Hannibal's Dynasty

Power and Politics in the Western Mediterranean, 247-183 BC

Dexter Hoyos

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2003
• Topic: History
• eBook ISBN:
  9781134424658
• Subtopic: African History
• Index: History

Accessible and enlightening, Hannibal's Dynasty provides the full story of Carthage's achievement, going beyond the usual focus on Hannibal and military matters alone to look at a wide range of political and diplomatic issues too.

Dexter Hoyos shows how the aristocratic Barcid family won dominance in the free republic of Carthage, and how they exploited family connections to lead Carthage to greatness at home and abroad.

For students of Hannibal, his dynasty and his legacy - this is the book to read.

NOTES TO THE TEXT

I THE HEIGHTS OF HEIRCTE AND ERYX

1 Hamilcar at Heircte (or ‘Hercte’): Pol. 1.56–7. Properly speaking it was the fort in the pass that had this name (Thiel (1954) 254 note 618) but the mountain’s ancient name is not known. Earlier Roman attack on fort ‘Hercte’, supposedly with 40,000 foot and 1,000 horse: Diod. 23.20 (in 252/251?). The First Punic War’s eighteenth year began in midsummer 247:Walbank, 1.119–20.

2 For the theory that the Romans originally meant to fight not Carthage but Syracuse see A. Heuss, Der erste punische Krieg und das Problem des römischen Imperialismus, 3rd edn (Darmstadt 1970); J. Molthagen, ‘Der Weg in den ersten punischen Krieg’, Chiron 5 (1975) 89–127; more fully Hoyos (1998) 47–99.

3 Naval losses from 255 to 249: Pol. 1.37.1–2, 39.6, 51.11–12, 54.8; Diod. 24.1.7–9; Thiel (1954) 236, 251, 279–89. Readable short accounts of the war are Caven (1980) 18–66; Scullard (1989a) 537–69; a full history in Lazenby (1996); while the naval side is thoroughly and interestingly studied by Thiel, 61–338. Census figures: Livy, Epit. 16 and 19 (292,200 and 241,700); Brunt (1971) chapter III.

4 Negotiations with Regulus: Lazenby (1996) 101–2; Hoyos (1998) 116–18.

5 Carthalo’s raid: Zon. 8.16 (Carthalo scared off by the praetor urbanus, who was based in the City; note too the new citizen-colonies of Alsium and Fregenae founded on the south Etruscan coast in 247). Economic strains: cf. Picard (1967) 57–9; Hoyos (1994) 265–6. Ptolemy declined to lend: Appian, Sic. 1.1–2. Fleet neglected after 249, and overloaded, undermanned and poorly trained in 241: Pol. 1.61.4–5; Zon. 8.17; Thiel (1954) 306–11; Lazenby (1996) 144–5, 150–5. Privateering Roman raids: Zon. 8.16; cf. Thiel, 299 note 768; Lazenby, 146–7.

6 Hecatompylus–Theveste–Tebessa: Pol. 1.73.1; Diod. 24.10.1–2, cf. 4.18.1; de Sanctis, 3.1.176 note 79. On motives for expansion in the 240s cf. Hoffmann (1962) 14–15. On the fertile Tebessa uplands see Fentress (1979) 32–3, unnecessarily doubting that Hecatompylus was Theveste. ‘Thinking that they had rational grounds’, Pol. 1.72.1; Hanno involved, ibid. 3.

7 Zon. 8.16 (mutiny repressed, episode at Drepana); Pol. 1.56.2–3 (raid and move to heights). Frontinus’ tale of a supposed ruse by ‘Barca’ to enter Lilybaeum despite Roman warships (Strat. 3.10.9) is not about him at all (despite de Sanctis, 3.1.238; L. Pareti, Storia di Roma 2 (Turin 1952) 166–7) but was performed by another general, Hannibal son of Hamilcar, in 250 (Pol. 1.44; Thiel (1954) 266–9) and Frontinus or his source got confused.

