Did the Punic Wars Establish Rome's Dominion over the Mediterranean?

[Six Foot Three]

Originally Posted by John Walmsley

5..Was there ever another battle, such as Zama, that pitted two military antagonists of the character and genius of Hannibal and Scipio Africanus? There seemed to be a grudging admiration between these two men. Both were assailed by political enemies at home. Interestingly, it's said that they both died in the same year.

John

I know that you're conversing about the ''Battle of Zama'' (Punic Wars) here however since you asked the above question i would state that the ''Battle of the Catalaunian Plains'' (Gaul) 451 A.D. would come close.

Although the Parthians came close several times however it would be some 650 years after Hannibal that europe would find itself again under the threat of utter destruction as the Huns under Attila arriving from the Asian Steppes had either destroyed or displaced entire peoples as they headed westward and so it took Rome's last great military commander of the Western Empire General Flavius Aetius to fight and stop them in Gaul as afterwards the Huns were never again a threat to the continent.

General Aetius afterwards touring the battle site famously quoted ''Cadavera vero innumera'' or ''Truely Countless Bodies''.

Anyway just my thought about it.

[MrMarbles]

I'm not a big Hannibal expert and did not read any of those books but here is my understanding his campaign:

Hannibal did not have sufficient resources to defeat Rome. His big gamble was that Rome's Italian allies would defect to his side. Those hopes, however, did not materialize. So while Hannibal, like Napoleon, was a great, charismatic leader and a brilliant battlefield commander, he, again like Napoleon, fundamentally misread the strategic situation and took his nation to war that he could not win.

Also, if I'm not mistaken, Hannibal did not really consult with the rest of Carthegian leaderthip before launching his invasion. He basically took it upon himself to declare war on Rome. And the defeat was VERY costly for Carthage, which essentially became a Roman client state.