Unfortunately it is not good to stand against enemy cavalry or pikemen. Jul 16, 2019 hannibal was known for leading the carthaginian army and a team of elephants across southern europe and the alps mountains against rome in the second punic war. The romans destruction of carthage after the third punic war erased any. Carthage s military also allowed it to expand into sardinia. Carthage was the center or capital city of the ancient carthaginian civilization, on the eastern side of the lake of tunis in what is now the tunis governorate in tunisia. I already was fairly well versed in hannibals tactics, but here as well the author added to my knowledge.
Carthage felt it had no choice but to defend itself against masinissas invasions but was censured by rome and ordered to pay a new war debt to numidia. May 14, 2018 carthage went to war against numidia and, in so doing, broke the peace treaty with rome which forbid carthage from mobilizing an army. Massively outnumbered, the carthaginians nevertheless won an astonishing. Strategy and tactics, military scholastic books for kids. War strategies and tactics used by hannibal 3664 words. The charges leveled against hannibal include greed, cruelty and.
This book reexamines the battle of cannae, where about. Without much of a standing army in carthage, hannibal for forced to leave rome to return to his homeland to defend it. The battle of cannae hannibal barca stands triumphant over the defeated roman legions the carthaginians were incredible at adapting to different circumstances during the punic wars. The commander of a carthaginian army in the field rab mahanet was selected for the duration of a specific war, usually from the ruling family. The destruction of carthage was an act of roman aggression prompted as much by motives of revenge for earlier wars as by greed for the rich farming lands around the city. Strangely i have a tendency to first want to read the books that are not acclaimed the lesser children of otherwise known and appreciated authors so carthage was my first book by joyce carol oates and to be honest i didnt expect much. This is a thorough, clearly written book about carthage from serge lancel who engaged in many of the archeological digs circa 1990 to 2000. By rob johnson, author and lecturer in the history of war, oxford university. In the punic wars between rome and carthage, hannibal emerged as the outstanding field commander. When he at last met defeat at the hands of the roman general scipio, it was against an experienced officer who had to strengthen and reconfigure the roman legion and invent mobile tactics in order to succeed. You should use war elephants any time it is possible to strengthen your army. When hannibals father and older brother died, hannibal took over the carthaginian army and led it against rome in the second punic war in 218 bc.
The general may often have had complete autonomy of action or, on other occasions, had to rely on the council of 104 and the two most important political persons at carthage, the two suffetes magistrates, for such important decisions as. Unable to force rome to capitulate, he was eventually forced to leave italy and return to carthage when a savvy roman general named scipio invaded north africa. By combining the finest mercenary armies with their own elite forces and huge naval fleet, carthage was able to dominate the western mediterranean and protect. Richard the lionheart faced the army of saladin at arsuf in 1191. Most of its richer citizens fought armed in greek equipment, although often embellished with uniquely carthaginian features, using the sarissa as their main weapon. Carthaginian warfare has been overshadowed by defeat to rome in the punic wars, but for six centuries before that carthage was remarkably successful in conquering lucrative territories in north africa, the iberian peninsula, and sicily.
Your army should compose of one of these, some hoplites as your main line, and your general as shock cav, plus a few skirmishers, whichever type you use. This enables the development of traditions that have positive effects in the same way that skills benefit the characters that have them. The three punic wars between carthage and rome took place over nearly a. Many pieces of greek equipment were used by carthaginians troops, one popular piece being the linothorax, a cuirass made of layers of linen glued together to make a tough shell. Dec 10, 2017 his famous crossing of the alps in winter with an intrepid army and elephants is unforgettable, but are his brilliant maneuvers and intelligence gathering still worth examining. History and civilization of ancient carthage, the great north. Military strategy deals with the planning and conduct of campaigns.
Thus, hannibals army set up camp and lit many fires to give the appearance that they were settling in for the night. You see, even if some phoenicians had migrated to carthage present day tunisia, there is no way they could have had the number. The study of military theory captured the imagination of several byzantine emperors, who hoped to restore the glory of the roman. It is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin.
Keep marching hasdrubals army from carthage to cirta numidian capital land 3 units of balearic slingers in numidia and move them toward cirta. He was outnumbered three to one by a force of mostly mounted troops. Hannibals strategy was to convince the allobroges that the army would not attack at night. After that, you can either move the bireme back to palma and keep using it to transport more slingers as they become available, or move it back to carthage to join the fleet that will be built. This kind of material tends to be tedious but if you want to know about carthage, this is the book. I want something the would realistically represent what carthage would field in a battle and i appreciate it cant be perfect due to game limitations, but with the best efforts of what the game gives us, how would a carthage army. Bc vegetius wrote a summary of military matters which is an important source of information on the roman military.
