Carthage

This passage discusses the ancient city of Carthage, which was located in north Africa in the 9th century B.C.

Lexile Level: 660L

Categories: History People & Places

Carthage was an ancient city in north Africa. It was founded in the 9th century B.C. It was located in what is now the country of Tunisia. Nobles and wealthy merchants ruled Carthage. It became a great economic and political power in the region. The sailing families of Carthage established colonies on some Mediterranean islands. They tried to control the island of Sicily. This caused conflict with the Greeks and later, the Romans. In the 2nd and 3rd centuries B.C., Carthage fought with the Roman Republic. They fought in three wars called the Punic Wars. In the second Punic War, the military leader Hannibal fought for Carthage. He led an invasion of Italy, crossing the Alps with elephants. But Rome won these wars. This led to the eventual downfall of ancient Carthage. Each time Rome won, it harshly penalized Carthage. Finally, after the third Punic War, Carthage was in ruins. Rome completely annexed all of the land that had been Carthaginian.