The Battle of Nomae was a battle fought in 450 BCE between a united

Sicel The Sicels (; la, Siculi; grc, Σικελοί ''Sikeloi'') were an Italic tribe who inhabited eastern Sicily during the Iron Age. Their neighbours to the west were the Sicani. The Sicels gave Sicily the name it has held since antiquity, b ...

army under the command of

Ducetius Ducetius ( grc, Δουκέτιος) (died 440 BCE) was a Hellenized leader of the Sicels and founder of a united Sicilian state and numerous cities.LiviusDucetius of Sicily Retrieved on 25 April 2006. It is thought he may have been born around ...

and the

Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...

of Syracuse. Ducetius was defeated and his Sicel state broke down soon after. The Sicels were one of the original inhabitants of

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

but their territory was slowly shrinking due to the expansion of the Greek colonies on the island, mainly Syracuse and

Akragas Agrigento (; scn, Girgenti or ; grc, Ἀκράγας, translit=Akrágas; la, Agrigentum or ; ar, كركنت, Kirkant, or ''Jirjant'') is a city on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy and capital of the province of Agrigento. It was one of ...

. However, in the 450's BCE they had grown in power under a leader named Ducetius, who had united the Sicel territory under his rule. He was originally an ally of Syracuse, helping them in a war against

Catana Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also by ...

. However, as he grew in power, and also began to expand into Greek territory, Syracuse became concerned. When Ducetius attacked the other major Sicilian Greek power Akragas, the city asked Syracuse for help and Syracuse agreed. The united forces of the two cities advanced towards Ducetius's army, which was besieging the stronghold

Motyon Motyon or Motyum (Greek: ), was a small town or fortress of Sicily, in the territory of Agrigentum (modern Agrigento). It was besieged in 451 BCE by the Siculian chief Ducetius, and fell into his hands after a battle in which he defeated the Agrige ...

(Motya) and met him in battle there, however they were defeated by the Sicels, who took Motyon. The Greeks regrouped over winter and launched a second assault in the spring of 450. Akragas moved to retake Motyon while Syracuse, who were probably fielding their full remaining army of around 4,500 to 5,500 troops, moved to engage Ducetius. The forces met at Nomae and the Greeks gained a victory this time. After the battle Ducetius was deserted by his troops and his kingdom broke apart. He surrendered himself to Syracuse, who allowed him to go into exile in

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part o ...

. The Sicels would never pose a major threat to the Greeks in Sicily again. Syracuse and Akragas would not remain allies for long and soon began disputing control over Sicily. Ducetius would return in 446 BCE and founded the city of Kale Akte, which annoyed Akragas who used it as an excuse to go to war with Syracuse for not executing Ducetius. This would result in the Battle of the Himera River (446 BC) in which Syracuse won, becoming the dominant power in Sicily until the

Second Sicilian War The Sicilian Wars, or Greco-Punic Wars, were a series of conflicts fought between ancient Carthage and the List of ancient Greek cities, Greek city-states led by Syracuse, Sicily over control of Sicily and the western Mediterranean between 580 ...

against

Carthage Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classi ...

References

{{Reflist Nomae Nomae 450 BC