346.
Lazenby, Hannibal’s War, p. 223.
347.
Livy, XXX.34.
348.
Ibid.
349.
Polybius, XV.13.
350.
Ibid.
351.
Ibid.
352.
Lazenby, Hannibal’s War, pp. 223–224.
353.
Polybius, XV.13.
354.
Polybius, XV.14.
355.
Ibid.
356.
Ibid. In fact, many of the weapons used by Hannibal’s veterans were taken from fallen Roman legionaries in past battles.
357.
Ibid.
358.
Appian, Libyca, 41.
359.
Livy, XXX.35.
360.
Polybius, XV.14.
361.
Polybius, XV.16.
362.
Polybius, III.40.
363.
Livy, XXXV.14. This translation comes from Adrian Goldsworthy’s In the Name of Rome: The Men Who Won the Roman Empire (London, 2003), p. 77.
364.
Livy, XXX.35.
365.
Livy, XXX.36.
366.
Ibid.
367.
Ibid.
368.
Livy, XXX.40. In fact, one of the two consuls of 201 tried to replace Scipio, only to be stopped by a timely intervention by well-placed tribunes in the Roman Assembly and further debate in the Roman Senate.
369.
Polybius, XV.18. Also see Livy, XXX.37.
370.
Livy, XXX.37.
371.
Ibid., XXX.43. Livy’s sources state that these 500 ships consisted of all oared vessels of all types and sizes.
372.
Ibid. By Latins Livy probably meant members of the Roman confederation who deserted to the Punic cause.
373.
The historian Appian makes the claim that Rome forced Carthage to accept a subordinate position equivalent to how Rome treated its Italian subjects in the Roman confederation (Punic Wars, 54).
374.
Livy, XXXIV.60.
Chapter 5: In Zama’s Wake and the Third Punic War
375.
Livy, XXXIII.4.
376.
Livy, XXXIX.51.
377.
Livy, XXX.45.
378.
Ibid. Livy remarks that he was unable to discern who first conferred the name ‘Africanus’ upon Scipio.
379.
Goldsworthy, In the Name of Rome, p. 85.
380.
Ibid., p. 29.
381.
Plutarch, Cato the Elder, 27.
382.
Ibid.
383.
Goldsworthy, The Punic Wars, p. 336.
384.
Appian, The Punic Wars, 80. These numbers are exceptionally large, and it is possible that the Romans exaggerated the number of panoplies and siege equipment turned over by the Carthaginians.
385.
Ibid, 75.
386.
For an outstanding description of the siege of Carthage during the Third Punic War, see the beginning of chapter twelve of Paul Bentley Kern’s Ancient Siege Warfare (Bloomington, 1999).
387.
Appian, The Punic Wars, 95.
388.
Ibid, 97.
389.
Ibid.
390.
Ibid, 98.
391.
Ibid.
392.
Goldsworthy, The Punic Wars, p. 343. Please see Goldsworthy’s chapter 15 for a detailed discussion on the origins and course of the Third Punic War.
393.
Ibid.
394.
Appian, The Punic Wars, 99.
395.
Ibid.
396.
Ibid., 101.
397.
Ibid., 103.
398.
Ibid.
399.
Ibid., 108.
400.
Ibid., 109.
401.
Ibid., 112–113.
402.
Ibid., 114.
403.
Ibid., 116–117.
404.
Ibid., 117.
405.
Ibid.
406.
Ibid., 118.
407.
Ibid., 119.
408.
Ibid., 120.
409.
Ibid., 121.
410.
Ibid., 122.
411.
Ibid., 122–123.
412.
Ibid., 124.
413.
Ibid., 125.
414.
Ibid., 126.
415.
Ibid., 127.
416.
Ibid.
417.
Appian describes three boulevards sloping up from the captured Agora to the Byrsa, each flanked by tall buildings, some as high as six stories. Carthage, as a Hellenistic city, was built on a rectangular grid pattern, with each building often possessing a central courtyard and garden. The main streets were twenty-one feet wide, while side streets were narrow, averaging only sixteen feet in width (Appian, 128). For more details on the archaeology of this area of ancient Carthage, see Serge Lancel, Carthage (Oxford, 1995), pp. 156–172, 425–426.
418.
