<head>The Fourth Treaty</head>At the end of the first Punic war another treaty was<note anchored="yes" place="marg" id="note47">Fourth treaty, B. C. 241.</note>made, of which the chief provisions were these: "The Carthaginians shall evacuate <a class="linkToPlace" target="_blank" href="/place?placename=Sicily&groupId=973&placeId=1724">Sicily</a> and all islands lying between <a class="linkToPlace" target="_blank" href="/place?placename=Italy&groupId=656&placeId=1199">Italy</a> and <a class="linkToPlace" target="_blank" href="/place?placename=Sicily&groupId=973&placeId=1724">Sicily</a>."The allies of neither of the parties to the treaty shall be attacked by the other."Neither party shall impose any contribution, nor erect any public building, nor enlist soldiers in the dominions of the other, nor make any compact of friendship with the allies of the other."The Carthaginians shall within ten years pay to the Romans two-thousand two-hundred talents, and a thousand on the spot; and shall restore all prisoners, without ransom, to the Romans."Afterwards, at the end of the Mercenary war in <a class="linkToPlace" target="_blank" href="/place?placename=Africa&groupId=300&placeId=294">Africa</a>, the<note anchored="yes" place="marg" id="note48">Fifth treaty, B. C. 238.</note>Romans went so far as to pass a decree for war with <a class="linkToPlace" target="_blank" href="/place?placename=Carthage&groupId=441&placeId=820">Carthage</a>, but eventually made a treaty to the following effect: "The Carthaginians shall evacuate <a class="linkToPlace" target="_blank" href="/place?placename=Sardinia&groupId=947&placeId=1685">Sardinia</a>, and pay an additional twelve hundred talents."Finally, in addition to these treaties, came that negotiated<note anchored="yes" place="marg" id="note49">Sixth treaty, B. C. 228.</note>with Hasdrubal in Iberia, in which it was stipulated that "the Carthaginians should not cross the Iber with arms."Such were the mutual obligations established between <a class="linkToPlace" target="_blank" href="/place?placename=Rome&groupId=935&placeId=1669">Rome</a> and <a class="linkToPlace" target="_blank" href="/place?placename=Carthage&groupId=441&placeId=820">Carthage</a> from the earliest times to that of Hannibal.
Walbank Commentary