The First Punic War began in 264 B.C. and early on it became apparent it would be a war fought for control of Sicily. Since Sicily is an island, Carthage was confident it would win because of its powerful navy. The fact that Rome did not even have a navy when the war began, there was little reason to be naval battles would even be close. In 260 B.C., the cocky Carthaginians decided to lure the Romans into a battle that would prove how outmatched they were. A Punic fleet raided the northeastern coast of Sicily and when word reached the Roman fleet, consul Duilius set sail. The Punic admiral Hannibal (no relation) led the vanguard in a “seven” captured from Pyrrhus. When the Romans sighted the enemy, the flags were furled and horns were blown. The marines crowded the railings to see the foe. They quickly put on their armor and got their weapons. The oarsmen were blinded to what lay ahead, but could sense the exhilaration and tension that swept through the galleys. There was a great amount of trepidation because no Roman sailor had been in a naval battle before. The Romans were among the biggest underdogs in military history in the Battle of Mylae (260 B.C.).
The Carthaginian fleet probably numbered around 130 ships and the Romans had 103 (we get this from subtracting the 17 that Asina lost from the original 120 that had been built). The Punic admiral Hannibal Gisgo did not insist on a disciplined approach. His fleet surged toward the Romans with white water cresting over their rams. The Roman stroke-masters increased the tempo of their drum-beating and the oarsmen put their backs into their rowing. The Punic warships smashed into the spaces between the Roman ships. At the last moment, the Carthaginian oarsmen were ordered to ship their oars. Good timing was essential or you might have your own oars destroyed in the diekplus (a tactic that called for galleys to run through an enemy line and then attack from behind). The beaks of their ships slammed into the Roman oars, splintering them in a loud crescendo. The arms of the Roman oarsmen convulsed at the impact. The conjoined ships danced briefly before coming to a stop. As the Carthaginian marines cheered, the corvi (boarding bridges) rotated and thudded into the decks of their ships. At this point, the legionaries crossed the bridge. The first few men used shields to deflect missiles fired or hurled at the boarders. The missile throwers were quickly dispatched with either a thrust of a gladius or pushed overboard by the shields. While some of the legionaries cleared the deck, others bashed their way below deck. Never in their wildest nightmares had Punic oarsmen imagined fully armored soldiers in their midst. It was a charnel house as the Romans slashed and thrusted at the naked rowers who had no means of defending themselves. Blood mixed with the water that pooled under their feet. Most oarsmen did not know how to swim, so jumping overboard was suicidal. Others put their arms up in submission. Some of these were taken captive, if they were far enough away from gladiuses to out-wait the blood lust. In the initial melee, the Carthaginians lost 31 ships, including the flagship. Hannibal Gisgo had ignominiously escaped in a boat. He ordered a retreat. He then reorganized his fleet and tried the diekplus or the periplous (tactic involving sailing around an enemy’s flank to assault from the rear). (We’re not sure which.) Roman consul Gaius Dulius had pulled back a reserve which handled the Carthaginian ships as they penetrated the Roman line. The Carthaginians lost another 13 ships and called it a day. The Carthaginians had 31 ships captured and 13 sunk. The Romans claimed to have killed 3,000 Carthaginians and captured 7,000. Since the Romans concentrated on boarding instead of ramming, the number of captured ships was an unintended result. It was one of the biggest upsets in naval history, right up there with the Battle of Salamis. Guess what his future held. The Battle of Mylae was one of the most important in history. In one day, Carthage’s dominance of the western Mediterranean was ended. Consul Duilius returned to Rome with a bunch of Carthaginian prows (rostrata) to decorate the Forum. (You can still view the remnants today.) He celebrated Rome’s first naval triumph. “He was the first to fit out and train ships and crews [and win a sea battle]. He was also the first to bring the people booty from a sea battle and the first to [have] free-born Carthaginians in a triumph.” [Dionysius] One perk for Duilius was he got the right to be escorted by torch-bearers and flute players whenever he returned from a banquet. Strangely, this great leader never held another command.
- from The Scipios in Spain
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