The Second Punic War - OverSimplified (Part 2)

0:00 [Narrator] This video was made possible by Incogni.

0:03 Use code oversimplified in the link below

0:05 for an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan.

0:10 Also, make sure to grab our Roman Consul Youtooz before it's too late.

0:14 Don't make me mention it a third time, or I'll you know what.

0:18 (ominous music) (dramatic music) Hannibal's army had

0:24 survived its famous crossing of the Alps, and he was now in Italy.

0:28 With Hannibal's arrival, the Roman Consul Scipio hit the ground running.

0:33 In typical Roman fashion he marched his army straight at the enemy,

0:37 and Hannibal began preparing for his first combat with Rome on Italian soil.

0:43 Before the battle, Hannibal wanted to inspire his men,

0:46 so he staged a gladiatorial death match between captured

0:50 Celt prisoners with the winner getting prizes and freedom.

0:55 He then explained that the whole thing was a metaphor.

0:58 "A metaphor, for what?" "You, these warriors are you.

1:04 You're trapped in Italy with no escape.

1:06 Your only choice now is to fight and win." "What about

1:10 the dead guy?" "That's you if you don't win." "And the prizes?"

1:14 "That's what you stand to gain by winning." "And the fact

1:17 that I've soiled myself in all this excitement?" "That, no,

1:20 that's not part of the metaphor." "Okay." Hannibal

1:25 also smashed in the head of a goat, again for inspiration.

1:29 Scipio, on the other hand, now arriving in the area,

1:32 opted for the more classic route of a rousing pre-battle speech.

1:37 "Look at the men.

1:38 Weak, starved by the Alps, while we are the strongest military in the world.

1:44 This will be easy.

1:46 Like 10,000 horse-sized ducks fighting a baby sized baby.

1:51 It'll be like Mike Tyson in his prime, kicking a baby.

1:54 A tug of war between 10 sumo wrestlers and, uh,

1:58 help me out here, Ralph." "A baby, sir." "Yes, yes, that's it, a baby.

2:03 The point is, there is absolutely no possible

2:06 way we could lose a battle this easy.

2:09 So if everybody's ready on my mark,

2:13 charge." (Roman soldiers yelling) (Roman soldiers screaming) The Battle

2:25 of Ticinus was over almost as soon as it had begun,

2:29 as the Romans found themselves completely outmatched

2:32 by Hannibal's famed lightning fast Numidian cavalry,

2:36 a key element in Hannibal's devastating double envelopment tactics.

2:41 In the chaos, Scipio was wounded.

2:44 Thankfully, according to some ancient writers, his handsome 17-year-old son,

2:49 Scipio the Younger, saw his father fall.

2:52 Scipio the Younger, supposedly saved his father,

2:55 and in the process earned himself a lot of daddy's kisses.

2:59 The Romans ended up fleeing the area,

3:02 destroying the bridge behind them as they went.

3:05 For a nation so overtly confident in victory,

3:08 believing Hannibal to be an easy kill,

3:11 the Romans found themselves running away with their tail between their legs.

3:15 It was humiliating.

3:18 And do you know who thought so as well?

3:20 The Celts.

3:21 They began flocking to Hannibal's side just as he had hoped.

3:26 Even Celtic troops fighting for Rome in the Roman camp began to reconsider.

3:31 "Man, I'm thinking we should try to join Hannibal." "I hear you,

3:35 maybe we should bring him a gift.

3:36 What do you think he'd like?" "Hmm, oh, I know." "Hey, Hannibal,

3:41 we wanna join your side and we brought you a present." "A gift for me?

3:47 I hope it's Roman heads." Oh, please, oh, please be Roman heads.

3:55 How did you know?" Running away from Hannibal was humiliating enough,

3:59 but having dozens of Romans beheaded in the night.

4:02 Now that's embarrassing.

4:05 Ticinus had been a relatively small battle,

4:08 but the psychological impact it had early on was huge.

4:12 And it was only just a taste of what Hannibal was capable of.

4:16 Despite the shocking initial loss, however,

4:19 Rome still didn't seem to fully understand the danger

4:22 posed by the monster now loose in their territory.

4:25 The Senate was full of excuses.

4:28 "It's those traitorous Celts, that's why we lost.

