Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1050: The End of the War

The crushing defeat at Minoa had actually stemmed from an unexpected incident and could hardly be considered a true pitched battle. Moreover, Samors looked down on Monteadno, a man who cared only for pleasure; the commander had never even set foot on the front lines, so his failure was no surprise. As for the final, decisive defeat that determined the course of the war, the latest reports indicated it was primarily caused by the Carthaginian Army's prolonged inability to breach a fortified city, compounded by the sudden rebellion of the Numidians. It was not a defeat born of a direct clash with the Daionian Army. The only true pitched battle had been at Gela, where Hasdrubal led his forces to victory over the Daunian Allied Forces and successfully captured the city.

Furthermore, Samors had experience fighting the Greeks. Twenty years ago, he had followed Himilco to fight against Syracuse in Sicily. He was only a young officer then, but the army had pushed all the way to the walls of Syracuse. If not for that cursed plague, the Carthaginian Army would never have suffered such a miserable defeat—they likely would have conquered the city.

Since the Kingdom of Daunia had been founded by Greeks, even if their army was somewhat stronger than the Syracusans of the past, they couldn't be vastly superior. Now that Carthage faced a crisis, its soldiers were united against a common enemy. Naturally, they would fight with far greater strength than ever before. With troop numbers roughly equal on both sides, they were entirely capable of driving the Daionians back. Relying on this exact judgment, Samors had decided to take the initiative, marching out to shift the tide of the war in a pitched battle.

But as the battle unfolded, he realized how wrong he had been. When the fighting began, the Daionian light infantry weaved effortlessly through their bizarre formations, shifting from scattered skirmish lines to tight phalanxes with flawless ease. He knew perfectly well that such maneuvers were impossible without long, rigorous training. Later, driven by the desire to defend their homeland, the Carthaginian soldiers launched relentless, ferocious assaults. Yet, the soldiers of the Daionian legions stood as immovable as rock. Only when the Carthaginians were physically drained and mentally exhausted did the Daionians gradually intensify their counterattacks. This was a tactic only a highly experienced, veteran army dared to employ!

Samors was already filled with regret, but once a pitched battle began, the situation was no longer in his control.

Alexis, however, looked much more relaxed. He turned to Plintors and said, "It is time for the infantry of the Third Fleet to strike."

The two of them had received news the day before: Carthage had dispatched another several thousand reinforcements to Adis, and these soldiers appeared to be either too young or too old.

Based on the current strategic situation, they quickly deduced that the Carthaginians were likely preparing for a desperate offensive.

Just as Alexis had previously warned the Legion Commanders, "This might be the Carthaginians' final stand, and they will undoubtedly fight with everything they have. Although the Daionian Army currently holds the advantage, we are still deep in enemy territory. If we lose this battle, our position will become extremely dangerous." Thus, Alexis faced considerable pressure himself. He opted for a cautious approach, immediately sending fast ships to notify the Third Fleet stationed at Kossyra. (After the Daionian Army landed in Africa, Davos had simply divided the duties of his two fleets: the Sicilian Fleet was responsible for the African waters west of Carthage, while the Third Fleet covered the east.)

Thus, he immediately spent the night gathering the Warships patrolling various areas. Early the next morning, he led the fleet south into the port of Ruspina. The 3,000 fleet infantry disembarked and rapidly marched west. By the time they reached the Davos Camp, the Daionian Army was already forming their ranks outside.

Upon learning that the infantry of the Third Fleet had arrived, Alexis sent a messenger with orders: rest well in the camp, await further commands, and be ready to strike at a moment's notice.

And now, it was time for this fresh force to take the field!

Just as the Carthaginian Army began to falter, the vigorous infantry of the Third Fleet poured onto the battlefield.

Amidst the dust, fog, and deafening roar of the battlefield, it was difficult to gauge the situation accurately. By the time Samors received this disastrous news, the fleet infantry had already launched an assault on the Carthaginian left flank.

Although the Carthaginian soldiers fought on stubbornly, their defeat was already a foregone conclusion. To avoid suffering such devastating casualties that no one would be left to defend the City of Carthage, Samors issued a command: sound the retreat immediately!

The stamina and morale of the Carthaginian allied soldiers had already plummeted. Once the horns blared, their lines quickly collapsed into a full-scale rout.

The soldiers of the Daionian legions immediately gave chase. Alexis also sent messengers to urge the Western Numidian Cavalry—who had been resting and watching from the sidelines during the latter half of the battle—to join the pursuit.

This forced vast numbers of routed Carthaginian soldiers to flee into the mountains to escape the Daionian Army's fierce pursuit.

