who crossed the alps and invaded italy with an army of elephants during the second punic war
Hannibal
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modern Ivrea. Hannibal's crossing of the Alps Hannibal's crossing of the Alps in 218 BC was one of the major events of the Second Punic War, and one of the most celebrated achievements of any military force in ancient warfare. Bypassing Roman and allied land garrisons and Roman naval dominance, Hannibal managed to lead his Carthaginian army over the Alps and into Italy to take the war directly to the Roman Republic. After the final Carthaginian naval defeat at the Aegates Islands, the Carthaginians surrendered and accepted defeat in the First Punic War. Hamilcar Barca (Barca meaning lightning), a leading
Hannibal's crossing of the Alps
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and skilled with iron weapons, which gave them an advantage in warfare. During the Second Punic War in 218 BC, the Carthaginian general Hannibal probably crossed the Alps with an army numbering 38,000 infantry, 8,000 cavalry, and 37 war elephants. This was one of the most celebrated achievements of any military force in ancient warfare, although no evidence exists of the actual crossing or the place of crossing. The Romans, however, had built roads along the mountain passes, which continued to be used through the medieval period to cross the mountains and Roman road markers can still be found on
Alps
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Rome battled the "Ligures" tribe in the Ligurian War and the "Insubres" in the Gallic War. Continuing distrust led to the renewal of hostilities in the Second Punic War when Hannibal Barca, a member of the Barcid family of Carthaginian nobility, attacked Saguntum, a city with diplomatic ties to Rome. Hannibal then raised an army in Iberia and famously crossed the Italian Alps with elephants to invade Italy. In the first battle on Italian soil at Ticinus in 218 BC Hannibal defeated the Romans under Scipio the Elder in a small cavalry fight. Hannibal's success continued with victories in the
Campaign history of the Roman military
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given the task of defeating the great Carthaginian general Hannibal in southern Italy during the Second Punic War (218–202 BC). At the start of the war, Hannibal boldly crossed the Alps in wintertime and invaded Italy. Due to Hannibal's skill as a general, he repeatedly inflicted devastating losses on the Romans despite the numerical inferiority of his army—quickly achieving two crushing victories over the Romans at the Battle of the Trebia and the Battle of Lake Trasimene. After these disasters the Romans appointed Fabius Maximus as dictator. Well aware of the military superiority of the Carthaginians and the ingenuity of
Fabian strategy
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was an agger, a defensive ramp of earth heaped up to the wall along the inside. This thickened the wall, and also gave defenders a base to stand while repelling any attack. The wall was also outfitted with defensive war engines, including catapults. The Servian Wall was formidable enough to repel Hannibal during the Second Punic War. Hannibal famously invaded Italy across the Alps with his elephants, and had crushed several Roman armies in the early stages of the war. However, the wall was only ever put to such a test as Hannibal once: in 211 BC Hannibal brought his
Servian Wall
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Second Punic War in 218 BCE, his son Hannibal took an army of perhaps 50,000 men and 37 war elephants from Hispania (modern-day Spain) to Italy, where he led a 15-year campaign against Rome. Hannibal avoided the coastal route, and took his army over the Alps. His march has been described by ancient historians Polybius and Livy. The exact route, however, has been subject of long but inconclusive scholarly discourse. In his 1955 book "Alps and elephants: Hannibal's march", Gavin de Beer lists 12 possible candidates from 30 different books. In 1955, "The Times" published a debate about the route
British Alpine Hannibal Expedition
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Carthalo, who was bound to Fabius by an agreement of hospitality, fell. In the spring of 208 BC, Hasdrubal moved to engage Scipio at the Battle of Baecula. The Carthaginians were defeated, but Scipio was not able to prevent Hasdrubal from continuing his march to Italy in order to reinforce his brother Hannibal. In the spring of 207 BC, Hasdrubal Barca marched across the Alps and invaded Italy with an army of 30,000 men to link up with Hannibal. In southern Italy, Gaius Claudius Nero waged an inconclusive skirmish against Hannibal at the Battle of Grumentum. Nero then tricked Hannibal
Second Punic War
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outbreak of the Second Punic War, when he marched an army which included war elephants from Iberia over the Pyrenees and the Alps into Italy. In his first few years in Italy, he won dramatic victories at the Trebia, Lake Trasimene, and Cannae. He distinguished himself for his ability to determine his and his opponent's respective strengths and weaknesses, and to plan battles accordingly. Hannibal's well-planned strategies allowed him to conquer many allies of Rome. Hannibal occupied part of Italy, specifically southern Italy, for 15 years but was unable to march on Rome. An enemy counter-invasion of North Africa forced
Hannibal
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a method now lost to history. After they conquered Sicily in 242 BC, the Romans wanted to capture some specimens that had been left behind in the middle of the island by the Carthaginians, but failed in the endeavor. The elephants with which Hannibal crossed the Pyrenees and the Alps in order to invade Italy during the Second Punic War (218-201 BC) belonged to this group, with the exception of Hannibal's personal animal, "Surus" (meaning "the Syrian," or possibly "One-Tusker"). This individual, according to his documented name and large size, may have been a Syrian elephant "(Elephas maximus asurus"), which
North African elephant
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Carthaginian elephants were ineffective due to the terrain, while at the battle of Panormus in 251 BC the Romans' velites were able to terrify the Carthaginian elephants being used unsupported, which fled from the field. At the battle of Tunis however the charge of the Carthaginian elephants helped to disorder the legions, allowing the Carthaginian phalanx to stand fast and defeat the Romans. During the Second Punic War, Hannibal famously led an army of war elephants across the Alps—although unfortunately many of them perished in the harsh conditions. The surviving elephants were successfully used in the battle of Trebia, where
Roman war elephants
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to raise fresh troops to replace these and thus could not set out for Iberia until September 218 BC, giving Hannibal time to march from the Ebro to the Rhone. Hannibal crossed the Alps, surmounting the difficulties of climate and terrain, and the guerrilla tactics of the native tribes. His exact route is disputed. Hannibal arrived with either 20,000 or 28,000 infantry, 6,000 cavalry, and 37 elephants in the territory of the Taurini, in what is now Piedmont, northern Italy. The Romans had not anticipated such an early arrival and their forces were still in their winter quarters. His surprise
Second Punic War
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it appears now on the left bank, now on the right; now in the hills and now on the plain. Hannibal began the Second Punic War in 219 BC by attacking the Roman-allied city of Saguntum just north of what is now Valencia in Spain. After destroying the city, he marched on Italy, beginning with a force of approximately 40,000 men and a few dozen war elephants when he crossed the Ebro river in Spain, the previous border between Roman and Carthaginian interests. Trekking over the Alps the Carthaginian force made it through the mountains with staggering losses, being reduced
