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Few military leaders are remembered in history for their mistakes rather than their successes. One of the famous exceptions is George Custer, whose tactical blunder at Little Big Horn is a notable setback in America's westward expansion. Another, more ancient example is the Carthaginian leader Hannibal, who twice had it in his power to conquer the Roman empire and twice failed to act quickly enough to do so.
He would forever rue his error, writes the sympathetic French historian Serge Lancel in this thoroughly researched biography; like Napoleon, Hannibal spent his last days in island exile (in his case, on Crete), lamenting his missteps and longing for another chance to rule the world. Even so, writes Lancel, Hannibal had many accomplishments of which to be proud, notably his difficult passage of the Alps with a huge army of men, horses, and elephants, and his defeat of the Roman armies at the Battle of Cannae in 216 B.C., a defeat that cost the Romans some 70,000 men. --Gregory McNamee
Book Description
This is an historical biography of Hannibal, the military leader of Carthage responsible for waging a dramatic onslaught on Rome during the Punic Wars. One of the few generals of history to be famous for the war he lost, Hannibal's attack in 218 BC - which included his renowned march of elephants across the Alps - ranks amongst the most courageous and ill-fated enterprises in the history of the ancient world. It was after the defeat of Hannibal that Rome was able to assert its strength in the Mediterranean, establishing the Roman Republic as the most formidable force in Europe. The book explores Hannibal's character and career. It shows how his actions as commander of the Carthaginian army in Spain consciously precipitated the Second Punic war in which he intended to exact revenge on Rome for earlier defeats. His march across the Alps, and then his war to wrest control of Italy from Rome - a conflict lasting more than a decade - has an inevitable, tragic fascination. Until now the traditions and the reality surrounding Hannibal have only been told from the perspective of Rome. Here, Professor Lancel brings his unrivalled understanding of the Carthaginian world to explain the complexities of Hannibal's character and the internal dynamics of the period in which he lived. This definitive biography of one of the most fascinating figures of ancient history offers a fresh perspective on the demise of the Hellenistic world and the rise of Rome.
Language Notes
Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French
About the Author
Serge Lancel is Professor of Archaeology at the University of Grenoble. For the past 30 years he has excavated and published on excavations in and around Carthage. He has been the director, since its foundation, of the crucial excavation at Byrsa, an important sector of Carthage for most of its existence. He is author of Carthage (Blackwell, 1995). Antonia Nevill has an honors degree in Italian and French. A committed European and a lifelong francophile, she has spent over thirty years teaching in Further Education. Retirement has at last enabled her to devote more time to her favorite occupation, translating.
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