8 See Hoyos (2001c).

9 Kromayer estimated Hamilcar’s army at 15,000–20,000 (in Kromayer and Veith, AS 3.1.10), as do Walbank (1.121) and Scullard ((1989a) 564), but Thiel (1954) 299 note 766 rightly disbelieves this. Perhaps 30,000 at battle of Panormus in 250: Lazenby (1996) 121. Twenty thousand mercenaries from Sicily in 241: Pol. 1.67.13. Lilybaeum was garrisoned by 7,700 in 250, soon reinforced to over 20,000 (Diod. 24.1.1–2; Pol. 1.44.2, 45.8; Thiel, 263–4). Hamilcar’s cavalry: 200 are mentioned at Eryx in 243 (below) but the Heircte heights had much more room and resources. Roman force was ‘evenly matched’ with his: Pol. 1.57.6; de Sanctis improbably supposes an entire consular army (3.1.179), meaning some 20,000 men. Kromayer, 23, places the Roman camp south of M. Castellaccio on Cuzzo Gibelliforni, as good a guess as any (Hoyos (2001c) 494).

10 Operations from the Heircte heights: Pol. 1.56.9–57.8, cf. 1.74.9. Lancel (1992) 388 thinks raids on Italy continued from 247 through to 241. Italium: Diod. 24.6. Like de Sanctis (3.1.178 note 83), Manni takes Longon to be an unknown river near Catana ((1981) 114, 193). Lazenby (1996) 148 sees it as a raid into Catana’s territory perhaps to put pressure on Hiero of Syracuse nearby. But Longane near Mylae, attested on coins and an inscription (Manni, 197), is called ‘Longone’ by Stephanus of Byzantium (s.v., citing the fourth-century Syracusan historian Philistus), so ‘Longon’ is not an impossible variant; Κατάνης φρούριον could be a copyist’s error for Μεσήνης φ. (compare the probable error of Αίýεστα replacing Ẻχέτλαν at Diod. 23.3, and the definite one Λίýάτινος, meaning Λυτάτιος, at 24.11.1). Panormus–Agrigentum road: attested by a milestone probably of 252 or 248 set up by the consul C. Aurelius Cotta (ILLRP 1,227; Verbrugghe (1976) 19–22).

11 Hamilcar’s family: chapter II. Seibert supposes winter visits to Carthage (Hann. 9 note 14) but winter sailing was very dangerous. On brq/baraq see Gsell, HAAN 2.252 note 7 (noting that it might instead mean ‘[Ba’al] has blessed’, from the verb brk—though he might have added that this seems less suitable for the military Hamilcar); Picard (1967) 19; Sznycer (1978) 552–3. The claim that Hamilcar’s family had come from Barce, a Greek city near Cyrene (R. G. Austin, P. Vergili Maronis Aeneidos Liber IV (Oxford 1955) 43), is an unfounded guess. Numidian prince’s admiration: Pol. 1.78.1–8 (Naravas).

12 Move to Eryx: Pol. 1.58.2; Diod. 24.8. Kromayer, in Kromayer and Veith, AS 3.1.32–5, with his Map 2; Thiel (1954) 301. Temple of Venus Erycina: de Sanctis, 3.1.173 note 73; Walbank, 1.118–19. Eryx townsfolk transferred to Drepana in 259: Diod. 23.9.4; Zon. 8.11. A surviving line from Naevius’ late third-century epic poem on the war, ‘superbiter contemtim conterit legiones’ (‘haughtily, scornfully he wears down the legions’) may refer to Hamilcar, on Eryx or earlier at Heircte: cf. Warmington (1936) 64, frg. 38. Hamilcar, ‘Vodostor’ and Fundanius: Diod. 24.9. Circa 1 May for consuls entering office: Morgan (1977) 90–1. The Gallic deserters: Pol. 1.77.4, 2.7.7–10.

