The 3rd century BCE began on January 1, 300 BCE and ended on December 31, 201 BCE.
Events
- 300 BC: Romeincreases its power in the Italian peninsula .
- 291 BC: The rebellion of Mithridates gives rise to the kingdom of Pontus.
- 290 BC: End of the Third Samnite War: Romeimposes its dominion over the Samnites , thus dominating the entire center of the Italian peninsula.
- 278 BC: Pyrrhus of Epirusmoves to Sicily to help the Greeks in their fight against the Carthaginians.
- 278 BC: In Bithynia, Nicomedes I becomes the first king.
- 278 BC: The Gauls, under Brennus, invade Asia Minor , and Antiochus I Soter ‘s victory over these hordes is said to be the origin of his title Soter (Greek for “savior”).
- 273 BC: Impressed by Rome’s victory over Pyrrhus , Ptolemy II sends a friendly embassy. The visit is returned.
- 273 BC: Ashoka the Greatbecomes ruler of the Mauryan Empire .
- 270 BC: Romecompletes the conquest of Magna Graecia . Hiero II takes the throne of Syracuse .
- 270 BC: Caesibiusbuilds a water clock .
- 264-241 BC: During the First Punic War, the Carthaginians lose the islands of Sicily , Sardinia and Corsica .
- 248 BC: The Parthian Empirebegins in Iraq (which will last almost five hundred years, until the year 226 ).
- 246-204 BC: Most of the Great Wall of China is built in China.
- 246 BC: In Egypt, the reign of Ptolemy II, pharaoh of the Ptolemaic dynasty , ends . The reign of Ptolemy III begins .
- 240 or 241 BCE: In Alexandria, Egypt, the Greek astronomer Eratosthenes (276–194 BCE) makes a remarkably accurate calculation of the Earth’s circumference by comparing the altitudes of the midday Sun at two locations separated by a known north–south distance.
- 223 BC: Seleucus IIIwas assassinated by one of his officers while fighting against Attalus I. His brother Antiochus III the Great succeeds him in rule of the Seleucid Empire .
- 222 BC: In Egypt, the reign of Ptolemy III, pharaoh of the Ptolemaic Dynasty , ends . The reign of Ptolemy IV begins .
- 222 BC: Battle of Sellasia, which pitted the armies of Antigonus III (king of Macedonia ) against Cleomenes III (king of Sparta ).
- 222 BC: Hannibal Barca(25) becomes head of the military forces of Carthage in the Iberian Peninsula after General Hasdrubal was stabbed.
- 221 BC: The Qin dynastyor Ch’in dynasty develops in China . [1]
- 218-202 BC: During the Second Punic War, the Carthaginians lose the Iberian Peninsula .
- 215 BC: Defeat of Hasdrubal Barcaat the Battle of Dertosa , which prevents the arrival of reinforcements to Hannibal .
- 215 BC: In Roman Hispania(Iberian Peninsula) the Romans cross the Ebro River and march to the upper Guadalquivir , where they fight the battle near Hibera (present-day Ampurias).
- 215 BC: Battle of Cornusbetween Carthage and Rome .
- 215 BC: The wars between Macedoniaand Rome begin .
- 212 BC – In Greece, after being twice stopped by the Romansin his attempts to invade Illyria by sea, and hampered by the fleet of the Roman commander Marcus Valerius Laevinus in the Adriatic , Philip V of Macedon maintains his land-based activities in Illyria. Turning away from the coast, he takes the inland cities of Atintania, Dimale , and Lissus and subdues the Greek tribe of the Dasaretes and the Illyrian tribes of the Parthines and Ardiaeans .
- 212 BC: In Thrace, the village of Tylis is destroyed by the Thracians .
- 212 BC: In Carthage, Sifax , king of the western Numidian tribe , the Massilii , makes an alliance with the Romans and they send military advisers to help Sifax train his soldiers. He then attacks the eastern Numidians (the Massilii ) ruled by Galla , who are an ally of the Carthaginians. The Carthaginian general Hasdrubal travels to North Africa from Hispania to crush the Numidian uprising.
- 212 BC: In Hispania, the Roman generals Publius Cornelius Scipioand his older brother, Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus , take Saguntum from the Carthaginians.
- 212 BC: Antiochus IIIgoes on campaign to Asia , where he reaches India and mainly manages to recover the areas previously conquered by Alexander the Great .
