Hannibal, son of Hamilcar BarcaHamilcar Barca or Barcas was a Carthaginian general and statesman, leader of the Barcid family, and father of Hannibal, Hasdrubal and Mago. He was also father-in-law to Hasdrubal the Fair....
, (248–183 or 182 BC
[Hannibal's date of death is most commonly given as 183 BC, but there is a possibility it could have taken place in 182 BC.]), commonly known as
Hannibal (in
PunicThe Punic language is an extinct Semitic language formerly spoken in the Mediterranean region of North Africa and several Mediterranean islands, by people of the Punic culture.- Description :...
:
Annobal, meaning "Ba'al's grace/help/blessing",
GreekGreek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...
:
ο Άννίβας), was a
CarthaginianCarthage refers both to an ancient city in present-day Tunisia, and a modern-day suburb of Tunis. The civilization that developed within the city's sphere of influence is referred to as Punic or Carthaginian...
military commander and tactician who is popularly credited as one of the most talented commanders in history. His father Hamilcar Barca was the leading Carthaginian commander during the
First Punic WarThe First Punic War was the first of three major wars fought between Carthage and the Roman Republic. For 23 years, the two powers struggled for supremacy in the western Mediterranean Sea. Carthage, located in what is today Tunisia, was the dominant Western Mediterranean power at the beginning of...
, his younger brothers were Mago and Hasdrubal, and he was brother-in-law to
Hasdrubal the FairHasdrubal the Fair was a Carthaginian military leader.He was the brother-in-law of Hannibal and son-in-law of Hamilcar Barca, who followed the latter in his campaign against the governing aristocracy at Carthage at the close of the First Punic War, and in his subsequent career of conquest in...
.
Hannibal lived during a period of tension in the Mediterranean, when
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated municipality , with over 2.7 million residents in , while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat to be 3.46 million. The metropolitan area of Rome is estimated by OECD to have a population of 3.7 million...
(then the
Roman RepublicThe Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a republican form of government. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, c...
) established its supremacy over other great powers such as
CarthageCarthage refers both to an ancient city in present-day Tunisia, and a modern-day suburb of Tunis. The civilization that developed within the city's sphere of influence is referred to as Punic or Carthaginian...
, and the Hellenistic kingdoms of
MacedonMacedonia or Macedon was an ancient kingdom, centered in the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, bordered by Epirus to the west, Paionia to the north, the region of Thrace to the east and Thessaly to the south...
, Syracuse, and the
Seleucid empireThe Seleucid Empire was a Hellenistic empire, i.e. a successor state of Alexander the Great's empire. The Seleucid Empire was centered in the near East and at the height of its power included central Anatolia, the Levant, Mesopotamia, Persia, today's Turkmenistan, Pamir and parts of Pakistan...
. One of his most famous achievements was at the outbreak of the
Second Punic WarThe Second Punic War, also referred to as The Hannibalic War and The War Against Hannibal, lasted from 218 to 201 BC and involved combatants in the western and eastern Mediterranean. This was the second major war between Carthage and the Roman Republic, who had three warring conflicts against each...
, when he marched an army, which included
war elephantA war elephant is an elephant trained and guided by humans for combat. Their main use was to charge the enemy, trampling them and breaking their ranks....
s, from
IberiaThe Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes modern-day Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar and a very small area of France. It is the westernmost of the three major southern European peninsulas—the Iberian, Italian, and Balkan peninsulas...
over the
PyreneesThe Pyrenees are a range of mountains in southwest Europe that form a natural border between France and Spain...
and the
AlpsThe Alps are one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east; through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany; to France in the west....
into northern
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
. In his first few years in Italy, he won three dramatic victories Trebia,
TrasimeneThe Battle of Lake Trasimene was a Roman defeat in the Second Punic War between the Carthaginians under Hannibal and the Romans under the consul Gaius Flaminius...
and
CannaeThe Battle of Cannae was a major battle of the Second Punic War, taking place on August 2, 216 BC near the town of Cannae in Apulia in southeast Italy. The army of Carthage under Hannibal decisively defeated a numerically superior army of the Roman Republic under command of the consuls Lucius...
and won over several Roman allies. Hannibal occupied much of Italy for 15 years, however a Roman counter-invasion of
North AfricaNorth Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa.Geopolitically, the UN definition of Northern Africa includes the following seven countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia,Mauritania, and...
forced Hannibal to return to Carthage, where he was decisively defeated by
Scipio AfricanusPublius Cornelius Scipio Africanus also known as Scipio Africanus, Scipio the Elder, and Africanus the Elder was a general in the Second Punic War and statesman of the Roman Republic...
at the
Battle of ZamaThe Battle of Zama, fought around October 19, 202 BC, marked the final and decisive end of the Second Punic War. A Roman army led by Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus defeated a Carthaginian force led by Hannibal...
. Scipio studied Hannibal's tactics and brilliantly devised some of his own, and finally defeated Rome's nemesis at Zama having previously driven Hasdrubal, Hannibal's brother, out of Spain.
After the war Hannibal successfully ran for the office of
suffeteIn Hebrew and several other Semitic languages, shofet literally means "Judge", from the verb "Š-P-T", "to pass judgment". Cognate titles exist in other Semitic cultures, notably Phoenicia.-Hebrew:...
. He enacted political and financial reforms to enable the payment of the war indemnity imposed by Rome. However, Hannibal's reforms were unpopular with members of the Carthaginian aristocracy and Rome, and he fled into voluntary exile. During his exile, he lived at the
SeleucidThe Seleucid Empire was a Hellenistic empire, i.e. a successor state of Alexander the Great's empire. The Seleucid Empire was centered in the near East and at the height of its power included central Anatolia, the Levant, Mesopotamia, Persia, today's Turkmenistan, Pamir and parts of Pakistan...
court, where he acted as military advisor to Antiochus III in his war against Rome. After Antiochus met defeat and was forced to accept Rome's terms, Hannibal fled again, making a stop in
ArmeniaThe Kingdom of Armenia was an independent kingdom from 190 BC to AD 387 and a client state of the Roman and Persian empires until 428, stretching from the Caspian to the Mediterranean seas.- History :...
. His flight ended in the court of
BithyniaBithynia was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor, adjoining the Propontis, the Thracian Bosporus and the Euxine .-Description:...
, where he achieved an outstanding naval victory against a fleet from Pergamum. He was afterwards betrayed to the Romans.
Often regarded as the greatest military tactician and strategist in history, Hannibal would later be considered as one of the greatest generals of antiquity, together with
Alexander the GreatAlexander III of Macedon, popularly known as Alexander the Great , was an Ancient Greek king of Macedon who created one of the largest empires in ancient history...
,
Julius CaesarGaius Julius Caesar , , was a Roman military and political leader. He played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
,
ScipioPublius Cornelius Scipio Africanus also known as Scipio Africanus, Scipio the Elder, and Africanus the Elder was a general in the Second Punic War and statesman of the Roman Republic...
, and
Pyrrhus of EpirusPyrrhus or Pyrrhos was a Greek general of the Hellenistic era. He was king of the Greek tribe of Molossians, of the royal Aeacid house , and later he became King of Epirus and Macedon . He was one of the strongest opponents of early Rome...
.
PlutarchPlutarch, born Plutarchos then, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. AD 46 – 120, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
gives that, when questioned by Scipio as to who was the greatest general, Hannibal is said to have replied either Alexander, Pyrrhus, then himself, or, according to another version of the event, Pyrrhus, Scipio, then himself. Military historian
Theodore Ayrault DodgeTheodore Ayrault Dodge was an American officer and military historian. He fought as Union officer in the American Civil War; as a writer, he devoted to both Civil War and of the great generals of ancient and European history....
once famously called Hannibal the
"father of strategy", because his greatest enemy, Rome, came to adopt elements of his military tactics in its own strategic arsenal. This praise has earned him a strong reputation in the modern world and he was regarded as a "gifted strategist" by men like Napoleon Bonaparte and the
Duke of WellingtonField Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, KP, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Anglo-Irish soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the nineteenth century....
. His life has been the basis for a number of films and documentaries.
He has been attributed with the famous quotation, "We will either find a way, or make one."
Background and early career
Hannibal was one of the sons of
Hamilcar BarcaHamilcar Barca or Barcas was a Carthaginian general and statesman, leader of the Barcid family, and father of Hannibal, Hasdrubal and Mago. He was also father-in-law to Hasdrubal the Fair....
, a Carthaginian leader. He had several sisters and two brothers, Hasdrubal and Mago. His brothers-in-law were
Hasdrubal the FairHasdrubal the Fair was a Carthaginian military leader.He was the brother-in-law of Hannibal and son-in-law of Hamilcar Barca, who followed the latter in his campaign against the governing aristocracy at Carthage at the close of the First Punic War, and in his subsequent career of conquest in...
and the Numidian king
NaravasNaravas was a Numidian leader in the Punic War era. Naravas is the Greek form of Narbal or Naarbaal.-Alliance with Hamilcar Barca:During the Punic Wars, Naravas had joined the army of Spendius. During a critical time, he switched his allegiance to Hamilcar Barca of Carthage. In 239 BC, he...
. He was still a child when his sisters married and his brothers-in-law were close associates during his father's struggles in the
Mercenary WarThe Mercenary War — also called the Libyan War and the Truceless War by Polybius — was an uprising of mercenary armies formerly employed by Carthage, backed by Libyan settlements revolting against Carthaginian control....
and the Punic conquest of Iberia. In light of Hamilcar Barca's
cognomenThe cognomen was the third name of a citizen of Ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. The cognomen started as a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became hereditary...
, historians refer to Hamilcar's family as the
BarcidThe Barcid family was a notable family in the ancient city of Carthage; many of its members were fierce enemies of the Roman Republic. "Barcid" was coined by historians; the actual byname was Barca or Barcas, which means lightning...
s. However, there is debate as to whether the cognomen Barca (meaning "thunderbolt") was applied to Hamilcar alone or was hereditary within his family. If the latter, then Hannibal and his brothers also bore the name 'Barca'.