4:31 "Yeah, and it was a cavalry battle,

4:33 wait until Hannibal faces our almighty legions." "And our Consul was bald,

4:37 once he faces our other fully follicled Consul

4:40 then he'll really pee his pants." That other Consul,

4:44 Longus had been in the south all this time, preparing to invade Africa.

4:48 He had seen some success even capturing Malta,

4:51 but then he heard the news, "Hannibal's in Italy, and I'm being ordered home.

4:57 But, but I was gonna be the big boy.

4:59 I was gonna invade Carthage and win the war." "Well,

5:02 you can be a big boy at home." "No." "Does somebody need a nap,

5:06 sir?" "No, no, no!" And so Longus brought his army on the long journey north,

5:14 when he arrived in the area to decisively neutralize Hannibal.

5:18 The two Consuls joined their forces together, creating a double consular army.

5:23 But the two Consuls weren't exactly on the same page, "Having a nice rest there,

5:28 old man?" "I'm wounded, Longus." "Pathetic." "You don't understand.

5:32 He's more dangerous than we thought." "Maybe for you, whoops." "Listen,

5:36 we can't just march straight at him like we normally do.

5:39 We need to train our man through

5:40 the winter and we'll try again in spring." "Sorry,

5:43 I don't take advice from a bowling bowl." "H-hey,

5:45 I'll kick your ass, Longus." "Any day now." "I'm coming,

5:50 just you wait." "Oh, Scipio, you feeble old man." (Longus screeches) Scipio was

5:56 apparently quite cautious after his recent encounter with Hannibal,

5:59 while Longus, typically Roman, couldn't wait to give Hannibal a swirly.

6:04 So who would get their way?

6:06 Well, when two Consuls joined their forces,

6:09 it turned out the Romans had an interesting system in place.

6:13 They would each take turns being the one in charge.

6:15 Consul one would lead one day,

6:18 then Consul two the next, back and forth, back and forth.

6:22 As you can imagine, when the two Consuls didn't agree, things didn't go so well.

6:27 In this case, due to Scipio's injury,

6:29 Longus probably assumed even more command than normal.

6:33 Hannibal had Celtic spies in the Roman camp.

6:36 He fully understood the Roman system and Longus's hotheaded nature,

6:40 and he knew he could exploit it.

6:43 "For goodness sake." "What's wrong, sir?" "I'm trying to order some pizza,

6:46 but I keep getting fed all these personalized ads about being a hothead.

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7:02 They could sell that data to Hannibal." "What?" "But don't worry

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8:42 Now, where were we?

8:43 Oh yeah, Roman heads, a double consular army and a hothead.

8:50 Hannibal needed to keep smashing the Romans in battle

8:53 in order to maintain the loyalty of the Celts.

8:55 And so he was eager to fight another battle.

8:59 The combined Roman force possibly outnumbered him.

9:02 So he carefully crafted a clever trap,

9:05 and he made sure to spring it, while Longus was still in charge.

9:08 The plan began with his army getting an early night's sleep.

9:12 "All right, boys, time for lights out." (Carthaginian soldiers whine) "Sorry,

9:16 but we got a big day ahead of us.

9:18 Tomorrow we're gonna massacre the Romans."

9:22 (Carthaginian soldiers cheer) "Goodnight boys,

9:24 dream of revenge." (door clicks) "Gorzog,

9:28 send out the cavalry." (dramatic music) That night,

9:34 Hannibal's Numidian cavalry made their way over

9:36 to the Roman camp arriving just before dawn.

9:39 "Hey, Romans, wakey, wakey." "What, what the, what's going on?" "Hey,

9:45 Longus, your butt smells like a butt." "It does not.

9:49 Scipio, awaken the troops." "Longus,

9:52 these playground insults are clearly meant to lure you out." "Well,

9:55 it's working, send out the troops." "Longus,

9:58 it's clearly a trap." "And I'm falling for it,

10:01 send out the troops." "Hey guys, wake up, you're heading out for battle." "What?

10:06 But we haven't had breakfast." "We're skipping breakfast." "I don't think

10:10 you can do that." As the Romans hurried out of camp,

10:13 the Numidians began luring them back to the Carthaginian camp,

10:16 where these gentle angels were just awakening from their slumber.

