Title: Roman History
Tags: republic legend punic-wars greeks monarchy tarquins samnites etruscans civil-war gauls second-punic-war expansion-east gracchi latins roman-religion servian-reforms expansion sullas-civil-war third-servile-war alba-longa first-punic-war reform romulus-and-remus coup death gallic-wars sabines marian-reforms ritual-war slave-revolt

Front: What was the Legendary Founding of Rome?
Back: The legendary background to Rome's foundation, connecting Rome to Troy through Aeneas and to Alba Longa through Romulus and Remus.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
legendary prehistory to 753 BCLegendary Founding of Rome
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ObjectID: legendary_founding_of_rome
CardType: identity

Front: What is Etruria?
Back: The region of Etruria in central Italy, home to the Etruscan civilization
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: etruria
CardType: identity

Front: Who were the Latins?
Back: The Italic people of the region of Latium in central Italy, among whom Rome arose.
Timeline: 1000-300 BCLatins
c. 550 BCConstruction of the Temple of Diana
c. 520 BCLatin Council Frame-up
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: latins
CardType: identity

Front: What is Latium?
Back: The region of Latium in central Italy, home to the Latin people and the early city of Rome.
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: latium
CardType: identity

Front: Who were the Etruscans?
Back: Pre-Roman civilization of central Italy north of the Tiber, known for their art, trade, and urban culture. The Tarquin dynasty brought Etruscan influence directly into Roman kingship.
Timeline: 900-100 BCEtruscans
c. 616 BCElection of Tarquinius Priscus
396 BCFall of Veii
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ObjectID: etruscans
CardType: identity

Front: What was Veii?
Back: Etruscan city twelve miles north of Rome, the southernmost member of the Etruscan League and Rome's nearest peer rival. Controlled lucrative salt beds and fertile land north of the Tiber. Destroyed by Camillus in 396 BC after a prolonged siege.
Timeline: c. 438-425 BCRevolt of Fidenae
c. 406-396 BCFinal War with Veii
396 BCFall of Veii
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ObjectID: veii
CardType: identity

Front: What is Carthage?
Back: Phoenician city on the north coast of Africa near modern Tunis. Its position on the narrow strait between Africa and Sicily made it the richest trade hub in the western Mediterranean and Rome's chief rival.
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ObjectID: carthage
CardType: identity

Front: Who were the Carthaginians?
Back: Phoenician colony founded c. 800 BC near modern Tunis, grown into the dominant trade empire of the western Mediterranean. Governed by a wealthy oligarchy with no class conflict (status was purely wealth-based). A small professional Carthaginian officer corps led armies of mercenaries (Numidian cavalry, Spanish infantry, Balearic slingers), a key contrast with Rome's citizen legions.
Timeline: c. 800-146 BCCarthaginians
265-264 BCMamertine Crisis
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ObjectID: carthaginians
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Comitia Curiata?
Back: Rome's earliest popular assembly, in which citizens voted by curiae. It confirmed the appointment of kings and approved major decisions.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
753 BC onwardComitia Curiata
753-716 BCRomulus
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ObjectID: comitia_curiata
CardType: identity

Front: According to tradition, how was Rome founded?
Back: Romulus and Remus took auguries to decide who would found the new city. When the brothers disputed the result, Remus was killed and Romulus founded Rome on the Palatine Hill, becoming its first king.
Timeline: c. 753 BCFoundation of Rome
c. 753 BCDeath of Remus
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ObjectID: foundation_of_rome
CardType: identity

Front: What were the Patricians?
Back: The hereditary aristocratic class of Rome, traditionally descended from the 100 original senators (patres) appointed by Romulus. Patricians dominated early republican politics, controlling most political weight through wealth and the voting structure.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
753 BC onwardPatricians
753-716 BCRomulus
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ObjectID: patricians
CardType: identity

Front: How did the Roman patron-client system work?
Back: A reciprocal relationship in which wealthy patrons provided loans, legal representation, and political protection to poorer clients, who in return provided political support, votes, and public deference. Traditionally confined to Rome, but after the conquests aristocrats like Scipio Africanus extended patronage networks overseas, binding foreign communities personally to individual Roman nobles rather than to the Roman state.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
753 BC onwardPatron-Client System
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: patron_client_system
CardType: identity

Front: How did extending patronage overseas undermine the Republic?
Back: Patronage extended overseas gave individual aristocrats personal loyalty from entire foreign peoples, loyalty owed to the man rather than to Rome. Scipio Africanus pioneered this after his Spanish and African campaigns, binding tribes and kings to himself personally. Every warlord of the late Republic exploited the same model to build private power bases the Senate could not easily break.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
753 BC onwardPatron-Client System
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: patron_client_system
CardType: significance

Front: What were the Plebeians?
Back: The common citizens of Rome, everyone outside the patrician families. They formed the bulk of the population and the army. Wealthy plebeians would soon demand a political voice, leading to the Conflict of the Orders.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
753 BC onwardPlebeians
753-716 BCRomulus
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ObjectID: plebeians
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Roman Kingdom?
Back: The period of Rome's early history, traditionally dated from its founding by Romulus in 753 BC to the establishment of the Republic in 509 BC.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
from 509 BCRoman Republic
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ObjectID: roman_kingdom
CardType: identity

Front: When did the Roman Kingdom span?
Back: 753-509 BC
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
from 509 BCRoman Republic
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_kingdom
CardType: chronology

Front: What was the Roman Legion?
Back: Rome's fundamental military formation, traditionally created by Romulus from 3,000 infantry and 300 cavalry drawn from the three original tribes.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 753 BCCreation of the First Roman Legion
753 BC onwardRoman Legion
753-716 BCRomulus
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ObjectID: roman_legion
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Roman Senate?
Back: Advisory council of leading citizens (patres) created by Romulus, which grew into Rome's most powerful political institution across the Kingdom, Republic, and Empire.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 753 BCCreation of the Roman Senate
753 BC onwardRoman Senate
753-716 BCRomulus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_senate
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Romulus?
Back: Legendary founder and first king of Rome. Later tradition credited him not only with founding the city, but also with creating Rome's army, Senate, citizen divisions, Sabine union, and early political institutions.
Timeline: 753-716 BCRomulus
c. 750 BCAbduction of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCIntervention of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCUnion of Romans and Sabines
c. 716 BCDisappearance of Romulus
715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: romulus
CardType: identity

Front: Where does Romulus fit in the line of succession?
Back: First in line, followed by Numa Pompilius.
Timeline: 753-716 BCRomulus
c. 750 BCAbduction of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCIntervention of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCUnion of Romans and Sabines
c. 716 BCDisappearance of Romulus
715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: romulus
CardType: succession

Front: List the Seven Kings of Rome in order.
Back: The traditional sequence of Rome's seven legendary kings, from Romulus to the expulsion of Tarquinius Superbus in 509 BC.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
753-716 BCRomulus
715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
642-617 BCAncus Marcius
616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
578-535 BCServius Tullius
535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: seven_kings_of_rome
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Romulus seize the Sabine women?
Back: Lacking women, the Romans invited neighbouring peoples to a festival and seized the Sabine women as wives, provoking war with the Sabines.
Timeline: 753-716 BCRomulus
c. 750 BCAbduction of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCIntervention of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCUnion of Romans and Sabines
c. 716 BCDisappearance of Romulus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: abduction_of_the_sabine_women
CardType: identity

Front: How did the Sabine women end the war between Rome and the Sabines?
Back: During the decisive battle, the Sabine women rushed between the two armies, begging their fathers and husbands to stop fighting, ending the war.
Timeline: 753-716 BCRomulus
c. 750 BCIntervention of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCAbduction of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCUnion of Romans and Sabines
c. 716 BCDisappearance of Romulus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: intervention_of_the_sabine_women
CardType: identity

Front: What precedent did the union of Romans and Sabines set for Roman expansion?
Back: Rome could absorb former enemies as citizens, a pattern that would define Roman expansion.
Timeline: 753-716 BCRomulus
c. 750 BCUnion of Romans and Sabines
c. 750 BCAbduction of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCIntervention of the Sabine Women
c. 716 BCDisappearance of Romulus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: union_of_romans_and_sabines
CardType: significance

Front: How did Romulus disappear from Rome?
Back: Romulus vanished during a sudden storm while reviewing troops. The senators claimed he had been taken up to heaven; later tradition held that the senator Proculus Julius reported seeing Romulus ascend as the god Quirinus.
Timeline: 753-716 BCRomulus
c. 750 BCAbduction of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCIntervention of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCUnion of Romans and Sabines
c. 716 BCDisappearance of Romulus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: disappearance_of_romulus
CardType: identity

Front: How did Rome handle the succession after Romulus vanished?
Back: After Romulus's disappearance, the senators took turns ruling for a day while Romans and Sabines negotiated the succession, establishing the concept of an interregnum.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 745 BCDeath of Titus Tatius
c. 716 BCDisappearance of Romulus
c. 716 BCInterregnum after Romulus
c. 715-673 BCReligious Reforms of Numa
c. 670 BCWar with Alba Longa
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: interregnum_after_romulus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Numa Pompilius?
Back: Second king of Rome, a Sabine credited with establishing Roman religious institutions, priesthoods, and the sacred calendar during a long era of peace.
Timeline: 753-716 BCRomulus
715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
c. 715-673 BCReligious Reforms of Numa
673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: numa_pompilius
CardType: identity

Front: Where does Numa Pompilius fit in the line of succession?
Back: Succeeded Romulus, followed by Tullus Hostilius.
Timeline: 753-716 BCRomulus
715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
c. 715-673 BCReligious Reforms of Numa
673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: numa_pompilius
CardType: succession

Front: What was the Pontifex Maximus?
Back: Rome's chief priest, traditionally created by Numa, who oversaw the state religion, sacred calendar, and all other priesthoods.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 715-673 BCReligious Reforms of Numa
c. 715 BC onwardPontifex Maximus
715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
100-60 BCCaesar's Early Career
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pontifex_maximus
CardType: identity

Front: What practical power did the Pontifex Maximus hold over Roman public life?
Back: Made one person responsible for all state religion, giving the office enormous influence over public life: controlling the calendar, interpreting omens, and regulating all other priesthoods.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 715-673 BCReligious Reforms of Numa
c. 715 BC onwardPontifex Maximus
715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
100-60 BCCaesar's Early Career
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pontifex_maximus
CardType: significance

Front: What were Numa's religious reforms?
Back: Numa organised Roman religious life: creating priesthoods, establishing the Vestal Virgins, appointing the first Pontifex Maximus, building the Temple of Janus, and dividing the calendar into sacred and profane days.
Timeline: 715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
c. 715-673 BCReligious Reforms of Numa
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: religious_reforms_of_numa
CardType: identity

Front: What was the significance of Numa's religious reforms?
Back: Gave Rome a structured civic religion that bound political and religious life together for the rest of Roman history.
Timeline: 715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
c. 715-673 BCReligious Reforms of Numa
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: religious_reforms_of_numa
CardType: significance

Front: What was the Temple of Janus?
Back: A temple whose gates stood open in wartime and closed only in peace. Traditionally built by Numa, who kept them closed for his entire reign.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 715-673 BCReligious Reforms of Numa
c. 715 BC onwardTemple of Janus
715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: temple_of_janus
CardType: identity

Front: What was the significance of the Temple of Janus?
Back: The gates of Janus became Rome's most famous symbol of war and peace; they were almost never closed after Numa, reflecting Rome's near-permanent state of warfare.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 715-673 BCReligious Reforms of Numa
c. 715 BC onwardTemple of Janus
715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: temple_of_janus
CardType: significance

Front: What were the Vestal Virgins?
Back: Priestesses of Vesta who maintained Rome's sacred fire and were sworn to thirty years of chastity. Traditionally established by Numa.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 715-673 BCReligious Reforms of Numa
c. 715 BC onwardVestal Virgins
715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: vestal_virgins
CardType: identity

Front: What did the Vestal Virgins and their sacred fire symbolise?
Back: The Vestal Virgins embodied the link between religious purity and Roman state survival; their sacred fire symbolised the continuity of Rome itself.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 715-673 BCReligious Reforms of Numa
c. 715 BC onwardVestal Virgins
715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: vestal_virgins
CardType: significance

Front: What was Tarentum's role in bringing Pyrrhus to Italy?
Back: Leading Greek city of Magna Graecia in southern Italy. Attacked a Roman fleet blown into its waters, then called on Pyrrhus of Epirus for aid when Rome retaliated. Its fall after the Pyrrhic War marked the end of independent Greek power in Italy.
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tarentum
CardType: identity

Front: What is Clusium?
Back: Etruscan city north of Rome, ruled by Lars Porsenna at the time of his war against the early Republic.
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: clusium
CardType: identity

Front: What is Messana?
Back: Sicilian city on the strait between Italy and Sicily. Site of the Mamertine crisis that triggered the First Punic War.
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: messana
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Tullus Hostilius?
Back: Third king of Rome, who restored Rome's martial character after Numa's peace, destroyed Alba Longa, and absorbed its population into Rome.
Timeline: 715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
c. 670 BCWar with Alba Longa
c. 670 BCCombat of the Horatii and Curiatii
c. 669 BCTreachery of Mettius Fufetius
c. 668 BCDestruction of Alba Longa
642-617 BCAncus Marcius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tullus_hostilius
CardType: identity

Front: Where does Tullus Hostilius fit in the line of succession?
Back: Succeeded Numa Pompilius, followed by Ancus Marcius.
Timeline: 715-673 BCNuma Pompilius
673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
c. 670 BCWar with Alba Longa
c. 670 BCCombat of the Horatii and Curiatii
c. 669 BCTreachery of Mettius Fufetius
c. 668 BCDestruction of Alba Longa
642-617 BCAncus Marcius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tullus_hostilius
CardType: succession

Front: How did Rome and Alba Longa settle their war without mass battle?
Back: To settle the war between Rome and Alba Longa without mass bloodshed, three Roman brothers (Horatii) fought three Alban brothers (Curiatii) in single combat. The last surviving Horatius killed all three opponents.
Timeline: 673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
c. 670 BCCombat of the Horatii and Curiatii
c. 670 BCWar with Alba Longa
c. 669 BCTreachery of Mettius Fufetius
c. 668 BCDestruction of Alba Longa
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: combat_of_the_horatii_and_curiatii
CardType: identity

Front: What happened in the War with Alba Longa?
Back: Tullus Hostilius provoked a war with Rome's mother city Alba Longa, ultimately destroying it and absorbing its population after the Alban dictator Mettius Fufetius betrayed Rome in battle.
Timeline: 673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
c. 670 BCWar with Alba Longa
c. 670 BCCombat of the Horatii and Curiatii
c. 669 BCTreachery of Mettius Fufetius
c. 668 BCDestruction of Alba Longa
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: war_with_alba_longa
CardType: identity

Front: How did Mettius Fufetius betray Rome?
Back: The Alban dictator Mettius Fufetius agreed to fight alongside Rome against Veii and Fidenae but withdrew his forces during the battle, hoping both sides would destroy each other.
Timeline: 673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
c. 670 BCWar with Alba Longa
c. 670 BCCombat of the Horatii and Curiatii
c. 669 BCTreachery of Mettius Fufetius
c. 668 BCDestruction of Alba Longa
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: treachery_of_mettius_fufetius
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Tullus Hostilius destroy Alba Longa?
Back: After Mettius Fufetius betrayed Rome in battle, Tullus had him executed and ordered Alba Longa razed to the ground. Its entire population was resettled in Rome.
Timeline: 673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
c. 670 BCWar with Alba Longa
c. 670 BCCombat of the Horatii and Curiatii
c. 669 BCTreachery of Mettius Fufetius
c. 668 BCDestruction of Alba Longa
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: destruction_of_alba_longa
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Destruction of Alba Longa?
Back: - Alba Longa was razed and its population resettled in Rome
- Rome eliminated its legendary mother city as a rival in Latium
Timeline: 673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
c. 670 BCWar with Alba Longa
c. 670 BCCombat of the Horatii and Curiatii
c. 669 BCTreachery of Mettius Fufetius
c. 668 BCDestruction of Alba Longa
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: destruction_of_alba_longa
CardType: consequence

Front: Who was Ancus Marcius?
Back: Fourth king of Rome, grandson of Numa, who formalised the ritual declaration of war, defeated neighbouring Latin communities, resettled their populations in Rome, and founded the port of Ostia.
Timeline: 673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
642-617 BCAncus Marcius
c. 635 BCAncus Marcius Latin Wars
c. 620 BCFoundation of Ostia
616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: ancus_marcius
CardType: identity

Front: Where does Ancus Marcius fit in the line of succession?
Back: Succeeded Tullus Hostilius, followed by Lucius Tarquinius Priscus.
Timeline: 673-642 BCTullus Hostilius
642-617 BCAncus Marcius
c. 635 BCAncus Marcius Latin Wars
c. 620 BCFoundation of Ostia
616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: ancus_marcius
CardType: succession

Front: What was the Fetial Ritual?
Back: A formalised religious procedure for declaring war, traditionally instituted by Ancus Marcius. Fetial priests delivered demands, allowed a waiting period, then ritually declared hostilities if terms were refused.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 635 BCAncus Marcius Latin Wars
c. 642 BC onwardFetial Ritual
642-617 BCAncus Marcius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: fetial_ritual
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from Ancus Marcius's Latin wars?
Back: - Defeated Latin populations were resettled in Rome
- Roman settlers were sent into vacated Alban lands
- Rome expanded its population and control over the surrounding countryside
Timeline: 642-617 BCAncus Marcius
c. 635 BCAncus Marcius Latin Wars
c. 620 BCFoundation of Ostia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: ancus_marcius_latin_wars
CardType: consequence

Front: Why did Ancus Marcius found Ostia?
Back: Ancus Marcius founded Ostia at the mouth of the Tiber, giving Rome its first port and access to maritime trade.
Timeline: 642-617 BCAncus Marcius
c. 635 BCAncus Marcius Latin Wars
c. 620 BCFoundation of Ostia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: foundation_of_ostia
CardType: identity

Front: What is Ostia?
Back: Rome's port at the mouth of the Tiber, traditionally founded by Ancus Marcius.
Timeline: 642-617 BCAncus Marcius
c. 620 BCFoundation of Ostia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: ostia
CardType: identity

Front: What did the election of Tarquinius Priscus reveal about Roman kingship?
Back: Roman kingship was elective rather than hereditary and open to men of ability regardless of origin, demonstrated by the Etruscan outsider becoming king by sending Ancus Marcius's sons away and winning senatorial support through patronage.
Timeline: 616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
c. 616 BCElection of Tarquinius Priscus
c. 610 BCExpansion of the Senate under Priscus
c. 605 BCFirst Roman Triumph
c. 600 BCConstruction of the Circus Maximus
c. 590 BCAdoption of Servius Tullius
c. 579 BCAssassination of Tarquinius Priscus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: election_of_tarquinius_priscus
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Lucius Tarquinius Priscus?
Back: Fifth king of Rome, an Etruscan outsider from Tarquinii who gained power through wealth and patronage. He expanded the Senate, began the Circus Maximus, celebrated the first Roman triumph, and adopted Servius Tullius as heir.
Timeline: 642-617 BCAncus Marcius
616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
c. 616 BCElection of Tarquinius Priscus
c. 610 BCExpansion of the Senate under Priscus
c. 605 BCFirst Roman Triumph
c. 600 BCConstruction of the Circus Maximus
c. 590 BCAdoption of Servius Tullius
c. 579 BCAssassination of Tarquinius Priscus
578-535 BCServius Tullius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_tarquinius_priscus
CardType: identity

Front: Where does Lucius Tarquinius Priscus fit in the line of succession?
Back: Succeeded Ancus Marcius, followed by Servius Tullius.
Timeline: 642-617 BCAncus Marcius
616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
c. 616 BCElection of Tarquinius Priscus
c. 610 BCExpansion of the Senate under Priscus
c. 605 BCFirst Roman Triumph
c. 600 BCConstruction of the Circus Maximus
c. 590 BCAdoption of Servius Tullius
c. 579 BCAssassination of Tarquinius Priscus
578-535 BCServius Tullius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_tarquinius_priscus
CardType: succession

Front: What was the Roman triumph?
Back: A ceremonial procession through Rome awarded to a victorious general, traditionally first celebrated by Tarquinius Priscus.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 605 BCFirst Roman Triumph
c. 605 BC onwardRoman Triumph
616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_triumph
CardType: identity

Front: What political purpose did the triumph serve for the Roman general who held it?
Back: The triumph converted battlefield achievement into public political capital. A general who triumphed displayed captives, plundered wealth, and proof of victory to every voter in Rome, building prestige that translated directly into electoral success for himself and his family. This made the pursuit of command, and of victories that qualified for a triumph, a structural driver of Roman expansion.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 605 BCFirst Roman Triumph
c. 605 BC onwardRoman Triumph
616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_triumph
CardType: significance

Front: What is the Circus Maximus?
Back: Rome's great chariot-racing venue in the valley between the Palatine and Aventine hills, traditionally begun by Tarquinius Priscus.
Timeline: 616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
c. 600 BCConstruction of the Circus Maximus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: circus_maximus
CardType: identity

Front: What was debt bondage (nexum) in early Rome?
Back: A system in which debtors unable to repay could become bonded servants to creditors, losing personal freedom until the debt was worked off.
Timeline: archaic period to 326 BCDebt Bondage
from 509 BCRoman Republic
c. 500-494 BCDebt Bondage Crisis
494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: debt_bondage
CardType: identity

Front: Why did debt bondage become politically explosive in the early Republic?
Back: Created deep plebeian resentment, exposed the economic injustice of the early Republic, and helped spark the Conflict of the Orders.
Timeline: archaic period to 326 BCDebt Bondage
from 509 BCRoman Republic
c. 500-494 BCDebt Bondage Crisis
494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: debt_bondage
CardType: significance

Front: How did Servius Tullius come to be adopted into the royal family?
Back: Tanaquil interpreted a flame omen around the child Servius as a sign of future greatness; Tarquinius Priscus adopted him as heir.
Timeline: 616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
c. 616 BCElection of Tarquinius Priscus
c. 610 BCExpansion of the Senate under Priscus
c. 605 BCFirst Roman Triumph
c. 600 BCConstruction of the Circus Maximus
c. 590 BCAdoption of Servius Tullius
c. 579 BCAssassination of Tarquinius Priscus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: adoption_of_servius_tullius
CardType: identity

Front: Who killed Tarquinius Priscus?
Back: The sons of Ancus Marcius arranged Tarquinius Priscus's murder with hired attackers, believing he had denied them their birthright.
Timeline: 616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
c. 616 BCElection of Tarquinius Priscus
c. 610 BCExpansion of the Senate under Priscus
c. 605 BCFirst Roman Triumph
c. 600 BCConstruction of the Circus Maximus
c. 590 BCAdoption of Servius Tullius
c. 579 BCAssassination of Tarquinius Priscus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: assassination_of_tarquinius_priscus
CardType: identity

Front: Who were the assidui?
Back: Landowning citizens liable for military service, as opposed to the landless proletarii who were exempt.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 578-535 BCServian Centuriate Reforms
c. 578 BC onwardAssidui
578-535 BCServius Tullius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: assidui
CardType: identity

Front: What did the Roman census register?
Back: Periodic registration of citizens by wealth, property, and military capacity, traditionally instituted by Servius Tullius.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 578-535 BCServian Census
c. 578 BC onwardCensus
578-535 BCServius Tullius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: census
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Comitia Centuriata?
Back: Rome's military-electoral assembly created by Servius Tullius, in which citizens voted by centuries grouped by wealth class. The wealthy had disproportionate voting power.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 578-535 BCServian Centuriate Reforms
509 BCFounding of the Roman Republic
c. 578 BC onwardComitia Centuriata
578-535 BCServius Tullius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: comitia_centuriata
CardType: identity

Front: Who were the equites?
Back: The wealthiest cavalry class, sitting above the five property classes in the Servian system and holding major voting influence in the Comitia Centuriata.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 578-535 BCServian Centuriate Reforms
c. 578 BC onwardEquites
578-535 BCServius Tullius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: equites
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Servian census?
Back: The first systematic count of Roman citizens, instituted by Servius Tullius to classify the population by wealth and military obligation. It provided the data that underpinned the centuriate class system.
Timeline: 578-535 BCServius Tullius
c. 578-535 BCServian Census
c. 578 BCTanaquil's Deception and Servius's Accession
c. 578-535 BCServian Centuriate Reforms
c. 550 BCConstruction of the Temple of Diana
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: servian_census
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Servian Centuriate Reforms?
Back: - Wealthier citizens received disproportionate voting power
- Military obligation and political voting were tied together
- The system shaped later Republican politics
Timeline: 578-535 BCServius Tullius
c. 578-535 BCServian Centuriate Reforms
c. 578 BCTanaquil's Deception and Servius's Accession
c. 578-535 BCServian Census
c. 550 BCConstruction of the Temple of Diana
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: servian_centuriate_reforms
CardType: consequence

Front: What were the Servian classes?
Back: Five wealth-based classes of Roman citizens, plus the equites above and landless poor below, each with defined military equipment and voting centuries.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
c. 578-535 BCServian Centuriate Reforms
c. 578 BC onwardServian Classes
578-535 BCServius Tullius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: servian_classes
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Servius Tullius?
Back: Sixth king of Rome and adopted heir of Tarquinius Priscus. Credited with instituting the census, dividing citizens into wealth classes, creating the Comitia Centuriata, and building Rome's military-electoral class system.
Timeline: 616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
578-535 BCServius Tullius
c. 578 BCTanaquil's Deception and Servius's Accession
c. 578-535 BCServian Census
c. 578-535 BCServian Centuriate Reforms
c. 550 BCConstruction of the Temple of Diana
535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: servius_tullius
CardType: identity

Front: Where does Servius Tullius fit in the line of succession?
Back: Succeeded Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, followed by Lucius Tarquinius Superbus.
Timeline: 616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
578-535 BCServius Tullius
c. 578 BCTanaquil's Deception and Servius's Accession
c. 578-535 BCServian Census
c. 578-535 BCServian Centuriate Reforms
c. 550 BCConstruction of the Temple of Diana
535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: servius_tullius
CardType: succession

Front: What was Tanaquil's deception?
Back: Tanaquil claimed Tarquin was only wounded and had Servius act as king until his position was secure, enabling a smooth succession.
Timeline: 578-535 BCServius Tullius
c. 578 BCTanaquil's Deception and Servius's Accession
c. 578-535 BCServian Census
c. 578-535 BCServian Centuriate Reforms
c. 550 BCConstruction of the Temple of Diana
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tanaquils_deception_and_servius_accession
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Lucius Tarquinius Superbus?
Back: Seventh and last king of Rome. Usurped the throne by murdering Servius Tullius, ruled as a tyrant, weakened the Senate, and was expelled after Sextus Tarquinius raped Lucretia, triggering the founding of the Republic.
Timeline: 578-535 BCServius Tullius
535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
c. 535 BCMurder of Servius Tullius
c. 535-509 BCTyranny of Tarquinius Superbus
c. 520 BCLatin Council Frame-up
509 BCRape of Lucretia
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_tarquinius_superbus
CardType: identity

Front: Where does Lucius Tarquinius Superbus fit in the line of succession?
Back: Succeeded Servius Tullius (last in line).
Timeline: 578-535 BCServius Tullius
535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
c. 535 BCMurder of Servius Tullius
c. 535-509 BCTyranny of Tarquinius Superbus
c. 520 BCLatin Council Frame-up
509 BCRape of Lucretia
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_tarquinius_superbus
CardType: succession

Front: How did Servius Tullius lose power?
Back: Lucius Tarquinius Superbus seized the throne and Servius Tullius was killed in the ensuing violence, aided by Superbus's wife Tullia.
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
c. 535 BCMurder of Servius Tullius
c. 535-509 BCTyranny of Tarquinius Superbus
c. 520 BCLatin Council Frame-up
509 BCRape of Lucretia
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: murder_of_servius_tullius
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the murder of Servius Tullius?
Back: - Tarquinius Superbus became king without proper election or senatorial approval
- Superbus's illegitimate seizure of power set the pattern for his tyrannical reign
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
c. 535 BCMurder of Servius Tullius
c. 535-509 BCTyranny of Tarquinius Superbus
c. 520 BCLatin Council Frame-up
509 BCRape of Lucretia
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: murder_of_servius_tullius
CardType: consequence

