Prelude to the First Punic War

-Pyrrhus had been driven back to Greece.
-The Carthaginians- came from Carthage, a city near modern-day Tunis, Tunisia.
   -A commerce-based empire and a leading economic power in the Mediterranean Sea.
   -Founded around 800 BC by Phoenician settlers.
   -"Punic" comes from the Latin word for Phoenician ("Punicus").
   -Had a very powerful navy.
   -Also known to produce one of the first written alphabets ever.
   -Established a powerful trade empire by establishing small colonies throughout the Mediterranean, from Lebanon to Gibraltar.
   -Government was a mixed oligarchy.
      -They had a people's assembly, which was a joke, and a senate, which was made up of super-rich families.
      -They also had a council of 100 within the senate, made up of the uber-rich.
      -The senate would elect the chief executive of Carthage ("shofeṭ"), similar to the Roman consul.
         -The shofeṭ had a bunch of power, term lasted for a year.
            -Did NOT control the army, however.  Army was controlled by a core of generals.
   -The Carthaginians did not have any conflict between the classes, at least, not like the Romans had.  -Rome's military was made up of Roman citizens, who took the role very seriously.
   -The Carthaginians just hired mercenary armies to fight for them, but had the armies led by Carthaginian generals.
-The story of the Punic Wars begins in Messina, Sicily.
   -Agathocles of Syracuse had hired a bunch of mercenaries from Campania (known as the Mamertines) to fight for his city.
      -At the time, Sicily was divided between the Carthaginians and the Greeks.
         -Battles were fought between 315-305 BC.  By 300 BC, however, they had reached a stalemate and sued for peace.
   -289 BC- Agathocles dies, and the Mamertines found themselves getting stiffed for their work!  Therefore, they decided to take over the Sicilian city of Mesiana, where they somehow were able to chill for 10 years.
   -278 BC- the Mamertines called on Pyrrhus to come save them from the Carthaginians.  However, once Pyrrhus arrived and everyone found out what a huge douchebag he was, they asked him to go back home to Greece!
      -Meanwhile, a new tyrant of Syracuse, Hiero, had taken power, and desired to take over all of Sicily for Syracuse.
   -265 BC- the Mamertines and the Carthaginians ally against Hiero to make sure he doesn't take over the island.
      -However, the Mamertines soon changed their mind about this alliance and asked the Romans to come and save them.
         -After much debate, Rome agreed, and sent a small force from Tarentum to Messina, where they landed without any problems.  The Carthaginians saw that the Romans had arrived, and so decided not to attack.
            -The Romans immediately began to fortify the city.  The Carthaginians didn't know what to do, and were scared to attack and risk provoking a huge war between Rome and Carthage.
               -This royally pissed off the Carthaginian Senate, who immediately ordered the Carthaginian troops to attack the Romans at Messina.  However, 2 Roman legions had just arrived to further fortify the city...