Battle of the Trebia
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of the operation when Hannibal in his most famous achievement at the outbreak of the Second Punic War marched an army, which included war elephants, from Iberia over the Pyrenees and the Alps into northern Italy. Following on the example of Carthage, the Romans used expeditionary operations extensively to expand their Empire and influence in the Mediterranean and beyond, including the Roman conquest of Britain which was not only a limited expeditionary operation, but one conceived to include long-term occupation and Roman settlement of the territories. Shortly after the collapse of the Roman empire in Italy, the European Middle Ages
Expeditionary warfare
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apart. Meanwhile, Rome was gaining power, following a rebellion against the Etruscans. During the three Punic Wars, the Romans defeated the neighboring power of Carthage. The First Punic War centered on naval warfare. The Second Punic War started with Hannibal's invasion of Italy by crossing the Alps. He famously won the encirclement at the Battle of Cannae. However, after Scipio invaded Carthage, Hannibal was forced to follow and was defeated at the Battle of Zama, ending the role of Carthage as a power. After defeating Carthage the Romans went on to become the Mediterranean's dominant power, successfully campaigning in Greece,
Military history
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family and closely followed Hellenistic diplomatic customs. Gades played a supporting role in this field, but Hannibal visited the local temple to conduct ceremonies before launching his campaign against Rome. The Barcid Empire was strongly influenced by the Hellenistic kingdoms of the time and for example, contrary to Carthage, it minted silver coins in its short time of existence. The Second Punic War (218 BC – 201 BC) is most remembered for the Carthaginian general Hannibal's crossing of the Alps. His army invaded Italy from the north and resoundingly defeated the Roman army in several battles, but never achieved the
Punic Wars
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to stand fast and defeat the Romans. During the Second Punic War, Hannibal famously led an army of war elephants across the Alps, although many of them perished in the harsh conditions. The surviving elephants were successfully used in the battle of Trebia, where they panicked the Roman cavalry and Gallic allies. The Romans eventually developed effective anti-elephant tactics, leading to Hannibal's defeat at his final battle of Zama in 202 BC; his elephant charge, unlike the one at the battle of Tunis, was ineffective because the disciplined Roman maniples simply made way for them to pass. Rome brought back
War elephant
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the initial Roman plans for the conduct of the Second Punic War. The Carthaginian leader Hannibal thwarted them when he set out from his base in Iberia, went through western southern Gaul and crossed the Alps in 218 BC. The consul to whom the expedition to Carthage was entrusted, decided to transfer his army from Sicily to Cisalpine Gaul to defend the north of Italy. This resulted in the battle of Trebia and a series of other heavy defeats of the Romans by Hannibal, which put the idea of an assault on the Carthaginian homeland out of question. During the
Battle of Utica (203 BC)
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dating from 1550. In 218 BC, at the start of the Second Punic War, Hannibal crossed the Rhône with his army and war elephants in his journey from the Iberian peninsula to northern Italy. The classical historians Polybius and Livy each provide accounts of the journey, but the exact route has been the source of much scholarly debate. Roquemaure is one of several locations that have been proposed for the crossing. Archaeological excavations undertaken in 1996 ahead of the construction of a new high speed railway line (TGV) uncovered the remains of a Gallo-Roman villa and 35 burials at a
Roquemaure, Gard
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ended Carthaginian rule in Iberia. He invaded Carthaginian Africa in 204, inflicting two severe defeats on Carthage and her allies at Utica and the Great Plains that compelled the Carthaginian senate to recall Hannibal's army from Italy. The final engagement between Scipio and Hannibal took place at Zama in Africa in 202 and resulted in Hannibal's defeat and the imposition of harsh peace conditions on Carthage (Carthaginian peace), which ceased to be a great power and became a Roman client state until its final destruction by the Romans in 146 BC during the Third Punic War. The Second Punic War
Second Punic War
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Hannibal's crossing of the Alps Hannibal's crossing of the Alps in 218 BC was one of the major events of the Second Punic War, and one of the most celebrated achievements of any military force in ancient warfare. Bypassing Roman and allied land garrisons and Roman naval dominance, Hannibal managed to lead his Carthaginian army over the Alps and into Italy to take the war directly to the Roman Republic. After the final Carthaginian naval defeat at the Aegates Islands, the Carthaginians surrendered and accepted defeat in the First Punic War. Hamilcar Barca (Barca meaning lightning), a leading member of
Hannibal's crossing of the Alps
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modern Ivrea. Hannibal's crossing of the Alps Hannibal's crossing of the Alps in 218 BC was one of the major events of the Second Punic War, and one of the most celebrated achievements of any military force in ancient warfare. Bypassing Roman and allied land garrisons and Roman naval dominance, Hannibal managed to lead his Carthaginian army over the Alps and into Italy to take the war directly to the Roman Republic. After the final Carthaginian naval defeat at the Aegates Islands, the Carthaginians surrendered and accepted defeat in the First Punic War. Hamilcar Barca (Barca meaning lightning), a leading
Hannibal's crossing of the Alps
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clan-structure lines, with consequent losses of strategic and tactical control. The Celtiberians were the most influential ethnic group in Iberia when the Mediterranean powers (Carthage and Rome) started its conquest. In 220 BC, the Punic army was attacked when preparing to cross the Tagus river by a coalition of Vaccei, Carpetani and Olcades. Despite these clashes, during the Second Punic War the Celtiberians served most often as allies or mercenaries of Carthage in its conflict with Rome, and crossed the Alps in the mixed forces under Hannibal's command. Under Scipio, the Romans were able to secure alliances and change the
Celtiberians
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Cornelius Scipio to Hispania, and Sempronius Longus to Africa, while their naval superiority prevented Carthage from attacking from the sea. This plan was thwarted by Hannibal's bold move to Italy. In May 218, he indeed crossed the Ebro with a large army of about 100,000 soldiers and 37 elephants. He passed in Gaul, crossed the Rhone, then the Alps, possibly through the Col de Clapier (2,491 meters high). This famous exploit cost him half of his troops, but he could now rely on the Boii and Insubres, still at war with Rome. Publius Scipio, who had failed to block Hannibal
Roman Republic
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because of his feats during this war), eventually defeated the larger but divided Carthaginian forces under Hasdrubal and two other Carthaginian generals. Abandoning Hispania, Hasdrubal moved to bring his mercenary army into Italy to reinforce Hannibal, but never made it and was defeated by Roman forces near the Alps. The Third Punic War (149–146 BC) involved an extended siege of Carthage, ending in the city's thorough destruction. The resurgence of the struggle can be explained by growing anti-Roman agitations in Hispania and Greece, and the visible improvement of Carthaginian wealth and martial power in the fifty years since the Second
