The main source for almost every aspect of the Punic Wars is the historian Polybius (c. 200 – c. 118 BC), a Greek sent to Rome in 167 BC as a hostage. His works include a now-largely-lost manual on military tactics, but he is best

The Roman Republic had been aggressively expanding in the southern Italian mainland for a century and had conquered peninsular Italy

Hannibal crosses the Alps, 218 BC
During 218 BC there was some naval skirmishing in the waters around Sicily. The Romans

Africa, 213–206 BC
In 213 BC Syphax, a powerful Numidian king in North Africa, declared for Rome. In response Carthaginian

The peace treaty the Romans subsequently imposed on the Carthaginians stripped them of all of their overseas territories and

Armies
Most male Roman citizens were eligible for military service and would serve as infantry, with the wealthier equites providing a cavalry component. Traditionally, when at war the Romans would raise two

Iberia 218–215 BC
The Roman fleet continued on from Massala in the autumn of 218 BC, landing the army it was transporting in north-east Iberia, where it won support among the local tribes. A Carthaginian attack in late 218 BC was repelled at the