After Carthage's defeat in the
First Punic WarThe First Punic War was the first of three major wars fought between Carthage and the Roman Republic. For 23 years, the two powers struggled for supremacy in the western Mediterranean Sea. Carthage, located in what is today Tunisia, was the dominant Western Mediterranean power at the beginning of...
, Hamilcar set out to improve his family's and Carthage's fortunes. With that in mind and supported by Gades, Hamilcar began the subjugation of the tribes of the
Iberian PeninsulaThe Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes modern-day Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar and a very small area of France. It is the westernmost of the three major southern European peninsulas—the Iberian, Italian, and Balkan peninsulas...
. Carthage at the time was in such a poor state that its navy was unable to transport his army to
IberiaThe Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes modern-day Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar and a very small area of France. It is the westernmost of the three major southern European peninsulas—the Iberian, Italian, and Balkan peninsulas...
(
HispaniaHispania was the name given by the Romans to the whole of the Iberian Peninsula . When Rome was a republic, Hispania was divided into two provinces: Hispania Citerior and Hispania Ulterior...
); instead, Hamilcar had to march it towards the
Pillars of HerculesThe Pillars of Hercules was the phrase that was applied in Antiquity to the promontories that flank the entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar. The northern Pillar is the Rock of Gibraltar in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar...
and transport it across the
Strait of GibraltarThe Strait of Gibraltar is a narrow strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and separates Spain from Morocco...
(present-day
MoroccoMorocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country located in North Africa with a population of nearly 32 million and an area just under . Its capital is Rabat, and its largest city is Casablanca. Morocco has a coast on the Atlantic Ocean that reaches past the Strait of Gibraltar into the...
/
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
).
According to
LivyTitus Livius , known as Livy in English, was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
, Hannibal much later said that when he came upon his father and begged to go with him, Hamilcar agreed and demanded him to swear that as long as he lived he would never be a friend of Rome. There is even an account of him at a very young age begging his father to take him to an overseas war. In the story, Hannibal's father took him up and brought him to a sacrificial chamber. Hamilcar held Hannibal over the fire roaring in the chamber and made him swear that he would never be a friend of Rome. Other sources report that Hannibal told his father, "
I swear so soon as age will permit...I will use fire and steel to arrest the destiny of Rome."
Hannibal's father went about the conquest of
HispaniaHispania was the name given by the Romans to the whole of the Iberian Peninsula . When Rome was a republic, Hispania was divided into two provinces: Hispania Citerior and Hispania Ulterior...
. When his father was killed in battle, Hannibal's brother-in-law
HasdrubalHasdrubal the Fair was a Carthaginian military leader.He was the brother-in-law of Hannibal and son-in-law of Hamilcar Barca, who followed the latter in his campaign against the governing aristocracy at Carthage at the close of the First Punic War, and in his subsequent career of conquest in...
succeeded to his command of the army with Hannibal serving as an officer under him. Hasdrubal pursued a policy of consolidation of Carthage's Iberian interests, even signing a
treatyA treaty is an agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as: agreement, protocol, covenant, convention, exchange of letters, etc...
with Rome whereby Carthage would not expand north of the
EbroThe Ebro or Ebre is Spain's most voluminous river. Its source is in Fontibre . It flows through cities such as Miranda de Ebro, Logroño, Zaragoza, Flix, Tortosa, and Amposta before discharging in a delta on the Mediterranean Sea in the province of Tarragona.-Name:The Romans named this river Iber...
River, so long as Rome did not expand south of it. Hasdrubal also endeavored to consolidate Carthaginian power through diplomatic relationships with native tribes. As a part of his deals Hasdrubal arranged the marriage between Hannibal and an Iberian princess named Imilce.
Upon the assassination of Hasdrubal (221 BC), Hannibal was proclaimed commander-in-chief by the army and confirmed in his appointment by the Carthaginian government.
LivyTitus Livius , known as Livy in English, was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
, a Roman scholar, gives a depiction of the young Carthaginian:
After he assumed command, Hannibal spent two years consolidating his holdings and completing the conquest of Hispania south of the Ebro. However, Rome, fearing the growing strength of Hannibal in Iberia, made an alliance with the city of Saguntum which lay a considerable distance south of the River Ebro and claimed the city as its
protectorateA protectorate, in international law, is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity. In exchange for this, the protectorate usually accepts specified obligations, which may vary greatly, depending on the real nature of...
. Hannibal perceived this as a breach of the treaty signed with Hasdrubal and so he laid
siegeA siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit"....
to the city, which fell after eight months. Rome reacted to this apparent violation of the treaty and demanded justice from Carthage. In view of Hannibal's great popularity, the Carthaginian government did not repudiate Hannibal's actions, and the war he sought was declared at the end of the year. Hannibal was now determined to carry the war into the heart of Italy by a rapid march through Hispania and southern
GaulGaul is a historical name used in the context of the Roman Empire in references to the region of Western Europe approximating present day France and Belgium, but also sometimes including the Po Valley, western Switzerland, and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the River...
.
Overland journey to Italy
The journey was planned originally by Hannibal's brother-in-law Hasdrubal.
Hasdrubal became Carthaginian commander in
IberiaThe Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes modern-day Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar and a very small area of France. It is the westernmost of the three major southern European peninsulas—the Iberian, Italian, and Balkan peninsulas...
in 229 BC, a post he would maintain for some eight years until 221 BC. Soon the Romans became aware of an alliance between Carthage and the Celts of the Po River valley in Northern Italy. The latter were amassing forces to invade Italy, presumably with Carthaginian backing. Thus, the Romans pre-emptively invaded the Po region in 225 BC. By 220 BC, the Romans had annexed the area as Gallia Cisalpina . Hasdrubal was assassinated around the same time (221 BC), bringing Hannibal to the fore. It seems that, having apparently dealt with the threat of a Gaulo-Carthaginian invasion of Italy (and perhaps with the original Carthaginian commander killed), the Romans lulled themselves into a false sense of security. Thus, Hannibal took the Romans by surprise a scant two years later in 218 BC by merely reviving and adapting the original Gaulo-Carthaginian invasion plan of his brother-in-law.
Hannibal departed New Carthage in late spring of 218 BC He fought his way through the northern tribes to the
PyreneesThe Pyrenees are a range of mountains in southwest Europe that form a natural border between France and Spain...
, subduing the tribes through clever mountain tactics and stubborn fighting. He left a detachment of 11,000 troops to garrison the newly conquered region. At the Pyrenees, he released another 11,000 Iberian troops who showed reluctance to leave their homeland. Hannibal reportedly entered Gaul with 40,000 foot soldiers and 12,000 horsemen.
Hannibal recognized that he still needed to cross the Pyrenees, the Alps, and many significant rivers. Additionally, he would have to contend with opposition from the
GaulGaul is a historical name used in the context of the Roman Empire in references to the region of Western Europe approximating present day France and Belgium, but also sometimes including the Po Valley, western Switzerland, and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the River...
s, whose territory he passed through. Starting in the spring of 218 BC, he easily fought his way through the northern tribes to the Pyrenees and, by conciliating the Gaulish chiefs along his passage, reached the
Rhône RiverThe Rhone is one of the major rivers of Europe, originating in Switzerland and running from there through the south-eastern corner of France...
before the Romans could take any measures to bar his advance. Arriving at the Rhône in September, Hannibal's army numbered 38,000 infantry, 8,000 cavalry, and 37 war elephants.
After outmaneuvering the natives, who had tried to prevent his crossing, Hannibal evaded a Roman force marching from the Mediterranean coast by turning inland up the valley of the Rhône. His exact route over the Alps has been the source of scholarly dispute ever since. (Polybius, the surviving ancient account closest in time to Hannibal's campaign, reports that the route was already debated.) The most influential modern theories favour either a march up the valley of the
DrômeDrôme is a department in southeastern France named after the Drôme River.-History:Drôme is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
and a crossing of the main range to the south of the modern highway over the
Col de MontgenèvreThe Col de Montgenèvre is a high mountain pass in the Cottian Alps, between France and Italy.The pass is named after the village Montgenèvre , which lies in the vicinity of the pass...
or a march farther north up the valleys of the
IsereVal-d'Isère is a commune in the Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.It lies 5 km from the border with Italy...
and Arc crossing the main range near the present
Col de Mont CenisMont Cenis is a massif and pass in Savoie in France which forms the limit between the Cottian and Graian Alps.A road over the pass was built between 1803 and 1810 by Napoleon...
or the
Little St Bernard PassThe Little St Bernard Pass is a mountain pass in the Alps on the France–Italy border. Its saddle is at 2188 metres above sea level. It is located between Savoie, France and Valle d'Aosta, Italy to the south of the Mont Blanc Massif, precisely on the main alpine watershed. There is also a Great St...
.
By Livy's account the crossing was accomplished in the face of huge difficulties. These Hannibal surmounted with ingenuity such as when he used vinegar and fire to break through a rockfall. According to Polybius he arrived in Italy accompanied by 20,000 foot soldiers and 4000 horsemen, and only a few elephants. If Polybius is correct in his figure for the number of troops he commanded after the crossing of the Rhone this would suggest that he had lost almost half of his force. Historians like Serge Lancell have questioned the reliability of the figures for the number of troops he had when he left Hispania. From the start, he seems to have calculated that he would have to operate without aid from Hispania.
Battle of Trebia
Hannibal's perilous march brought him into the Roman territory and frustrated the attempts of the enemy to fight out the main issue on foreign ground. His sudden appearance among the
GaulGaul is a historical name used in the context of the Roman Empire in references to the region of Western Europe approximating present day France and Belgium, but also sometimes including the Po Valley, western Switzerland, and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the River...
s of the
PoThe Po is a river that flows either or – considering the length of the Maira, a right bank tributary – eastward across northern Italy, from a spring seeping from a stony hillside at Pian del Re, a flat place at the head of the Val Po under the northwest...
