Appian's account of the Second Punic War — Hannibal's invasion of Italy.
Start ReadingHannibal's oath of eternal enmity toward Rome, sworn as a child at his father's altar, sets the stage for the greatest conflict of the ancient world.
The siege and fall of Saguntum triggers the Second Punic War as Rome and Carthage hurtle toward a conflict neither can avoid.
Hannibal's legendary crossing of the Alps — elephants, avalanches, and hostile mountain tribes — delivers a battered but determined army into Italy.
The catastrophic Roman defeats at Trebia and Lake Trasimene reveal Hannibal as perhaps the finest tactical commander in military history.
Cannae — 50,000 Romans die in a single afternoon as Hannibal's double envelopment creates the textbook example of battlefield annihilation.
Rome's Italian allies begin to defect, but the core of the alliance holds, and the Fabian strategy of avoidance slowly turns the tide.
The war expands to Spain, Sicily, and Sardinia as Rome fights on multiple fronts while Hannibal remains undefeated in Italy.
Scipio's African campaign forces Carthage to recall Hannibal, ending his sixteen-year sojourn in Italy without ever losing a major battle.
Zama ends the war and Hannibal's career as a field commander. Carthage pays dearly, but Hannibal survives to reform its government — briefly.