What happened
The Punic Wars were three wars fought between Rome and Carthage from 264 to 146 BC. The First (264–241 BC) was fought largely over Sicily and at sea, forcing Rome to build its first great fleet. In the Second (218–201 BC), the Carthaginian general Hannibal crossed the Alps into Italy and destroyed a Roman army at Cannae in 216 BC, but Rome held on and Scipio Africanus defeated him at Zama in 202 BC. The Third (149–146 BC) ended with the siege and destruction of Carthage itself.
Background
Carthage, a maritime empire centered on the North African coast near modern Tunis, and the rising Roman Republic collided when both intervened in Sicily in 264 BC. Rivalry over trade and territory in the western Mediterranean turned the local dispute into a struggle for supremacy.
Consequences
Rome gained its first overseas provinces — Sicily, Sardinia, and much of Spain — and emerged as the unrivaled power of the western Mediterranean. Carthage was razed in 146 BC and its heartland became the Roman province of Africa. The wars reshaped Rome itself, expanding its navy, its slave economy, and the ambitions of its generals.