(1) P. Cornēlius Scīpiō Hannibalī prīmus occurrit. Commissō proeliō fugātus suīs ipse vulnerātus in castra rediit. Semprōnius Gracchus et ipse cōnflīgit apud Trebiam amnem; is quoque vincitur. Hannibalī multī sē in Ītaliā dēdidērunt.

(2) Inde ad Tusciam veniēns Hannibal Flāminiō cōnsulī occurrit. Ipsum Flāminium interēmit; Rōmānōrum XXV mīlia caesa sunt, cēterī diffūgērunt. Missus adversus Hannibalem posteā ā Rōmānīs Q. Fabius Māximus. Is eum differendō pugnam ab impetū frēgit, mox inventā occāsiōne vīcit.

    Battle of Trebia, 218 BCE. Battle of Lake Trasimenus, 217 BCE

    (1) P. Cornēlius Scīpiō: Publius Cornelius Scipio. At the beginning of the war he set out for Spain (Brev. 3.3), but finding that Hannibal had already left and was on his way to Italy, he went to Gaul to encounter the Carthaginians before he should cross the Alps. Hannibal was too quick for him. Scipio returned to Italy and awaited the arrival of the Carthaginians in Cisalpine Gaul. Near the river Ticinus, one of the northern tributaries of the Po, the first engagement of the war took place. The Romans were defeated; Scipio received a severe wound, and was only saved from death by the courage of his son Publius, the future conqueror of Hannibal. P. Scipio and his brother Gnaeus were killed in Spain (Brev. 3.13, Hazzard). Florus recounts the rising fame of the young Scipio:

    Read more

    The first assault came like a whirlwind between the Padus and the Ticinus rivers. The Roman army under Scipio's leadership scattered, and the wounded general would have fallen into the enemy's hands if his teenaged son hadn't protected him and snatched him from the jaws of certain death. This teenager would grow up to become the Scipio whose political status would rise with Africa's downfall, and he would gain the title Africanus for this conquest. (1.22.39–45).

    Hannibalī: dative object of occurrit (AG 370)

    Commissō proeliō: ablative absolute with a perfect passive participle (AG 419)

    Semprōnius Gracchus: A mistake of Eutropius. It was Tiberius Sempronius Longinus (Hazzard).

    ipse: P. Cornēlius Scīpiō

    apud Trebiam amnem: The battle of the Trebia (a tributary of the Po) occurred in 218 BCE. See Polybius 3.64–66, Livy 21.49 ff..

    is: Semprōnius Longinus

    multī sē in Ītaliā dēdidēruntIt was Hannibal’s policy to encourage the communities subject to Rome to revolt and to attach themselves to his standard. Everywhere he proclaimed himself to be the "Liberator of Italy" (Hazzard).

    (2) ad Tusciam: "to Tuscany"

    Flāminiō cōnsulī occurritThis battle took place in the following year, 217 BCE. Hannibal wintered in the plains of Lombardy, and at the approach of spring attempted to cross the Apennines. He was driven back by a violent storm, and was forced to return to his winter quarters. Later in the year he passed the mountains and marched into Etruria, where he was met by the Romans under Flaminius, who had been elected consul for that year, in the battle of Lake Trasimenus, in which the Romans were utterly defeated, and almost the whole force was annihilated (Hazzard). Florus recounts:

    Read more

    Hannibal's third strike occurred at Lake Trasimene, against Roman forces led by Flaminius. Here Hannibal used a new strategy, for he used the location's natural defenses, including the mist coming off of the lake and the thick underbrush of the surrounding marshland to disguise his cavalry's assault. Nor can we blame the gods for this. For our leader was given omens of the upcoming disaster in the form of swarming bees settling upon our standards, and the reluctance of the eagles to advance [see Livy 22.3.12]. An earthquake also occurred once the battle began, unless the shaking of the earth was caused by the motion of the cavalry, the clash of men and the clang of weapon against weapon. (1.22.51-59).

