Who was Hannibal?
“We have talked about many wars. Can we talk more about war heroes?” Rohan asked his friend Sir Dig- a-Lot.
Sir Dig-a-lot answered, “Certainly. Since we already spoke about Spartacus, let me tell you about another war hero who made the Romans shake in fear. His name was Hannibal, the son of Hamilcar Barca. His father fought for a city called Carthage in North Africa that was always at loggerheads with Rome.”
“Rome got nervous as the islands controlled by Carthage were too close to Rome and Romans feared that they would be attacked. The first Punic war broke out and lasted for 20 years with no side winning. Lives were lost, as a result of which Carthage offered peace by giving Rome one of the islands.
Barca decided to attack and conquer Spain to make up for the loss of the first war. He took his son along to Spain when Hannibal was just 7 years old. After his father’s death, Hannibal was appointed the general of the army at the age of 26. Rome decided to help Spain fight Carthage.
Before Rome could act, Hannibal marched 90,000 soldiers and attacked Rome through the north. This was known as the second Punic War. When Rome could not find Hannibal and kill him, they attacked Carthage instead.
Hannibal was far away in Spain and before he could return, Carthage admitted defeat and agreed to the peace terms of Rome. When Hannibal came back Carthage decided to dishonour Rome’s peace clause. This made Rome furious and they attacked Carthage.
The army of Carthage lost because they were outnumbered and Hannibal fled from Carthage. Hannibal continued to fight Rome and it was only when he was 64 years old that Rome finally found Hannibal.”
“Wow, that was a great story. May I hear another one?” Rohan asked.
Sir Dig-a-Lot laughed and said, “Not tonight. Off to bed, Rohan!”
For more such interesting history articles and videos, go to this page.