Hannibal (247-182 B.C.) may well have been the finest general the world has ever known. Setting out from Carthaginian-dominated Spain in 218 B.C. with a small army of select troops, he fought his way over the Pyrenees and crossed the Alps with elephants and a full baggage train. Descending into Italy, he destroyed the main Roman army at Lake Trasimeno - and came close to conquering Rome itself. At the celebrated battle of Cannae in 216 B.C., Hannibal's brilliant cavalry tactics enabled him to cut a reassembled Roman army to pieces. His subsequent defeats over a fifteen-year stay in Italy spoke more to a lack of sufficient support from home than to any leadership failing on his part.T. A. Dodge's classic history probes not only Hannibal's military prowess but also his visionary character. As part of his research, Dodge followed Hannibal's journey from Carthage to Italy, exploring every Alpine pass to determine Hannibal's exact route. With hundreds of invaluable illustrations, Hannibal remains unequalled as the most comprehensive and readable study of one of history's great military minds. Read Less