Valley, moreover, enabled him to detach those tribes from their new allegiance to the Romans before the latter could take steps to check the
rebellionRebellion is a refusal of obedience or order. It may, therefore, be seen as encompassing a range of behaviors from civil disobedience and mass nonviolent resistance, to violent and organized attempts to destroy an established authority such as the government. Those who participate in rebellions are...
.
Publius Cornelius ScipioPublius Cornelius Scipio was a general and statesman of the Roman Republic.A member of the Cornelia gens, Scipio served as consul in 218 BC, the first year of the Second Punic War, and sailed with an army from Pisa to Massilia , with the intention of arresting Hannibal's advance on Italy...
, the consul who commanded the Roman force sent to intercept Hannibal, and Scipio Africanus' father, had not expected Hannibal to make an attempt to cross the Alps, since the Romans were prepared to fight the war in
IberiaThe Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes modern-day Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar and a very small area of France. It is the westernmost of the three major southern European peninsulas—the Iberian, Italian, and Balkan peninsulas...
. With a small detachment still positioned in Gaul, Scipio made an attempt to intercept Hannibal. Through prompt decision and speedy movement, he succeeded in transporting his army to Italy by sea, in time to meet Hannibal. Hannibal's forces moved through the Po Valley and were engaged in a small confrontation at
TicinusThe Battle of Ticinus was a battle of the Second Punic War fought between the Carthaginian forces of Hannibal and the Romans under Publius Cornelius Scipio in November 218 BC. The battle took place in the flat country of Pavia county on the right bank of the Ticino River not far north from its...
. Here, Hannibal forced the Romans, by virtue of his superior
cavalryCavalry were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback in combat. Cavalry were historically the second oldest and most mobile of the combat arms...
, to evacuate the plain of
LombardyLombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region...
. While the victory was minor, it encouraged the Gauls and Ligurians to join the Carthaginian cause, whose troops bolstered his army back to 40,000 men. Scipio was severely injured, his life only saved by the bravery of his son who rode back onto the field to rescue his fallen father. Scipio retreated across the river Trebia to camp at
PlacentiaPiacenza is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Piacenza...
with his army intact.
The other Roman
consul-Ancient Rome:During the time of ancient Rome as a Republic, the consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates, serving as the heads of government for the Republic. New consuls were elected every year. There were two consuls, and they ruled together...
ar army was rushed to the Po Valley. Even before news of the defeat at Ticinus had reached Rome, the senate had ordered the consul Sempronius Longus to bring his army back from Sicily to meet Scipio and face Hannibal. Hannibal, by skillful maneuvers, was in position to head him off, for he lay on the direct road between Placentia and Arminum, by which Sempronius would have to march in order to reinforce Scipio. He then captured Clastidium, from which he drew large amounts of rations for his men. But this gain was not without its loss, as Sempronius avoided Hannibal's watchfulness, slipped around his flank, and joined his colleague in his camp near the Trebia River near
PlacentiaPiacenza is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Piacenza...
. There, in December of the same year, Hannibal had an opportunity to show his superior military skill at Trebia; after wearing down the excellent Roman
infantryInfantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of the Combat Arms they are the backbone of armies...
he cut it to pieces by a surprise attack from an
ambushAn ambush is a long-established military tactic, in which the aggressors use concealment to attack a passing enemy. Ambushers strike from concealed positions, such as among dense underbrush or behind hilltops. Ambushes have been used consistently throughout history, from ancient to modern warfare...
in the flank.
Battle of Lake Trasimene
Having secured his position in northern Italy by this victory, Hannibal quartered his troops for the winter with the Gauls, whose support for him abated. In the Spring of 217 BC, Hannibal decided to find a more reliable base of operations farther south. Expecting Hannibal to carry on advancing to Rome, Cnaeus Servilius and Gaius Flaminius (the new Consuls of Rome) took their armies to block the Eastern and Western routes Hannibal could use to get to Rome.
The only alternate route to central Italy lay at the mouth of the
ArnoThe Arno is a river in the Tuscany region of Italy.Arno may also refer to:- Given name :* Arno Breker, German sculptor* Arno Hintjens, Belgian singer* Arno Pijpers , Dutch football coach* Arno Saarinen , Finnish gymnast...
. This route was practically one huge marsh, and happened to be overflowing more than usual during this particular season. Hannibal knew that this route was full of difficulties, but it remained the surest and certainly the quickest route to Central Italy. As
PolybiusPolybius was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic Period noted for his book called The Histories covering in detail the period of 220–146 BC...
claims, Hannibal’s men marched for four days and three nights, “through a route which was under water”, suffering terribly from fatigue and enforced want of sleep. He crossed the
ApenninesThe Apennines or Apennine Mountains is a mountain range stretching c. 1,200 km from the north to the south of Italy along its east coast, traversing the entire peninsula, and forming the backbone of the country...
(during which he lost his right eye because of
conjunctivitisConjunctivitis is an inflammation of the conjunctiva , most commonly due to an allergic reaction or an infection...
) and the seemingly impassable Arno without opposition, but in the marshy lowlands of the Arno, he lost a large part of his force, including, it would seem, his remaining elephants.
Arriving in
EtruriaEtruria — usually referred to in Greek and Latin source texts as Tyrrhenia — was a region of Central Italy, an area that covered part of what now are Tuscany, Latium, Emilia-Romagna and Umbria. A particularly noteworthy work dealing with Etruscan locations is D. H...
in the spring of 217 BC, Hannibal decided to lure the main Roman army, under Flaminius, into a pitched battle, by devastating under his very own eye the area Flaminius had been sent to protect. As Polybius tells us,
“he [Hannibal] calculated that, if he passed the camp and made a descent into the district beyond, Flaminius (partly for fear of popular reproach and partly of personal irritation) would be unable to endure watching passively the devastation of the country but would spontaneously follow him . . . and give him opportunities for attack.” At the same time, Hannibal tried to break the allegiance of Rome’s allies, by proving that Flaminius was powerless to protect them. Despite this, Hannibal found Flaminius still passively encamped at Arretium. Unable to draw Flaminius into battle by mere devastation, Hannibal marched boldly around his opponent’s left flank and effectively cut Flaminius off from Rome (thus executing the first recorded
turning movementIn military tactics, a turning movement involves an attacker's forces reaching the rear of a defender's forces, separating the defender from their principal defensive positions. The defender must then abandon these positions, or send considerable forces to attempt to recapture them....
in military history). Advancing through the uplands of
EtruriaEtruria — usually referred to in Greek and Latin source texts as Tyrrhenia — was a region of Central Italy, an area that covered part of what now are Tuscany, Latium, Emilia-Romagna and Umbria. A particularly noteworthy work dealing with Etruscan locations is D. H...
, Hannibal provoked Flaminius to a hasty pursuit and, catching him in a
defileDefile is a geographic term for a narrow pass or gorge between mountains or hills. It has its origins as a military description of a pass through which troops can march only in a narrow column or with a narrow front...
on the shore of
Lake TrasimenusLake Trasimeno or Trasimene , is the largest lake on the Italian peninsula south of the Po with a surface area of 128 km², slightly less than Lake Como...
, destroyed his army in the waters or on the adjoining slopes while killing Flaminius as well (see
Battle of Lake TrasimeneThe Battle of Lake Trasimene was a Roman defeat in the Second Punic War between the Carthaginians under Hannibal and the Romans under the consul Gaius Flaminius...
). This was the most costly ambush the Romans would ever sustain until the
Battle of CarrhaeThe Battle of Carrhae, fought in 53 BC near the town of Carrhae, was a major battle between the Parthian Empire and the Roman Republic. A Roman invasion force led by Marcus Licinius Crassus was decisively crushed by the Parthian Spahbod Surena...
against the Parthians. He had now disposed of the only field force which could check his advance upon Rome, but, realizing that without
siege engineA siege engine is a device that is designed to break or circumvent city walls and other fortifications in siege warfare. Some have been operated close to the fortifications, while others have been used to attack from a distance. From antiquity, siege engines were constructed largely of wood and...
s he could not hope to take the capital, he preferred to exploit his victory by passing into central and southern Italy and encouraging a general revolt against the sovereign power. After Lake Trasimene, Hannibal stated,
“I have not come to fight Italians, but on behalf of the Italians against Rome.”
The Romans appointed
Fabius MaximusQuintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator , was a Roman politician and general, born in Rome around 280 BC and died in Rome in 203 BC. He was Roman Consul five times and was twice Dictator in 221 and again in 217 BC. He reached the office of Roman Censor in 230 BC...
as a dictator.
Departing from Roman military traditions, Fabius adopted the
Fabian strategyThe Fabian strategy is a military strategy where pitched battles are avoided in favor of wearing down an opponent through a war of attrition. While avoiding decisive battles, the side employing this strategy harasses its enemy to cause attrition and loss of morale...
— named after him — of refusing open battle with his opponent while placing several Roman armies in Hannibal’s vicinity to limit his movement.
Having ravaged Apulia without provoking Fabius to battle, Hannibal decided to march through
SamniumSamnium is a historical region of the south central Apennines in Italy, that was home to the Samnites, a group of Sabellic tribes that controlled the area from about 600 BC to about 290 BC. Samnium was delimited by Latium in the north, by Lucania in the south, by Campania in the west and by Apulia...
to
CampaniaCampania is a region of southern Italy in Europe. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,595 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
, one of the richest and most fertile provinces of Italy, hoping that the devastation would draw Fabius into battle. Fabius closely followed Hannibal’s path of destruction, yet still refused to let himself be drawn, and thus remained on the defensive. This strategy was unpopular with many Romans, who believed it was a form of cowardice.
