Hannibal Barca (meaning Hanba'al, "mercy of Baal") was a Carthaginian general. He was the eldest son of Hamilcar. Hamilcar's defeat in the First Punic War (264-241 B.C) must have made a great impression on the young Hannibal as he always looked up to his father. This led him to become a great strategist and a great general. He, who was the son of the General Hamilcar Barca, was born into this middle-classed Carthaginian family. Hannibal Barca died around 182 B.C by drinking poison to avoid capture by the Romans. Despite sad end, Hannibal was a person who was both confident and persistent. …show more content…
He was the son of the great General and statesman Hamilcar Barca. Hannibal never knew his mother and there is no record of her. Hannibal had two other brothers called Hasdrubal and Mago. Their last name Barca means Thunderbolt. As to summarise his childhood, his childhood was not something to be very proud of . His childhood was both hard and not very pleasant. After the Romans defeated Carthage in the First Punic War (241 B.C), Hamilcar dedicated himself to improve both his and Carthage's prosperity. Hamilcar took Hannibal, when he was aged only nine, to Spain and made him dip his hand in blood and made him swear to be a true enemy of the Roman Empire. When he was age twenty-six, Hannibal took control after Hamilcar's successor, “Hasdurbal the handsome,” had been killed. Later, Hannibal attacked Saguntum ( known as Sagunto, Spain) as he wanted to increase his military strength to out power Rome and later conquer it. This raised the anger of Rome which lead to the start of the Second Punic …show more content…
In the first instance, one of the greatest achievement of Hannibal was during the Second Punic War (218-202), by catching the Romans off guard. He crossed the Alps with fifty thousand infantry, nine thousand horsemen and thirty-seven elephants because, although they had sea power, he proved that they also had land power. During the “Battle of Zama” Hannibal and his enemy Scipio Africanus stood face by face confronting each other for the first time. At this battle Hannibal was defeated Scipio Africanus, ending the Second Punic War. However, we shouldn't forget about all of Hannibal's other smaller achievements. In fact, one other powerful example of his achievements was “The Battle of Cannae”(216 BCE). During the battle Hannibal (who was fighting for Carthage) and Lucius Aemilius of Rome fought against each other. Hannibal won this battle with Roman losses falling somewhere in the range of 55,000 to 70,000 men and soldiers. In addition, there were many other achievements of Hannibal like when he got married with a Spanish princess, Imilce, and then through his improved position, he conquered different Spanish tribes. He fought with the Olcades and captured their capital, Althea, and later quieted down the Vaccaei in the northwest. In 221 B.C, making the seaport of Kart-hadst (modern Cartagena, Spain) his base, he won a battle with the Carpetania in the region of the
Hannibal is, perhaps, most notable for moving from Iberia over the Pyrenees, across the Alps and into northern Italy with an estimated army of 38,000 soldiers and war elephants braving the harsh climate and terrain, the guerilla tactics of the native tribes and commanding an extremely lingual-diverse army. He was a distinguished tactician, able to determine his opponent’s strengths and weaknesses, and coordinate his battles accordingly. He also wasn’t above making allies when the time called for it, winning over many allies of Rome in the process during his 15-year invasion before a Roman counter-invasion of North Africa forced ...
Although a genius on the battlefield, where he used surprise and maneuver to overcome the relatively small size of his force, I do not believe that Hannibal was an ethical leader. He did not always exhibit the essential intellectual traits of critical thinking, nor did he always enforce ethical standards. To clarify, Hannibal’s vision was for independence for the territories. But based on some of his actions, the concept of ‘freedom for all’ was not part of that vision. Hannibal exhibited the trait of intellectual hypocrisy; he didn’t hold himself to the same standards that he fought for when he faced the ethical dilemma of feeding, equipping, and paying his troops for their service; or selling Roman captives into slavery.
