Hannibal

**Hannibal, son o Hamilcar Barca** (247BC—183/182BC) wis a Punic Carthaginian militar commaunder, for ordinar conseidered ane o the greatest militar commaunders in heistory. His faither, Hamilcar Barca, wis the heidmaist  Carthaginian commaunder durand the First Punic War, his yunger brithers war Mago an Hasdrubal, an he wis brither-in-law tae Hasdrubal the Fair.

## Life an Commaunds

Hannibal is thocht o as ane o the maist skeillie Generals o  Warld Heistoŕie an wes leader o The Carthaginian Airmies at stuid conter tae Rome an hir fiers throu oot the seiventeen  year War o The Saicont Punic War.(218-201 BC.)

Roman heistorians Livy an Polybius (wha baith wrate lang efter the daith o Hannibal)wrate o hou whan Hannibal wes a laddie he gaed wi his faither Hamiclar Barca tae Iberia Spaingie while his faither ettled tae hae owerance o thon Region, an wes forced an aith opo himsel bi doukin his haund intil bluid an sweirin foraye an on tae laith the fowk o Rome.

Wi this  Hannibal wes gied an innin tae The Roman Wars an ingadged i the weys o  The Carthaginian Airmy. His faither Hamiclar haed made siccar at his son wad follae himsell intil the weys o the militar an tho Carthage haed been defait i The First Punic War (264-241 BC) an haed tint muckle laund, he wes fell keen tae hae Hannibal owerhaill Rome, at wes ettlin at bein the new pouer i The Mediteranian.

Whan Hannibal wes echteen year auld he wes made intil an officer unner the commaund o Hasdrubal The Fair wha wes his guid brither
His faither haed dee'd whyle on an expedeitioun i Hispania, an in 221 BC efter his guid brither  wes assassinatit Hannibal taen ower wi the poseition o Chief an Commaunder at 26 year auld.The Airmy haed awreddie pronoonced him sae, an The Carthaginian Govrenment swithlike ratifeed his appyntment.

Spaingie wes whaur he haed waled tae mak his base an allou him tae gaither thegither his fell strang Airmy at wes tae set furth an whummle Rome, in whit wes cryed The Saicont Punic War.

## Attack on Saguntum 219 BC

Wi his commaund,bedein he set aboot bowsterin Carthaginian owerance i Iberia, whaur he aiblins misunnerstuid Rome's ettle i the region. Nanetheless he wes mairriet on an Iberian Princess an aether whummelt faes or allyed Carthage wi a wheen Clans o Iberia.

He makkit the Seaport o Qart Hadasht (New Ceity) noo Cartagena i modren day Spainge intil his hame base.An sae Hannibal an his Airmy attackit the Toon o Saguntum, nooadays  Sagunto in Spainge, fair gettin Romes birse up an the lead on tae The Saicont Punic War.

Saguntum wes a self staundin Ceity Sootharts o  The River Ebro. The Ebro wes staiblisht bi a Treaty greed efter  The First Punic War as the Northren maist mairch o Carthaginian maistery athin The Iberian Peninsula, an tho Saguntum itsel wes Sootharts o the mairch,wi Rome haein guid will  wi the Ceity an aiblins the wrang narrative gien tae Hannibal anent Romes ambeitions Hannibal decided tae attack the Ceity.

The siege o Saguntum gaed on for echt month. Hannibal hissel haed dreed skaith an Rome haed protestit agin siege wi envoys sent tae Carthage,houanever nae Roman Airmy wes set furth for tae fend the Ceity.
Efter the Ceity haed been defait Rome haed demandit the haundin ower o Hannibal an sicwyce begoud The Saicont Punic War for rael.

## The Mairch intil Gaul 218 BC

Hannibal haed set furth ower the  River Ebro an intil The Pyrenees haein left ahint his brither Hasdrubal tae fend ower Spainie an Northren Africae.

At the afftack o his mairch Hannibal haed set oot frae Cartagena wi aroond 90,000 sodgers an 12,000 Cavalry,tho 20,000 o thaim war tae bide back tae hain the supply lines i Spainie.

Hannibal is notour i heistorie for haein  Elephants athin his Airmy alsae an it is wi sic an Airmy at he battled wi the sweirt clans o The Pyrenees up til the crossin o The River Rhone,houanever the clans o the soothren Gauls didnae gie them sic sair resistance.

The Roman General Publius Cornelius Scipio wes bad tae Massilia  (modren day Marseille) for tae see tae Hannibal efter bein stymied bi a rebellion i Northren Italy.

Massilia wes allyed wi Rome an Scipio ettled tae stap Hannibal haein onie inlat tae the coastal route intil Italy. Scipio wes noo upo the richt haund side o The River Rhone whan he haed  gotten wittins at Hannibal haed awreddies crossed ower The Rhone bi the tither side an thocht weill at Hannibal wes aibins makkin for tae cross ower The Alps. Wicelike Scipio retoured tae Northren Italy tae bide his time.