10:21 "Eat up boys we're having pancakes." (Carthaginian soldiers

10:26 cheer) While the Carthaginians were enjoying their hearty breakfast.

10:29 The starving Romans were still on their way.

10:33 "Hurry up, we have to catch those Numidians.

10:35 Hey, why have you stopped marching?" "Longus,

10:37 there's a freezing river in front of us." "Well get

10:41 your gluteus maximus in the water." (Roman soldiers yelling) "All right,

10:48 boys, time to lather up.

10:49 This oil will insulate you from the cold.

10:51 It also smells like lavender." (Carthaginian

10:54 soldiers hum) "There's the Carthaginian camp, get ready to fight men." "Sir,

10:59 I take the water from the river is beginning to ice over.

11:04 I can't move." "Oh, oh, I'm sorry, you thought war would be fun.

11:08 Sitting around a nice hot campfire playing truth or dare with your friends?

11:11 Welcome to the real world." "Truth." "Who

11:15 do you like?" "Sharon." "Ew." "Hey, look, guys,

11:21 the Romans are here." (Roman soldiers shivering) Having

11:26 perfectly orchestrated events so that his enemy was cold,

11:29 tired, and hungry, while his men were well rested and covered in oil.

11:34 When the two sides engaged one another,

11:36 the Romans were in no condition to fight.

11:39 And the cherry on top?

11:41 The previous night, Hannibal had sent out an elite force of men

11:44 led by his brother to go and hide behind a bush.

11:47 They suddenly sprung out encircling the exhausted

11:51 Romans who were then cut to pieces.

11:54 Once again, Hannibal's superior cavalry and double

11:57 envelopment tactics had flummoxed the Romans.

12:00 But the key word at Trebia was control.

12:03 Hannibal used his intel on the enemy and the environment

12:06 of the battlefield to carefully control the conditions of battle,

12:10 creating lots of little advantages for himself that paved the way to success.

12:15 And concealing troops for an ambush?

12:17 All of these things are what make Hannibal the genius he's remembered as today.

12:22 As for Longus, he managed to escape

12:25 the battlefield with a small number of troops.

12:27 Disgraced, he didn't want this Senate to find out what had happened,

12:31 and he began obscuring communications back to Rome.

12:35 "Longus, where have you been?

12:37 We've been looking for you." "Uh,

12:38 nowhere in particular." "Longus, 30,000 men are missing.

12:42 Do you know where they are?" "Uh, they're taking a bath." "30,000 men,

12:47 all in a bath." "Yes." "Longus,

12:50 what's under that rug?" (flies buzzing) "Aurora Borealis." "Aurora Borealis?

12:58 Oh." (alarm beeps) "Well, that's my consulship over.

13:01 Good luck with Hannibal, bye." Trebia had been a disaster for the Romans.

13:07 And as even more Celts began flocking to Hannibal,

13:10 Rome largely lost its control over Cisalpine Gaul.

13:14 In Rome, complacency turned to alarm.

13:17 Hannibal had outwitted them on their own soil and inflicted a costly defeat.

13:22 But with that, Scipio and Longus's terms as Consul were over.

13:27 They were replaced with two new Consuls, Servilius and Flaminius.

13:31 The Romans may now have begun to realize the trouble they

13:35 were in, and the genius Hannibal had shown in invading Italy.

13:39 The Romans had expected to be the ones controlling this war.

13:43 Remember, they thought they were going to invade Carthage.

13:46 Now their plans lay in ruins,

13:49 and they were levying 11 new legions to deal with the threat,

13:53 Hannibal had completely redefined the war.

13:56 But Hannibal had a little problem of his own.

13:59 Things had gone well so far, but the Celts were notoriously fickle.

14:03 And Hannibal needed to ensure he maintained

14:05 their alliance and his base of support in Italy.

14:08 Any Celts he captured fighting for Rome he treated

14:11 extremely well and allowed them to return to their homes.

14:14 But the longer he hung around in their territory,

14:16 eating all their food and leaving beard trimmings in their sinks,

14:20 the more resentful they may become.

14:22 They wanted to go south and plunder some Roman booty.

14:25 And Hannibal also hoped to sway Rome's other

14:28 Italian allies in the south to his side.

14:30 So from here, the path was clear.

14:33 Hannibal had to move south.

14:35 Just one problem.