Appian, pp. 128–129. This translation was taken from Nigel Bagnall’s The Punic Wars, Rome, Carthage, and the Struggle for the Mediterranean, p. 319.
419.
Ibid., pp. 128–130.
420.
Goldsworthy, The Punic Wars, p. 357.
421.
Polybius, I.10.
422.
Goldsworthy, The Punic Wars, p. 359.
423.
For a detailed study on the development of Roman logistics during the republic and imperial periods, see J. Roth, The Logistics of the Roman Army at War, 264 BC–AD 235 (Leiden, 1999).
Glossary of Important Personalities
Agathocles: Tyrant of Syracuse and later king of Sicily. The son of a potter, Agathocles joined the military and rose through the ranks, seizing control of Syracuse from a ruling oligarchy in 317. He expanded his control over most of the island, initiating a war with Carthage in 311. He eventually settled with Carthage and declared himself king in 304, reigning until his death in 289.
Andriscus: Pretender to the Macedonian throne. After the disbanding of the kingdom of Macedon by the Romans into four republics at the end of the Third Macedonian War in 168, the pretender Andriscus reunited Macedon and defeated a Roman army dispatched to put down the rebellion, initiating the fourth and final Macedonian War in 149. The Roman general Quintus Caecilius Metellus finally chased him from the country. Rome annexed Greece in 146.
Antiochus III (‘the Great’): Seleucid king of Syria. Antiochus’ campaigns in the Near East earned him the epitaph ‘the Great’, although he was never able to consolidate these gains. He attempted to fill the vacuum created with the defeat of Philip V in the Second Macedonian War by expanding in the eastern Mediterranean. His actions drew him into a conflict with Rome. The resulting Syrian War forced him to evacuate Asia Minor.
Attalus I: King of the Anatolian kingdom of Pergamum. Attalus secured his position by defeating a Celtic tribe known as the Galatians in the 230s. His opposition to Philip V of Macedon’s ambitions made him a natural ally for Rome in the region, though he died shortly before Philip’s defeat at Cynoscephalae in 197.
Cato, Marcus Porcius (‘the Elder’): Roman consul (195/194) and politician. Cato was a keen politician who attracted broad support in the Senate due to his unwavering integrity and traditional attitudes. Cato’s antagonistic relationship with other powerful Romans (Scipio Africanus and Flamininus) solidified his conservative base. For decades he advocated the destruction of Carthage, ending hi
s speeches with the statement ‘and Carthage must be destroyed’. His stance became Roman policy with the outbreak of the Third Punic War in 149.
Censorinus, Lucius Marcius: Roman consul (149/148) and general during the Third Punic War. Dispatched along with Manius Manilius to North Africa to initiate hostilities against Carthage, Censorinus was unable to take the city quickly by storm, and the war bogged down into a three year siege.
Camillus, Marcus Furius: Roman dictator (396, 390, 389, 368, 367), general and statesman. Camillus captured the Etruscan city of Veii in 396 after a ten-year siege. He was exiled, but was recalled to Rome after the Gauls sacked the city in 390. He is credited with reforming the Roman army, transforming it from the Greek-styled phalanx-based army into a more flexible, linear system.
Fabius, Quintus (later ‘Maximus’): Roman consul (233/232, 228/227, 215/214, 214/213, 209/208), dictator (217) and general. Hannibal’s defeat of three Roman armies in two years (Ticinus in 218, Trebia in 218 and Lake Trasimene in 217) caused the Senate to elect Fabius as dictator, and he instituted a policy of harassment rather than pitched battle, earning him the nickname ‘Cunctator’ or ‘the delayer’. His actions helped Rome recover after three battlefield defeats, though he was not popular for his decision. Rome returned to an offensive strategy in 216, but the debacle at Cannae vindicated Fabius’ policy, and he was re-elected as consul. By 206 his strategy was considered overly cautious, and despite leading the opposition to Scipio Africanus’ plan to invade North Africa, the Senate backed Scipio. He died in 203 before the successful conclusion of the Second Punic War.
Flaminius, Gaius: Roman consul (217/216) and general. Elected as consul in 217, Flaminius brought a Roman army north to meet and defeat Hannibal Barca, but was sucked into an ambush at Lake Trasimene and killed. This Roman defeat opened the way for Hannibal to push southward past Rome and deep into Italy.