13 New Roman fleet and battle of the Aegates islands: Pol. 1.59–61; Diod. 24.11; Zon. 8.17 (with Hanno’s fate); Florus 1.18 [2.2] 33–6; Eutrop. 2.27.3, with the date convincingly defended by Morgan (1977) 109–12; other sources at Broughton, MRR 1.218; Thiel (1954) 302–16; Walbank, 1.124–6; Lazenby (1996) 150–7. Attack on Eryx, 2,000 Punic troops slain: Oros. 4.10.8. Peace-talks and terms: Pol. 1.62.1–63.3; 3.27.1–6; Diod. 24.13 (mentions Gisco); Nepos, Hamil. 1.5; Appian, Sic. 2.1–4 (a confused blend of first and final drafts); Zon. 8.17; de Sanctis, 3.1.184–9; Walbank, 1.126–7, 355; Schmitt, SVA 3.173–81; Huss (1985) 249–51; Scardigli (1991) 205–43; Hoyos (1998) 118–23, 130–1. The 1,000 talent down-payment possibly represented about one year’s Punic state revenues: chapter II §III. Hamilcar’s promises to the troops: Pol. 1.67.12; Appian, Iber. 4.15.

14 Hamilcar’s final actions in Sicily: Pol. 1.66.1, 68.12; Zon. 8.17. Punic generalship indefinite in duration: Gsell, HAAN 2.420–1; Huss (1985) 478. Official scrutiny: Gsell, 2.188, 205–7; Picard and Picard, LDC 128, 142–6; Huss, 464, 478.

15 Politics at Carthage in mid-century: chapter II. Hanno undermined war-effort in Sicily: Thiel (1954) 294–7, 306; Picard (1967) 60–1; Picard and Picard, LDC 198; Huss (1985) 246 note 232; Scullard (1989a) 563. Seibert severely criticizes Hamilcar’s leadership at both Heircte and Eryx for stubbornness and failure to exploit advantages like Punic naval superiority before 242 (FzH 89–94; Hann. 8–11).

II CARTHAGE

1 Descent from Belus and Barca, Silius 1.71–6, 15.745–8. Ba’lu king of Tyre in early seventh century: Nina Jidejian, Tyre through the Ages (Beirut (1969)) 46–9, 246; W. Röllig, Kl P 4.1028 s.v. ‘Tyros’. Tyre did have other kings with similar names, for instance Ithobaal in the first half of the ninth century (Jidejian, 39–41, 246), Baal in the sixth (ibid. 56, 246–7). Punic names: Sznycer (1978) 550–1—over 500 known from inscriptions. The two Hamilcars: see next note.

2 Hamilcar ‘admodum adulescentulus’, Nepos, Hamil. 1.1. Adulescentulus and adulescens can be very elastic—for instance Cicero retrospectively terms himself ‘adulescens’ as consul aged 43 (Philippics 2.46.118) and to Sallust a 37-year-old Caesar is ‘adulescentulus’ (Catilina 49.2; cf. Lewis and Short’s Latin Dictionary, s.v. ‘adulescens’). Hamilcar about 30 in 247: similarly Picard (1967) 64, puts his birth around 280–75. T. Lenschau, RE 7.2302–3, wants him born by 285 so as to identify him as the Hamilcar prominent in the war from 260, but Nepos is emphatic: Barca’s first command was in the ‘temporibus extremis’ of the war. See also Walbank, 1.80; Huss (1985) 228 note 74. Hanno son of Bomilcar, Pol. 3.42.6; Bomilcar called ‘the king’ (i.e. sufete?), Appian, Hann. 20.90; Huss (1983) 25–32, (1991) 118–23.

Hannibal’s birth-year: in early 237 he was nine (Pol. 2.1.6 and 3.11.5; Livy 21.1.4), at the end of 202 ‘more than 45’ (Pol. 15.19.3; cf. Livy 30.37.9); see Lenschau, RE 7.2323 s.v. ‘Hamilkar (7)’; Seibert, Hann. 7 note 2, 9 note 12. Mago in 218, Pol. 3.71.8 (‘young’), etc.; born in 242, surmises Picard (1967) 65. On Hamilcar’s daughters and other family questions, see Appendix §1.

3 Byzacium estates: Livy 33.48.1; the inference of wealth is Picard’s (1967) 20–1. Birth and wealth required: Aristotle, Pol. 2.11.8–9, 1,273a, ‘they believe that magistrates should be chosen on the basis not only of birth but also of wealth; for it is impossible for a poor man to govern well and to have the time’. Bribery, 2.11.10–12; still prevalent and public in later times, Pol. 6.56.1–4. Ameling (1993) 171–5 seeks to temper these verdicts.

