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The Battle of Zama, fought around October 19 of 202 BC, marked the final and decisive end of the Second Punic War. The Second Punic War (referred to as "The War Against Hannibal" by the Romans lasted from 218 to 201 BC and involved combatants in the western Cornelis Cort (1533? - c March 17 1578) was a Dutch Engraver and draughtsman. Events 202 BCE - The Battle of Zama results in the defeat of Carthage and Hannibal. Events By place Carthage Accused of treason by the Carthaginians after being defeated by the Romans at the Battle of the For other uses of this word see Zama (disambiguation. Zama Minor (or simply Zama) is an archaeological site in northern Tunisia Carthage (Καρχηδών Karkhēdōn, Carthago from the Phoenician קרת חדשת phn-Latn Qart-ḥadašt meaning new town) refers The Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a Republican form of government a period which began with the overthrow of the Carthage (Καρχηδών Karkhēdōn, Carthago from the Phoenician קרת חדשת phn-Latn Qart-ḥadašt meaning new town) refers The Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a Republican form of government a period which began with the overthrow of the Numidia (202 BC – 46 BC was an ancient Berber kingdom in present-day Algeria and part of Tunisia ( North Africa) that later alternated Hannibal (Pronounced in Phoenician: Hanniba'al means " Ba'al is my grace " or " Ba'al has given me grace " 247 BC &ndash Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus Major ( Latin: P·CORNELIVS·P·F·L·N·SCIPIO·AFRICANVS ¹) (236&ndash183 Masinissa or Massinissa (c 240 or 238 BC - c 148 BC was the first King of Numidia, an ancient North African nation of Ancient Libyan tribes A war elephant is an Elephant trained and guided by humans for combat The Infantry is the oldest and most numerous of the Combat Arms in the Armed forces, and consists The Cavalry (from French cavalerie) is the second oldest of the Combat Arms, and as Soldiers or Warriors who fought mounted on Numidia (202 BC – 46 BC was an ancient Berber kingdom in present-day Algeria and part of Tunisia ( North Africa) that later alternated Events 202 BCE - The Battle of Zama results in the defeat of Carthage and Hannibal. Events By place Carthage Accused of treason by the Carthaginians after being defeated by the Romans at the Battle of the The Second Punic War (referred to as "The War Against Hannibal" by the Romans lasted from 218 to 201 BC and involved combatants in the western A Roman army led by Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus defeated a Carthaginian force led by Hannibal Barca. The Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a Republican form of government a period which began with the overthrow of the Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus Major ( Latin: P·CORNELIVS·P·F·L·N·SCIPIO·AFRICANVS ¹) (236&ndash183 Carthage (Καρχηδών Karkhēdōn, Carthago from the Phoenician קרת חדשת phn-Latn Qart-ḥadašt meaning new town) refers Hannibal (Pronounced in Phoenician: Hanniba'al means " Ba'al is my grace " or " Ba'al has given me grace " 247 BC &ndash Soon after this defeat on their home ground, the Carthaginian senate sued for peace, ending the 17-year war. A senate is a Deliberative body, often the Upper house or chamber of a Legislature or Parliament.
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Prelude
Despite nearly two decades of constant victories, much of it on Italian soil, the Carthaginian commander Hannibal Barca was still in Italy, although confined to the south of the peninsula. Charlotte Mary Yonge (11 August 1823 - 24 May 1901 was an English Novelist, known for her huge output now mostly out of print A decisive victory by Gaius Claudius Nero in the brief Metaurus campaign ended with the death of Hannibal's brother, Hasdrubal Barca, and permanently severed Hannibal from all hope of reinforcements. Gaius Claudius Nero was a Roman Consul who fought in the Battle of the Metaurus (207 BC The Battle of the Metaurus was a pivotal battle in the Second Punic War between Rome and Carthage, fought in 207 BC near the Metaurus River Hasdrubal son of Hamilcar Barca, (d 207 BC short form Hasdrubal) was Hamilcar's second son and a Carthaginian general in the Second Punic War Hannibal was now stranded and forced to sustain a scorched earth policy throughout Southern Italy. A scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method (possibly more often referred to as a tactic but this is not entirely correct as there is a difference between Hannibal had entered Italy as a victorious conqueror. He humiliated the Romans at Ticinus, Trebia, Lake Trasimene, and finally Cannae where the cream of the Roman army was slaughtered. The Battle of Ticinus was a battle of the Second Punic War fought between the Carthaginian forces of Hannibal and the Romans under Publius The Battle of the Trebia (or Trebbia) was the first major battle of the Second Punic War, fought between the Carthaginian forces of Hannibal The Battle of Lake Trasimene ( June 24, 217 BC, April on the Julian calendar) was a Roman defeat in the Second Punic War between the Carthaginians For the 11th century battle in the Byzantine conquest of the Mezzogiorno, see Battle of Cannae (1018. Hannibal had anticipated using these victories to persuade the Italian city-states to mutiny and ally themselves with him. Instead, they only produced a growing resolve in the Italian states to rally to Roman leadership.
