Second Illyrian War

In the Illyrian Wars of 229 BC and 219 BC, Rome overran the Illyrian settlements in the Neretva river valley and suppressed the piracy¹ that had made the Adriatic unsafe for Italian commerce. There were two campaigns, the first against Teuta and the second against Demetrius of Pharos² . The initial campaign in 229 BC marks the first time that the Roman Navy crossed the Adriatic Sea to launch an invasion.³

First Illyrian War

In the First Illyrian War, which lasted from 229⁴ BC to 228 BC, Rome's concern with the trade routes running across the Adriatic Sea increased after the First Punic War, when many tribes of Illyria became united under one queen⁵, Teuta. The death of a Roman envoy named Coruncanius⁶ on the orders of Teuta⁷ and the attack on trading vessels owned by Italian merchants under Rome's protection, prompted the Roman senate to dispatch a Roman army under the command of the consuls Lucius Postumius Albinus (consul 234 and 229 BC) and Gnaeus Fulvius Centumalus. Rome expelled Illyrian garrisons at the Greek cities Epidamnus, Apollonia, Corcyra, Pharos and others and established a protectorate over these Greek towns.

The Romans also set up⁸ Demetrius of Pharos as a power in Illyria to counter-balance the power of Teuta.⁹

Second Illyrian War

The Second Illyrian War lasted from 220 BC to 219 BC. In 219 BC the Roman Republic was at war with the Celts of Cisalpine Gaul, and the Second Punic War with Carthage¹⁰ was beginning. These distractions gave Demetrius the time he needed to build a new Illyrian war fleet.^{citation needed} Leading this fleet of 90 ships, Demetrius sailed south of Lissus, violating his earlier treaty and starting the war.^{citation needed}

Demetrius' fleet first attacked Pylos where he captured 50 ships after several attempts. From Pylos the fleet sailed to the Cyclades, quelling resistance they found on the way. Demetrius foolishly sent a fleet across the Adriatic, and, with the Illyrian forces divided, the Greek city of Dimale¹¹ was captured by the Roman fleet under Lucius Aemilius Paulus. From Dimale the navy went towards Pharos.^{citation needed} The forces of Rome routed the Illyrians and Demetrius fled to Macedon where he became a trusted councilor at the court of Philip V of Macedon, and remained until his death at Messene in 214 BC.^{citation needed}

Aftermath

Illyria was finally conquered in 168 BC.^{citation needed} After forty years of intermittent fighting Illyria became a province; it took another hundred years, however, before the coastal Illyrian and Dalmatian tribes were finally subjugated.^{citation needed}

Notes

^ Wilkes, J. J. The Illyrians, 1992, p. 120, ISBN 0631198075.,Page 158,"... ' Illyrian success continued when command passed to Agron's widow Teuta, who granted individual ships a licence to universal plunder. In 231 ac the fleet and army attacked Ells and Messenia ..."
^ A History of Rome to A.D. 565 – page 111 by Arthur Edward Romilly Boak, William Gurnee Sinnigen,"The island of Pharos and some adjacent territory in Illyria were given to a Greek adventurer, Demetrius of Pharos"
^ Gruen, 359.
^ Wilkes, J. J. The Illyrians, 1992, p. 120, ISBN 0631198075,Page 160,"... ' The Roman invasion of Illyria in 229 sc appears to have caught Teuta and the Illyrians completely off guard. As soon as the weather permitted, the queen had ordered south a naval expedition ..."
^ Wilkes, J. J. The Illyrians, 1992, p. 120, ISBN 0631198075.,Page 177,"... who appears to have ruled after 168 Bc at Queen Teuta's old stronghold Rhizon (Risan). His silver issues are rare, but bronze coins, without the royal title, occur on Hvar, both ..."
^ http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=App.+Ill.+2.7,Appian, The Foreign Wars (ed. Horace White)THE ILLYRIAN WARS,The Illyrian vessels attacked the ambassadors on their voyage and slew Cleemporus, the envoy of Issa, and the Roman Coruncanius; the remainder escaped by flight.
^ Zock, 99.
^ Wilkes, J. J. The Illyrians, 1992, p. 120, ISBN 0631198075,page 161, "... Gulf of Kotor. The Romans decided that enough had been achieved and hostilities ceased. The consuls handed over Illyria to Demetrius and withdrew the fleet and army to Epidamnus , ..."
^ Eckstein, 46–59.
^ Hannibal: A History of the Art of War Among the Carthagonians and Romans Down to the Battle of Pydna, 168 B.C. by Theodore Ayrault Dodge,ISBN-10: 0306806541,1995 ,Page 164,"... Hannibal was anxious to make his descent on Italy before 'the Romans had got through with the Gallic and Illyrian wars. He had made many preparations to this end, not only in men and material, but in reconnoitring the to ..."
^ Public Organization in Ancient Greece: A Documentary Study — by Nicholas F. Jones — 1987,ISBN 0-87169-176-0

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First Illyrian War