Punic Wars
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the Latin colonies of Beneventum, Luceria in Samnium, Venusia in Apulia, Brundisium and Paestum. The independent Gaul he had established in northern Italy was still out of Roman control. The port city of Locri defected to Carthage in the summer of 215 and was immediately used to build up the Carthaginian forces in Italy with cavalry, war elephants, silver and grain. It was the only time during the war that Carthage succeeded in sending reinforcements to Hannibal in Italy. A second force in 215, under Mago, consisting of 12,000 infantry, 1,500 cavalry and 20 elephants guarded by 60 warships, was
Second Punic War
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Saguntum. Hannibal, when he set out for Italy in 218 BC, left a force of 13,000 infantry, 2,550 cavalry and 21 war elephants in Iberia. The Punic navy had a fleet of 50 quinqueremes and 5 triremes stationed there. However, only 32 Quinqueremes were manned at the start of the Second Punic War. Hasdrubal commanded this force and was to set out for Italy in 217 BC to reinforce Hannibal. Hannibal left another army under Hanno in Catalonia, consisting of 10,000 foot and 1,000 horse on his way to Italy in 218 BC. Left in command of Hispania when Hannibal
Hasdrubal Barca
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and General Norman Schwartzkopf claimed to have drawn inspiration from Hannibal's success for his devastatingly effective land offensive in the First Gulf War. Shortly after the start of the Second Punic War, Hannibal crossed into Italy by traversing the Pyrenees and the Alps during the summer and early autumn of 218 BC. He quickly won major victories over the Romans at Trebia and at Lake Trasimene. After these losses, the Romans appointed Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus as dictator to deal with the threat. Fabius used attrition warfare against Hannibal, cutting off his supply lines and avoiding pitched battles. These tactics
Battle of Cannae
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into Italy; and Sicily, where the Romans held military supremacy. After assaulting Saguntum in Hispania (219 BC), Hannibal attacked Italy in 218 BC by leading the Iberians and three dozen elephants through the Alps. Although Hannibal surprised the Romans and thoroughly beat them on the battlefields of Italy, he lost his only siege engines and most of his elephants to the cold temperatures and icy mountain paths. In the end he could defeat the Romans in the field, but not in the strategically crucial city of Rome itself, thus leaving him unable to win the war. Hannibal defeated the Roman
Punic Wars
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lay under Carthaginian control. At the start of the First Punic War (264-241 BC), Carthage was the dominant power of the Western Mediterranean, with an extensive maritime empire. Rome was a rapidly ascending power in Italy, but it lacked the naval power of Carthage. The Second Punic War (218-201 BC) witnessed Hannibal's crossing of the Alps in 218 BC, followed by a prolonged but ultimately failed campaign of Carthage's Hannibal in mainland Italy. By the end of the Third Punic War (149-146 BC), after more than a hundred years and the loss of many hundreds of thousands of soldiers from
Punic Wars
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Gods and Demons" (a chapter of his book "The Everlasting Man"). Describing the cultural shock of foreign armies invading Italy when Hannibal crossed the Alps, Chesterton wrote: In Margaret Atwood's "The Blind Assassin" there is an epigraph on a Carthaginian funerary urn that reads: "I swam, the sea was boundless, I saw no shore. / Tanit was merciless, my prayers were answered. / O you who drown in love, remember me." In John Maddox Roberts's alternate history novel "Hannibal's Children", in which the Carthaginians won the Second Punic War, one of the characters is Princess Zarabel, leader of the cult
Tanit
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more levies and money to Rome. This crisis continued for five years and put severe strain on the Roman war effort. Note: All links to online sources were active on October 26, 2007 Battle of Herdonia (210 BC) The second battle of Herdonia took place in 210 BC during the Second Punic War. Hannibal, leader of the Carthaginians, who had invaded Italy eight years earlier, encircled and destroyed a Roman army which was operating against his allies in Apulia. The heavy defeat increased the war’s burden on Rome and, piled on previous military disasters (such as Lake Trasimene, Cannae and
Battle of Herdonia (210 BC)
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Battle of Herdonia (210 BC) The second battle of Herdonia took place in 210 BC during the Second Punic War. Hannibal, leader of the Carthaginians, who had invaded Italy eight years earlier, encircled and destroyed a Roman army which was operating against his allies in Apulia. The heavy defeat increased the war’s burden on Rome and, piled on previous military disasters (such as Lake Trasimene, Cannae and others), aggravated the relations with her exhausted Italian allies. For Hannibal the battle was a tactical success, but did not halt for long the Roman advance. Within the next three years the Romans
Battle of Herdonia (210 BC)
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of the brothers Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus and Publius Cornelius Scipio with an invasion force intended for northern Spain landed at Rome's ally Massalia by the Rhone river. Hannibal evaded the Romans and by an unknown route reached the Isère or the Durance at the foot of the Alps in autumn. Gnaeus Scipio continued to Iberia with the Roman army. The other commander, Publius Scipio, returned to Rome, realizing the danger of an invasion of Italy where the tribes of the Boii and Insubres were already in revolt. After 217 BC, he moved to Iberia. Gnaeus Scipio landed his army
Second Punic War
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total. On arrival in Italy, she consumed cake and a Magnum bottle of Chianti. In 1960, Hoyte published a report on the expedition as "Trunk Road for Hannibal: With an Elephant Over the Alps". Expedition member Cynthia Pilkington published the book "Elephant Over the Alps" in 1961, telling the story of the expedition. British Alpine Hannibal Expedition The British Alpine Hannibal Expedition was an experimental archeology event that took place in 1959. British engineer John Hoyte led an expedition that tried to reenact aspects of Hannibal's legendary crossing of the Alps during the Second Punic War in 218 BCE. The
British Alpine Hannibal Expedition
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British Alpine Hannibal Expedition The British Alpine Hannibal Expedition was an experimental archeology event that took place in 1959. British engineer John Hoyte led an expedition that tried to reenact aspects of Hannibal's legendary crossing of the Alps during the Second Punic War in 218 BCE. The group successfully took the female Asian elephant "Jumbo", provided by a zoo in Turin, from France over the Col du Mont Cenis into Italy. After the Carthaginian defeat in the First Punic War of 264–241 BCE, Hamilcar Barca secured an extensive territory in the Iberian peninsula for Carthage. At the beginning of the
British Alpine Hannibal Expedition
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Nusco Nusco (Irpino: ) is a town and "comune" in the province of Avellino (Campania region) in the south of Italy, east of Naples, with c. 4,100 inhabitants. It is situated in the mountains between the valleys of the Calore Irpino and Ofanto Rivers. Hannibal crossed this area during the Punic Wars. As the legend goes, some of Hannibal's elephants became ensconced in the mud of the river to the east. As his elephants drowned the General mourned the death of these great beasts. As such, the river that extends through this valley became known as, and remains, the Ofanto
