Battle of Himera (480 BC)

In the Battle of Himera in 480 BC Gelon, tyrant of Syracuse, and Theron of Akragas defeated as the leader of an alliance of Greek city-states of Sicily, led by Hamilcar the Carthaginian army, which Hamilcar was killed. Hamilcar ruled Carthage between 510-480 BC Carthage was then forced to pay compensation and was for some time his ambitions in Sicily. In the result, the cities of Syracuse and Akragas the dominant power centers in Sicily for the next few centuries were.

The reason for the battle was the expulsion of Terillos, the ruler of Himera by Theron of Akragas 483 BC Terillos the Carthaginians asked for help, who then fitting out a large force landed in Panormos and marched against Himera. Gelon won the battle against the Carthaginian army; this led to a 70 -year-long peace between Carthage and the Sicilian cities.

In the following centuries the Greek victory at Himera in history was exaggerated, which began with the First Pythian Ode of the poet Pindar. The formation of the legend of the barbarian threat to civilization (ie Greece) by Carthage began and was supplemented by the fact that suffered the same time as the Battle of Himera the Persian defeat against the Greeks. This led to the myth that the two battles took place not only on the same day, but that Persians and Carthaginians were also discussed and coordinated their activities. From this representation, mainly benefited Gelon, who was celebrated as a hero.

Main sources

• Herodotus, Histories 7, 165ff.
• Diodorus, Libraries 11, 20-24.