Antiquity: Carthage & Rome
The history of Tunisia begins with one of the most dramatic conflicts of antiquity: the struggle between Carthage and Rome for supremacy in the Mediterranean.
Carthage: The Maritime Power (814–146 BC)
According to legend, the Phoenician princess Dido (Elissa) founded the city of Carthage — "Qart Hadasht" (New City) — on a hill overlooking the Gulf of Tunis in 814 BC. What began as a trading colony developed into the most powerful city of the western Mediterranean. Carthage controlled a trading empire from Spain to Libya, possessed the largest fleet of the ancient world, and was famous for its wealth.
The Punic Wars (264–146 BC) against Rome are among the bloodiest conflicts of antiquity:
- 1st Punic War (264–241 BC): Carthage loses Sicily and Sardinia to Rome.
- 2nd Punic War (218–201 BC): Hannibal Barca crosses the Alps with 37 elephants and defeats the Romans in several battles (Cannae, 216 BC — Rome's heaviest defeat). Nevertheless, he cannot conquer Rome and loses the war.
- 3rd Punic War (149–146 BC): Rome completely destroys Carthage. The city is razed to the ground, the population enslaved. "Carthago delenda est" (Carthage must be destroyed) — the phrase of Senator Cato became reality.
Roman Tunisia (146 BC – 439 AD)
Ironically, the Romans rebuilt Carthage: Under Emperor Augustus, it became the third-largest city of the empire (after Rome and Alexandria) and the capital of the province of Africa — Rome's granary. Tunisia experienced a golden age: Magnificent cities like Dougga, Bulla Regia, Sbeitla, and Thysdrus (El Jem) emerged, crisscrossed by roads, aqueducts, and baths.
The Roman mosaics, which can be admired today in the Bardo Museum and in El Jem, testify to the immense wealth of this era. Tunisia was one of the wealthiest regions of the Roman Empire.