Nusco
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The Siege of Syracuse from 213 BC onwards, was marked by Archimedes' ingenuity in inventing war machines that made it impossible for the Romans to make any gains with traditional methods of siege warfare. It was imperative for the Romans to maintain control over Sicily, for otherwise the Carthaginians would be able to reinforce Hannibal in southern Italy with impunity. The Roman commitment would be matched by the Carthaginians. A Carthaginian army of 25,000 infantry, 3,000 cavalry and 12 elephants under Himilco was sent to relieve the city in 213, landing at and capturing Heraclea Minoa and followed up by
Second Punic War
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state of quasi-perpetual war throughout its existence. Its first enemies were its Latin and Etruscan neighbours as well as the Gauls, who even sacked the city in 387 BC. The Republic nonetheless demonstrated extreme resilience and always managed to overcome its losses, however catastrophic. After the Gallic Sack, Rome indeed conquered the whole Italian peninsula in a century, which turned the Republic into a major power in the Mediterranean. The Republic's greatest enemy was doubtless Carthage, against which it waged three wars. The Punic general Hannibal famously invaded Italy by crossing the Alps and inflicted on Rome two devastating defeats
Roman Republic
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crossed twice during Giro d'Italia. Col Agnel Col Agnel () is a mountain pass in the Cottian Alps, west of Monte Viso between France and Italy which links the Queyras valley (Hautes-Alpes) with Pontechianale in the province of Cuneo, Piedmont. At 2,744 m (9,003 ft), it is the third highest paved road pass of the Alps, after Stelvio Pass and Col de l'Iseran. Despite being the highest international pass of the Alps, Col Agnel is somewhat unknown and not heavily used. It is one of the many passes suggested as the route taken by Hannibal in his march, with elephants,
Col Agnel
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allies in the Po Valley, and crossed the Apennines unopposed. He avoided the Roman positions and took the only unguarded route into Etruria at the mouth of the Arno. This route was through a huge marsh, which happened to be more flooded than usual for spring. Hannibal's army marched for several days without finding convenient places to rest, suffering terribly from fatigue and lack of sleep. This led to the loss of part of the force, including, it seems, the few remaining elephants. Arriving in Etruria, still in the spring of 217 BC, Hannibal tried without success to draw the
Second Punic War
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the most lethal battles in military history, the destruction of cities, and massacres and enslavements of civilian populations and prisoners of war by both sides. The war began with the Carthaginian general Hannibal's conquest of the pro-Roman Iberian city of Saguntum in 219 BC, prompting a Roman declaration of war on Carthage in the spring of 218. Hannibal surprised the Romans by marching his army overland from Iberia to cross the Alps and invade Roman Italy, followed by his reinforcement by Gallic allies and crushing victories over Roman armies at Trebia in 218 and on the shores of Lake Trasimene
Second Punic War
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front and subduing allied city-states on the peninsula, rather than by attacking Rome directly. Historical events which led to the defeat of Carthage during the First Punic War when his father commanded the Carthaginian Army also led Hannibal to plan the invasion of Italy by land across the Alps. The task was daunting, to say the least. It involved the mobilization of between 60,000 and 100,000 troops and the training of a war-elephant corps, all of which had to be provisioned along the way. The alpine invasion of Italy was a military operation that would shake the Mediterranean World of
Hannibal
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the time. Such a large number would prove essential in Second Punic War. During Hannibal's invasion of Italy during the Second Punic War, the Carthaginian general all but wiped out an 85,000-strong Roman army at the Battle of Cannae in 216 BC. In doing so, one consul, Lucius Aemilius Paullus, was killed and the other, Gaius Terentius Varro, was stranded with the few survivors of the battle at Venusia. Without the consuls as military commanders, a dictator was required to fill the gap at the top of the command structure. Pera was appointed with Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus as his "magister
Marcus Junius Pera
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Surus Surus ("the Syrian") was believed to be the last war elephant of Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca's army in Italy. Several Roman writers give accounts of Surus, which was probably a large Asian elephant with one tusk. Although a Carthaginian coin struck in the time of Hannibal depicts an African elephant, historians believe Surus was an Indian elephant descended from those seized by Ptolemies of Egypt, Alexander's successors, in their campaigns in Syria. According to some accounts, the animal was the last of the 37 war elephants Hannibal took with him on his 218 B.C. crossing of the Alps, during
Surus
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recall Hannibal, who had an army of elite veterans loyal to his command, from Italy, for one more stand against Rome. This encounter became the battle of Zama, which ended the Second Punic War and completed the legend of Scipio Africanus, who had become one of Rome's greatest generals. Battle of the Great Plains The Battle of the Great Plains (), also known as the Battle of the Bagrades, was a battle fought between Scipio Africanus of Rome and a combined Carthaginian and Numidian army late in the Second Punic War. It occurred on the plains south of Bulla Regia
Battle of the Great Plains
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Laevinus was first elected consul in 220. His consulship, however, was annulled, likely due to accusations of a faulty election. In 215, during the Second Punic War, Laevinus was elected praetor peregrinus with command of the Roman forces in Apulia. Stationed in Brundisium, Laevinus was appointed to act as a deterrent to any potential advance from the Macedonian king, Philip V, who had allied his forces with the Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca who had invaded Italy. Valerius was thereby tasked with monitoring activities on the Adriatic Sea, through which he assumed command over the bulk of the Roman fleet. As
Marcus Valerius Laevinus
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Austrian–Italian border in 1991. By the 6th century BC, the Celtic La Tène culture was well established. Hannibal famously crossed the Alps with a herd of elephants, and the Romans had settlements in the region. In 1800, Napoleon crossed one of the mountain passes with an army of 40,000. The 18th and 19th centuries saw an influx of naturalists, writers, and artists, in particular, the Romantics, followed by the golden age of alpinism as mountaineers began to ascend the peaks. The Alpine region has a strong cultural identity. The traditional culture of farming, cheesemaking, and woodworking still exists in Alpine
Alps
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equals. According to Polybius, the causes of the Second Punic war were as follows: Based on this, and Hannibal's oath, some historians infer that Hamilcar's post-Mercenary War activities were aimed at eventual war with Rome, which was inherited by his sons, and some further suggested that Hamilcar devised the strategy of invading Italy by crossing the Alps as well as Hannibal's battle tactics. Without Punic records to cross reference, these remain mere supposition. Hamilcar Barca Hamilcar Barca or Barcas (–228BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman, leader of the Barcid family, and father of Hannibal, Hasdrubal and Mago. He was
Hamilcar Barca