Only at dusk did Alexis finally recall his troops to camp.

This pitched battle, involving over 50,000 men and lasting nearly four hours, was incredibly brutal. The head-on clash alone resulted in nearly 5,000 casualties on both sides (with the Daionian troops suffering nearly 2,000 casualties and the Carthaginians over 3,000). Additionally, nearly 6,000 Carthaginian soldiers were taken prisoner.

When the news reached Carthage, the entire city was shaken. Panic gripped the populace, and the sound of bitter weeping echoed endlessly...

The next day, ignoring the pleas of the Adis citizens to stay and disregarding the routed soldiers who were still trickling back, Samors gathered his surviving forces and fled back to the City of Carthage.

Overcome with grief and fury, the Carthaginian citizens surrounded the disgraced Samors as he slinked into the city. They hurled furious curses at him, then mercilessly beat him until he collapsed, unable to rise.

To appease the public's outrage, the Senate swiftly conducted a trial in absentia. The verdict: crucifixion.

He was perhaps the most tragically executed commanding general in Carthaginian history.

But executing Samors did nothing to change the course of the war.

On the third day, Alexis led his rested army westward. Adis opened its gates and surrendered.

On the fourth day, the Daionian Army rendezvoused at Adis with the East Numidian forces marching north.

On the fifth day, the Daunian Allied Forces continued their western advance. Tunes surrendered, closely followed by Megalopolis.

Finally, over 40,000 soldiers of the Daunian Allied Forces bypassed Lake Tunes (modern Lake Tunis) and closed in on the City of Carthage.

The terrified Carthaginian populace stood atop the western walls, helplessly watching the dense swarms of Daionian soldiers tear up the crisscrossing irrigation ditches and flatten field after field on the Isthmus between Lake Bizerte and Lake Tunes. They then began constructing a camp over the ruined land, clearly intending to completely blockade the Carthaginians within their city. (The Carthaginians considered it an Isthmus, but in reality, the shortest distance between the two lakes was still about ten li, and the terrain was exceedingly flat.)

The panicked Carthaginians dared not sally out. They could only hide behind their high, thick walls and desperately rush their defensive preparations. Men, women, the young, and the elderly were all mobilized and armed, ready to fight on the walls at a moment's notice. Every blacksmith forge in the city operated twenty-four hours a day, urgently churning out weapons: short swords, javelins, spears, and shields...

The terrified Senators even approved the high priest's proposal, convincing the city's populace to hold an unprecedentedly large sacrifice to beseech the protection of Baal Hammon. This ritual was the very same fire sacrifice that had once been prevalent among the Phoenicians of the Western Mediterranean—a practice that made other races turn pale at the mere mention of it, though it had rarely been held in recent decades.

But by this point, the Carthaginian people were on the brink of despair. This was one of their few remaining hopes, so almost no one objected. Through a drawing of lots, two hundred children under the age of six were chosen. Amidst the chanting of the entire city's populace, they were pushed alive into the fiery pit before the statue of Baal Hammon. Their shrill, agonizing screams left the Carthaginians in even greater agony and bewilderment...

However, the fire sacrifice brought no divine protection from Baal Hammon. Instead, bad news continued to pour in: Diarrhytus had also surrendered to Daionia... Not long after, Utica—the second largest Phoenician city-state in Africa after Carthage—also chose to surrender. Consequently, another Daionian force (the Fourth Legion of Theonia and the infantry of the Sicilian Fleet) was able to advance along the western coastal road and approach the City of Carthage from the west. Meanwhile, a portion of the Warships from the Sicilian Fleet and the Third Fleet sailed into Lake Bizerte and Lake Tunes, dropping anchor at the makeshift piers the Daionian Army had constructed within their camp (the Carthaginians had long ago connected these two lagoons to the sea and built ports where the lakes extended into the city). With this, the City of Carthage was completely surrounded, plunged into an isolated and helpless dead end.

The reason the Senators, led by Hanno, had yet to make up their minds to fully accept Daionia's negotiation terms at this juncture was because they clung to one last sliver of hope: intervention from Persia.

In truth, Tyre had indeed answered Carthage's plea and dispatched envoys to Babylon.

Upon learning the astonishing news that Carthage had actually been pushed to the brink by Daionia, the King of Persia Artaxerxes was greatly surprised. After mulling it over, he decided to send an envoy to the Western Mediterranean. The envoy's task was to gather detailed information on the course of the war, probe the true strength of Daionia, and determine this newly risen Greek kingdom's actual attitude toward Persia.