Front: What happened in the battle against Veii and Tarquin?
Back: Tarquin persuaded Veii to attack Rome. Brutus and Publicola defeated them, but Brutus was killed in battle.
Timeline: 509 BCBattle against Veii and Tarquin
509 BCFounding of the Roman Republic
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
CombatHTML: Romevs.Etruscans
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_against_veii_and_tarquin
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the battle against Veii and Tarquin?
Back: - The Republic survived its first external military test
- Lucius Junius Brutus was killed
- Rome mourned Brutus for a year
Timeline: 509 BCBattle against Veii and Tarquin
509 BCFounding of the Roman Republic
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
CombatHTML: Romevs.Etruscans
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_against_veii_and_tarquin
CardType: consequence

Front: What oath did Brutus make Romans swear?
Back: Brutus made Romans swear an oath before Jupiter never again to allow a king to rule Rome.
Timeline: 509 BCFounding of the Roman Republic
509 BCBrutus's Anti-Monarchic Oath
509 BCResignation of Collatinus
509 BCTarquinian Conspiracy
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: brutus_anti_monarchic_oath
CardType: identity

Front: What was the consulship?
Back: Rome's supreme executive magistracy: two consuls elected annually to replace the king, holding imperium but limited by collegiality and one-year terms. Originally called praetors in early tradition. The yearly term was more important to Roman liberty than any separation of powers.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
509 BCFounding of the Roman Republic
509 BC onwardConsulship
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: consulship
CardType: identity

Front: What did Brutus's execution of his own sons come to symbolise in Roman culture?
Back: Brutus let his own sons be scourged and beheaded for treason rather than shield them from justice. Romans long cited this as the model of patriotic sacrifice: the welfare of the Republic placed above even family loyalty.
Timeline: 509 BCResignation of Collatinus
509 BCTarquinian Conspiracy
509 BCExecution of Brutus's Sons
509 BCPublicola's Reforms
c. 508 BCDefence of the Sublician Bridge
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: execution_of_brutuss_sons
CardType: significance

Front: How were the Tarquins expelled from Rome?
Back: After Lucretia's suicide, Brutus swore vengeance and rallied both the people in Rome and the army at Ardea against Superbus. The gates were closed against the king and the royal family was expelled.
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
c. 535 BCMurder of Servius Tullius
c. 535-509 BCTyranny of Tarquinius Superbus
c. 520 BCLatin Council Frame-up
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
509 BCRape of Lucretia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: expulsion_of_the_tarquins
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Expulsion of the Tarquins?
Back: - Superbus's tyranny had alienated Rome
- The rape and death of Lucretia provided the spark for revolt
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
c. 535 BCMurder of Servius Tullius
c. 535-509 BCTyranny of Tarquinius Superbus
c. 520 BCLatin Council Frame-up
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
509 BCRape of Lucretia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: expulsion_of_the_tarquins
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from the Expulsion of the Tarquins?
Back: - The Tarquins were declared enemies and barred from Rome
- Roman monarchy was abolished
- The Republic was founded
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
c. 535 BCMurder of Servius Tullius
c. 535-509 BCTyranny of Tarquinius Superbus
c. 520 BCLatin Council Frame-up
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
509 BCRape of Lucretia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: expulsion_of_the_tarquins
CardType: consequence

Front: What political identity did the expulsion of the Tarquins create for Rome?
Back: Superbus had shown what unchecked power looked like: arbitrary executions, ignored Senate, hereditary succession. The Comitia Centuriata's response was constitutional: two men elected annually, so that power could never again concentrate in a single hand. Romans ever after defined their civic identity against the image of the tyrant king. Any politician who seemed to reach for personal supremacy could be destroyed by the charge of aiming at kingship.
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
c. 535 BCMurder of Servius Tullius
c. 535-509 BCTyranny of Tarquinius Superbus
c. 520 BCLatin Council Frame-up
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
509 BCRape of Lucretia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: expulsion_of_the_tarquins
CardType: significance

Front: How was the Roman Republic established?
Back: The Comitia Centuriata elected Brutus and Collatinus as the first consuls, replacing kingship with annually elected magistrates.
Timeline: 509 BCFounding of the Roman Republic
509 BCBrutus's Anti-Monarchic Oath
509 BCResignation of Collatinus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: founding_of_the_roman_republic
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Lucius Junius Brutus?
Back: Led the revolt against the Tarquins after Lucretia's death and became one of the first two consuls of the Roman Republic.
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
Consul 509 BCLucius Junius Brutus
509 BCRape of Lucretia
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
509 BCFounding of the Roman Republic
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_junius_brutus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus?
Back: Husband of Lucretia and one of the first two consuls of the Roman Republic alongside Brutus.
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
509 BCRape of Lucretia
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
509 BCFounding of the Roman Republic
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_tarquinius_collatinus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Lucretia?
Back: Roman noblewoman whose rape by Sextus Tarquinius and subsequent suicide triggered the revolt that ended the monarchy.
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
509 BCRape of Lucretia
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucretia
CardType: identity

Front: What were Publicola's reforms?
Back: Publius Valerius responded to public suspicion by demolishing his hilltop house and proposing laws protecting the Republic: any man seeking kingship could be killed, and citizens gained the right to appeal magistrate decisions to the people. These acts earned him the name Publicola ("friend of the people").
Timeline: 509 BCTarquinian Conspiracy
509 BCExecution of Brutus's Sons
509 BCPublicola's Reforms
c. 508 BCDefence of the Sublician Bridge
c. 508 BCMucius Scaevola's Attempted Assassination
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: publicolas_reforms
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Publius Valerius Publicola?
Back: Replaced Collatinus as consul, helped defeat Tarquin's Etruscan allies, and passed laws protecting the Republic, including the right of appeal and the law allowing anyone seeking kingship to be killed. Earned the honorific Publicola ("friend of the people").
Timeline: Consul 509 BCPublius Valerius Publicola
509 BCResignation of Collatinus
509 BCBattle against Veii and Tarquin
509 BCPublicola's Reforms
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: publius_valerius_publicola
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Publicola earn his honorific?
Back: He passed the right of appeal, protecting citizens from arbitrary magistrate power, and the law permitting any Roman to kill someone who sought kingship without legal penalty. These laws made him the Republic's first model of a leader who voluntarily bound himself to the people, earning the name Publicola, "friend of the people."
Timeline: Consul 509 BCPublius Valerius Publicola
509 BCResignation of Collatinus
509 BCBattle against Veii and Tarquin
509 BCPublicola's Reforms
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: publius_valerius_publicola
CardType: significance

Front: What was the Rape of Lucretia?
Back: Sextus Tarquinius raped Lucretia; she reported the crime to her family and died by suicide, triggering the revolt against the Tarquins.
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
c. 535 BCMurder of Servius Tullius
c. 535-509 BCTyranny of Tarquinius Superbus
c. 520 BCLatin Council Frame-up
509 BCRape of Lucretia
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: rape_of_lucretia
CardType: identity

Front: Why did the rape of Lucretia become Rome's founding moral narrative?
Back: Lucretia embodied Roman female virtue, and her suicide rather than living with dishonour made Sextus's crime impossible to minimise or excuse. Brutus turned private grief into public revolt, and her death gave the expulsion of the Tarquins a moral charge that mere political resentment could never have supplied. Romans ever after pointed to Lucretia to explain why kingship itself, not just one bad king, had to be abolished.
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
c. 535 BCMurder of Servius Tullius
c. 535-509 BCTyranny of Tarquinius Superbus
c. 520 BCLatin Council Frame-up
509 BCRape of Lucretia
509 BCExpulsion of the Tarquins
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: rape_of_lucretia
CardType: significance

Front: Why did Collatinus resign the consulship?
Back: Collatinus resigned the consulship because Romans distrusted the Tarquin name, even though he had helped overthrow the monarchy. Publius Valerius replaced him.
Timeline: 509 BCFounding of the Roman Republic
509 BCBrutus's Anti-Monarchic Oath
509 BCResignation of Collatinus
509 BCTarquinian Conspiracy
509 BCExecution of Brutus's Sons
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: resignation_of_collatinus
CardType: identity

Front: What was the right of appeal to the people (provocatio)?
Back: The right of a Roman citizen to appeal a magistrate's decision to the popular assembly, established by Publicola's laws in the first year of the Republic.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
509 BCPublicola's Reforms
509 BCRight of Appeal to the People
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: right_of_appeal
CardType: identity

Front: How did the right of appeal limit magistrate power in the Roman Republic?
Back: Limited magistrate power by giving citizens recourse against arbitrary official decisions, becoming a cornerstone of Roman civic liberty.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
509 BCPublicola's Reforms
509 BCRight of Appeal to the People
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: right_of_appeal
CardType: significance

Front: What was the Roman Republic?
Back: The period of Roman history beginning with the expulsion of the kings in 509 BC, characterised by annually elected magistrates and senatorial governance. The early Republic was dominated by patrician aristocrats, not broadly democratic.
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
from 509 BCRoman Republic
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_republic
CardType: identity

Front: When did the Roman Republic span?
Back: from 509 BC
Timeline: 753-509 BCRoman Kingdom
from 509 BCRoman Republic
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_republic
CardType: chronology

Front: Who was Sextus Tarquinius?
Back: Son of Tarquinius Superbus whose crime against Lucretia triggered the fall of the monarchy.
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
509 BCRape of Lucretia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sextus_tarquinius
CardType: identity

Front: Who conspired to restore the Tarquins?
Back: Young Roman nobles, including Brutus's sons, conspired with Tarquin's envoys to restore the monarchy. The conspiracy was exposed by a slave.
Timeline: 509 BCBrutus's Anti-Monarchic Oath
509 BCResignation of Collatinus
509 BCTarquinian Conspiracy
509 BCExecution of Brutus's Sons
509 BCPublicola's Reforms
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tarquinian_conspiracy
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Tarquinian Conspiracy?
Back: - The conspiracy was exposed and the conspirators executed
- Brutus's sons were among those put to death for treason
Timeline: 509 BCBrutus's Anti-Monarchic Oath
509 BCResignation of Collatinus
509 BCTarquinian Conspiracy
509 BCExecution of Brutus's Sons
509 BCPublicola's Reforms
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tarquinian_conspiracy
CardType: consequence

Front: Who was Gaius Mucius Scaevola?
Back: Attempted to assassinate Lars Porsenna, killed the wrong man, then burned his own hand to demonstrate that Romans would endure any suffering rather than submit.
Timeline: c. 508-507 BCLars Porsenna's War against Rome
c. 508 BCMucius Scaevola's Attempted Assassination
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gaius_mucius_scaevola
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Horatius Cocles?
Back: Legendary Roman hero who defended the bridge over the Tiber single-handedly long enough for it to be destroyed, preventing Porsenna's army from crossing into the city.
Timeline: c. 508-507 BCLars Porsenna's War against Rome
c. 508 BCDefence of the Sublician Bridge
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: horatius_cocles
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Lars Porsenna?
Back: Etruscan king of Clusium who attacked the new Roman Republic after Tarquin's expulsion.
Timeline: 535-509 BCLucius Tarquinius Superbus
c. 508-507 BCLars Porsenna's War against Rome
King of Clusium, c. 508 BCLars Porsenna
c. 508 BCDefence of the Sublician Bridge
c. 508 BCMucius Scaevola's Attempted Assassination
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lars_porsenna
CardType: identity

Front: What does the traditional account of Lars Porsenna's war hide about what actually happened?
Back: Rome probably lost: Porsenna likely captured or occupied the city before Rome regained independence. Roman tradition buried this under heroic legends of Horatius at the bridge and Mucius Scaevola's defiance, reshaping a humiliation into a story of unbroken resistance.
Timeline: c. 508-507 BCLars Porsenna's War against Rome
c. 508 BCDefence of the Sublician Bridge
c. 508 BCMucius Scaevola's Attempted Assassination
CombatHTML: Romevs.Etruscans
Disputed
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lars_porsennas_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused Lars Porsenna's War against Rome?
Back: - Tarquinius Superbus sought Etruscan support after his expulsion
- Etruscan trade interests in central Italy were threatened by regional upheaval
Timeline: c. 508-507 BCLars Porsenna's War against Rome
c. 508 BCDefence of the Sublician Bridge
c. 508 BCMucius Scaevola's Attempted Assassination
CombatHTML: Romevs.Etruscans
Disputed
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lars_porsennas_war
CardType: cause

Front: What was the Roman dictatorship?
Back: A temporary emergency office granting one man extraordinary authority for a maximum of six months. The dictator appointed a Master of the Horse and faced no appeal or colleague veto during his term. Cincinnatus (458 BC) became the iconic example: appointed in crisis, victorious in fifteen days, then voluntarily resigned.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
c. 496 BCBattle of Lake Regillus
458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
from c. 501 BCRoman Dictatorship
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_dictatorship
CardType: identity

Front: How did the Roman dictatorship balance crisis response with republican principles?
Back: Allowed Rome to respond quickly to crises while preserving republican principles, because it was temporary emergency power: the dictator held extraordinary authority for a limited term and was expected to resign when the crisis ended.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
c. 496 BCBattle of Lake Regillus
458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
from c. 501 BCRoman Dictatorship
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_dictatorship
CardType: significance

Front: Why did debt bondage become a political crisis in the early Republic?
Back: Plebeian soldiers returned from war to find themselves trapped in debt bondage because debts accumulated while they served. Patrician refusal to grant relief pushed the Republic toward crisis, directly triggering the First Secession of the Plebs.
Timeline: c. 508 BCDefence of the Sublician Bridge
c. 508 BCMucius Scaevola's Attempted Assassination
c. 500-494 BCDebt Bondage Crisis
494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
471 BCVolero's Tribal Assembly Reform
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: debt_bondage_crisis
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Lake Regillus?
Back: A decisive battle in which Rome, under the dictator Aulus Postumius Albus, defeated the Latin League and reasserted Roman dominance over Latium.
Timeline: c. 508-507 BCLars Porsenna's War against Rome
c. 496 BCBattle of Lake Regillus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Latins
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_lake_regillus
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Battle of Lake Regillus?
Back: - Rome reasserted dominance over Latium
- Latin resistance to Rome was checked until the later Latin War
- Demonstrated the dictatorship as effective emergency military command
Timeline: c. 508-507 BCLars Porsenna's War against Rome
c. 496 BCBattle of Lake Regillus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Latins
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_lake_regillus
CardType: consequence

Front: What was the Conflict of the Orders?
Back: The two-century political struggle (494-287 BC) between patricians and plebeians over debt relief, legal protection, and access to office. Plebeians used collective action (secessions, strikes) to force concessions step by step until achieving full political equality.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
c. 500-494 BCDebt Bondage Crisis
494-287 BCConflict of the Orders
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: conflict_of_the_orders
CardType: identity

Front: How did the plebeians force the Senate to negotiate in 494 BC?
Back: Plebeian soldiers withdrew to the Sacred Mount and refused to return until their grievances were addressed, forcing the Senate to negotiate.
Timeline: c. 508 BCMucius Scaevola's Attempted Assassination
c. 500-494 BCDebt Bondage Crisis
494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
471 BCVolero's Tribal Assembly Reform
462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_secession_of_the_plebs
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the First Secession of the Plebs?
Back: - Debt bondage and patrician refusal to grant relief
- Plebeians felt betrayed after serving in war on promises of reform
Timeline: c. 508 BCMucius Scaevola's Attempted Assassination
c. 500-494 BCDebt Bondage Crisis
494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
471 BCVolero's Tribal Assembly Reform
462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_secession_of_the_plebs
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from the First Secession of the Plebs?
Back: - The Senate negotiated with the plebs
- The tribunate of the plebs was created
- Plebeian collective action became a major force in Republican politics
Timeline: c. 508 BCMucius Scaevola's Attempted Assassination
c. 500-494 BCDebt Bondage Crisis
494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
471 BCVolero's Tribal Assembly Reform
462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_secession_of_the_plebs
CardType: consequence

Front: What was the Plebeian Council?
Back: Assembly of plebeians that elected tribunes and passed resolutions (plebiscita), operating outside patrician control.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
494 BCPlebeian Council
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: plebeian_council
CardType: identity

Front: What was the tribunate of the plebs?
Back: Plebeian office created after the First Secession to protect plebeians from patrician magistrates. Tribunes were sacrosanct; anyone who harmed them was accursed. Election was moved to the tribal assembly (471 BC), and the number was raised to ten after the Second Secession (449 BC).
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
82-80 BCSulla's Constitutional Reforms
494 BCTribunate of the Plebs
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tribunate_of_the_plebs
CardType: identity

Front: What was the significance of the tribunate of the plebs?
Back: Became the central institutional weapon of the plebeians in the Conflict of the Orders and later a tool of populist politics.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
82-80 BCSulla's Constitutional Reforms
494 BCTribunate of the Plebs
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tribunate_of_the_plebs
CardType: significance

Front: What happened at the Battle of the Cremera?
Back: 306 members of the Fabii clan took sole responsibility for Rome's war against Veii and were wiped out defending an indefensible pass, a Roman Thermopylae. Only one Fabius survived to continue the line.
CombatHTML: Romevs.Veii
Veientine Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_the_cremera
CardType: identity

Front: What did Volero's reform change about tribune elections?
Back: Tribune Volero Publilius proposed that tribunes be elected by the Tribal Assembly rather than the wealth-weighted Comitia Centuriata, reducing patrician influence over tribune selection.
Timeline: c. 500-494 BCDebt Bondage Crisis
494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
471 BCVolero's Tribal Assembly Reform
462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
c. 461 BCTrial and Exile of Caeso Quinctius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: voleros_tribal_assembly_reform
CardType: identity

Front: What did Terentilius propose?
Back: Tribune Terentilius proposed that Rome's laws be written down and publicly posted so all citizens would be bound by the same rules and no man could rise above them. Patricians delayed the proposal for roughly a decade.
Timeline: 494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
471 BCVolero's Tribal Assembly Reform
462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
c. 461 BCTrial and Exile of Caeso Quinctius
458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: terentiliuss_proposal_for_written_law
CardType: identity

Front: What caused Terentilius's proposal for written law?
Back: - Patricians controlled legal interpretation through opaque oral tradition
- Plebeians wanted protection from arbitrary magistrates and patrician lawyers
Timeline: 494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
471 BCVolero's Tribal Assembly Reform
462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
c. 461 BCTrial and Exile of Caeso Quinctius
458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: terentiliuss_proposal_for_written_law
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from Terentilius's proposal for written law?
Back: - Patricians delayed implementation for roughly a decade using wars and political manoeuvring
- The proposal eventually led to the Decemvirate and the Twelve Tables
Timeline: 494 BCFirst Secession of the Plebs
471 BCVolero's Tribal Assembly Reform
462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
c. 461 BCTrial and Exile of Caeso Quinctius
458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: terentiliuss_proposal_for_written_law
CardType: consequence

Front: What happened to Caeso Quinctius?
Back: Caeso Quinctius, son of Cincinnatus, was charged by the tribune Verginius after violently breaking up plebeian demonstrations. Rather than face trial, he fled into Etruria. Cincinnatus was forced to sell most of his property to pay the bond, leaving him farming a small plot across the Tiber.
Timeline: 471 BCVolero's Tribal Assembly Reform
462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
c. 461 BCTrial and Exile of Caeso Quinctius
458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
451 BCCreation of the Decemvirate
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: trial_and_exile_of_caeso_quinctius
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the trial and exile of Caeso Quinctius?
Back: - Caeso fled into exile and vanished from Roman history
- Cincinnatus lost most of his property paying the bond
- Cincinnatus's poverty became part of his later farmer-virtue legend
Timeline: 471 BCVolero's Tribal Assembly Reform
462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
c. 461 BCTrial and Exile of Caeso Quinctius
458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
451 BCCreation of the Decemvirate
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: trial_and_exile_of_caeso_quinctius
CardType: consequence

Front: Who was Cincinnatus?
Back: Twice-appointed dictator who became Rome's archetype of republican virtue. Called from his farm to rescue a trapped army from the Aequi (458 BC), he won, triumphed, and resigned after fifteen days. His voluntary surrender of absolute power made him the model citizen-soldier for later Romans.
Timeline: c. 461 BCTrial and Exile of Caeso Quinctius
Dictator 458 & 439 BCLucius Quinctius Cincinnatus
458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
439 BCMaelius Affair
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_quinctius_cincinnatus
CardType: identity

Front: What happened during Cincinnatus's dictatorship in 458 BC?
Back: When a Roman army was trapped by the Aequi, Cincinnatus was appointed dictator, called from his farm, raised a new army, rescued the besieged legion, defeated the enemy, celebrated a triumph, and resigned after fifteen days.
Timeline: 462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
c. 461 BCTrial and Exile of Caeso Quinctius
458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
451 BCCreation of the Decemvirate
c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: dictatorship_of_cincinnatus_against_the_aequi
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from Cincinnatus's dictatorship against the Aequi?
Back: - Cincinnatus rescued the trapped army and defeated the Aequi
- He resigned the dictatorship after only fifteen days and returned to his farm
- His story became the classic model of emergency power accepted and voluntarily surrendered
Timeline: 462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
c. 461 BCTrial and Exile of Caeso Quinctius
458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
451 BCCreation of the Decemvirate
c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: dictatorship_of_cincinnatus_against_the_aequi
CardType: consequence

Front: Who was Appius Claudius Crassus?
Back: Leading Decemvir who helped produce the Twelve Tables but then refused to surrender power. His attempt to seize the freeborn Verginia by declaring her a slave triggered the Second Secession.
Timeline: Decemvir c. 451-449 BCAppius Claudius Crassus
451 BCCreation of the Decemvirate
c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
c. 450-449 BCDecemvirate Power Grab
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: appius_claudius_crassus
CardType: identity

Front: Which provision of the Twelve Tables especially outraged the plebeians?
Back: The ban on marriage between patricians and plebeians, codified in the Twelve Tables. This guaranteed that no plebeian could marry into a patrician family and therefore that no plebeian would ever hold the consulship or other high magistracies. Overturned by the Lex Canuleia in 445 BC.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
445 BCLex Canuleia
c. 451 BC (codified)Ban on Patrician-Plebeian Marriage
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: ban_on_patrician_plebeian_marriage
CardType: identity

Front: Why was the Decemvirate created?
Back: Consular power was transferred to a board of ten men, the Decemvirate, tasked with collecting and codifying Roman law into a single uniform code.
Timeline: c. 461 BCTrial and Exile of Caeso Quinctius
458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
451 BCCreation of the Decemvirate
c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
c. 450-449 BCDecemvirate Power Grab
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: creation_of_the_decemvirate
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Decemvirate?
Back: Board of ten men given consular and judicial authority to codify Roman law. Produced the Twelve Tables but became a constitutional crisis when Appius Claudius refused to surrender power.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
451 BCCreation of the Decemvirate
c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
451-449 BCDecemvirate
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: decemvirate
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the publication of the Twelve Tables?
Back: - Roman citizens could appeal to a public legal code rather than patrician interpretation
- The Twelve Tables became the foundation of later Roman law
Timeline: 458 BCDictatorship of Cincinnatus against the Aequi
451 BCCreation of the Decemvirate
c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
c. 450-449 BCDecemvirate Power Grab
449 BCSecond Secession of the Plebs
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: publication_of_the_twelve_tables
CardType: consequence

Front: What were the Twelve Tables?
Back: Rome's first public written legal code, produced by the Decemvirs and displayed on bronze tablets in the Forum. Covered lawsuits, debt, inheritance, property, divorce, criminal penalties, and public works. Memorised by all citizens.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
c. 451-450 BCTwelve Tables
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: twelve_tables
CardType: identity

Front: Why did the Twelve Tables matter even though they preserved class inequality?
Back: Established publicly knowable law as the basis of Roman justice, ending patrician monopoly on legal interpretation. But the ban on patrician-plebeian marriage exposed class inequality and fuelled the next phase of the Conflict of the Orders.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
462 BCTerentilius's Proposal for Written Law
c. 451-450 BCTwelve Tables
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: twelve_tables
CardType: significance

Front: How did the Decemvirate become a tyranny?
Back: After completing the Twelve Tables, Appius Claudius convinced the Decemvirs to remain in office illegally. He then tried to seize a freeborn plebeian woman, Verginia, by falsely declaring her a slave, provoking the people and army to revolt.
Timeline: 451 BCCreation of the Decemvirate
c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
c. 450-449 BCDecemvirate Power Grab
449 BCSecond Secession of the Plebs
445 BCLex Canuleia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: decemvirate_power_grab
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Decemvirate power grab?
Back: - Created a constitutional crisis
- Triggered the Second Secession of the Plebs
- Appius Claudius was arrested and killed himself before trial
Timeline: 451 BCCreation of the Decemvirate
c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
c. 450-449 BCDecemvirate Power Grab
449 BCSecond Secession of the Plebs
445 BCLex Canuleia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: decemvirate_power_grab
CardType: consequence

Front: How did the Romans overthrow the Decemvirate?
Back: The people and army withdrew to the Sacred Mount again, forcing the Decemvirs to resign and regular consular elections to resume.
Timeline: c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
c. 450-449 BCDecemvirate Power Grab
449 BCSecond Secession of the Plebs
445 BCLex Canuleia
444 BCCreation of Military Tribunes with Consular Power
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: second_secession_of_the_plebs
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Second Secession of the Plebs?
Back: - The Decemvirs resigned and Appius Claudius was arrested
- Regular consular elections resumed
- The number of tribunes was raised to ten
- Plebeians emerged with written law and stronger institutional protection
Timeline: c. 451-450 BCPublication of the Twelve Tables
c. 450-449 BCDecemvirate Power Grab
449 BCSecond Secession of the Plebs
445 BCLex Canuleia
444 BCCreation of Military Tribunes with Consular Power
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: second_secession_of_the_plebs
CardType: consequence

Front: What did the Lex Canuleia change about Roman marriage?
Back: Law proposed by the tribune Canuleius legalising marriage between patricians and plebeians. Patrician resistance was half-hearted because Roman law followed the father's status alone, making blood-purity arguments absurd. Some patrician families also eyed the fortunes of wealthy plebeian families.
Timeline: c. 450-449 BCDecemvirate Power Grab
449 BCSecond Secession of the Plebs
445 BCLex Canuleia
444 BCCreation of Military Tribunes with Consular Power
443 BCCreation of the Censorship
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lex_canuleia
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Lex Canuleia?
Back: - Patrician-plebeian marriage became legal
- The Conflict of the Orders shifted from legal protection to direct access to the consulship and high office
Timeline: c. 450-449 BCDecemvirate Power Grab
449 BCSecond Secession of the Plebs
445 BCLex Canuleia
444 BCCreation of Military Tribunes with Consular Power
443 BCCreation of the Censorship
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lex_canuleia
CardType: consequence

Front: Why did patricians create military tribunes with consular power?
Back: Right after the Lex Canuleia, the consulship was suspended and replaced (in some years) by military tribunes with consular power, initially three, later rising to four and six. Elected by the Comitia Centuriata, these tribunes were open to plebeians but less prestigious and more diluted than the consulship.
Timeline: 449 BCSecond Secession of the Plebs
445 BCLex Canuleia
444 BCCreation of Military Tribunes with Consular Power
443 BCCreation of the Censorship
439 BCMaelius Affair
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: creation_of_consular_tribunes
CardType: identity

Front: Why was the censorship created?
Back: When consular tribunes made it possible that plebeians might hold executive authority, patricians peeled off census administration into a new office, the censorship, restricted to patricians. The censor controlled citizen classification and the voting blocs of the Comitia Centuriata.
Timeline: 445 BCLex Canuleia
444 BCCreation of Military Tribunes with Consular Power
443 BCCreation of the Censorship
439 BCMaelius Affair
c. 406 BCIntroduction of Soldier Pay
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: creation_of_the_censorship
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Maelius Affair?
Back: During famine, the wealthy equestrian Spurius Maelius bought grain at his own expense and distributed it freely, becoming enormously popular. He then allegedly conspired to make himself king. Cincinnatus was appointed dictator for the second time, and when Maelius resisted summons, the Master of Horse killed him on the spot.
Timeline: 444 BCCreation of Military Tribunes with Consular Power
443 BCCreation of the Censorship
439 BCMaelius Affair
c. 406 BCIntroduction of Soldier Pay
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: maelius_affair
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Spurius Maelius?
Back: Wealthy equestrian who bought grain during famine and distributed it freely, becoming enormously popular. The Senate accused him of conspiring to make himself king, and he was killed by the Master of Horse when he resisted summons during Cincinnatus's second dictatorship.
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: spurius_maelius
CardType: identity

