Why didn’t the Carthaginians capitalize on Hannibal’s victories in Italy? Answered March 2, 2021 There were two reasons for this. First, the Carthaginians were divided about Hannibal’s activities and there was a faction in their Senate, led by Hanno the Great, who were not supportive of the war. They were clearly a minority after Cannae. After […]
How Was Rome Affected by the Punic Wars?
January 23, 2021 By Leave a Comment
The Punic Wars brought about Rome’s vast increase in power and at same time a significant moral decline. From the introduction in my book The Death of Carthage: “As warlike as they were, the Romans of the third century B.C. maintained certain principles that were gradually lost in the second century B.C.. The first of […]
How Good a General Was Scipio Africanus?
January 16, 2021 By Leave a Comment
How good of a general was Scipio Africanus? Was he truly one of the greats, or did he simply benefit from the fame of defeating Hannibal at Zama? Robin Levin Scipio Africanus was definitely one of the greatest generals in history. The Battle of Zama, where he defeated Hannibal wasn’t even his most brilliant accomplishment. […]
Quora Question: How Did Rome Finally Defeat Carthage?
December 6, 2020 By Leave a Comment
Rome and Carthage fought three wars during the third and second centuries B.C. The first and second wars both ended with treaties on Roman terms. Some fifty years after the end of the Second Punic War, Rome was strongly influenced by an aged veteran of that war named Marcus Porcius Cato, AKA Cato the Elder. […]
Quora Question:Why did Tiberius Gracchus Promote Land Reform in the face of Roman Senatorial Opposition?
December 19, 2019 By 1 Comment
Tiberius Gracchus was the son of Cornelia, the Mother of the Gracchi, and the grandson of Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, the Roman general who defeated Hannibal and ended the sixteen year long Second Punic War. Cornelia was married to Tiberius Gracchus the Elder. She bore twelve children, but only three of them, Tiberius, Gaius, and […]
Quora Question: What Year Was the Rise of Rome?
December 15, 2019 By Leave a Comment
Rome didn’t rise in a day, nor in a year. The rise of Rome was a very long process. The Greek historian Polybius explored the rise of Rome in his Histories. In the preface he wrote: “For who is so indolent and so worthless as to not wish to know by what means and under […]
Why Did The Roman Republic Transition to a Monarchy?
November 16, 2019 By Leave a Comment
The Roman Republic was born in 509 B.C. when the Romans, under the leadership of Lucius Junius Brutus drove out the last King, Tarquin Superbus. The Republic was not very democratic, even though the leadership was elected. The aristocracy had far more say in affairs of state than the common people. It was, essentially, a […]
Follow Us!