- 212 BC: Having recovered central Anatoliafrom the usurper Achaean , Antiochus III turns his forces to recapture the northern and eastern outer provinces of the Seleucid kingdom .
- 212 BC: Antiochus III gives his sister Antiochin marriage to King Xerxes of Armenia , who recognizes Antiochus III’s suzerainty and pays him tribute .
- 212 BC: Publius Licinius Crassusis elected ” pontifex maximus ” over more distinguished candidates, despite having never held a major office. He will hold the office until his death.
- 212 BC: Romansoldiers quartered in Tarentum become so alienated from the city’s citizens that the conspirators admit the Carthaginian general Hannibal into the city. The conspirators then defeat the Roman contingent there. Hannibal maintains control of his troops so that looting is limited to Roman houses. The citadel at Tarentum remains under Roman control, which denies Hannibal the use of its bay.
- 212 BC: The Roman consuls Appius Claudius Pulcherand Quintus Fulvius Flaccus besiege Capua with eight Roman legions . Hanno the Elder moves to Benevento to try to help the inhabitants of Capua, but is defeated by the Romans.
- 212 BC: The Capuans send a call for help to Hannibal. In response, Hannibal sends 2,000 Numidiancavalrymen as reinforcements to Capua. The combined Carthaginian forces defeat the Romans led by Flaccus and Pulcher, the latter of whom soon dies of his wounds. Hannibal takes Capua at the First Battle of Capua .
- 212 BC: Hannibal defeats the Roman army at the Battle of Silaro. The battle is between Hannibal’s army and a Roman force led by the praetor Marcus Centenius Penula. The Carthaginians are victorious, effectively destroying Centenius Penula’s army.
- 212 BC – Hannibal defeats the Roman armyat the First Battle of Herdonia . This battle is fought between Hannibal’s Carthaginian army and Roman forces besieging Herdonia led by the praetor Gnaeus Fulvius Flaccus, brother of the consul, Quintus Fulvius Flaccus. The Roman army is destroyed, leaving Apulia free of the Romans for a year.
- 212 BC: After a two-year siege , Syracusefalls to the Roman general Marcus Claudius Marcellus during the Second Punic War . He takes it in the face of a strong Carthage reinforcement and despite the use of war machines designed by the Greek mathematician and scientist Archimedes (such as the Archimedes claw ).
- 212 BC: Although Marcellus wishes to spare the lives of the Syracusans, he is unable to prevent the sack of the city by the soldiers, which includes the death of Archimedes. Marcellus takes art treasures from Syracuse to Rome, the first documented example of a practice that would become common.
- 212 BC: In the Italian peninsula, Rome pacifiesthe Sicilians and forces them to pay taxes, which solves their problems of hunger and inflation.
- 206 BC: In Alexandria, Egypt, the original Hebrew Bible (now lost) is translated into Greek . Modern Hebrew Bibles are translations of that Greek translation.
- 206 BC: The Western Han Dynastydevelops in China .
- 206 BC: In the Iberian Peninsula, Scipio Africanus defeats the Carthaginians at the Battle of Ilipa, driving them back to Gadir (Cadiz) in one of the last battles of the Second Punic War . The Romans conquer the Carthaginian village of Córduba (present-day Córdoba).
- 206 BC: The Romans founded Italica, today in ruins.
- 206 BC: In Alexandria, Egypt, the Hebrew Bible is translated into Greek .
- 206 BC: The Western Han Dynastybegins to rule in China .
- 206 BC: The first mention of Shar Peidogs is made in China , created from mixes of Chow Chow dogs .
- 203 BC: In Egypt, Ptolemy V ascends to the throne.
- 203 BC: Near Crotona, in Calabria (southern Italy), Carthaginian and Roman forces fight the Battle of Crotona. The outcome was not decisive for either side.
- 203 BC – The Roman general Cornelius Scipio, while engaged in peace negotiations with the Carthaginians at Utica , makes a surprise attack on the Carthaginian camp and destroys it. Then, sweeping away the forces attempted to assemble by the Carthaginians and their Numidian allies on the Great Plains near the upper Bagradas River (in modern Tunisia), he crushes that army at the Battle of the Great Fields . The Numidian king, Sifax , and the Carthaginian leader, Hasdrubal Gisco , manage to escape separately.