Front: Why was war between Rome and Veii inevitable?
Back: Veii lay twelve miles north of Rome, far too close for coexistence. After decades of rivalry over salt beds and fertile land, Rome committed to eliminating the city. The war lasted roughly ten years and forced Rome to keep soldiers in the field year-round for the first time, fundamentally changing Roman military practice.
Timeline: c. 438-425 BCRevolt of Fidenae
c. 406-396 BCFinal War with Veii
c. 406 BCIntroduction of Soldier Pay
396 BCFall of Veii
CombatHTML: Romevs.Veii
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: final_war_with_veii
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the final war with Veii?
Back: - Control of lucrative salt beds at the mouth of the Tiber, which lay on Veii's side
- Shrinking overland trade could no longer sustain both cities
- Rome's growing population needed the fertile land north of the Tiber
- Veii's economy was weakening as Syracuse pressured Carthaginian allies and Gauls encroached from the north
Timeline: c. 438-425 BCRevolt of Fidenae
c. 406-396 BCFinal War with Veii
c. 406 BCIntroduction of Soldier Pay
396 BCFall of Veii
CombatHTML: Romevs.Veii
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: final_war_with_veii
CardType: cause

Front: Why did Rome introduce soldier pay during the siege of Veii?
Back: The Senate introduced pay for soldiers so Rome could keep an army in the field year-round during the siege of Veii. Not a great sum or a permanent policy at first, but it set a precedent on the long road toward a fully professional army.
Timeline: 443 BCCreation of the Censorship
439 BCMaelius Affair
c. 406 BCIntroduction of Soldier Pay
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Gallic Sack of Rome
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: introduction_of_soldier_pay
CardType: identity

Front: List Rome's major wars of Italian expansion in order (406-272 BC).
Back: The sequence of major wars through which Rome conquered peninsular Italy, from the capture of Veii to the defeat of Pyrrhus.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
c. 406-396 BCFinal War with Veii
343-341 BCFirst Samnite War
340-338 BCLatin War
327-304 BCSecond Samnite War
298-290 BCThird Samnite War
280-275 BCPyrrhic War
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: wars_of_italian_expansion
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Marcus Furius Camillus?
Back: Rome's dominant figure of the early 4th century BC, holding five dictatorships. Captured Veii, convinced Romans to rebuild after the Gallic sack (earning the title "second founder of Rome"), and brokered the Licinian-Sextian compromise that opened the consulship to plebeians.
Timeline: c. 406-396 BCFinal War with Veii
active c. 403-365 BCMarcus Furius Camillus
396 BCFall of Veii
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marcus_furius_camillus
CardType: identity

Front: Why was Camillus considered the 'second founder of Rome'?
Back: Camillus bridged the worst period of Roman history, from the destruction of Veii through the Gallic catastrophe to the resolution of the patrician-plebeian conflict. His willingness to broker the Licinian-Sextian compromise as dictator showed that Rome's survival required unity across class lines, setting the pattern for the more cohesive Republic that would conquer Italy.
Timeline: c. 406-396 BCFinal War with Veii
active c. 403-365 BCMarcus Furius Camillus
396 BCFall of Veii
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marcus_furius_camillus
CardType: significance

Front: How did Camillus capture Veii?
Back: Camillus was appointed dictator after years of inconclusive siege. He tunnelled into Veii through its drainage system while distracting the defenders with a frontal assault. Roman troops emerged inside, opened the gates, and sacked the city.
Timeline: c. 406-396 BCFinal War with Veii
396 BCFall of Veii
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Veii
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: fall_of_veii
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the fall of Veii?
Back: - Veii was destroyed; men killed, women and children enslaved, wealth carried off
- Rome gained enormous wealth and access to fertile land north of the Tiber
- Rome became the dominant power south of Etruria
- The Etruscan League, lacking solidarity, could not prevent member cities from falling one by one
Timeline: c. 406-396 BCFinal War with Veii
396 BCFall of Veii
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Veii
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: fall_of_veii
CardType: consequence

Front: Why was the fall of Veii a turning point for Roman expansion?
Back: Rome's first destruction of a peer rival. Marked the beginning of the end for Etruscan dominance as Gauls pressed from the north and Rome expanded from the south.
Timeline: c. 406-396 BCFinal War with Veii
396 BCFall of Veii
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Veii
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: fall_of_veii
CardType: significance

Front: Why did Camillus fall from favour after conquering Veii?
Back: After Veii, Camillus celebrated a triumph riding a chariot drawn by four white horses (an honour traditionally reserved for kings). He then demanded soldiers return one-tenth of their booty to fulfil a vow to Apollo, enraging the people. A tribune brought charges for mishandling spoils, and Camillus went into voluntary exile.
Timeline: 439 BCMaelius Affair
c. 406 BCIntroduction of Soldier Pay
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Gallic Sack of Rome
after 390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Debate over Abandoning Rome for Veii
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: triumph_and_exile_of_camillus
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of the Allia?
Back: Rome met Brennus and the Senones at the Allia River. The Gallic charge broke the Roman line almost immediately; many Romans fled to the Capitoline instead of defending the city, leaving Rome exposed.
Timeline: c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Battle of the Allia
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Gallic Sack of Rome
CombatHTML: Romevs.Senones
Gallic Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_the_allia
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Battle of the Allia?
Back: - Roman army was destroyed or scattered
- Fleeing survivors headed for the Capitoline, leaving city walls unmanned and gates open
- The Gauls entered Rome unopposed the following day
Timeline: c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Battle of the Allia
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Gallic Sack of Rome
CombatHTML: Romevs.Senones
Gallic Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_the_allia
CardType: consequence

Front: Who was Brennus?
Back: Leader of the Senones who defeated Rome at the Allia, sacked and occupied the city for seven months, and demanded ransom. When Romans complained about weighted scales, he threw his sword on and declared "Vae victis" ("woe to the conquered").
Timeline: 390/387 BCBrennus
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Gallic Sack of Rome
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Battle of the Allia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: brennus
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Romans debate abandoning Rome after the Gallic sack?
Back: After the sack, Romans faced a ruined city and seriously considered abandoning Rome to move to Veii. Camillus argued that rebuilding was a moral necessity; to leave would be an admission of weakness. The Senate chose to rebuild, and Rome remained on the Seven Hills.
Timeline: c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Gallic Sack of Rome
after 390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Debate over Abandoning Rome for Veii
c. 389-380 BCRevolt of Roman Allies after the Gallic Sack
c. 384 BCTrial and Execution of Manlius Capitolinus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: debate_over_abandoning_rome
CardType: identity

Front: How did Brennus sack Rome in 390 BC?
Back: After routing Rome's army at the Allia, Brennus and the Senones occupied and burned the city. Survivors held out on the Capitoline Hill until Rome paid a ransom of a thousand pounds of gold. When Romans protested the weighted scales, Brennus threw his sword on and declared "Vae victis." Later tradition claimed Camillus arrived to reverse the humiliation, but the ransom was probably the real end.
Timeline: c. 406 BCIntroduction of Soldier Pay
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Gallic Sack of Rome
after 390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Debate over Abandoning Rome for Veii
c. 389-380 BCRevolt of Roman Allies after the Gallic Sack
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gallic_sack_of_rome
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Gallic Sack of Rome?
Back: - Traditional: Roman envoys at Clusium violated neutrality by fighting Gauls, then Rome elected the offenders rather than handing them over
- Modern reconstruction: Brennus may have attacked Rome as part of broader geopolitics involving Dionysius of Syracuse
- Gallic migration into northern Italy had already destabilised Etruscan power and brought the Senones close to Roman territory
Timeline: c. 406 BCIntroduction of Soldier Pay
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Gallic Sack of Rome
after 390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Debate over Abandoning Rome for Veii
c. 389-380 BCRevolt of Roman Allies after the Gallic Sack
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gallic_sack_of_rome
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from the Gallic Sack of Rome?
Back: - Romans developed a lasting fear and hatred of Gauls that persisted until Caesar
- The city was rebuilt rather than abandoned after debate over moving to Veii
- Rome fortified itself and never again allowed a foreign army inside its walls for 800 years
Timeline: c. 406 BCIntroduction of Soldier Pay
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Gallic Sack of Rome
after 390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Debate over Abandoning Rome for Veii
c. 389-380 BCRevolt of Roman Allies after the Gallic Sack
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gallic_sack_of_rome
CardType: consequence

Front: Why does the Gallic Sack mark the end of Rome's legendary early period?
Back: The sack destroyed earlier records, leaving previous Roman history heavily legendary. From the rebuilding onward, Rome produced better documentation and its history stands on firmer footing. The trauma also reshaped Roman identity: the post-sack Romans emerged more determined and consciously imperial, never again allowing a foreign invader inside their walls for 800 years.
Timeline: c. 406 BCIntroduction of Soldier Pay
c. 396-394 BCTriumph and Exile of Camillus
390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Gallic Sack of Rome
after 390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Debate over Abandoning Rome for Veii
c. 389-380 BCRevolt of Roman Allies after the Gallic Sack
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gallic_sack_of_rome
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Marcus Manlius Capitolinus?
Back: Patrician who saved the Capitoline during the Gallic siege, earning the cognomen "Capitolinus." Later broke with his class to champion plebeian debt relief, paying soldiers' debts from his own pocket. Accused of plotting to overthrow the Senate, he was convicted at a trial famously relocated away from the Capitoline and thrown from the Tarpeian Rock.
Timeline: 390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Gallic Sack of Rome
d. c. 384 BCMarcus Manlius Capitolinus
c. 384 BCTrial and Execution of Manlius Capitolinus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marcus_manlius_capitolinus
CardType: identity

Front: What happened during the trial of Manlius Capitolinus?
Back: Manlius Capitolinus was arrested for sedition after championing plebeian debt relief and hinting at overthrowing the Senate. His trial was originally held on the Campus Martius in view of the Capitoline, where Manlius gestured to the hill to remind the crowd of his service during the Gallic siege. Patricians moved the trial to a location where the hill was not visible. Without the visual prop, the evidence stood on its own, and Manlius was convicted and thrown from the Tarpeian Rock.
Timeline: after 390 BC (trad.) / 387 BC (modern)Debate over Abandoning Rome for Veii
c. 389-380 BCRevolt of Roman Allies after the Gallic Sack
c. 384 BCTrial and Execution of Manlius Capitolinus
367 BCLicinian-Sextian Laws
366 BCFirst Plebeian Consul
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: trial_and_execution_of_manlius_capitolinus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Gaius Licinius Stolo?
Back: Plebeian tribune and co-author of the Licinian-Sextian Laws with Lucius Sextius Lateranus. He helped force open the consulship to plebeians and pushed reforms on debt and public land, though tradition says he was later prosecuted for violating his own land law.
Timeline: Tribune c. 375 BCGaius Licinius Stolo
367 BCLicinian-Sextian Laws
366 BCFirst Plebeian Consul
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gaius_licinius_stolo
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Marcus Valerius Corvus?
Back: Roman commander who supposedly earned the name "Corvus" when a raven helped him defeat a Gaul in single combat. Elected consul at twenty-three, he became one of the great early Republican generals, winning in the First Samnite War and later calming the Campanian mutiny without bloodshed.
Timeline: Consul 348 BCMarcus Valerius Corvus
343-341 BCFirst Samnite War
343 BCBattle of Mount Gaurus
342-341 BCMutiny of the Campanian Garrison
341 BCBattle of Suessula
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marcus_valerius_corvus
CardType: identity

Front: How were the Licinian-Sextian Laws passed?
Back: Tribunes Licinius and Sextius used their veto power to shut down all government business, including yearly elections, until their demands were met. No magistrates were elected for several years. The shutdown forced the Senate to negotiate. Camillus, appointed dictator for the fifth and final time in 367 BC, brokered the deal.
Timeline: c. 389-380 BCRevolt of Roman Allies after the Gallic Sack
c. 384 BCTrial and Execution of Manlius Capitolinus
367 BCLicinian-Sextian Laws
366 BCFirst Plebeian Consul
343 BCSurrender of Capua to Rome
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: licinian_sextian_laws
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Licinian-Sextian Laws?
Back: - Patrician land-grabbing after Veii and the Volscian conquests left plebs indebted
- The office of military tribune had failed to deliver real plebeian power; no plebeian had been elected in a decade
- Fabius Ambustus's younger daughter complained she would never receive the honors her patrician-married sister received
Timeline: c. 389-380 BCRevolt of Roman Allies after the Gallic Sack
c. 384 BCTrial and Execution of Manlius Capitolinus
367 BCLicinian-Sextian Laws
366 BCFirst Plebeian Consul
343 BCSurrender of Capua to Rome
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: licinian_sextian_laws
CardType: cause

Front: What did the Licinian-Sextian Laws achieve?
Back: Resolved the central thread of the Conflict of the Orders: one consul could now be a plebeian, a ceiling was placed on land ownership, and debt interest was regulated. The military tribunate with consular power was permanently retired in favor of the restored dual consulship. Rome emerged more cohesive heading into the Samnite Wars.
Timeline: c. 389-380 BCRevolt of Roman Allies after the Gallic Sack
c. 384 BCTrial and Execution of Manlius Capitolinus
367 BCLicinian-Sextian Laws
366 BCFirst Plebeian Consul
343 BCSurrender of Capua to Rome
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: licinian_sextian_laws
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Lucius Sextius Lateranus?
Back: Plebeian tribune and partner of Licinius Stolo in the struggle that produced the Licinian-Sextian Laws. After those reforms opened the consulship to plebeians, Sextius became the first plebeian consul in 366 BC.
Timeline: 367 BCLicinian-Sextian Laws
Consul 366 BCLucius Sextius Lateranus
366 BCFirst Plebeian Consul
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_sextius_lateranus
CardType: identity

Front: What is Capua?
Back: Largest city in Campania, known for rich soil and soft living. Unable to resist Samnite raids, it formally surrendered to Rome in 343 BC, triggering the First Samnite War.
Timeline: 343 BCSurrender of Capua to Rome
342-341 BCMutiny of the Campanian Garrison
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: capua
CardType: identity

Front: What was the First Samnite War?
Back: A short war (343-341 BC) between Rome and the Samnites over control of Campania. Rome won three engagements in two years (Mount Gaurus, Cossus's ambush rescue, Suessula), led primarily by the consul Marcus Valerius Corvus. Ended with a truce, but proved to be only the first round of a fifty-year struggle that would dominate Italian politics.
Timeline: 343-341 BCFirst Samnite War
343 BCBattle of Mount Gaurus
343 BCSurrender of Capua to Rome
342-341 BCMutiny of the Campanian Garrison
341 BCBattle of Suessula
CombatHTML: Romevs.Samnites
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_samnite_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the First Samnite War?
Back: - Capua formally surrendered to Rome to gain protection from Samnite raids
- Rome told the Samnites to leave its new territory; the Samnites refused and raided Campania in front of Roman envoys
Timeline: 343-341 BCFirst Samnite War
343 BCBattle of Mount Gaurus
343 BCSurrender of Capua to Rome
342-341 BCMutiny of the Campanian Garrison
341 BCBattle of Suessula
CombatHTML: Romevs.Samnites
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_samnite_war
CardType: cause

Front: Who was Publius Decius Mus (consul 340 BC)?
Back: Roman commander remembered for two acts of exemplary self-sacrifice. As a military tribune in the First Samnite War, he saved a trapped legion and earned the Grass Crown; as consul in the Latin War, he performed the devotio, ritually dedicating himself and the enemy army to the gods by dying in battle.
Timeline: 343-341 BCFirst Samnite War
Consul 340 BCPublius Decius Mus (consul 340 BC)
340 BCBattle of Vesuvius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: publius_decius_mus
CardType: identity

Front: Who were the Samnites?
Back: Hill peoples of Samnium in the central Apennines and Rome's most formidable Italian rivals. Their rough terrain and flexible fighting style pushed Rome away from the Greek phalanx and toward the manipular legion during the long Samnite Wars. Two centuries later, still nursing their final defeat, the Samnites were at the vanguard of the Social War revolt and the last group to lay down arms.
Timeline: Wars with Rome 343-290 BCSamnites
343 BCSurrender of Capua to Rome
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: samnites
CardType: identity

Front: How did Rome acquire Capua?
Back: Unable to resist Samnite raids, Capua sent envoys to Rome requesting aid. When Rome refused (bound by treaty with the Samnites), the Capuans formally surrendered their city, land, and citizens to Rome. The Senate accepted, gaining Campania's rich farmland, then informed the Samnites that Capua was now Roman territory. The Samnites refused to withdraw, triggering the First Samnite War.
Timeline: 343-341 BCFirst Samnite War
343 BCSurrender of Capua to Rome
343 BCBattle of Mount Gaurus
342-341 BCMutiny of the Campanian Garrison
341 BCBattle of Suessula
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: surrender_of_capua_to_rome
CardType: identity

Front: What did the Lex Genucia establish?
Back: Reforms of 342 BC requiring that one consul each year be plebeian and that ten years pass before a man could hold the same office again.
Timeline: 343 BCSurrender of Capua to Rome
342-341 BCMutiny of the Campanian Garrison
342 BCLex Genucia
338 BCDissolution of the Latin League
278-275 BCPyrrhus's Sicilian Campaign
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lex_genucia
CardType: identity

Front: Why was the ten-year rule of the Lex Genucia important?
Back: It established the republican norm that repeated office-holding should be limited to prevent one man from accumulating too much power, a norm later made famous by Marius's repeated consulships.
Timeline: 343 BCSurrender of Capua to Rome
342-341 BCMutiny of the Campanian Garrison
342 BCLex Genucia
338 BCDissolution of the Latin League
278-275 BCPyrrhus's Sicilian Campaign
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lex_genucia
CardType: significance

Front: What happened during the mutiny of the Campanian garrison?
Back: After the First Samnite War, Roman legions garrisoned near Capua grew envious of civilian wealth and began plotting rebellion. Unable to agree on a leader, they kidnapped the retired general Titus Quinctius and marched on Rome. The Senate named Marcus Valerius Corvus dictator. He met the mutineers at the Alban Mount and convinced them to stand down without bloodshed, then secured full clemency for the soldiers.
Timeline: 343-341 BCFirst Samnite War
343 BCBattle of Mount Gaurus
343 BCSurrender of Capua to Rome
342-341 BCMutiny of the Campanian Garrison
341 BCBattle of Suessula
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: mutiny_of_the_campanian_garrison
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Vesuvius?
Back: Decisive battle of the Latin War, fought near Mount Vesuvius. The armies were evenly matched. When the Roman left flank under Decius began to fail, Decius performed the devotio: veiling himself in a ceremonial toga, he charged alone into the Latin line and fought until killed, consecrating the enemy army to the gods. Manlius then committed fresh reserves on the right and broke the Latins.
Timeline: 340-338 BCLatin War
340 BCBattle of Vesuvius
338 BCDissolution of the Latin League
CombatHTML: Romevs.Latins
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_vesuvius
CardType: identity

Front: What was the devotio ritual?
Back: A Roman ritual in which a commander consecrated himself and the enemy to the gods of the underworld, then charged alone into the opposing line to die. He donned a ceremonial toga, veiled his face, and rode into the enemy. His death was believed to doom the opposing army. Publius Decius Mus performed it at Vesuvius (340 BC) and his son repeated it at Sentinum (295 BC).
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
340-295 BCDevotio
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: devotio
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Latin War?
Back: A war (340-338 BC) in which Rome crushed the Latin League after the Latins demanded full political equality, including a Latin consul. The two sides were near-identical in size, tactics, and language. The decisive Battle of Vesuvius broke Latin resistance, and a year of sieges reduced each city individually. Ended with Rome dissolving the League and dominating all of Latium.
Timeline: 340-338 BCLatin War
340 BCBattle of Vesuvius
338 BCDissolution of the Latin League
CombatHTML: Romevs.Latins
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: latin_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Latin War?
Back: - After the First Samnite War, the Latins read Rome's reluctance to confront them directly as a sign of weakness
- The Latins demanded full political equality, including one Latin consul per year
- The Senate rejected the demands and immediately voted for war
Timeline: 340-338 BCLatin War
340 BCBattle of Vesuvius
338 BCDissolution of the Latin League
CombatHTML: Romevs.Latins
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: latin_war
CardType: cause

Front: What was the manipular legion?
Back: The army reorganisation Rome developed during the Samnite Wars, replacing the Greek phalanx with a three-line deployment of independent units called maniples. Younger troops fought first and veterans last, letting Rome rotate fresh soldiers into the fight while keeping the formation flexible on rough ground.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
c. 340-107 BCManipular Legion
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: manipular_legion
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Rome abandon the Greek phalanx?
Back: - The Greek phalanx required flat terrain and an unbroken shield wall to function; any gap meant death
- Samnite hill country made it impossible to deploy and maintain a cohesive phalanx
- Samnite light infantry and cavalry exploited the rough terrain to outflank the Romans repeatedly
- A flanked phalanx was helpless; densely packed soldiers could not turn to defend themselves in time
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
c. 340-107 BCManipular Legion
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: manipular_legion
CardType: cause

Front: Who was Titus Manlius Torquatus?
Back: Consul during the Latin War, famous for executing his own son Titus to enforce military discipline after he disobeyed orders by accepting (and winning) single combat with a Latin. His severity made him a symbol of old Roman discipline, and he later helped secure victory at Vesuvius alongside Decius Mus.
Timeline: 340-338 BCLatin War
Consul 340 BCTitus Manlius Torquatus
340 BCBattle of Vesuvius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: titus_manlius_torquatus
CardType: identity

Front: What happened to the Latin communities after the Latin War?
Back: After the Latin War, Rome abolished the Latin League permanently. The Senate decided each community's fate individually: those who cooperated or never rebelled received full Roman citizenship; moderate resisters kept trade and marriage rights but lost the vote; leaders of the revolt were dispossessed and their land colonised by Roman citizens.
Timeline: 340-338 BCLatin War
340 BCBattle of Vesuvius
338 BCDissolution of the Latin League
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: dissolution_of_the_latin_league
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Rome's settlement of the Latin War matter for its future expansion?
Back: Created Rome's three-tier formula for conquered peoples: full citizenship for cooperative communities, partial rights (trade and marriage but no vote) for moderate resisters, and colonisation of rebel land. By making cooperation self-evidently superior to resistance, this differentiated settlement secured the loyalty of most Italian communities and became the template for Roman expansion across the peninsula and eventually the Mediterranean.
Timeline: 340-338 BCLatin War
340 BCBattle of Vesuvius
338 BCDissolution of the Latin League
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: dissolution_of_the_latin_league
CardType: significance

Front: What was the Second Samnite War?
Back: Rome's longest and most gruelling war to date (327-304 BC). After the Latin War, Rome adopted a consciously expansionist policy and provoked the Samnites by planting colonies in their territory. The war lasted over twenty years and included catastrophic defeats like Caudine Forks alongside eventual Roman victory, establishing Rome as the dominant power in Italy.
Timeline: 327-304 BCSecond Samnite War
321 BCBattle of the Caudine Forks
315 BCBattle of Lautulae
310 BCBattle of Lake Vadimo
CombatHTML: Romevs.Samnites
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: second_samnite_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Second Samnite War?
Back: - Rome adopted an expansionist policy after the Latin War, seeking to control all of Italy
- Rome planted colonies in Samnite territory to provoke a response
- The Samnites garrisoned the Greek city of Neapolis; its nobility appealed to Rome for help
Timeline: 327-304 BCSecond Samnite War
321 BCBattle of the Caudine Forks
315 BCBattle of Lautulae
310 BCBattle of Lake Vadimo
CombatHTML: Romevs.Samnites
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: second_samnite_war
CardType: cause

Front: Who was Lucius Papirius Cursor?
Back: Dictator and four-time consul during the Second Samnite War. As dictator in 325 BC, he nearly executed his Master of the Horse Fabius Rullianus for disobeying orders and engaging the Samnites without authorisation. Lost the army's support over the incident, then won it back through humility and personal attention before leading them to victory. Remembered as one of the best commanders of his generation.
Timeline: 327-304 BCSecond Samnite War
Dictator 325 BCLucius Papirius Cursor
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_papirius_cursor
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Caudine Forks?
Back: Samnite commander Gaius Pontius trapped both Roman consular armies in a narrow pass by feeding them false intelligence. Unable to fight or escape, the Romans surrendered and were forced to pass under the yoke, one of the deepest humiliations in Roman military history.
Timeline: 327-304 BCSecond Samnite War
321 BCBattle of the Caudine Forks
315 BCBattle of Lautulae
310 BCBattle of Lake Vadimo
CombatHTML: Romevs.Samnites
Samnite Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_the_caudine_forks
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Gaius Pontius?
Back: Samnite commander who engineered the trap at the Caudine Forks (321 BC). Used false intelligence to lure both Roman armies into a narrow pass, then sealed both exits. His father advised either extreme generosity (release them, win eternal friendship) or extreme cruelty (kill them all); Pontius chose a middle path, forcing the Romans to pass under the yoke, which won him no friends and eliminated no enemies.
Timeline: 327-304 BCSecond Samnite War
fl. 321 BCGaius Pontius
321 BCBattle of the Caudine Forks
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gaius_pontius
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Pyrrhus of Epirus?
Back: King of Epirus and second cousin of Alexander the Great. With limited opportunity in the post-Alexandrian east, he answered Tarentum's call for aid against Rome in 280 BC. He won at Heraclea and Asculum but suffered irreplaceable losses each time, coining the term "Pyrrhic victory." After failing to hold either Italy or Sicily, he withdrew to Epirus in 275 BC and was killed in street fighting at Argos in 272 BC.
Timeline: 318-272 BCPyrrhus of Epirus
280-275 BCPyrrhic War
280 BCBattle of Heraclea
279 BCBattle of Asculum
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pyrrhus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Appius Claudius Caecus?
Back: Censor (312 BC) who built the Via Appia and Rome's first aqueduct while simultaneously manipulating Senate rolls and refusing to leave office for five unprecedented years. In old age, blind and retired, he persuaded the Senate to reject Pyrrhus's peace offer while a foreign army remained on Italian soil.
Timeline: 327-304 BCSecond Samnite War
Censor 312 BCAppius Claudius Caecus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: appius_claudius_caecus
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Via Appia?
Back: Rome's first major military road, built by Appius Claudius during the Second Samnite War to solve the supply problem of moving troops south into Campania. Constructed of stone, bowed to prevent water collection, and supported by retaining walls. Originally linked Rome to Capua; eventually extended over five hundred miles southeast across the peninsula. Became the main artery of Roman trade and travel.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
from 312 BCVia Appia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: via_appia
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Lake Vadimo?
Back: Major Roman victory over the Etruscans during the Second Samnite War period. After Fabius Rullianus's bold operations beyond the Ciminian Forest, the Etruscans regrouped but were defeated in a hard-fought battle near Lake Vadimo. The defeat broke Etruscan military resistance and left the Samnites increasingly isolated
Timeline: 327-304 BCSecond Samnite War
321 BCBattle of the Caudine Forks
315 BCBattle of Lautulae
310 BCBattle of Lake Vadimo
CombatHTML: Romevs.Etruscans
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_lake_vadimo
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus?
Back: Five-time consul and one of Rome's central commanders in the Samnite Wars. He first became famous for defying Papirius Cursor as Master of the Horse, then later helped secure major Roman victories against the Etruscans and at Sentinum. Grandfather of the more famous Fabius Maximus Cunctator.
Timeline: 327-304 BCSecond Samnite War
Consul 310 BCQuintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus
310 BCBattle of Lake Vadimo
295 BCBattle of Sentinum
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: quintus_fabius_maximus_rullianus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Hiero II of Syracuse?
Back: King of Syracuse who briefly resisted Rome in 264 BC, then pragmatically allied with them in 263 BC after facing four legions. The alliance lasted 50 years until his death, providing essential logistical support throughout the First Punic War and helping Rome establish itself as a Mediterranean power.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
c. 308-215 BCHiero II of Syracuse
265-264 BCMamertine Crisis
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: hiero_of_syracuse
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Third Samnite War?
Back: The Samnites' last stand for Italian independence (298-290 BC). Recognising that peace with Rome meant slow absorption, they organised a grand coalition of Etruscans, Umbrians, and Gauls. The coalition was shattered at Sentinum (295 BC), the largest battle yet fought in Italy. With their allies gone, the Samnites fought on alone until final defeat at Aquilonia (293 BC) ended the fifty-year struggle.
Timeline: 298-290 BCThird Samnite War
295 BCBattle of Sentinum
293 BCBattle of Aquilonia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Samnites, Etruscans, Senones
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_samnite_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Third Samnite War?
Back: - The Samnites understood that Roman "peace" meant slow death by colonisation and displacement
- Rome treated conquered territories as its own, planting colonies and parading legions through Samnium and Etruria
- The Samnites organised a grand coalition of Etruscans, Umbrians, and Gauls for one final stand
Timeline: 298-290 BCThird Samnite War
295 BCBattle of Sentinum
293 BCBattle of Aquilonia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Samnites, Etruscans, Senones
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_samnite_war
CardType: cause

