Battle of Drepanum

The Battle of Drepanum (249 BCE) was a Naval Battle between Rome and Carthage during the First Punic War (264-241 BCE).
This Battle resulted in the greatest victory of the war for Carthage which gave them complete naval dominance for the next seven years.

In 250 BCE, a large Roman Army laid siege to Lilybaeum and Drepana, the last two Carthaginian fortress cities in Sicily.
Lilybaeum was sealed off by land but the Romans were unable to close the harbour.
A Roman Fleet of 200 vessels was positioned outside Lilybaeum to blockade the harbour.
Despite this, a Carthaginian Fleet of 50 vessels bypassed the blockading Fleet unloaded their supplies, embarked the Carthaginian cavalry and left under the cover of darkness.

Pulcher, the Roman Consul, was given an additional force of 10,000 inexperienced sailors.
With this reinforced Fleet Pulcher decided he would risk an attack on the Carthaginian Fleet based at Drepana 16 miles (25 km) to the north of Lilybaeum.
Pulcher embarked his marines and set off at night with between 120-200 vessels, to surprise the Carthaginians, but in the dark his Fleet became disoriented and broke formation.

When dawn came, Adherbal, the Carthaginian commander, although completely taken by surprise, nonetheless immediately embarked his marines on between 100-130 vessels and escaped out of the harbour before the Roman Fleet could block it.
Having lost the chance to bottle up the Carthaginian Fleet, Pulcher gave the order to turn and form up in a line with their sterns to the shore to prevent being outflanked by the Enemy galleys. In the confusion several Roman Galleys collided with each other and sheared off their oars.
Having safely emerged from the harbour, Adherbal ordered the Carthaginian Fleet to form a parallel line in front of the Roman Fleet with five galleys in echelon to the south blocking the Roman escape route.

This time the Roman Fleet did not have the Corvus, and so was unable to board the enemy galleys. It had to remain in close formation for protection.
The Carthaginians were in a position to pick off each galley as it became vulnerable. As the day progressed, they were winning by attrition. Some Roman Galleys were even reversed onto the beach and their crews fled.
Finally, Pulcher broke out with 30 galleys and escaped, leaving 93 galleys captured or sunk and losing 20,000 men either dead or as prisoners.

The Carthaginian Navy won its greatest victory of the war and went on to sweep the Roman Navy from Sicily for the next seven years.
In 242 BCE, another Roman Fleet was eventually built, also without the Corvus, but which this time ended in a Roman victory at the Battle of the Aegates Islands, ending the First Punic War.

Drepanum or Trapani, Sicily