Roman heistorian Polybus lats us ken at Hannibal wes gien guid narrative afore settin oot tae cross ower The Alps an didnae juist breenge at sic a scheme athoot haein pactions wi local clans.

Efter crossin The Rhone an traivellin 80 mile Hannibals airmy cam til an aurie cryed ' The Inch' ,thocht tae be nauraboots The  River Isere. A cast oot atween twa brithers thareaboots haed fawin tae War an wi Hannibal gien help tae the elder o the brithers (Brancus) goods an gear wes plenisht til Hannibals Airmy at haed sair want o it efter a awmaist 750 mile mairch frae Cartagena at haed noo taen them fower month.

## The Jurney ower The Alps

Hannibal wes fell keen tae tak his jurney ower The Alps an faw upo  Northren Italy wi sic a swith an gallus manoeuvre afore the onfaw o a sair wunter.

He wesnae able for tae tak wi him his siege Ingines acause  o the stey muntain landskip o the Alps,houanever the elephants athin his Airmy did gang wi them as thay haed been gey successfu aforehaund wi fearin onie local clans alang wi Roman Cavalry.

Ower the neist seeventeen days Hannibals Airmy dreed monie battles,skaith an daith acause o the sweirt an Warlike clans o the muntains wi the affcome bein at whan thay raxed til the ither side a fair skelp o his menyie war deid.

Haein set oot ower the Alps wi 50,000 sodgers an 9,000 cavalry he noo haed an airmy o 26,000 men an gey few elephants. Aye an on Hannibal gaed an he wes fair croose as he taen his airmy doon intil Northren Italy.

Atweenhaunds,The Romans haed nae rael ken o whaur aboots Hannibal's airmy wes an haed thocht o a crossin o the Alps as a unco daftlike norrie. Whan wittins cam tae The Romans o Hannibals 
successfu manoeuvre swithlike thay pit oot the airmy o Scipio tae conter him.

The Roman General Publius Cornelius Scipio alang wi his faither Scipio Africanus The Elder gaed furth tae staund agin Hannibal an his airmy,but war defait at a battle at The Ticino River whaur General Scipio wes naurhaund killt.

## Hannibal in  Italy

Noo at Hannibal wes staiblisht i northren Italy belyve he set aboot haein maistery o the laund, an wi the scunner o no haein uisse o his siege Ingines or Elephants he ettled tae fleetch the fowks thareaboots ,makkin hissel oot tae be leiberatour frae Roman rule.

Wi help noo gien him frae men jyned frae Gaul, Hannibal wun a saicont battle at The River Tribia (Wastwarts frae modren day Piacenza) .

He bade aw wunter wi his airmy i Bologne an i the ware he brocht battle tae Etruria (Modren day Tuscany) whaur it is thocht he tint ane o his een (tho aft this is disputit bi  a wheen heistorians wha conter claim at Hannibal tholed the disease Opthalmia), an sicwyse losst his ee thon wey.

Follaein thir battle The Romans made a coonter attack, but agane war defait in battle wi twa Legions connacht. Hannibals howp noo wes at monie o the fiers o Rome wad win awa frae Roman rule an lowp ower tae the side o the Carthaginians, but wi thon Hannibal wes sair dissapyntit.

Oot throu aw this battles Rome wes eydently wirkin awa at brekkin Hannibals supply base back in Iberia.
Hannibal haed noo on taen mair diplomatic ongauns an wes ettlin for tae fleetch the allyes o Rome,tho wi the Roman magistrate Quintus Fabius Maximus aye shaddaein him but joukin oot o battle, sic tactics war fair scunnerin him specially as Rome's allyes aw bade leal ti Rome.

In 216 BC The Roman senate haed decidit tae gaither thegither a muckle airmy o 80,000 for tae defait The Carthaginian airmy at whit is noo cryed The Battle o Cannae i  the Sooth Aest o Italy.

## The Battle o Cannae August 2d 216 BC

Orders frae  The Roman Senate haed been gien til Generals Lucius Aemelius Paullus an Gaius Terentius Varro for tae hailly bluiter the Airmy o Hannibal Barca aince an foraye an the twa Generals war plenisht wi the maist muckle airmy The Roman Republict haed evir pittinn thegither.Somewey atween 50,000 an 70,000 is the estimatit feigure o sic an airmy.

The airmy o Hannibal is thocht tae hae aroond 40,000.

Ante diem iiii nones sextilis or August 2d 216 BC wes the day o the battle an the twa Roman Commaunders war o sindrie mind anent whit wes afore them thon day.