Julius Caesar was born on July 12 , 100 BC and died on March 15, 44 BC. Caesar was born into a patrician family. This meant that they were noble and were wealthier than the plebeians, who were the common people. (Julius Caesar -- Britannica School) “H is family traced their lineage back to the goddess Venus.” (Julius Caesar -- Britannica School) His uncles and cousins were all consuls and this put Caesar in a place of more power, but higher expectations. His parents were Gaius Caesar, his father, who died when Caesar was 16, and Aurelia, his mother, who greatly influenced his life. (Julius Caesar -- Britannica School ) “Caesar’s political ambitions developed under these circumstances. From the start he probably aimed at winning office, not just for personal glory but also to achieve the power to save Rome from decay.” (Julius Caesar -- Britannica School) On ce he was travelling to Rhodes and was captured by pirates. His ransom was paid, and then Caesar hunted his captors down and had them crucified. (Julius Caesar -- Britannica School) Then he began to climb the ladder of power in the Roman government and eventually was elected as a consul. While consul, he was sent to govern the province of Gaul and set out to conquer the entirety of Gaul. As this was going on, the senate decided that Caesar had to be put out of power, because there was too much risk of an uprising led by Caesar. ...
The Second Punic war, beginning in 218 BC, was the second major war between the Roman Empire and the Carthage. Around the same time, the Roman Empire deployed troops to the Northeastern peninsula of Spain to keep reinforcements, from the Carthaginian South, from getting to Hannibal’s armies in Italy to assist them. In A Histor...
At this point Caesar was praised by the Roman people for his various military victories and had been awarded several awards and honors by the senate. Having conquered much of the surrounding territories, spanning from northern Africa to Greece, and enacting several reforms, Caesar was in the process of acquiring the most power a single man had ever documented in the Roman republic.
As what happens so often, history is written by the side who wins and in the case of the Punic Wars and Carthage itself most of the information available today comes from Roman sources and authors whose knowledge has been passed down through the ages. According to legend Carthage was initially settled as a Phoenician trading colony (the word “Punic” is Latin for Phoenician) in 813 B.C by the Phoenician Queen Elissa (Mark). From Carthage’s prime location as a trade port its power and prestige grew rather quickly and its expansion brought the city into conflict with another growing ambitious city state called Rome.
“Caesar was forced by sudden enemy sortie to jump into a rowing boat. So many of his men followed him that he dived into the sea, and swam 200 yards until he reached his nearest ship – holding his left hand above the water the whole way to keep certain documents dry, and towing his generals clock behind him with his teeth, to save this trophy from his opponents.” In this passage, Suetonius portrays Julius Caesar to be a very strong and courageous leader, and how he effortlessly, created followers based off of his personal courage. Suetonius valued the military. He goes into great depth to explain the good military work Caesar did. During his nine years of governorship, he was the first Roman to build a military bridge across the Rhine as well as fix, and doubled the pay of the Roman Soldiers. Suetonius saw this as a good use of power by Caesar, because it was a solid way to uphold the society. Throughout the civil war, Caesar was never defeated, and celebrated four triumphs within one month. This passage clearly shows that Caesar’s tactics were successful and it benefited the greater
The first battle was fought entirely in Sicily, in 263BCE, and since the Romans were the superior fighters they took the ground battle and continued to prevail until 256BCE. After the victory over Carthage, the Romans began besieging Greek cities that allied with the Carthaginians. The Romans sacked these cities, which caused them to harden their resistance. Rome realized that to beat the Carthaginians they needed to build a fleet and in 261BCE they began building. To counter the Romans inexperience at sea they used a device called a corvus (a large gangplank with a spike on the underside).
...for the Romans. Besides that, he conquered Gaul (modern France) and defeated his rival Pompey in the civil war of 49-45 BC. By doing so, he managed to bring peace to Rome and also expanded Rome's provinces. Caesar proved himself as a potential leader, whom the Romans agreed after the conspirators killed him.
