215 BC
Encyclopedia
Year 215 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar
. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Albinus/Marcellus/Verrucosus and Gracchus (or, less frequently, year 539 Ab urbe condita
). The denomination 215 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 Albinus/Marcellus/Verrucosus and Gracchus (or, less frequently, year 539 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 215 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.
Spain
- The Carthaginian general, Hannibal, is denied any reinforcements from Spain for his forces now based in Italy by the activities of the RomanRoman 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...
general Publius Cornelius ScipioPublius Cornelius ScipioPublius Cornelius Scipio was a general and statesman of the Roman Republic.A member of the Corneliagens, Scipio served as consul in 218 BC, the first year of the Second Punic War, and sailed with an army from Pisa to Massilia , with the intention of arresting Hannibal's advance on Italy...
and his brother Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio CalvusGnaeus Cornelius Scipio CalvusGnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus was a Roman general and statesman.His father was Lucius Cornelius Scipio, son of the patrician censor of 280, Lucius Cornelius Scipio Barbatus. His younger brother was Publius Cornelius Scipio, father of the most famous Scipio – Scipio Africanus...
, who, in a battle at Dertosa near the Ebro River effectively stop the Carthaginian general, Hasdrubal'sHasdrubal BarcaHasdrubal was Hamilcar Barca's second son and a Carthaginian general in the Second Punic War. He was a younger brother of the much more famous Hannibal.-Youth and Iberian leadership:...
attempt to break through to Italy.
Roman Republic
- The RomanRoman 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...
law, Lex OppiaLex OppiaThe Lex Oppia was a law established in ancient Rome in 215 BC, at the height of the Second Punic War during the days of national catastrophe after the Battle of Cannae....
, is instituted by Gaius Oppius, a tribuneTribuneTribune was a title shared by elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. They were sacrosanct, in the sense that any assault on their person was...
of the plebsPlebsThe plebs was the general body of free land-owning Roman citizens in Ancient Rome. They were distinct from the higher order of the patricians. A member of the plebs was known as a plebeian...
during the consulshipRoman consulA consul served in the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic.Each year, two consuls were elected together, to serve for a one-year term. Each consul was given veto power over his colleague and the officials would alternate each month...
of Quintus Fabius Maximus VerrucosusFabius MaximusQuintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator was a Roman politician and general, born in Rome around 280 BC and died in Rome in 203 BC. He was Roman Consul five times and was twice Dictator in 221 and again in 217 BC. He reached the office of Roman Censor in 230 BC...
and 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...
. The Lex Oppia is the first of a series of sumptuary laws introduced in Rome. It not only restricts women's wealth, but also their displaying it. - 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...
, again repulses an attack by Hannibal on the city of NolaBattle of Nola (215 BC)The Second Battle of Nola was fought in 215 BC between Hannibal's army and a Roman Army under Marcus Claudius Marcellus. It was Hannibal's second attempt to seize Nola after a failure the year before. He was again repelled, and made one more, also unsuccessful attempt the next year....
. - Hannibal's forces occupy the cities of TarentumTarantoTaranto is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto and is an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base....
, Heraclea and ThuriiThuriiThurii , called also by some Latin writers Thurium , for a time also Copia and Copiae, was a city of Magna Graecia, situated on the Tarentine gulf, within a short distance of the site of Sybaris, whose place it may be considered as having taken...
. However, Hannibal is unable to prevent the Romans from besieging CapuaCapuaCapua is a city and comune in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy, situated 25 km north of Naples, on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. Ancient Capua was situated where Santa Maria Capua Vetere is now...
.
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...
and Hannibal negotiate an alliance under which they pledge mutual support and defence. Specifically, they agree to support each other against Rome, and that Hannibal shall have the right to make peace with Rome, but that any peace would include Philip and that Rome would be forced to give up control of Corcyra, ApolloniaApollonia, 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...