14:37 There were two main routes Hannibal could take to move south.

14:41 And wouldn't you know it?

14:42 That's exactly where the two new Roman Consuls had taken fortified positions.

14:47 If Hannibal tried to move on them,

14:49 he'd be fighting from a disadvantaged position and could be bottled in.

14:53 "There is a third option." "Ooh, tell me,

14:55 tell me." "We could move through this vast,

14:57 impassable marshland flooded with dirty,

14:59 stinky disease infested water that at times would come up

15:02 to our necks." "But there's no way we would attempt that, right?

15:05 That it'd be crazy, right?

15:07 (playful music) Hannibal?" Hannibal's four day trek

15:13 across the Arno marshlands was hell on Earth,

15:16 almost as crazy as when he crossed the Alps.

15:19 Imagine three full days unable to sit or lie

15:22 down because there's nowhere to sit or lie down.

15:24 Meaning four full days without sleep slugging through heavy mud.

15:29 You contract cholera.

15:30 Your foot falls off and Jimbob directly in front

15:33 of you won't stop pooping in your path.

15:35 In fact, everybody's pooping in your path.

15:38 Some delirious sleepless men would see clumps of mud and say,

15:42 "Man, I could just sink into that." And then they would.

15:46 When Pack animals died, it gave nearby men a chance to rest,

15:49 but only for a few moments before they were whipped back into line.

15:53 Even Hannibal himself couldn't escape the torture of it.

15:56 "Hey, Hannibal, if we see a Starbucks, can we stop?

15:59 I need to take a leak." (Carthaginian soldiers screaming) "What?" "Geez,

16:07 Hannibal looks like you picked up a nasty eye infection.

16:10 Normally for this sort of thing, we'd just wash it out with some clean water.

16:12 But as you can see, water everywhere,

16:15 but it's full of Jimbob's poop." "No worries, doc, I'll just take care of it

16:19 myself." (Carthaginian soldiers gasp) "That'll be $3,000."

16:25 When the now possibly one-eyed Hannibal and his army emerged from the swamp,

16:29 they were shattered.

16:30 But he had just managed to slip 50,000

16:34 men right past the Romans into Rich Etrurian lands

16:38 where he could replenish his supplies and his Celt

16:41 allies could go crazy securing Roman loot and booty.

16:45 As fields and villages went up in flames,

16:48 one Roman Consul couldn't help but notice.

16:50 The hotheaded Flaminius,

16:52 feeling it was his responsibility to protect these lands.

16:56 Rather than waiting for his co-consul to come join him,

16:58 immediately left to go chase Hannibal.

17:02 Now this Flaminius was an interesting character.

17:05 He was what the Romans called a new man.

17:08 He came from the lower plebeian classes of Roman society, and as a result,

17:12 he reportedly had kind of a screw you

17:15 attitude to the establishment and a big old, arrogant chip on his shoulder.

17:19 Picture Sid Vicious wearing a toga, that's Flaminius.

17:23 And Hannibal, thanks to his spies, knew everything.

17:28 Just as with Longus,

17:29 Hannibal knew Flaminius was just the kind of man he could lure into a trap.

17:34 Hannibal led Flaminius to the entrance of a narrow

17:37 pass along the north shore of Lake Trasimene.

17:40 Flaminius watched as Hannibal's army entered the pass.

17:44 "I've done it, I've spotted the enemy." "Uh, sir,

17:48 that big "Follow us" sign seems kinda like

17:51 they're trying to lure you in." "Yes, Gareth,

17:53 and I'm taking the bait." "Sir, this really seems like a trap." "Yes, Gareth,

17:58 and I'm falling for it." Daylight was fading,

18:01 so for now, the Romans set up camp.

18:03 The two armies encamped across the lake from one

18:06 another and night fell over the two camps.

18:10 In the morning, Flaminius would catch up to Hannibal

18:13 and he would be the hero of Rome.

18:16 For now, the Romans got nice and comfy in their beds.

18:21 Goodnight, Flaminius.

18:22 Good night, Rome.

18:25 Good evening, Hannibal.

18:27 During the night, Hannibal ordered total

18:30 stealth (Flaminius snoring) as tens of thousands

18:36 of troops (Roman soldiers snoring) scaled the wooded hills above the pass,

18:43 (Roman soldiers snoring) completely undetected by Rome's scouts.

