Were Roman Generals Better Than Carthaginian Generals During the Punic Wars?

Carthage had one good general in the First Punic War, plus one good mercenary general. The good Carthaginian General was Hamilcar Barca, the father of Hannibal Barca. He fought in Sicily and never lost a battle. After the defeat of Carthage in 241 B.C at the naval Battle of the Aegates Islands, Carthage sued for […]

Why Did the Romans Not Sue For Peace After the Battle of Cannae?

Hannibal fully expected Rome to surrender after the Battle of Cannae. He sent the nobleman Carthalo to the city to present them with terms. The Romans wouldn’t let him into the city. Besides that, they allowed a delegation of ten prisoners captured in the battle to present their case for ransom, then passed a resolution […]

What Happened to the Roman Aristocracy?

Cornelius, Aemilius, Fabius, Claudius, Julius, Junius, Sempronius, and Livius were all prominent Romen gens until the first century B.C. What happened to them and why did they fade from prominence in Rome? Beginning with the conflict between Gaius Marius and Lucius Cornelius Sulla, Rome experienced intermittent civil wars throughout the first seventy years of the […]

Did Hannibal and Scipio Meet?

According to Livy, Scipio and Hannibal met to negotiate just before the battle of Zama. Hannibal had sent spies to the Roman camp, and they were caught snooping around. Much to the shock of his underlings, Scipio told his tribune to release them and show them around the camp and answer any questions to their […]

Was The Third Punic War and the Destruction of Carthage Justified?

I don’t feel that the genocide of Carthage was justified at the time. After the Battle of Zama at which Publius Cornelius Scipio defeated Hannibal, he imposed a treaty on Carthage which imposed a huge indemnity to be paid over a fifty-year period, and limited Carthage’s military activities to Africa and allowed them to make […]

Tacticians Versus Strategists in the Second Punic War

When it comes to comparing tacticians and strategists in the Second Punic War, I agree that Hannibal was a superb tactician but a poor strategist. As a superb strategist but not a tactical genius I point to Quintus Fabius Maximus, the architect of the “Fabian strategy.” Fabius realized that Hannibal was far more of a […]

In the Roman Republic, Could a Tribune’s Veto be Countermanded?

In the Roman Republic a veto by a Tribune of the Plebes could not be countermanded. There was, however, an instance in which the Tribune who vetoed the reading of a proposed law faced a “recall election” and was voted out of office and the reading of the law alhttps://thedeathofcarthage.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=1885&action=editlowed to proceed. In 134 B.C., […]