Without a doubt, one of the most competent leaders that Rome ever had to fight was Hannibal. Out of the ashes of the first Punic War. Hannibal was taught well by his father, Hamilcar Barca, one of Carthage's most charismatic leaders. It was Hannibal who nearly brought Rome to her knees during the Second Punic War and were it not for the lack of support he was given by the other peoples of the Italian peninsula, Rome's days of glory would have ended. Instead, Hannibal had little choice but to return to Carthage, undefeated against the armies of Rome, yet not the victor.

It is for good reason that Hannibal is considered by many to be the greatest general of Antiquity. None had his foresight, his cunning and his ability to have a battle go exactly as planned. A master of using the terrain to his best advantage, his sole defeat was when he could not have the battlefield one of his choosing. He also was able to use cavalry to its best and again, when he was not able to have the numbers of horsemen that he wanted, the battle did not go his way. Despite being defeated at Zama, close to home with a less than adequate army, Hannibal went on to live to a ripe old age, staying one step ahead of his enemies back home and the Romans.

As you can well imagine, much of what we know about Hannibal is as much myth as it is based on evidence. In this book, author Nic Fields goes into great detail to separate the two so we can get a good look at the man and how he thought. As with all books in this series, the author covers Hannibal's upbringing, his early life and the campaigns against Rome in the Second Punic War. We look at the commanders he opposed and his battles, where we discover his true genius. We also get a chance to compare fact with fiction and come to the conclusion that Hannibal was as great a leader as we have always thought.

A truly superlative book on one of history's most capable military leaders. A book that was a delight to read and one I can most highly recommend to you.

April 2011

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