Flamininus, Titus Quinctius: Roman consul (198/197) and general during the Second Macedonian War. Elected consul at 30 years of age and sent by the Roman Senate to stop Philip V of Macedon’s incursions into Greece, Flamininus defeated the Macedonian king at Cynoscephalae in 197, then championed limited Greek autonomy. He would use his considerable diplomatic skills to keep Greece under Roman suzerainty.
Hamilcar Barca: Carthaginian general and father of Hannibal, Hasdrubal and Mago Barca. A leading military figure in Carthage, Hamilcar commanded Punic forces in the final stages of the First Punic War and suppressed the mutinous mercenaries in the Mercenary War. He was also responsible for building up Carthage’s power base in Spain before his death on campaign there in 229.
Hannibal Barca: Carthaginian general and son of Hamilcar Barca. Roman sources indicate a life-long hatred of Rome, inculcated by his father. Born in Carthage but raised on the Spanish frontier, Hannibal showed great military acumen early on. After securing his Spanish base, Hannibal took the Second Punic War to Italian soil, crossing the Alps in 218 BCE and defeating the Romans at Ticinus (218), Trebia (218), Trasimene (217) and Cannae (216). Unable to unravel the Roman Confederation, he spent the next thirteen years fighting in Italy until being called back to defend Carthage from Roman attack in 203. He was defeated at Zama in 202 by Scipio Africanus. He spent the remainder of his life in exile, serving Hellenistic kings (Antiochus III of Syria and Prusias of Bithynia) in the eastern Mediterranean until his suicide in Bithynia in 183. Hannibal is considered a tactical and strategic genius and one of the greatest military minds in history.
Hasbrubal Barca: Carthaginian general and younger brother of Hannibal Barca. Hasdrubal was left in command of the Punic empire in Spain at the beginning of the Second Punic War. He defeated Publius Cornelius and Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio in 211 at the battle of the Upper Baetis. He led a Punic relief army into Italy to assist his brother Hannibal, but was defeated and killed by Gaius Claudius Nero’s Roman forces at the Metaurus River in 207.
Hasdrubal Gisgo: Carthaginian general in Italy, Spain and North Africa during the Second Punic War. Gisgo fought alongside Hannibal at Cannae in 216, then returned to Spain, where, along with Hasdrubal and Mago Barca, he was responsible for expanding Punic control in Iberia and fought in most of the major campaigns. After Scipio Africanus’ victory at Ilipa (207), he returned to North Africa and married the Numidian king Syphax’s daughter. He was defeated at the Battle of the Great Plains in 203.
Hasbrubal (Third Punic War): Carthaginian general and leader of Carthage during the Third Punic War. Hasdrubal initially commanded the field army which threatened the Roman siege, and then took over command of Carthage itself in the last two years of the siege (148–146). Although he offered a spirited defence of the city, his efforts ultimately failed and Carthage was seized and razed in 146.
Himilco Phameas: Carthaginian commander during Third Punic War. Himilco was very active in the defence of Carthage during the first phase of the war, but defected to the Roman side in 148, accompanying Publius Cornelius Aemilianus Scipio to Rome and receiving gifts from the Senate.
Indibilis: Chief of the Ilergetes tribe in southeastern Spain. Indibilis was an ally of Carthage in the wars against Rome in Iberia during the Second Punic War, participating in the defeat of Scipio the Elder near the city of Castulo in 211. He organized a tribal rebellion after the Roman victory at Ilipa in 207, but his efforts were crushed.
Laelius, Gaius: Roman consul (190/189) and distinguished cavalry and naval commander during the Second Punic War. Laelius served with Scipio Africanus in his Spanish campaign (210–206) and was an important commander at Baecula (208) and Ilipa (206). He raided the coast of North Africa in 205, and then joined Scipio in North Africa where he participated in the battles of the Great Plains (203) and Zama (202).
Laelius, Gaius: Roman commander during the Third Punic War. The son of the vaunted commander of the Second Punic War by the same name, Laelius served Scipio Aemilianus Africanus as a faithful and competent commander in the final year (146) of the siege of Carthage, leading the breach of the harbour which sealed the city’s fate.
Laevinus, Marcus Valerius: Roman consul (210/209) and general during the Second Punic War and First Macedonian War. Laevinus was active in the Adriatic against Philip V of Macedon. As commander of the Roman fleet based out of Sicily, he raided the North African coast and defeated the Carthaginian navy at the Battle of Clupea in 208.
