Three wars between the Roman Republic and the Carthaginian (Punic) Empire that resulted in the destruction of Carthage. These wars between Rome and Carthage took place in the 3rd-2nd centuries BC. The first (264-241 BC) was fought to establish control over the strategic islands of Corsica and Sicily. The second (218-201 BC) after which Carthage was forced to pay an indemnity and surrender its navy, and Spain and the Mediterranean islands were ceded to Rome. The third war (149-146 BC) resulted in the final destruction of Carthage, the enslavement of its population, and Roman hegemony over the western Mediterranean. Of a city population that may have exceeded a quarter of a million, only 50,000 remained at the final surrender. The survivors were sold into slavery; the city was razed, and the territory was made a Roman province under the name of Africa.