Publius Cornelius Scipio a (c. 255-211 BC) was a Roman military and political leader of the 3rd century BC, a member of the gens Cornelia. He was married to Pomponius and was the son of the consul Lucius Cornelius Scipio and father of Scipio Africanus. Together with his brother, Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus, he led the first Roman offensive in Spain during the Second Punic War until his death. Italica was founded under his orders in 206 BC and he was elected consul in 218 BC, together with Tiberius Sempronius Longo, in the first year of the Second Punic War. After obtaining Spain as a province, he marched with his army from Pisa to Massilia. When he reached Massilia, he found that Hannibal had already crossed the Pyrenees and was advancing towards the Rhone, but as his men were suffering greatly from seasickness, he gave them a few days' rest, thinking that he had enough time to prevent Hannibal from crossing the Rhone.