115: The Third Punic War - Delenda Est

115: The Third Punic War - Delenda Est

From The Hellenistic Age Podcast by The Hellenistic Age Podcast

January 20, 2026 · 34 min

About this episode

This episode discusses the Third Punic War and the factors leading to the destruction of Carthage.

“Carthage must be destroyed” – and with these words Cato the Elder doomed his North African rival by helping spark the Third Punic War, the last in a century of conflicts between Rome and Carthage. Deprived of its military in the aftermath of Zama and harassed by the Numidian king Massinissa, Carthage nevertheless managed to bounce back as an economic powerhouse during the first half of the second century B.C. Yet this recovery made the Senate suspicious of their Punic neighbor, which rapidly escalated into a war of annihilation as the Romans were determined to secure their position as sole master of the Mediterranean. Episode Notes: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/2026/01/20/115-the-third-punic-war-delenda-est/) Episode Transcript: (https://hellenisticagepodcast.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/115-the-third-punic-war-delenda-est-transcript.pdf) Social Media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/HellenisticPod) Facebook (www.facebook.com/hellenisticagepodcast/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/hellenistic_age_podcast/) Bluesky (https://bsky.app/profile/hellenisticpod.bsky.social) Show Merchandise: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/HellenisticAgePod) Redbubble…

People in this episode

Host: The Hellenistic Age Podcast

Topics covered

  • Third Punic War
  • Carthage
  • Rome
  • Cato the Elder
  • Numidia
  • Mediterranean conflicts

Keywords

  • Carthage
  • Rome
  • Cato the Elder
  • Third Punic War
  • Numidia
  • Mediterranean

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Carthage, Rome, Numidian

Places: North Africa

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