Masinissa

Who was Masinissa?

Masinissa — also spelled Massinissa and Massena — was the first King of Numidia. During his younger years he fought in the Second Punic War as first a soldier against the Romans as an ally of Carthage and later switching sides when he saw which way the conflict was going. With Roman help, he united the eastern and western Numidian tribes and founded the Kingdom of Numidia . He is most famous for his role as a Roman ally in the Battle of Zama and as husband of Sophonisba, a Carthaginian noblewoman whom he allowed to poison herself to avoid being paraded in a triumph in Rome.

His name was found in his tomb of Cirta, modern-day Constantine in Algeria under the form of MSNSN.

Masinissa is largely viewed as an icon and an important forefather among modern Berbers.

Masinissa's story is told in Livy's Ab Urbe Condita.