18:49 (Flaminius snoring) (upbeat music) "Let's go girls." Flaminius took

18:58 off across the lake shore to try to catch Hannibal.

19:02 As he did, even the weather seemed to be on Hannibal's side.

19:06 A thick fog rose from the surface of the lake obscuring visibility.

19:11 "Look at this, this is perfect.

19:14 The mist will obscure our approach.

19:16 Hannibal will never see me coming." (battle horns blast) "Sir,

19:22 why does it sound like 50,000 Carthaginians

19:25 are charging down the hill towards us?

19:27 "You mean 50,000 Carthaginians are charging right into my trap." (Carthaginian

19:32 soldiers yelling) The Romans found themselves completely hemmed in on all sides.

19:37 With zero visibility in the fog, the fighting was terrifying and chaotic.

19:42 Troops were pushed into the lake in their heavy

19:44 armor where they were either cut down or drowned.

19:48 And Flaminius, who likely stood out like a sore thumb

19:51 in his Consul attire caught the attention of one Celt warrior.

19:55 With his head possibly swirling with thoughts

19:58 of how the Romans had decimated his homeland.

20:01 According to the ancient writers, this Celt took his chance.

20:08 (triumphant music) In the three hour long massacre,

20:16 15,000 Romans were killed, and an equal number captured.

20:20 An entire army completely wiped out along with their Consul.

20:25 During the battle, the Roman vanguard had managed to break

20:28 through at the front and climb the hill above the fog.

20:31 When the mist cleared,

20:32 what they saw was a blood red lake and a sea of Roman bodies.

20:40 Worse yet, when the other consuls sent

20:42 cavalry to try to aid Flaminius's doomed legions,

20:45 they too were caught and defeated.

20:48 A double disaster.

20:53 (senators screaming) Rome went into a frenzy.

20:58 For the second time, Hannibal had completely decimated an entire Roman army.

21:03 Romans were dying by the tens of thousands.

21:06 Common citizens began flocking to the city for safety.

21:10 Women waited by the city gates in tears, hoping to hear news of loved ones.

21:15 This one man, having just led his battered army across the Alps

21:19 the previous year now stood less than a hundred miles from Rome.

21:24 To this point, he had been a problem.

21:27 Now Hannibal was a crisis.

21:32 And in a crisis, Rome took desperate measures.

21:36 They actually had a system in place

21:38 when dealing with an emergency of this magnitude.

21:41 They would forego their two Consul power sharing system, and instead,

21:45 temporarily give one man near total power and authority to be

21:50 as decisive as he needed and hopefully salvage the situation.

21:54 This all powerful position in Rome's government had a name, dictator.

22:00 It's actually where we get the word.

22:02 But unlike modern dictators, Roman ones didn't score perfect rounds of golf

22:07 or ride bears through the Siberian Tundra.

22:09 They held their power for just six months

22:11 before they were required to give it up.

22:14 And in Rome's hour of need, the man chosen to be dictator in 217 BC,

22:20 one of the most highly esteemed members of the Roman Senate, Fabius Maximus.

22:26 So how would Fabius as dictator confront Hannibal?

22:30 Well, Fabius understood that marching all of Rome's young men

22:33 straight into a one-man meat grinder was bleeding Rome dry.

22:37 Hannibal was clearly too dangerous to face head on in battle.

22:41 However, he was also stuck in their territory

22:44 with dwindling manpower and forced to live off the land.

22:48 It wasn't a sustainable position to be in long term,

22:51 and he could only remain there for so long.

22:54 So if Rome avoided battle with Hannibal to prevent any more crippling losses,

22:59 and instead simply maneuvered around him,

23:02 blocking supplies and taking out smaller contingents where possible Hannibal

23:06 would gradually become weaker while they would gradually become stronger.

23:11 And so Fabius presented his new idea to the Roman Senate.

23:15 "Okay, guys, I have an idea.

23:18 See if you can follow me here, okay?

23:20 Instead of fighting Hannibal when he approaches,

23:23 we run away." (senators booing) Fabius's

23:32 strategy couldn't have been any less Roman.

23:35 Romans were meant to march headfirst into battle, not run away from it.

23:39 It seemed cowardly and Fabius was extremely unpopular.

