214 BC
Encyclopedia
Year 214 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar
. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Verrucosus and Marcellus (or, less frequently, year 540 Ab urbe condita
). The denomination 214 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
calendar era
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Roman calendar
The Roman calendar changed its form several times in the time between the founding of Rome and the fall of the Roman Empire. This article generally discusses the early Roman or pre-Julian calendars...
. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Verrucosus and Marcellus (or, less frequently, year 540 Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita is Latin for "from the founding of the City ", traditionally set in 753 BC. AUC is a year-numbering system used by some ancient Roman historians to identify particular Roman years...
). The denomination 214 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
Anno Domini
and Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....
calendar era
Calendar era
A calendar era is the year numbering system used by a calendar. For example, the Gregorian calendar numbers its years in the Western Christian era . The instant, date, or year from which time is marked is called the epoch of the era...
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Carthage
- CarthageCarthageCarthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
persuades Syracuse to revoltRevolutionA revolution is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively short period of time.Aristotle described two types of political revolution:...
against RomeRoman RepublicThe Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
and ally itself with Carthage instead.
Roman Republic
- Roman legionsRoman legionA Roman legion normally indicates the basic ancient Roman army unit recruited specifically from Roman citizens. The organization of legions varied greatly over time but they were typically composed of perhaps 5,000 soldiers, divided into maniples and later into "cohorts"...
led by Tiberius Sempronius GracchusTiberius Sempronius GracchusTiberius Sempronius Gracchus may refer to:*Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus , father of Tiberius and Publius Gracchus*Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus , son of the above...
defeat Hanno'sHanno the ElderHanno the Elder was a Carthaginian general who served under Hannibal during the Second Punic War. According to the historian Livy, his track record was terrible: in 215 BC he was defeated by Tiberius Sempronius Longus at Grumentum, in 214 BC he was defeated by Gracchus at Beneventum, two years...
Carthaginian forces in a battle near Beneventum, thus denying Hannibal much needed reinforcements. - The Roman general, Marcus Claudius MarcellusMarcus Claudius MarcellusMarcus Claudius Marcellus , five times elected as consul of the Roman Republic, was an important Roman military leader during the Gallic War of 225 BC and the Second Punic War...
, who is in SicilySicilySicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
at the time of the revolt of SyracuseSyracuseSyracuse, as a place name, may refer to:In Italy:* Syracuse, Sicily* the Province of SyracuseIn the United States:* Syracuse, New York* Syracuse, Indiana* Syracuse, Kansas* Syracuse, Missouri* Syracuse, Nebraska* Syracuse, Ohio* Syracuse, Utah...
, leads an army which storms Leontini and besieges Syracuse. With the help of ArchimedesArchimedesArchimedes of Syracuse was a Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor, and astronomer. Although few details of his life are known, he is regarded as one of the leading scientists in classical antiquity. Among his advances in physics are the foundations of hydrostatics, statics and an...
' ideas and inventions, the Syracusans repel his attacks by sea. - The censors Publius Furius PhilusPublius Furius Sp.f. PhilusPublius Furius S. f. M. n. Philus was consul in 223 BC, praetor in 216, and censor in 214. He died the following year, before resigning his office.-Family and background:...
and Marcus Atilius RegulusMarcus Atilius Regulus (consul 227 BC)Marcus Atilius M.f. M.n. Regulus , a son of Marcus Atilius Regulus, the consul captured during the First Punic War, and grandson of Marcus Atilius Regulus , was Roman consul for the year 227 BC, together with Publius Valerius Flaccus, and was a consul suffectus in 217 BC, replacing Gaius Flaminius...
condemn and degrade (i.e. lose rank in Roman society and politics) two groups of Romans of high rank, including senatorsSenatorsThe term Senators can refer to:*The members of a senate*The Ottawa Senators, a National Hockey League ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada...
and equestrians. The first group are those Roman officers captured by Hannibal's forces in the Battle of CannaeBattle of CannaeThe Battle of Cannae was a major battle of the Second Punic War, which took place on August 2, 216 BC near the town of Cannae in Apulia in southeast Italy. The army of Carthage under Hannibal decisively defeated a numerically superior army of the Roman Republic under command of the consuls Lucius...
who have come as Carthaginian hostages to Rome to plead for their ransom (and those of their fellow prisoners), and who then refuse to return to Carthaginian captivity when the Senate refuses to ransom any prisoners. The second group are those Romans who have advocated surrender to Carthage after the Battle of Cannae, or who have made plans to flee Rome and offer their services in GreeceAncient GreeceAncient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
, EgyptAncient EgyptAncient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
, or Asia MinorAsia MinorAsia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
.
Greece
- Philip V of MacedonPhilip V of MacedonPhilip V was King of Macedon from 221 BC to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of Rome. Philip was attractive and charismatic as a young man...
attempts an invasion of IllyriaIllyriaIn classical antiquity, Illyria was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by the Illyrians....
by sea with a fleet of 120 craft. He captures Oricum and, sailing up the Aous (modern VjosëVjosëVjosë or Aoös is a river in northwestern Greece and southwestern Albania.Its total length is about , of which the first are in Greece, and the remaining are in Albania. Vjosë is fed by two secondary branches, both in Albania, the Drino river and the Shushicë.Its source is in Greece, specifically...
) river, he besieges Apollonia, IllyriaApollonia, IllyriaApollonia was an ancient Greek city in Illyria, located on the right bank of the Aous river . Its ruins are situated in the Fier region, near the village of Pojani, in modern-day Albania...
. - Upon receiving word from Oricum of Philip V's actions in Illyria, Roman propraetor Marcus Valerius LaevinusM. Valerius LaevinusMarcus Valerius Laevinus was a Roman magistrate who was active during both the Second Punic War and the First Macedonian War.Elected praetor in 215 BC, he was assigned to Brundisium with two legions recently withdrawn from Sicily to protect the Calabrian coast and prevent Philip V of Macedon from...
crosses the Adriatic with his fleet and army. Landing at Oricum, Laevinus is able to retake the town with little fighting. - Laevinus sends 2,000 men under the command of Quintus Naevius Crista, to Apollonia, IllyriaApollonia, IllyriaApollonia was an ancient Greek city in Illyria, located on the right bank of the Aous river . Its ruins are situated in the Fier region, near the village of Pojani, in modern-day Albania...
. Catching Philip's forces by surprise, Quintus Naevius Crista attacks and routs their camp. Philip V is able to escape back to Macedonia, after burning his fleet and leaving many thousands of his men dead or as prisoners of the Romans.
Asia
- Panyu (present-day GuangzhouGuangzhouGuangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
, or Canton) is established as a city. - Qin Shi HuangQin Shi HuangQin Shi Huang , personal name Ying Zheng , was king of the Chinese State of Qin from 246 BC to 221 BC during the Warring States Period. He became the first emperor of a unified China in 221 BC...
orders general Ren Xiao (任囂), commanding 200,000 troops, to conquer the kingdoms in present-day northern VietnamVietnamVietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. - The QinQin (state)The State of Qin was a Chinese feudal state that existed during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods of Chinese history...
armies defeat an army of 300,000 XiongnuXiongnuThe Xiongnu were ancient nomadic-based people that formed a state or confederation north of the agriculture-based empire of the Han Dynasty. Most of the information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources...
/Hun cavalrymen and expand their territories along the north basin of the Yellow RiverYellow RiverThe Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...
.