Hannibal decided that it would be unwise to winter in the already devastated lowlands of Campania but Fabius had ensured that all the passes out of Campania were blocked. To avoid this, Hannibal deceived the Romans into thinking that the Carthaginian Army was going to escape through the woods. As the Romans moved off towards the woods, Hannibal's army occupied the pass, and his army made their way through the pass unopposed. Fabius was within striking distance but in this case his caution worked against him. Smelling a stratagem (rightly), he stayed put. For the winter, Hannibal found comfortable quarters in the
ApuliaApulia is a region in southeastern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its southern portion known as Salento, a peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy...
n plain. What Hannibal achieved in extricating his army was, as
Adrian GoldsworthyAdrian Goldsworthy is a British historian and military writer. Goldsworthy went to college in Westbourne School, Penarth. Later, after studying ancient and modern history at St John's College, Oxford, he completed a D.Phil in ancient military history from Oxford University in 1994, using his...
puts it,
"a classic of ancient generalship, finding its way into nearly every historical narrative of the war and being used by later military manuals". This was a severe blow to Fabius’s prestige, and soon after this, his period of power ended.
Battle of Cannae
In the spring of 216 BC, Hannibal took the initiative and seized the large supply depot at Cannae in the Apulian plain. By seizing Cannae, Hannibal had placed himself between the Romans and their crucial source of supply. Once the Roman Senate resumed their Consular elections in 216 BC, they appointed
Gaius Terentius VarroGaius Terentius Varro was a Roman consul and commander. Along with his colleague, Lucius Aemilius Paullus, he commanded at the Battle of Cannae during the Second Punic War, in 216 BC, against the Carthaginian general Hannibal. The battle proved to be a decisive Roman defeat.Prior to being consul,...
and
Lucius Aemilius PaullusLucius Aemilius Paul'us may refer to:* Lucius Aemilius Paullus * Lucius Aemilius Paulus Macedonicus, his son* Lucius Aemilius Lepidus Paullus, consul in 50 BC...
as
ConsulsA consul served in the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic and Empire.During the time of ancient Rome as a republic, the consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates, serving as the heads of government for the Republic. An election occurred every year for new consul...
. In the meantime, the Romans, hoping to gain success through sheer strength in numbers, raised a new army of unprecedented size, estimated by some to be as large as 100,000 men, but more likely around 60-80,000.
The Roman and Allied legions of the Consuls, resolving to confront Hannibal, marched southward to
ApuliaApulia is a region in southeastern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its southern portion known as Salento, a peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy...
. They eventually found him on the left bank of the Aufidus River, and encamped six miles (10 km) away. On this occasion, the two armies were combined into one, the Consuls having to alternate their command on a daily basis. The Consul Varro, who was in command on the first day, was a man of reckless and hubristic nature, and was determined to defeat Hannibal. Hannibal capitalized on the eagerness of Varro and drew him into a trap by using an envelopment tactic which eliminated the Roman numerical advantage by shrinking the surface area where combat could occur. Hannibal drew up his least reliable infantry in a semicircle in the center with the wings composed of the Gallic and Numidian horse. The Roman legions forced their way through Hannibal's weak center, but the Libyan Mercenaries in the wings, swung around by the movement, menaced their flanks. The onslaught of Hannibal's cavalry was irresistible, and Maharbal, Hannibal's chief cavalry commander, who led the mobile Numidian cavalry on the right, shattered the Roman cavalry opposing them. Hannibal's Spanish and Gallic heavy cavalry, led by his brother Hanno on the left, defeated the Roman heavy-cavalry, and then both the Carthaginian heavy cavalry and the Numidians attacked the legions from behind. As a result, the Roman army was hemmed in with no means of escape.
Due to these brilliant tactics, Hannibal, with much inferior numbers, managed to surround and destroy all but a small remnant of this force. Depending upon the source, it is estimated that 50,000-70,000 Romans were killed or captured at Cannae. Among the dead were the Roman consul
Lucius Aemilius PaullusLucius Aemilius Paul'us may refer to:* Lucius Aemilius Paullus * Lucius Aemilius Paulus Macedonicus, his son* Lucius Aemilius Lepidus Paullus, consul in 50 BC...
, as well as two consuls for the preceding year, two
quaestorQuaestor is a type of public official.In the Roman Republic a quaestor was an elected official who supervised financial affairs...
s, twenty-nine out of the forty-eight
military tribuneA military tribune was an official in ancient Rome who was both a military officer of the Roman Legion and an official of the Roman State.-Overview:...
s and an additional eighty senators (at a time when the Roman Senate comprised no more than 300 men, this constituted 25%–30% of the governing body). This makes the
Battle of CannaeThe Battle of Cannae was a major battle of the Second Punic War, taking place on August 2, 216 BC near the town of Cannae in Apulia in southeast Italy. The army of Carthage under Hannibal decisively defeated a numerically superior army of the Roman Republic under command of the consuls Lucius...
one of the most catastrophic defeats in the history of
Ancient RomeAncient Rome was a civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea, it became one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
, and one of the bloodiest battles in all of human history (in terms of the number of lives lost within a single day). After Cannae, the Romans were very hesitant to confront Hannibal in pitched battle; preferring instead to weaken him by attrition, relying on their advantages of interior lines, supply, and manpower. As a result, Hannibal fought no more major battles in Italy for the rest of the war. It is believed his refusal to bring the war to Rome itself was due to a lack of commitment from Carthage in terms of men, money and materiel - principally siege equipment. Whatever the reason, the choice prompted Maharbal to say, "Hannibal, you know how to gain a victory, but not how to use one."
The effect on morale of this victory meant that many parts of Italy joined Hannibal's cause. As Polybius notes,
"How much more serious was the defeat of Cannae, than those which preceded it can be seen by the behavior of Rome’s allies; before that fateful day, their loyalty remained unshaken, now it began to waver for the simple reason that they despaired of Roman Power." During that same year, the Greek cities in Sicily were induced to revolt against Roman political control, while the Macedonian king,
Philip VPhilip V was King of Macedon from 221 BC to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of Rome.-Early life:...
, pledged his support to Hannibal – thus initiating the
First Macedonian WarThe First Macedonian War was fought by Rome, allied with the Aetolian League and Attalus I of Pergamon, against Philip V of Macedon, contemporaneously with the Second Punic War against Carthage...
against Rome. Hannibal also secured an alliance with newly appointed
HieronymusHieronymus was a tyrant of Syracuse. He succeeded his grandfather, Hiero II, in 216 BC. He was at this time only fifteen years old, and he ascended the throne at a crisis full of peril, for the battle of Cannae had given a shock to the Roman power, the influence of which had been felt in Sicily;...
of
SyracuseSyracuse is a historic city in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Syracuse. The city is famous for its rich Greek history, culture, amphitheatres, architecture and association to Archimedes, playing an important role in ancient times as one of the top powers of the Mediterranean world;...
. It is often argued that if Hannibal had received proper material reinforcements from Carthage he might have succeeded with a direct attack upon Rome. For the present he had to content himself with subduing the fortresses which still held out against him, and the only other notable event of 216 BC was the defection of certain Italian territories, including
CapuaCapua is a city in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy, situated 25 km north of Naples, on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. The city is often mistaken for Santa Maria Capua Vetere: the remains of the ancient Capua are effectively located in the latter commune's...
, the second largest city of Italy, which Hannibal made his new base. However, only a few of the Italian city-states which he had expected to gain as allies consented to join him.
Stalemate
The war in Italy settled into a strategic stalemate. The Romans utilized the
attritionalAttrition warfare is a military strategy in which a belligerent attempts to win a war by wearing down its enemy to the point of collapse through continuous losses in personnel and matériel....
strategiesThe Fabian strategy is a military strategy where pitched battles are avoided in favor of wearing down an opponent through a war of attrition. While avoiding decisive battles, the side employing this strategy harasses its enemy to cause attrition and loss of morale...
FabiusQuintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator , was a Roman politician and general, born in Rome around 280 BC and died in Rome in 203 BC. He was Roman Consul five times and was twice Dictator in 221 and again in 217 BC. He reached the office of Roman Censor in 230 BC...
had taught them, and which, they finally realized, were the only feasible means of defeating Hannibal. Indeed, Fabius received the surname "Cunctator" ("the Delayer") because of his policy of not meeting Hannibal in open battle but through guerilla tactics.
The Romans deprived Hannibal of a large-scale battle and instead, assaulted his weakening army with multiple smaller armies in an attempt to both weary him and create unrest in his troops. For the next few years, Hannibal was forced to sustain a
scorched earthA scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method which involves destroying anything that might be useful to the enemy while advancing through or withdrawing from an area...
policy and obtain local provisions for protracted and ineffectual operations throughout Southern Italy. His immediate objectives were reduced to minor operations which centered mainly round the cities of
CampaniaCampania is a region of southern Italy in Europe. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,595 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
.
As the forces detached to his lieutenants were generally unable to hold their own, and neither his home government nor his new ally
Philip V of MacedonPhilip V was King of Macedon from 221 BC to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of Rome.-Early life:...
helped to make good his losses, his position in southern Italy became increasingly difficult and his chance of ultimately conquering Rome grew ever more remote. Hannibal still won a number of notable victories: completely destroying two Roman armies in 212 BC, and at one point, killing two Consuls (which included the famed
Marcus Claudius MarcellusMarcus Claudius Marcellus , five times elected as consul of the Roman Republic, was an important Roman military leader during the Gallic War of 225 BC and the Second Punic War...
) in a battle in 208 BC. Nevertheless, without the resources his allies could contribute, or reinforcements from Carthage, Hannibal could not make further significant gains. Thus, inadequately supported by his Italian allies, abandoned by his government (either because of jealousy or simply because Carthage was overstretched) , and unable to match Rome’s resources, Hannibal slowly began losing ground. Hannibal continued defeating the Romans whenever he could bring them into battle, yet he was never able to complete another decisive victory that produced a lasting strategic effect.
Carthaginian political will was embodied in the ruling oligarchy. While there was a Carthaginian Senate, the real power in Carthage was with the inner "Council of 30 Nobles" and the board of judges from ruling families known as the "
Hundred and FourThe Hundred and Four, or Council of 104, was a Carthaginian tribunal of judges. They were created early in Carthage's history, and are described in Aristotle's Politics as "the highest constitutional authority." By the time of Hannibal Barca, however, and his stint as Suffet , the 104 had...
