Hibera is an ancient city, known for being a strategic point from which the

Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of Punic Wars, three wars fought between Ancient Carthage, Carthage and Roman Republic, Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For ...

is said to have originated. It was fought over by the

Carthaginians The Punic people, usually known as the Carthaginians (and sometimes as Western Phoenicians), were a Semitic people, Semitic people who Phoenician settlement of North Africa, migrated from Phoenicia to the Western Mediterranean during the Iron ...

and the Romans during this period. According to the texts, most of them from

Titus Livius Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding i ...

's ''

History of Rome The history of Rome includes the history of the city of Rome as well as the civilisation of ancient Rome. Roman history has been influential on the modern world, especially in the history of the Catholic Church, and Roman law has influenced m ...

'', the city was situated in the north east of the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

, near the mouth of the

Ebro The Ebro (Spanish and Basque ; , , ) is a river of the north and northeast of the Iberian Peninsula, in Spain. It rises in Cantabria and flows , almost entirely in an east-southeast direction. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea, forming a de ...

river. After the occupation and rule of both nations the city adopted the name

Dertosa Tortosa (, ) is the capital of the ''comarca'' of Baix Ebre, in Catalonia, Spain. Tortosa is located at above sea level, by the Ebro river, protected on its northern side by the mountains of the Cardó Massif, of which Buinaca, one of the hig ...

Archeology

For a long time nobody had found any trace that this city existed, with its foundations heavily concealed underground. This led to its very existence being disputed. In August 2007, archaeologists brought to light the remains of some of the city walls, dating from the 7th century BC near to the city of

Tortosa Tortosa (, ) is the capital of the '' comarca'' of Baix Ebre, in Catalonia, Spain. Tortosa is located at above sea level, by the Ebro river, protected on its northern side by the mountains of the Cardó Massif, of which Buinaca, one of the hi ...

. The walls provided sufficient evidence that this city existed exactly where it was written, and defended its remains from external attacks on the site.

Latin reference

'' . et Cn. Scipionestransito amne cum diu consultassent, utrum castra castris conferrent an satis haberent sociis Carthaginiensium oppugnandis morari ab itinere proposito hostem, urbem a propinquo flumine Hiberam appellatam, opulentissimam ea tempestate regionis eius, oppugnare parant. Quod ubi sensit Hasdrubal, pro ope ferenda sociis pergit ire ipse ad urbem deditam nuper in fidem Romanorum oppugnandam. Ita iam coepta obsidio omissa ab Romanis est et in ipsum Hasdrubalem versum bellum.''

"After crossing the river, they ublius and Cnaeus Scipiolong debated whether to bring their camp closer to Hasdrubal’s or whether it would suffice for them to delay the enemy’s projected march by launching attacks on Carthaginian allies. They finally prepared to attack what was at that time the richest city in the region, Hibera, which was named after the nearby river. When Hasdrubal heard about this, instead of bringing assistance to his allies, he chose rather to proceed himself with an attack on a town that had recently surrendered to the Romans. The blockade of Hibera, which had already commenced, was therefore abandoned by the Romans, whose operations were now focused directly on Hasdrubal himself."

References

{{Punic Wars navbox, state=autocollapse Ancient cities of the Iberian Peninsula Second Punic War