Carthaginia And Rome Compare And Contrast

In ancient history, Carthage was the leader in western Mediterranean and Rome the leader in the Italian peninsula were two great empires of the west. Carthage was the first foreign power with which Rome came in contact with out of Italy. Carthage and Rome were two great rivals that nearly equal resources and strength (Morey, 1901). Rome had a much better organizational structure while Carthage was wealthier. Rome had a better army while Carthage had a very powerful navy. Both fought wars to have control over the Western Mediterranean. In this essay, will discuss how Carthage became almost equal to Rome. We shall next compare the strength of both powers.
Carthage was founded as a Phoenician colony near modern Tunis, northern Africa. According …show more content…
The Carthaginians attacked the Romans in an attempt to regain their lost towns, in doing so they ravaged the coast of Italy. The Romans discovered that the Carthaginians had bigger sea vessels that carried more people and ammunition. The Romans were faced with either giving up or building an equal or bigger vessel than that of the Carthaginians. According to Natason (2011), “the Romans took a Carthaginian model of vessel and in sixty days build a hundred vessels”. Because the Roman soldiers were better than that of the Carthaganians on hand to hand, they now trained their soldiers as sailors. With this the Romans now ventured into the sea as a rival to the Carthaginians as the Queen of the Seas.
In conclusion, though Carthage and Rome in the ancient times were two great forces to reckon with, Carthage had an extensive trading empire in the Western Mediterranean, and colonies in Sicily and Sardinia. Rome as yet had not expanded its territory outside of the Italian mainland peninsula. Rome realized that for it to conquer Carthage it must be able to battle and take supremacy in the sea. The Romans learned this art and skill and this enabled it to defeat the