<P> The Roman expansion in Italy covers a series of conflicts in which the city - state of Rome grew from being the dominant state in Latium to become the ruler of all of Italy . The first major Roman conquest in historical times came with the final defeat of her neighbour Veii in 396 BC . In the second half of the 4th century BC Rome clashed repeatedly with the Samnites , a powerful tribal coalition . By the end of these wars Rome had become the most powerful state in Italy . The last threat to Roman hegemony came when Tarentum enlisted the aid of Pyrrhus of Epirus during the Pyrrhic War ( 282 -- 273 BC ) . By 218 BC Roman conquest of Italy had been completed . Conquered territories were incorporated into the growing Roman state in a number of ways : land confiscations , establishment of coloniae , granting of full or partial Roman citizenship and military alliances with nominally independent states . The successful conquest of Italy gave Rome access to a manpower pool unrivalled by any contemporary state and paved the way to the eventual Roman domination of the entire Mediterranean world . </P>
<P> The Roman expansion in Italy covers a series of conflicts in which the city - state of Rome grew from being the dominant state in Latium to become the ruler of all of Italy . The first major Roman conquest in historical times came with the final defeat of her neighbour Veii in 396 BC . In the second half of the 4th century BC Rome clashed repeatedly with the Samnites , a powerful tribal coalition . By the end of these wars Rome had become the most powerful state in Italy . The last threat to Roman hegemony came when Tarentum enlisted the aid of Pyrrhus of Epirus during the Pyrrhic War ( 282 -- 273 BC ) . By 218 BC Roman conquest of Italy had been completed . Conquered territories were incorporated into the growing Roman state in a number of ways : land confiscations , establishment of coloniae , granting of full or partial Roman citizenship and military alliances with nominally independent states . The successful conquest of Italy gave Rome access to a manpower pool unrivalled by any contemporary state and paved the way to the eventual Roman domination of the entire Mediterranean world . </P>
when did rome gain control of the italian peninsula
when did rome gain control of the italian peninsula
By 218 BC
By 218 BC