Pyrrhic War
In 282 BC, Rome deployed troops by sea to garrison the town of Thurii in response to an appeal for help from regional city-states like as Locri, Rhegim, Croton, and Thurii against the Lucanians. Despite the plea for assistance, Tarentum saw this as a breach of the pact and an act of hostile assault. Tarentum's first response was to drown the Roman fleet and evacuate the garrison from Thurii. In response, the Roman Senate dispatched an embassy to Tarentum under the command of L. Postumius Megellus to demand reparations. During the exchange, the Romans appear to have been insulted (a frequent theme in Livy and Polybius' history to excuse Roman invasion), and Rome declared war. Tarentum, unable to defuse the situation, raised their own army and began fighting.