, Marcellus, known as the Sword of Rome, led an army across the sea and landed in Sicily. Fearing that Hannibal would establish a supply route with the North African mainland through the ports of southern Italy, the Senate expected the general to be able to solve the defection alliance with less than 20,000 troops. The Syracuses, who had long been prepared, also mobilized almost all of their reserve forces to defend the city. But the citizen forces, which had been supported by Carthaginian reinforcements, were already vulnerable to a long period of battle. Soon the land and water world outside the city walls was left to the Roman army.
At this time, the biggest capital of the Syracuse defenders was the ancestral legacy accumulated over more than 200 years. Long before Frankenstein Archimedes was born, the city became the arms research and development center of the Mediterranean world. The tyrant Dionysius I, who had lured the Celtic barbarians to attack Rome, hired all kinds of technical personnel at great expense, and made advanced equipment such as torsion ballistas and trebuchets. It even standardized the specific shape of the moving siege tower, which directly affected the technicians under Marcellus.
A map of the defense of the ancient city of Syracuse drawn by the modern author
More importantly, he also presided over the construction of a 27-kilometer-long outer wall that encircled all the strategic sites outside the old city of Syracuse. Finally, there is Fort Julia Rose, at the westernmost point, which acts as a defensive fulcrum for guarding the most dangerous passages.
Faced with such an opponent who is accustomed to being besieged, Marcellus's legion is bound to use all its strength. They plundered the countryside like the Carthaginians of the past, and they would imitate the Athenian method of blocking the passage between land and sea. With the progressive development of engineering technology, larger and better siege weapons are manufactured and used. Coupled with the non-attack of the Carthaginian reinforcement fleet, Archimedes' hometown was completely locked.
The port with the lower walls was a key assault area for the Roman army
However, because of the huge interior space, the Syracuses also had enough space to maintain basic production. Coupled with years of habitual material reserves, there are plenty of confrontations to delay capital. If the Roman army did not break through the walls as soon as possible, it would have to be nailed to the ground. This forced Marcellus to intensify his offensive and prepare to use eight siamese equipped with siege towers to open the way for the entire fleet and attack the port area with low height of the city wall.
The fierce battles that followed became a super miracle in the history of ancient human warfare. Archimedes, who had been carefully preparing for many years, had already applied all his physical talents to the city defense system. Facing the ordinary 5-oared battleships that served as vanguards, the large ballista he built could fire heavy arrows as thick as tree stumps, directly shattering the wooden hulls of the Romans. The destructive power is so great that no other weapons are required to carry out secondary repairs.
Archimedes designed large anti-ship lever weapons
In between the firing of these super catapult weapons, the defenders would also extend huge grappling hooks, pinning the bow of the Roman warship. Simple and effective lever movements are then implemented with the help of complex pulleys. Lift the second group of enemy ships and plunge them into the sea. When Marcellus brought in the huge floating siege tower, it was immediately bombarded by about 570 pounds of heavy bombs thrown by the special trebuchet, and the entire platform was smashed into pieces. And more miniature weapons of the same kind also attacked the Sniper Legion on the land walls. Relying on various types of ballistas deployed in advance by Archimedes, continuous fire suppression at different distances was formed. In the end, let the arrogant opponent deserve to retreat.
As for the burning canvas bridge section that reflects the eyes with mirrors, it has been confirmed by contemporary scholars as an exaggeration. The bronze mirror of the classical era did not have the concentrating performance of the industrialized glass of later generations, and it could not promote the spontaneous combustion effect of the sail. The biggest use is to interfere with the enemy's line of sight, heat up specific targets, and then complete the arson with the arrows that are lit.
Archimedes, a modern painter, commanded the defenders to operate light weapons
But this kind of wind-catching technology toy still gave the Romans, who had never encountered such stubborn resistance, a headache. They could only shift their offensive focus to other parts of Sicily, eliminating Phoenician towns or Syracuse's outlying territories that were also rebellious against Rome. It was not until the headquarters of Syracuse was exposed due to the size of the city that it was targeted by Marcellus, who had been observing for a long time.
In 212 BC, the inhabitants of Syracuse were busy celebrating the celebration of the goddess Diana. The Roman elite seized the opportunity to climb the city wall from a weakly defended tower. Because the city is too large, the military and civilians in many other areas will be unaware of this. When more legions rushed in after dawn, many of the cities, far apart from each other, fell apart. Although the defenders remained in Julia Rossburg for another 8 months, they could no longer have any impact on the settlement of Syracuse and Sicily as a whole.
Archimedean's design of various weapons allowed Syracuse to hold out for a year
< h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > the turn of the two eras</h2>
After the fall of Syracuse, he was severely damaged by the Roman army
With the fall of Syracuse, most of the members of the anti-Roman faction, including the careerist Epicuredes, were killed. Even the surviving population, 30,000 were taken into slavery, bidding farewell to their once prosperous homeland forever. Archimedes, who was still thinking about physical problems at home, naturally could not escape this fate. In fact, it was precisely because of his excellent performance that the Roman soldiers who broke through the city were so angry. Only Marcellus, who has always admired Greek culture, will stand on the walls of the city with tears and witness the destruction of the city, paying tribute to the great civilization he recognized throughout his life.
But the must-win victory of the Roman sword is entirely an important sign of the turning of the page of history into a new chapter. The growing strength of the Republic has begun to continue to expand beyond Central Italy, crushing any opponent who leads the provocation. The Previous Samonets, Ligurians, Etruscans and Tallington Greeks had already tasted this taste in advance.
Archimedes, who was pondering the scientific puzzle before his death
Syracuse was even more unfortunate, looking straight at a stronger form of Rome that no one had ever encountered or understood. The entire siege weapon technology of the latter, if not derived from the original sicilian pearl, is improved by local craftsmen. Unfortunately, no amount of Archimedes can hide the weakness and loopholes of the whole world. This is also a picture that every time history advances to a specific time, it cannot be forcibly reversed.
Of course, the fall of Syracuse and Sicily also meant that the Carthaginian soils of North Africa would lose their geographical barriers. In the past, the Tunisian Senate always had reservations about full-scale participation in the war, and was happy to see the Hannibal family fight alone. But the upright Romans did not have the heart to speculate on the internal political ecology of the Punic bandits. When he had spare energy, he would certainly send the expeditionary force to the Tunisian coast. In this regard, the result of the Battle of Syracuse was that Rome laid the most solid foundation for the victory of the entire war.