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In the Illyrian Wars of 229 BC and 219 BC, Rome overran the Illyrian settlements in the Neretva river valley and suppressed the piracy that had made the Adriatic unsafe for Italian commerce. There were two campaigns, the first against Teuta and the second against Demetrius of Pharos. The initial campaign in 229 BC marks the first time that the Roman Navy crossed the Adriatic Sea to launch an invasion.^[1]

In the First Illyrian War, which lasted from 229 BC to 228 BC, Rome's concern with the trade routes running across the Adriatic Sea increased after the First Punic War, when many tribes of Illyria became united under one queen, Teuta. The death of a Roman envoy on the orders of Teuta^[2] and the attack on trading vessels owned by Italian merchants under Rome's protection, prompted the Roman senate to dispatch a Roman army under the command of the consuls Lucius Postumius Albinus (consul 234 and 229 BC) and Gnaeus Fulvius Centumalus. Rome expelled Illyrian garrisons at the Greek cities Epidamnus, Apollonia, Corcyra, Pharos and others and established a protectorate over these Greek towns.

The Romans also set up Demetrius of Pharos as a power in Illyria to counter-balance the power of Teuta.^[3]

The Second Illyrian War lasted from 220 BC to 219 BC. In 219 BC the Roman Republic was at war with the Celts of Cisalpine Gaul, and the Second Punic War with Carthage was beginning. These distractions gave Demetrius the time he needed to build a new Illyrian war fleet. Leading this fleet of 90 ships, Demetrius sailed south of Lissus, violating his earlier treaty and starting the war.

Demetrius' fleet first attacked Pylos where he captured 50 ships after several attempts. From Pylos the fleet sailed to the Cyclades, quelling resistance they found on the way. Demetrius foolishly sent a fleet across the Adriatic, and, with the Illyrian forces divided, the Illyrian city of Dimale was captured by the Roman fleet under Lucius Aemilius Paulus. From Dimale the navy went towards Pharos. The forces of Rome routed the Illyrians and Demetrius fled to Macedon where he became a trusted councilor at the court of Philip V of Macedon, and remained until his death at Messene in 214 BC.

Illyria was finally conquered in 168 BC. After forty years of intermittent fighting Illyria became a province; it took another hundred years, however, before the coastal Illyrian and Dalmatian tribes were finally subjugated.

• Eckstein, Arthur. “Polybius, Demetrius of Pharus and the Origins of the Second Illyrian War.” Classical Philology 89, no. 1 (1994): 46-59
• Gruen, Erich S. (1984). The Hellenistic World and the Coming of Rome: Volume II. Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-04569-6 (2 vols.)
• Zock, Paul A. (1998). Ancient Rome: An Introductory History. Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press.

• Scerdilaidas
• Pinnes

• Maps of Illyria and Illyricum