Following his decisive, victorious campaign in Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula), Scipio proposed ending the war by invading Carthage's home territories, an area now known as Tunisia. Hispania was the name given by the Romans to the whole of the Iberian Peninsula (modern Portugal, Spain, Andorra, Gibraltar The Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe, and includes modern day Spain, Portugal, Andorra Tunisia (تونس Tūnis officially the Tunisian Republic ( is a country located in North Africa. Despite the cautious Senate's opposition to this plan, the Roman people gave Scipio the requisite authority to attempt the invasion. The Roman Senate was a political institution in Ancient Rome. At first Scipio operated cautiously, acting mostly to reinforce his army with local defectors. After Massinissa replaced the pro-Carthage Syphax as chieftain of the Numidians, Scipio felt able to risk a decisive battle and began menacing the city of Carthage itself. Masinissa or Massinissa (c 240 or 238 BC - c 148 BC was the first King of Numidia, an ancient North African nation of Ancient Libyan tribes For the Canadian mountain see Mount Syphax. For the mythological figure see Sufax. Numidia (202 BC – 46 BC was an ancient Berber kingdom in present-day Algeria and part of Tunisia ( North Africa) that later alternated The panicked Carthaginians offered peace with Scipio, who, having the authority, granted it with modest terms. Carthage could keep its African territory, but would lose its overseas empire, a fait-accompli. Masinissa was to be allowed to expand Numidia into parts of Africa. Also, Carthage was to reduce its fleet and pay a war indemnity. The Roman senators had ratified the agreement, but during the intervening period, Carthage captured a stranded Roman fleet in the Gulf of Tunes and stripped it of supplies. Meanwhile Hannibal, recalled from Italy by the Carthaginian senate, had returned with his army. Fortified by both Hannibal and the supplies, the Carthaginians no longer believed a treaty advantageous, and rebuffed it amidst much Roman protest.
As a result, the war renewed. Scipio met Hannibal on the plain of Zama, with Hannibal leading an army composed of local citizens and veterans from his Italian campaigns and Scipio leading the already present Roman army, along with a body of Numidian cavalry. The two men are said to have met face-to-face before the battle. Hannibal said that fate played a role in the war to bring them here, and Scipio said that because of the Carthaginan treachery at the Gulf of Tunes, he would no longer agree to peace without battle.
Battle
Hannibal's army consisted of 50,000 infantry, 80 war elephants, and 4,000 cavalry, while Scipio had a total of 34,000 infantry and 8,700 cavalry. The Naples National Archaeological Museum ( Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli) is located in Naples Italy, at the northwest corner of the original Greek Henri-Paul Motte (1846-1922 was a 19th century French Artist and painter best known for his work of the Siege of La Rochelle a depiction of Putting his inexperienced cavalry on the flanks, Hannibal aligned his troops in three straight lines behind eighty war elephants. The first line consisted of mixed infantry from Gaul, Liguria, and Baleria. In his second line he placed the Carthaginian and Libyan levies, while his veterans from Italy were placed in the third line. Hannibal intentionally held back his third infantry line, in order to thwart Scipio's tendency to pin the Carthaginian center and envelop his opponent's lines, as he had previously done at the Battle of Ilipa. The Battle of Ilipa was arguably Scipio Africanus ’s most brilliant victory in his military career during the Second Punic War.
Hannibal hoped that the combination of the war elephants and the depth of the first two lines would weaken and disorganize the Roman advance, whereupon he would complete a victory with his reserves in the third line and overlap Scipio's lines. Though this formation was indeed well-conceived, it failed to produce a Carthaginian victory.