Mediating the war was only a secondary objective. After all, having reigned for over twenty years, he understood perfectly well: Daionia had endured countless hardships to corner their enemy. Why would they abandon all their hard-fought efforts just because of a few words from him, thousands of miles away? Furthermore, Persia had never even demonstrated its might to this newly founded kingdom.

In mid-February, as the Persian envoy's passenger ship entered Carthaginian waters, it was intercepted by Daonian Warships. Even though he declared himself an envoy sent by the King of Persia, he was still forbidden from entering the City of Carthage.

The Persian envoy had no choice but to request an audience with the King of Daonia instead, and was thus escorted to Lilybaeum.

Davos did not slight the Persian envoy; the reception ceremony was quite grand.

But ever since the Corinthian War, not only did the Greek Mainland's hegemon, Sparta, rely on Persian backing, but major Greek city-states like Athens, Corinth, and Thebes also had to act according to Persia's whims. Persia had become the de facto overlord of the Eastern Mediterranean. Consequently, whenever envoys from Greek city-states traveled to Persia, they often had to bribe and curry favor with officials of all levels to achieve their goals, whereas Persian envoys enjoyed the highest standard of reception wherever they went in Greece.

So, this smug Persian noble envoy arrived in the Western Mediterranean full of self-importance, only to receive a harsh blow right from the start. Having his passenger ship detained and his demands refused had naturally left him harboring a bellyful of pent-up anger. When he finally met Davos and saw that this barbarian king wore no precious crown, donned no magnificent robes, and was receiving him in a completely ordinary parlor, his heart filled with contempt. Before they had even exchanged more than a few words, he spoke to Davos in a commanding tone: "Our sacred and exalted king is paying close attention to the war between Daionia and Carthage. He desires that both sides immediately cease hostilities, return all occupied territories, and restore the borders to the state they were in before the war began! If both parties comply, you shall earn the friendship of Persia. Otherwise, the consequences will be utterly severe—more than Daionia can bear!"

In the face of the Persian envoy's arrogance, the nearly fifty-year-old Davos showed much deeper restraint. He did not mock the Persian envoy the way he had sharply ridiculed the Spartan envoy Phoebidas years ago. Instead, he replied in a calm tone, "It is enough for you Persians to manage the affairs of Asia properly. You need not concern yourselves with matters in the Western Mediterranean."

The two parted on bad terms, and even the banquet scheduled for after their meeting was canceled.

The very next day, the Persian envoy's passenger ship sailed out of Lilybaeum, "escorted" the entire way until it was far removed from the Western Mediterranean.

After the Persian envoy returned to Babylon, he recounted his "miserable ordeal" in the Western Mediterranean and added inflammatory embellishments to the message the King of Daonia had asked him to convey. Artaxerxes was furious. The King of Persia publicly swore an oath: one day, he would deliver the harshest possible punishment upon the Kingdom of Daunia!

The Carthaginian Senators never received any news from the Persians, but the Daionian attacks kept their nerves taut. Thus far, the Daionian Army hadn't sent soldiers to assault the walls directly. Instead, their ballistae bombarded the ramparts day after day, even hurling fire pots into the city to escalate the panic among the populace. They constructed earthen mounds taller than the city walls, using the high ground to launch ranged attacks on the defenders below. It wasn't just the Daionian land forces attacking, either—their navy was equally active. They lashed several Warships together, laid planks across them, mounted ballistae and gastraphetes on the platforms, and approached the ports within the two lakes to batter the city's defensive installations... The Daionian Army was not fighting with all its might; they seemed more like they were running drills for a coordinated land-and-sea siege. Yet for the Carthaginians, who had never faced such a desperate situation, it was already suffocating.

The siege lasted for over three months. With their walls shattered, drinking water scarce, half their city ruined, and morale at rock bottom, the Carthaginians finally bowed their proud heads. They were forced to sign a remarkably harsh armistice agreement with Daionia: Carthage formally acknowledged that Sicily, Corsica, and Sardinia were ceded to the rule of the Kingdom of Daunia;

Carthage ceded all colonial cities in Iberia to Daionia (excluding the new colonies subsequently conquered by the Magonid Family);

Carthage agreed that the territory of Hadrumetum would be absorbed into the Kingdom of Daunia;

Carthage was forbidden from infringing upon the interests of Daionia's allies, the East and West Numidians;

Carthage and Daionia would restore peace and trade for a term of twenty years. Should any conflict of interest arise during this period, it would be resolved through mutual negotiation;

Neither party could invade the other's allied states within this term...

...

Half a year later, Ortygia Island also surrendered after running out of food. With that, the war between Daionia and Carthage had come to an end.