    mīlia: supply hominum

    Q. Fabius Māximus:  [Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator] was the great grandson of the Q. Fabius Maximus mentioned in Brev. 2.8, and grandson of the Q. Fabius mentioned in Brev. 2.9. He was one of the greatest generals of Rome. He was chosen dictator in 217 BCE, after the battle of Lake Trasimenus. The policy he adopted is well known. By following Hannibal from place to place, by watching for any error or neglect on his part and immediately taking advantage of it, and by avoiding a general engagement, he earned for himself the name Cunctator, 'delayer,' but he saved the state. In 215 BCE he was elected consul again, and again employed the same tactics. In 210 BCE, when he was consul for the fifth time, he recaptured Tarentum by stratagem (Brev. 3.16). He opposed the sending of Scipio to Africa, saying that Italy ought to be rid of Hannibal first (Hazzard).

    Is: Fabius

    eum differendō: "by postponing battle," i.e., by avoiding a decisive engagement (Hazzard). differendō is a gerund in the ablative case (AG 504).

    pugnam ab impetū frēgit: = ab impetū eum prohibuit; "prevented him from attacking in force" (Hazzard).

    inventā occāsiōne: ablative absolute using a perfect passive participle (AG 419).

    Core Vocabulary | Numbers | Dates

    P.

    abbreviation of the praenomen or nomen Publius

    Cornēlius, ī, m.

    the name of a large and important gens at Rome. See Asina, Cinna, Dolābella, Faustus, Fuscus, Galbus, Lentulus, Rūfinus, Scīpiō, Sulla.

    Scīpiō, ōnis, m.

    the name of one of the most illustrious families of Rome, Cornēlius Scīpiō, consul 83 B.C., Cn. Cornēlius Scīpiō, consul 222 B.C., L. (Cornēlius) Scīpiō, consul 259 B.C., P. Cornēlius Scīpiō, consul 218 B.C., P. Cornēlius Scīpiō, consul 191 B.C., P. Cornēlius Scīpiō, praetor 94 B.C., P. Cornēlius Scīpiō Āfricānus, consul 205 BC the conqueror of Hannibal in the First Punic War., P. Cornēlius Scīpiō Āfricānus (Minor), consul 147 B.C. He brought the Third Punic War to a close by capturing and destroying Carthage., L. Cornēlius Scīpiō Asiāgenēs, consul 83 B.C., P. (Cornēlius) Scīpiō Nāsīca, consul 91 B.C.

    Hannibal, alis, m.

    the son of Hamilcar Barca, the great general of the Carthaginians in the second Punic war

    vulnerō, āre, āvī, ātus [vulnus,] to wound, hurt, injure  
    Semprōnius, ī, m. P. Semprōnius, consul 268 B.C.  
    Gracchus, ī, m.

    a family name in the Sempronian gens at Rome., Ti. Semprōnius Gracchus, consul 218 B.C.

     
    cōnflīgō, ere, flīxī, flīctus

    to strike together; contend, fight

     
    Trebia, ae, f.

    a river in Cisalpine Gaul, where the second battle of the Second Punic War was fought

       
    dēdō, dere, didī, ditus to give up, surrender; devote  
    Tuscia, ae, f.

    Etruria, a division of central Italy

     
    Flāminius, i, m.

    (C.) Flaminius (Nepos), consul 223 and 217 B.C.

     
    interimō, ere, ēmī, ēmptus to take from the midst of, kill  
    diffugiō, ere, fūgī, —— to flee apart, scatter  

    adversus and adversum, prep. with accus.

    facing, in opposition to, against  
    Q.

    abbreviation of the praenomen Quīntus

     
    Fabius, ī, m.

    the name of a Roman gens. Fabia familia, the Fabian gens. (1) C. Fabius, consul 477 B.C.; (2) Q. Fabius, the first Roman annalist; (3) C. Fabius Pīctor, consul 269 B.C.

     
    Māximus, ī, m.

    a Roman cognomen meaning "greatest, most powerful"; (1) Q. Fabius Māximus, consul six times; (2) Q. Fabius Māximus, defeated by the Samnites 292 B.C.; (3) Q. Fabius Māximus (Cunctātor), five times consul.

    occāsiō, ōnis [occidō, to happen], f. an occasion, opportunity
    article nav
    Previous
    Next