Tagged Questions
6
votes
0answers
81 views
Did Hannibal start the Second Punic War prematurely?
IN 221 BC, Hamilcar, Hannibal's father, made a peace with Rome that divided Spain north and south between Rome and Carthage. The latter got the larger "piece," the area shaded in green on the map ...
8
votes
3answers
169 views
At the Battle of Zama, was the Roman army more “native” than the Carthaginian?
At the battle of Zama, which army had a higher proportion of native troops? Within the context of this question consider troops to be either "native" or "mercenary". Native troops serve out of ...
14
votes
3answers
309 views
How severe were the casualties in ancient/medieval battles?
I've heard that in most battles prior to the introduction of gunpowder weapons, the casualties were usually very low (around 5% even in long battles) prior to the moment when someone's formation was ...
3
votes
0answers
63 views
Changing troops in first line during battle [closed]
I remember Caesar in De Bello Gallico mentioning Romans changing fighting/resting troops in some siege defense while Celtic attackers didn't do this and lost the battle because of it (it was somewhere ...
5
votes
1answer
125 views
Did the Carthaginians have the option of sending Hannibal to Sicily?
Sicily was a major focus of the First and Second Punic Wars. The first Punic war ended with Carthage handing over major grain-growing areas on the island, and the port of Lilybaem to Rome as spoils of ...
7
votes
1answer
123 views
What is the history of standing armies in India?
Specifically, the points I am looking answers to are:
1) What is the first recorded instance of a standing army in the Indian subcontinent.
2) When did it become a general practice to have standing ...
7
votes
2answers
196 views
Did the Gallic army besieged in Alesia conduct itself well when expecting relief?
During a Gallic revolution against Rome, a Gallic army of some 80,000 men took shelter in the fortress town of Alesia, where they were besieged by some 50,000 Romans under Julius Caesar. (His army may ...
