By place Carthage • Because of his administrative and constitutional reforms in
Carthage,
Hannibal becomes unpopular with an important faction of the Carthaginian nobility and he is denounced to the
Romans for inciting the
Seleucid king
Antiochus III to take up arms against the Romans. Rome demands that Carthage surrender Hannibal. However, Hannibal voluntarily goes into exile.
Seleucid Empire • Tensions between Antiochus III and Rome increase when Hannibal is given refuge by Antiochus III at
Ephesus and becomes his adviser. • After Roman diplomatic intervention, Antiochus III finally halts his war with
Egypt. In the peace agreement (the Peace of Lysimachia), Antiochus III formally takes possession of southern
Syria, which has been fought over for 100 years by the
Ptolemies and Seleucids, and also takes possession of the Egyptian territories in
Anatolia.
Roman Republic • A Spanish revolt against Roman consolidation of the ex-Carthaginian colonies is effectively put down by
Marcus Porcius Cato ("the Censor"). He avoids one defeat by paying the
Celtiberians 200
talents (around 120,000
denarii), a much-criticised tactic. On Cato's return to Rome,
Aemilius Paulus succeeds him as Roman governor in
Spain. • The Roman sumptuary law, the
Lex Oppia, which restricts not only a woman's wealth, but also her display of wealth, is repealed despite
consul Marcus Porcius Cato's strong opposition.
Greece • The
Battle of Gythium is fought between
Sparta and a coalition of Rome,
Rhodes, the
Achaean League and
Pergamum. As the port of
Gythium is an important Spartan base, the allies decide to capture it before they advance inland to Sparta. The Romans and the Acheans are joined outside the city by the Pergamese and Rhodian fleets. The Spartans hold out; however, the proconsul
Titus Quinctius Flamininus arrives with 4,000 extra men. Facing too great an army, the Spartans decide to surrender the city on the condition that the garrison can leave unharmed. As a result,
Nabis, the tyrant of Sparta, is forced to abandon the surrounding land and withdraw to the city of Sparta. Later that year, Sparta capitulates to the allies.
Egypt •
Aristophanes of Byzantium, Greek scholar, critic and grammarian, becomes the chief librarian at
Alexandria.
China • Facing the suspicion of
Emperor Gaozu of Han,
Lu Wan, the king of the
State of Yan, flees north of the
Great Wall of China. • Gaozu sends general
Fan Kuai to seek out Lu Wan but then arrests the general on suspicion of planning to murder
Consort Qi and her son to Gaozu,
Liu Ruyi. Gaozu dies soon after, and Fan's sister-in-law
Empress Lü orders his release. •
Chang'an, the capital of
China, is thought to become the largest city in the world at this time, taking over from
Pataliputra, the capital of the
Mauryan empire.
Korea •
Haemosu Dangun, the first ruler of
Buyeo, dies and his son
Mosuri Dangun succeeds him to the throne. == Births ==