- 203 BC – The Roman general Gaius Laeliusand Rome’s Numidian ally Masinissa pursue Sifax towards Cirta , the Numidian capital. In pursuit, Sifax is captured after his wounded horse unseats him. He is handed over to Scipio and taken prisoner by the Romans; he dies in the Italian city of Alba Fucens later that year.
- 203 BC: Masinissabecomes king of the Massalii and Massilii in Numidia and remains a faithful ally of the Romans.
- 203 BC: Hasdrubal Giscoconvinces the Carthaginians to raise a new army and ask Hannibal to return from Italy. Hannibal finally leaves Italy and returns to Carthage.
- 203 BC: The Carthaginian general Mago Barcais defeated and wounded by the Romans in a battle in Cisalpine Gaul . He dies of his wounds on the return voyage to Carthage.
- 203 BC: A preliminary armistice is declared between Carthageand Rome and the Carthaginian armies agree to Scipio’s harsh terms. However, upon his return from Carthage, Hannibal concentrates the remnants of the Carthaginian forces at Hadrumetum (modern Sousse , Tunisia ) and prepares them for battle.
- 202 BC ( October 19): Near Carthage (North Africa), the Roman general Scipio defeats the Carthaginian Hannibal in the Battle of Zama .
- 201 BC: In the Iberian Peninsula, the [[Roman Empires will take the Greek colony of Akra Leuka and rename it Lucentum (present-day Alicante).
- 201 BC: Hannibaland Scipio agree on the terms of Carthage ‘s surrender , ending the Second Punic War .
- 201 BC: Armenia(controlled by the Orontid dynasty ) is invaded by the Seleucid army of Antiochus III Megas .
- Archimedesdevelops his studies of hydrostatics .
- In Judea,the Book of Tobit , which is now part of the Bible , was written in Aramaic .
- In the village of Tanagra(20 km southeast of the city of Thebes ) statuettes are created.
- Hellenic artdeveloped several schools.
- Greek philosophy: Hellenistic schools of Epicureanism and Stoicism . The first was founded by Epicurus (d. 270 BC) and the second is due to Zeno (d. 264 BC), who taught at the Stoa Pecile, from which the name of his philosophical school is derived.
- The archaic period of Latin literaturebegins . The playwright Plautus (254-184 BC) stands out. [2]
- In Japan, during this century and the next , the Yayoi culture , an agricultural society, developed . [3]
Relevant characters
- Hannibal Barca(247-183 BC): Carthaginian military leader, leading figure in the Second Punic War .
- Apollonius of Perga(262-190 BC): Greek geometer and astronomer.
- Apollonius of Rhodes(d. 215 BC), Greek epic poem .
- Arcesilaus(315-240 BC): Greek philosopher and founder of the Platonic Academy .
- Archimedesof Syracuse (287-212 BC): Greek mathematician, geometer, physicist, engineer, inventor and astronomer.
- Asoka(304-232 BC): Emperor of India. [4]
- Ctesibiusof Alexandria (222 BC), Greek mathematician and inventor.
- Dinarchus361-291 BC, Attic orator.
- Epicurus(341-270 BC): Greek philosopher.
- Eratosthenes(276-194 BC): Greek mathematician, astronomer and geographer.
- Euclid(325-265 BC): Greek mathematician and geometer, nicknamed “The Father of Geometry.”
- Hiero II(d. 215 BC), Greek king.
- Koan(d. 291 BC) Japanese emperor.
- Liu Bang(256/247-195 BC): first Chinese emperor of the Han dynasty .
- Marcus Valerius Corvo(d. 270 BC), Roman politician.
- Plautus(254-184 BC): Roman comedian . [2]
- Ptolemy II Philadelphus(308-246 BC): Egyptian pharaoh , second of the Ptolemaic dynasty.
- Ptolemy V(b. 210), Egyptian king, of the Ptolemaic dynasty.
- Scipio Africanus(235-183 BC): Roman military man and politician.
- Qin Shi Huang(260 – 10 September 210 BC): Chinese aristocrat, founder of the Qin dynasty and first emperor of unified China.
- Xun Zi(312-230 BC): Chinese philosopher.
- Zeno of Citium(333-264 BC): Greek philosopher.
- Qu Yuan(d. 278 BC), Chinese poet.
- 203 BC: Mago Barca, Carthaginian soldier, brother of Hannibal Barca, dies .