." These two bodies consisted of the wealthy, commercial families of Carthage. Two political factions operated in Carthage: the war party, also known as the "
BarcidThe Barcid family was a notable family in the ancient city of Carthage; many of its members were fierce enemies of the Roman Republic. "Barcid" was coined by historians; the actual byname was Barca or Barcas, which means lightning...
s" (Hannibal’s family name) and the peace party led by
Hanno the GreatThere were three leaders of ancient Carthage who were known as Hanno the Great, according to two historians. These figures being called for convenience: Hanno I the Great, Hanno II the Great, and Hanno III the Great...
. Hanno had been instrumental in denying Hannibal’s requested reinforcement following the battle at Cannae.
Hannibal started the war without the full backing of Carthaginian oligarchy. His attack of Saguntum had presented the oligarchy with a choice of war with Rome or loss of prestige in Iberia. The oligarchy and not Hannibal controlled the strategic resources of Carthage. Hannibal constantly sought reinforcement from either Iberia or North Africa. Hannibal’s troops lost in combat were replaced with less well-trained and motivated mercenaries from Italy or Gaul. The commercial interests of the Carthaginian oligarchy dictated the reinforcement of Iberia rather than Hannibal throughout the duration of the campaign.
Hannibal's retreat in Italy
In 212 BC Hannibal captured
TarentumTaranto is a coastal city in Puglia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto and is an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base.It is the third-largest continental city of southern Italy: according to the 2001 census, it has a population of...
but he failed to obtain control of the harbour. The tide was slowly turning against him, and in favor of Rome.
The Romans mounted two sieges of Capua, which fell in 211 BC, and the Romans completed their conquest of Syracuse and destruction of a Carthaginian army in Sicily. Shortly thereafter, the Romans pacified Sicily and entered into an alliance with the
Aetolian LeagueThe Aetolian League was a confederation of tribal communities and cities in ancient Greece centered on Aetolia in central Greece. Alternatively termed the Aitolian League, it was established probably during the early Hellenistic era in opposition to Macedon and the Achaean League. Two annual...
to counter Phillip V. Philip, who attempted to exploit Rome's preoccupation in Italy to conquer
IllyriaIllyria was in Classical antiquity a region in the western part of today's Balkan Peninsula, inhabited by the Illyrians, a heterogeneous coalition of tribes, about whom very little is known, though a number of them are assumed to have been united by a common Illyrian language.Illyria and the...
, now found himself under attack from several sides at once and was quickly subdued by Rome and her Greek allies. Meanwhile, Hannibal had defeated Fulvius at Herdonea in Apulia, but lost Tarentum in the following year.
In 210 BC Hannibal again proved his superiority in tactics by inflicting a severe defeat at Herdoniac (modern
OrdonaOrdona is a small town and comune of the province of Foggia in the region of Puglia in southern Italy.-Geography:Ascoli Satriano, Carapelle, Foggia, Orta Nova, Cerignola are nearby towns.-History:...
) in Apulia upon a
proconsul-Ancient Rome:In the Roman Republic, a proconsul was a promagistrate who, after serving as consul, spent a year as a governor of a province...
ar army, and in 208 BC destroyed a Roman force engaged in the siege of
Locri EpizephyriLocri is a town and comune in the province of Reggio Calabria, Calabria, southern Italy. The name derives from the ancient Greek "Locris" .-History:...
. But with the loss of Tarentum in 209 BC and the gradual reconquest by the Romans of
SamniumSamnium is a historical region of the south central Apennines in Italy, that was home to the Samnites, a group of Sabellic tribes that controlled the area from about 600 BC to about 290 BC. Samnium was delimited by Latium in the north, by Lucania in the south, by Campania in the west and by Apulia...
and
LucaniaLucania was an ancient district of southern Italy, extending from the Tyrrhenian Sea to the Gulf of Taranto. To the north it adjoined Campania, Samnium and Apulia, and to the south it was separated by a narrow isthmus from the district of Bruttium...
, his hold on south Italy was almost lost. In 207 BC he succeeded in making his way again into Apulia, where he waited to concert measures for a combined march upon Rome with his brother
Hasdrubal BarcaHasdrubal, son of Hamilcar Barca , was Hamilcar Barca's second son and a Carthaginian general in the Second Punic War. He was a younger brother of Hannibal, also son of Hamilcar.-Youth and Iberian leadership:...
. On hearing, however, of his brother's defeat and death at the
MetaurusThe Battle of the Metaurus was a pivotal battle in the Second Punic War between Rome and Carthage, fought in 207 BC near the Metauro River in present-day Italy....
he retired into Bruttium, where he maintained himself for the ensuing years. His brother's head had been cut off, carried across Italy, and tossed over the palisade of Hannibal's camp as a cold message of the iron-clad will of the Roman Republic. The combination of these events marked the end to Hannibal's success in Italy. With the failure of his brother
Mago BarcaMago, son of Hamilcar Barca, also spelled Magon , was a member of the Barcid family, and played an important role in the Second Punic War, leading forces of Carthage against the Roman Republic in Hispania, Gallia Cisalpina and Italy...
in
LiguriaLiguria is a coastal region of north-western Italy, the third smallest of the Italian regions. Its capital is Genoa. It is a popular region with tourists for its beautiful beaches, picturesque little towns, and food.- Geography :...
(205 BC-203 BC) and of his own negotiations with
Philip of MacedonPhilip was the name of several Macedonian monarchs:* Philip I of Macedon * Philip II of Macedon , father of Alexander the Great* Philip III of Macedon * Philip IV of Macedon...
, the last hope of recovering his ascendancy in Italy was lost. In 203 BC, after nearly fifteen years of fighting in Italy, and with the military fortunes of Carthage rapidly declining, Hannibal was recalled to Carthage to direct the defense of his native country against a Roman invasion under
Scipio AfricanusPublius Cornelius Scipio Africanus also known as Scipio Africanus, Scipio the Elder, and Africanus the Elder was a general in the Second Punic War and statesman of the Roman Republic...
.
Return to Carthage
In 203 BC, Hannibal was recalled from Italy by the war party at Carthage. After leaving a record of his expedition engraved in Punic and
GreekGreek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...
upon bronzen tablets in the temple of
JunoJuno was an ancient Roman goddess, the protector and special counselor of the state. She is a daughter of Saturn and sister of the chief god Jupiter and the mother of Juventas, Mars, and Vulcan...
at
CrotonaCrotone is a city in Calabria, southern Italy, on the Ionian Sea. Founded circa 710 BC as the Achaean colony of Croton , it was known as Cotrone from the Middle Ages until 1928, when its name was changed to Crotone. In 1994 it became the capital of the newly established Province of Crotone...
, he sailed back to Africa. His arrival immediately restored the predominance of the war party, who placed him in command of a combined force of
AfricaAfrica is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.8% of the...
n
leviesConscription is a general term for involuntary labor demanded by an established authority. It is most often used in the specific sense of requiring citizens to serve in the armed forces...
and his mercenaries from Italy. In 202 BC, Hannibal met Scipio in a fruitless peace conference. Despite mutual admiration, negotiations floundered due to Roman allegations of "Punic Faith," referring to the breach of protocols which ended the First Punic War by the Carthaginian attack on Saguntum, and a Carthaginan attack on a stranded Roman fleet. What had happened was that Scipio and Carthage had worked out a peace plan, which was approved by Rome. The terms of the treaty were quite modest, but the war had been long for the Romans. Carthage could keep its African territory but would lose its overseas empire, a
fait-accompli. Masinissa (
NumidiaNumidia was an ancient Berber kingdom in present-day Algeria and part of Tunisia that later alternated between being a Roman province and being a Roman client state, and is no longer in existence today...
) was to be independent. Also, Carthage was to reduce its fleet and pay a war indemnity. But Carthage then made a terrible blunder. Its long-suffering citizens had captured a stranded Roman fleet in the Gulf of
TunesTunis is the capital of the Tunisian Republic and also the Tunis Governorate, with a population of 1,200,000 in 2008 and over 3,980,500 in the greater Tunis area...
and stripped it of supplies, an action which aggravated the faltering negotiations. Meanwhile Hannibal, recalled from Italy by the Carthaginian senate, had returned with his army. Fortified by both Hannibal and the supplies, the Carthaginians rebuffed the treaty and Roman protests. The decisive battle at
ZamaThe Battle of Zama, fought around October 19, 202 BC, marked the final and decisive end of the Second Punic War. A Roman army led by Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus defeated a Carthaginian force led by Hannibal...
soon followed, and it removed Hannibal's air of invincibility.
Battle of Zama
Unlike most battles of the
Second Punic WarThe Second Punic War, also referred to as The Hannibalic War and The War Against Hannibal, lasted from 218 to 201 BC and involved combatants in the western and eastern Mediterranean. This was the second major war between Carthage and the Roman Republic, who had three warring conflicts against each...
, at Zama the Romans had superiority in cavalry and the Carthaginians had superiority in infantry. This Roman cavalry superiority was due to the betrayal of
MasinissaMasinissa or Massinissa was the first King of Numidia, an ancient North African nation of ancient Libyan tribes, which he united, and is most famous for his role as a Roman ally in the Battle of Zama.-Early life:...
, who had earlier assisted Carthage in Iberia, but changed sides in 206 BC with the promise of land and due to his personal conflicts with
SyphaxSyphax was a king of the ancient Libyan tribe Masaesyli of western Numidia during the last quarter of the third century BCE. When in 218, war broke out between Carthage and Rome, Syphax was originally sympathetic to the Romans and in 213, he concluded an alliance with the Romans and they sent...
, a Carthaginian ally. This betrayal gave Scipio Africanus an advantage that had previously been possessed by the Carthaginians. Although the aging Hannibal was suffering from mental exhaustion and deteriorating health after years of campaigning in Italy, the Carthaginians still had the advantage in numbers and were boosted by the presence of 80 war elephants.
