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How long did the Punic Wars last?

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ancient Rome The Temple of Saturn (foreground) and the Arch of Septimius Severus in the Roman Forum.

The Punic Wars were a series of three conflicts between the Roman Republic and the Carthaginian Empire that spanned a total of 118 years, lasting from 264 to 146 BCE.1

The individual conflicts occurred over the following periods:

First Punic War: 264–241 BCE2
Second Punic War: 218–201 BCE2
Third Punic War: 149–146 BCE2

These wars resulted in the total destruction of Carthage, the enslavement of its population, and the establishment of Roman hegemony over the western Mediterranean.12