208 BC

Millennium:	1st millennium BC
Centuries:	4th century BC 3rd century BC 2nd century BC
Decades:	220s BC 210s BC 200s BC 190s BC 180s BC
Years:	211 BC 210 BC 209 BC 208 BC 207 BC 206 BC 205 BC

208 BC in various calendars

Gregorian calendar	208 BC CCVIII BC
Ab urbe condita	546
Ancient Egypt era	XXXIII dynasty, 116
- Pharaoh	Ptolemy IV Philopator, 14
Ancient Greek era	143rd Olympiad (victor)¹
Assyrian calendar	4543
Balinese saka calendar	N/A
Bengali calendar	−800
Berber calendar	743
Buddhist calendar	337
Burmese calendar	−845
Byzantine calendar	5301–5302
Chinese calendar	壬辰年 (Water Dragon) 2490 or 2283     — to — 癸巳年 (Water Snake) 2491 or 2284
Coptic calendar	−491 – −490
Discordian calendar	959
Ethiopian calendar	−215 – −214
Hebrew calendar	3553–3554
Hindu calendars
- Vikram Samvat	−151 – −150
- Shaka Samvat	N/A
- Kali Yuga	2893–2894
Holocene calendar	9793
Iranian calendar	829 BP – 828 BP
Islamic calendar	854 BH – 853 BH
Javanese calendar	N/A
Julian calendar	N/A
Korean calendar	2126
Minguo calendar	2119 before ROC 民前2119年
Nanakshahi calendar	−1675
Seleucid era	104/105 AG
Thai solar calendar	335–336
Tibetan calendar	阳水龙年 (male Water-Dragon) −81 or −462 or −1234     — to — 阴水蛇年 (female Water-Snake) −80 or −461 or −1233

Year 208 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Marcellus and Crispinus (or, less frequently, year 546 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 208 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Events

By place

Roman Republic

• The Romans under Publius Cornelius Scipio defeat the Carthaginians under their commander Hasdrubal Barca at Baecula (Bailen) in Baetica. As a result, Hasdrubal Barca decides to cross the Pyrenees with his remaining troops into Transalpine Gaul, with the intention of joining his brother Hannibal in Italy.
• The Roman general Marcus Claudius Marcellus is killed in battle while fighting Hannibal near Venusia, Apulia.
• Hannibal destroys a Roman force at the Battle of Petelia.

Seleucid Empire

• Antiochus III advances into Bactria, which is ruled by the Greco-Bactrian king Euthydemus I, and defeats Euthydemus at the Battle of the Arius. After resisting a siege of his capital Bactra (Balkh) by the Seleucids, Euthydemus obtains an honourable peace by which Antiochus promises Euthydemus' son Demetrius the hand of one of his daughters.

China

• Zhang Han defeats and kills the rebel leader Xiang Liang in the Battle of Dingtao.
• Qin Prime Minister Li Si is executed by Qin Er Shi, having been conspired against by the eunuch Zhao Gao, who replaces him as Prime Minister.
• Zhang Han seizes the Zhao capital Handan and besieges its king Zhao Xie in Julu.
• Xiang Liang's nephew Xiang Yu seizes control of Liang's army.

Births

• Liu Ruyi, Chinese prince and only son of the first Han emperor Liu Bang (d. 194 BC)
• Polybius, Greek historian, famous for his book called "The Histories" or "The Rise of the Roman Empire", covering in detail the period between 220 and 146 BC (d. 120 BC)

Deaths

• Marcus Claudius Marcellus, Roman general who has captured Syracuse during the Second Punic War and has become known as "the sword of Rome" (b. 268 BC)
• Li Si, Chinese philosopher and politician (assassinated) (b. 280 BC)