Dusmanul la Poarta!-Partea-25!

 1-Acest articol este copiat !

2-Istoria ramane pasiunea mea nr-1.

“No sooner had he arrived, the old soldiers fancied they saw Hamilcar in his youth given back to them; the same bright look; the same fire in his eye, the same trick of countenance and features. Never was one and the same spirit more skilful to meet opposition, to obey, or to command.”

Hamilcar Barca’s conquest of Iberia continued as he moved east from Gades (Cadiz) to Caper Nao. He met fierce resistance from the native Celtiberians, but four years of constant campaigning saw him subdue the area. His campaigns saw Hamilcar forge a professional army of Celtiberians, Gauls, Libyans, Africans and Numidians. By 231 BC Hamilcar had consolidated his gains and established the city of Akra Leuke (Alicante) to guard his Punic possessions, also assuming control of the Massalian colonies at the mouth of the River Sucro. What Hamilcar had built in Iberia was his own personal kingdom, only nominally linked to Carthage. He was a general with an army he had no authority to continue campaigning with, and whose troops swore loyalty to him personally, rather than the Carthaginian state. He still had opponents at home, though regular payments of silver ensure their voices were drowned out.

The people of Massalia were alarmed by Carthaginian expansion in the region, and appealed to their alley – Rome. At this time Rome was struugling to quell native unrest in Sardinia, Corsica and Liguria having violated their treaty with Carthage to seize the rebellious islands. Rome suspected Carthage of supporting the rebels against them, though threats to the Senate could provide little pretext for war without proof. In 231 BC a Roman emissary visited Hamilcar to enquire about his activity. Hamilcar replied that he was simply campaigning to gather sufficient booty to pay back the war indemnity, something to which Rome could hardly object. Rome withdrew, and would not bother Carthage again for five years as its focus shifted east, to Illyria.

Hamilcar moved north from Akra Leuke, and in 228 BC split his forces so Hasdrubal the Fair could campaign independently. Hamilcar wintered in Helike (possibly Elche), where he was besieged. The Oretani chieftain Orissus came to his aid, but then attacked the Carthaginian rear as they left the town. Hamilcar would never get to realise his mabition of attacking Rome, as he was either killed in the following melee or drowned attempting to cross the river. In eight years, Hamilcar had asserted Carthage as the dominant power in Iberia, though his premature death in 228 BC denied a complete conquest. He founded the port of Barcino (modern Barcelona) and assembled a huge army of 100,000 veteran soldiers.

Hamilcar was succeeded by his brother-in-law Hasdrubal the Fair, who took as his adjutant the son of Hamilcar, then 18-year-old Hannibal. The ascension of Hasdrubal gave the Carthaginian Senate the opportunity to attempt to reassert control over the army and this renegade nation, writing to confirm his position as Hamilcar’s sons were too young. Hasdrubal was not the military lion that Hamilcar was, and preferred to conduct his affairs diplomatically rather than through militarily. He demanded hostages from the various Iberian tribes, using them as leverage to ensure they maintained the treaties of their vassalage.

Through this diplomacy, Hasdrubal extended Carthaginian territory and added the naval base of Qart Hadasht, which the Romans would call “Carthago Nova” – New Carthage (modern Cartagena) as the capital of this new province. Realising the material wealth of the peninsula, and responding to the concerns of Massalia, Rome now sought to make its claim to Iberia. Hasdrubal thus agreed a treaty with Rome that recognised the River Ebro (classical Iberus) as the boundary betwixt the lands controlled by the two powers. The Greek colony Ampurias and Iberian Sagunto were fearful of the rise of Carthage in Iberia, and sought Roman assistance. Hasdrubal accepted these terms reluctantly, as Punic dominion of Iberia was not yet secure enough to risk conflict with Rome. Rome, however, was in no position to challenge Carthage in Iberia at this time anyway. With its legions stretched thin in Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily and Illyria, Rome now faced the threat of a resurgent Gallic coalition in northern Italia threatening the eternal city itself.