23:44 At this point, Hannibal was continuing south.

23:47 He had to stay on the move to keep his army fed,

23:49 and he was still aiming to undermine Rome's alliances in the south.

23:53 As he went in a calculated display of aggression,

23:56 he devastated the Roman countryside and killed many Romans,

24:00 all in plain sight of Fabius and his army.

24:03 "We're just gonna stand here?" "Yes." "Are you a coward?" "No." "But Fabius,

24:09 that's my farm." "Well, MacDonald, thank you for your sacrifice.

24:13 You're a hero now.

24:14 Think of the stories you'll tell." "Old McDonald had a farm."

24:20 (cries) "Shut up." But you know who else hated Fabius's strategy?

24:26 Hannibal.

24:27 He understood the danger he was in.

24:30 Turning Rome's allies against her, required Hannibal

24:33 to keep smashing the Romans in battle.

24:35 He couldn't do that if Fabius wouldn't fight him.

24:38 Multiple times, Hannibal tried to goad Fabius into a fight,

24:42 but Fabius wouldn't bite.

24:44 Failing that he tried to turn room against Fabius.

24:48 According to the writer, Livy, he burned down all the farms he could.

24:52 But any farm he learned was owned by Fabius himself he left well alone.

24:56 "Hey, Fabius, why isn't he burning down your farm?

25:00 You got some sort of a secret deal with him." "What,

25:03 of course not." "Hey, Hannibal!" "What?" "Burn my farm too,

25:09 please." "What?" "Burn my farm too, please." "No,

25:15 remember our secret deal." (sighs) Well, you gotta admit he's a genius.

25:23 Hannibal's problem, however, was that he had to stay on the move

25:26 to keep supplying his army from the local lands.

25:29 At one point, he entered Campania, one of the richest regions of Italy,

25:33 great for resupplying and great for showing up

25:36 Fabius in front of Rome's south Italian allies.

25:39 But he was caught in a valley, and Fabius quickly moved to block his escapes.

25:44 "Ha ha, we've got him.

25:46 After he's used up all the valley's supplies, he'll starve." "Uh,

25:50 sir, what are all those lights leaving the valley?

25:53 Is he trying to escape?" "Lights in plain view?

25:57 Well, that's a trap if I've ever seen

25:59 one." "And we're falling for it." Suspecting a trap, Fabius refused to budge.

26:04 But other Romans in the valley rushed to confront Hannibal,

26:07 only to find the Carthaginian army was actually just

26:10 a herd of oxen with torches tied to their heads.

26:13 They then found themselves caught in an ambush.

26:16 With the Romans distracted Hannibal's army was

26:19 able to slip away into the night unopposed.

26:23 Classic Hannibal.

26:25 For all his inaction,

26:26 the dissatisfied Romans mockingly dubbed him Fabius the Delayer.

26:31 But the thing is, Fabius's strategy was

26:33 probably the best thing he could have done.

26:35 He was right that constant encounters with Hannibal were bleeding Rome dry.

26:40 And the time he took allowed Rome some breathing room to recover their forces

26:44 when they desperately needed to while putting

26:47 Hannibal into an increasingly more difficult position.

26:50 Modern historians view Fabius's strategy as generally a good idea.

26:55 To this day, the act of not engaging an enemy,

26:58 but instead gradually wearing them down is

27:01 still referred to as the Fabian strategy.

27:05 But when Fabius's term finally came to an end,

27:08 the Senate couldn't have been happier.

27:11 It was time to start fighting again.

27:13 However, they probably had a little chat about how they were gonna go about it.

27:18 See, Hannibal's tactics up until now had been very sneaky.

27:22 Or if you're a Roman, you might say dishonorable.

27:26 "I'm sick of it.

27:28 Every time we try to take this guy down, we march straight at him.

27:31 But then, oh, no, Hannibal's hiding in a bush.

27:35 Hannibal's got 30,000 men up a tree.

27:38 At this point, I'm not convinced my wife isn't just

27:41 Hannibal wearing a disguise." (senator's wife coos) (senator shudders) "Look,

27:45 this time we obviously have to switch something up.

27:48 Now, granted, we're Roman,

27:50 so we're gonna march straight at him without thinking.

27:53 That can't be helped, it's in our blood.

