Battle of New Carthage

Overview

The battle of New Carthage took place in early 209 BC when a Roman army under Publius Cornelius Scipio successfully assaulted New Carthage, the capital of Carthaginian Iberia, which was defended by a garrison under Mago. The battle was part of the Second Punic War.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The assault on New Carthage in 209 BC delivered the capital of Carthaginian Iberia to Rome. Held by a garrison under Mago and assaulted by a Roman force under Publius Cornelius Scipio that outnumbered the defenders by more than nine to one, the city fell in what the overview characterizes as a successful assault. As the administrative and logistical center of Carthaginian operations in Iberia, its capture had direct consequences for the broader Second Punic War: the loss of this base deprived Carthage of a critical hub from which it had organized and supplied its Iberian campaigns. The operation was part of the Roman effort to dislodge Carthaginian power from the peninsula, a campaign that formed the western strategic theater of the Second Punic War while Hannibal's army remained in Italy.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (1)