The Roman cavalry won an early victory by swiftly routing the Carthaginian horse, and standard Roman tactics for limiting the effectiveness of the Carthaginian war elephants were effective. Part of Scipio's tactics for stopping Hannibal's elephants was to bring trumpets to frighten the elephants into running into the Carthaginian lines. Some historians say that the elephants routed the Carthaginian cavalry and not the Romans. However, the battle remained closely fought. At one point it seemed that Hannibal was on the verge of victory, but Scipio was able to rally his men, and his cavalry, having routed the Carthaginian horse, attacked Hannibal's rear. This two-pronged attack caused the Carthaginian formation to disintegrate and collapse. With their foremost general defeated, the Carthaginians had no choice but to accept defeat and surrender to Rome. Carthage lost approximately 20,000 troops with an additional 15,000 wounded. In contrast, the Romans suffered only 1,500 casualties. The battle resulted in a loss of respect for Hannibal by his fellow Carthaginians. It marked the last major battle of the Second Punic War, with Rome the victor. The conditions of defeat were such that Carthage could no longer battle for Mediterranean supremacy.
Peacetime Carthage (200–196 BC)
Hannibal was still only 43 and soon showed that he could be a statesman as well as a soldier. Following the conclusion of a peace that left Carthage stripped of its formerly mighty empire, Hannibal prepared to take a back seat for a time. However, the blatant corruption of the
oligarchyAn Oligarchy is a form of government in which power effectively rests with a small elite segment of society distinguished by royal, wealth, intellectual, family, military, or religious hegemony. The word oligarchy is from the Greek words for "few" and "rule"...
gave Hannibal a chance to re-emerge and he was elected as
suffeteIn Hebrew and several other Semitic languages, shofet literally means "Judge", from the verb "Š-P-T", "to pass judgment". Cognate titles exist in other Semitic cultures, notably Phoenicia.-Hebrew:...
, or chief
magistrateA magistrate is a judicial officer; in ancient Rome, the word magistratus denoted one of the highest government officers with judicial and executive powers. Today, in common law systems, a magistrate has limited law enforcement and administration authority...
. The office had become rather insignificant, but Hannibal restored its power and authority. The oligarchy, always jealous of him, had even charged him with having betrayed the interests of his country while in Italy, for neglecting to take Rome when he might have done so. So effectively did Hannibal reform abuses that the heavy tribute imposed by Rome could be paid by installments without additional and extraordinary taxation. He also reformed the
Hundred and FourThe Hundred and Four, or Council of 104, was a Carthaginian tribunal of judges. They were created early in Carthage's history, and are described in Aristotle's Politics as "the highest constitutional authority." By the time of Hannibal Barca, however, and his stint as Suffet , the 104 had...
, stipulating that its membership be chosen by direct election rather than co-option. He also used citizen support to change the term of office in the Hundred and Four from life to a year with a term limit of two years.
Exile (195–183/181 BC)
Fourteen years after the victory of Zama, the Romans, alarmed by Carthage's renewed prosperity, demanded Hannibal's surrender. Hannibal thereupon went into voluntary
exileExile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened by prison or death upon return...
. First he journeyed to Tyre, the mother-city of Carthage, and then to
EphesusEphesus was an ancient Roman and Greek city on the west coast of Anatolia, near present-day Selçuk, Izmir Province, Turkey. It was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League during the Classical Greek period....
, where he was honorably received by Antiochus III of
SyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south and Israel to the southwest....
, who was preparing for war with Rome. Hannibal soon saw that the king's army was no match for the Romans. He advised him to equip a fleet and land a body of troops in the south of Italy, offering to take command himself. But he could not make much impression on Antiochus, who listened to his courtiers and would not entrust Hannibal with any important office.
According to
CiceroMarcus Tullius Cicero was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. Cicero is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.Cicero is generally perceived to be one of the most versatile minds of ancient Rome...
, while at the court of Antiochus, Hannibal attended a lecture by Phormio, a philosopher, that ranged through many topics. When Phormio finished a discourse on the duties of a general, Hannibal was asked his opinion. He replied:
"I have seen during my life many old fools; but this one beats them all." Another story about Hannibal in exile gives a strange slant to his supposed Punic perfidy. Antiochus III showed off a vast and well-armed formation to Hannibal and asked him if they would be enough for the Roman Republic, to which Hannibal replied,
"Yes, enough for the Romans, however greedy they may be." It should be noted that in this situation Hannibal had not been given command of the army, but Antiochus himself had developed the battle plan and was subsequently defeated.
In 190 BC he was placed in command of a Seleucid fleet but was defeated in a
battleThe Battle of the Eurymedon was fought in 190 BC between a Seleucid fleet and Rhodian ships, who were allied with the Roman Republic. The Seleucids were led by the famous Carthaginian general Hannibal, who had gone into exile in the events following the Battle of Zama. The Rhodians were victorious,...
off the
Eurymedon RiverKöprüçay, ancient Eurymedon is a river that is situated in Antalya Province, Turkey, and empties into the Mediterranean....
. According to
StraboStrabo was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born in a wealthy family from Amaseia in Pontus , which had recently become part of the Roman Empire.. He studied under various geographers and philosophers; first in Nysa, later in Rome...
and
PlutarchPlutarch, born Plutarchos then, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. AD 46 – 120, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
, Hannibal also received hospitality at the
ArmenianThe Kingdom of Armenia was an independent kingdom from 190 BC to AD 387 and a client state of the Roman and Persian empires until 428, stretching from the Caspian to the Mediterranean seas.- History :...
court of
Artaxias IArtaxias I was the founder of the Artaxiad Dynasty whose members ruled the Kingdom of Armenia for nearly two centuries....
. The authors add an apocryphal story of how Hannibal planned and supervised the building of the new royal capital Artaxata. From the court of Antiochus, who seemed prepared to surrender him to the Romans, Hannibal fled to
CreteCrete is the largest of the Greek islands and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea at 8,336 km²...
, but he soon went back to Asia Minor and sought refuge with
Prusias I of BithyniaPrusias I Cholus was a king of Bithynia. The son of Ziaelas, he formed a marriage alliance with Demetrius II of Macedon, receiving the latter's daughter, Apama, as his wife....
, who was engaged in warfare with Rome's ally,
King Eumenes II of PergamonEumenes II of Pergamon was king of Pergamon and a member of the Attalid dynasty. The son of king Attalus I and queen Apollonis, he followed in his father's footsteps and collaborated with the Romans to oppose first Macedonian, then Seleucid expansion towards the Aegean, leading to the defeat of...
. Hannibal went on to serve Prusias in this war. During one of the naval victories he gained over Eumenes, Hannibal had large pots filled with poisonous snakes thrown onto Eumenes' ships. Hannibal also visited Tyre; the home of his forefathers. However the Romans were determined to hunt him down, and they insisted on his surrender.
Death (183/181 BC)
Prusias agreed to give him up, but Hannibal was determined not to fall into his enemies' hands. At Libyssa on the eastern shore of the
Sea of MarmaraThe Sea of Marmara , also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, and in the context of classical antiquity as Propontis , is the inland sea that connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea, thus separating Turkey's Asian and European parts. The Bosporus strait connects it to the Black Sea and...
, he took poison, which, it was said, he had long carried about with him in a ring.. Before dying, he left behind a letter declaring:
"Let us, relieve the Romans from the anxiety they have so long experienced, since they think it tries their patience too much to wait for an old man's death".
The precise year of Hannibal's death is unknown. In his
Annales,
Titus Pomponius AtticusAtticus may refer to any of:*Archbishop Atticus of Constantinople *Atticus Finch, the central character in To Kill a Mockingbird*Titus Pomponius Atticus , an ancient Roman littérateur / philosopher...
reports that it occurred in 183 BC, and
LivyTitus Livius , known as Livy in English, was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
implies the same.
PolybiusPolybius was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic Period noted for his book called The Histories covering in detail the period of 220–146 BC...
, who wrote nearest the event, gives 182 BC. Sulpicius Blitho records it under 181 BC.
Possible gravesite
In modern-day
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey
, is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in Western Asia and Thrace in the Balkan region of southeastern Europe...
(ruins near Diliskelesi, south of
GebzeGebze is an industrial city in Kocaeli Province, Turkey. Situated 30 miles east of Istanbul on the northern shore of the Sea of Marmara, it is the largest district of Kocaeli; Gebze has experienced rapid growth in recent years- from 159,116 in 1990, to 253,487 in 2000. Gebze accounts for 15% of...
, 60 km (38 miles east of
IstanbulIstanbul is the largest city in Turkey and fifth largest city proper in the world with a population of 12.6 million. Istanbul is also a megacity, as well as the cultural and financial centre of Turkey. The city covers 39 districts of the Istanbul province...
), an interesting curiosity is to be found in an industrial estate on a small hill beneath some cypress trees. Reputed to be Hannibal's grave, it was magnificently restored by emperor
Septimius SeverusLucius Septimius Severus was a Roman Emperor who reigned from 14 April, 193 until his death in 211. Severus was the first emperor of the troubled Severan dynasty, the last imperial dynasty of the Roman principate before the Crisis of the Third Century...
(ruled AD 193-211), but it is now just a pile of stones. Excavations were carried out in 1906 by the German archeologist,
Theodor WiegandTheodor Wiegand was one of the most famous German archaeologists.Wiegand was born in Bendorf, Rhenish Prussia. He studied at Munich, Berlin, and Freiburg. In 1894 he worked under Wilhelm Dörpfeld at the excavation of the Athenian Acropolis...
, but he was skeptical of the site.
Legacy to the ancient world
Long after his death, his name continued to carry a portent of great or imminent danger within the Roman Republic. It was written that he taught the Romans, who claimed to be fierce descendants of Mars, the meaning of fear. For generations, Roman housekeepers would tell their children brutal tales of Hannibal when they misbehaved. In fact, Hannibal became such a figure of terror, that whenever disaster struck, the Roman Senators would exclaim
"Hannibal ante portas" (“Hannibal is at the Gates!”) to express their fear or anxiety. This famous Latin phrase evolved into a common expression that is often still used when a client arrives through the door or when one is faced with calamity. This illustrates the psychological impact Hannibal's presence in Italy had on
Roman CultureAncient Roman culture evolved throughout the almost 1200-year history of that civilization. The term refers to the culture of the Roman Republic, later the Roman Empire, which, at peak, covered an area from Cumbria and Morocco to the Euphrates....
