00:00 The rise and fall of the Empire of Carthage, a once powerful society in North Africa that had largely been forgotten, is explored by the host of the Fall of Civilizations podcast, Paul Cooper, who delves into the unique culture of Carthage and the destruction of the city.

11:39 The Phoenicians, known for their production of Tyrian purple dye, were skilled traders and sailors who developed advanced shipbuilding techniques, navigational tools, and metalworking skills, and established colonies and trade networks throughout the Mediterranean and Atlantic in order to meet the demands of the Assyrian Empire for resources.

23:40 The Phoenicians developed a simple and phonetic alphabet consisting of 22 letters, which was later adopted by the Greeks and became the foundation of all Western alphabets used today.

34:26 Carthage, founded by the Phoenicians in the 8th century BC, grew quickly due to its ideal geography and strategic location in the Mediterranean, and was governed by a wealthy oligarchy with no hereditary royalty.

44:38 Carthage flourished while other Phoenician cities declined due to trade restrictions, leading to a large influx of Phoenicians to Carthage, which became one of the largest and wealthiest cities in the Mediterranean and embarked on voyages of exploration, potentially circumnavigating Africa and reaching the Atlantic Ocean.

55:10 Carthage's population grew to an estimated 400,000 people, and the city had impressive defensive walls, a unique harbor design, and a bustling marketplace with a diverse range of food and goods available.

01:05:19 Carthaginians had unique bathing rituals, kept various animals as pets and curiosities, used elephants as weapons of war, and relied on diplomatic solutions and alliances to avoid unnecessary conflict.

01:15:50 Carthage's armies were diverse and spoke many different languages, making it difficult to address them as a unified force, but this system allowed them to raise large armies quickly and insulated the politicians from the consequences of war; conflicts with the Greeks over Sicily would eventually threaten the entire Carthaginian empire.

01:26:18 During the siege of Carthage, Agathocles of Syracuse successfully escaped by ship to Africa, leaving the city in a state of panic and confusion, and the Carthaginians, desperate for victory, turned to the controversial practice of child sacrifice.

01:36:28 Child sacrifice was a controversial practice in Carthage, confirmed by archaeological discoveries, and it was believed that sacrificing the children of the poor instead of their own angered the gods and led to the city's downfall.

01:46:58 Rome's expansion and success in absorbing other peoples into their society, as well as their refusal to ever sue for peace, led to tensions with Carthage and set the stage for the beginning of the Punic Wars.

01:57:45 The first Punic War between Rome and Carthage was sparked by a chance incident in Sicily, where a group of southern Italian mercenaries called the Mamatines seized the city of Messina, leading to both Rome and Carthage getting involved in the conflict.

02:08:42 The Romans were able to capture a Carthaginian galley that had run aground, allowing them to study and replicate the Carthaginian navy's shipbuilding techniques, but their first attempt at using these ships in battle resulted in a defeat, leading them to develop the corvus, a boarding bridge that allowed them to neutralize the Carthaginian ships and ultimately win a decisive victory, leading to the Romans invading Carthaginian territories and the Carthaginians eventually seeking peace, although the war continued with both sides experiencing victories and defeats.

02:18:46 After the disastrous loss of 284 ships and 60,000 sailors in a naval disaster, the Carthaginians were forced to sign a punishing treaty with Rome, leading to a civil war, famine, and the rise of a new Carthaginian general named Hannibal.

02:29:58 Hannibal, after conquering the Celtic tribes of Spain and inheriting his father's army and alliances, led the Carthaginian armies in Spain, controlled more than half of the Iberian peninsula, and felt increasingly confident in testing the bounds of what he could get away with, leading to the siege of Saguntum and the spark of the Second Punic War.

02:40:27 Hannibal and his Carthaginian army successfully crossed the treacherous Alps, using various tactics such as building rafts for the elephants and cutting a stepped path into a sheer wall, despite the Romans believing it to be impossible.

02:50:59 Hannibal's audacious plan to cross the Alps had come at a cost, as he lost nearly half of his army and his men had become almost savage in appearance, but he successfully caught the Romans by surprise and proceeded to defeat them in multiple battles, causing panic in Rome and leading to a desperate attempt to raise a new army and perform human sacrifices to appease the gods.

03:02:10 Carthage is defeated in the Second Punic War, forced to sign a crushing peace treaty with Rome, and becomes subservient to Rome, but continues to flourish economically, while being defenseless against ambitious rivals in North Africa, particularly the Numidian king Massinissa, who repeatedly seizes Carthaginian land with the backing of Rome.

03:13:34 Carthage is completely disarmed and pleads with the Romans not to go to war, but the Romans demand that Carthage abandon their city and move inland, leading to the devastating Siege of Carthage and the massacre of its citizens.

03:24:40 Carthage is completely destroyed and its ruins are systematically dismantled by the Romans, erasing not only the city but also its history and culture.