Battle of Lilybaeum

• The Battle of Lilybaeum in 218 BCE was the first Naval Battle fought between Rome and Carthage during the Second Punic War (218-202 BCE).
• The Carthaginians attempted to establish a base in Roman Sicily, but the result was a defeat for the Carthaginian Navy and they then lost Malta shortly afterwards.

Date and Location

• Summer 218 BCE near Lilybaeum, modern Marsala, on the western tip of Sicily.

The Reason for the Battle

• Between 237-218 BCE, Carthage, under Hannibal Hasdrubal and Hamilcar, had conquered Iberia as far as the River Ebro, a limit set by the Romans.
• But when Hannibal attacked the city of Saguntum, a Roman ally, the Roman Senate declared War on Carthage.

The Adversaries

• The Roman Republican Navy.
• The Carthaginian Navy.

The Winner

• Winner: Roman Republic.
• Loser: Carthage.

The Commanders

• Roman Praetor of Lilybaeum: Marcus Aemilius Lepidus acting for Consul Tiberius Sempronius Longus.
• Carthage: Hannibal directed a portion of his Fleet in Spain, the Commander is not known.

The Strength of Forces under the Roman Republic

• Warships: 20 ships each carrying a force of Legionaries.
• Losses: Unknown.

The Strength of Forces under Hannibal

• Warships: 35 Quinqueremes with at least 1,000 soldiers.
• Casualties and Losses: 7 Quinqueremes and 1,700 men taken prisoner.

Why the Battle was Significant

• The Romans prevented Hannibal from establishing a base in Sicily.

How the Navies were Deployed

• The Roman Navy:
  • 220 Quinqueremes in Italy held in readiness from the Illyrian Wars.
  • Hiero II of Syracuse in Sicily had a Fleet based at Messina.
  • Lilybaeum had 20 ships.
• The Carthaginian Navy:
  • 55 Quinqueremes remained in Carthage and 50 Quinqueremes and 5 Triremes were posted off the Iberian Coast.

The Battle

• The Carthaginian Navy
  • Twenty vessels conducted a surprise attack on the Lipari Islands (218 BCE) and another eight vessels attacked nearby Vulcan Island. When a storm blew some of these vessels towards the Strait of Messina, three were captured by the Syracusan Navy based in Messina.
  • They prisoners warned of a forthcoming attack on Lilybaeum, so Hiero sent a warning message to Lepidus.
• The Roman Navy
  • Lepidus immediately prepared his 20 ships for a prolonged period at sea, posted Legionaries on each vessel and advised his coast watchers to warn of a surprise attack. When the Carthaginian ships were seen approaching Lilybaeum, the Roman Fleet sailed out to meet them and both sides moved into the open sea.
  • The Carthaginian Fleet outnumbered the Roman Fleet and their Tactic was to attack by Ramming.
  • The Roman tactic was to grapple the enemy ship and use Boarding by their superior Legionaries.
  • The Romans boarded and captured seven Carthaginian vessels, taking 1,700 prisoners. The Roman Losses were not recorded.

The Outcome

• The Carthaginian Fleet was forced to withdraw, having failed to capture Lilybaeum.
• The Consul Tiberius Sempronius Longus then arrived in Sicily with a Fleet and Army and proceeded to invade and capture Malta.
• He then left 50 vessels and part of the army in Sicily and having secured Italy’s southern Flank moved up to Northern Italy to help Scipio against Hannibal.

Sources

• Livy: Ab urbe condita
• Polybius: Histories

Lilybaeum (Marsala), Sicily