27:55 But I have a proposition.

27:59 This time when we march straight at him, we do it with a massive army.

28:04 I'm talking like 80,000 men.

28:06 It won't matter what kind of shenanigans he pulls.

28:09 He can hide in all the bushes he wants.

28:11 There's no way he can possibly beat

28:15 off 80,000 men." (senators laughing) "Grow up,

28:18 you know what I mean." And so it was

28:21 with two new Consuls Rome put together a massive army.

28:25 The biggest Rome had ever fielded to put Hannibal away once and for all.

28:30 To gather them in required,

28:31 two thirds of them ended up being completely inexperienced.

28:35 But how much experienced does it take to be expendable war fodder?

28:39 As this massive army set out in the summer of 216

28:43 BC the Romans knew they needed to win this battle.

28:47 Just one victory over Hannibal would likely

28:49 be enough to end his entire campaign.

28:52 And this time, their overwhelming manpower

28:55 gave them confidence they could do it.

28:57 Hannibal had taken position at the town of Cannae

29:00 where he had captured an important Roman Supply depot.

29:03 With Fabius gone, Hannibal knew the battle was likely coming,

29:07 and he was eager to fight it on his terms.

29:10 But when his men looked out at the Roman camp,

29:13 they couldn't believe what they were seeing.

29:16 "That army's huge.

29:18 There's no way we can possibly beat off all these men.

29:20 How are we gonna beat off all of these men?" "Heh,

29:23 heh." "You know what I mean." "I think he's right,

29:26 Hannibal." Hannibal is then said to have replied,

29:28 "Gisco, my friend, don't worry.

29:31 There may be a lot of them, but amongst their ranks,

29:34 there's not a single man named Gisco." This joke was

29:38 apparently so funny that his officers began to laugh and laugh.

29:43 And when his men in the camp heard the laughter,

29:45 they were like, "Hey, they're laughing.

29:47 I guess that means we're gonna win

29:49 the battle." (Carthaginian soldiers cheer) As for the Romans,

29:53 the Consuls were another pairing between

29:55 an inexperienced hothead and a wise scholar.

29:58 Although the main historian from this era

30:00 was good friends with Paullus's family, so take that with a grain of salt.

30:05 On his day of command, the rash and hasty Varro,

30:08 despite the apparent pleas from Paullus sent the army out for battle.

30:12 And when Hannibal saw this, he did the same.

30:16 And here comes the single largest battle of the Second

30:20 Punic War and one of the most renowned battles in history.

30:24 The infamous Battle of Cannae.

30:28 In all the pre battle maneuvering,

30:30 Hannibal was able to ensure his army was fighting from the south.

30:34 This meant the seasonal dust carrying winds were to his back

30:37 and blowing directly into the faces of the Romans.

30:41 Like I said, control.

30:43 After two years in Italy, Hannibal's infantry had dwindled to about 40,000.

30:48 The Romans possibly outnumbered him two to one.

30:52 Their army was so big that their maniple

30:54 stretched far deeper than they normally would.

30:57 The Romans plan to charge Hannibal's thin weak

30:59 line like a battering ram and break it.

31:02 They also chose a narrow battlefield in the hopes it would

31:05 prevent Hannibal's far superior cavalry from being able to outmaneuver them.

31:10 They wanted an honorable battle where pure strength,

31:13 rather than trickery, would decide the outcome.

31:16 If Hannibal had his say, however,

31:18 trickery might end up having a lot to do with it.

31:21 He ordered his line to position themselves as an outward

31:25 bulge with his weakest troops at the very center.

31:28 Just behind them out of sight from the Romans,

31:31 stood the elite Libyan infantry waiting for their moment to strike.

31:36 The battle commenced as the massive

31:38 Roman troops smashed into the Carthaginian center.

31:42 The shape of Hannibal's line ensured the overwhelming

31:45 weight of the Romans hit his weakest troops first, and they were pushed back.

31:51 Hannibal's outward bulge reversed inward with the Romans

31:55 being funneled in towards the weak center.

31:57 Hannibal had positioned himself at the center to encourage the troops

32:01 to hold out as long as possible against the Roman onslaught,

32:05 because while the Romans were on leashing carnage on the center,

32:08 Hannibal's cavalry needed time to do their job.

