Rome's Conquest of North Africa: The History of the Conflicts that Led to the Establishment of Roman Provinces in Africa
Charles River EditorsBefore the Numidians were conquered by the Romans and Numidia was officially made part of Roman Africa, they developed a culture that was as sophisticated and unique as any in the ancient world. The Numidians were a Berber people who emerged from the edge of the desert in the late 2nd millennium BCE, and despite the harshness of their environment (or perhaps because of it), they eventually became the most powerful people in North Africa. The Numidians found success on the backs of horses, which they rode to countless military victories, and when they could not defeat their enemies with conventional tactics, they were not afraid to resort to asymmetrical warfare.
While the Numidians fought with and against their neighbors, they developed a unique culture that was influenced by the Greeks, Romans, and Carthaginians. Numidian merchants took advantage of their rich land to develop trade routes that made the kingdoms even richer, allowing them to build cities and monuments. Ultimately, however, the Numidians were unable to stop the advance of the Romans, despite making several valiant attempts to do so.
The end of the Ptolemies also happened to coincide with the most famous period of Roman history. In the latter 1st century BCE, men like Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, and Octavian participated in two civil wars that would
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