Siege of Numantia

Siege of Numantia
Part of the Numantine War
Numancia, Alejo Vera y Estaca, 1881
Date 134 – 133 BC, lasting either eight or sixteen months Location Numantia, Iberia Result Roman-Numidian victory
Belligerents
Roman Republic Kingdom of Numidia	Celtiberians
Commanders and leaders
Scipio Aemilianus Jugurtha[1]	Avarus †
Strength
20,000 legionaries 40,000 allies and mercenaries	4,000 militia
Casualties and losses
Unknown	All defenders killed by their own hand Whole city destroyed

The Celtiberian oppidum of Numantia was attacked more than once by Roman forces, but the siege of Numantia refers to the culminating and pacifying action of the long-running Numantine War between the forces of the Roman Republic and those of the native population of Hispania Citerior. The Numantine War was the third of the Celtiberian Wars and it broke out in 143 BC. A decade later, in 133 BC, the Roman general and hero of the Third Punic War, Scipio Aemilianus Africanus, subjugated Numantia, the chief Celtiberian city.