John Paul Jones was famously losing the battle with the HMS Serapis when he uttered his famous response to a surrender demand: “I have not yet begun to fight!” At the time, this seemed an act of false bravado and the statement would have been forgotten if Jones had Read more
Button Gwinnett was born on March 3, 1735 in England. He became a merchant, but in 1762 he and his family moved to America. He ended up purchasing a plantation (with its slaves) in Georgia. He went into politics and was elected to the Second Continental Congress. He signed Read more
In 207 B.C., Hannibal had been in Italy for 11 years. It had been 9 years since his stunning victory at Cannae. In that battle, he destroyed a Roman army of 80,000 men, but he was not able to get Rome to concede that the war was lost. Since Read more
In 207 B.C., Hannibal had been in Italy for 11 years. It had been 9 years since his stunning victory at Cannae. In that battle, he destroyed a Roman army of 80,000 men, but he was not able to get Rome to concede that the war was lost. Since Read more
They were giants. – the short summers and harsh winters did not provide the food necessary to grow big – their skeletons indicate the men were about 5’6” – not much taller than the average European male in the Middle Ages Viking kings were cremated on their ships with a Read more
The Rhone River valley which Hannibal was crossing was the land of the Volcae. This powerful tribe was not going to let Hannibal cross the river. They withdrew most of their people living on the west bank to the opposite bank. When Hannibal arrived, he faced a hostile host on Read more
Publius Cornelius Scipio (Scipio Africanus’ father) crossed the Po River to try to make contact with Hannibal’s army which had recently completed its crossing of the Alps. Scouts reported that the Carthaginian army was at the Trebia River. He had a pontoon bridge constructed. He crossed and established a camp. Read more
The Roman legion was organized into maniples. These were like loose phalanxes. The hastati and principes maniples had 120 men each and the triarii had 60. It is unclear how the men were placed in the hastati and principes maniples. It could have been 10 men across and 12 Read more
The Romans were advanced in medicine and they knew that diet affected the health of the legionaries. We have information about the diet of the Roman Empire soldier. We will assume a legionary fighting in the Second Punic War would have eaten similarly. In forts, the cooks could make bread. Read more
The Roman army provided excellent medical care. In fact, Roman medical care was not equaled until the 18th Century. As with other fields, the Romans built from a Greek foundation. In conquering southern Italy, the Romans came in contact with Greek doctors who were far ahead of Roman doctors. Read more