Carthage (Latin Carthago) great city of antiquity, on the northern coast of Africa, near modern Tunis, Tunisia. Dido was the legendary founder and queen of Carthage; the city was probably established as a trading post toward the end of the 9th century BC by Phoenicians.

Despite Carthage's fascinating history and the position of dominance it held it the ancient world, the Romans did such a thorough job demolishing it that the ruins today are something of a disappointment. Most of what remains is of Roman origin.

The earliest artifacts unearthed by archaeologists at the site date from 800 BC. The city was known to its Punic or Phoenician inhabitants as the “new city,” probably to distinguish it from Utica, the “old city.” Built on a peninsula jutting into the Gulf of Tunis, Carthage had two splendid harbors, connected by a canal. Above the harbors on a hill was the Byrsa, a walled fortress.

By the subjugation of the Libyan tribes and by the annexation of older Phoenician colonies, Carthage in the 6th century BC controlled the entire North African coast from the Atlantic Ocean to the western border of Egypt, as well as Sardinia, Malta, the Balearic Islands, and part of Sicily. A Carthaginian admiral, Hanno, made a voyage along the Atlantic coast of North Africa.

The maritime power of the Carthaginians enabled them to extend their settlements and conquests, forming a scattered empire devoted to commerce. Among the commercial enterprises were the mining of silver and lead; the manufacture of beds and bedding; a lumber industry in the Atlas Mountains; the production of simple, cheap pottery, jewelry, and glassware for trade; and the export of wild animals from African jungles, of fruits and nuts, and of ivory and gold.

Carthage engaged in war almost continually with Greece and with Rome for 150 years. Wars with Greece, beginning in 409 BC, concerned the control of Sicily, which lay only about 160 km (about 100 mi) from Carthage and formed a natural bridge between North Africa and Italy. Carthage first encountered defeat in Sicily in 480 BC, when the Carthaginian general Hamilcar (flourished 5th century BC) commanded a force that hoped to expand Carthaginian influence throughout Sicily, but was defeated by Gelon, the tyrant (ruler) of Syracuse.

Further Carthaginian attempts to conquer Sicily were thwarted by armies under the command of the Syracusan tyrants Dionysius the Younger, Dionysius the Elder, Agathocles, and Pyrrhus, king of Epirus. After their final defeat in 276 BC, the Carthaginians continued to hold territory in Sicily; 12 years later the first of the Punic Wars against Rome began.

In 122 BC a new city, Colonia Junonia, was founded; it lasted only 30 years. In 46 BC Julius Caesar visited the site and proclaimed that a city should be built there. His wishes were fulfilled by the Roman emperor Augustus, in 29 BC, when a city called Colonia Julia Carthago was founded. This new city flourished until, according to some historians, it was second only to Rome in prosperity and administrative importance.

Roman Carthage also became a center of Christianity, being the seat of a bishop from late in the 2nd century. St. Cyprian was bishop there in 248; Tertullian, a Christian ecclesiastical writer, lived and worked in Carthage in the 3rd century; and St. Augustine was bishop of nearby Hippo in the early 5th century.

Carthage was fortified against barbarian attack in 425. In 439 the Vandal king Gaiseric subjugated the city. It remained the Vandal capital until 533, when the Byzantine general Belisarius captured the city, renaming it Colonia Justiniana Carthago in honor of the Byzantine emperor Justinian I. Between 697 and 705 the city was captured by the Arabs.

In 698 it was again destroyed. A great deal of archaeological activity was carried on at the site, particularly in the late 19th century, uncovering early Punic artifacts and Roman, Byzantine, and Vandal buildings. Today Carthage is a wealthy suburb of Tunis.

There are six main sights, and the hassle for visitors is that they’re spread out over a wide area. To overcome this, hop on the TGM (light rail) line that runs through the middle of the area, but be forewarned: it’ll still require a fair amount of hoofing it.

The best place to start is Byrsa Hill, which dominates the area and gives a good view of the whole site from its peak. At its base is the Cathedral of St Louis, visible for miles around and an eyesore of massive proportions. It was built by the French in 1890 and dedicated to the 13th century saint-king who died on the shores of Carthage in 1270 during the ill-fated 8th Crusade. Though it was deconsecrated and closed for years, its has now been restored and is open to the public.

The National Museum is the large white building at the back of the cathedral, and its recently revamped displays are well worth a look. The Punic displays upstairs are especially good.

The Roman amphitheatre on the west side of the Byrsa, a 15-minute walk from the museum, is said to have been one of the largest in the Empire, though little of its grandeur remains today. Most of its stones were pinched for other building projects in later centuries. The collection of huge cisterns north-east of the amphitheatre were the main water supply for Carthage during the Roman era - they’re now ruined and hardly worth the scramble through prickly pear cactus.

The Antonine Baths are right down on the waterfront and are impressive more for their size and location than for anything else. The Magon Quarter is another archaeological park near the water, a few blocks south of the baths. Recent excavations have revealed an interesting residential area.

The Sanctuary of Tophet created a great deal of excitement when it was first excavated in 1921 and has gone on to elicit a fair amount of ‘excited’ prose since then. The Tophet was a sacrificial site with an associated burial ground, where the children of Carthaginian nobles were killed and roasted to appease the deities Baal Hammon and Tanit. The site itself is not so thrilling today - it’s little more than a patch of overgrown weeds with a few excavated pits.

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