Roman Conquest of Sicily 2 (Archimedes)

The Siege of Syracuse by the Roman Republic took place in 213–212 BCE. The city was fiercely defended for many months against all the measures the Romans could bring to bear. Archimedes, the great inventor and polymath devised defensive devices to counter the Roman efforts including a huge crane operated hook – the Claw of Archimedes – that was used to lift the enemy ships out of the sea before dropping them to their doom. Legend has it that he also created a giant mirror (see Heat ray) that was used to deflect the powerful Mediterranean sun onto the ships’ sails, setting fire to them. These measures, along with the fire from ballistas and onagers mounted on the city walls, frustrated the Romans. The siege bogged down to a stalemate with the Romans unable to force their way into the city or keep their blockade tight enough to stop supplies reaching the defenders, and the Syracusians unable to force the Romans to successes of the Syracusians in repelling the Roman siege had made them overconfi