Hannibal | The Death of Carthage

The Difference Between Winning a Battle and Winning a War

November 14, 2025 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

How do historians explain the difference between winning battles and actually winning a war? I’m not a historian but I write historical fiction. My area of study is the Second Punic War between Rome and Carthage from 218 B.C. to 202 B.C. This was a classic example of winning battles but losing the war. Rome […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage Tagged With: Battle of Cannae, Battle of Ticinus, Battle of Trasimene, Battle of Trebia, Battle of Zama, Hannibal, Mago Barca, Philip V of Macedonia, publius cornelius scipio africanus, Quintus Fabius Maximus Cunctator, Second Punic War

Why Did Hannibal Win His Early Battles Against Rome in the Second Punic War

October 30, 2025 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

Hannibal was a military genius. That is, he was a genius at battlefield tactics, although not so much at strategy. At the time when Hannibal crossed the Alps, 218 B.C., the Romans had no military geniuses, no Roman general could come near to Hannibal in battlefield tactics. In fact, several of the Roman generals in […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage Tagged With: Ancient Rome, Battle of Cannae, Battle of Trasimene, Battle of Trebia, Battle of Zama, Carthage, Gaius Flaminius, Gaius Terentius Varro, Hannibal, Lucius Aemilius Paullus, Mago Barca, Marcus Minucius, publius cornelius scipio africanus, Quintus Fabius Maximus Cunctator, Tiberius Sempronius Longus

What Were the Reasons Carthage was Defeated by Rome in the Second Punic War?

October 28, 2025 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

There were several reasons. Rome relied on citizen and allied soldiery while Carthage relied largely on mercenaries. Mercenaries have to be paid and are not as reliable as citizen soldiers and can be bought off. Carthage during the Second Punic War did not support its military to the same degree that Rome supported theirs. Carthage’s […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage Tagged With: Carthage, Hannibal, Hasdrubal Barca, Mago Barca, Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus nd Punic War, Quintus Fabius Maximus Cunctator, rome, The Second Punic War

What Was the Role of Quintus Fabius Maximus Cunctator in Defeating Hannibal in the Second Punic War?

September 23, 2024 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

The Roman poet Ennius referred to Marcus Claudius Marcellus as Rome’s sword during the Second Punic War, and he referred to Quintus Fabius Maximus Cunctator as Rome’s shield. Fabius Maximus thought outside the box. The normal Roman response to foreign aggression was to confront the enemy on the battlefield. Fabius was astute enough to realize […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage Tagged With: Battle of Cannae, Battle of Zama, Gaius Flaminius, Gaius Terentius Varro, Hannibal, Lucius Aemilius Paullus, Marcus Claudius Marcellus, publius cornelius scipio africanus, Quintus Fabius Maximus Cunctator

What Did Hannibal Think of the Romans?

September 22, 2024 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

What did Hannibal think of the Romans? Hannibal was indoctrinated by his father, Hamilcar Barca, to hate the Romans. There is a story that, before taking Hannibal with him to Spain, Hamilcar took him to the Temple of Elissa at Carthage and made him swear an oath: “When I come to age, I shall pursue […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage Tagged With: Antiochus III, Battle of Cannae, Battle of Zama, Carthage, Hannibal, Italy, King Prusius of Bythinia, publius cornelius scipio africanus, Titus Quinctius Flamininus

What Role Did the Berbers Have in the Punic Wars Between Rome and Carthage?

August 15, 2024 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

The Romans called the Berbers, the native peoples of North Africa Numidians, which meant nomads. They were distinct from the Carthaginians who were descended from Phoenician colonists. The Numidians provided the Carthaginians with mercenaries, and at the start of the Second Punic War in 218 B.C. both major tribes, the Masaesyli under King Syphax and […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage Tagged With: Berbers, Hannibal, Hasdrubal Son of Gisco, Marcus Porcius Cato the Elder, Masinissa, Numidians, Punic Wars, scipio, Syphax

Why Didn’t Carthage Support Hannibal in the Second Punic War?

August 13, 2024 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

It is true that the Carthaginian Senate was divided during the Second Punic War. The “Merchant Party” supported Hannibal while the “Land Party” did not. The “Land Party” was led by Hanno the Great who was a staunch political enemy of Hamilcar Barca, the father of Hannibal. Livy quotes him as saying this at the […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage Tagged With: Battle of Cannae, Battle of Ilipa., Battles of the Upper Baetis, Hannibal, Hanno the Great, Hasdrubal Son of Gisco, Mago Barca, publius cornelius scipio africanus

What Civilizations attempted to Colonize and Rule Spain?

August 3, 2024 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

Around 800 B.C. Phoenicians began colonizing Spain, establishing the city of Gades (Cadiz) in the southwest corner of Spain. Greeks also established settlements like Emporion on the east coast of Spain. Carthage, a Phoenician speaking city on the north coast of Africa attempted to colonize and rule Spain during the third century B.C. Hamilcar Barca, […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage Tagged With: Battle of Dertosa, Battles of the Upper Baetis, Gneius Cornelius Scipio, Hamilcar Barca, Hannibal, Hasdrubal the Fair, Lusitania, Numantia, publius cornelius scipio africanus, Publius Cornelius Scipio the Elder, Saguntum

Who Was the Better General, Hannibal or Scipio?

August 3, 2024 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

Hannibal was a genius when it came to battlefield tactics, but not as adept at strategy or logistics. Scipio Africanus was a genius at all three. Scipio’s Spanish campaign shows his proficiency at battlefield tactics, strategy and logistics. The first thing he did was to conquer New Carthage where the Carthaginians stored their wealth and […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage Tagged With: B.F. Liddle-Hart, Battle of Ilipa., Battle of Zama, Hannibal, New Carthage, publius cornelius scipio africanus, Second Punic War

What Factors Led to the Defeat of Hannibal in the Second Punic War?

August 2, 2024 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

Factors in Carthage’s defeat in the Second Punic War. Roman refusal to come to terms after their overwhelming defeat at the Battle of Cannae. Hannibal sent a Carthaginian nobleman, Carthalo to Rome with peace terms. The Romans wouldn’t let him into the city. The Roman Senate declared it a crime to even mention the word […]