Saguntum

Saguntum, an ancient city of Spain, in Hispania Tarraconensis, near the mouth of the Pallantias, where now stands the town of Murviedro. It was a busy mart in classical times, but owes its fame to the persistency and courage shown by the inhabitants when besieged by Hannibal in 219 B.C. After a siege of nearly a year, when further resistance had become useless, the men marched forth for a final sally, whilst the women threw themselves with their children on a pyre composed of all their worldly goods. This event was the immediate cause of the Secdnd Punic War.