Carthage Must Be Destroyed: The Rise and Fall of an Ancient Civilization

by Richard Miles Narrated by Grover Gardner

Overview

An epic history of a doomed civilization and a lost empire.

The devastating struggle to the death between the Carthaginians and the Romans was one of the defining dramas of the ancient world. In an epic series of land and sea battles, both sides came close to victory before the Carthaginians finally succumbed and their capital city, history, and culture were almost utterly erased.

Drawing on a wealth of new archaeological research, Richard Miles vividly brings to life this lost empire-from its origins among the Phoenician settlements of Lebanon to its apotheosis as the greatest seapower in the Mediterranean. And at the heart of the history of Carthage lies the extraordinary figure of Hannibal-the scourge of Rome and one of the greatest military leaders, but a man who also unwittingly led his people to catastrophe.

The first full-scale history of Carthage in decades, Carthage Must Be Destroyed reintroduces modern listeners to the larger-than-life historical players and the ancient glory of this almost forgotten civilization.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

In the spring of 146 B.C.E., the Roman commander Scipio Aemilianus ordered his army's final assault upon the very weakened North African city of Carthage. Surrounded on all sides by the Romans and facing starvation and death, many Carthaginians, including the city's commander, Hasdrubal, surrendered into certain slavery while others, refusing to submit, died in a hellish conflagration that consumed their city. In destroying the physical city of Carthage, the Romans also destroyed much of its history. Until now, Rome's version of the history and significance of Carthage has been unchallenged. Drawing deeply upon fresh archeological evidence, Miles dynamically recreates daily life in ancient Carthage by examining the numerous inscriptions and monuments that bring to life the religious and public rituals of the city's inhabitants. Such material evidence offers a glimpse of Carthage's social hierarchies while also providing clues to the city's reputation as an agricultural center known for its figs and pomegranates, and its invention of the Punic cart, a primitive but highly effective threshing machine. Miles breathtakingly narrates Carthage's rise to fame as an ancient cultural and commercial center and its demise before its rebuilding as a Roman city by the emperor Augustus in the first century C.E. Illus.; maps. (July)

Kirkus Reviews

An ambitious scholarly work spanning eight centuries, from 150 years before the founding of Carthage by Phoenicians to its obliteration by the Romans in 146 BCE.

From its location in modern Tunisia, Carthage sat astride the east-west trade routes from the Levant to Spain, and north-south routes from Sardinia to Carthage itself. The city's settlers colonized southern Spain, Sardinia and western Sicily, and for three centuries the Carthaginian navy controlled the Mediterranean. Ultimately, Carthage collided with Rome in Sicily, setting off the first of the three Punic Wars that would end in the city's destruction. In his book-length debut, Miles (History/Univ. of Sydney) sets forth in exhaustive detail the ebb and flow of Carthaginian influence in the central Mediterranean as the city engaged in constant competition with the Hellenistic city-states of the region for resources and power. A parallel theme is the cultural contest among Carthage, the Greek states and ultimately Rome for the mantle of successor to Heracles and Alexander, a propaganda battle carried out through images on coins, erection of temples, religious ceremonies and feats of arms. Miles distills a balanced account of the city's history from the generally hostile surviving ancient sources, scrupulously explaining what he accepts and rejects from them and why. While this may be regarded as the definitive political and military history of Carthage for years to come, it is not recommended for the general reader, who will find no clear picture of Carthaginian civilization in the round, contrasted with the more familiar Greek, Roman and Egyptian cultures. What did this great city look like to a visitor? What were its values and aesthetics, its architecture and philosophy, its religious and legal institutions? What was the role of women in Carthaginian society? What did the world lose when this city was destroyed? The answers are not here, and the absence of a well-developed social dimension leaves the annals of cities won and lost feeling rather dry and lacking in context.

A monumental history of this lost civilization, invaluable to scholars but otherwise of limited appeal.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940170317028
Publisher:	Ascent Audio
Publication date:	07/27/2011
Edition description:	Unabridged
Sales rank:	1,001,837

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