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83 lines
4.5 KiB
Markdown
83 lines
4.5 KiB
Markdown
Title: Trebia Trasimene Cannae and Zama
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Date: 2021-10-18
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Tags: Rome, Carthage, Hannibal, Elephants
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Category: War
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What are the four major Battles of the
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[Second Punic War](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Punic_War){target="_blank"}?
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If you said, "Trebia, Trasimene, Cannae, and Zama", you are correct!
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### Prologue
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In 218 BC, Carthaginian General Hannibal, with an army of 40,000
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and more than 30 war elephants, crossed the
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[Pyrenees Mountains](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrenees){target="_blank"},
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then crossed the
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[Rhone River](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rh%C3%B4ne){target="_blank"},
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and then crossed
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[The Alps](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alps){target="_blank"} in winter,
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and invaded Northern Italy, otherwise known as
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[Cisalpine Gaul](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cisalpine_Gaul){target="_blank"}.
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### Trebia River
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In December, on a floodplain of the
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[Trebia River](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Trebia){target="_blank"},
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Hannibal decisively defeated a Roman Army led by
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[Roman Consul Tiberius Sempronius Longus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiberius_Sempronius_Longus_(consul_218_BC)){target="_blank"}.
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Hannibal's [Numidian Cavalry](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numidian_cavalry){target="_blank"}
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were instrumental in victory, and the Carthaginian Light Infantry out-flanked the Roman
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Infantry. But the battle was decided when a hidden Carthaginian unit ambushed the
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Roman Army from behind while they were engaged.
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### Lake Trasimene
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In the Spring of 217 BC, Hannibal crossed the
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[Apennine Mountains](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apennine_Mountains){target="_blank"},
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marched for four days through the swamps near the mouth of the
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[Arno River](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arno){target="_blank"}
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(which flows through modern Florence and Pisa), and ambushed a Roman Army which was led by
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[Roman Consul Gaius Flaminius](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaius_Flaminius_(consul_223_BC)){target="_blank"},
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as it marched along the shore of
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[Lake Trasimene](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Lake_Trasimene){target="_blank"}.
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This was (and still is), the greatest ambush in human military history. And once again
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the Roman Army was wiped out.
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### Cannae
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Rome scrambled to rebuild it's army, and once again on August 2 216 BC, met Hannibal at the
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[Battle of Cannae](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cannae){target="_blank"}. This time the
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Roman Army was led by both [Consuls](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_consul){target="_blank"}:
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[Gaius Terentius Varro](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaius_Terentius_Varro){target="_blank"}, and
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[Lucius Aemilius Paullus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucius_Aemilius_Paullus_(consul_219_BC)){target="_blank"}.
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Once again, Hannibal had more and better Cavalry.
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However the Carthaginian Army was outnumbered by the Roman Army nearly two to one. But
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through clever and deceptive battle-field deployment and maneuver, Hannibal's more-experienced infantry
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managed to completely surround the Roman Infantry, which consequently fell-in on itself, and unable to fight or maneuver,
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was almost completely wiped out.
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The Battle of Cannae was (and still is), one of the bloodiest days in human history with perhaps 50,000 - 70,000
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casualties in the span of just a few hours.
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### Zama
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By waging war against [Carthage](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carthage){target="_blank"},
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Roman General
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[Publius Cornelius Scipio](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scipio_Africanus){target="_blank"}
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compelled Hannibal to return with his Army to Africa, where the two met in 202 BC at the
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[Battle of Zama](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Zama){target="_blank"}.
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This time Rome had the superior Cavalry as Numidia was now allied with Rome. Hannibal's 80 war
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elephants spooked and were inneffective.
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At first, the Carthaginian Cavalry attempted to lure the Roman Cavalry away from the Battle Field
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by fleeing. However, Hannibal's tactic of placing his veterans in the rear back-fired, because about the
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time that the first two lines of Carthaginian Infantry were wiped out and the third line was engaged,
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the Roman Cavalry returned to the Battle Field and rolled-up the Carthaginians from behind.
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Carthage was routed from the Battle Field and the fleeing troops were easily pursued and killed by the
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Roman Cavalry in the flat terrain. On the Ancient Battle Field, you were a winner ... until you were not.
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Hannibal would regret not having attacked the City of Rome following the Battle of Cannae.
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The Second Punic War earned for Rome the reputation of refusing to give up and refusing to accept defeat.
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