getting power in rome

While Rome was founded in 753 BC, it took more than 500 years before the Romans rose to their supremacy. Then they asserted power and influence beyond the Italian peninsula. However, during these 500 years, Rome, the city of the river Tiber, had become a dominant political force in Italy. As it sphere of influence spread outside Italy, Rome would face new and more serious competition than it had, closer to home.


While Greece looked East towards the cradle of civilization and the Persian Empire beyond, the Romans looked West. The major power in the Western Mediterranean was Carthage, a city founded in 814 BC by the Phoenicians. As Rome began to broaden its power it put itself on a collision course with Carthage. The victor in this power struggle would win dominance over the Western Europe, and ultimately, the entire Mediterranean area. This was finally decided over three epic wars known as the Punic wars. It was the Roman victory over the Carthaginian general Hannibal at the battle of Zama in 202 BC, which marked the beginning of the rise of power of the Roman Empire.

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