Julius Caesar was ruling over the Roman provinces of Gaul, (now modern day France, Belgium, and parts of Germany), as governor and military commander. After his campaign against the Germanic tribes attacking Gaul, Caesar turned his attention toward Britain. While Gaul was still out of Roman control, the kingdoms of Britain assisted Gaul in their fight against the Romans. “Therefore, in August of the year 55 BC, Caesar along with two
However, though his life came to a close, Hannibal continued to live on in legend. His
Hannibal Barca was born in 247 B.C. in the city of Carthage, which was located in modern Tunis, or the northern tip of Africa. His father, Hamilcar Barca, was a great Carthaginian general of the army who fought in the First Punic War between Rome and Carthage, which the latter lost. At a very young age, Hamilcar made Hannibal promise “eternal hatred towards Rome” (Lendering, 1). At around age nine, Hannibal accompanied his father on an expedition to gain a hold in Spain. During this time was when Hannibal probably gained most of his military knowledge that helped him greatly later in life. When Hannibal’s father and older brother died in 229 and 226, Hannibal was elected commander-in-chief of the Carthaginian army. About ten years later, Hannibal, acting on his promise to his father, attacked the city of Sagantum in Spain, which was controlled by the Romans. This attack led to the start of the Second Punic War between Carthage and Rome.
Julius Caesar was a strong leader of the Romans who changed the course of the history for the Roman world decisively and irreversibly. With his courage and strength, he created a strong empire and guided the empire for almost 20 years. His life was short, but had many adventures. I will tell of some of this man’s remarkable life. He did many things, therefore, I will only discuss a few. His name, part of his reign, one of his greatest battles, and his death will be told.
Hannibal's first battle took place when he was only nine. He went on an expedition with his father, Hamilcar Barca, to conquer Spain. From the beginning Carthage’s push into Spain, Hannibal vowed eternal hatred for Rome; Hannibal became Commander in Chief of Carthage’s army when he was 26 after his father was assassinated. His conquest of the Roman town of Sagunto in Spain led to a new declaration of war by Rome; which started the second Punic War and Hannibal’s promise to visit Roman injustice back on Rome a hundred fold. For Carthage to take the town of Sagunto was completely within the rights of the Carthage and the treaty but Rome at the time was getting too big and becoming very imperialistic. All Rome could see was that they had to have all of the Mediterranean and the only thing that stood in their way was a single General and his men. The way in which the Romans were unconsciously straying from "mos maiorum" to manipulate the course of events was disturbing. Though these actions were not entirely the "evil" work of Rome. Hannibal from his earliest memories could recall nothing but hatred for Rome. Hannibal’s Father had instilled a horrifically self-destructive desire within Hannibal to see the fall of Rome.
Hannibal Lecter was born in Lithuania in 1933 to a family of artistocrats. His younger sister, Mischa, lived with Hannibal in their mother and father’s castle. The family appeared to be well adjusted, loving, nurturing. It becomes apparent very early on how dearly he cares about his sister, Mischa. When World War II broke out, Lithuania became a battle ground for warring Soviets and Germans. Hannibal’s family fled to a cottage in the woods in attempts to avoid being caught in the cross-fire. Their attempts to stay safe would prove unsuccessful. Hannibal’s mother and father die in a battle between the Soviets and Germans. Hannibal and little Mischa witnessed both the deaths of the parents, in addition to plane/foot battles between soldiers. At this point, Hannibal assumes responsibility to care for himself and his little sister. Soon after, a group of Russian soldiers invades the cottage, taking Hannibal and Mischa captive. The soldiers searched the house for food, but were unsuccessful in their search. Famine began to take over the group of soldiers, at which point they realize Mischa has pneumonia and will likely die soon. The men suggest to kill and eat the girl. The soldiers drug his little sister outside, where they slaughtered and devoured her. Hannibal managed to escape, and was placed in an orphanage until his teenage years.