Syphax (, ''Sýphax''; , ) was a king of the

Masaesyli The Masaesyli were a Berber tribe of western Numidia (present day Algeria) and the main antagonists of the Massylii in eastern Numidia. During the Second Punic War the Masaesyli initially supported the Roman Republic and were led by Syphax ag ...

tribe of western Numidia (present-day

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

) during the last quarter of the 3rd century BC. His story is told in

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...

's '' Ab Urbe Condita'' (written c. 27–25 BC).Livy: ''Ab urbe condita'', vol. VIII, bks. xxviii-xxx
Loeb Classical Edn, pp.73-99, 173-225, 405-421 at openlibrary.org He ruled over a territory extending from present day

Constantine Constantine most often refers to: * Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I *Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria Constantine may also refer to: People * Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...

Fez Fez most often refers to: * Fez (hat), a type of felt hat commonly worn in the Ottoman Empire * Fez, Morocco (or Fes), the second largest city of Morocco Fez or FEZ may also refer to: Media * ''Fez'' (Frank Stella), a 1964 painting by the moder ...

.Abada, Malek.
Guerre de liberation: Histoire de la révolution algérienne.
Chihab, 2022. “Syphax, chef des Massaesyles, qui régnait sur un territoire allant de Constantine à Fès”

Second Punic War

When a second war broke out between

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 cla ...

and

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

in 218 BC, Syphax was initially sympathetic to the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

. In 213BC, he concluded an alliance with the Romans and they sent Quintus Statorius as a military advisor to help Syphax train his troops. He then attacked the rival tribe of eastern Numidians, the

Massyli The Massylii or Maesulians were a Berber federation in eastern Numidia, which was formed by an amalgamation of smaller tribes during the 4th century BC.Nigel Bagnall, The Punic Wars, p. 270. They were ruled by a king. On their loosely defined wester ...

ans, ruled by King

Gala Gala may refer to: Music * ''Gala'' (album), a 1990 album by the English alternative rock band Lush *'' Gala – The Collection'', a 2016 album by Sarah Brightman *GALA Choruses, an association of LGBT choral groups *''Gala'', a 1986 album by T ...

, who at that time were allied to the Carthaginians. When Gala died in 206BC, his sons

Masinissa Masinissa ( nxm, , ''MSNSN''; ''c.'' 238 BC – 148 BC), also spelled Massinissa, Massena and Massan, was an ancient Numidian king best known for leading a federation of Massylii Berber tribes during the Second Punic War (218–201 BC), ult ...

and Oezalces quarreled about the inheritance, and Syphax was able to conquer considerable parts of the eastern Numidian kingdom.

Negotiations with Rome and Carthage

After the Roman general Publius Cornelius Scipio was victorious in the Battle of Ilipa (206BC), he sent his friend

Gaius Laelius Gaius Laelius was a Roman general and statesman, and a friend of Scipio Africanus, whom he accompanied on his Iberian campaign (210–206 BC; the Roman Hispania, comprising modern Spain and Portugal) and his African campaign (204–202 BC). His c ...

to visit Syphax to ratify the treaty with Rome. Syphax, however, refused to ratify any treaty except with Scipio, so Scipio sailed with two quinqueremes to meet with Syphax, taking a considerable risk in doing so. In fact he arrived at the Numidian harbor at exactly the same time as

Hasdrubal Gisco Hasdrubal Gisco (died 202BC), a latinization of the name ʿAzrubaʿal son of Gersakkun ( xpu, 𐤏𐤆𐤓𐤁𐤏𐤋 𐤁𐤍 𐤂𐤓𐤎𐤊𐤍 ),. was a Carthaginian general who fought against Rome in Iberia (Hispania) and North Africa du ...

(who had fled from Spain) anchored there on his way back to Carthage. Scipio's ship managed to make harbor before Gisco's seven

triremes A trireme( ; derived from Latin: ''trirēmis'' "with three banks of oars"; cf. Greek ''triērēs'', literally "three-rower") was an ancient vessel and a type of galley that was used by the ancient maritime civilizations of the Mediterranean S ...

could make out to intercept them, and in a neutral harbor, Gisco dared not act against the Romans. Syphax invited both to dinner, where both Syphax and Gisco were taken in by Scipio's charm.

Alliance with Hasdrubal

Meanwhile, Masinissa had concluded that Rome was winning the war against Carthage and therefore decided to switch sides. Having lost the alliance with Masinissa, the Carthaginians started to look for another ally, which they found in Syphax. Hasdrubal Gisco sealed the alliance by offering his daughter

Sophonisba Sophonisba (in Punic, 𐤑𐤐𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋 Ṣap̄anbaʿal) (fl. 203 BC) was a Carthaginian noblewoman who lived during the Second Punic War, and the daughter of Hasdrubal Gisco. She held influence over the Numidian political landscape, con ...

in marriage, although until 206BC she had been betrothed to Masinissa.

Battle of the Great Plains

With the reversal of alliances, it seemed that Carthage and Syphax were in a strong position in Africa. During the early stages of Scipio's campaign in North Africa, the joined forces of Syphax and Gisco were able to force Scipio to abandon the siege of Utica. However, in the 203BC

Battle of the Great Plains The Battle of the Great Plains ( la, Campi Magni) was a battle between a Roman army commanded by Scipio Africanus and a combined Carthaginian-Numidian army late in the Second Punic War. It was fought on the plains south of Bulla Regia around the ...

, Scipio overcame Gisco and Syphax and while the Roman general concentrated on Carthage, Laelius and Masinissa followed Syphax to

Cirta Cirta, also known by various other names in antiquity, was the ancient Berber and Roman settlement which later became Constantine, Algeria. Cirta was the capital city of the Berber kingdom of Numidia; its strategically important port city ...

Battle of Cirta

During the pursuit, Syphax was threatened with desertion by his army when Laelius and Masinissa's army approached the Numidian battle line. In a brave attempt to rally his troops, Syphax rode alone, straight towards the Roman cavalry, but in this desperate attempt his badly wounded horse threw him off. Syphax was pounced upon immediately by Roman soldiers and taken to the ecstatic Masinissa. Syphax's troops retreated to the capital city which later fell as Masinissa claimed his kingdom. Syphax was delivered to Scipio and was taken back to Rome as a prisoner. He died in Tibur (modern Tivoli) in 203 or 202BC.

After death

In a twist of fate, Sophonisba then married Masinissa. However, Scipio, suspicious of Sophonisba, demanded that she be taken to Rome and appear in the triumphal parade. To spare her such humiliation, Masinissa sent her poison, with which she killed herself.

References

External links

{{Commons category
Livius.org: Syphax
200s BC deaths 3rd-century BC rulers in Africa 3rd-century BC Berber people Kings of Numidia Second Punic War commanders Year of birth missing