Quora Question: Who do You Think is the Most Under Rated Historical Figure.

July 25, 2021 By Leave a Comment

Mine is Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus. He was a pivotal figure in the Second Punic War between Rome and Carthage, 218–201 B.C. His father, Publius Cornelius Scipio the elder was one of the two Roman Consuls when the Second Punic War broke out in 218 B.C. He assembled several legions and took them to Massilia […]

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Why Did Rome Win the Second Punic War

June 9, 2021 By Leave a Comment

There were several reasons. After the Battle of Cannae in which some 55,000 Romans and allies were killed, the Romans largely stopped confronting Hannibal in set piece battles and the war became one of attrition. The Romans concentrated on gaining back the territories that went over to Hannibal after the Battle of Cannae. They successfully […]

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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. […]

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The Genius of Scipio Africanus: Simple but Deceptive, with an Emphasis on Deceptive

December 27, 2020 By Leave a Comment

Elephants were known to wreak havoc in ancient warfare. In the case of Zama, it wasn’t a simple matter of stepping out of the way and clearing a path for the elephants. Scipio wanted Hannibal to think that his elephants would be effective in disrupting the Roman lines, so he disguised the paths he was […]

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Quora Question: What Was the Greatest Military Comeback in History

September 28, 2019 By 4 Comments

I’d have to give that to the Romans in the Second Punic War. The Carthaginian general Hannibal brought an army over the Alps in 218 B.C. During the next two years he won four battles: Ticinus, 2300 Roman casualties, Roman Consul wounded. Trebia 28,000 Roman Casualties. Trasimene, 15,000 Romans killed, 15,000 captured, Roman Consul killed. […]

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Why is Scipio Africanus Considered a Military Genius for Clearing a Path for Hannibal’s Elephants? Isn’t that the Obvious Thing to Do?

September 11, 2019 By Leave a Comment

Elephants were known to wreak havoc in ancient warfare. In the case of Zama, it wasn’t a simple matter of stepping out of way and clearing a path for the elephants. Scipio wanted Hannibal to think that his elephants would be effective in disrupting the Roman lines, so he disguised the paths he was planning […]

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Why did Hannibal Hate the Romans?

September 10, 2019 By Leave a Comment

Hannibal’s father was Hamilcar Barca, the most effective general Carthage produced during the 23 year long First Punic War, 264 B.C. to 241 B.C. In 241 B.C. Carthage suffered a massive defeat at the naval battle of the Aegates Islands and sued for peace. Hamilcar Barca had been having some success against the Romans in […]

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Quora Question: Who in Your Opinion Was the Greatest General in World History

March 2, 2019 By Leave a Comment

    There are many candidates for the greatest soldier/warrior in world history, but I would choose Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, the Roman general who defeated the Carthaginian general Hannibal in the Second Punic War (218 B.C. to 202 B.C.) Scipio never lost a battle. At the start of his military career, at age 17 […]

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Book Review: Las Legiones Malditas by Santiago Postaguillo

December 16, 2014 By Leave a Comment

Las Legiones Malditas (The Accursed Legions) is the second in a series of three novels by Santiago Postaguillo about the life of Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, the conqueror of Carthage in the Second Punic War. The books are written in Spanish with no English translation available, but if your Spanish is up to the task, […]

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Scipio Africanus, Rome’s Greatest General

December 6, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Richard Gabriel is a military historian and his strength lies in his thorough understanding of military history, strategy, tactics and logistics. In Scipio Africanus Gabriel thoroughly analyses Scipio’s military campaigns in Spain and Africa and gets into details that will fascinate students of military history. For example he shows that, based on logistics it would […]

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