Mago Barca: Carthaginian general and younger brother of Hannibal and Hasdrubal Barca. With brother Hasdrubal and Hasdrubal Gisgo, he defended Punic interests in Spain in the Second Punic War. He led a relief army to Italy in 205, but was pinned down near Genua for two years before he was defeated and probably killed by the Romans. His army returned to North Africa and participated in the Battle of Zama.
Maharbal: Senior Numidian cavalry commander who fought with Hannibal Barca in the Second Punic War. Maharbal crossed the Alps with Hannibal in 218 and fought at the battles of Lake Trasimene in 217 and Cannae in 216.
Mancinus, Lucius: Roman general during the Third Punic War. As commander of the Roman navy besieging Carthage in early 147, Mancinus showed great ingenuity, capturing a small corner of the city before being forced out of the city.
Manilius, Manius: Roman consul (149/148) and general during the Third Punic War. Dispatched along with Lucius Marcius Censorinus to North Africa to initiate hostilities against Carthage, Manilius was unable to take the city quickly through storm, and the war bogged down into a three year siege.
Masinissa: Numidian cavalry commander and eventual king of Numidia. Masinissa originally served Carthage as a mercenary commander in Spain, but switched his allegiance to Scipio Africanus and Rome in 206. He became Rome’s principal local ally in North Africa between 204 and 202, consolidating his power base and fighting alongside Scipio at the Battle of Zama in 202. After eliminating his rival Syphax, he ruled as a Numidian king and Roman client for the next half century until his death in 148.
Nero, Gaius Claudius: Roman consul (207/206) and general during the Second Punic War. In 210, Nero was sent to Sp
ain as a temporary commander after the deaths of Gnaeus and Publius Scipio. His success there led to an appointment as consul in 207, where he was given southern Italy and Hannibal Barca as his responsibility. After learning that Hasdrubal Barca was bringing a relief army into Italy, Nero divided his army and quietly slipped off from watching Hannibal and marched north to join Salinator’s army shadowing Hasdrubal. Nero and the other consul for the year, Marcus Livius Salinator, decisively defeated Hasdrubal’s army at Metaurus River in 207, killing the Carthaginian general.
Paullus, Lucius Aemilius: Roman consul (216) and general during the Second Punic War. Paullus was elected as consul (along with Marcus Terentius Varro) to pursue an aggressive military policy against Hannibal Barca, a policy which led to the Roman debacle and his death at Cannae in 216.
Paullus, Lucius Aemilius (‘Macedonicus’): Roman consul (182/181, 168/167) and general. Son of the consul killed at Cannae, Paullus was a member of one of the leading families in Rome who made his military career in Spain in the late 190s before being elected as consul in 182. He served as proconsul during the Third Macedonian War, defeating King Perseus of Macedon at Pydna in 168, then taking him back to Rome as part of his triumph.
Perseus: King of Macedonia and eldest son of Philip V. Perseus inherited his father’s expansionist policies, eventually precipitating a Third Macedonian War with Rome in 171. Three years later he was defeated at Pydna by Lucius Aemilius Paullus, accompanying the Roman general back to Rome as part of his triumph. He died in captivity in 165.
Philip V: King of Macedonia. Philip entered into an alliance with Carthage against Rome in 215, initiating the First Macedonian War. Unable to make headway against Italy, he turned his attention towards Greece and became a regional hegemon. He was driven out of Illyria by Rome and finally defeated in the Second Macedonian War in 192.
Prusias I: King of Bithynia. Prusias was a shrewd player in Anatolian politics. His alliance with Philip V of Macedon secured his western front, while he fought wars against Attalus I of Pergamum to expand his power on the peninsula. He stayed neutral in the Roman wars against Antiochus III, though his granting of sanctuary to Hannibal Barca complicated his relations with Rome.
Pyrrhus: King of Epirus. After attempts to secure and expand his position in northern Greece, Pyrrhus responded to a plea from Tarentum in Magna Graecia for assistance against the Romans. He defeated the Romans in 280 at Heraclea, though his narrow margin of victory at Asculum led to the term ‘pyrrhic victory’. The Romans finally defeated him at Beneventum in 275, taking Magna Graecia as their prize. He was killed intervening in Argos in 272.
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