Scipio Africanus : Rome's Greatest General

by Gabriel, Richard A.

• ISBN13: 9781597972055
• ISBN10: 1597972053
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-07-01
• Publisher: Potomac Books Inc

Summary

The world often misunderstands its greatest men while neglecting others entirely. Scipio Africanus, surely the greatest general that Rome produced, suffered both these fates. Today scholars celebrate the importance of Hannibal, even though Scipio defeated the legendary general in the Second Punic War and was the central military figure of his time. In this scholarly and heretofore unmatched military biography of the distinguished Roman soldier, Richard A. Gabriel establishes Scipio's rightful place in military history as the greater of the two generals. Before Scipio, few Romans would have dreamed of empire, and Scipio himself would have regarded such an ambition as a danger to his beloved republic. And yet, paradoxically, Scipio's victories in Spain and Africa enabled Rome to consolidate its hold over Italy and become the dominant power in the western Mediterranean, virtually ensuring a later confrontation with the Greco-Macedonian kingdoms to the east as well as the empire's expansion into North Africa and the Levant. The Roman imperium was being born, and it was Scipio who had sired it. Gabriel draws upon ancient texts, including those from Livy, Polybius, Diodorus, Silius Italicus, and others, as primary sources and examines all additional material available to the modern scholar in French, German, English, and Italian. His book offers a complete bibliography of all extant sources regarding Scipio's life. The result is a rich, detailed, and contextual treatment of the life and career of Scipio Africanus, one of Rome's greatest generals, if not the greatest of them all.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations
Chronology
The Man	p. 1
Baptism by Fire	p. 7
Cannae	p. 10
Public Office	p. 14
Selection for Command	p. 15
Military Competency	p. 18
The Strategic Setting	p. 25
Carthaginian Strategy	p. 28
The Battle of the Trebia River, 218 BCE	p. 36
The Battle of Lake Trasimene, 217 BCE	p. 39
The Battle of Cannae, 216 BCE	p. 43
Spain	p. 51
The Armies	p. 55
The Carthaginian Army	p. 55
The Roman Army	p. 64
Scipio's Spanish Campaign	p. 83
The Attack on New Carthage, 209 BCE	p. 85
The Battle of Baecula, 208 BCE	p. 102
The Battle of Ilipa, 206 BCE	p. 115
The Strategist	p. 125
Africa	p. 126
Spain	p. 129
The Battle of the Ebro River, 206 BCE	p. 134
Return to Rome	p. 139
The African Campaign	p. 143
Invasion, 204 BCE	p. 144
The Battle at the Tower of Agathocles, 204 BCE	p. 157
The Burning of the Carthaginian Camps, 203 BCE	p. 163
The Battle of the Great Plains, 203 BCE	p. 166
Syphax's Defeat	p. 172
Truce	p. 174
Scipio and Hannibal	p. 175
The Battle of Zama, 202 BCE	p. 183
Pax Scipionis	p. 198
Triumph and Fall	p. 203
Scipio's Political Life	p. 203
The Last Campaign	p. 215
The Trial of Scipio	p. 228
Scipio's Place in Military History	p. 235
Notes	p. 245
Bibliography	p. 281
Index	p. 291
About the Author	p. 303
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.