The Greatest Commander in Antiquity

[Conrad_Jalowski]

It took a few months for Hannibal to seize the minor town of Saguntum in Spain while Scipio quickly seized the strongest Carthaginian stronghold in the Iberian Peninsula: Nova Carthago. In the art of siege warfare [Poliorcetics], Scipio Africanus was far superior to Hannibal Barca. In addition, Hannibal based his success on the military reforms of his father Hamilcar Barca while Scipio had to build from disaster. Without any command experience and in his twenties, Scipio Africanus captured the most fortified Carthaginian city in Spain [Nova Carthago] and defeated the Carthaginians and their Celtiberian allies at the battles of Baecula and Ilipa. In addition, at the battle of Zama in which Hannibal Barca himself was completely defeated, the Romans possessed only 30,000 soldiers while the Carthaginians possessed 50,000 soldiers and 80 war elephants. In my opinion, Scipio Africanus' generalship far surpassed the abilities of Hannibal Barca.