Hamilcar Barca (ca. 285-ca. 229 BC) was a great Carthaginian general and statesman in the First Punic War who firmly established Carthaginian rule in Spain.

Hamilcar Barca was a daring, intelligent young man. He was appointed commander in chief in Sicily in 247 B.C., when, after 18 years of fighting, the Carthaginian forces were at their lowest. Entrusted with naval operations, he immediately set out to attack and ravage the coastline of Lucania and Bruttium. He then landed on the north coast of Sicily, seizing Mt. Hercte west of Panormus. From this vantage point he hoped to strike at the rear of the armies besieging Lily-baeum and Drepanum and possibly draw off their forces to the defense of Panormus. Meanwhile, he fortified the site, built a harbor for his fleet, and continued the raids on the Italian coast as far north as Cumae.

When, after 3 years of harassing the Romans...