Hannibal Rome's greatest enemy

Philip Freeman, 1961-

Book - 2022

"Over two thousand years ago one of the greatest military leaders in history almost destroyed Rome. Hannibal, a daring African general from the city of Carthage, led an army of warriors and battle elephants over the snowy Alps to invade the very heart of Rome's growing empire. But what kind of person would dare to face the most relentless imperial power of the ancient world? How could Hannibal, consistently outnumbered and always deep in enemy territory, win battle after battle until he held the very fate of Rome within his grasp?"--

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Subjects
Genres
Biographies
Published
New York : Pegasus Books 2022
Language
English
Main Author
Philip Freeman, 1961- (author)
Edition
First Pegasus books cloth edition
Physical Description
xx, 216 pages ; 24 cm
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 201-204) and index.
ISBN
9781643138718
  • Prologue: The Vow
  • Timeline
  • Glossary of Names
  • 1. Carthage
  • 2. Sicily
  • 3. Spain
  • 4. New Carthage
  • 5. Saguntum
  • 6. Gaul
  • 7. The Alps
  • 8. The Ticinus River
  • 9. Trebia
  • 10. The Arno Marshes
  • 11. Lake Trasimene
  • 12. Campania
  • 13. Geronium
  • 14. Cannae
  • 15. Rome
  • 16. Capua
  • 17. Metaurus
  • 18. Zama
  • 19. Exile
  • 20. Legacy
  • Epilogue: What If Hannibal Had Won?
  • Ancient Sources
  • Modern Sources
  • Endnotes
  • Index
Review by Booklist Review

Say "Hannibal," and people think of the guy who crossed the Alps with elephants or the fictional serial killer. Freeman, who's previously written books about Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, and Sappho, offers a highly readable, well-organized military and personal biography of the Carthaginian general who nearly changed history, vividly revealing more amazing scenarios in Hannibal's life and battles than any writer could concoct in a novel. Spoiler alert: the elephants survived the Alps but not the rest of the campaign. Hannibal's success came as much from building alliances with Celtic tribes who lived in Italy before Rome conquered the peninsula and his ability to exploit Roman generals' blind spots as from his bravery in battle. After spectacularly defeating Rome at Cannae in 216 BCE, Hannibal was undone by his own blind spot, assuming defeated Rome would negotiate peace. Instead, the Romans didn't rest until Hannibal was utterly defeated. Readers will see echoes of Hannibal's military genius in Napoleon's battles and Union and Confederate strategies and tactics. Freeman ends with fascinating speculation on how the modern world would look if Hannibal had won.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Kirkus Book Review

A thorough, largely sympathetic account of the career of one of the ancient world's most indelible and complex figures. Freeman, the chair in humanities at Pepperdine whose more than 20 books include biographies of Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar, vividly, almost cinematically, brings to life the career of Hannibal Barca, the great but ill-fated Carthaginian general whose tactical and strategic brilliance is still studied today. The author draws from both of the two most important sources of information on his subject's life (and legend), but he favors the more balanced, detailed account of Polybius over that of Livy, the Roman historian most hostile to the African leader. Freeman also gives full credit to the recent work of scholars who have helped illuminate Hannibal's character and legacy as well as the world in which he lived. Despite the Roman chroniclers who demonized him, tradition holds that Hannibal, though capable of wholesale slaughter, was, by the standards of the day, generous in battle and humane in his treatment of his men and war animals, with an extraordinary gift for eliciting loyalty. In defeat, having turned his energies to rebuilding Carthage's economy, he proved an able administrator. "Even the Romans, in their fear and hatred of Hannibal, could not help but admire his determination, brilliance, and ultimately his humanity. We should do nothing less," writes the author, though he refrains from romanticizing his subject. In a fascinating speculation on what might have happened had Hannibal defeated Rome, Freeman also disputes many modern scholars' belief that history unfolds solely from economic and cultural forces, insisting that "certain individuals at certain moments in time can change everything with a single decision." And Hannibal profoundly changed Rome. The author gives Hannibal's remarkable campaigns much credit for compelling Rome to alter its societal construction, becoming an empire that, for better or worse, would change the world. A simultaneously propulsive and nuanced account that hums on the page. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.