One hundred years, from 300 BC to 201 BC
Hannibal crosses the Alps during the Second Punic War The 3rd century BC started the first day of 300 BC and ended the last day of 201 BC . It is considered part of the Classical Era , epoch , or historical period .
In the Mediterranean Basin , the first few decades of this century were characterized by a balance of power between the Greek Hellenistic kingdoms in the east, and the great mercantile power of Carthage in the west. This balance was shattered when conflict arose between ancient Carthage and the Roman Republic . In the following decades, the Carthaginian Republic was first humbled and then destroyed by the Romans in the First and Second Punic Wars . Following the Second Punic War , Rome became the most important power in the western Mediterranean.
In the eastern Mediterranean , the Seleucid Empire and Ptolemaic Kingdom , successor states to the empire of Alexander the Great , fought a series of Syrian Wars for control over the Levant . In mainland Greece , the short-lived Antipatrid dynasty of Macedon was overthrown and replaced by the Antigonid dynasty in 294 BC, a royal house that would dominate the affairs of Hellenistic Greece for roughly a century until the stalemate of the First Macedonian War against Rome. Macedon would also lose the Cretan War against the Greek city-state of Rhodes and its allies.
In India , Ashoka ruled the Maurya Empire . The Pandya , Chola and Chera dynasties of the classical age flourished in the ancient Tamil country .
The Warring States period in China drew to a close, with Qin Shi Huang conquering the six other nation-states and establishing the short-lived Qin dynasty , the first empire of China, which was followed in the same century by the long-lasting Han dynasty . However, a brief interregnum and civil war existed between the Qin and Han periods known as the Chu-Han contention , lasting until 202 BC with the ultimate victory of Liu Bang over Xiang Yu .
The Protohistoric Period began in Korea . In the following century the Chinese Han dynasty would conquer the Gojoseon kingdom of northern Korea. The Xiongnu were at the height of their power in Mongolia . They defeated the Han Chinese at the Battle of Baideng in 200 BC, marking the beginning of the forced Heqin tributary agreement and marriage alliance that would last several decades.
The world in the 3rd century BC Map of the world in 300 BC, the beginning of the third century BC. Map of the Hellenistic world and Maurya Empire in 281 BC. Map of the world in 200 BC, the end of the third century BC.
Events
290s BC
280s BC
270s BC The Lion Capital of Ashoka of Sarnath , Uttar Pradesh , India, now the National Emblem of India , 3rd century BC, dated to the reign of Ashoka the Great during the Maurya Empire
260s BC
250s BC
240s BC The Chinese Terracotta Army of Qin Shi Huang 's tomb at Xi'an , Shaanxi , China
230s BC
220s BC
210s BC
200s BC 208 BC : Zhao Tuo (Triệu Đà) defeats the Vietnamese king An Dương Vương .207 BC : Triệu dynasty of Viet Nam is inaugurated.206 BC : Qin dynasty falls after men from all over China revolts, attacking officials, raising armies, and declaring themselves kings of seized territories.206 BC – 202 BC : Civil war of the Chu-Han contention in China.205 BC : the Cretan War (205–200 BC) begins between Macedonia and its allies against the Greek polis of Rhodes and its allies, resulting in a Rhodian victory.202 BC : Romans defeat Carthage, ending the Second Punic War . Carthage's territories are reduced to some of its North African holdings, and crippling reparations are demanded by Rome.202 BC : In East Asia, the Chu-Han contention comes to a close, Xiang Yu commits suicide, and the Han dynasty of China is founded (202 BC–220 AD) by Liu Bang .200 BC : The Second Macedonian War between Rome and Macedon begins.Indian traders regularly visit Arabia .Scythians occupy Sogdiana , in modern-day Uzbekistan .