Front: What happened at the Battle of Sentinum?
Back: The largest battle yet fought in Italy, with over 40,000 men per side. Rome faced a coalition of Samnites, Gauls, and Umbrians. Fabius Rullianus commanded the right against the Samnites conservatively; Decius attacked the Gauls aggressively on the left but his cavalry charge failed, throwing his own infantry into chaos. Decius performed the devotio like his father, sacrificing himself to rally the left. Fabius then enveloped the Samnites and pinned the remaining coalition between two armies.
Timeline: 298-290 BCThird Samnite War
295 BCBattle of Sentinum
293 BCBattle of Aquilonia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Samnites, Senones
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_sentinum
CardType: identity

Front: What was the significance of the Battle of Sentinum?
Back: Decided who controlled Italy. The peninsula remained under Roman rule for the next 800 years. The last realistic chance for Italian independence died at Sentinum.
Timeline: 298-290 BCThird Samnite War
295 BCBattle of Sentinum
293 BCBattle of Aquilonia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Samnites, Senones
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_sentinum
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Publius Decius Mus (consul 312 BC)?
Back: Son of the Decius Mus who performed the devotio at Vesuvius. As consul at Sentinum in 295 BC, he followed his father's example by ritually sacrificing himself in battle, rallying the Roman army against the Samnite-Gallic coalition.
Timeline: 298-290 BCThird Samnite War
Consul 295 BCPublius Decius Mus (consul 312 BC)
295 BCBattle of Sentinum
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: publius_decius_mus_son
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Aquilonia?
Back: Major Roman victory over the Samnites in 293 BC. The Samnites fielded an elite force remembered as the Linen Legion, but Lucius Papirius Cursor broke them at Aquilonia while Spurius Carvilius campaigned nearby. The defeat shattered Samnite military power near the end of the Third Samnite War.
Timeline: 298-290 BCThird Samnite War
295 BCBattle of Sentinum
293 BCBattle of Aquilonia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Samnites
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_aquilonia
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Heraclea?
Back: First battle between a Roman manipular legion and a full Greek phalanx. Pyrrhus defeated the Romans but was shaken by their discipline; they withdrew in formation rather than fleeing. Also the first time Romans encountered war elephants, which terrified their cavalry and tipped the battle.
Timeline: 280-275 BCPyrrhic War
280 BCBattle of Heraclea
279 BCBattle of Asculum
275 BCBattle of Beneventum
CombatHTML: Romevs.Epirus
Epirote Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_heraclea
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Pyrrhic War?
Back: Rome's first war against a professional Greek army (280-275 BC). After Tarentum provoked Rome and called on Pyrrhus for help, the Epirote king invaded Italy with 25,000 men and war elephants. He won at Heraclea and Asculum but suffered irreplaceable losses each time. After a failed Sicilian campaign, he returned to Italy and was defeated at Beneventum, withdrawing to Greece permanently. Rome gained all of southern Italy.
Timeline: 280-275 BCPyrrhic War
280 BCBattle of Heraclea
279 BCBattle of Asculum
275 BCBattle of Beneventum
CombatHTML: Romevs.Epirus, Tarentum
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pyrrhic_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Pyrrhic War?
Back: - Tarentum attacked a Roman fleet blown into its waters, violating a treaty
- Rome declared war on Tarentum; Tarentum called on Pyrrhus of Epirus for aid
- Pyrrhus saw an opportunity for a western empire unavailable to him in the post-Alexandrian east
Timeline: 280-275 BCPyrrhic War
280 BCBattle of Heraclea
279 BCBattle of Asculum
275 BCBattle of Beneventum
CombatHTML: Romevs.Epirus, Tarentum
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pyrrhic_war
CardType: cause

Front: Why did the Pyrrhic War matter for Rome's future?
Back: Ended independent Greek power in Italy and completed Rome's conquest of the peninsula. Rome proved it could absorb losses against a professional Greek army with elephants, and eastern Mediterranean powers recognized Rome as a rising threat for the first time.
Timeline: 280-275 BCPyrrhic War
280 BCBattle of Heraclea
279 BCBattle of Asculum
275 BCBattle of Beneventum
CombatHTML: Romevs.Epirus, Tarentum
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pyrrhic_war
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Fabius Maximus?
Back: Head of the Fabii, appointed dictator after Lake Trasimene in 217 BC. His refusal to engage Hannibal earned him the nickname "the Delayer" and kept Rome alive through its most dangerous year. Later opposed Scipio's African invasion, representing old-guard caution against the new charismatic style of command.
Timeline: c. 280-203 BCQuintus Fabius Maximus
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
217 BCFabian Strategy
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: quintus_fabius_maximus
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Asculum?
Back: Two-day battle between roughly equal armies of 40,000. The first day ended in stalemate after the Romans retreated up ground too steep for the phalanx. On the second day Pyrrhus forced the fight onto flat terrain where his elephants overwhelmed the Roman line. Pyrrhus won but lost many of his best officers, prompting his famous remark: "One more such victory and we are undone."
Timeline: 280-275 BCPyrrhic War
280 BCBattle of Heraclea
279 BCBattle of Asculum
275 BCBattle of Beneventum
CombatHTML: Romevs.Epirus, Samnites
Epirote Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_asculum
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Publius Decius Mus (consul 279 BC)?
Back: Third-generation Decius Mus, grandson and son of the two who performed the devotio. Consul during the Pyrrhic War, he led Roman forces at the Battle of Asculum (279 BC) with new anti-elephant devices. Whether he also performed the devotio is uncertain; some ancient sources claim he did, but the tradition is less well attested than for his father and grandfather.
Timeline: 280-275 BCPyrrhic War
Consul 279 BCPublius Decius Mus (consul 279 BC)
279 BCBattle of Asculum
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: publius_decius_mus_grandson
CardType: identity

Front: What happened during Pyrrhus's Sicilian campaign?
Back: Pyrrhus left Italy in 278 BC to campaign in Sicily, where the island was split between Greek cities in the east and Carthage in the west. He drove the Carthaginians back to a single port city but failed to dislodge them, and his dictatorial style alienated the Sicilian Greeks. Unable to finish the conquest and pressed by Roman advances on the mainland, he returned to Italy in 275 BC. His failure left Sicily divided between Carthage and the Greeks, a situation Rome would inherit within a decade.
Timeline: 280-275 BCPyrrhic War
280 BCBattle of Heraclea
279 BCBattle of Asculum
278-275 BCPyrrhus's Sicilian Campaign
275 BCBattle of Beneventum
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pyrrhus_sicilian_campaign
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Beneventum?
Back: Pyrrhus's final Italian battle. Roman fire arrows sent the war elephants crashing back through the Greek lines, inflicting heavy casualties on Pyrrhus's own infantry. With losses accumulated across three costly battles, Pyrrhus gathered what remained of his army and sailed home. Romans renamed the site from Maleventum ("bad events") to Beneventum ("good events") in celebration.
Timeline: 280-275 BCPyrrhic War
280 BCBattle of Heraclea
279 BCBattle of Asculum
275 BCBattle of Beneventum
CombatHTML: Romevs.Epirus
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_beneventum
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Hamilcar Barca?
Back: Carthage's best general in the final years of the First Punic War, running a guerrilla campaign from Mount Eryx with minimal support from a disinterested Senate. Negotiated the final peace treaty. Made his nine-year-old son Hannibal swear an oath of eternal hatred for Rome before sailing to rebuild Carthaginian power in Spain.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
c. 275-228 BCHamilcar Barca
237-228 BCBarcid Conquest of Spain
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: hamilcar_barca
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Hasdrubal the Fair?
Back: Hamilcar's son-in-law who succeeded him in Spain after his death in 228 BC. Less a conqueror than a governor, he consolidated Barcid power, founded New Carthage as his capital, and signed the Ebro Treaty with Rome. Assassinated by a tribesman avenging a murdered chieftain; his death brought the twenty-five-year-old Hannibal to supreme command.
Timeline: ?-221 BCHasdrubal the Fair
237-228 BCBarcid Conquest of Spain
226 BCEbro Treaty
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: hasdrubal_the_fair
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Marcus Claudius Marcellus?
Back: Rome's most aggressive commander during the Second Punic War, known as the "Sword of Rome" (paired with Fabius as the "Shield"). Five-time consul who kept pressure on Hannibal in southern Italy while others avoided engagement. Recaptured Syracuse for Rome after a prolonged siege.
Timeline: c. 268-208 BCMarcus Claudius Marcellus
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marcus_claudius_marcellus
CardType: identity

Front: How did the Mamertine crisis start the First Punic War?
Back: Campanian mercenaries (Mamertines) who had seized Messana invited a Carthaginian garrison against Hiero of Syracuse, then appealed to Rome to expel it. The Claudii (who held land and power in the south) won the Senate debate with visions of easy victory and the strategic necessity of controlling the straits. Rome sent troops, and Carthage mobilized for war.
Timeline: 265-264 BCMamertine Crisis
264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
261 BCRome Builds a Navy
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
255-249 BCRoman Fleet Losses to Storms
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: mamertine_crisis
CardType: identity

Front: Why was Rome's decision to aid the Mamertines hypocritical?
Back: Rome had just beheaded its own soldiers for seizing Rhegium the same way the Mamertines seized Messana. Choosing to aid the Mamertines anyway showed that expansionist ambition now outweighed moral consistency in Roman foreign policy.
Timeline: 265-264 BCMamertine Crisis
264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
261 BCRome Builds a Navy
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
255-249 BCRoman Fleet Losses to Storms
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: mamertine_crisis
CardType: significance

Front: What was the First Punic War?
Back: Rome's first overseas war (264-241 BC), fought against Carthage for control of Sicily. Rome built navies from scratch repeatedly and lost entire fleets to storms, but always found more men and money. Rome won through sheer depth of resources, gaining Sicily as its first province.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
261 BCRome Builds a Navy
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
255-249 BCRoman Fleet Losses to Storms
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_punic_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the First Punic War?
Back: - The Mamertine crisis drew Rome into Sicily, directly challenging Carthaginian control
- Carthage refused to tolerate a Roman military presence in its sphere of influence
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
261 BCRome Builds a Navy
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
255-249 BCRoman Fleet Losses to Storms
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_punic_war
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from the First Punic War?
Back: - Carthage relinquished all of Sicily and agreed not to make war on Hiero or Syracuse
- Carthage paid a tribute of 200 talents of silver over 20 years
- Hamilcar Barca made his son Hannibal swear an oath of eternal hatred for Rome before sailing to rebuild Carthaginian power in Spain
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
261 BCRome Builds a Navy
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
255-249 BCRoman Fleet Losses to Storms
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_punic_war
CardType: consequence

Front: What was the significance of the First Punic War?
Back: Transformed Rome from an Italian land power into a Mediterranean naval power. The war proved Rome could absorb catastrophic losses (entire fleets, hundreds of thousands of men) and still outlast a richer opponent through political will and citizen manpower. Sicily became Rome's first overseas province, setting the template for provincial government.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
261 BCRome Builds a Navy
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
255-249 BCRoman Fleet Losses to Storms
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_punic_war
CardType: significance

Front: What happened at the Siege of Agrigentum?
Back: First major land engagement of the First Punic War. Romans built a double wall around the city (one facing in, one facing out) and survived a Carthaginian counter-siege with supply help from Hiero. Rome won the pitched battle, but while legionaries scavenged for spoils the Carthaginian army inside slipped out unnoticed. The legions then sacked the undefended city, turning Sicilian opinion against Rome rather than intimidating others into submission.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: siege_of_agrigentum
CardType: identity

Front: How did Rome build its first navy during the First Punic War?
Back: After a Carthaginian ship ran aground near Italy, Roman engineers copied the design and built 120 warships in two months knowing nothing about seafaring. 30,000 sailors trained rowing on dry land before the fleet launched to challenge Carthaginian naval supremacy.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
261 BCRome Builds a Navy
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
255-249 BCRoman Fleet Losses to Storms
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: rome_builds_a_navy
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Mylae?
Back: Rome's first major naval victory. The corvus, a spiked boarding bridge, turned the sea battle into an infantry fight. An initial 30 Carthaginian ships were caught and their crews slaughtered; another 20 were taken as the rest tried to peel off. A third of the Carthaginian fleet destroyed, though the corvus was never again as effective once the surprise wore off.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
261 BCRome Builds a Navy
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_mylae
CardType: identity

Front: What was the corvus?
Back: A spiked boarding bridge mounted on a pulley at the prow of Roman warships. When dropped onto an enemy deck, the spike held the ships together, letting Roman soldiers cross and fight hand-to-hand. It turned naval battles into infantry fights, neutralising Carthaginian seamanship at Mylae. The Carthaginians quickly learned to avoid it, and it was never again as effective.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
261 BCRome Builds a Navy
260 BCCorvus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: corvus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Gaius Duilius?
Back: Consul who commanded Rome's fleet at Mylae (260 BC), winning Rome's first major naval victory using the corvus boarding device. Took command after his colleague Scipio Asina was captured, and destroyed a third of the Carthaginian fleet.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
Consul 260 BCGaius Duilius
260 BCBattle of Mylae
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gaius_duilius
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Gaius Flaminius?
Back: Popular plebeian consul of 217 BC whose maverick streak led Rome to disaster at Lake Trasimene. Refused to return to Rome for the religious transfer-of-power ceremonies, which his critics blamed for angering the gods. Charged headlong after Hannibal and was killed in the ambush.
Timeline: ?-217 BCGaius Flaminius
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gaius_flaminius
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Gaius Terentius Varro?
Back: Popular plebeian politician who denounced Fabius's caution and promised to crush Hannibal with overwhelming numbers. Elected consul for 216 BC, he and his colleague Paullus commanded the largest army Rome had ever fielded (80,000 men). On his day of command at Cannae, Varro packed the legions together on open ground and attacked, leading directly to catastrophe. He fled the battle and survived; Paullus stayed and died.
Timeline: ?-? BCGaius Terentius Varro
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
216 BCBattle of Cannae
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gaius_terentius_varro
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Publius Cornelius Scipio (father of Africanus)?
Back: Consul of 218 BC, first Roman commander to face Hannibal in Italy. Wounded at Ticinus and saved by his eighteen-year-old son (the future Scipio Africanus). Campaigned with his brother Gnaeus in Spain for five years, denying Carthage reinforcements for Hannibal, until both were killed in 211 BC.
Timeline: ?-211 BCPublius Cornelius Scipio
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: publius_cornelius_scipio
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Scipio Asina?
Back: Consul in 260 BC and ancestor of two of Rome's greatest generals. While scouting ahead with 17 ships, he greedily attacked a coastal city and was trapped in the harbor by the Carthaginian fleet. His panicked sailors abandoned ship; he was captured and earned the nickname Asina ("the Ass").
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
Consul 260 BCGnaeus Cornelius Scipio Asina
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: scipio_asina
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Ecnomus?
Back: Possibly one of history's largest naval battles (~600 ships, 200,000 men). Rome needed to protect 80 troop transports for its Africa invasion. Carthaginians outmaneuvered the Roman formation by baiting the lead ships out of position, but couldn't destroy the transports. Rome's fleet survived intact and launched the invasion of North Africa.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_ecnomus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Marcus Atilius Regulus?
Back: Led Rome's invasion of North Africa and marched to the gates of Carthage. Rather than negotiate reasonable terms, his ego demanded total surrender: dismantle the navy, leave all islands, submit to Roman sovereignty. Carthage refused, hired Xanthippus, and Regulus was crushed and captured. His vanity extended the war by a decade.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
Consul 256 BCMarcus Atilius Regulus
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marcus_atilius_regulus
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Bagradas?
Back: Xanthippus placed elephants at the front and cavalry on the wings. Regulus deepened his infantry line to absorb the elephants, fatally shortening his front. Carthaginian cavalry routed the Roman flanks, then closed the trap from behind while fresh infantry waited ahead. 13,000 of 15,000 Romans killed; Regulus captured. Rome's African adventure was over.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Carthaginian Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_bagradas
CardType: identity

Front: How did storms nearly cost Rome the First Punic War?
Back: Rome lost two entire fleets to storms during the First Punic War, including one disaster in 255 BC that drowned 100,000 men. The Romans had been warned about the storms in advance but ignored local advice. A third fleet was lost to Claudius Pulcher's botched attack at Drepana. Any other state would have quit after a single such disaster, but Rome rebuilt each time.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
261 BCRome Builds a Navy
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255-249 BCRoman Fleet Losses to Storms
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_fleet_losses_to_storms
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Xanthippus?
Back: Spartan mercenary general hired by Carthage in desperation. Diagnosed the problem as leadership, not the army itself: the infantry was solid, the cavalry magnificent, the elephants indestructible. Crushed Regulus at Bagradas, then was driven out by jealous Carthaginian nobility who feared his popularity.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
Active 255 BCXanthippus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: xanthippus
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Drepana?
Back: Consul Claudius Pulcher planned a surprise night raid on the Carthaginian fleet. When the sacred chickens refused to eat (a bad omen), he threw them overboard: "If they're not hungry, maybe they're thirsty." The attack was spotted, the fleet trapped against the coast. 90 of 120 ships lost, dooming the siege of Lilybaeum and ceding naval superiority to Carthage for years.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Carthaginian Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_drepana
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Hannibal Barca?
Back: Son of Hamilcar Barca, raised in army camps in Spain and sworn from childhood to eternal enmity with Rome. Elevated to command at twenty-five after Hasdrubal's assassination, he immediately began expanding Carthaginian territory. His troops worshipped him as semi-divine and never once mutinied in twenty years of increasingly hopeless war in Italy.
Timeline: 247-c. 183 BCHannibal Barca
237-228 BCBarcid Conquest of Spain
219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: hannibal_barca
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Hannibal ultimately fail to defeat Rome?
Back: Despite sixteen years in Italy and victory in every major battle, Hannibal could never take a walled city of consequence or break Roman will. His strategy of turning Rome's allies failed because defectors (Capua, Tarentum) found themselves worse off under Carthaginian protection. He forced Rome to transform its military leadership, but that transformation produced the commander (Scipio) who defeated him. He was recalled only when Scipio threatened Carthage itself: Rome's refusal to surrender was the one obstacle his genius could not overcome.
Timeline: 247-c. 183 BCHannibal Barca
237-228 BCBarcid Conquest of Spain
219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: hannibal_barca
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Hasdrubal Barca?
Back: Hannibal's younger brother, left to command in Spain while Hannibal invaded Italy. Fought the elder Scipiones for years, then tangled with young Scipio Africanus. Deciding the war could only be won by joining Hannibal, he crossed the Alps with 30,000 men in 207 BC but was intercepted and killed at the Metaurus. His severed head was thrown into Hannibal's camp.
Timeline: ?-207 BCHasdrubal Barca
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: hasdrubal_barca
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Antiochus III?
Back: King of the Seleucid Empire, the largest successor state to Alexander's conquests. Joined Philip V in attacking Egyptian territory, then accepted an Aetolian invitation to "liberate" Greece from Rome. Defeated at Thermopylae and destroyed at Magnesia, he was confined behind the Taurus Mountains and burdened with punishing indemnities. Notably sidelined Hannibal (living at his court in exile) from any meaningful command.
Timeline: c. 241-187 BCAntiochus III
192-188 BCRoman-Seleucid War
190 BCBattle of Magnesia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: antiochus_iii
CardType: identity

Front: How did the First Punic War end?
Back: The decisive final battle of the First Punic War. Rome built a navy from scratch for the fourth time and blockaded the last Carthaginian outposts. Carthage hastily launched its entire fleet to break the blockade, but its inexperienced crews were routed by the now battle-hardened Roman sailors. Hamilcar, cut off from resupply, negotiated peace.
Timeline: 264-241 BCFirst Punic War
262 BCSiege of Agrigentum
260 BCBattle of Mylae
256 BCBattle of Ecnomus
255 BCBattle of Bagradas
249 BCBattle of Drepana
241 BCBattle of the Aegates Islands
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_the_aegates_islands
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Gaius Claudius Nero?
Back: Consul of 207 BC who made one of the boldest decisions of the war. While shadowing Hannibal in the south, he left a skeleton force tending multiple campfires and force-marched 250 miles north in seven days to join his colleague Livius against Hasdrubal. The gamble paid off at the Metaurus, where Nero's flanking attack turned the battle into a rout.
Timeline: ?-? BCGaius Claudius Nero
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gaius_claudius_nero
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Mercenary War?
Back: After the First Punic War, Carthage refused to pay its returning mercenaries. The mercenaries revolted and Carthage spent three years fighting its own ex-army. Carthage eventually won by hiring new mercenaries to fight the old ones, but the whole affair cost more than paying the original debt would have. The crisis left Carthage severely weakened and drove the Barca family to seek new resources in Spain.
CombatHTML: Carthagevs.Mercenaries
Carthaginian Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: mercenary_war
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Masinissa?
Back: Exiled Numidian prince who had fought against Scipio in Spain before defecting to Rome. His cavalry was the decisive factor at Zama, driving off the Carthaginian horsemen and returning to strike Hannibal's rear. Rewarded with an independent Numidian kingdom, he reigned for fifty years as Rome's loyal ally in North Africa, mirroring the role Hiero of Syracuse had played in Sicily.
Timeline: c. 238-148 BCMasinissa
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
202 BCBattle of Zama
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: masinissa
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Philip V of Macedon?
Back: Young king of a resurgent Macedon with ambitions to reunite Greece under Macedonian rule as Philip II had done. Allied with Hannibal after Cannae, but Rome recruited Greek allies to keep him occupied. After the Second Punic War, he joined Antiochus III in attacking Egyptian territory, prompting Pergamum and Rhodes to call on Rome. Defeated at Cynoscephalae when his phalanx was flanked on broken ground, he was stripped of his fleet and confined to Macedon. Died in 179 BC, leaving his son Perseus to renew the challenge.
Timeline: 214-205 BCFirst Macedonian War
238-179 BCPhilip V of Macedon
197 BCBattle of Cynoscephalae
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: philip_v_of_macedon
CardType: identity

Front: How did Hamilcar Barca build Carthaginian power in Spain?
Back: Hamilcar marched his army across North Africa and into Spain in 237 BC, building an autonomous Barcid empire funded by silver mines. He minted coins associating his family with local gods and demanded the army swear loyalty to the Barca dynasty rather than Carthage. He conquered southwest Spain through ruthlessness toward chieftains and leniency toward common soldiers, before drowning during a retreat in 228 BC.
Timeline: 261 BCRome Builds a Navy
255-249 BCRoman Fleet Losses to Storms
237-228 BCBarcid Conquest of Spain
c. 230 BCRoman Diplomatic Mission to Greece
226 BCEbro Treaty
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: barcid_conquest_of_spain
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Scipio Africanus?
Back: Son of the Scipio killed in Spain, he volunteered at twenty-five to take command when no other Roman would. Enormously charismatic, he claimed divine inspiration and flouted tradition in ways that alarmed the old guard. He transformed Roman tactics by studying Hannibal's methods: surprise, deception, and outthinking rather than outfighting. Ended Carthaginian power in Spain, then carried the war to Africa and defeated Hannibal at Zama. Later accompanied his brother Lucius in the pursuit of Antiochus into Asia Minor. Upon returning, Cato accused him of misappropriating war funds. He retired bitterly to Campania and died in 183 BC; his tomb allegedly read "ungrateful fatherland, you will not even have my bones."
Timeline: 236-183 BCScipio Africanus
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: scipio_africanus
CardType: identity

Front: How did Scipio Africanus change Roman politics and warfare?
Back: Scipio represented a fundamental shift in Roman military leadership. Where Rome had relied on institutional discipline and annual rotation of command, Scipio demanded extended command, studied enemy tactics, and won through creative deception rather than brute force. His charismatic, unconventional style terrified traditionalists like Fabius and set a precedent for the cult of personality politics that would eventually destroy the Republic.
Timeline: 236-183 BCScipio Africanus
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: scipio_africanus
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Cato the Elder?
Back: The great conservative of mid-Republic Rome, defender of old Roman virtue against the Hellenising influence of men like Scipio. Made his name at Thermopylae in 191 BC, leading the flanking charge that broke Antiochus's army. Dominated Roman politics for fifty years, constantly opposing cultural change and prosecuting those he considered corrupt (including Scipio Africanus). Idolised by later generations who held him up as the embodiment of a mythical golden age of frugality and stoic duty.
Timeline: 192-188 BCRoman-Seleucid War
234-149 BCCato the Elder
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: cato_the_elder
CardType: identity

Front: What happened when Rome sent envoys to Greece during the Illyrian campaign?
Back: Alongside the Illyrian campaign, Rome sent envoys to Greece explaining the limited scope of their war. The Greeks acknowledged Roman power as equal to their own, and Corinth invited Rome to participate in the Isthmian Games, formally accepting Rome into the Greek political world.
Timeline: 229-228 BCFirst Illyrian War
c. 230 BCRoman Diplomatic Mission to Greece
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_diplomatic_mission_to_greece
CardType: identity

Front: How did Rome's diplomatic mission to Greece during the Illyrian campaign pay off?
Back: Established the diplomatic relationships and Greek allies that would later contain Philip V of Macedon during the Second Punic War, preventing him from joining Hannibal in Italy.
Timeline: 229-228 BCFirst Illyrian War
c. 230 BCRoman Diplomatic Mission to Greece
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_diplomatic_mission_to_greece
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Aemilius Paulus (victor of Pydna)?
Back: Son of the Paulus who died at Cannae. Given command of the eastern army in 168 BC after years of indiscipline and plundering by previous consuls. Immediately restored order, outmanoeuvred Perseus with a feint from the north, and destroyed the Macedonian army at Pydna. On the march home, he let his troops loose on Epirus as a punitive example: 70 towns sacked and 150,000 enslaved, despite the locals having no part in Perseus's war.
Timeline: c. 229-160 BCAemilius Paulus
171-168 BCThird Macedonian War
168 BCBattle of Pydna
167 BCSack of Epirus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: aemilius_paulus
CardType: identity

Front: How did Aemilius Paulus's campaign change Rome's relationship with the Greek world?
Back: His campaign ended Macedon as a kingdom and completed Rome's transformation from admired liberator to feared overlord in Greece. The punitive sack of Epirus, terrorising a population that had not fought Rome, signalled that resistance to Roman interests would be punished regardless of guilt. After Paulus, no eastern state dared challenge Rome openly for a generation.
Timeline: c. 229-160 BCAemilius Paulus
171-168 BCThird Macedonian War
168 BCBattle of Pydna
167 BCSack of Epirus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: aemilius_paulus
CardType: significance

Front: What was the First Illyrian War?
Back: Rome's first military campaign east of the Adriatic. In less than a year the major Illyrian cities fell, Illyrian ships were banished from the sea, and southern Illyria was annexed as a Roman protectorate. A simultaneous diplomatic mission to Greece opened Rome's first formal relations with the Greek world.
Timeline: 229-228 BCFirst Illyrian War
c. 230 BCRoman Diplomatic Mission to Greece
CombatHTML: Romevs.Illyria
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_illyrian_war
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Rome launch its first campaign east of the Adriatic?
Back: Illyrian piracy had grown intolerable. The Kingdom of Illyria was effectively a sovereign state funded by raiding, and when it began boldly attacking Roman port cities Rome moved against it.
Timeline: 229-228 BCFirst Illyrian War
c. 230 BCRoman Diplomatic Mission to Greece
CombatHTML: Romevs.Illyria
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_illyrian_war
CardType: cause

Front: Why did the First Illyrian War matter beyond the defeat of the pirates?
Back: Rome's first military engagement in the Greek world. The accompanying diplomatic mission opened formal relations with Greece and secured allies who would later tie down Philip V of Macedon during the Second Punic War.
Timeline: 229-228 BCFirst Illyrian War
c. 230 BCRoman Diplomatic Mission to Greece
CombatHTML: Romevs.Illyria
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_illyrian_war
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Titus Quinctius Flamininus?
Back: Consul who transformed Rome's indecisive Greek campaign into a decisive victory. A passionate Philhellene, he recast the war as a defence of Greek liberty, winning city after city away from Philip. Dragged out peace negotiations to ensure he kept command rather than a successor stealing his glory. Defeated Philip at Cynoscephalae, then declared the "Freedom of Greece," withdrawing garrisons while binding the Greeks to Roman interests through obligation rather than occupation.
Timeline: c. 229-174 BCTitus Quinctius Flamininus
200-197 BCSecond Macedonian War
197 BCBattle of Cynoscephalae
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: titus_quinctius_flamininus
CardType: identity