.
A grudging admiration for Hannibal is evident in the works of Roman writers such as
LivyTitus Livius , known as Livy in English, was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
, Frontinus, and
JuvenalThe Satires are a collection of satirical poems by the Latin author Juvenal written in the late 1st and early 2nd centuries A.D.Juvenal is credited with sixteen known poems divided among five books; all are in the Roman genre of Satire, which, at its most basic in the time of the author, comprised...
. The Romans even built statues of the Carthaginian in the very streets of Rome to advertise their defeat of such a worthy adversary. It is plausible to suggest that Hannibal engendered the greatest fear Rome had towards an enemy. Nevertheless, they grimly refused to admit the possibility of defeat and rejected all overtures for peace, and they even refused to accept the ransom of prisoners after Cannae.
During the war there are no reports of revolutions among the Roman citizens, no factions with the Senate desiring peace, no pro-Carthaginian Roman turncoats, no coups. Indeed, throughout the war Roman aristocrats ferociously competed with each other for positions of command to fight against Rome's most dangerous enemy. Hannibal's military genius was not enough to really disturb the Roman political process and the collective political and military genius of the Roman people. As Lazenby states, "It says volumes, too, for their political maturity and respect for constitutional forms that the complicated machinery of government continued to function even amidst disaster--there are few states in the ancient world in which a general who had lost a battle like Cannae would have dared to remain, let alone would have continued to be treated respectfully as head of state." According to the historian Livy, Hannibal's military genius was feared among the Romans and during Hannibal's march against Rome in 211 BC "a messenger who had travelled from Fregellae for a day and a night without stopping created great alarm in Rome, and the excitement was increased by people running about the City with wildly exaggerated accounts of the news he had brought. The wailing cry of the matrons was heard everywhere, not only in private houses but even in the temples. Here they knelt and swept the temple-floors with their dishevelled hair and lifted up their hands to heaven in piteous entreaty to the gods that they would deliver the City of Rome out of the hands of the enemy and preserve its mothers and children from injury and outrage." In the Senate the news was "received with varying feelings as men's temperaments differed," so it was decided to keep Capua under siege, but send 15,000 infantry and 1,000 cavalry as reinforcements to Rome..
According to Livy, the land occupied by Hannibal's army outside Rome in 211 BC was sold at the very time of its occupation and for the same price. This may not be true but as Lazenby states, "could well be, exemplifying as it does not only the supreme confidence felt by the Romans in ultimate victory, but also the way in which something like normal life continued.. After
CannaeCannae is an ancient village of the Apulia region of south east Italy. It is a frazione of the comune of Barletta.-Geography:It is situated near the river Aufidus , on a hill on the right Cannae (mod. Canne della Battaglia) is an ancient village of the Apulia region of south east Italy. It is a...
the Romans showed a considerable steadfastness in adversity. An undeniable proof of Rome's confidence is demonstrated by the fact that after the Cannae disaster she was left virtually defenseless, but the Senate still chose not to withdraw a single garrison from an overseas province to strengthen the city. In fact, they were reinforced and the campaigns there maintained until victory was secured; beginning first in Sicily under direction of Claudius Marcellus, and later
HispaniaHispania was the name given by the Romans to the whole of the Iberian Peninsula . When Rome was a republic, Hispania was divided into two provinces: Hispania Citerior and Hispania Ulterior...
under
Scipio AfricanusPublius Cornelius Scipio Africanus also known as Scipio Africanus, Scipio the Elder, and Africanus the Elder was a general in the Second Punic War and statesman of the Roman Republic...
. Although the long-term consequences of Hannibal's war are debatable, this war was undeniably Rome's "finest hour".
Most of the sources available to historians about Hannibal are from Romans. They considered him the greatest enemy Rome had ever faced.
LivyTitus Livius , known as Livy in English, was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
gives us the idea that he was extremely cruel. Even
CiceroMarcus Tullius Cicero was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. Cicero is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.Cicero is generally perceived to be one of the most versatile minds of ancient Rome...
, when he talked of Rome and her two great enemies, spoke of the "honourable"
PyrrhusPyrrhus or Pyrrhos was a Greek general of the Hellenistic era. He was king of the Greek tribe of Molossians, of the royal Aeacid house , and later he became King of Epirus and Macedon . He was one of the strongest opponents of early Rome...
and the "cruel" Hannibal. Yet a different picture is sometimes revealed. When Hannibal's successes had brought about the death of two Roman
consul-Ancient Rome:During the time of ancient Rome as a Republic, the consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates, serving as the heads of government for the Republic. New consuls were elected every year. There were two consuls, and they ruled together...
s, he vainly searched for the body of
Gaius FlaminiusGaius Flaminius Nepos was a politician and consul of the Roman Republic in the 3rd century BC. He was the greatest popular leader to challenge the authority of the Senate before the Gracchi a century later....
on the shores of
Lake TrasimeneLake Trasimeno or Trasimene , is the largest lake on the Italian peninsula south of the Po with a surface area of 128 km², slightly less than Lake Como...
, held ceremonial rituals in recognition of
Lucius Aemilius PaullusLucius Aemilius Paullus was a Roman consul twice, in 219 and 216 BC.He served his first consulship with Marcus Livius Salinator. During this year, he defeated Demetrius of Pharos, in the Second Illyrian War and forced him to flee to the court of Philip V of Macedon. Upon his return to Rome, he was...
, and sent
MarcellusMarcus Claudius Marcellus , five times elected as consul of the Roman Republic, was an important Roman military leader during the Gallic War of 225 BC and the Second Punic War...
' ashes back to his family in Rome. Any bias attributed to
PolybiusPolybius was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic Period noted for his book called The Histories covering in detail the period of 220–146 BC...
, however, is more troublesome, since he was clearly sympathetic towards Hannibal. Nevertheless, Polybius spent a long period as a hostage in Italy and relied heavily on Roman sources, so there remains the possibility that he was reproducing elements of Roman
propagandaPropaganda is communication aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position. As opposed to impartially providing information, propaganda in its most basic sense, presents information primarily to influence an audience...
.
Legacy
Hannibal's name is also commonplace in later art and popular culture, an objective measure of his foreign influence on Western history.
Like other military leaders, Hannibal's victories against superior forces in an ultimately losing cause won him enduring fame that outlasted his native country within
North AfricaNorth Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa.Geopolitically, the UN definition of Northern Africa includes the following seven countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia,Mauritania, and...
. His crossing of the Alps remains one of the most monumental military feats of ancient warfare and has since captured the imagination of the world (romanticized by several artworks).
Literature
Novel unless otherwise noted:
- written 1308-21, Dante's Divine Comedy
The Divine Comedy , written by Dante Alighieri between 1308 and his death in 1321, is widely considered the central epic poem of Italian literature, and is seen as one of the greatest works of world literature. The poem's imaginative and allegorical vision of the Christian afterlife is a...
, poem, Inferno XXXI.97-132, 115-124 (Battle of ZamaThe Battle of Zama, fought around October 19, 202 BC, marked the final and decisive end of the Second Punic War. A Roman army led by Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus defeated a Carthaginian force led by Hannibal...
) and Paradiso VI
- 1726, Gulliver's Travels
Gulliver's Travels , officially Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World, in Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of several Ships, is a novel by Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan Swift that is both a satire on human nature and a parody of the "travellers'...
, satirical work
- 1862, Gustave Flaubert
Gustave Flaubert was a French writer who is counted among the greatest Western novelists. He is known especially for his first published novel, Madame Bovary , and for his scrupulous devotion to his art and style...
's SalammbôSalammbô is a historical novel by Gustave Flaubert that interweaves historical and fictional characters. The action takes place immediately before and during the Mercenary Revolt against Carthage in the third century BC. Flaubert's main source was Book I of Polybius's Histories...
, set in Carthage at the time of Hamilcar BarcaHamilcar Barca or Barcas was a Carthaginian general and statesman, leader of the Barcid family, and father of Hannibal, Hasdrubal and Mago. He was also father-in-law to Hasdrubal the Fair....
. Hannibal appears as a child.
- 1996, Elisabeth Craft, A Spy for Hannibal: A Novel of Carthage, 091015533X
- 1996-2000, Ross Leckie, Carthage trilogy, source of the 2008 film (1996, Hannibal: A Novel, ISBN 0-89526-443-9 ; 1999, Scipio, a Novel, ISBN 0-349-11238-X ; Carthage, 2000, ISBN 0-86241-944-1)
- 2005, Terry McCarthy, The Sword of Hannibal, ISBN 0-446-61517-X
- 2006, David Anthony Durham
David Anthony Durham has thus far built his reputation as an historical novelist. His first novel, Gabriel's Story, centered on African American settlers in the American West. Walk Through Darkness followed a runaway slave during the tense times leading up to the American Civil War...
, Pride of CarthagePride of Carthage is a 2005 a novel about the Second Punic War by American author David Anthony Durham. It was first published by Doubleday, in the United States, 2005...
: A Novel of Hannibal, ISBN 0-385-72249-4
- 2006, Angela Render, Forged By Lightning: A Novel of Hannibal and Scipio, ISBN 1-4116-8002-2
Theatre and opera
- In Hector Berlioz's
Hector Berlioz was a French Romantic composer, best known for his compositions Symphonie fantastique and Grande Messe des morts . Berlioz made significant contributions to the modern orchestra with his Treatise on Instrumentation...
1858 opera Les TroyensLes Troyens is a French opera in five acts by Hector Berlioz. The libretto was written by Berlioz himself, based on Virgil's epic poem The Aeneid...
, he appears in a vision to Dido just before she dies.
- In Andrew Lloyd Webber's
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre, the elder son of organist William Lloyd Webber and brother of the cellist Julian Lloyd Webber...
1986 musical The Phantom of the OperaThe Phantom of the Opera is a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the French novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux. The music was composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Charles Hart and additional lyrics by Richard Stilgoe...
and its 2004 film adaptionThe Phantom of the Opera is a 2004 film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1986 musical of the same name. Directed by Joel Schumacher, the film was also produced and co-written by Lloyd Webber...
