Battle of Cornus The Battle of Cornus , or Caralis took place when a Carthaginian army sailed to Sardinia in support of a Sardinian revolt against Roman rule . The army , led by Hasdrubal the Bald , fought a similar size Roman army under Praetor Titus Manlius Torquatus in the Fall of 215 BC somewhere between Cornus and Caralis . The Romans destroyed the Carthaginian army and then scattered their fleet in a sea battle south of Sardinia . Strategic Situation . The Romans were hard pressed after the Battle of Cannae , with several South Italian cities deserting to Carthage . Hannibal Barca and his army were active in Campania , while a second Carthaginian army under Hanno the Elder had become active in Bruttium . The Romans fielded several armies , which avoided attacking Hannibal but struck at his allies whenever possible . In Iberia , Hasdrubal Barca , brother of Hannibal , had been fighting skirmishes with the Scipio brothers since his defeat in the Battle of Ebro River . In 216 BC , the Carthaginian Senate sent him reinforcements with orders to march to Italy . In Africa , Mago Barca was put in command of an army of 12 , 000 infantry , 1 , 500 horse and 20 elephants with orders to join Hannibal . The Romans had fought off and on with the natives since obtaining Sardinia through blackmail in 237 BC . By 216 BC , the situation in the island was ripe for revolt . The single Roman legion posted there was understrength from sickness . The praetor , Q . Mucius Scavola , was also sick . Payment and provisions from Rome were irregular . Hampsicora , a native Sardinian chieftain , had asked for aid from Carthage . Carthage sent an officer named Hanno to finance the revolt and then raised an army similar to that of Mago ' s for an expedition to Sardinia . Hasdrubal the Bald and another Mago was in charge of the expedition . Before the Carthaginian expedition sailed for Sardinia , the strategic situation changed . Hanno the Elder was defeated by Titus Sempronius Longus in Lucania , and Hasdrubal Barca lost most of his field army in the Battle of Dertosa in Iberia . The Carthaginian senate ordered Mago to Iberia , but the Sardinian expedition sailed as planned . However , a storm blew the fleet off course to the Balearic islands , where many ships had to be hauled ashore and repaired ( Livy xxiii 36 , Lazenby J . F p96 - 98 ) . This delayed the arrival of the Carthaginians to Sardinia . Prelude . Hampsicora was busy raising an army and collecting provisions near the city of Cornus ( near Cuglieri on the western coast of Sardinia ) . The delay of the Carthaginians gave the Romans the opportunity to send fresh forces under the praetor Titus Manlius Torquatus , who had served as consul in Sardinia in 235 BC . Total Roman forces in Sardinia rose to 20 , 000 infantry and 1 , 200 horse with his arrival . Manlius managed to draw Hiostus , the son of Hampsicora to rashly attack the Romans when Hampsicora was absent on a recruiting mission . In the ensuing battle , 5 , 700 Sardinians were killed and the rebel army scattered . Hasdrubal the Bald arrived in Sardinia in the fall of 215 . He landed near Cornus , and gathered what forces of Sardinians he could find , and marched towards Caralis . In response Manlius marched out with an army . The battle . The opponents did not immediately engage with each other . They encamped close to each other and spent some days skirmishing . When neither sides gained any advantage , the respective commanders decided on battle . The armies formed up traditionally , with cavalry on the wings and infantry in the center . It is not known if the Carthaginians had elephants with them . The battle was hotly contested for four hours , with neither side gaining an advantage . The decisive moment came when the Roman detachment facing the Sardinians on one of the wings of the Carthaginian line managed to drive them from the field . The victorious Roman wing then wheeled inward and attacked the Carthaginian line , which gave way and was slaughtered . Hasdrubal , Mago and Hanno were captured and Hiostus killed . Hampsicora fled the field , and then committed suicide . The survivors took refuge in Cornus , which was taken by assault a few days later . The Punic fleet managed to extricate some of the survivors . Battle of Sardinia Sea . The expedition was carried by an unknown number of transports and escorted by 60 quinquereme s . These took the remnants of the expedition and sailed to Africa . On the way they encountered the Sicilian contingent of the Roman fleet returning from a raiding mission in Africa . The Roman fleet , 100 quinquereme strong and commanded by Titus Ocatilius Crassus , attacked and captured seven Carthaginian ships , while the rest scattered and made for Africa . Roman losses are not known ( Livy xiii 46 ) .