Front: How did Flamininus establish Rome's model for controlling the Greek East?
Back: Pioneered Rome's model of imperial control through declared "freedom": withdrawing garrisons while binding Greek cities through obligation and patronage rather than occupation. This template of indirect rule through client-state gratitude became Rome's standard approach to the eastern Mediterranean for the next half-century.
Timeline: c. 229-174 BCTitus Quinctius Flamininus
200-197 BCSecond Macedonian War
197 BCBattle of Cynoscephalae
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: titus_quinctius_flamininus
CardType: significance

Front: What did the Ebro Treaty establish between Rome and Carthage?
Back: Rome and Hasdrubal agreed that Carthage would not cross the River Ebro, which lies midway up Spain's Mediterranean coast. This left Saguntum, a city friendly to Rome, one hundred miles behind the Carthaginian line.
Timeline: 226 BCEbro Treaty
219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
218 BCHannibal's Crossing of the Alps
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
211 BCHannibal's March on Rome
211 BCDefeat of the Scipiones in Spain
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: ebro_treaty
CardType: identity

Front: How did the Ebro Treaty undermine Rome's legal case at the start of the Second Punic War?
Back: It created the legal framework that made the Second Punic War diplomatically contentious. Rome had sacrificed Saguntum for peace, but when Hannibal besieged it, Rome broke its own treaty by demanding he stop.
Timeline: 226 BCEbro Treaty
219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
218 BCHannibal's Crossing of the Alps
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
211 BCHannibal's March on Rome
211 BCDefeat of the Scipiones in Spain
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: ebro_treaty
CardType: significance

Front: How were the Gauls defeated at Telamon?
Back: A Gallic army retreating north with booty was trapped in a coastal pass between two Roman armies. The Gauls fought desperately on two fronts but were crushed between the converging Roman lines. The main force of the Gallic invasion was destroyed.
Timeline: 225-222 BCGallic War of 225-222 BC
225 BCBattle of Telamon
225 BCBattle of Faesulae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Gauls
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_telamon
CardType: identity

Front: How did Rome respond to the Gallic invasion of 225 BC?
Back: A united Gallic army poured through the Alps intent on sacking Rome again. Rome mustered the full fighting capacity of Italy, destroyed the invasion at Telamon, then counterattacked and cleared the Gauls from northern Italy.
Timeline: 225-222 BCGallic War of 225-222 BC
225 BCBattle of Faesulae
225 BCBattle of Telamon
222 BCRoman Conquest of Cisalpine Gaul
CombatHTML: Romevs.Gauls
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gallic_war_of_225
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Gallic War of 225 BC?
Back: - Roman colonisation of the Po Valley provoked the Gallic tribes
- The Fabii pushed for northern expansion into Gallic territory
- A united Gallic coalition aimed to sack Rome a second time
Timeline: 225-222 BCGallic War of 225-222 BC
225 BCBattle of Faesulae
225 BCBattle of Telamon
222 BCRoman Conquest of Cisalpine Gaul
CombatHTML: Romevs.Gauls
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gallic_war_of_225
CardType: cause

Front: Why did the Gallic War of 225 BC matter for Rome's later wars?
Back: Secured Italy's northern frontier permanently. The shared fight against the Gauls bound Italian allies to Rome so tightly that they refused to defect even after Hannibal's devastating victories in the Second Punic War.
Timeline: 225-222 BCGallic War of 225-222 BC
225 BCBattle of Faesulae
225 BCBattle of Telamon
222 BCRoman Conquest of Cisalpine Gaul
CombatHTML: Romevs.Gauls
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gallic_war_of_225
CardType: significance

Front: How did Rome secure northern Italy after Telamon?
Back: After destroying the Gallic invasion at Telamon, Rome pressed its advantage and cleared the Gauls from northern Italy entirely. The Po Valley, long considered part of Gaul, became permanent Roman territory.
Timeline: 225-222 BCGallic War of 225-222 BC
225 BCBattle of Faesulae
225 BCBattle of Telamon
222 BCRoman Conquest of Cisalpine Gaul
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: roman_conquest_of_cisalpine_gaul
CardType: identity

Front: How did the siege of Saguntum lead to war between Rome and Carthage?
Back: Hannibal besieged Saguntum, a city friendly to Rome but located in Carthaginian territory per the Ebro Treaty. Rome demanded Carthage halt the siege; Carthage refused, citing its legal rights. After eight months Saguntum fell and Rome declared war.
Timeline: 226 BCEbro Treaty
219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Carthagevs.Saguntum
Carthaginian Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: siege_of_saguntum
CardType: identity

Front: How did Hannibal defeat the Romans at the Trebia?
Back: Hannibal baited the impatient consul Sempronius Longus into charging out without breakfast, then crossing the freezing Trebia River in December. The soaking, exhausted Romans found Hannibal's well-fed army waiting on the far side, with 1,000 hidden cavalry behind them. Caught between two lines, the Roman army was destroyed. About 10,000 broke through to Placentia; the rest were killed or drowned trying to recross the river.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Carthaginian Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_the_trebia
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of the Ticinus?
Back: The first battle of the Second Punic War in Italy. Scipio crossed the Ticinus River to engage Hannibal, but Roman cavalry was completely outclassed by the Numidians. The Romans were outflanked and driven back to their bridge, which they burned behind them. The defeat demonstrated Hannibal's superiority and caused local Gauls to rally to him.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Carthaginian Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_ticinus
CardType: identity

Front: How did Hannibal bring his army from Spain into Italy?
Back: Hannibal marched 50,000 men and 67 elephants from Spain through southern Gaul and over the Alps in a fifteen-day crossing as snow was setting in. He fought hostile natives, carved paths out of rock for pack animals, and lost half his army to the environment, combat, and desertion. Only 25,000 emerged into Italy, but the Romans were completely unprepared for a Carthaginian army on their soil.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCHannibal's Crossing of the Alps
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
211 BCHannibal's March on Rome
211 BCDefeat of the Scipiones in Spain
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: hannibals_crossing_of_the_alps
CardType: identity

Front: List Hannibal's four major Italian victories in order.
Back: Hannibal's four major victories in Italy, escalating from a cavalry skirmish at the Ticinus to the annihilation of eight legions at Cannae.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: hannibals_italian_victories
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Second Punic War?
Back: Hannibal invaded Italy by crossing the Alps and spent nearly twenty years defeating Roman armies on their own soil. Rome endured catastrophic losses but refused to surrender, eventually carrying the war to Africa. The closest Rome came to destruction until the Crisis of the Third Century.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
218 BCHannibal's Crossing of the Alps
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
211 BCHannibal's March on Rome
211 BCDefeat of the Scipiones in Spain
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: second_punic_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Second Punic War?
Back: - The Barca family built an autonomous empire in Spain intent on revenge against Rome
- The Ebro Treaty left Saguntum in Carthaginian territory despite its friendship with Rome
- Hannibal besieged Saguntum, forcing Rome to choose between honouring its alliance or its treaty
- Rome demanded Carthage stop; Carthage refused; war was declared
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
218 BCHannibal's Crossing of the Alps
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
211 BCHannibal's March on Rome
211 BCDefeat of the Scipiones in Spain
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: second_punic_war
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from the Second Punic War?
Back: - Rome's population declined by roughly 17% and its treasury was nearly empty
- Carthage was stripped of overseas possessions, forbidden an army or navy, and saddled with fifty years of tribute
- Rome gained uncontested control of the entire western Mediterranean
- The Senate's wartime dominance became permanent, ending meaningful popular assembly power
- The cult of personality (modelled on Scipio) entered Roman politics, foreshadowing the great men who would destroy the Republic
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
218 BCHannibal's Crossing of the Alps
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
211 BCHannibal's March on Rome
211 BCDefeat of the Scipiones in Spain
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: second_punic_war
CardType: consequence

Front: How did the Second Punic War transform Rome beyond the battlefield?
Back: Rome never again faced an external threat capable of checking the ambitions of its leading men. Victory made a Mediterranean empire possible, but it also entrenched the Senate as an oligarchy and made charismatic commanders the dominant political actors. The competition between those commanders would drive the Republic toward civil war.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
218 BCHannibal's Crossing of the Alps
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
211 BCHannibal's March on Rome
211 BCDefeat of the Scipiones in Spain
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: second_punic_war
CardType: significance

Front: How did Hannibal destroy the Roman army at Lake Trasimene?
Back: Hannibal bypassed the Roman-held roads by marching four days through a flooded swamp (losing sight in one eye to infection), then ravaged Etruria unopposed. Flaminius gave chase at double-time. Hannibal chose Lake Trasimene as his trap: infantry on the narrow strip between lake and hills, cavalry and troops hidden in the slopes above. When Flaminius charged through the northern entrance, Carthaginian cavalry sealed it behind him. Of 40,000 Romans who entered, 30,000 were killed or captured, including Flaminius.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Carthaginian Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_lake_trasimene
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Fabian strategy?
Back: After Lake Trasimene, dictator Fabius Maximus refused to engage Hannibal in pitched battle, instead shadowing the Carthaginian army and denying him the decisive engagement he needed. Hugely unpopular (Romans saw it as cowardice), it nonetheless kept Rome's army intact through all of 217 BC. Hannibal pillaged freely but could not land a killing blow.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
217 BCFabian Strategy
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: fabian_strategy
CardType: identity

Front: What was the long-term significance of Fabian tactics?
Back: Gave its name to a permanent military concept (Fabian tactics: winning through attrition and avoidance). Kept Rome alive through its most vulnerable period. Its rejection by the electorate led directly to the catastrophe at Cannae, vindicating Fabius but at the cost of 50,000 Roman lives.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
217 BCFabian Strategy
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: fabian_strategy
CardType: significance

Front: How did Hannibal destroy the Roman army at Cannae?
Back: Varro packed 80,000 Romans close together on open ground to overwhelm Hannibal's 50,000. Hannibal deployed a convex semicircle of weaker troops in the centre to lure the Romans forward, with Libyan infantry on the wings and cavalry beyond. As the Romans pushed the centre back, the line inverted and the Libyans flanked them without moving. Carthaginian cavalry then sealed the rear. Between 50,000 and 70,000 Romans died, including 80 senators and 29 military tribunes.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Carthaginian Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_cannae
CardType: identity

Front: What was the significance of the Battle of Cannae?
Back: The worst military defeat in Roman history and the high point of Hannibal's career. He chose not to march on Rome afterward, and never achieved such success again. Several Italian allies defected to Hannibal, but Rome refused to surrender and the war's momentum slowly shifted in Rome's favour over the following decade.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Carthaginian Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_cannae
CardType: significance

Front: How did Rome keep Philip V out of the war with Hannibal?
Back: After Cannae, Philip V of Macedon allied with Hannibal, but his envoys were intercepted. Rome sent only 2,000 men east with orders to recruit Greek allies rather than fight directly. The Aetolian League, fearing Macedonian expansion, agreed to harass Philip whenever he turned west toward Illyria. Ten years of skirmishes followed (known as the First Macedonian War). Rome won no territory and fought no major battles, but the war served its purpose: it kept Philip out of the conflict with Hannibal.
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_macedonian_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the First Macedonian War?
Back: - Philip V allied with Hannibal after Cannae, pledging mutual support against Rome
- Rome's capture of Philip's envoys crossing the Adriatic revealed the alliance
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_macedonian_war
CardType: cause

Front: How did Rome recapture Syracuse during the Second Punic War?
Back: Marcellus besieged Syracuse for two and a half years. The mathematician Archimedes designed grappling hooks that could lift Roman ships from the water and catapults that launched enormous boulders with ease, making naval assault impossible. The city finally fell when pro-Roman nobles arranged a betrayal, letting Romans scale the walls during a festival. Marcellus then turned his troops loose to sack the city, during which Archimedes was killed.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Syracuse
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: siege_of_syracuse
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Syracuse defect from Rome during the Second Punic War?
Back: - King Hiero II died after 53 years of loyal alliance with Rome; his teenage grandson Hieronymus took the throne and defected to Carthage
- Hieronymus was quickly assassinated, but Carthaginian generals already in the city maintained the anti-Roman alignment
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Syracuse
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: siege_of_syracuse
CardType: cause

Front: Who was Perseus of Macedon?
Back: Son of Philip V who engineered his brother Demetrius's execution by convincing their father that the pro-Roman prince was plotting treason. Inherited Macedon in 179 BC and immediately began testing Roman patience: expanding beyond treaty boundaries, allying with Syria, and fomenting revolt in Illyria. After three years of inconclusive war, he was defeated decisively at Pydna by Aemilius Paulus. Paraded through Rome in chains at Paulus's triumph, he was exiled to a small Italian village where he died in obscurity.
Timeline: c. 212-166 BCPerseus of Macedon
171-168 BCThird Macedonian War
168 BCBattle of Pydna
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: perseus_of_macedon
CardType: identity

Front: How did Rome recapture Capua during the Second Punic War?
Back: After Cannae, Capua (the second most important city in Italy) defected to Hannibal as part of his strategy to peel away Rome's allies. Rather than confront Hannibal directly, Rome besieged Capua to force him into reacting. Hannibal marched within two miles of Rome itself to draw the siege army away, but the Romans called his bluff, knowing he lacked the strength to take the city. Capua surrendered, its pro-Carthaginian leaders were executed, and Rome held the initiative for the first time in the war.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Capuans
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: siege_of_capua
CardType: identity

Front: How did Rome lose Spain in 211 BC?
Back: Publius and Gnaeus Scipio had spent five years campaigning effectively in Spain, keeping Carthaginian reinforcements from reaching Hannibal. In 211 BC, Hasdrubal bribed their Celtiberian allies to desert, then the brothers were separated and each defeated individually. Both were killed within weeks of each other, erasing five years of Roman gains. A young officer held the remnants together until Rome could send a new commander.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
218 BCHannibal's Crossing of the Alps
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
211 BCDefeat of the Scipiones in Spain
211 BCHannibal's March on Rome
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: defeat_of_the_scipiones_in_spain
CardType: identity

Front: What happened when Hannibal marched on Rome in 211 BC?
Back: With Rome besieging Capua and refusing to engage him directly, Hannibal marched on Rome itself in 211 BC, coming within two miles of the city. He waited for the Romans to panic and lift the siege, but they called his bluff: they knew he lacked the strength to take the walls by force, and only detached a portion of the siege army to reinforce the city. Capua remained under siege and soon surrendered. It was the closest Hannibal ever came to Rome, and the moment the initiative shifted permanently to the Romans.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
218 BCHannibal's Crossing of the Alps
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
211 BCHannibal's March on Rome
211 BCDefeat of the Scipiones in Spain
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: hannibals_march_on_rome
CardType: identity

Front: How did Scipio capture New Carthage?
Back: Scipio marched his army to the Carthaginian capital in Spain while the three enemy armies were days away. Only his confidant Laelius (commanding the fleet) knew the target. A frontal assault on day one failed, but a local revealed that the lagoon bordering one wall drained at low tide. Next morning Scipio ordered a full assault on the main gate, then led a small force through the shallow lagoon, scaled the unguarded wall, and opened the gate from inside. The city fell in 36 hours. Scipio released Spanish hostages held by the Carthaginians, winning local support that shifted the war.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: capture_of_new_carthage
CardType: identity

Front: How did Rome win the Battle of the Metaurus?
Back: Hasdrubal marched 30,000 men over the Alps to link up with Hannibal and form an army that could overrun Rome. Consul Nero, shadowing Hannibal 250 miles to the south, left a skeleton force tending extra campfires and force-marched north in seven days to join his colleague Livius. The combined consular armies trapped Hasdrubal against the Metaurus River. Nero led a flanking force around the Carthaginian rear. Hasdrubal, knowing the battle was lost, charged into the fighting and died.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: battle_of_the_metaurus
CardType: identity

Front: Why was the Battle of the Metaurus the turning point of the Second Punic War?
Back: Proved that Rome's system of allied manpower and replacement armies could outlast Carthaginian military genius. After seven years of catastrophic defeats, a single decisive Roman victory broke the psychological spell Hannibal had cast over Italy. The war shifted from a question of survival to a question of how quickly Rome could bring the fight to Africa.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: battle_of_the_metaurus
CardType: significance

Front: How did Scipio defeat the Carthaginians at Ilipa?
Back: Scipio's tactical masterpiece. For days he lined up with legions in the centre; the Carthaginians mirrored him. On the day of battle he reversed the formation (legions on wings, Spaniards in centre), harassed the enemy camp at dawn so they fought hungry, then attacked late. His legionary wings destroyed the weaker Carthaginian flanks and closed on the centre, echoing Hannibal's own methods. The rout ended Carthaginian control of Spain.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: battle_of_ilipa
CardType: identity

Front: How did Scipio defeat Hannibal at Zama?
Back: The final battle of the Second Punic War, fought near Carthage in 202 BC. Hannibal placed raw recruits in front with veterans behind, and elephants at the head. Scipio opened lanes in his formation so the elephants passed through harmlessly. The legions cut through the front lines but were halted by Hannibal's veterans. The battle hung in the balance until Masinissa's Numidian cavalry, having routed the Carthaginian horse, returned to strike Hannibal's rear. The Carthaginian army broke.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: battle_of_zama
CardType: identity

Front: What was the significance of the Battle of Zama?
Back: The moment Rome ceased to be an Italian land power and became a Mediterranean empire. With Carthage eliminated as a rival, no western state could check Roman expansion. Rome was free to turn east, and within forty years had broken Macedon and humiliated the Seleucids. Zama did not merely end the war: it removed the only strategic counterweight to Roman hegemony.
Timeline: 219 BCSiege of Saguntum
218-201 BCSecond Punic War
218 BCBattle of the Ticinus
December 218 BCBattle of the Trebia
217 BCBattle of Lake Trasimene
216 BCBattle of Cannae
214-212 BCSiege of Syracuse
212-211 BCSiege of Capua
209 BCCapture of New Carthage
207 BCBattle of the Metaurus
206 BCBattle of Ilipa
202 BCBattle of Zama
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: battle_of_zama
CardType: significance

Front: How did the slave economy transform Italian agriculture after Rome's conquests?
Back: After Rome's conquests flooded Italy with slaves, senators bought up vast agricultural estates (latifundia) worked by slave labour that undercut free citizen farmers and drove them off the land. Dispossessed farmers drifted to Rome as a landless urban poor, no longer qualifying for military service under the property requirement.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
133 BCGracchan Land Reform
post-146 BC onwardLatifundia and the Slave Economy
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ObjectID: latifundia_and_slave_economy
CardType: identity

Front: How did the rise of slave-run estates undermine the Roman Republic?
Back: Destroyed the citizen-farmer class that had been the backbone of Rome's army and society. As small farmers disappeared, the pool of men eligible for military service shrank, eventually forcing the abolition of property requirements and creating professional armies loyal to their commanders rather than the state.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
133 BCGracchan Land Reform
post-146 BC onwardLatifundia and the Slave Economy
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ObjectID: latifundia_and_slave_economy
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Polybius?
Back: Greek historian from the Achaean League, taken to Rome as a hostage after Pydna in 167 BC. Taken in by the family of Aemilius Paulus, he became the tutor and close companion of Scipio Aemilianus. Wrote the Histories to explain to his fellow Greeks how Rome conquered the Mediterranean in barely fifty years.
Timeline: 171-168 BCThird Macedonian War
c. 200-118 BCPolybius
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ObjectID: polybius
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Second Macedonian War?
Back: Rome's first direct war in Greece. After two years of indecisive skirmishing, the consul Flamininus took command, recast the war as a defence of Greek liberty, and won Greek allies away from Philip. At Cynoscephalae in 197 BC, the Roman manipular system destroyed the Macedonian phalanx on broken ground. Flamininus declared Greece free, but Rome had no intention of allowing genuine independence: "freedom" meant obedience to Roman interests without the cost of a garrison.
Timeline: 200-197 BCSecond Macedonian War
197 BCBattle of Cynoscephalae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: second_macedonian_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Second Macedonian War?
Back: - Philip V and Antiochus III agreed to jointly attack Egyptian holdings, threatening the balance of power in the eastern Mediterranean
- Pergamum and Rhodes, unable to resist Macedon alone, appealed to Rome for aid
- The Senate feared that unchecked expansion would make Philip too powerful to confront later
Timeline: 200-197 BCSecond Macedonian War
197 BCBattle of Cynoscephalae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: second_macedonian_war
CardType: cause

Front: What did Rome's 'freedom of Greece' declaration after the Second Macedonian War actually mean?
Back: Rome's decisive entry into the eastern Mediterranean. The declaration of "Greek freedom" became a template for Roman imperialism: control through patronage rather than occupation, binding client states with obligation while proclaiming liberation. Within fifty years, the pretence would be dropped and Greece absorbed as provinces.
Timeline: 200-197 BCSecond Macedonian War
197 BCBattle of Cynoscephalae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: second_macedonian_war
CardType: significance

Front: How did Rome defeat Macedon at Cynoscephalae?
Back: An accidental battle on broken ground. Both armies were marching blind on opposite sides of the Cynoscephalae hills when Philip's troops stumbled over the ridge into Roman cavalry. Flamininus committed his forces; Philip ordered his men downhill into phalanx formation. Philip's right, with the high ground, drove back the Roman left, but his left could not form properly on the rough terrain and was smashed by the Roman right. An unnamed tribune then wheeled his maniples around and struck Philip's successful right wing from behind. Locked in phalanx, the Macedonians could not turn to face the threat, and the battle became a slaughter. Philip escaped but his army was destroyed.
Timeline: 200-197 BCSecond Macedonian War
197 BCBattle of Cynoscephalae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: battle_of_cynoscephalae
CardType: identity

Front: What was the significance of the Battle of Cynoscephalae?
Back: The decisive proof that the Roman manipular system was superior to the Greek phalanx. Maniples formed faster on broken ground, fought independently, and could wheel to exploit flanks, while the phalanx was immobile once committed and helpless if struck from behind. The battle marked the end of Greek military supremacy and confirmed Rome as the dominant military power in the Mediterranean.
Timeline: 200-197 BCSecond Macedonian War
197 BCBattle of Cynoscephalae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: battle_of_cynoscephalae
CardType: significance

Front: What did Hannibal tell Scipio when asked to rank the greatest generals in history?
Back: At a banquet hosted by Antiochus III, Scipio asked Hannibal who he considered the greatest general in history. Hannibal placed Alexander first, Pyrrhus second, and himself third. Scipio, expecting acknowledgement of his own superiority, asked where Hannibal would rank himself had he won at Zama. Hannibal replied that he would place himself above Alexander: a backhanded compliment implying that beating Scipio would have been an accomplishment, but that the Roman did not merit a place among the very best.
Timeline: 211 BCDefeat of the Scipiones in Spain
211 BCHannibal's March on Rome
193 BCScipio and Hannibal at Ephesus
167 BCSack of Epirus
150-148 BCRevolt of Andriscus
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ObjectID: scipio_hannibal_meeting
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Roman-Seleucid War?
Back: The Aetolians invited Antiochus III to liberate Greece from Rome, but he arrived with only 10,000 men and found most Greeks hostile. Rome sent two legions and crushed his army at Thermopylae (where Cato the Elder made his name leading the flanking charge). Antiochus fled across the Hellespont; the Scipio brothers pursued into Asia Minor and destroyed his 70,000-strong army at Magnesia with 50,000 Romans. The Taurus Mountains became Rome's eastern boundary, and the pretence of any Mediterranean rival to Roman power was extinguished.
Timeline: 192-188 BCRoman-Seleucid War
190 BCBattle of Magnesia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Seleucids
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: roman_seleucid_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Roman-Seleucid War?
Back: - The Aetolian League, denied territorial rewards after helping Rome defeat Philip, invited Antiochus to drive the Romans out of Greece
- Antiochus III saw an opportunity to expand westward while Roman commitment to Greece appeared to be waning
- Rome refused to tolerate any rival power operating west of the Taurus Mountains
Timeline: 192-188 BCRoman-Seleucid War
190 BCBattle of Magnesia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Seleucids
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: roman_seleucid_war
CardType: cause

Front: How did Rome defeat Antiochus at Magnesia?
Back: The Scipio brothers pursued Antiochus into Asia Minor with 50,000 troops, the first time Roman legions crossed into Asia. Antiochus gathered 70,000 Syrians and mercenaries on the border between Pergamum and Syria, but his undertrained army lacked the professionalism of the Romans. The numerical advantage was easily offset by Roman discipline, and the outcome was never in doubt. Antiochus's army was crushed, revealing the vast disparity between the two supposedly equal powers.
Timeline: 192-188 BCRoman-Seleucid War
190 BCBattle of Magnesia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Seleucids
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: battle_of_magnesia
CardType: identity

Front: What was the significance of the Battle of Magnesia?
Back: Confirmed that Rome had no equal in the Mediterranean. The Taurus Mountains became the de facto eastern frontier of Roman power. Though Greece and Asia Minor would not be incorporated as official provinces for years, Roman rule in the region was never again in doubt. Antiochus was forced to pay a massive indemnity and surrender hostages.
Timeline: 192-188 BCRoman-Seleucid War
190 BCBattle of Magnesia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Seleucids
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: battle_of_magnesia
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Cornelia Africana?
Back: Daughter of Scipio Africanus and mother of Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus. Left a widow in her mid-thirties, she oversaw her children's upbringing personally and was praised for her frugality, learning, and devotion to family above personal comfort. Romans later venerated her as the ideal of the Republican matron, the dutiful daughter of the Republic's greatest general who had raised two of the most consequential politicians of the late Republic.
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ObjectID: cornelia_africana
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Scipio Aemilianus?
Back: By blood the son of Aemilius Paulus (victor of Pydna), by adoption the grandson of Scipio Africanus. Elected consul and given command in Africa after two years of inconclusive siege. Immediately blockaded Carthage's harbour and starved the city, then ordered the final assault in spring 146 BC. Allegedly wept at the burning city, quoting Homer on the fall of Troy. His sister Sempronia married Tiberius Gracchus; it was Scipio who led the Senate's rejection of Tiberius's treaty with Numantia and who reportedly quoted the Odyssey when told of his brother-in-law's death.
Timeline: c. 185-129 BCScipio Aemilianus
149-146 BCThird Punic War
146 BCDestruction of Carthage
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ObjectID: scipio_aemilianus
CardType: identity

Front: What did Scipio Aemilianus represent about Roman aristocratic power?
Back: Romans believed only a Scipio could win in Africa, and his election proved them right. But his dual heritage (Paulus by blood, Scipio by adoption) revealed something new: aristocratic family brand now mattered as much as personal merit. The networking and name recognition that got him command foreshadowed the dynastic politics that would consume the late Republic.
Timeline: c. 185-129 BCScipio Aemilianus
149-146 BCThird Punic War
146 BCDestruction of Carthage
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ObjectID: scipio_aemilianus
CardType: significance

Front: What was the Third Macedonian War?
Back: Philip V's son Perseus renewed Macedon's challenge to Rome by expanding beyond treaty boundaries and allying with Syria. After three years of indecisive campaigning (during which undisciplined Roman legions pillaged Greek towns), the consul Aemilius Paulus took command, restored order, and destroyed Perseus at Pydna in 168 BC. Macedon was broken into four republics, Perseus paraded in chains, and the punitive sack of Epirus made clear that Rome would rule Greece through fear rather than goodwill.
Timeline: 171-168 BCThird Macedonian War
168 BCBattle of Pydna
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: third_macedonian_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Third Macedonian War?
Back: - Perseus expanded beyond Macedon's treaty boundaries and allied with Syria
- He fomented revolt in Illyria and was suspected of an assassination attempt against the king of Pergamum
- Rome could no longer ignore a resurgent Macedon on its eastern flank
Timeline: 171-168 BCThird Macedonian War
168 BCBattle of Pydna
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_macedonian_war
CardType: cause

Front: What were the consequences of Rome's victory in the Third Macedonian War?
Back: The end of Macedon as a kingdom and the final proof that no Greek power could challenge Rome. After Pydna, Rome abandoned any pretence of treating Greece as an equal partner: kingdoms were dissolved, economies placed under Roman control, and one last revolt would provide the excuse to incorporate Greece as provinces outright.
Timeline: 171-168 BCThird Macedonian War
168 BCBattle of Pydna
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: third_macedonian_war
CardType: significance