Inventions, discoveries, introductions Eratosthenes accurately calculates Earth's circumference and introduces the sieve of Eratosthenes , an algorithm for identifying prime numbers .Weiqi , known as Go in English, well-established in China , and may date back to the 2nd millennium BC .Crucible steel was first produced in Southern India .Canopus stele of Ptolemy III implements the leap year in Egypt. Leap year not formally recognized until Caesar in 55 BC. First Roman sundial (293 BC).[1] Toe stirrup finds its earliest manifestation in India .Water screw invented by Archimedes .The Euclidean algorithm , the oldest algorithm still in use today, introduced by Euclid . Invention of the hydraulis (the precursor to the Pipe organ ) by Ctesibius , a Greek engineer working in Alexandria . Zinc mining was first smelted from zinc ore in India Emperor Gaozu of Han China discovers an elaborate mechanical puppet theater in the treasury of the previous ruler Qin Shi Huang .The enormous Du Jiang Yan Irrigation System of China is engineered and constructed by Li Bing (李冰) in 256 BC . Great Stupa, Sanchi , Madhya Pradesh , India , Maurya period , is founded by King Chandragupta Maurya . Silk is exported to Europe from China. Armillary spheres , models of objects in the sky developed by the Greeks, are in use as teaching tools.Rotary mill invented by the ancient Greeks.[2]
Significant people Seleucus I Ptolemy Soter Demetrius Poliorcetes Pyrrhus of Epirus Hannibal Scipio Africanus Menander Zeno of Citium
Politics Appius Claudius Caecus , Roman statesmanAratus of Sicyon , Greek statesmanArsinoe II , co-ruler of Egypt Ashoka , Mauryan ruler of India Bindusara , ruler of the Mauryan Empire Diodotus I , first ruler of Greco-Bactrian Kingdom Emperor Gaozu of Han (高皇帝), founder of the Han dynasty in ChinaHamilcar Barca , Carthaginian general and politicianHannibal , Carthaginian general and politicianHanno the Great , Carthaginian politicianIlamchetchenni , king of the Chola dynasty in South India Nedunjeliyan I , ruler of the Pandya dynasty in South IndiaKing Zhaoxiang of Qin , Chinese king of the Qin stateLi Bing (李冰), Chinese administrator and engineerLi Si (李斯), Chinese Chancellor of the Qin dynasty Lü Buwei , Chinese merchant and Chancellor of QinLin Xiangru , Chinese politicianMarcus Porcius Cato , Roman statesman and writerMasinissa , king of Numidia Modu Chanyu , Xiongnu chieftainPhilip V of Macedon , King of MacedoniaPtolemy I , pharaoh of EgyptPtolemy II , pharaoh of EgyptPublius Cornelius Scipio Africanus , Roman general and politicianPyrrhus of Epirus , King of EpirusQin Shi Huang (秦始皇), Chinese EmperorQuintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus , Roman general and politicianXiao He , Chinese statesman and Chancellor of the Han dynasty Zhang Liang , Chinese strategist and statesman
Military Bai Qi (白起), Chinese generalGaius Lutatius Catulus , Roman generalHan Xin , Chinese generalHasdrubal Barca , Carthaginian generalLian Po , Chinese generalLi Mu , Chinese generalMago Barca , Carthaginian generalManius Curius Dentatus , Roman generalMarcus Atilius Regulus , Roman generalMarcus Claudius Marcellus , Roman generalMeng Tian , Chinese generalXanthippus of Carthage , Greek generalWang Jian , Chinese generalXiang Yu (項羽), Chinese rebel general against the Qin dynastyZhao Tuo , Chinese military commander who conquered the Vietnamese Kingdom of Au Lac
Literature Apollonius of Rhodes , Greek poetAratus , Greek poetCallimachus , Greek poet and scholarGnaeus Naevius , Roman poetHerodas , Greek satiristMenander , Greek playwrightMenippus , Greek satiristPlautus , Old Latin playwrightSong Yu (宋玉), Chinese poetTheocritus , Greek poetTimaeus , Greek HistorianQu Yuan (屈原), Chinese poet and scholarSangam literature (300BC-100AD), of the Tamil language
Science and philosophy Apollonius of Perga , Greek mathematicianArcesilaus , Greek philosopherArchimedes , Greek mathematician, physicist, and engineerAristarchus of Samos , Greek astronomer and mathematicianAristillus , the Greek astronomerBerossus Hellenistic Babylonian historian and astronomerConon of Samos , the Greek astronomerDemetrius of Phalerum , Greek philosopher and oratorDicaearchus , Greek philosopher and scientistEpicurus , Greek philosopherEratosthenes , Greek mathematician, geographer, and astronomerEuclid , the Greek geometerHan Fei (韓非), Chinese philosopherManetho , Hellenistic Egyptian historianMencius , Chinese philosopherPhilo of Byzantium , Greek mechanicPyrrho , Greek philosopherTheophrastus , Greek philosopherTimon of Phlius , Greek philosopherXun Kuang (荀況, Xun Li), Chinese philosopherZeno of Citium , Greek philosopherZenodotus , Greek grammarian
Sovereign states See: List of sovereign states in the 3rd century BC .
References Wikimedia Commons has media related to 3rd century BC .
^ Pliny Natural History 7.213 ^ Yannopoulos, Stavros; Lyberatos, Gerasimos; Theodossiou, Nicolaos; Li, Wang; Valipour, Mohammad; Tamburrino, Aldo; Angelakis, Andreas (2015). "Evolution of Water Lifting Devices (Pumps) over the Centuries Worldwide". Water . 7 (9): 5031–5060. doi:10.3390/w7095031 .