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the supplies, embark marines, and attack the Romans. They never reached Drepana. The Roman fleet, specially lightened, attacked them first in the Aegates Islands, captured most of the ships, and sank the rest. Peace was granted to Carthage in exchange for their interest in Sicily and for severe reparations. Carthage concentrated now on building a state in Mediterranean Spain, which ultimately collided with the Romans at Saguntum, the result being the Second Punic War, 218-201 BC. In it Carthage relied mainly on a land campaign beginning with an invasion of Italy over the Alps by Hannibal. Despite numerous defeats Rome
Roman command structure during First Mithridatic War
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and captured; another "Regulus", Thurrus, ruler of Alce signed a treaty with Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus the Elder in 179 BC. Prior to the Second Punic War, they opposed Carthaginian expansion in central Spain, but in 219 BC Hannibal defeated a combined force of Vaccaei, Olcades and Carpetani, thus completing his conquest of Hispania south of the Ebro with the exception of Saguntum. They also provided mercenary troops to the Carthaginian armies, for Frontinus mentions the desertion of 3,000 Carpetani warriors from Hannibal’s army when he entered in Italy after crossing the Alps. Carpetani The Carpetani (Greek: "Karpetanoi") were one of
Carpetani
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flight has stopped and the population is now increasing especially in and around the towns of Nyons, Buis-les-Baronnies, Mirabel-aux-Baronnies, Faucon and Puymeras. There are plans to create the Parc Naturel Régional des Baronnies. The area is paradise for hiking, mountaineering, rock climbing, cycling, mountain biking, horse-riding, hang gliding and paragliding. Legend has it that Hannibal, the Carthaginian leader crossed les Baronnies with his elephants during the Second Punic War (218 - 201 B.C.). Later the area retired Roman soldiers were given land here. After the Roman Empire collapsed in the 3rd century, hundreds of years of invasions by Franks, Lombards,
Baronnies
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great wealth. The Bretti minted elaborate coins, which are sought-after by collectors. The Bretti and Lucanians were stubborn resistors of Greek culture. Greeks had colonized the coastal cities of Sicily and Southern Italy, but the Bretti and Lucanians refused to yield. Alexander the Great's uncle, Alexander of Epirus invaded Cosenza in 331 B.C. In a battle near Lago, the combined native force defeated his army and killed him. The Bretti declined in power precipitously after making bad choices against the Roman Republic. After they sided with Hannibal in the Second Punic War, Rome confiscated half of their territory, and insisted
Lago, Calabria
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War (218–201), the ancient Greek historian Polybius gives three causes: the anger of Hamilcar Barca (father of Hannibal) whose army in Sicily the Romans did not defeat in the first war; the Roman seizure of Sardinia during the Mercenary revolt; and, creation by the Barcid military family of a new Punic power base in Hispania. Nonetheless, the immediate cause was a dispute concerning Saguntum (near modern Valencia) in Hispania. After prevailing there, Hannibal Barca set out northward, eventually leading his armies over the Alps into Italy. At first Hannibal ("grace of Baal") won great military victories against Rome on its
History of Carthage
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the Battle of the Allia. It soon recovered from this humiliating defeat, however, and in 381 the inhabitants of Tusculum in Latium were made Roman citizens. This was the first time Roman citizenship was extended in this way. Rome went on to expand its area of influence, until by 269 the entirety of the Italian peninsula was under Roman rule. Soon afterwards, in 264, the First Punic War began; it lasted until 241. The Second Punic War began in 218, and by the end of that year, the Carthaginian general Hannibal had invaded Italy. The war saw Rome's worst defeat
Classics
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capturing. Although this, Carthage lost the war. The loyalty of Vaga to Carthage continued during the Second Punic War, as in 218 BC the city sent a strong contingent to the army of Hannibal in Iberia to help him in his preparations to invade Italy. And in 201 BC, Vaga resisted an attack from the Numidian king Massinissa who was on his route Carthage to join the troops of Scipio Africanus. To reward him for standing with her in the war against Carthage, Rome gave to Massinissa the ancient provinces of his ancient rival Syphax within them the territories of
Vaga (Tunisia)
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army had still lost 25% of its starting strength on the march to Italy. Battle of Rhone Crossing The Battle of the Rhône Crossing took place during the Second Punic War. The Carthaginian army under Hannibal Barca, while marching to Italy in the autumn of 218 BC, fought an army of the gallic Volcae tribe on the east bank of the Rhone River possibly near Aurasio. The pro-Roman Volcae, acting on behalf of a Roman army camped on the east bank near Massalia, intended to prevent the Carthaginians from crossing and invading Italy. Devising a plan to circumvent the Volcae,
Battle of Rhone Crossing
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its notes to carry over the heads of the participants in battles and ceremonies. Celtic warriors served as mercenaries in many armies of the classical period. The best known were those who joined Hannibal in his invasion of Italy during the Second Punic war and who contributed to his victories in Lake Trasimene and in Cannae. Celtic mercenaries fought on the sides of Ancient Greeks and Romans as well. When a branch of Brennus' invasion force turned East and crossed the Hellespont, they founded a Celtic-ruled state in Asia Minor known as Galatia. Galatia became well known as a source
Celtic warfare
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pool of soldiers who had fought in Italy, as well as eighty war elephants. Hannibal could boast a strength of around forty thousand: 36,000 infantry and 4,000 cavalry, compared to Scipio's 29,000 infantry and 6,100 cavalry. The two generals met on a plain between Carthage and Utica on October 19, 202 BC, at the Battle of Zama. Despite mutual admiration, negotiations floundered due largely to Roman distrust of the Carthaginians as a result of the Carthaginian attack on Saguntum, the breach of protocols which ended the First Punic War (known as "Punic Faith"), and a perceived breach in contemporary military
Scipio Africanus
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checked by four Roman legions and allies under Publius Varus and Marcus Cornelius Cethegus at the Battle of Insubria in 203. This hindered the third attempted invasion of Italy early, by preventing Mago from uniting with Hannibal's army in the south. In 203 BC, while Scipio was carrying all before him in Africa and the Carthaginian peace party were arranging an armistice, Hannibal was recalled from Italy by the war party at Carthage. After leaving a record of his expedition engraved in Punic and Greek upon bronze tablets in the temple of Juno at Crotone, he sailed back to Africa.
Second Punic War
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sons. His first daughter was married to Bomilcar, who was a suffete of Carthage and may have commanded the Punic fleet in the Second Punic war. His grandson, Hanno, was an important commander in the army of his son Hannibal. The second daughter was married to Hasdrubal the Fair. His third daughter married the Berber ally Naravas, a Numidian chieftain whose defection had saved Hamilcar and his army during the mercenary war. Hamilcar had three sons, Hannibal, Hasdrubal and Mago, who were all to have distinguished military careers. An unnamed fourth son is often referred to, but details are lacking.