The romans destruction of carthage after the third punic war erased any carthaginian historical record of hannibals life. Despite the enigma of this great carthaginian general being unable to preserve carthage after him, hannibals tactics and methods offer great lessons not only for. Carthage, great city of antiquity on the north coast of africa, now a residential suburb of the city of tunis, tunisia. Facing the army in a pitched battle would be suicide, and instead richard formed a defensive perimeter with his back to a river and waitedwhile under constant and heavy missile attackfrom early morning until mid. This book reveals these two defining moments in roman military. List of books and articles about military strategy online. It was under such leaders as philip ii 382336 bc and alexander the great 356323 bc of macedonia and hannibal 247183 bc of carthage that the first great strides were made in military science. Roman strategy and tactics from 509 to 202 bc cont. This book contains all the information youll need when researching the various troops and tactics of the punic wars. Facing the army in a pitched battle would be suicide, and instead richard formed a defensive perimeter with his back to a river and waitedwhile under constant and heavy missile attackfrom early morning until midafternoon. When a force is first mustered it is named, given a unique emblem and, from that point on, creates its own legacy through its actions in the field. The first punic war is a record of a dismal wastage of human life and of. Hannibal barca the general that defeated more than romes army.
Terence wises fine text details the armies of both sides of the wars, including the many different allied troops employed by the carthaginians. Elite troops of the sacred band used the linothorax and it was distinctively painted with symbols of tanit, the patron goddess of the unit. He invaded the homeland of his enemy and remained there, undefeated, for fifteen years. Its solid formation allowed it to confidently plow through the opposing forces of other armies. He specializes in detailed historical reconstructions, and has illustrated osprey titles on subjects as diverse as the aztecs, the ancient greeks, roman battle tactics, several 19thcentury american subjects, the modern chinese army, and a number of books in the fortress series. Military strategy is a set of ideas implemented by military organizations to pursue desired strategic goals. The early carthaginian citizen army rank and file used the. Auxiliary unit used to smash skirmishers and light infantry. Hannibal was aware of this and developed a plan that relied perfectly on the romans tactics and selfsuperiority. Apr 04, 2017 the battle of cannae hannibal barca stands triumphant over the defeated roman legions the carthaginians were incredible at adapting to different circumstances during the punic wars. Armies of the carthaginian wars 265146 bc men at arms series. Derived from the greek word strategos, the term strategy, when it appeared in use during the 18th century, was seen in its narrow sense as the art of the general, or the art of arrangement of troops. Carthage s military also allowed it to expand into sardinia and. Some traditions are unique to certain factions, affecting aspects of.
Adopting the weapons and tactics of the hellenistic kingdoms, carthage similarly employed. Armies of the carthaginian wars 265146 bc osprey publishing. I want something the would realistically represent what carthage would field in a battle and i appreciate it cant be perfect due to game limitations, but with the best efforts of what the game gives us, how would a carthage army look when taking to the field. The armies of carthage permitted the city to forge the most powerful empire in. The tactics and strategies of the roman army helped them fend more than half of the world, and thus they came to be known as one of the best armies, which remains unchanged even today. Hannibal of carthage, causing the romans to revise their battle tactics once. This book describes its history, from foundation by the phoenicians in the ninth century bc to destruction by the romans some six centuries later. The epic conflict between rome and carthage remains one of the most compelling stories of military history. Once the allobroges left their posts at the end of the day, hannibals army stormed through the pass, bypassing any resistance. Roman legionary vs carthaginian warrior osprey publishing. His work features in exhibitions and publications throughout the.
The most important carthage unit, used to break enemy lines and to trample enemy troops. This is the story of fabius petronius secundusroman legionary and centurionand. Historical finds and knowledge of carthage north africa from a great archeologist. The wars included such legendary events as the crossing of the alps by hannibal, and the battle of cannae. What battle formations did the carthaginians use during. To what extent does hannibal utilize the the battle strategies in sun tzus art of war rough draft the art of war is of vital importance to the state. The authors understanding of the strategic challenges facing hannibal and his explanations of the military setups of rome and carthage in particular are new to me and superb. Discover book depositorys huge selection of military tactics books online. The following historyplex article sheds light on their war strategies in detail.