32:12 The heavy cavalry on the left after a barbaric fight sent the Roman

32:16 horse packing with the Consul Paullus even sustaining a severe head injury.

32:21 He managed to move into the center to keep the battle going.

32:25 Then the heavy cavalry turned and approached Varro's cavalry from behind.

32:30 At the first sight of the coming Carthaginian

32:33 envelopment Varro ordered his horsemen to flee the battlefield,

32:37 the Carthaginians had won the cavalry battle.

32:40 But back in the center, according to some accounts,

32:43 Hannibal's line did eventually end up caving

32:46 to the massive weight of the Romans, and they began to flee.

32:51 The Romans pushed deeper and organization within the army likely broke down,

32:56 as they became a giant mass trying to massacre the fleeing Carthaginians.

33:01 They didn't realize that they were playing right into Hannibal's hands.

33:07 At that moment, Hannibal's elite units having done no fighting yet,

33:11 and therefore fresh as a daisy turned and smashed into the Roman sides.

33:16 Many of these troops were wearing Roman helmets

33:19 and armor they had picked up after previous battles,

33:21 and the confused Romans may not have even realized they were the enemy.

33:26 As Hannibal managed to regain the composure

33:29 of his center and encourage them back into the fight,

33:32 the Carthaginian cavalry swooped in from behind.

33:36 And look at what lies before you.

33:39 A military general's wet dream the total encirclement

33:43 of a much larger force by a much smaller force.

33:47 The Romans were trapped.

33:50 Hannibal had unbelievably managed to use

33:53 their own superiority in numbers against them,

33:56 rather than simply encircling them,

33:58 he had actually allowed them to use their own

34:02 immense power and push themselves into an encircled position.

34:07 This was the genius of Cannae And with that, the annihilation began.

34:16 For hours the Carthaginians slaughtered the helpless Romans from all sides.

34:21 The terrified Romans were so tightly packed that at times

34:25 they couldn't even lift their arms to defend themselves.

34:28 The killing went on so long

34:31 that the Carthaginians became exhausted from the nonstop massacre.

34:35 And by the time the butchery came to an end, the grim toll spoke for itself.

34:41 To Hannibal several thousand lost.

34:43 The Romans suffered 60 to 80,000 dead or captured.

34:49 Yet another entire army wiped out by Hannibal.

34:54 Many high-ranking Romans met their end at Cannae.

34:57 Paullus for one, but also 80 senators and more.

35:01 It's been estimated that 20% of Rome's male population,

35:06 aged 18 to 50 died at Cannae.

35:10 This was it, Hannibal's vengeance.

35:14 The stunned Carthaginians as they searched

35:17 for their own survivors among the dead, couldn't believe the sight of it.

35:21 An estimated 30,000 gallons of blood now lay spilled on the battlefield.

35:28 Rome's defeat at Cannae sent shockwaves throughout Italy.

35:32 Just as Hannibal had hoped, most of southern Italy now defected to his side,

35:38 including the second largest city on the peninsula.

35:42 "Wow, Hannibal, this is incredible.

35:45 What could possibly come next?" "Next?

35:49 Jimbob, I've killed 150,000 Romans.

35:53 I've turned her allies against her.

35:55 That's it, that's vengeance.

35:59 So let me tell you what comes next.

36:01 Rome surrenders.

36:03 (dramatic music) Their territories are reduced.

36:09 We recover our lost islands.

36:14 And Carthage dominates the Mediterranean once again." "But sir,

36:21 what if they don't surrender?" "Jimbob, did you miss what just happened?

36:25 Of course, they're gonna surrender." Throughout his campaign Hannibal had

36:30 shown himself to be very adept at reading the Roman mind.

36:34 But if he now thought that Rome might surrender,

36:37 it was the first time he severely underestimated them.

36:41 And he was about to discover an extremely inconvenient fact about Rome.

36:46 Rome never surrenders.

36:49 At a Roman survivor's camp near Cannae.

36:52 One young officer overheard some troops discussing how they would flee Rome.

36:57 Drawing his sword he threatened to cut down any

37:01 man that would abandon Rome in its hour of need.

37:05 That officer was Scipio the Younger, but soon enough,

37:09 the Romans would come to call him Scipio Africanus, the hero of Rome.

37:16 (dramatic music)