Front: How did Rome destroy the Macedonian army at Pydna?
Back: Paulus flushed Perseus from his fortified coastal position with a feint from the north, forcing the Macedonians onto the open plain near Pydna where their phalanx could deploy. The phalanx initially pushed the Romans back, but drove them onto uneven ground where the rigid formation began to splinter. Roman maniples poured through the gaps and destroyed the phalanx from the inside. The Macedonian left disintegrated; Perseus fled with his cavalry. At least 25,000 Macedonians were killed against roughly 1,000 Roman dead.
Timeline: 171-168 BCThird Macedonian War
168 BCBattle of Pydna
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
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ObjectID: battle_of_pydna
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Tiberius Gracchus?
Back: Grandson of Scipio Africanus through his mother Cornelia, and brother-in-law of Scipio Aemilianus. Served in Carthage and Spain; in 137 BC he brokered a treaty to free 20,000 captured Roman soldiers, which the Senate publicly rejected at Scipio Aemilianus's instigation. The humiliation drove him to seek power through the people rather than the Senate. Elected tribune in 133 BC, he pushed radical agrarian reform by bypassing the Senate entirely and appealing directly to the popular assembly.
Timeline: 168-133 BCTiberius Gracchus
133 BCGracchan Land Reform
133 BCDeath of Tiberius Gracchus
133 BCBequest of Pergamum
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ObjectID: tiberius_gracchus
CardType: identity

Front: What happened during the sack of Epirus in 167 BC?
Back: On the march home from Pydna, the Roman army passed through Epirus and was unleashed on 70 towns. Over 150,000 locals were enslaved; the rest were killed or left destitute. The Epirots had nothing to do with Perseus's war. It was a deliberate act of terror: after thirty years of Greek conspiracies against "liberators" they claimed to love, Rome chose fear over goodwill. Future Greeks understood what crossing Rome meant, and the conspiracies stopped.
Timeline: 171-168 BCThird Macedonian War
168 BCBattle of Pydna
167 BCSack of Epirus
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ObjectID: sack_of_epirus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Jugurtha?
Back: Grandson of Masinissa who had served as a Numidian cavalryman under Roman command in Spain, where he observed how easily Roman commanders could be bribed. After the Numidian king died in 118 BC, Jugurtha seized the kingdom by murdering his co-heirs, then bribed Roman diplomatic commissions, commanders in the field, and even the Senate itself to escape justice. His systematic corruption of Rome's official class was a public scandal that eventually swept Marius to power on a platform of honest command.
Timeline: 112-106 BCJugurthine War
c. 160-104 BCJugurtha
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ObjectID: jugurtha
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Gaius Marius?
Back: Born to a well-connected but non-noble family in Latium, Marius was a novus homo (a "new man" with no consular ancestors) who rose on merit against the resistance of the old guard, serving under Scipio Aemilianus at Numantia before slowly climbing the magistracies. He married into the family of the future Julius Caesar. Elected consul for 107 BC, he ended the Jugurthine War swiftly and was returned to an unprecedented run of five consecutive consulships to meet the Cimbrian threat, retiring in 100 BC at the height of his fame. The Social War drew him back, but Sulla emerged from it as Rome's foremost commander. Their feud culminated in Sulla's march on Rome (88 BC), a Marian counter-seizure of the city (87 BC), and Marius's death two weeks into a seventh consulship (86 BC).
Timeline: 157-86 BCGaius Marius
112-106 BCJugurthine War
107 BCMarian Reforms
107 BCFirst Consulship of Marius
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
102 BCBattle of Aquae Sextiae
101 BCBattle of Vercellae
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ObjectID: gaius_marius
CardType: identity

Front: How did Marius's army reforms change who Roman soldiers were loyal to?
Back: By recruiting the landless poor, Marius created soldiers whose livelihood depended on their general, not the state. Only a successful general could pay them and settle them on land after discharge. Armies ceased to be a civic obligation and became an instrument of personal power, making the civil wars of the late Republic structurally inevitable.
Timeline: 157-86 BCGaius Marius
112-106 BCJugurthine War
107 BCMarian Reforms
107 BCFirst Consulship of Marius
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
102 BCBattle of Aquae Sextiae
101 BCBattle of Vercellae
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ObjectID: gaius_marius
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Gaius Gracchus?
Back: Younger brother of Tiberius, born the year their father died and raised entirely by Cornelia. Driven by family duty and revenge for his brother's murder, he was elected tribune in 123 BC and pushed the broadest reform program Rome had yet seen, touching grain supply, the courts, the army, land redistribution, and Italian citizenship. He won a second term but failed to secure a third, when the Senate declared him an enemy of the state.
Timeline: 154-121 BCGaius Gracchus
133 BCGracchan Land Reform
123-122 BCReforms of Gaius Gracchus
121 BCDeath of Gaius Gracchus
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ObjectID: gaius_gracchus
CardType: identity

Front: What was the combined legacy of the Gracchi brothers?
Back: The Gracchi together transformed Roman politics permanently. Their reforms, however imperfect, could not be repealed outright; citizens who benefited from cheap grain and redistributed land would not give them up. More lastingly, the brothers introduced mob violence as a routine instrument of political life: both reform and its suppression were now settled by force rather than law.
Timeline: 154-121 BCGaius Gracchus
133 BCGracchan Land Reform
123-122 BCReforms of Gaius Gracchus
121 BCDeath of Gaius Gracchus
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ObjectID: gaius_gracchus
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Andriscus?
Back: A pretender who claimed to be the son of the vanquished Perseus and grandson of Philip V. Reunited the four Macedonian republics that Rome had created after Pydna, raised an army, conquered Thessaly, and repelled an initial Roman expeditionary force. Crushed when Rome sent a full-strength army, captured, and paraded through Rome in triumph.
Timeline: 150-148 BCFourth Macedonian War
active c. 150-148 BCAndriscus
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ObjectID: andriscus
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Fourth Macedonian War?
Back: Andriscus's revolt against Rome's hands-off settlement of Macedon. After reuniting the four republics and repelling an initial Roman force, he was crushed by Quintus Metellus at full strength.
Timeline: 150-148 BCFourth Macedonian War
150-148 BCRevolt of Andriscus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: fourth_macedonian_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Fourth Macedonian War?
Back: - Rome's hands-off policy after Pydna left a power vacuum in the four Macedonian republics
- Andriscus, claiming to be the son of Perseus, united the republics and raised an army
- An initial Roman expeditionary force was too small and was repelled, emboldening the revolt
Timeline: 150-148 BCFourth Macedonian War
150-148 BCRevolt of Andriscus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: fourth_macedonian_war
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from the Fourth Macedonian War?
Back: The Senate concluded that indirect oversight of Macedon was unsustainable and incorporated Macedon and Epirus as official provinces, the first extension of direct Roman sovereignty into Greece.
Timeline: 150-148 BCFourth Macedonian War
150-148 BCRevolt of Andriscus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Macedon
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: fourth_macedonian_war
CardType: consequence

Front: Why did Rome destroy Carthage in the Third Punic War?
Back: Rome invaded a largely peaceful Carthage in 149 BC after Cato's faction convinced the Senate that Carthaginian economic recovery posed a threat. When Carthage refused the impossible demand to abandon their city and move inland, Rome besieged it for three years. Scipio Aemilianus finally took the city in 146 BC after six days of street fighting. The city was burned and its territory became a Roman province.
Timeline: 149-146 BCThird Punic War
146 BCDestruction of Carthage
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_punic_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Third Punic War?
Back: - After fifty years of peace, Carthage had recovered economically, filling Rome with envy and dread
- Masinissa's Numidians repeatedly raided Carthaginian territory with Roman acquiescence, violating the spirit of the peace terms
- Carthage raised an army to defend against Numidian raids, technically violating the treaty prohibition on independent military action
- Cato the Elder and his faction persuaded the Senate that Carthage remained an existential threat that must be destroyed
Timeline: 149-146 BCThird Punic War
146 BCDestruction of Carthage
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_punic_war
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from the Third Punic War?
Back: - Carthage was burned and its population killed, enslaved, or dispersed
- No settlement was permitted within ten miles of the coast
- Carthaginian territory became the Province of Africa, Rome's first African province
- The destruction served as Rome's ultimate cautionary tale for peoples who resisted
Timeline: 149-146 BCThird Punic War
146 BCDestruction of Carthage
CombatHTML: Romevs.Carthage
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_punic_war
CardType: consequence

Front: What was the Achaean War?
Back: A swift Roman punitive campaign against the Achaean League in 146 BC. The consul Lucius Mummius besieged and burned Corinth to the ground; its population was sold into slavery. The destruction fell in the same year as Carthage, signalling that resistance to Rome ended in annihilation.
Timeline: 146 BCAchaean War
146 BCDestruction of Corinth
CombatHTML: Romevs.Achaean League
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: achaean_war
CardType: identity

Front: What provoked the Roman destruction of Corinth?
Back: The Achaean League, whose leading city was Corinth, defied Roman authority shortly after Metellus completed the pacification of Macedon.
Timeline: 146 BCAchaean War
146 BCDestruction of Corinth
CombatHTML: Romevs.Achaean League
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: achaean_war
CardType: cause

Front: How was Carthage finally destroyed?
Back: After a three-year siege, Scipio Aemilianus ordered the final assault in spring 146 BC. The walls were breached and six days of intense street fighting followed as the Carthaginians forced the Romans to fight for every block. Of 700,000 citizens, only about 50,000 remained by the end. The city was burned; legend claims the fires lasted ten days.
Timeline: 149-146 BCThird Punic War
146 BCDestruction of Carthage
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: destruction_of_carthage
CardType: identity

Front: Why does 146 BC mark the beginning of Rome's internal crisis?
Back: Together with Corinth's destruction in the same year, removed the last rival to Roman Mediterranean dominance and eliminated the unifying external threat that had held Roman society together. After 146 BC, Roman competitiveness turned inward, and the competition for power that would destroy the Republic began.
Timeline: 149-146 BCThird Punic War
146 BCDestruction of Carthage
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: destruction_of_carthage
CardType: significance

Front: What happened to Corinth in 146 BC?
Back: The consul Lucius Mummius besieged Corinth, the leading city of the Achaean League, after it defied Roman authority. The city was overcome and burned to the ground in a brutal display of power. The men were slaughtered and the women and children sold into slavery. Greek territory was absorbed into the Roman provincial system within a few years.
Timeline: 146 BCAchaean War
146 BCDestruction of Corinth
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ObjectID: destruction_of_corinth
CardType: identity

Front: What did the destruction of Corinth signal about Roman power in Greece?
Back: Marked the end of Greek freedom as a political reality. One of the oldest and wealthiest cities in the Greek world was erased as an example, proving that no city was too great or too historic to be destroyed if it defied Rome.
Timeline: 146 BCAchaean War
146 BCDestruction of Corinth
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ObjectID: destruction_of_corinth
CardType: significance

Front: What was the Province of Africa?
Back: Rome's first province on the African continent, created from the territory of destroyed Carthage in 146 BC. The fertile land was confiscated but no settlement was permitted within ten miles of the coast where Carthage had stood. Governed by a Roman praetor, the province would become one of Rome's most important grain-producing regions.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
146 BCDestruction of Carthage
146 BCProvince of Africa
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ObjectID: province_of_africa
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Tigranes II of Armenia?
Back: King of Armenia at the height of its power, Tigranes II had married a daughter of Mithridates and built his kingdom into the dominant force in the region. When Rome demanded he surrender Mithridates, he refused. After his defeat he reassessed when Pompey arrived with a larger army and a formidable reputation, denied Mithridates asylum, and submitted to Rome. He was allowed to keep his throne as a client king, making Armenia a buffer between Rome and Parthia.
Timeline: c. 140-55 BCTigranes II of Armenia
73-63 BCThird Mithridatic War
69 BCBattle of Tigranocerta
66-62 BCPompey's Eastern Settlement
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ObjectID: tigranes_ii
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Lucius Cornelius Sulla?
Back: Sulla served as Marius's quaestor in Numidia and personally secured Jugurtha's surrender, earning a reputation Marius's supporters found threatening. During the Social War he commanded in the south, earned the Grass Crown at Nola, and emerged as Rome's foremost general. After marching on Rome in 88 BC and defeating Mithridates in the East, he returned to fight and win a civil war against the Marian faction (83-82 BC), became Rome's first dictator for life, carried out sweeping constitutional reforms to restore the Senate's supremacy, then shocked the world by voluntarily resigning the dictatorship in 80 BC. He died in 78 BC.
Timeline: 112-106 BCJugurthine War
c. 138-78 BCLucius Cornelius Sulla
90 BCLex Julia
89 BCRelief of Nola
88 BCSulla's March on Rome
87-86 BCSiege of Athens
85 BCPeace of Dardanus
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ObjectID: lucius_cornelius_sulla
CardType: identity

Front: What did Sulla's career demonstrate about the limits of the Roman Republic?
Back: Sulla established three facts about the Republic that could not be undone: a Roman army would march on the city if its general ordered it, the Senate would ratify whoever held power after the fact, and a published list could destroy an entire political class in a matter of months. The constitution had run on voluntary compliance. Sulla was the first to demonstrate, in full, what happened when that compliance ended.
Timeline: 112-106 BCJugurthine War
c. 138-78 BCLucius Cornelius Sulla
90 BCLex Julia
89 BCRelief of Nola
88 BCSulla's March on Rome
87-86 BCSiege of Athens
85 BCPeace of Dardanus
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ObjectID: lucius_cornelius_sulla
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Mithridates VI of Pontus?
Back: King of Pontus on the Black Sea coast, Mithridates VI built his kingdom into the dominant power of Asia Minor and repeatedly challenged Roman expansion into the east. His coordinated massacre of tens of thousands of Roman and Italian residents across Asia Minor (the Asiatic Vespers, 88 BC) forced the First Mithridatic War, during which he overran the province of Asia and much of Greece before Sulla destroyed both his field armies. He accepted humiliating terms at Dardanus (85 BC) but retained his throne. He launched a third war in 73 BC, was finally defeated by Pompey in 66 BC, and committed suicide in the Crimea in 63 BC.
Timeline: c. 135-63 BCMithridates VI
89-85 BCFirst Mithridatic War
88 BCAsiatic Vespers
86 BCBattle of Chaeronea
85 BCPeace of Dardanus
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ObjectID: mithridates_vi
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Bequest of Pergamum (133 BC)?
Back: Attalus III of Pergamum died in 133 BC and willed his kingdom in western Asia Minor to the Roman people. When the Senate moved to take control of the inheritance, Tiberius Gracchus claimed it for the people and his land commission, forcing a direct confrontation over whether the Senate or the popular assembly held ultimate authority over state resources.
Timeline: 146 BCDestruction of Corinth
133 BCGracchan Land Reform
133 BCBequest of Pergamum
133 BCDeath of Tiberius Gracchus
123-122 BCReforms of Gaius Gracchus
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ObjectID: bequest_of_pergamum
CardType: identity

Front: How did Tiberius Gracchus die?
Back: Facing prosecution once his tribunate ended, Tiberius stood for re-election, which his opponents condemned as an illegal bid for permanent power. Before voting could begin, a mob of senators led by Scipio Nasica (Tiberius's own cousin) descended on the assembly with clubs. Tiberius and several hundred supporters were beaten to death. When told, Scipio Aemilianus quoted the Odyssey: "So perish all who do the like again."
Timeline: 133 BCGracchan Land Reform
133 BCBequest of Pergamum
133 BCDeath of Tiberius Gracchus
123-122 BCReforms of Gaius Gracchus
121 BCDeath of Gaius Gracchus
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ObjectID: death_of_tiberius_gracchus
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Death of Tiberius Gracchus?
Back: - The first political bloodshed in centuries ended the sacrosanctity of the tribunate, an office protected since the Secession of the Plebs
- It proved that constitutional norms were only as durable as the willingness to enforce them
Timeline: 133 BCGracchan Land Reform
133 BCBequest of Pergamum
133 BCDeath of Tiberius Gracchus
123-122 BCReforms of Gaius Gracchus
121 BCDeath of Gaius Gracchus
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ObjectID: death_of_tiberius_gracchus
CardType: consequence

Front: What did the Gracchan land reform of 133 BC do?
Back: Tribune Tiberius Gracchus proposed capping landholdings and redistributing public land to dispossessed citizens, bypassing the Senate to bring the bill directly to the people's assembly. When a fellow tribune, Octavius, vetoed it at the Senate's instigation, Tiberius had him physically removed from office. The bill passed; a three-man commission began redistributing land, creating an estimated 75,000 new farms.
Timeline: 146 BCDestruction of Carthage
146 BCDestruction of Corinth
133 BCGracchan Land Reform
133 BCBequest of Pergamum
133 BCDeath of Tiberius Gracchus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gracchan_land_reform
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Gracchan land reform?
Back: - The Senate was bypassed as a necessary step in lawmaking, shattering a centuries-old convention and cementing the Optimates-Populares split
- Limited success failed to solve the shrinking citizen-farmer class problem, making future military reform inevitable
Timeline: 146 BCDestruction of Carthage
146 BCDestruction of Corinth
133 BCGracchan Land Reform
133 BCBequest of Pergamum
133 BCDeath of Tiberius Gracchus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gracchan_land_reform
CardType: consequence

Front: What were the Optimates and the Populares?
Back: The two loose political groupings that defined late-Republican Roman politics. The Optimates ("the best men") defended the traditional supremacy of the Senate; the Populares ("men of the people") bypassed the Senate by appealing directly to the popular assemblies. The division described method, not ideology: neither faction was a consistent defender of the Republic, and membership shifted freely.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
133 BCGracchan Land Reform
133 BCDeath of Tiberius Gracchus
from 133 BCOptimates and Populares
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ObjectID: optimates_and_populares
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Quintus Sertorius?
Back: Marian general and gifted unconventional commander who refused to accept the Sullan settlement. Where other Marian holdouts were quickly crushed, Sertorius built a genuine rival Roman state in Spain, complete with a shadow Senate and Iberian alliances, and proved impossible to defeat in the field. He was undone by treachery from within rather than Roman arms.
Timeline: 80-72 BCSertorian War
c. 126-72 BCQuintus Sertorius
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ObjectID: quintus_sertorius
CardType: identity

Front: What did the reforms of Gaius Gracchus do?
Back: As tribune in 123-122 BC, Gaius Gracchus pushed through the broadest reform program Rome had yet seen. The state began purchasing and reselling grain at a fixed below-market price, directly relieving the urban poor. Juries in corruption trials were opened to the equestrian class, breaking the Senate's monopoly on justice. Limits were placed on military service and the state was required to clothe its soldiers. The agrarian commission was relaunched. Overseas colonies were founded to relieve population pressure. He also championed extending full citizenship to Rome's Italian allies, a proposal the Senate blocked.
Timeline: 133 BCBequest of Pergamum
133 BCDeath of Tiberius Gracchus
123-122 BCReforms of Gaius Gracchus
121 BCDeath of Gaius Gracchus
107 BCMarian Reforms
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: reforms_of_gaius_gracchus
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the reforms of Gaius Gracchus?
Back: - The grain price cap became permanent and was the seed of the later imperial grain dole; subsequent governments could not remove it without risking revolt
- Opening juries to equestrians created a lasting rivalry between the Senate and the equestrian class over control of the courts
- State provision of soldiers' equipment pushed Rome further toward professional armies dependent on the state rather than citizen-farmers
Timeline: 133 BCBequest of Pergamum
133 BCDeath of Tiberius Gracchus
123-122 BCReforms of Gaius Gracchus
121 BCDeath of Gaius Gracchus
107 BCMarian Reforms
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: reforms_of_gaius_gracchus
CardType: consequence

Front: How did Gaius Gracchus die?
Back: Defeated at the polls in his bid for a third term, Gaius and his ally Fulvius Flaccus organized public demonstrations against the repeal of his reforms. When an opponent's herald was killed by Gracchan supporters, the Senate invoked an emergency decree (later called the senatus consultum ultimum) declaring Gaius and Fulvius enemies of the state. Fulvius was caught and killed with his sons. Gaius fled across the Tiber and, cornered, ordered his slave to kill him.
Timeline: 133 BCDeath of Tiberius Gracchus
123-122 BCReforms of Gaius Gracchus
121 BCDeath of Gaius Gracchus
107 BCMarian Reforms
107 BCFirst Consulship of Marius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: death_of_gaius_gracchus
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Death of Gaius Gracchus?
Back: - The senatus consultum ultimum was established as the Senate's instrument for bypassing legal process against political opponents; it was later invoked against Catiline, Caesar, and others
- The Italian citizenship question Gaius had raised was left unresolved for roughly thirty years, until the Italian allies took up arms in the Social War
Timeline: 133 BCDeath of Tiberius Gracchus
123-122 BCReforms of Gaius Gracchus
121 BCDeath of Gaius Gracchus
107 BCMarian Reforms
107 BCFirst Consulship of Marius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: death_of_gaius_gracchus
CardType: consequence

Front: What was the senatus consultum ultimum?
Back: An emergency decree by which the Senate instructed the consuls to take whatever action was necessary to defend the state, effectively suspending normal legal protections. First invoked in 121 BC against Gaius Gracchus, it was used to authorise the killing of citizens without trial.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
121 BCDeath of Gaius Gracchus
63 BCCatilinarian Conspiracy
first invoked 121 BCSenatus Consultum Ultimum
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: senatus_consultum_ultimum
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Lucullus?
Back: A close ally of Sulla who inherited his eastern command, Lucullus was one of Rome's most capable generals of the era. He successfully prosecuted the Third Mithridatic War, driving Mithridates from Bithynia and deep into Armenia. His campaign eventually stalled when officers loyal to Pompey encouraged the troops to refuse orders, and the Senate recalled him in 66 BC. He returned laden with eastern treasure and spent his remaining years in celebrated luxury.
Timeline: c. 118-56 BCLucius Licinius Lucullus
73-63 BCThird Mithridatic War
69 BCBattle of Tigranocerta
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_licinius_lucullus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Marcus Licinius Crassus?
Back: After the Marians murdered his father and brother, Crassus fled to Spain and raised a small force from his father's clients, then won the Battle of the Colline Gate for Sulla. After Sulla's victory he rebuilt the family fortune many times over: he was first in line to buy up proscribed men's estates, invested in slave trading and silver mines, and ran a predatory fire brigade that arrived at burning buildings and offered to buy them at ruinous prices before putting out the fire. Known as Crassus Dives (the Rich), he became Rome's wealthiest citizen, but wealth in Rome earned envy rather than respect. Military glory was the one thing he could not purchase. As consul in 55 BC he took Syria as his province, invaded Parthia in pursuit of that glory, and was destroyed at Carrhae in 53 BC.
Timeline: c. 115-53 BCMarcus Licinius Crassus
83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
82 BCBattle of the Colline Gate
70 BCJoint Consulship of Crassus and Pompey
60 BCFirst Triumvirate
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ObjectID: marcus_licinius_crassus
CardType: identity

Front: Why could Crassus buy influence but not respect?
Back: Wealth deployed across loans, patronage, and political favours made him indispensable to men who needed money and untouchable by men who owed it. Roman political culture valued the general over the banker, and Crassus spent the rest of his life trying to close that gap.
Timeline: c. 115-53 BCMarcus Licinius Crassus
83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
82 BCBattle of the Colline Gate
70 BCJoint Consulship of Crassus and Pompey
60 BCFirst Triumvirate
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marcus_licinius_crassus
CardType: significance

Front: What was the Cimbrian War?
Back: A decade of war against the migrating Germanic Cimbri and Teutones, who swept into Rome's northern sphere and crushed several senatorial armies, culminating in the catastrophe at Arausio (105 BC). The repeated failures of noble commanders swept Gaius Marius to an unprecedented run of consulships. Marius annihilated the Teutones at Aquae Sextiae (102 BC) and then destroyed the larger Cimbri army at Vercellae (101 BC), ending the threat.
Timeline: 113-101 BCCimbrian War
113 BCBattle of Noreia
109 BCDefeat of Silanus
107 BCBattle of Burdigala
105 BCBattle of Arausio
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
102 BCBattle of Aquae Sextiae
101 BCBattle of Vercellae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Cimbri, Teutones
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: cimbrian_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Cimbrian War?
Back: The Cimbri and Teutones were migrating Germanic tribes searching for new land, colliding with Rome's sphere of influence as they moved south and west.
Timeline: 113-101 BCCimbrian War
113 BCBattle of Noreia
109 BCDefeat of Silanus
107 BCBattle of Burdigala
105 BCBattle of Arausio
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
102 BCBattle of Aquae Sextiae
101 BCBattle of Vercellae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Cimbri, Teutones
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: cimbrian_war
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from the Cimbrian War?
Back: - The serial defeats discredited the senatorial officer class and made Marius's illegal run of consecutive consulships politically unstoppable
- Victory over the Cimbri and Teutones (102-101 BC) cemented Marius as Rome's preeminent figure, second only in popular memory to Scipio Africanus
Timeline: 113-101 BCCimbrian War
113 BCBattle of Noreia
109 BCDefeat of Silanus
107 BCBattle of Burdigala
105 BCBattle of Arausio
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
102 BCBattle of Aquae Sextiae
101 BCBattle of Vercellae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Cimbri, Teutones
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: cimbrian_war
CardType: consequence

Front: What was the Jugurthine War?
Back: After Jugurtha seized Numidia by eliminating his co-heirs and killing Italian merchants caught in the conflict, Rome declared war. For years the campaign stalled, as Jugurtha used bribes to neutralize Roman commanders and keep to the mountains. Public outrage over the corruption swept Gaius Marius to the consulship in 107 BC. Marius adopted aggressive tactics and dispatched Sulla to a neighboring kingdom to secure Jugurtha's betrayal. Delivered in chains, Jugurtha was paraded through Rome in Marius's triumph and executed.
Timeline: 112-106 BCJugurthine War
107 BCMarian Reforms
107 BCFirst Consulship of Marius
CombatHTML: Romevs.Numidia
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: jugurthine_war
CardType: identity

Front: What caused the Jugurthine War?
Back: - Jugurtha murdered his co-heirs to seize Numidia, then executed Italian merchants who supported his rivals, forcing the Senate to act
- Roman diplomatic commissions and field commanders repeatedly accepted bribes to ignore Jugurtha's crimes, prolonging the crisis
Timeline: 112-106 BCJugurthine War
107 BCMarian Reforms
107 BCFirst Consulship of Marius
CombatHTML: Romevs.Numidia
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: jugurthine_war
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from the Jugurthine War?
Back: - The war's serial corruption scandals discredited the senatorial command class and propelled Marius to the consulship on a platform of honest, aggressive leadership
- Jugurtha was captured through a deal brokered by Marius's junior officer Lucius Cornelius Sulla, planting the seeds of the Marius-Sulla rivalry
Timeline: 112-106 BCJugurthine War
107 BCMarian Reforms
107 BCFirst Consulship of Marius
CombatHTML: Romevs.Numidia
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: jugurthine_war
CardType: consequence

Front: Who was Spartacus?
Back: A slave trained as a gladiator at Capua, Spartacus led the breakout of 73 BC and emerged as the revolt's dominant commander. He consistently outmanoeuvred the Roman forces sent against him, growing a band of fugitives into a disciplined army of roughly 70,000. His strategic intentions remain unclear: having marched to the Alps he turned back south, and no ancient source explains why. He was killed in the final battle against Crassus in 71 BC.
Timeline: 73-71 BCThird Servile War
c. 111-71 BCSpartacus
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ObjectID: spartacus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Catiline?
Back: A patrician from a long-faded consular family, Catiline was charismatic and brave but repeatedly willing to subvert legal process when it suited him. He was twice acquitted of serious charges on the testimony of powerful patrons, twice denied the consulship, and finally turned to conspiracy. His plot to overthrow the government was exposed by Cicero and he was killed at Pistoria in 62 BC leading the remnant of his army.
Timeline: 108-62 BCLucius Sergius Catilina
63 BCCatilinarian Conspiracy
62 BCBattle of Pistoria
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: catiline
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Marian legion?
Back: The professional army Marius built from 107 BC onward. He abolished the maniple and made the cohort (400-500 men) the basic tactical unit, large enough to resist a massed charge without being cut off. He scrapped the age-graded three-line system, mixing veterans with recruits and drilling them to cycle fresh troops to the front continuously. He ordered soldiers to carry their own 70-pound kit (earning them the nickname "Marius's mules"), eliminating the bloated baggage train.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
107 BCMarian Reforms
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
from 107 BCMarian Legion
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marian_legion
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Marius abandon the manipular system?
Back: - The checkerboard maniple formation was vulnerable to massed frontal charges and could be surrounded and cut off piecemeal on open ground
- Marius needed a heavier, more mobile formation capable of withstanding the headlong Germanic onslaught that had destroyed several senatorial armies
- With landless soldiers serving year-round, Marius had the manpower to drill continuously and demand new standards of fitness and discipline
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
107 BCMarian Reforms
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
from 107 BCMarian Legion
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marian_legion
CardType: cause