, the Opera Populaire is in rehearsal for an opera about Hannibal.
Military history
Hannibal is usually ranked among the best military strategists and tacticians. According to
AppianAppianus , of Alexandria was a Roman historian who flourished during the reigns of Trajan, Hadrian and Antoninus Pius. He is commonly referred to by the anglicised form of his name, Appian....
, several years after the Second Punic War, Hannibal was a political advisor in the Seleucid Kingdom and Scipio was sent there on a diplomatic mission from Rome.
Hannibal's exploits (especially his victory at
CannaeThe Battle of Cannae was a major battle of the Second Punic War, taking place on August 2, 216 BC near the town of Cannae in Apulia in southeast Italy. The army of Carthage under Hannibal decisively defeated a numerically superior army of the Roman Republic under command of the consuls Lucius...
) continue to be studied in military academies all over the world.
Maximilian Otto Bismarck Caspari, in his article in the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, praises Hannibal in these words:
Even his Roman chroniclers acknowledged his supreme military leadership, writing that, "he never required others to do what he could and would not do himself".
According to Polybius 23, 13, p. 423: "It is a remarkable and very cogent proof of Hannibal's having been by nature a real leader and far superior to anyone else in statesmanship, that though he spent seventeen years in the field, passed through so many barbarous countries, and employed to aid him in desperate and extraordinary enterprises numbers of men of different nations and languages, no one ever dreamt of conspiring against him, nor was he ever deserted by those who had once joined him or submitted to him."
Count Alfred von Schlieffen's eponymously-titled "
Schlieffen PlanThe Schlieffen Plan was the German General Staff's early 20th century overall strategic plan for victory in a possible future war where it might find itself fighting on two fronts: France to the west and Russia to the east. The First World War later became such a war with both a Western Front and...
" was developed from his military studies, with particularly heavy emphasis on Hannibal's envelopment technique he employed to surround and victoriously destroy the Roman army at
CannaeThe Battle of Cannae was a major battle of the Second Punic War, taking place on August 2, 216 BC near the town of Cannae in Apulia in southeast Italy. The army of Carthage under Hannibal decisively defeated a numerically superior army of the Roman Republic under command of the consuls Lucius...
.
George S. PattonGeorge Smith Patton, Jr. was a United States Army officer most famous for his leadership commanding corps and armies as a general in World War II...
believed that he was a reincarnation of Hannibal as well as many other people including a Roman
legionaryThe Roman legionary was a professional soldier of the Roman army after the Marian reforms of 107 BC. Legionaries had to be Roman citizens under the age of 45. They enlisted in a legion for twenty-five years of service, a change from the early practice of enlisting only for a campaign...
and a
NapoleonicNapoleon Bonaparte later known as Napoleon I, and previously Napoleone di Buonaparte, was a military and political leader of France whose actions shaped European politics in the early 19th century.Born in Corsica and trained as an artillery officer in mainland France, Bonaparte rose to prominence...
soldier. Norman Schwarzkopf, the commander of the Coalition Forces in the Gulf War, claimed that "The technology of war may change, the sophistication of weapons certainly changes. But those same principles of war that applied to the days of Hannibal apply today."
According to the military historian,
Theodore Ayrault DodgeTheodore Ayrault Dodge was an American officer and military historian. He fought as Union officer in the American Civil War; as a writer, he devoted to both Civil War and of the great generals of ancient and European history....
,
TV and film
| Year |
Film |
Other notes |
| 1914 |
Cabiria |
Italian Silent filmA silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially spoken dialogue. The idea of combining motion pictures with recorded sound is nearly as old as film itself, but because of the technical challenges involved, synchronized dialogue was only made practical in the late 1920s with...
|
| 1939 |
Scipio Africanus - the Defeat of Hannibal (Scipione l'africano) |
Italian Motion Picture |
| 1955 |
Jupiter's Darling |
MGM musical picture starring Howard Keel Howard Keel, born Harold Clifford Keel was an American actor and singer. He starred in many film musicals of the 1950s.- Early years :...
and Esther WilliamsEsther Jane Williams is a retired American competitive swimmer and MGM movie star, notable for her musical films that featured elaborate performances with swimming and diving.-Early years:...
|
| 1960 |
Annibale |
Italian Motion Picture starring Victor Mature-Early life:Victor John Mature was born in Louisville, Kentucky to a German-speaking father from Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol Italy, Marcellus George Mature a cutler, and a Kentucky-born mother of Swiss-American heritage, Clara P. Ackley. An older brother, Marcellus Paul Mature, died at 11 in...
|
| 1996 |
Gulliver’s Travels |
Gulliver summons Hannibal from a magic mirror. |
| 1997 |
The Great Battles of Hannibal |
British documentaryDocumentary film is a broad category of visual expressions that is based on the attempt, in one fashion or another, to "document" reality. Although "documentary film" originally referred to movies shot on film stock, it has subsequently expanded to include video and digital productions that can...
|
| 2001 |
Hannibal: The Man Who Hated Rome |
British documentary |
| 2005 |
The True Story of Hannibal |
British documentary |
| 2004 |
The Phantom of the OperaThe Phantom of the Opera is a 2004 film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1986 musical of the same name. Directed by Joel Schumacher, the film was also produced and co-written by Lloyd Webber...
|
The beginning Opera being rehearsed is one about Hannibal so titled Hannibal |
| 2005 |
Hannibal vs. Rome |
in National Geographic Channel National Geographic Channel, also commercially abbreviated as Nat Geo, is a subscription television channel that airs non-fiction television programs produced by the National Geographic Society...
|
| 2006 |
Hannibal - Rome's Worst Nightmare Hannibal - Rome's Worst Nightmare is a 2006 television film, made by the British Broadcasting Corporation. It was presented as a dramatised documentary.The film is chiefly centred on the Italian campaign of Hannibal, the famous Carthaginian general....
|
TV film |
| 2008 |
Battles BC S01E01 |
History Channel TV film |
| 2010/2011 |
Hannibal the Conqueror |
Mainstream movie, starring Vin DieselVin Diesel is an American actor, writer, director and producer. He became known in the early 2000s, appearing in several successful Hollywood films, including The Fast and the Furious and xXx...
in the role of Hannibal (not confirmed) |
Comics
- The webcomic
Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are comics published on a website, often exclusively, providing easy access to an audience, though some are published in books and newspapers but maintain a web archive....
Hannibal Goes to Rome serializes Hannibal's voyage in a humorous fashion.
- In the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero
G.I Joe: A Real American Hero is a military-themed line of action figures and toys. Produced by Hasbro, the toyline lasted from 1982 to 1994, producing well over 500 figures and 250 vehicles and playsets. The line reappeared in 1997 and has continued in one form or another to the present day...
comic by Devil's Due, Hannibal is genetically re-created by Doctor MindbenderDr. Mindbender is a fictional character from the 1980s G.I. Joe toyline, comics, and animated series. He is a scientist who works for the fictional terrorist organization Cobra.-General:...
and becomes a member of the Coil.
See also
Further reading in Punic Wars
- Bickerman, Elias J. "Hannibal’s Covenant", American Journal of Philology, Vol. 73, No. 1. (1952), pp. 1–23.
- Bradford, E, Hannibal, London, Macmillan London Ltd., 1981
- Caven, B., Punic Wars, London, George Werdenfeld and Nicholson Ltd., 1980
- Cottrell, Leonard, Hannibal: Enemy of Rome, Da Capo Press, 1992, ISBN 0-306-80498-0
- Daly, Gregory, Cannae: The Experience of Battle in the Second Punic War, London/New York, Routledge, 2002, ISBN 0-415-32743-1
- Delbrück, Hans
Hans Delbrück was a German historian. Delbrück was one of the first modern military historians, basing his method of research on the critical examination of ancient sources, the use of auxiliary disciplines, like demography and economics, to complete the analysis and the comparison between...
, Warfare in Antiquity, 1920, ISBN 0-8032-9199-X
- Hoyos, Dexter: Hannibal's Dynasty: Power and Politics in the Western Mediterranean, 247–183 B.C. (Routledge: London & New York, 2003; paperback edition with maps, 2005) - has much discussion of strategy and warfare.
- Hoyos, Dexter, Hannibal: Rome's Greatest Enemy, Bristol Phoenix Press, 2005, ISBN 1-904675-46-8 (hbk) ISBN 1-904675-47-6 (pbk)
- Lamb, Harold
Harold Albert Lamb was an American historian, screenwriter, short story writer, and novelist.Born in New York, he attended Columbia University, where his interest in the peoples and history of Asia began. Lamb built a career with his writing from an early age...
, Hannibal: One Man Against Rome, 1959.
- Lancel, Serge, Hannibal, Blackwell Publishing, 1999, ISBN 0631218483
- Livy
Titus Livius , known as Livy in English, was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
, and De Selincourt, Aubery, The War with Hannibal: Books XXI-XXX of the History of Rome from its Foundation, Penguin Classics, Reprint edition, July 30, 1965, ISBN 0-14-044145-X (pbk)(also http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/etcbin/toccer-new2?id=Liv3His.sgm&images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/parsed&tag=public&part=all))
- Prevas, John, Hannibal Crosses the Alps: The Invasion of Italy and the Second Punic War, 2001, ISBN 0306810700, questions which route he took
- Talbert, Richard J.A.
Richard J.A. Talbert is a contemporary British-American ancient historian and classicist on the faculty of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he is William Rand Kenan, Jr., Professor of Ancient History. Talbert is a leading scholar of ancient geography and the idea of space in...
, ed., Atlas of Classical History, Routledge, London/New York, 1985, ISBN 0-415-03463-9
- Yardley, J.C. (translator) & Hoyos, D. (introduction, notes, maps and appendix on Hannibal's march over the Alps): Livy: Hannibal's War: Books 21 to 30 (Oxford World's Classics: Oxford Univ. Press, UK & USA, 2006).
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