Hamilcar Barca
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Mediterranean power rival to the north African based Carthage. After suffering defeat to the Romans in the First Punic War (264–241 BC), the Carthaginians began to extend their power into the interior of Iberia from their south eastern coastal settlements but this empire was to be short lived. In the Second Punic War (218–202 BC), the Carthaginian general Hannibal marched his armies, which included Iberians, from Iberia, across the Pyrenees and the Alps and attacked the Romans in Italy. Despite many victories, he was finally defeated and the Romans took revenge by destroying Carthage. Starting in the north-east, Rome began
Prehistoric Iberia
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families shared power, later representative assemblies and elected leaders ruled. Rome remained a minor power on the Italian peninsula, but found a talent for producing soldiers and sailors and, after subduing the Sabines, Etruscans and Piceni began to challenge the power Carthage. By 240BC, Rome controlled the formerly Greek controlled island of Sicily. Following the 207BC defeat of the bold Carthaginian general Hannibal, who had led an army spearheaded by war elephants over the Alps into Italy, the Romans were able to expand their overseas empire into North Africa. Roman engineers built arterial roads throughout their empire, beginning with the
History of Western civilization before AD 500
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information being available about their specific fate. On the Rhône, Hannibal had 46,000 soldiers available; another 13,000 had disappeared although the army had fought no battles between the Pyrenees and the Rhône. When the Carthaginian army finally reached Italy, it supposedly numbered 26,000 (Polybius 3.56.4). The Punic army had lost 75% of its starting strength during the journey to Italy. The cause of this drastic reduction is speculated as: large scale desertion by new recruits, high casualties suffered in Catalonia from direct assaults on walled towns, garrisoning of parts of Gaul, severe winter conditions faced on the Alps, and the
Battle of Rhone Crossing
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New Carthage (Cartagena), in hopes of creating a trading empire. Following the First Punic War with Rome, in 237 BC, Hamilcar Barca, the famous Carthaginian general, then began the conquest of Turdetania (the successor state of Tartessus) and Gades to provide a springboard for further attacks on Rome. Hamilcar entrusted the conquest and military governance of the region to his son Hasdrubal the Fair – his other son, Hannibal, would march his troops across Hispania with elephants to lead them on Rome in the Second Punic War. During that war, Rome declared Hispania to be a Roman "provincia" in 218
Military history of Spain
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Roman times. A Carthaginian invasion of Italy led by Hannibal during the Second Punic War, one of a series of wars with Rome, nearly crippled the rise of Roman power. From the conclusion of the Second Punic War in 202 BC, Carthage functioned as a client state of the Roman Republic for another 50 years. Following the Battle of Carthage which began in 149 BC during the Third Punic War, Carthage was conquered by Rome in 146 BC. Following its conquest, the Romans renamed Carthage to Africa, incorporating it as a province. During the Roman period, the area of what
Tunisia
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in 290 BC sounded the beginning of the end of the Celtic domination in mainland Europe. At the Battle of Telamon in 225 BC, a large Celtic army was trapped between two Roman forces and crushed. In the Second Punic War, the Boii and Insubres allied themselves with the Carthaginians, laying siege to Mutina (Modena). In response, Rome sent an expedition led by L. Manlius Vulso. Vulso's army was ambushed twice, and the Senate sent Scipio with an additional force to provide support. These were the Roman forces encountered by Hannibal after his crossing of the Alps. The Romans were
Cisalpine Gaul
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Bomilcar (3rd century BC) Bomilcar (, ) was a Carthaginian commander in the Second Punic War (218–201). He was the commander of the Carthaginian supplies which were voted to Hannibal after the Battle of Cannae (216) and with which he arrived in Italy in the ensuing year. They amounted to 4,000 Numidian cavalry, 40 war elephants, 500 or 1,000 talents of silver, grain, and other provisions. In 214, he was sent with 55 ships to the aid of Syracuse, then besieged by the Romans. Finding himself unable to cope with the superior fleet of the enemy, he withdrew to North
Bomilcar (3rd century BC)
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Battle of Rhone Crossing The Battle of the Rhône Crossing took place during the Second Punic War. The Carthaginian army under Hannibal Barca, while marching to Italy in the autumn of 218 BC, fought an army of the gallic Volcae tribe on the east bank of the Rhone River possibly near Aurasio. The pro-Roman Volcae, acting on behalf of a Roman army camped on the east bank near Massalia, intended to prevent the Carthaginians from crossing and invading Italy. Devising a plan to circumvent the Volcae, the Carthaginians, before crossing the river to attack the Gauls, had sent a detachment
Battle of Rhone Crossing
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the presence of his force only increased the scarcity under which the Tarentines themselves suffered, they were obliged to dismiss him. Bomilcar (3rd century BC) Bomilcar (, ) was a Carthaginian commander in the Second Punic War (218–201). He was the commander of the Carthaginian supplies which were voted to Hannibal after the Battle of Cannae (216) and with which he arrived in Italy in the ensuing year. They amounted to 4,000 Numidian cavalry, 40 war elephants, 500 or 1,000 talents of silver, grain, and other provisions. In 214, he was sent with 55 ships to the aid of Syracuse,
Bomilcar (3rd century BC)
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been able to stand up to their Carthaginian counterparts. With this support, he waged war against the Carthaginian ally Gala. According to Appian, in 213 BC Hasdrubal left Iberia and fought Syphax, though history may have confused him with Hasdrubal Gisco; however, it did tie down Carthaginian resources. Hasdrubal Gisco is the son of the Gesco who had served together with Hamilcar Barca, Hannibal's father, in Sicily during the First Punic War and son-in-law of Hanno the Elder who was one of Hannibal's lieutenants in Italy. Syracuse, located on the sea routes Hannibal needed to secure supply, and Lilybaeum both
Second Punic War
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their class.". The Second Punic War, which ran from 212 to 202 BC, was initiated by Hannibal, who was aware of the importance of the Italian "socii" to Rome and accordingly decided to attack the Romans on their own turf, passing through Gaul, over the Alps and into Italy. In a particularly difficult moment for Rome after the defeat at the Battle of Cannae (216 BC), Hiero II died (215 BC). His successor was his fifteen-year-old grandson Hieronymus, who decided to switch to the Carthaginian side. This act arose from a period of intense conflict at Syracuse between the pro-Roman
Sicilia (Roman province)
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heavily on the supplies they would win by conquering towns along the way. During the Second Punic War, for example, Hannibal diverted his army to conquer cities simply to gather supplies; his strategy in crossing the Alps necessitated traveling with as few provisions as possible, expecting the Roman stores to sustain them when they had breached the border. The scorched earth tactics used in Russia forced Napoleon to withdraw his forces due to lack of food and shelter. Today, the Law of land warfare forbids looting and the confiscation of private property, but local supplies, particularly perishables, are still purchased
Invasion
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Punic Wars, three wars with Rome: the First Punic War (264 to 241 BC), over Sicily; the Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC), in which Hannibal invaded Europe; and the Third Punic War (149 to 146 BC). Carthage lost the first two wars, and in the third it was destroyed, becoming the Roman province of Africa, with the Berber Kingdom of Numidia assisting Rome. The Roman province of Africa became a major agricultural supplier of wheat, olives, and olive oil to imperial Rome via exorbitant taxation. Two centuries later, Rome brought the Berber kingdoms of Numidia and Mauretania under
History of Africa
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Monteverde, Campania Monteverde is a "comune" in the province of Avellino in Southern Italy. The ancient Roman historian Livy mentions a Samnite village called Cominium Ocritum, which was crossed by Hanno, Hannibal's general, during the Second Punic War, which could be identified with modern Monteverde. The name "Cominium" was a common toponym of the Oscans, to which the Samnites belonged, perhaps related to people's meeting places ("comitia"). In the 11th century, it became a bishopric seat and had a bishop until 1531, when the diocese of Monteverde was merged with the diocese of Canne. From 1532 to 1641, it was