, Epidamnus, PharosHvar- Climate :The climate of Hvar is characterized by mild winters and warm summers. The yearly average air temperature is , 686 mm of precipitation fall on the town of Hvar on average every year and the town has a total of 2800 sunshine hours per year. For comparison Hvar has an average of 7.7...
, DimaleDimaleDimale was an ancient town in Illyria, possibly situated in the territory of the Illyrian Parthini, northeast of the ancient Greek colony of Apollonia near modern Krotinë, Berat District, Albania. The city was of uncertain foundation, Greek or Illyrian.- History :According to N.G.L...
, Parthini and AtintaniaAtintaniansAtintanes or Atintanians is a name an ancient Greek tribe in Epirus, Chaonia inland of the Epirote coast. Thucydides , Strabo , Polybius write of them....
and to restore to Demetrius of PharosDemetrius of PharosDemetrius of Pharos was a ruler of Pharos involved in the First Illyrian War, after which he ruled a portion of the Illyrian Adriatic coast on behalf of the Romans, as a Client king....
all his lands currently controlled by Rome.
Seleucid Empire
- The Seleucid king, Antiochus IIIAntiochus III the GreatAntiochus III the Great Seleucid Greek king who became the 6th ruler of the Seleucid Empire as a youth of about eighteen in 223 BC. Antiochus was an ambitious ruler who ruled over Greater Syria and western Asia towards the end of the 3rd century BC...
, crosses the TaurusTaurus MountainsTaurus Mountains are a mountain complex in southern Turkey, dividing the Mediterranean coastal region of southern Turkey from the central Anatolian Plateau. The system extends along a curve from Lake Eğirdir in the west to the upper reaches of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in the east...
, uniting his forces with Attalus of Pergamum and, in one campaign, deprives his rebel general, AchaeusAchaeus (general)Achaeus was a general and later a separatist ruler of part of the Greek Seleucid kingdom. He was the son of Andromachus, whose sister Laodice II, married Seleucus Callinicus, the father of Antiochus III the Great. Achaeus himself married Laodice of Pontus, one of the daughters to Laodice and...
, of all his dominions and takes SardisSardisSardis or Sardes was an ancient city at the location of modern Sart in Turkey's Manisa Province...
(with the exception of the citadel).
Births
- Antiochus IV EpiphanesAntiochus IV EpiphanesAntiochus IV Epiphanes ruled the Seleucid Empire from 175 BC until his death in 164 BC. He was a son of King Antiochus III the Great. His original name was Mithridates; he assumed the name Antiochus after he ascended the throne....
, king of the Seleucid Empire (d. 164 BC164 BCYear 164 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Torquatus and Longinus...
) (approximate date)
Deaths
- Hiero IIHiero II of SyracuseHieron II , king of Syracuse from 270 to 215 BC, was the illegitimate son of a Syracusan noble, Hierocles, who claimed descent from Gelon. He was a former general of Pyrrhus of Epirus and an important figure of the First Punic War....
, tyrantTyrantA tyrant was originally one who illegally seized and controlled a governmental power in a polis. Tyrants were a group of individuals who took over many Greek poleis during the uprising of the middle classes in the sixth and seventh centuries BC, ousting the aristocratic governments.Plato and...
of Syracuse from 270 BC270 BCYear 270 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Clepsina and Blasio...
(b. c. 308 BC308 BCYear 308 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Mus and Rullianus...
) - HieronymusHieronymus of SyracuseHieronymus was a tyrant of Syracuse. He succeeded his grandfather, Hiero II, in 215 BC. He was at this time only fifteen years old, and he ascended the throne at a crisis full of peril, for the battle of Cannae had given a shock to the Roman power, the influence of which had been felt in Sicily;...
, grandson of Hiero II of SyracuseHiero II of SyracuseHieron II , king of Syracuse from 270 to 215 BC, was the illegitimate son of a Syracusan noble, Hierocles, who claimed descent from Gelon. He was a former general of Pyrrhus of Epirus and an important figure of the First Punic War....
and tyrant (assassinated) (b. c. 231 BC231 BCYear 231 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Matho and Maso...
)