The Ancient Romans fought many battles and wars to expand and protect their empire. There were also civil wars where Romans fought Romans to gain power.

The Punic Wars were between Rome and Carthage from 264 BC to 146 BC. Carthage was a large city located on the coast of North Africa. Both cities were major powers expanding their empires. As the empires grew, they began to clash. There were three major Punic wars:

1. The First Punic War was fought largely over the island of Sicily. A lot of the fighting was at sea where Carthage had the advantage of a much stronger navy. However, Rome quickly built up a large navy of over 100 ships. Rome invented a type of assault bridge that allowed Rome's superior soldiers to board enemy navy vessels. Rome soon dominated Carthage and won the war.
2. In the Second Punic War, Carthage had more success fighting against the Roman legions. The Carthage general, Hannibal, daringly crossed the Alps to attack Rome and northern Italy, bringing a large number of elephants with him. Hannibal won several battles against the Romans. However, the Rome counterattacked his homeland of Carthage. Hannibal was forced to retreat and was defeated.
3. In the Third Punic War, Rome attacked Carthage. After three years, the Roman army broke through the city walls and burned Carthage to the ground.

In the Battle of Cynoscephalae (197 BC), the Roman Legion under Titus Flamininus defeated the Macedonian Army led by Philip V. By defeating the successors of Alexander the Great, Rome became the dominant world power.

The Third Servile War (73 - 71 BC) started when 78 gladiators, including their leader Spartacus, escaped and started a rebellion. Over 120,000 escaped slaves invaded the countryside. They successfully fought back many Roman soldiers until finally an army with a full eight legions was dispatched to destroy them. The fighting was long and bitter, but eventually Spartacus' army was defeated.

Caesar's Civil War is also called the Great Roman Civil War. Julius Caesar's legions fought against the Senate-supported legions of Pompey the Great. The war lasted for four years until Caesar finally defeated Pompey and became Dictator of Rome, signaling the end of the Roman Republic.

The most famous moment in this war was when Caesar crossed the Rubicon River, signaling that he was going to war against Rome. Today the phrase "crossing the Rubicon" is still used to say that someone had reached the point of no return and cannot go back.

Source: Ancient Rome: Wars and Battles
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