Monteverde, Campania
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the Second Punic War marched an army that included war elephants, from Iberia over the Pyrenees and the Alps into northern Italy. Following the example of Carthage, the Romans used combined operations extensively to expand their Empire and influence in the Mediterranean and beyond, including the Roman conquest of Britain, which was not only a temporary expeditionary operation but included long term occupation and Roman settlement of the territories. The next development of combined operations came from environmental pressures in the Scandinavian region during the Middle Ages, and the emergence of the Viking migrations that combined raiding, longer term inland
Combined operations
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in October 553, Narses defeated Teias and the last remnants of the Gothic army in Italy. Though the Ostrogoths were defeated, Narses soon had to face other barbarians who invaded Byzantine northern Italy and southern Gaul. In early 553, an army of about thirty thousand Franks and Alemanni crossed the Alps and took the town of Parma. They defeated a force under the Heruli commander Fulcaris and soon many Goths from northern Italy joined their forces. Narses had dispersed his troops to garrisons throughout central Italy and had wintered at Rome. After serious depredations throughout Italy, the barbarians were brought
Gothic War (535–554)
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Much credit for this victory has been given to the actions of Proconsul Catulus' legate, Lucius Cornelius Sulla who led the Roman and allied Italian cavalry. The Cimbri were virtually wiped out, with the Romans claiming to have killed 65,000–160,000 and captured 60,000, including large numbers of women and children. In 101 BC the Cimbri invaded Italy through the Eastern Alpine passes. No enemy army had invaded Roman Italy since Carthage in the Second Punic War. Roman Consul Catulus, who had only 20,000 men to guard all of the passes, was forced to retreat before the Cimbrians. Catulus mounted a
Battle of Vercellae
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when he invaded Sicily, and he was the only dictator to hold a military command during the First Punic War. The last dictators to lead an army in the field were Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus in 217, and Marcus Junius Pera the following year, during the early stages of the Second Punic War. All of the other dictators appointed during that conflict remained at Rome in order to hold the "comitia"; the last dictator named in the traditional manner was Gaius Servilius Geminus, in 202 BC. For the next century, Rome's ordinary magistrates and promagistrates successfully carried on all Roman
Roman dictator
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start of the Second Punic War and a modern-era plaque, mounted on a rock on the French side, commemorates the event. From Château-Queyras (France), the climb is 20.5 km long at an average gradient of 6.6%. From Casteldelfino (Italy), the climb is 22.4 km long at an average gradient of 6.5%. The Col Agnel was crossed for the first time on 20 July 2008 during stage 15 of the 2008 Tour de France. The Col Agnel was crossed for the Second Time on 21 July 2011 during Stage 18 of The 2011 Tour de France. The Col Agnel has been
Col Agnel
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elephants, pots of fire to scare them, and accompanying screening troops who would hurl javelins at the elephants to drive them away. A final charge of Epirot elephants won the day again, but this time Pyrrhus had suffered very heavy casualties—a Pyrrhic victory. Perhaps inspired by these victories, Carthage developed its own use of war elephants and deployed them extensively during the First and Second Punic Wars. The performance of the Carthaginian elephant corps was rather mixed, illustrating the need of proper tactics to take advantage of the elephant's strength and cover its weaknesses. At Adyss in 255 BC, the
Roman war elephants
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they stop their military preparations and disband their army. On 26 April Count Cavour rejected the demands, and on 27 April the Austrian army invaded Piedmont. Napoleon III, though he had very little military experience, decided to lead the French army in Italy himself. Part of the French army crossed over the Alps, while the other part, with the Emperor, landed in Genoa on 18 May 1859. Fortunately for Napoleon and the Piedmontese, the commander of the Austrians, General Giulay, was not very aggressive. His forces greatly outnumbered the Piedmontese army at Turin, but he hesitated, allowing the French and
Napoleon III
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Senones The Senones () were an ancient Celtic Gallic culture. They joined Bellovesus' migrations towards Italy, together with the Aeduii, Ambarri, Arverni, Aulerci and Carnutes. In 400 BCE, they crossed the Alps and, driving out the Umbrians settled on the east coast of Italy from Forlì to Ancona and Terni, in the "Ager Gallicus", and founded the town of Sena Gallica (Senigallia), which became their capital. In 391 BCE, under the chieftain Brennus, they invaded Etruria and besieged Clusium. The Clusines appealed to Rome, whose intervention, accompanied by a violation of the law of nations, led to war, the defeat
Senones
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polis of Tarentum in 281 BC, Pyrrhus, the king of Epirus in northern Greece, invaded Italy with an army of 25,500 and 20 war elephants. The aim of the expedition was to combat the aggression of the Roman Republic, which was increasingly annexing the Greek cities of Magna Graecia. Upon arriving in Italy in 280 BC, Pyrrhus assumed command of an army consisting of the Greeks of Magna Graecia. Adding these forces to his own from Epirus, he engaged and defeated the Roman army at the Battle of Heraclea, near Tarentum in 280 BC. The Epiriote victory caused a number
Pyrrhus' invasion of the Peloponnese
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the dying Colonna. Many of the Swiss now abandoned the French army, and Bonnivet began his withdrawal. The French defeat at the Battle of the Sesia, where Bayard was killed while commanding the French rearguard, again demonstrated the power of massed arquebusiers against more traditional troops; the French army then retreated over the Alps in disarray. D'Avalos and Bourbon crossed the Alps with nearly 11,000 men and invaded Provence in early July 1524. Sweeping through most of the smaller towns unopposed, Bourbon entered the provincial capital of Aix-en-Provence on 9 August 1524, taking the title of Count of Provence and
Italian War of 1521–1526
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Oracle of Delphi. He recognized the possibility of carving out an empire for himself in Italy. He made an alliance with Ptolemy Keraunos, King of Macedon and his most powerful neighbor, and arrived in Italy in 280 BCE. Pyrrhus entered Italy with an army consisting of 20,000 infantry, 3,000 cavalry, 2,000 archers, 500 slingers, and 20 war elephants in a bid to subdue the Romans. The elephants had been loaned to him by Ptolemy II, who had also promised 9,000 soldiers and a further 50 elephants to defend Epirus while Pyrrhus and his army were away. Due to his superior
Pyrrhus of Epirus
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the southern Alps. On 5 December 1939 Olry assumed command of the Army of the Alps. When Italy invaded France in June 1940, he commanded 190,000 men on the Alpine Line. Faced with an Italian force of 450,000, Olry's troops successfully stopped the Italian advance and then proved a tough opponent for the German troops which joined the battle. The performance of the French army in this theatre was far more successful than on the rest of the front and preserved some areas of France from occupation. During the interim period following the French surrender Orly served as an inspector
René Olry
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the regime artificially doubled the participation rate to indicate popular enthusiasm for the Consulate. In the first few months of the Consulate, with war in Europe still raging and internal instability still plaguing the country, Napoleon's grip on power remained very tenuous. In the spring of 1800, Napoleon and his troops crossed the Swiss Alps into Italy, aiming to surprise the Austrian armies that had reoccupied the peninsula when Napoleon was still in Egypt. After a difficult crossing over the Alps, the French army entered the plains of Northern Italy virtually unopposed. While one French army approached from the north,
Napoleon
