Siege of Saguntum

Significance

The siege of Saguntum, conducted by Carthaginian forces under Hannibal and Maharbal against the town of Saguntum in what is now the Valencia region of Spain, served as the direct trigger for the Second Punic War. Rome regarded Saguntum as a protected ally, and the Carthaginian assault on the town provided the casus belli for the conflict that followed. The siege thus marks the operational starting point of one of antiquity's most consequential wars, preceding the wider campaigns that would bring Hannibal's forces across the Alps and into Italy.

Commanders (2)