Front: What did the Marian reforms change about the Roman army?
Back: When Marius raised his legions for the Jugurthine War in 107 BC, he abolished the property requirement that had defined Roman military eligibility since the earliest Republic. Any citizen, landless or not, could now serve. Though intended as a one-time measure, there was no reverting to the old system. Service became a twenty-year career, rewarded with statutory land grants on discharge and regular provisioning throughout. Able rankers were promoted into the officer corps at the expense of young nobles who had long stepped into commands without battlefield experience. The armies of Caesar, Pompey, and Octavian were all structured on this template.
Timeline: 112-106 BCJugurthine War
107 BCMarian Reforms
107 BCFirst Consulship of Marius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marian_reforms
CardType: identity

Front: Why were the Marian reforms so dangerous for the Republic?
Back: The reform severed the link between citizenship, property, and military service that had held for centuries. Landless soldiers had no farm to return to; their livelihood depended entirely on their general securing pay during service and land grants on discharge. The Senate had no reliable mechanism to provide either. Only a successful general could deliver, so soldiers' loyalty ran to their commander, not to the state. This structural shift made the civil wars of the late Republic inevitable.
Timeline: 112-106 BCJugurthine War
107 BCMarian Reforms
107 BCFirst Consulship of Marius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marian_reforms
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Cicero?
Back: Born in Arpinum to a family with no senatorial history, Cicero rose through the cursus honorum on the strength of his oratory and legal skill alone. He integrated Greek philosophy into Roman intellectual life and saw himself primarily as a statesman rather than a philosopher. The optimates backed him for consul in 63 BC as the safest candidate against Catiline.
Timeline: 106-43 BCMarcus Tullius Cicero
63 BCCatilinarian Conspiracy
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: cicero
CardType: identity

Front: What was the central contradiction of Cicero's political career?
Back: Cicero spent his career arguing that the constitution and rule of law were the only legitimate sources of power. Yet his own greatest political act, having five conspirators strangled without trial, directly violated those principles and was used against him for the rest of his life.
Timeline: 106-43 BCMarcus Tullius Cicero
63 BCCatilinarian Conspiracy
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: cicero
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Pompey the Great?
Back: Son of the consul Pompeius Strabo, Pompey raised three legions from his father's veterans at twenty-three and joined Sulla's civil war. Sulla rewarded his campaigns in Sicily and Africa with a triumph, and gave him the sarcastic title "Magnus" (the Great) when he refused to disband his army until the honour was granted. Pompey adopted the name as a literal title. His career was built on extracting extraordinary, extralegal commands from a reluctant Senate, accumulating powers the constitution did not authorise and winning wars others had failed to finish.
Timeline: 106-48 BCGnaeus Pompeius Magnus
83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82-80 BCSulla's Constitutional Reforms
codified c. 81 BCCursus Honorum
70 BCJoint Consulship of Crassus and Pompey
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pompey_magnus
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Arausio?
Back: One of Rome's worst military disasters. The proconsul Caepio (a noble) refused to coordinate with the consul Mallius (a new man), keeping their armies separated on the banks of the Rhone. The Cimbri and Teutones destroyed Caepio's smaller force first, then swung back and crushed Mallius against the river. Casualties ran to roughly 80,000. Romans blamed the catastrophe on the haughty patrician's refusal to serve beneath a social inferior.
Timeline: 113-101 BCCimbrian War
113 BCBattle of Noreia
109 BCDefeat of Silanus
107 BCBattle of Burdigala
105 BCBattle of Arausio
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
102 BCBattle of Aquae Sextiae
101 BCBattle of Vercellae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Cimbri, Teutones
Germanic Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_arausio
CardType: identity

Front: How did Marius win five consecutive re-elections when the law prohibited it?
Back: Popular demand for a proven commander over a string of discredited senatorial generals bent the rules that were supposed to stop it. After ending the Jugurthine War in 107 BC, Marius was returned as consul five more times in a row (104-100 BC), flouting at least two laws restricting re-election.
Timeline: 112-106 BCJugurthine War
107 BCMarian Reforms
107 BCFirst Consulship of Marius
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: consecutive_consulships_of_marius
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Marius's repeated consulships matter for the Republic?
Back: The Republic's rules bent once for an indispensable man, and the precedent held. Every strongman who followed (Sulla, Pompey, Caesar) claimed the same necessity, and the laws that should have prohibited them had already lost their credibility.
Timeline: 112-106 BCJugurthine War
107 BCMarian Reforms
107 BCFirst Consulship of Marius
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: consecutive_consulships_of_marius
CardType: significance

Front: How did Marius defeat the Teutones at Aquae Sextiae?
Back: Marius intercepted the Teutones in southern Gaul near Aquae Sextiae (modern Aix-en-Provence). When a Teutonic vanguard of 30,000 charged on contact, Marius routed them and concealed half a legion in the hills. The main Teutonic army marched forward in pursuit, passing the hidden cohorts. Marius turned to face them from the front; the hidden Romans struck from behind. Caught between two forces and unable to regroup, the Teutones were annihilated.
Timeline: 113-101 BCCimbrian War
113 BCBattle of Noreia
109 BCDefeat of Silanus
107 BCBattle of Burdigala
105 BCBattle of Arausio
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
102 BCBattle of Aquae Sextiae
101 BCBattle of Vercellae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Teutones
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_aquae_sextiae
CardType: identity

Front: How did Marius defeat the Cimbri at Vercellae?
Back: Marius met the Cimbri on the plains of northern Italy near Vercellae, commanding alongside his consular colleague Catulus. The Cimbri outnumbered the Romans substantially and attacked with a headlong charge, advancing into the morning sun and blinding dust. Marius's force-marched, heavily drilled legions had the stamina to absorb the assault and grind down the less disciplined Germanic warriors. The Cimbri were destroyed; their threat to Italy was over.
Timeline: 113-101 BCCimbrian War
113 BCBattle of Noreia
109 BCDefeat of Silanus
107 BCBattle of Burdigala
105 BCBattle of Arausio
104-100 BCConsecutive Consulships of Marius
102 BCBattle of Aquae Sextiae
101 BCBattle of Vercellae
CombatHTML: Romevs.Cimbri
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_vercellae
CardType: identity

Front: How did Caesar rise from Sulla's proscription lists to the consulship by 59 BC?
Back: He refused Sulla's demand to divorce Cinna's daughter Cornelia and survived the proscription lists. After Sulla's death he launched an oratorical career, won a military tribunate, and served as quaestor in Spain. As aedile in 65 BC he spent ruinously on public games and gladiatorial shows, deepening his dependence on Crassus. In 63 BC he bribed his way to Pontifex Maximus. As proconsular governor of Hispania Ulterior he fought the western hill tribes, seized their silver mines, and cleared enough profit to address his debts. On returning he abandoned a guaranteed triumph to enter Rome and win the consulship for 59 BC.
Timeline: 100-60 BCCaesar's Early Career
83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCBattle of the Colline Gate
82 BCSulla's Dictatorship
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: caesar_early_career
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Julius Caesar?
Back: Patrician of the Julian gens, which claimed descent from Venus through Aeneas, Caesar grew up in the Subura and survived Sulla's proscriptions. He bribed his way to Pontifex Maximus, won the consulship for 59 BC, and secured the proconsulship of Gaul. Over the next decade he conquered Gaul, twice crossed into Britain, and built an army loyal to him personally. When the Senate ordered him to disband his legions, he crossed the Rubicon, drove Pompey from Italy, and won a four-year civil war. As perpetual dictator he reformed the calendar, reorganised the provinces, and packed the Senate with his supporters. He was assassinated on the Ides of March, 44 BC.
Timeline: 100-44 BCGaius Julius Caesar
100-60 BCCaesar's Early Career
83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
c. 75 BCCaesar's Capture by Pirates
58 BCBattle of Bibracte
58 BCBattle of Vosges
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gaius_julius_caesar
CardType: identity

Front: What did Caesar's career prove about the late Republic that Sulla's had not?
Back: Caesar proved that the institutions Sulla had restored could not hold against a general willing to use his army as a political instrument. Unlike Sulla he did not abdicate. His rule made it clear that the Republic could no longer function as a competitive aristocracy: power had concentrated too far in one man. His assassination did not restore the old order but triggered the final round of civil wars that ended it permanently.
Timeline: 100-44 BCGaius Julius Caesar
100-60 BCCaesar's Early Career
83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
c. 75 BCCaesar's Capture by Pirates
58 BCBattle of Bibracte
58 BCBattle of Vosges
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gaius_julius_caesar
CardType: significance

Front: Who was Cato the Younger?
Back: Great-grandson of Cato the Elder, Cato the Younger was the most inflexible defender of senatorial tradition in the late Republic. A committed Stoic who refused compromise on principle, he made his name in 63 BC by prosecuting Catiline's allies and pressing for their immediate execution over Caesar's objection. He became the optimates' figurehead in the struggles to come.
Timeline: 95-46 BCMarcus Porcius Cato
63 BCCatilinarian Conspiracy
59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: cato_the_younger
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Publius Clodius Pulcher?
Back: Patrician populist who in 62 BC dressed as a woman to infiltrate the Bona Dea rite held in Caesar's house, allegedly to meet Pompeia; the scandal forced Caesar to divorce her. Caesar then validated Clodius's adoption by a plebeian family half his age, making him eligible for the tribunate. He became a street-level populist agitator and a bitter enemy of Cicero.
Timeline: c. 93-52 BCPublius Clodius Pulcher
59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: publius_clodius_pulcher
CardType: identity

Front: Who was the tribune Marcus Livius Drusus?
Back: Tribune of 91 BC and son of the consul who had championed Gracchan-era land reform. Unlike the Gracchi, Drusus was no populist radical: he sought to extend the franchise to the Italian allies as part of a package designed to shore up senatorial authority by broadening the electorate with conservative middle-class Italians, diluting the urban mob. The Senate opposed him regardless and blocked his legislation. Shortly after, Drusus was assassinated. His death was the spark that ignited the Social War.
Timeline: 91-88 BCSocial War
d. 91 BCMarcus Livius Drusus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marcus_livius_drusus
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Social War?
Back: A two-year rebellion (91-88 BC) in which Rome's Italian allies, denied citizenship despite bearing the bulk of the military burden, broke away and formed a rival state centred on Corfinium (renamed Italica), with its own Senate and assemblies. Rome suppressed the revolt militarily (Marius in the north, Sulla in the south) but swiftly conceded the point by passing the Lex Julia (90 BC), granting citizenship to allies who laid down arms. The Samnites held out longest, and the war ended only in 88 BC. Paradoxically, the Italians lost the war and won what they wanted, while Rome gained a united peninsula and lost its political cohesion.
Timeline: 91-88 BCSocial War
90 BCLex Julia
89 BCSiege of Asculum
89 BCRelief of Nola
CombatHTML: Romevs.Italian Allies, Samnites
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: social_war
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Rome's Italian allies rebel in 91 BC?
Back: - Italian allies had supplied roughly 65% of the legions by the turn of the 1st century BC, yet received a shrinking share of war booty and no vote over the consuls who commanded them
- Marius's abolition of the distinction between Roman and non-Roman legions raised expectations that citizenship would follow; the Senate's repeated refusals turned disappointment into resentment
- The Senate had blocked every attempt to extend the franchise, from the Gracchi through Drusus, for narrow political reasons rather than on principle
- The assassination of the tribune Marcus Livius Drusus in 91 BC, whose reform bill offered the allies their best chance yet, was the final trigger
Timeline: 91-88 BCSocial War
90 BCLex Julia
89 BCSiege of Asculum
89 BCRelief of Nola
CombatHTML: Romevs.Italian Allies, Samnites
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: social_war
CardType: cause

Front: What did the Lex Julia offer Rome's Italian allies?
Back: Passed by the consul Lucius Julius Caesar during the Social War, the Lex Julia offered Roman citizenship to all Italian communities that had not joined the revolt and to any rebel who laid down arms within a set period. A follow-up measure, the Lex Plautia Papiria (89 BC), extended the offer further. Together the laws stripped the rebellion of its purpose and caused the vast majority of Italians (to whom independence had never been the real goal) to accept terms.
Timeline: 91-88 BCSocial War
90 BCLex Julia
89 BCSiege of Asculum
89 BCRelief of Nola
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lex_julia
CardType: identity

Front: Why was the Lex Julia a turning point for Roman Italy?
Back: The Lex Julia conceded in war what the Senate had refused in peace for decades, near-doubling the Roman citizen body and completing the absorption of Italy into Rome. The political unification it achieved had been the unstated goal of every reform movement from the Gracchi onward.
Timeline: 91-88 BCSocial War
90 BCLex Julia
89 BCSiege of Asculum
89 BCRelief of Nola
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lex_julia
CardType: significance

Front: What did the consul Lucius Julius Caesar achieve during the Social War?
Back: Consul of 90 BC and a patrician of the Julian gens, elder kinsman of the future dictator. He commanded the Roman forces in the south during the first year of the Social War against the Samnites, with Sulla serving under him. Before leaving office he sponsored the Lex Julia, the law that offered citizenship to loyal and surrendering Italian allies, politically defusing the rebellion.
Timeline: 91-88 BCSocial War
cos. 90 BCLucius Julius Caesar
90 BCLex Julia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_julius_caesar
CardType: identity

Front: What was the First Mithridatic War?
Back: In retaliation for the Asiatic Vespers (88 BC), Rome dispatched Sulla east to recover the province of Asia and drive Mithridates out of Greece. The war was fought almost entirely by Sulla in the east while Rome itself was in political turmoil. Sulla besieged and sacked Athens (86 BC) and twice destroyed far larger Pontic armies at Chaeronea and Orchomenus, fighting a parallel enemy in the form of a rival Marian army at his back. He then dictated the Peace of Dardanus from a position of total military superiority, inflicting severe financial penalties on Asia before turning his army west toward Rome.
Timeline: 89-85 BCFirst Mithridatic War
88 BCAsiatic Vespers
87-86 BCSiege of Athens
86 BCBattle of Chaeronea
86/85 BCBattle of Orchomenus
85 BCPeace of Dardanus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Pontus, Armenia
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_mithridatic_war
CardType: identity

Front: What provoked the First Mithridatic War?
Back: - Mithridates VI had spent decades expanding Pontus across Asia Minor, bringing him into direct conflict with Rome's new province of Asia and its allies
- Roman governors and tax-farmers exploited the eastern provinces ruthlessly, feeding local resentment that made Mithridates's invasion welcome rather than resisted
- The Asiatic Vespers (88 BC), Mithridates's coordinated massacre of ~80,000 Roman and Italian residents across Asia Minor, made war unavoidable
- Mithridates then pushed into Greece, attempting to expel Rome from the Aegean entirely with Armenian backing
Timeline: 89-85 BCFirst Mithridatic War
88 BCAsiatic Vespers
87-86 BCSiege of Athens
86 BCBattle of Chaeronea
86/85 BCBattle of Orchomenus
85 BCPeace of Dardanus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Pontus, Armenia
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_mithridatic_war
CardType: cause

Front: Who was Pompeius Strabo?
Back: Consul of 89 BC who replaced Caepio in command of the northern theatre of the Social War after Caepio fell in battle. Pompeius Strabo conducted the brutal siege of Asculum (the city where the revolt had begun) and took it in 89 BC, effectively ending resistance in the north. His teenage son Gnaeus Pompeius served with him during the campaign.
Timeline: 91-88 BCSocial War
cos. 89 BCPompeius Strabo
89 BCSiege of Asculum
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pompeius_strabo
CardType: identity

Front: What ended the northern phase of the Social War?
Back: The consul Pompeius Strabo besieged Asculum, the flashpoint city in Picenum where the revolt had begun with the massacre of Roman officials. After a long siege, Strabo took the city in 89 BC, executing the Italian leaders and enslaving the population. The fall of Asculum broke the back of resistance in the north and effectively ended the war's active phase.
Timeline: 91-88 BCSocial War
89 BCSiege of Asculum
89 BCRelief of Nola
CombatHTML: Romevs.Italian Allies
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: siege_of_asculum_89
CardType: identity

Front: What were the Asiatic Vespers?
Back: On a single day in 88 BC, Mithridates VI orchestrated the coordinated massacre of an estimated 80,000 Roman citizens and Italian residents across Asia Minor. Local populations in cities throughout the region participated, binding them to Mithridates's cause and making compromise with Rome impossible. The massacre shocked the Roman world and made an immediate retaliatory war unavoidable.
Timeline: 89-85 BCFirst Mithridatic War
88 BCAsiatic Vespers
87-86 BCSiege of Athens
86 BCBattle of Chaeronea
86/85 BCBattle of Orchomenus
85 BCPeace of Dardanus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: asiatic_vespers
CardType: identity

Front: What did the tribune Sulpicius Rufus do to trigger Sulla's march on Rome?
Back: Tribune of 88 BC who allied with Marius to advance a package of populares legislation, most controversially transferring the Mithridatic command from the consul Sulla to the aging Marius. To prevent the Senate from overturning the vote, Sulpicius deployed armed gladiators who physically ejected hostile senators. The move worked: the assembly voted as Sulpicius and Marius intended. The response was Sulla's unprecedented march on Rome. When Sulla took the city, Sulpicius was hunted down and killed.
Timeline: d. 88 BCPublius Sulpicius Rufus
88 BCSulla's March on Rome
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: publius_sulpicius_rufus
CardType: identity

Front: What caused Sulla to march his army on Rome in 88 BC?
Back: After the tribune Sulpicius Rufus used mob violence to transfer the Mithridatic command from Sulla to Marius, Sulla refused to accept the ruling. He marched his six legions west from Campania, crossed the pomerium (the sacred city limit no army was permitted to enter), and took Rome by force. Marius barely escaped with his life. Sulla restored the Senate, declared Marius an enemy of the state, and then departed east for the Mithridatic War.
Timeline: 91-88 BCSocial War
90 BCLex Julia
89 BCSiege of Asculum
89 BCRelief of Nola
88 BCSulla's March on Rome
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sullas_first_march_on_rome
CardType: identity

Front: Why was Sulla's march on Rome a turning point for the Republic?
Back: The march shattered the ancient taboo against bringing a Roman army into the city. Where the Gracchi and their opponents had used hired gangs and street mobs, Sulla brought legions. The precedent was immediate and irreversible: Marius and Cinna repeated it within a year, and Caesar would cite it decades later. Every subsequent Roman civil war was, in some sense, a re-enactment of this moment.
Timeline: 91-88 BCSocial War
90 BCLex Julia
89 BCSiege of Asculum
89 BCRelief of Nola
88 BCSulla's March on Rome
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sullas_first_march_on_rome
CardType: significance

Front: How did Sulla deal with Mithridates-held Athens?
Back: Sulla besieged Mithridates-controlled Athens, held by a puppet tyrant backed by a Pontic garrison. After months outside the walls, he stormed the city in a midnight raid in early 86 BC. Sulla gave his troops free rein; the slaughter was only stopped when Greek friends of Sulla pleaded for mercy. On his way out he burned the Athenian port of Piraeus as a final warning.
Timeline: 89-85 BCFirst Mithridatic War
87-86 BCSiege of Athens
86 BCBattle of Chaeronea
86/85 BCBattle of Orchomenus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Pontus
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: siege_of_athens_87
CardType: identity

Front: How did Sulla defeat a Pontic army three times his size at Chaeronea?
Back: North of Athens in Boeotia, Sulla faced the Pontic general Archelaus at the head of an army roughly three times the size of the Roman force. Sulla chose fortified high ground and lured the Pontic cavalry and infantry into attacking uphill. He personally dashed from wing to wing to shore up pressure points, and after wave after wave was repulsed, he launched a decisive charge that encircled the Pontic army. The Pontic losses were catastrophic; Roman casualties were negligible.
Timeline: 89-85 BCFirst Mithridatic War
87-86 BCSiege of Athens
86 BCBattle of Chaeronea
86/85 BCBattle of Orchomenus
CombatHTML: Romevs.Pontus
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_chaeronea_86
CardType: identity

Front: How did Sulla defeat Archelaus's second army at Orchomenus?
Back: Archelaus was reinforced from the east and returned to face Sulla in Boeotia again, this time with an army numbering over 100,000. Sulla chose marshy ground near Lake Copais to negate the Pontic cavalry advantage, and routed the army a second time. With both field armies destroyed, Mithridates had no leverage and sued for peace.
Timeline: 89-85 BCFirst Mithridatic War
87-86 BCSiege of Athens
86/85 BCBattle of Orchomenus
86 BCBattle of Chaeronea
CombatHTML: Romevs.Pontus
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_orchomenus_86
CardType: identity

Front: How did Gaius Marius's career end?
Back: After Marius returned from Africa at the head of an army and allied with the consul Cinna, their combined forces stormed Rome in late 87 BC and unleashed five days of terror: Sulla's partisans were hunted down and killed, their heads displayed in the Forum. Elections were then held with only Marian allies alive to vote. Marius won a seventh consulship, then died of natural causes two weeks into office in 86 BC, leaving Cinna in sole command of Rome.
Timeline: 88 BCAsiatic Vespers
88 BCSulla's March on Rome
86 BCSeventh Consulship and Death of Marius
85 BCPeace of Dardanus
82 BCSulla's Dictatorship
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: death_of_marius
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Lucius Cornelius Cinna?
Back: Populares consul of 87 BC who was driven from Rome by his conservative co-consul Gnaeus Octavius and their rival factions. He immediately began raising troops outside the city and allied with the returning Marius to storm Rome in a violent coup. After Marius's death in 86 BC, Cinna ruled Rome as the dominant figure, re-elected consul each year until 84 BC. Aware that Sulla was marching home victorious from the east, Cinna assembled an army and force-marched it through snow toward Illyria to block Sulla's path. His own soldiers, exhausted and resentful of the brutal pace, mutinied and stoned him to death.
Timeline: 89-85 BCFirst Mithridatic War
86 BCSeventh Consulship and Death of Marius
d. 84 BCLucius Cornelius Cinna
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lucius_cornelius_cinna
CardType: identity

Front: How did Sulla take control of Rome in 83-82 BC?
Back: Sulla landed in Italy with five legions, defeated the Marian consuls in succession (their armies defecting rather than fight him), and allied with Pompey in the north and Crassus from Spain. The Samnites, fearing a Sullan restoration, threw in with the Marians. After months of campaigning, Sulla crushed the final Samnite-Marian army at the Colline Gate outside Rome in November 82 BC.
Timeline: 83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCBattle of the Colline Gate
82 BCSulla's Dictatorship
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
CombatHTML: Sullansvs.Marians, Samnites
Sullan Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sullas_civil_war
CardType: identity

Front: What made Sulla's return to Italy a resumption of civil war rather than a homecoming?
Back: - Sulla returned from the East as a declared exile, his enemies still in control of Rome and unwilling to restore him
- The Marian-controlled Senate elected consuls hostile to Sulla and organized armies to prevent his return
Timeline: 83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCBattle of the Colline Gate
82 BCSulla's Dictatorship
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
CombatHTML: Sullansvs.Marians, Samnites
Sullan Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sullas_civil_war
CardType: cause

Front: How was the Battle of the Colline Gate decided?
Back: A desperate battle fought just outside Rome's Colline Gate in November 82 BC, between Sulla's army and a Samnite-Marian force that had marched directly on the city. Sulla's left wing was routed but Crassus annihilated the Samnite left. The enemy was encircled and destroyed; approximately fifty thousand died. On hearing the news, Marius the Younger committed suicide under siege.
Timeline: 83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCBattle of the Colline Gate
82 BCSulla's Dictatorship
CombatHTML: Sullansvs.Marians, Samnites
Sullan Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_the_colline_gate
CardType: identity

Front: How did Sulla's dictatorship differ from all previous uses of the office?
Back: After his victory at the Colline Gate, the Senate proclaimed Sulla dictator with no term limit, breaking the ancient constitutional convention of a six-month maximum. He was the first holder of the office to have it indefinitely, making him in effect Rome's first dictator for life.
Timeline: 83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCSulla's Dictatorship
82 BCBattle of the Colline Gate
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sullan_dictatorship
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Sulla's dictatorship mark a turning point for the Republic?
Back: Every previous dictator had held the office for months; Sulla held it indefinitely. The Senate, faced with a victorious army at the gates, ratified the arrangement without a fight. The six-month rule turned out to have no enforcement mechanism behind it, only convention. Once that was visible, the office meant something entirely different.
Timeline: 83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCSulla's Dictatorship
82 BCBattle of the Colline Gate
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sullan_dictatorship
CardType: significance

Front: How did Sulla use the proscriptions to secure his power?
Back: Sulla posted in the Forum a list of approximately 1,500 proscribed enemies, including 40 senators, offering rewards for killing or capturing them. Harbouring the proscribed was itself a capital crime. The killing spread far beyond the original list; estimates put the total dead at around 9,000, most of whom had no real connection to the Marian cause. The young Julius Caesar, married to Cinna's daughter, hid for months and survived only after Sullan relatives interceded on his behalf. Sulla reportedly saw "many a Marius" in him.
Timeline: 83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
82 BCBattle of the Colline Gate
82 BCSulla's Dictatorship
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sullan_proscriptions
CardType: identity

Front: What did Sulla's proscriptions establish as a precedent?
Back: The proscriptions turned private scores and property disputes into state policy, making political violence a tool for personal enrichment under legal cover. They established a precedent for how a victor in a Roman civil war could systematically eliminate opposition and reward supporters without the pretext of due process.
Timeline: 83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
82 BCBattle of the Colline Gate
82 BCSulla's Dictatorship
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sullan_proscriptions
CardType: significance

Front: How did Sulla try to restore the Senate's supremacy through legislation?
Back: Using his unlimited dictatorial power, Sulla restored senatorial supremacy through a series of statutory revisions. He stripped the tribunate of its veto over legislation, required tribunician bills to have Senate approval, and declared that a man elected tribune was barred from holding any higher office, diverting ambitious men away from the post. He doubled the Senate's membership by adding 300 equestrians, packing it with supporters. He also codified the cursus honorum, imposing minimum ages and mandatory intervals between offices.
Timeline: 82 BCSulla's Dictatorship
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
82-80 BCSulla's Constitutional Reforms
80-78 BCSulla's Abdication and Retirement
c. 75 BCCaesar's Capture by Pirates
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sullan_reforms
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Sulla's constitutional reforms fail to outlast him?
Back: A conservative restoration designed to make Sulla's own career impossible to repeat. Within a decade of his death most of the reforms were repealed, and the tribunate was restored to full power. His attempt to rebuild the Republic by statute succeeded only in demonstrating how completely the old institutional restraints depended on the willingness of powerful men to respect them.
Timeline: 82 BCSulla's Dictatorship
82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
82-80 BCSulla's Constitutional Reforms
80-78 BCSulla's Abdication and Retirement
c. 75 BCCaesar's Capture by Pirates
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sullan_reforms
CardType: significance

Front: What was the cursus honorum?
Back: The fixed ladder of Roman political offices, codified by Sulla. A man began with ten years of military service from age twenty, then stood for quaestor at thirty (finance and administration), aedile at thirty-six (optional, public games and infrastructure), praetor at thirty-nine (judge, could hold imperium), and finally consul at forty-two. A mandatory ten-year gap prevented holding the same office twice in rapid succession, and the year after each office required service in a province as a propraetor or proconsul.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
82-80 BCSulla's Constitutional Reforms
100-60 BCCaesar's Early Career
codified c. 81 BCCursus Honorum
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: cursus_honorum
CardType: identity

Front: How did Sulla use the cursus honorum to check political ambition?
Back: The cursus honorum outlasted Sulla's other reforms and shaped the careers of every leading man of the late Republic. Sulla designed the minimum ages to frustrate precocious rivals (pushing the consulship fifteen years into Pompey's future), but ambitious men found ways around the rules. Cicero regarded completing every office "in his year" as a point of personal pride; Caesar and Pompey simply ignored inconvenient steps.
Timeline: from 509 BCRoman Republic
82-80 BCSulla's Constitutional Reforms
100-60 BCCaesar's Early Career
codified c. 81 BCCursus Honorum
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: cursus_honorum
CardType: significance

