ACarthaginian peace is the imposition of a very brutal peace intended to permanently cripple the losing side. The term derives from the peace terms imposed on theCarthaginian Empire by theRoman Republic following thePunic Wars. After theSecond Punic War, Carthage lost all its colonies, was forced to demilitarize, paid a constant tribute to Rome and was barred from waging war without Rome's permission. At the end of theThird Punic War, the Romans systematically burned Carthage to the ground and created a brutal workplace for its people, attaching the territory.
The term was popularized by the 20th century economistJohn Maynard Keynes.[1]
The term refers to the outcome of a series of wars between Rome and thePhoenician city of Carthage, known as the Punic Wars. The two empires fought three separate wars against each other, beginning in 264 BC and ending in 146 BC.
At the end of theThird Punic War, the Romans laidsiege to Carthage. When they took the city, they killed most of the inhabitants, sold the rest intoslavery, and destroyed the entire city. There is no ancient evidence for modern accounts that the Romanssowed the ground with salt.[2]
By extension, a Carthaginian peace can refer to any brutal peace treaty demanding total subjugation of the defeated side.
Modern use of the term is often extended to any peace settlement in which the peace terms are overly harsh and designed to accentuate and perpetuate the inferiority of the loser. Thus, afterWorld War I, many (the economistJohn Maynard Keynes among them[3]) described the so-called peace brought about by theTreaty of Versailles as a "Carthaginian peace."
TheMorgenthau Plan put forward afterWorld War II has also been described as a Carthaginian peace, as it advocated the deindustrialization of Germany. It was intended to severely curb the influence of German power in the region and to prevent its remilitarization, as had occurred after World War I (German rearmament and theRemilitarization of the Rhineland). The Morgenthau Plan was dropped in favor of theMarshall Plan (1948–1952), which entailed the rebuilding of Western European infrastructure, particularly inWest Germany.
GeneralLucius D. Clay, a deputy to GeneralDwight D. Eisenhower and, in 1945,Military Governor of the U.S. Occupation Zone in Germany, would later remark that "there was no doubt thatJCS 1067 contemplated the Carthaginian peace which dominated our operations in Germany during the early months ofoccupation. This is while the US was following the Morgenthau Plan."[4] Clay would later replace Eisenhower as governor and as commander-in-chief in Europe. The Marshall Plan was favored as a revival of the West German economy was considered to be necessary for the recovery of the economy of Europe. West Germany was regarded as a key bulwark against theEastern Bloc.
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