Himera (480 BC)

Phoenicia and Greece both colonized the western Mediterranean. Carthage unified the Punic cities into an empire, while Syracuse rose to become the leading Greek city under its first Tyrant, Gelon. With Theron of Akragas, Gelon took control of Himera and …

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Phoenicia and Greece both colonized the western Mediterranean. Carthage unified the Punic cities into an empire, while Syracuse rose to become the leading Greek city under its first Tyrant, Gelon. With Theron of Akragas, Gelon took control of Himera and drove out the former ruler, Terillus, in 483. King Hamilcar of Carthage, an ally and friend of Terillus, led an army to Sicily in 480 BC to restore him to power. Hamilcar established two camps to the west and southwest of Himera. As the armies skirmished outside the city, Gelon's raiders captured a message providing the date of arrival of a body of Greek cavalry reinforcing Hamilcar's army. A treacherous plan was hatched to substitute Gelon's own cavalry for these reinforcements. At dawn on the specified day, Gelon's horsemen entered the Punic sea-camp without raising any suspicion. They suddenly attacked, raising havoc and killing Hamilcar. Meanwhile the rest of Gelon’s army launched a surprise attack against both camps. Most of the forces in the sea-camp were slaughtered but a successful counter-attack at the hill camp prevented the total destruction of the Carthaginian army. A peace treaty was signed between Syracuse and Carthage, which held for seven decades. Since Hamilcar’s expedition coincided with the Xerxes’ invasion, it was believed to be part of a coordinated assault on the Greek world.

Himera, Sicily

The Battle of Himera, supposedly fought on the same day as the Battle of Salamis, or at the same time as the Battle of Thermopylae, saw the Greek forces of Gelon, King of Syracuse, and Theron, tyrant of Agrigentum, defeat the Carthaginian force of Hamilcar the Magonid, ending a Carthaginian bid to restore the deposed tyrant of Himera. The alleged coincidence of this battle with the naval battle of Salamis and the resultant derailing of a Punic-Persian conspiracy aimed at destroying the Greek civilization is rejected by modern scholars. Scholars also agree that the battle led to the crippling of Carthage's power in Sicily for many decades. It was one of the most important battles of the Sicilian Wars.

Wikipedia: Battle of Himera (480 BC)

Carthaginian

Syracusan

Sicilian Wars