istoryworld
Events relating to africa
Alexander's corpse, hijacked by Ptolemy, becomes a sacred relic in Alexandria
Ptolemy begins to transform Alexandria into a centre of Greek culture, founding his famous 'museum' and library
Euclid, teaching at the museum in Alexandria, writes what becomes Europe's standard textbook on geometry
The Jewish community of Alexandria coins the word diaspora for Jews living far from Israel
The Alexandrian school of medicine develops an alarming form of clinical anatomy – human vivisection
A great lighthouse, subsequently one of the Seven Wonders of the World, is built on the island of Pharos, off Alexandria
The Jews of Alexandria commission the Greek translation of the Old Testament which becomes known as the Septuagint
A clash in Sicily, between Rome and Carthage, leads to the First Punic War
The 500,000 scrolls in the library at Alexandria are listed in a catalogue, which itself runs to 120 scrolls
A Carthaginian quinquereme, captured by the Romans, is used as the model for the first Roman fleet - constructed in two months
The first alchemists, working in Alexandria, are also the world's first experimental chemists
A Roman naval victory at Trapani, off the northwest tip of Sicily, completes the blockade of the Carthaginians and ends the First Punic War
Ptolemy III issues the Decree of Canopus, the earliest known in the Ptolemaic series of public decrees inscribed in stone in two languages and three scripts
Hannibal crosses the Alps with his elephants, beginning the Second Punic War
Hannibal suffers his first decisive defeat by a Roman army, at an unidentified site in north Africa called Zama
The text of the Rosetta stone is chiselled into a black basalt slab in the three scripts hieroglyphic Egyptian, demotic Egyptian, and Greek
Rome picks a quarrel with Carthage to begin the Third Punic War
Carthage is destroyed by the Romans at the end of the Third Punic War
The 26-year-old Pompey conducts such a successful campaign in Africa that his soldiers hail him as Pompey the Great
Cleopatra, destined to become the last ruling pharaoh as Cleopatra VII, is born in Egypt – the daughter of Ptolemy XII
Ptolemy XII dies, leaving Egypt to his young son, now Ptolemy XIII, and to his older daughter Cleopatra
In the Ptolemaic tradition, Cleopatra marries her brother Ptolemy XIII and at the age of eighteen is joint ruler of Egypt
Caesar, reaching Egypt, is not pleased when sent by Ptolemy XIII the gift of Pompey's severed head, already embalmed
Civil war breaks out in Egypt between Ptolemy XIII and his sister Cleopatra, each scheming to become sole ruler