At the outset of the battle, the superior Roman cavalry swept aside their Carthaginian counterparts and pursued them off the field— depriving Hannibal of his entire body of cavalry. It is sometimes claimed that Hannibal had intended his cavalry to lure their opponents away from the battlefield, in effect eliminating the advantage the Romans enjoyed in this arm. Likewise, Hannibal’s first two lines, unable to cope with the well-trained and confident Roman soldiers, were soon dispersed. For years, Hannibal had won victories with his experienced army, but now he faced the best of the Roman army, while he commanded a hastily assembled army, which fared poorly against the Romans. As Livy states “. . . the Romans immediately drove back the line[s] of their opponents; then pushing their elbows and the bosses of their shields, and pressing forward into the places which they had pushed them, they advanced at a considerable pace, as if there had been no one there to resist them. . . ” [10].
Moreover, Scipio came up with an inventive method of neutralizing Hannibal's elephants. Hannibal had lost all of his original elephant troops (who had crossed the Alps with him) after the battle of the Trebia, but they were replenished in Africa. First of all, Scipio knew that elephants could be ordered to charge forward, but they could only continue their charge in a straight line. So rather than arranging the maniples in the traditional checker pattern manipular formation, Scipio instead put the velites, principes, and triarii in succeeding lines of 500-man groups. Maniple (Latin manipulus) was a tactical unit of the Roman legion adopted from the Samnites during the Samnite Wars Velites (Singular Veles) were a class of infantry in the Polybian legions of the early Roman republic Principes (Singular Princeps) were Spearmen, and later Swordsmen, in the armies of the early Roman Republic. Triarii (Singular Triarius) were Spearmen in the armies of the early Roman Republic. Scipio predicted that intentionally opening gaps in his troops would result in the elephants simply continuing between them, without harming any of his soldiers. The elephants indeed harmlessly passed through his troops and were picked off on the other side. (Many of them were so distraught, in fact, they charged back into their own Carthaginian lines. ) Scipio's troops then fell back into formation and continued marching.
Despite these setbacks to Hannibal's forces, the battle remained a closely contested engagement. When the Roman infantry confronted the Carthaginian third line, the resulting clash was fierce and bloody, with neither side achieving local superiority. In fact, at one point during the battle, it seemed that Hannibal was on the verge of victory. However, Scipio was able to rally his men, and his cavalry, after pursuing the Carthaginian cavalry, returned in time to deliver a devastating blow in Hannibal's rear. This two-pronged attack caused the Carthaginian formation to disintegrate and collapse. Unable to cope against the well-trained and confident Roman soldiers with his own indifferent troops after losing his advantage, Hannibal experienced a major defeat that put an end to all resistance on the part of Carthage. In total, as many as 20,000 men of Hannibal’s army were killed at Zama, while 11,000 were wounded and 15,000 were taken as prisoners. The Romans on the other hand, lost as few as 1,500 dead and 5,000 wounded.
Aftermath
Soon after Scipio's victory at Zama, the war ended, with the Carthaginian senate suing for peace. For other uses of this word see Zama (disambiguation. Zama Minor (or simply Zama) is an archaeological site in northern Tunisia Unlike the treaty that ended the First Punic War, the terms Carthage acceded to were so punishing that it was never able to challenge Rome for supremacy of the Mediterranean again. The First Punic War ( 264 to 241 BC) was the first of three major wars fought between Carthage and the Roman Republic. When Rome waged a Third Punic War on Carthage 70 years later, the Carthaginians had little power, and could not even defeat Masinissa in Africa. The Third Punic War ( 149 BC to 146 BC) was the third and last of the Punic Wars fought between the former Phoenician colony of Carthage Masinissa or Massinissa (c 240 or 238 BC - c 148 BC was the first King of Numidia, an ancient North African nation of Ancient Libyan tribes They could, however, organize a defense of their home city, which, after an extended siege, was captured and completely destroyed. Only 55,000 survived.
References
- Hans Delbrück; Warfare in Antiquity; 1920; ISBN 0-8032-9199-X
- Robert F. Hans Delbrück ( November 11, 1848 - July 14, 1929) was a German Historian. Pennel; Ancient Rome from the earliest times down to 476 A.D; 1890
- Theodore Ayrault Dodge; Hannibal: A History of the Art of War among the Carthaginians and Romans down to the Battle of Pydna, 168 B. Theodore Ayrault Dodge ( 28 May 1842 &ndash 1909 was a Union officer in the American Civil War and a military historian of both that C. , with a Detailed Account of the Second Punic War; 1891; ISBN 0-306-81362-9
- In fiction, Dante's Divine Comedy, poem, Inferno XXXI. The Divine Comedy 97-132, 115-124
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