Second Punic War | The Death of Carthage

Quora Question: Who was Hannibal Barca and What Books Should I Read to Learn More About Him?

December 5, 2020 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

Who was Hannibal Barca? Which book should I read to learn more about him? Robin Levin · During the third and second centuries B.C. the ancient civilizations of Rome in Italy and Carthage in North Africa fought three wars, these are known as the Punic wars-the word Punic comes from the Roman word for Phoenician […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage Tagged With: Ancient Rome, Battle of Cannae, Battle of the Metaurus River, Battle of Ticinus, Battle of Trasimene, Battle of Trebia, Battle of Zama. Hamilcar Barca, Carthage, Hannibal, Hasdurbal Barca, Mago Barca, publius cornelius scipio africanus, Second Punic War

Quora Question: What Year Was the Rise of Rome?

December 15, 2019 By Robin Levin 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 […]

Filed Under: Carthage Tagged With: Ancient Rome, Augustus, Claudius, First Punic War, Hannibal, Julius Caesar, Mithradates, Philip V of Macedon, Polybius, Publius Corneius Scipio Africanus, Second Punic War, Third Punic War, Tiberius, Trajan

What Was the Role of Hispanian Tribesmen in the Second Punic War?

October 28, 2019 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

During the Second Punic War, Rome and Carthage contended with each other for the loyalty and support of the native Spanish Tribes. When Hannibal’s father, Hamilcar Barca, came to Spain to establish Carthaginian hegemony, he encountered resistance from some of the tribes. In fact, he was killed in a conflict with the Carpetani, a large […]

Filed Under: Carthage Tagged With: Gneius Scipio, Hamilcar Barca, Hannibal, Hasdrubal Barca, Hasdrubal the Fair, Hispania, Iberus River, Indibilis, Mandonius, Masinissa, Publius Cornelius Scipio the Elder, Scipio Africanus, Second Punic War, Upper Baetus

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 Robin Levin 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 […]

Filed Under: Carthage Tagged With: Battle of Ilipa., Battle of Zama, elephants, Hannibal, Hasdrubal Son of Gisco, Mago Barca, New Carthage, publius cornelius scipio africanus, Second Punic War

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

March 2, 2019 By Robin Levin 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 […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage Tagged With: Battle of Baecula, Battle of Ilipa., Battle of Zama, Fabius Maximus, Hannibal, Hasdrubal Barca, Hasdrubal Son of Gisco, Mago Barca, Robin Levin, Scipio Africanus, Second Punic War

Book Review: Darkness Over Cannae by Jenny N. Dolfen

January 17, 2015 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

Darkness Over Cannae is a work of art, in both the literary and the pictorial senses. It is lush with strikingly rendered illustrations, created by the author herself, which bring to life the sights one might have witnessed before, during, and after the battle. In Darkness over Cannae, Jenny Dolfen tells the story of the […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Book Review, Carthage Tagged With: Cannae, Carthage, Gaius Tarentius Varro, Hannibal, Lucius Aemilius Paullus, Maharbal, rome, Second Punic War

Book Review: Las Legiones Malditas by Santiago Postaguillo

December 16, 2014 By Robin Levin 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, […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Book Review, Carthage Tagged With: Battle of Zama, Carthage, Hannibal, publius cornelius scipio africanus, quintus fabius maximus, rome, Santiago Postaguillo, Second Punic War

Excerpt #4 From my Work in Progress, In the Wake of Hannibal

May 9, 2014 By Robin Levin Leave a Comment

In order to save his infant son from being sacrificed as a burn offering, Gisco has fled to the Romans and has offered his services as a traitor: After a few weeks I was summoned to the tablinum of the owner of the domus. Lucius was there and alongside him sat two stern-looking middle-aged men […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Carthage, Excerpt From Work in Progress Tagged With: Carthage, Gneius Cornelius Scipio, Hannibal, Mago, Publius Cornelius Scipio the Elder, rome, Scipio Africanus, Second Punic War, Ticinus

Scipio Africanus, Rome’s Greatest General

December 6, 2013 By Robin Levin 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 […]

Filed Under: Ancient Rome, Book Review, Carthage Tagged With: Battle of Ilipa., Battle of Zama, Carthage, Fabius Maximus, Hannibal, Hasdrubal Barca, Richard Gabriel, rome, Scipio Africanus, Second Punic War

Whatever Happened to Hannibal’s Elephants?

October 2, 2013 By Robin Levin 5 Comments

In ancient times there was widespread use of elephants in warfare. The first use of elephants in military campaigns probably occurred in India sometime during the first millennium B.C. The practice eventually spread eastward to Burma, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos, and westward to Greece and North Africa. In 326 B.C. Alexander the Great invaded India, […]