HOW PLAGUE HELPED MAKE ROME A SUPERPOWER

[Judi Lynn]

Epidemics haunt history, but at a time of COVID-19 it pays to remember they shape history too, as happened in 212 BC at Syracuse

By David Feeney, University of Melbourne

“The dogs were the first to feel the mischief; next the birds flagged in their flight and dropped down from the black clouds; and then the beasts of the forest were laid low. Soon the infernal plague spread further, depopulating the camp and devouring the soldiers.”

This is the ancient Roman poet Silius Italicus describing the plague that in 212 BC engulfed the armies of Rome and her great rival Carthage (near modern day Tunis) at the siege of Syracuse in Sicily during the war against Hannibal.

Epidemics have long haunted history, but in the time of COVID-19 it is worth remembering that plagues and pestilence also shape history. In the case of the siege of Syracuse, the intervention of plague was astoundingly decisive, and arguably crucial in making Rome the super power it would become.

The Roman siege of Syracuse is best known for the Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer and inventor Archimedes who was living in the city and was killed when the Romans finally broke in.

At the time it was the largest, most complex and most difficult siege ever attempted by the Romans and is forever immortalised by the art and legends around Archimedes’ war machines that so spectacularly repelled the attackers. These included catapults and a crane-operated claw to up-end Roman ships.

More:
https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/how-plague-helped-make-rome-a-superpower

[Buckeye_Democrat]

1. Damn Romans!

My Y-DNA indicates my distant all-male ancestors were Phoenician!

National Geographic conducted a study based on the Y-DNA of men living in Lebanon and near old Phoenician city-states to draw their conclusions.

African origin further back in time, like for EVERY person on the planet!