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his absence from Europe, the outbreak of violence in Switzerland drew French support against the old Swiss Confederation. When revolutionaries overthrew the cantonal government in Bern, the French Army of the Alps invaded, ostensibly to support the Swiss Republicans. In northern Italy, Russian general Aleksandr Suvorov won a string of victories, driving the French under Moreau out of the Po Valley, forcing them back on the French Alps and the coast around Genoa. However, the Russian armies in the Helvetic Republic were defeated by French commander André Masséna, and Suvorov eventually withdrew. Ultimately the Russians left the Coalition when Great
War of the Second Coalition
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Hunters of the Alps The Hunters of the Alps () were a special military corps created by Giuseppe Garibaldi in Cuneo on 20 February 1859 to help the regular Sardinian army to free the northern part of Italy in the Second Italian War of Independence. As their name suggests, they operated in the Alps. Among their victories in the Second Italian War of Independence in 1859, were those over the Austrians at Varese and Como. They also saw action during the Third Italian War of Independence in 1866, fighting on the Prussian side against the Austrians. On this occasion, the
Hunters of the Alps
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ready to march into Italy. The French army had been a potent force in 1494 when Charles VIII had first invaded Italy. However, during the remainder of Charles VIII's reign, the army had been allowed to deteriorate through neglect. Ever since becoming king, Louis XII had been rebuilding the French army. Now he could put it to use. On 10 August 1499, after marching across Savoy and through the town of Asti, the French army crossed the border into the Duchy of Milan. Contrary to the wishes of the Second Estate (the nobles and royalty of France), expressed at the
Louis XII of France
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Roman war elephants Due to the Roman focus on infantry and its discipline, war elephants were rarely used. While the Romans did eventually adopt them, and used them occasionally after the Punic wars, especially during the conquest of Greece, they fell out of use by the time of Claudius, after which they were generally used for the purpose of demoralizing enemies instead of being used for tactical purposes. The Romans occasionally used them for transport. Although the use of war elephants in the Mediterranean is most famously associated with the wars between Carthage and Rome, the introduction of war elephants
Roman war elephants
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in the First Punic War and their mercenaries in revolt, Carthage could do little but man the walls as an immediate response to the revolt. Carthage raised an army from citizens and mercenaries, trained their cavalry and refitted their navy, which probably took until the spring of 240 BC. Hanno the Great was put in command of the army, which included 110 elephants but the exact number of troops is unknown. Hanno chose to relieve Utica, since rebels had cut off Carthage from the mainland; Hanno and his army were probably ferried to Utica by the Punic fleet, which was
Battle of the Bagradas River (c. 240 BC)
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invaded Italy, in late 401 or early 402. The Imperial court at Milan was immediately threatened by the invasion, but Stilicho, thinking that the emperor's flight would demoralize his subjects, persuaded Honorius to stay put while he himself crossed the Alps north to recruit reinforcements from Gaul and the barbarians of Germany. Italy itself contained no forces with which to resist the Goths. The Alemanni, who were then invading Rhaetia, were won over by Stilicho, and joined the Gallic legions, whom they had been fighting, in Stilicho's effort to save the emperor. Stilicho had relied on the rivers of northern
Battle of Pollentia
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Battle of the Sesia and forced to withdraw to France. Charles de Lannoy now launched an invasion of Provence under the command of Fernando d'Avalos, Marquess of Pescara, and Charles III, Duke of Bourbon (who had recently betrayed Francis and allied himself with the Emperor). While initially successful, the Imperial offensive lost valuable time during the Siege of Marseille and was forced to withdraw back to Italy by the arrival of Francis and the main French army at Avignon. In mid-October 1524, Francis himself crossed the Alps and advanced on Milan at the head of an army numbering more than
Battle of Pavia
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and Shishunaga predecessors to create the first great empire of north India. To achieve this objective they built a vast army, consisting of 200,000 infantry, 20,000 cavalry, 2,000 war chariots and 3,000 war elephants (at the lowest estimates). According to the Greek historian Plutarch, the size of the Nanda army was even larger, numbering 200,000 infantry, 80,000 cavalry, 8,000 war chariots, and 6,000 war elephants. However, the Nanda Empire did not have the opportunity to see their army face Alexander, who invaded north-western India at the time of Dhana Nanda, since Alexander was forced to confine his campaign to the
Nanda Empire
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Julius Caesar armed his fifth legion ("Alaudae") with axes and commanded his legionaries to strike at the elephant's legs. The legion withstood the charge, and the elephant became its symbol. Thapsus was the last significant use of elephants in the West. The remainder of the elephants seemed to have been thrown into panic by Caesar's archers and slingers. Roman war elephants Due to the Roman focus on infantry and its discipline, war elephants were rarely used. While the Romans did eventually adopt them, and used them occasionally after the Punic wars, especially during the conquest of Greece, they fell out
Roman war elephants
1748652
Battle of France The Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries during the Second World War. In the six weeks from 10 May 1940, German forces defeated Allied forces by mobile operations and conquered France, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, bringing land operations on the Western Front to an end until 6 June 1944. Italy entered the war on 10 June 1940 and invaded France over the Alps. The German plan for the invasion consisted of two main operations. In "Fall Gelb" (Case Yellow), German armoured units
Battle of France
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Italy during the fall of the Western Roman Empire. In early 402 AD the Visigoths had invaded northern Italy and were advancing on Mediolanum (modern Milan) which was the imperial capital at that time. Honorius, the young emperor and a resident in that city, unable to wait for promised reinforcements any longer, was compelled to flee from Milan for safety in the city of Arles in Gaul. However, just after his convoy had left Milan and crossed the River Po his escape route through the Alps was cut off by the Gothic cavalry. This forced him to take emergency refuge
Asti
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of Provence under the command of Fernando d'Avalos, Marquess of Pescara, and Charles III, Duke of Bourbon (who had recently betrayed Francis and allied himself with the Emperor). While initially successful, the Imperial offensive lost valuable time during the Siege of Marseille and was forced to withdraw back to Italy by the arrival of Francis and the main French army at Avignon. In mid-October, Francis himself crossed the Alps and advanced on Milan at the head of an army numbering more than 40,000. Bourbon and d'Avalos, their troops not yet recovered from the campaign in Provence, were in no position
Italian campaign of 1524–25
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on 2 May 1598 and the Spanish ceding of captured French towns. Battle of Fontaine-Française The Battle of Fontaine-Française occurred on 5 June 1595 between the French royal forces of King Henry IV of France and troops of Spain and the Catholic League commanded by Juan Fernández de Velasco and Charles of Lorraine, Duke of Mayenne during the eighth and final war (1585-1598) of the French Wars of Religion. In early June 1595, Don Juan Fernández de Velasco (governor of Milan and Constable of Castile) crossed the Alps with an army of 12,000 men from Italy and Sicily. In the
Battle of Fontaine-Française
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Battle of Fontaine-Française The Battle of Fontaine-Française occurred on 5 June 1595 between the French royal forces of King Henry IV of France and troops of Spain and the Catholic League commanded by Juan Fernández de Velasco and Charles of Lorraine, Duke of Mayenne during the eighth and final war (1585-1598) of the French Wars of Religion. In early June 1595, Don Juan Fernández de Velasco (governor of Milan and Constable of Castile) crossed the Alps with an army of 12,000 men from Italy and Sicily. In the Bishopric of Besançon he was joined by Charles of Mayenne (chief of
Battle of Fontaine-Française