The Battle of Cannae
Carthage was a city located on the Mediterranean Sea in Northern Africa. It was founded near the year 814 B.C. by Phoenician traders who had a long tradition of trade in the sea (Bradford 21-22). The city was built for trading. It contained two harbors, one for the public trading, with ships from all over the known world. The other port was used as a military harbor (Bradford 22). The city was first built for trading alone, but as the Carthaginians started to discover the land to the west, they saw that it was fertile and good for crops (Bradford 22). As Carthage found more and more land, it found the perfect place to build a new city, Sicily. However, Greece also wanted Sicily. Both wanted the island, and a war …show more content…
After crossing the Alps, Hannibal met the Romans and crushed them in the battle of Trebbia, using his war elephants. War elephants were used for Carthage against Rome and were a terror to Infantry (Youtube 4:42-4:50). After the battle of Trebbia, Hannibal and his army tried attacking a trading post in order to sack the town for food. During the attack Hannibal was wounded and the attack failed. The Carthaginians attacked another trading post and won the battle. Then the Carthaginians sacked the town, and were again resupplied. After getting these resources, the Carthaginians decided to make camp and wait out the winter. The Carthaginians were from Africa, so winter even in Italy war freezing. It was so cold that all but one of Hannibal’s war elephants were killed (Warrick 61). At this time, Hannibal lost his advantage of his elephants, which is why Hannibal’s campaign was so brilliant The next spring, the Romans tried again to defeat Hannibal. But Hannibal, using his superior veteran men, again crushed the Romans in the battle of Lake Tresimean, thus showing his men’s ability to fight more men and yet win in battle after battle. This shows Hannibals brilliance in his ability to make great tactical moves during a …show more content…
The next day, it was Paulus’s turn to command. He elected to do nothing. Varro argued and argued yet still Paullus did nothing. The next day, Hannibal took his army out of camp and lined them up in his battle formation. Varro did the same. Paullus joined the Roman army even though he thought it was a mistake to fight Hannibal (Warrick 74-75). The army of Carthage was put in a half a circle with its cavalry put on its flanks. The Carthaginian infantry must have wondered what Hannibal was doing because he put the weakest infantry in the center, and his strongest men, hidden behind on the flanks. The Romans had over eight legions. These legions were organized into three lines. They were then organized into squares. This kind of military system was made for flexibility, but it was hard to run especially in the middle of a battle (Youtube 6:37-6:54). The Romans as usual put their infantry in the center and their cavalry on either wing. For some strange reason, Varro decided to switch the regular infantry formations. Instead of the usual box formation, which was made for flexibility. Varro ordered his men to deepen the ranks and make sure there were fewer gaps. This decreased the amount of flexibility the Romans had. However it also increased the Roman power in a frontal attack. Much like a battering ram (Youtube 9:23-9:34). In the military at the time, if a general could break the center of the
Carthage was a city located on the Mediterranean Sea in Northern Africa. It was founded near the year 814 B.C. by Phoenician traders who had a long tradition of trade in the sea (Bradford 21-22). The city was built for trading. It contained two harbors, one for the public trading, with ships from all over the known world. The other port was used as a military harbor (Bradford 22). The city was first built for trading alone, but as the Carthaginians started to discover the land to the west, they saw that it was fertile and good for crops (Bradford 22). As Carthage found more and more land, it found the perfect place to build a new city, Sicily. However, Greece also wanted Sicily. Both wanted the island, and a war …show more content…
After crossing the Alps, Hannibal met the Romans and crushed them in the battle of Trebbia, using his war elephants. War elephants were used for Carthage against Rome and were a terror to Infantry (Youtube 4:42-4:50). After the battle of Trebbia, Hannibal and his army tried attacking a trading post in order to sack the town for food. During the attack Hannibal was wounded and the attack failed. The Carthaginians attacked another trading post and won the battle. Then the Carthaginians sacked the town, and were again resupplied. After getting these resources, the Carthaginians decided to make camp and wait out the winter. The Carthaginians were from Africa, so winter even in Italy war freezing. It was so cold that all but one of Hannibal’s war elephants were killed (Warrick 61). At this time, Hannibal lost his advantage of his elephants, which is why Hannibal’s campaign was so brilliant The next spring, the Romans tried again to defeat Hannibal. But Hannibal, using his superior veteran men, again crushed the Romans in the battle of Lake Tresimean, thus showing his men’s ability to fight more men and yet win in battle after battle. This shows Hannibals brilliance in his ability to make great tactical moves during a …show more content…
The next day, it was Paulus’s turn to command. He elected to do nothing. Varro argued and argued yet still Paullus did nothing. The next day, Hannibal took his army out of camp and lined them up in his battle formation. Varro did the same. Paullus joined the Roman army even though he thought it was a mistake to fight Hannibal (Warrick 74-75). The army of Carthage was put in a half a circle with its cavalry put on its flanks. The Carthaginian infantry must have wondered what Hannibal was doing because he put the weakest infantry in the center, and his strongest men, hidden behind on the flanks. The Romans had over eight legions. These legions were organized into three lines. They were then organized into squares. This kind of military system was made for flexibility, but it was hard to run especially in the middle of a battle (Youtube 6:37-6:54). The Romans as usual put their infantry in the center and their cavalry on either wing. For some strange reason, Varro decided to switch the regular infantry formations. Instead of the usual box formation, which was made for flexibility. Varro ordered his men to deepen the ranks and make sure there were fewer gaps. This decreased the amount of flexibility the Romans had. However it also increased the Roman power in a frontal attack. Much like a battering ram (Youtube 9:23-9:34). In the military at the time, if a general could break the center of the