Front: Why did it take Rome nearly a decade to defeat Sertorius in Spain?
Back: After Sulla's victory in the civil war, the Marian general Quintus Sertorius refused to acknowledge the new order and built a rival Roman state in Spain complete with a shadow Senate and allied Iberian tribes. The Senate first sent Metellus Pius, who made no headway. When Pompey arrived in 76 BC as an extraordinary proconsul, the two ran parallel campaigns that failed to bring Sertorius to a decisive battle. For years, the Marian general outmanoeuvred them both. The war ended not on the battlefield but through betrayal: Sertorius was assassinated by his own officer Perpenna in 72 BC. Pompey destroyed the remnant and claimed Spain for Rome.
Timeline: 83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
80-72 BCSertorian War
72 BCAssassination of Sertorius
CombatHTML: Romevs.Sertorians, Lusitanians
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sertorian_war
CardType: identity

Front: What allowed Sertorius to turn a Marian exile into a lasting rival state in Spain?
Back: - After Sulla's victory, the Marian general Quintus Sertorius refused to accept the Sullan regime and carved out an independent Roman state in Spain, ruling with a shadow Senate, a Roman army, and allied Iberian tribes
- Sertorius represented the last coherent Marian resistance. The Senate could not ignore a rival Roman government holding an entire province with trained legions
Timeline: 83-82 BCSulla's Civil War
80-72 BCSertorian War
72 BCAssassination of Sertorius
CombatHTML: Romevs.Sertorians, Lusitanians
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sertorian_war
CardType: cause

Front: Why did Sulla voluntarily give up the dictatorship?
Back: In 80 BC, believing he had repaired the Republic, Sulla announced he would resign the dictatorship at year's end. He stood for election as consul in 79 BC, won, served out his term in legitimate office, then retired to his country villa, where he worked on his memoirs and died in 78 BC. He wrote his own epitaph: "No greater friend, no worse enemy."
Timeline: 82 BCSulla's Proscriptions
82-80 BCSulla's Constitutional Reforms
80-78 BCSulla's Abdication and Retirement
c. 75 BCCaesar's Capture by Pirates
72 BCAssassination of Sertorius
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sullas_abdication
CardType: identity

Front: How did Caesar respond to being captured by pirates?
Back: En route to Rhodes, Caesar was captured by Cilician pirates in the Aegean. He insisted they raise his ransom from 20 to 50 talents, dismissing 20 as insultingly low for a man of his standing. He spent roughly 40 days in their company, joining their games and exercises while repeatedly joking that he would return and crucify them once he was free. After the ransom was paid, he raised a small fleet from the nearest port, hunted the pirates down, recovered the ransom money, and crucified the entire crew.
Timeline: 82-80 BCSulla's Constitutional Reforms
80-78 BCSulla's Abdication and Retirement
c. 75 BCCaesar's Capture by Pirates
72 BCAssassination of Sertorius
70 BCJoint Consulship of Crassus and Pompey
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: caesar_capture_by_pirates
CardType: identity

Front: How did Spartacus defeat the Roman force besieging him on Vesuvius?
Back: The praetor Gaius Claudius Glaber besieged Spartacus's slave army on the slopes of Vesuvius, expecting to starve them out. At night the slaves used vines and improvised ladders to rappel down the sheer cliffs at the rear of the mountain and attacked the Roman camp from behind. Glaber's militia was annihilated.
Timeline: 73-71 BCThird Servile War
73 BCBattle of Vesuvius
72 BCBattle of Picenum
72 BCBattle of Mount Garganus
71 BCBattle of the Silarius River
CombatHTML: Romevs.Rebel Slaves
Roman Defeat
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_vesuvius_73
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Third Mithridatic War?
Back: When Nicomedes of Bithynia willed his kingdom to Rome in 74 BC, Mithridates invaded rather than let Rome take it. Lucullus drove him out of Bithynia and invaded Pontus, winning a decisive victory at Tigranocerta (69 BC) against a far larger Armenian army. His soldiers refused to march further, the Senate recalled him, and Pompey took command in 66 BC. Pompey defeated Mithridates in a single engagement. Mithridates fled, was denied asylum by Tigranes, and killed himself in 63 BC.
Timeline: 89-85 BCFirst Mithridatic War
73-63 BCThird Mithridatic War
69 BCBattle of Tigranocerta
67 BCPompey's Anti-Piracy Campaign
66-62 BCPompey's Eastern Settlement
CombatHTML: Romevs.Pontus, Armenia
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_mithridatic_war
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Mithridates invade Bithynia in 73 BC?
Back: - Nicomedes of Bithynia died in 74 BC and willed his kingdom to Rome. Mithridates, who had survived the first war with his throne intact, saw the power vacuum as his best chance to seize Bithynia before Roman administration could take hold
- Rome was preoccupied with Sertorius in Spain and Spartacus in Italy. Mithridates calculated the legions could not be redirected east quickly enough to stop him
Timeline: 89-85 BCFirst Mithridatic War
73-63 BCThird Mithridatic War
69 BCBattle of Tigranocerta
67 BCPompey's Anti-Piracy Campaign
66-62 BCPompey's Eastern Settlement
CombatHTML: Romevs.Pontus, Armenia
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_mithridatic_war
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from the Third Mithridatic War?
Back: - Mithridates was defeated by Pompey in 66 BC and denied asylum by Tigranes. He committed suicide in the Crimea in 63 BC, ending three decades of Pontic resistance to Roman expansion
- Pompey reorganised the east: Pontus was incorporated into a province, Syria was annexed outright, and Armenia was left as a client state. The settlement roughly doubled Rome's annual tax revenues
Timeline: 89-85 BCFirst Mithridatic War
73-63 BCThird Mithridatic War
69 BCBattle of Tigranocerta
67 BCPompey's Anti-Piracy Campaign
66-62 BCPompey's Eastern Settlement
CombatHTML: Romevs.Pontus, Armenia
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_mithridatic_war
CardType: consequence

Front: How did a slave revolt at Capua become a war that defeated multiple Roman armies?
Back: A slave revolt at Capua in 73 BC that the Senate dismissed as banditry grew into a 70,000-strong army under Spartacus. Rome's early response was mixed: ad hoc militias were routed, and while consul Gellius destroyed the splinter force under Crixus, Spartacus defeated the other consul near the Alps. It took Crassus with a force of 50,000 to finally end the war in 71 BC.
Timeline: 73-71 BCThird Servile War
73 BCBattle of Vesuvius
72 BCBattle of Picenum
72 BCBattle of Mount Garganus
71 BCBattle of the Silarius River
CombatHTML: Romevs.Rebel Slaves
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_servile_war
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Rome fail to suppress the Third Servile War before it became a genuine military threat?
Back: - Around 70 gladiators broke out of a school at Capua in 73 BC. As they raided the Campanian countryside, rural slaves from the great estates joined by the thousands. The Senate initially treated the outbreak as common banditry rather than a military threat, sending ad hoc militias that were defeated in quick succession
- By the time Rome committed consular armies, Spartacus commanded a trained force of roughly 70,000. The window to suppress a small revolt had closed
Timeline: 73-71 BCThird Servile War
73 BCBattle of Vesuvius
72 BCBattle of Picenum
72 BCBattle of Mount Garganus
71 BCBattle of the Silarius River
CombatHTML: Romevs.Rebel Slaves
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_servile_war
CardType: cause

Front: What resulted from the Third Servile War?
Back: - Crassus won the war outright but Pompey, arriving from Spain in time only to mop up 5,000 fleeing survivors, sent the Senate a dispatch claiming he had ended the revolt. Crassus was forced to share the credit
- Crassus ordered 6,000 recaptured slaves crucified along the Appian Way and left the bodies to decompose as a warning to the slave population. There were no further major slave revolts in Roman history
Timeline: 73-71 BCThird Servile War
73 BCBattle of Vesuvius
72 BCBattle of Picenum
72 BCBattle of Mount Garganus
71 BCBattle of the Silarius River
CombatHTML: Romevs.Rebel Slaves
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: third_servile_war
CardType: consequence

Front: How did the split between Spartacus and Crixus end?
Back: While Spartacus marched north, the Gaul Crixus had split from the main army with roughly 30,000 men to continue raiding southern Italy. Consul Lucius Gellius Publicola caught up with Crixus near Mount Garganus and destroyed the force. At least two-thirds were killed, including Crixus himself.
Timeline: 73-71 BCThird Servile War
73 BCBattle of Vesuvius
72 BCBattle of Mount Garganus
72 BCBattle of Picenum
71 BCBattle of the Silarius River
CombatHTML: Romevs.Rebel Slaves
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_mount_garganus
CardType: identity

Front: What do ancient sources disagree about regarding Spartacus's campaigns in 72 BC?
Back: Spartacus defeated the consular legions of Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus in the Picenum region as the slave army marched north toward the Alps in 72 BC. Ancient sources disagree on the scale: Appian describes Spartacus then wheeling around to defeat the second consul Gellius as well, while Plutarch records only the one engagement against Lentulus as decisive before the march to the Alps.
Timeline: 73-71 BCThird Servile War
73 BCBattle of Vesuvius
72 BCBattle of Picenum
72 BCBattle of Mount Garganus
71 BCBattle of the Silarius River
CombatHTML: Romevs.Rebel Slaves
Roman Defeat
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_picenum
CardType: identity

Front: How did Crassus end the Third Servile War at the Silarius River?
Back: Crassus trapped Spartacus at the toe of Italy after the pirates hired to ferry the slave army to Sicily took their payment and fled. Spartacus broke through the Roman lines but was run down; the slave army was destroyed and Spartacus was killed in the fighting. Crassus ordered 6,000 survivors crucified along the Appian Way.
Timeline: 73-71 BCThird Servile War
73 BCBattle of Vesuvius
72 BCBattle of Picenum
72 BCBattle of Mount Garganus
71 BCBattle of the Silarius River
CombatHTML: Romevs.Rebel Slaves
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_the_silarius_river
CardType: identity

Front: How did Crassus and Pompey end up as co-consuls in 70 BC?
Back: After the Third Servile War, Crassus and Pompey each kept their armies camped outside Rome and refused to disband until the Senate agreed to a deal. Neither trusted the other to stand down first, and the Senate had no means to compel them. The result was a joint consulship for 70 BC.
Timeline: 73-71 BCThird Servile War
73 BCBattle of Vesuvius
72 BCBattle of Picenum
72 BCBattle of Mount Garganus
71 BCBattle of the Silarius River
70 BCJoint Consulship of Crassus and Pompey
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: joint_consulship_of_70
CardType: identity

Front: What did Crassus and Pompey use their joint consulship to undo?
Back: In office, they restored the full powers of the tribunate that Sulla had gutted, reversing the centrepiece of his constitutional settlement within a decade of his death. The pattern still held: armies camped outside Rome were an argument the Senate could not answer.
Timeline: 73-71 BCThird Servile War
73 BCBattle of Vesuvius
72 BCBattle of Picenum
72 BCBattle of Mount Garganus
71 BCBattle of the Silarius River
70 BCJoint Consulship of Crassus and Pompey
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: joint_consulship_of_70
CardType: significance

Front: How did Lucullus defeat the far larger Armenian army at Tigranocerta?
Back: Lucullus led two legions against Tigranes' army outside Armenia's new capital, Tigranocerta. The Romans were vastly outnumbered, but Lucullus attacked before Tigranes could organise his cavalry and routed the Armenian force. It was counted among the greatest Roman victories of its era.
Timeline: 73-63 BCThird Mithridatic War
69 BCBattle of Tigranocerta
CombatHTML: Romevs.Armenia, Pontus
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_tigranocerta
CardType: identity

Front: What did Caesar do at his aunt Julia's funeral that marked him as a political force?
Back: When Caesar's aunt Julia died in 69 BC, Caesar arranged a public funeral in the Forum and displayed images of her husband Gaius Marius in the procession, a direct challenge to the Sullan establishment that had banned them. The crowd's enthusiastic response showed that the popular memory of Marius was very much alive. Caesar gave a funeral oration from the Rostra in which he traced the Julian gens back to Venus through Aeneas, claiming divine ancestry before the entire Roman people for the first time.
Timeline: 72 BCAssassination of Sertorius
70 BCJoint Consulship of Crassus and Pompey
69 BCCaesar's Funeral Oration for Julia
67 BCPompey's Anti-Piracy Campaign
66-62 BCPompey's Eastern Settlement
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: caesar_marius_funeral
CardType: identity

Front: How did Pompey clear the Mediterranean of pirates in 67 BC?
Back: Mediterranean piracy had crippled Roman trade for decades. In 67 BC Pompey was granted an extraordinary command: full imperium over the entire Mediterranean and all coastlines up to fifty miles inland. He divided the sea into thirteen zones, each under a subordinate commander, and swept west to east. The western Mediterranean was clear within forty days. The pirates fell back to their bases in Cilicia, where Pompey destroyed them. The whole campaign took three months.
Timeline: 73-63 BCThird Mithridatic War
69 BCBattle of Tigranocerta
67 BCPompey's Anti-Piracy Campaign
66-62 BCPompey's Eastern Settlement
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pompeys_anti_piracy_campaign
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Pompey's anti-piracy command matter beyond the pirates themselves?
Back: The speed of the campaign showed that the piracy problem had never been unsolvable, just untried at the necessary scale. More consequentially, the command itself was unprecedented: no individual had ever held imperium over the entire Mediterranean simultaneously. It set a template Pompey would use again in the east, and that Caesar and others would later demand for themselves.
Timeline: 73-63 BCThird Mithridatic War
69 BCBattle of Tigranocerta
67 BCPompey's Anti-Piracy Campaign
66-62 BCPompey's Eastern Settlement
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pompeys_anti_piracy_campaign
CardType: significance

Front: How did Pompey incorporate the eastern Mediterranean into Rome?
Back: With Mithridates defeated, Pompey turned to settling the east. Pontus was merged with Bithynia as a new province. He marched into Syria, deposed the last Seleucid king, and made it a province. Moving south, he intervened in a civil war in Jerusalem, installing a client ruler. Armenia was left as a buffer client state rather than annexed. Pompey returned to Rome in 62 BC, celebrated a triumph, and disbanded his army.
Timeline: 73-63 BCThird Mithridatic War
69 BCBattle of Tigranocerta
67 BCPompey's Anti-Piracy Campaign
66-62 BCPompey's Eastern Settlement
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pompeys_eastern_settlement
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from Pompey's Eastern Settlement?
Back: - The kingdoms conquered, annexed, or allied during the campaign roughly doubled Rome's annual tax revenues, transforming the treasury
- Pompey returned to Rome laden with eastern treasure, celebrated the most splendid triumph of his career, and was the most popular man in Rome
Timeline: 73-63 BCThird Mithridatic War
69 BCBattle of Tigranocerta
67 BCPompey's Anti-Piracy Campaign
66-62 BCPompey's Eastern Settlement
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: pompeys_eastern_settlement
CardType: consequence

Front: What was the Catilinarian conspiracy?
Back: After twice failing to win the consulship, Catiline organised a plot to overthrow the government. He recruited indebted nobles, corrupt ex-senators, and landless veterans with promises of debt cancellation and power. In Rome, Gallic emissaries betrayed the conspiracy by handing the Senate signed letters from its leaders. Cicero's orations destroyed Catiline's standing; five conspirators were strangled without trial. Catiline fled to Etruria and died in battle at Pistoria in 62 BC.
Timeline: 67 BCPompey's Anti-Piracy Campaign
66-62 BCPompey's Eastern Settlement
63 BCCatilinarian Conspiracy
60 BCFirst Triumvirate
59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: catilinarian_conspiracy
CardType: identity

Front: How did the Catilinarian conspiracy end at Pistoria?
Back: After the conspiracy in Rome collapsed, Catiline fled to Etruria and joined the rebel army Manlius had assembled. Cornered by Roman forces, the rebels were forced to fight. Catiline's force was destroyed. Sallust records that Catiline was found dead at the front of the battle line, having died honorably in battle.
Timeline: 63 BCCatilinarian Conspiracy
62 BCBattle of Pistoria
CombatHTML: Romevs.Catiline's Rebels
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_pistoria
CardType: identity

Front: What was the First Triumvirate?
Back: In 60 BC Caesar brokered a secret pact with Pompey and Crassus. Each swore, with Caesar officiating in his role as Pontifex Maximus, to take no action that opposed the others. Pompey needed his eastern conquests ratified and land for his veterans. Crassus needed political cover and hoped alliance with a popular general would open the door to the military glory that had always eluded him. Caesar needed the consulship and money to fund his ambitions.
Timeline: 66-62 BCPompey's Eastern Settlement
63 BCCatilinarian Conspiracy
60 BCFirst Triumvirate
59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
59 BCLex Julia de Repetundis
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: first_triumvirate
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Romans call 59 BC the consulship of Julius and Caesar?
Back: Caesar's co-consul Bibulus was the Senate's hand-picked foil, but he was so thoroughly sidelined that Romans mocked the year as "the consulship of Julius and Caesar." Caesar forced through a land bill using Pompey's veterans as muscle, had Pompey's eastern settlement ratified by the cowed Senate, passed the Lex Julia de Repetundis reforming provincial administration, and secured a five-year proconsular command over both Cisalpine and Transalpine Gaul via a tribune's bill in the Popular Assembly.
Timeline: 59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
58-50 BCGallic Wars
58 BCBattle of Bibracte
58 BCBattle of Vosges
56 BCConference of Luca
55-54 BCCaesar's Invasions of Britain
52 BCBattle of Gergovia
52 BCSiege of Alesia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: consulship_of_caesar_59
CardType: identity

Front: What was the Lex Julia de Repetundis?
Back: Passed by Caesar as consul in 59 BC, the Lex Julia de Repetundis was a comprehensive statute governing the conduct of provincial governors. It set limits on the gifts a governor could accept, defined what counted as extortion, and established clear rules for accountability. It brought Roman rule of law to the administration of the empire's provinces and is often called Caesar's most enduring legislative achievement.
Timeline: 60 BCFirst Triumvirate
59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
59 BCLex Julia de Repetundis
56 BCConference of Luca
55-54 BCCaesar's Invasions of Britain
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: lex_julia_de_repetundis
CardType: identity

Front: What happened to Bibulus during Caesar's consulship of 59 BC?
Back: The Senate's hand-picked foil against Caesar in 59 BC. Bibulus held a personal grudge from their shared aedileship, when Caesar had taken credit for work they funded together. He tried to block the land bill through filibuster, then by declaring all remaining days holy to suspend public business. When he marched into the Forum for a final confrontation, Caesar's supporters dumped manure on his head and broke his fasces. He withdrew to his house for the rest of the year, issuing daily edicts that Caesar ignored.
Timeline: cos. 59 BCMarcus Calpurnius Bibulus
59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: marcus_calpurnius_bibulus
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Ariovistus?
Back: A German king who led his tribe across the Rhine into Gaul and was recognised, with Caesar's own backing, as a friend of the Roman people. When he refused Caesar's demands (no more Germans crossing the Rhine, return of Gallic hostages, no war on allied Gallic tribes), Caesar defeated him and drove his army back toward the Rhine. Ariovistus escaped across the river on a small raft and never crossed back.
Timeline: 58-50 BCGallic Wars
fl. 58 BCAriovistus
58 BCBattle of Vosges
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: ariovistus
CardType: identity

Front: What did Caesar's victory at Bibracte settle?
Back: After the Helvetii turned and pursued Caesar's supply-starved army, the two forces fought a full day near the Aeduan town of Bibracte in 58 BC. The legions methodically gained the upper hand, captured the Helvetii baggage train, and broke the tribe's resistance. Survivors surrendered and Caesar ordered them back to Lake Geneva to serve as a buffer against Germanic incursions.
Timeline: 58-50 BCGallic Wars
58 BCBattle of Bibracte
58 BCBattle of Vosges
52 BCBattle of Gergovia
52 BCSiege of Alesia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Helvetii
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_bibracte
CardType: identity

Front: How did Caesar begin his conquest of Gaul in 58 BC?
Back: Caesar took his Gallic command in 58 BC and immediately manufactured pretexts for conquest. He crushed the Helvetii migration at Bibracte and drove the German king Ariovistus back across the Rhine. Over the following years he subjugated the Belgic confederation in the north, demonstrated Roman reach by bridging the Rhine twice and making two invasions of Britain, then crushed the great unified Gallic revolt led by Vercingetorix, besieging him at Alesia in 52 BC. Vercingetorix surrendered, ending organised resistance; within a decade Gaul was a Roman province.
Timeline: 59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
58-50 BCGallic Wars
58 BCBattle of Bibracte
58 BCBattle of Vosges
56 BCConference of Luca
55-54 BCCaesar's Invasions of Britain
52 BCBattle of Gergovia
52 BCSiege of Alesia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Gauls
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gallic_wars
CardType: identity

Front: What pretext let Caesar turn his Gallic command into a war of conquest?
Back: - The five-year Gallic command from Caesar's 59 BC consulship gave him an army and a province but no war. He needed a pretext, and the Helvetii handed him one
- The Helvetii migration through Roman-allied territory triggered a formal appeal for Roman intervention. Caesar used it as legal cover to bring his legions into independent Gaul
Timeline: 59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
58-50 BCGallic Wars
58 BCBattle of Bibracte
58 BCBattle of Vosges
56 BCConference of Luca
55-54 BCCaesar's Invasions of Britain
52 BCBattle of Gergovia
52 BCSiege of Alesia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Gauls
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gallic_wars
CardType: cause

Front: Why did the conquest of Gaul reshape Roman politics?
Back: The conquest gave Caesar the three things that would make him unstoppable: a veteran army fanatically loyal to him, vast personal wealth, and a fame that eclipsed every rival. By the time the Senate ordered him to disband his legions, he commanded a military machine that the Republic itself could not match. The Rhine frontier fixed by the Gallic Wars remained the boundary of the Roman Empire for four hundred years.
Timeline: 59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
58-50 BCGallic Wars
58 BCBattle of Bibracte
58 BCBattle of Vosges
56 BCConference of Luca
55-54 BCCaesar's Invasions of Britain
52 BCBattle of Gergovia
52 BCSiege of Alesia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Gauls
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gallic_wars
CardType: significance

Front: What was agreed at the Conference of Luca in 56 BC?
Back: In 56 BC, with the Triumvirate fraying, Caesar met Pompey and Crassus at Luca to renew their pact. They agreed Pompey and Crassus would be consuls for 55 BC and then take Hispania and Syria, while Caesar's Gallic command was extended another five years. It was the alliance's last genuine act of cooperation: Julia's death in 54 BC and Crassus's death against Parthia in 53 BC soon left it dead in fact as well as spirit.
Timeline: 59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
58-50 BCGallic Wars
58 BCBattle of Bibracte
58 BCBattle of Vosges
56 BCConference of Luca
55-54 BCCaesar's Invasions of Britain
52 BCBattle of Gergovia
52 BCSiege of Alesia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: conference_of_luca
CardType: identity

Front: What did Caesar achieve with his two invasions of Britain?
Back: In 55 and 54 BC Caesar twice crossed the Channel into Britain, the first Roman general to do so. The first expedition was nearly a disaster: storms wrecked his fleet and he withdrew with little to show for it. The second, with 800 ships, penetrated inland and installed a friendly king before Caesar withdrew. Materially the invasions gained little, but as self-promotion they were spectacular.
Timeline: 59 BCCaesar's Consulship (59 BC)
58-50 BCGallic Wars
58 BCBattle of Bibracte
58 BCBattle of Vosges
56 BCConference of Luca
55-54 BCCaesar's Invasions of Britain
52 BCBattle of Gergovia
52 BCSiege of Alesia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: caesars_invasions_of_britain
CardType: identity

Front: Why did the death of Julia in 54 BC matter?
Back: Caesar's daughter Julia, married to Pompey to cement the Triumvirate, died in childbirth in 54 BC. Her death removed the last personal link between the two men, and Pompey's refusal of Caesar's renewed marriage offer signalled that the alliance was over in everything but name.
Timeline: 56 BCConference of Luca
55-54 BCCaesar's Invasions of Britain
54 BCDeath of Julia
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: death_of_julia
CardType: identity

Front: What happened at the Battle of Gergovia?
Back: Caesar's assault on Vercingetorix's hilltop stronghold of Gergovia in 52 BC failed when his troops pressed the attack too far against orders and were thrown back with heavy losses. It was Caesar's first clear defeat in Gaul, and it emboldened wavering Gallic tribes to join the revolt.
Timeline: 58-50 BCGallic Wars
58 BCBattle of Bibracte
58 BCBattle of Vosges
52 BCBattle of Gergovia
52 BCSiege of Alesia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Gauls
Roman Defeat
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: battle_of_gergovia
CardType: identity

Front: How did Caesar defeat Vercingetorix at Alesia?
Back: Caesar trapped Vercingetorix's army inside the hill fort of Alesia in 52 BC and built a double ring of siege works (one facing in, one facing out) to hold off both the garrison and a massive Gallic relief army simultaneously. When the relief assault struck the weak point in the outer wall, Caesar led cavalry around its rear and broke it. Vercingetorix surrendered the following day, ending organised Gallic resistance.
Timeline: 58-50 BCGallic Wars
58 BCBattle of Bibracte
58 BCBattle of Vosges
52 BCSiege of Alesia
52 BCBattle of Gergovia
CombatHTML: Romevs.Gauls
Roman Victory
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: siege_of_alesia
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Vercingetorix?
Back: The Arvernian chieftain who united the Gallic tribes in 52 BC for the last great revolt against Rome. He fought a scorched-earth campaign and handed Caesar a sharp defeat at Gergovia, but was cornered at Alesia, where the double-walled Roman siege left him no escape. He surrendered to spare his men, was imprisoned for six years, paraded in Caesar's triumph, and executed.
Timeline: 58-50 BCGallic Wars
52 BCBattle of Gergovia
52 BCSiege of Alesia
d. 46 BCVercingetorix
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: vercingetorix
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Aeneas?
Back: Legendary Trojan prince who fled the fall of Troy and settled in Italy, where his descendants would found Rome.
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: aeneas
CardType: identity

Front: Who were the Albans?
Back: The people of Alba Longa, Rome's legendary mother city, absorbed into Rome after Tullus Hostilius destroyed their city.
Timeline: c. 670 BCWar with Alba Longa
c. 668 BCDestruction of Alba Longa
legendary period to reign of Tullus HostiliusAlbans
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: albans
CardType: identity

Front: What resulted from the Exposure of Romulus and Remus?
Back: - Romulus and Remus survived and were raised outside Alba Longa
- The she-wolf became one of Rome's most enduring foundation symbols
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: exposure_of_romulus_and_remus
CardType: consequence

Front: Who were the Gauls?
Back: Broad Roman label for numerous independent Celtic tribes north of the Alps and in the Po Valley. They were not a unified people: the Senones sacked Rome under Brennus, and later the Insubres, Boii, and Gaesatae invaded in 225 BC. Romans lived in fearful awe of Gauls for centuries.
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: gauls
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Remus?
Back: Twin brother of Romulus, killed during Rome's founding after jumping over the newly built walls.
Timeline: c. 753 BCFoundation of Rome
c. 753 BCDeath of Remus
legendary prehistoryRemus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: remus
CardType: identity

Front: Who were the Sabines?
Back: Italic people of the central Apennines, Rome's neighbours and earliest partners after the legendary abduction and subsequent merger under Romulus.
Timeline: c. 750 BCAbduction of the Sabine Women
c. 750 BCUnion of Romans and Sabines
early Roman ItalySabines
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: sabines
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Tanaquil?
Back: Wife of Tarquinius Priscus who interpreted the flame omen over Servius Tullius and engineered his accession by concealing Priscus's assassination.
Timeline: 616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
c. 590 BCAdoption of Servius Tullius
c. 579 BCAssassination of Tarquinius Priscus
c. 578 BCTanaquil's Deception and Servius's Accession
6th century BCTanaquil
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tanaquil
CardType: identity

Front: What is Tarquinii?
Back: Etruscan city and home of Tarquinius Priscus before he migrated to Rome.
Timeline: 616-579 BCLucius Tarquinius Priscus
c. 616 BCElection of Tarquinius Priscus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tarquinii
CardType: identity

Front: What is the Tiber River?
Back: The river flowing through Rome, central to the city's foundation legend and its development.
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tiber_river
CardType: identity

Front: Why did Romans claim Trojan ancestry?
Back: Romans claimed descent from the Trojan hero Aeneas, connecting their city to the Greek heroic tradition and providing divine ancestry through Venus.
Timeline: c. 753 BCFoundation of Rome
c. 753 BCDeath of Remus
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: trojan_origin_legend
CardType: identity

Front: Who was Tullia Minor?
Back: Daughter of Servius Tullius and wife of Tarquinius Superbus who conspired in her father's murder and allegedly drove her chariot over his body.
Timeline: 578-535 BCServius Tullius
c. 535 BCMurder of Servius Tullius
6th century BCTullia Minor
Other fields (not shown on cards):
ObjectID: tullia_minor
CardType: identity