Hanno the Great There were three leaders of ancient Carthage who were known as Hanno the Great , according to two historians ( the Picards ) . These figures they call for convenience : Hanno I the Great , Hanno II the Great , and Hanno III the Great . According to another historian ( Warmington ) , there were three ancients of Carthage called " Hanno " " given the same nickname " , that is " the Great " , but he conjectures that it was a family nickname or a term not well understood by the ancient Greek or Roman writers . Warmington discusses only two of them ( I and II ) , but he does not use the " I " or " II " . Another historian ( Lancel ) mentions only one Hanno the Great , namely Hanno " I " the Great . The one already referred to here as " Hanno II the Great " he discusses but calls him simply " Hanno " . Of course , it is an anomaly for multiple people to be called " Hanno the Great " . In all , there were many historical figures named Hanno in ancient Carthage . Hanno I the Great . Hanno the Great was a politician and military leader of the 4th century BC . His title , according to Justin , was " princeps Cathaginiensium " . It is considered more likely that the title signifies " first among equals " , rather than being a title of nobility or royalty . His rival Suniatus was called the " potentissimus Poenorum " , or " the most powerful of the Carthaginians " , in the year 368 . Several years later Suniatus was accused of high treason ( for correspondence with Syracuse ) and probably executed . In 367 Hanno the Great commanded a fleet of 200 ships which won a decisive naval victory over the Greeks of Sicily . His victory effectively blocked the plans of Dionysius I of Syracuse to attack Lilybaeum , a city allied to Carthage in western Sicily . For about twenty years Hanno the Great was the leading figure of Carthage , and perhaps the wealthiest . In the 340s he schemed to become the tyrant . After distributing food to the populace , the time for a show of force came and he utilized for that purpose the native slaves and a Berber chieftain . Although not a military threat to Carthage , Hanno the Great was captured , found to be a traitor , and tortured to death . Many members of his family were also put to death . Yet later his son Gisgo was given the command of seventy ships of Carthage manned by Greek mercenaries and sent to Lilybaeum , after which peace was negotiated by Carthage with Timoleon of Syracuse , c . 340 . Thereafter , this family ' s prestige and influence at Carthage would tell in later generations . Hanno I the Great was probably an ancestor of Hanno II the Great . Hanno II the Great . Hanno the Great was a wealthy Carthaginian aristocrat in the 3rd century BC . Hanno ' s wealth was based on the land he owned in Africa and the Iberian Peninsula , and during the First Punic War he led the faction in Carthage that was opposed to continuing the war against Roman Republic . He preferred to continue conquering territory in Africa rather than fight a naval war against Rome that would bring him no personal gain . In these efforts , he was opposed by the Carthaginian general Hamilcar Barca . Hanno demobilized the Carthaginian navy in 244 BC , giving Rome time to rebuild its navy and finally defeat Carthage by 241 BC . After the war , Hanno refused to pay the mercenaries who had been promised money and rewards by Hamilcar . The mercenaries revolted , and Hanno took control of the Carthaginian army to attempt to defeat them . His attempt failed and he gave control of the army back to Hamilcar . Eventually , they both cooperated to crush the rebels in 238 BC . His nickname " the Great " was apparently earned because of his conquests among the African enemies of Carthage , and he continued to oppose war with Rome , which would necessarily involve naval engagements . During the Second Punic War , he led the anti - war faction in Carthage , and is blamed for preventing reinforcements from being sent to Hamilcar ' s son Hannibal after his victory at the Battle of Cannae . After Carthage ' s defeat at the Battle of Zama in 202 BC , he was among the ambassadors to negotiate peace with the Romans . Hanno III the Great . The third Hanno the Great was an ultra - conservative politician at Carthage during the 2nd century BC .