Vallo hissel wes aiblins ower gallus tae ding doon Hannibal while Paullus wes the mair cannie ower the heid o his faimly's lang militar strind.

Hannibal an his airmy war a mixter o monie sindrie Naitiouns an Clans at war gey faur frae hame but stuid wi ae common thocht,The defait o Rome.

The Romans set oot wi thare faur kent an feared block furmatioun ettlin tae bluiter the Carthaginians wi wecht an awmichtie nummers. Hannibal kent thon tactic weill an inpit his waekest Infantry o Spainies an Gauls i the centre, alang wi twa grups o Africaen tae thair flanks an his Cavalry tae the ootside ,wilin the Romans,wha aye thocht at greter nummers aye meant greter pouer. An sae , Hannibal wi his ooter troops sleekit like muivin i crescent like furmatioun an his centre pullin The Roman Block intil a  tichter an tichter block Hannibal lat ken his order.

Libyans frae the ooter flanks cam inweys an attacked the Roman Infantry at wes nidgin forrit alang baith sides.

Atweenhaunds ,the Carthaginian Cavalry haed defait the Roman Cavalry on aether side an breenged forrit tae fully rink the Roman Airmy at wes noo catched wi nae pertection frae thair Cavalry.

The Carthaginians birlt roon tae faw upo aiblins 70,000 Roman Legionaires frae the hint side at war noo athoot onie Cavalry pertection.

Tho haillie rinkit,The Romans wadnae gie ower an the slauchter gaed on for Oors . At the onfaw o the gloamin thon day 50,000 tae 70,000 Roman corp war skailed ower the battlefield.

Hannnibal is thocht tae hae tint 6,000 men.

## The Eftercast o Cannae

Wi sic an undeemous Victory absolut War wes noo cryed on bi Hannibal agin The Pouer o Rome,houanevir,like whit haed happent tae his faither aforehaund i The First Punic War, The Hie Heid Anes o Carthage war ower grippie an sweirt tae forder onie mair sodgers or gear tae Hannibal.

The eftercast o Romes loss at Cannae wes at athort The Roman Republict ilka ceitizen o bouk wes cryed upo tae fend Rome bi Airms as panic set in Aawey.

Hannibal hissel felt wranged bi The Govrenment o Carthage an kent weill at his Airmy o 40,000 wes ower sma tae ontak the maucht o the hail o Rome,sicwyce Hannibal cuid anelie cairrie on wi attacks o a smawer scale athin Roman launds atweenhaunds,ettlin tae win ower wee-er Ceities tae his cause.

## Frae Victory tae loss

Tho the feck o Sooth Italy wes fair stamygastered efter the defait at Cannae, it wes Generals Publius Cornelius Scipio an Quintus Fabius Maximus at upsteered Rome.

Cannie tactics tae push agin Hannibal haed wun back a guid amoont o grunnd taen bi Hannibal an his airmy bi 208 BC. A Roman Airmy haed defait Hannibals brither Hasdrubal, at haed crossed ower The Alps tae haunder Hannibal.

Noo Rome, wi Scipio The Yunger wes able for tae strenthen her airmies wi goods an manpouer at alloued her tae attack New Carthage an fling the Carthaginians oot o Spainie.

Efterhaund Scipio invaded Nor Africae wilin Hannibal awa frae Sooth Italy ,bringin him hamearts tae fend his hame state o Carthage.

Wi haunders frae allyes i  Nor Africae ,The Romans unner General Scipio war able for tae baet The Carthaginians killin naur 20,000 sodgers while lossin ainlie 1500 o his ain.

## Efter War an Daith

Carthaginian pouer haed dwyned, an a paction o Pace wes greed,allouin Carthage tae haud on til Nor Africae while foraye an on lossin her Impire abraid.

An aa Carthage wes forced tae surrender her fleet an wes noo addettit tae Rome wi siller an a hecht no evir tae enarm hersel athoot permeition frae Rome.

Scrievins frae The Roman Heistorian Livy tell us o hou Hannibal haed wun awa efter Carthage wes baet at Zama, an hou he haed fled til Syria efter his ain Gallants haed denunced him an accuised him o upsteerin Syriae an its Ruler Antiochus III tae uptak Airms agin Rome.

Hannibal haed cairried on wi his fecht agin Rome bi winnin awa tae Crete ower the heid o the tairms o The Pace Treaty greed at cawed for his surrender.

He wes aiblins thocht tae hae jyned thegither wi rebels agin Rome i Armenia,an efterhaund ingadged wi Keing Prusia o Bithynia at war thairsell rebellin agin Rome.

Aiblins aboot 183 BC Hannibal is believed tae hae funnd hissel haillie suroondit bi Roman sodjers at ae pynt durant thon conflick an bein no able for tae win awa taen pyzzin raither nor be claucht, an killt hissel.

## References