What battle formations did the carthaginians use during the. Ancient carthage carthage was a citystate founded by the phoenicians on the coast of north africa some time in the early first millennium bce. One of the names most synonymous with brilliant military strategy is hannibal. A thrilling journey to the core of roman timesthrough a world of extraordinary military tactics and political intriguefrom international bestselling author david gibbins. The mediterranean basin saw the dawn of modern military strategy and tactics. Although carthage s navy was always its main military force, the army acquired a key role in the spread of carthaginian power over the native peoples of northern africa and southern iberian peninsula from the 6th century bc and the 3rd century bc. As with many nations during the 4th and 3rd centuries bc, hellenistic phalanx tactics had reached carthage and had been embraced.
Aug 16, 2017 rome decided to take the fight directly to carthage and sent publius cornelius scipio also referred to as scipio africanus because of his great military victories in africa to lead the army in africa. Carthage, now a ruin on the north coast of africa, was the capital of one of the worlds most powerful empires. Hannibal had his army from a crescent shaped that concaved out towards the approaching roman army. His famous crossing of the alps in winter with an intrepid army and elephants is unforgettable, but are his brilliant maneuvers and intelligence gathering still worth examining.
His famous victory at cannae 216 bc over the roman armies is still studied as an example of battlefield tactics. The immediate threats to carthage are those closest to carthage itself. The military of carthage was one of the largest military forces in the ancient world. Hello, i wondered if any historical experts could point me in the direction of how best to compose a 20 unit army for using carthage. The traditional date of its founding was 814 bce, with a group of phoenician settlers from tyre, a great port city on the coast of presentday lebanon. If you want to discover the captivating life of hannibal barca, then keep reading. According to tradition, carthage was founded by the phoenicians of tyre in 814 bce. Hannibal was known for leading the carthaginian army and a team of elephants across southern europe and the alps mountains against rome in the second punic war. The punic wars triggered an era of astonishing human misfortune. Polybius wrote in the sixth book of his history that the carthaginians were, more exercised in maritime affairs than any other people. Richard gabriels hannibal is a worthy successor to his books on subotai.
Oct 18, 2011 discover book depositorys huge selection of military tactics books online. Strategy, tactics, and innovation the roman army is widely regarded as one of the most effective fighting forces in human history, influencing the development of military tactics for generations afterwards. Carthage went to war against numidia and, in so doing, broke the peace treaty with rome which forbid carthage from mobilizing an army. I will encourage you to read some archaeology article that gives an independent account of who the carthaginians were.
Gregory dalys enthralling study considers the reasons that led the two armies to the field of battle, and why. War strategies and tactics used by hannibal research question. The carthaginian army has a mix of all kinds of troops, because of his high proportion of, spanish and african allies. Feb 28, 2011 hannibal was a firstrate tactician, only a somewhat lesser strategist, and the greatest enemy rome ever faced. Aug 02, 2015 the carthaginian army has a mix of all kinds of troops, because of his high proportion of, spanish and african allies. Hannibal won victories in northern italy by outmaneuvering his roman adversaries and defeated a larger roman army at the battle of cannae in 216 bc. Joshua hall puts that right with this indepth study of their tactics, equipment, unit organization, army composition and operational effectiveness. This is a guest post from patrick hunt, author of the new book.
Development of land tactics during the course of the punic wars, there were key developments in military tactics which affected the outcome of the conflict. Resulting from a mighty power struggle between the military confederation of rome and the trading empire of carthage between 264241 b. By 390 bc, the roman army was in need of change, as greekstyle tactics of. List of books and articles about military strategy. Massively outnumbered, the carthaginians nevertheless won an astonishing victory one that left more than 50,000 men dead. Romes strategic victory over the tacticaloperational genius, hannibal barca hannibal barca, general of carthage during the 2d punic war with rome, 218202 bc, has few peers in the annals of military history. However the shining moment for carthaginian battle tactics was du. Such a strategy, however, restricted carthages strongest elements. Hannibal was a child during the first punic war a war between the roman empire, and carthage, surrounding a power struggle between the two empires. What we know of him comes exclusively from roman historians who had every interest in minimizing his success, exaggerating his failures, and disparaging his character. The most notable of these developments was the carthaginian formation used at the battle of cannae, during the second punic war, on 2nd august 216 bce. Ten of the greatest battlefield tactics, by rob johnson. The early carthaginian citizen army rank and file used the linothorax but after.