In 202 BC, near the North African city of Zama, the armies of two empires clashed. The Romans under Scipio Africanus won a bloody, decisive victory over Hannibal's Carthaginians. Scipio's victory signalled a shift in the balance of power in the ancient world. Thereafter, Rome became the dominant civilization of the Mediterranean. Zama also saw the eclipse of one legendary commander, Hannibal, the scourge of Rome and the preeminent general of the Second Punic War, by Scipio, one of the greatest leaders Rome ever produced. Brian Todd Carey's compelling, original reconstruction of the battle, the grueling skirmishes that led up to it, and its aftermath—including Hannibal's exile and suicide, Scipio's triumph, and the epic Roman siege that destroyed Carthage forever as a Mediterranean power— gives a fascinating insight into the Carthaginian and Roman methods of waging war. In addition to discussing the military organization and equipment and the tactics the armies employed, the book examines the lives and military careers of Hannibal and Scipio and offers critical assessment of their contrasting leadership styles. Carey's concise account of this climactic confrontation at Zama—a pivotal episode in ancient warfare—is complemented by the detailed maps of cartographers Joshua B. Allfree and John Cairns. Hannibal's Last Battle: Zama and the Fall of Carthage will appeal to readers of military history and is an essential text for all students of the classical period.
BRIAN TODD CAREY teaches history at the American Military University. He is author of Warfare in the Ancient World and Warfare in the Medieval World