4 Hanno’s sobriquet: Appian, Iber. 4.16, Lib. 34.145, 49.213; Zon. 8.22; Huss (1979) 230 note 40, and (1985) 464, sees it as rendering Punic rb (rab), ‘great one’ or ‘chief ’, and meaning not age or eminence but the head of the state finances (cf. chapter XV §III). But that this office could be held by Hanno for decades during the Barcid supremacy—and that only he, and a couple of other Hannos in other eras, were remembered for it by having it as their sobriquet—is not convincing. His alleged enmity towards Hamilcar during the 240s: cf. chapter I with note 15. Not hereditary (contra for instance Gsell, HAAN 2.253; Hoyos (1994) 270 tentatively)— Livy limits it to Hamilcar and his sons (21.3.2, 10.11 ‘paternas inimicitias’, 23.13.6 ‘simultas cum familia Barcina’) and Silius, writing about Hanno’s ‘odiis gentilibus’ towards Hamilcar’s son (Pun. 2.277), may have no more than that in mind; in any case this is a poet who affirms that Regulus had been crucified in public (2.343–4). Loreto similarly sees the decisive break between Hanno and Hamilcar coming as late as 237 ((1995) 205, 207–8, cf. 138, 161).

5 The ports, especially the circular one, have been extensively studied as part of the ‘Save Carthage’ project: see for instance Picard (1983) 34–7; Huss (1985) 47–8; L. E. Stager and H. Hurst in Ennabli (1992) 75–8 and 79–94; Lancel (1992) 192–211 = English tr. 172–92). See Appendix §2.

6 On Carthaginian history and culture see, e.g., Lancel (1992); Huss (1985); Picard (1968); Picard and Picard (1983); Warmington (1964). On the archaeological remains, Ennabli (1992); Niemeyer et al. (1996). Timaeus on the foundation-date: FrGH 566 F60. Extent of city: Strabo 17.3.15, C833; Appian, Lib. 95.448–96.455, 117.555, 128.610–13; Gsell, HAAN 2, chapter I; Tlatli (1978) chapters III–IV; Huss (1985) chapter IV; Scullard (1989a) 499–503; Lancel (1992) chapter V. The Numidians: Gsell, 2.99–100, 306–8. On the Carthaginian empire, Whittaker (1978). The Pyrgi tablets: e.g. J. Ferron, in Aufstieg und Niedergang der Römischen Welt, 1.1, ed. H. Temporini (Berlin and New York 1972) 189–216; Tusa (1974) 88–9; Lancel (1992) 101–2. Treaties with Rome: Pol. 3.22–4; cf. Walbank, 1.339–49; Scardigli (1991) 47–127; Cornell (1996) 210–14, 388.

7 King Hamilcar’s mother: Herodotus 7.165. Hamilcar Barca and Naravas: Pol. 1.78. Later granddaughter’s royal marriages, and Sophoniba’s: chapter XIII note 2. Background of Punic agents Hippocrates and Epicydes: Livy 24.6.2. On intermarriage cf. Picard (1961) 82–3.

8 Carthaginians jealously guarding their western trade monopoly: Strabo 3.5.11, 175C, 17.1.19, 802C; but see Whittaker (1978) 61, 80–1. On Carthaginian Sicily see especially Hans (1983). For the one, dubious clash between Carthaginians and Massiliots, a supposed ‘battle of Artemisium’, see Sosylus, FrGH 176, F1, with Jacoby’s commentary (Kommentar vol. BD, 605); Huss (1985) 67. Punic adoption of Greek usages: e.g. Picard (1964) 96–118, 194–5; Picard and Picard (1983) 55–9; Hahn (1974); Lancel (1992) 360–7. Coinage: Jenkins and Lewis (1963); Huss (1983) 489–93.

9 Punic religion is well discussed by Huss (1985) chapter XXXVI; Lancel (1992) chapter VI. On child sacrifice: L. E. Stager in Pedley (1980) 1–11; Lancel, 268–76; Fantar (1995) 74–7 is sceptical. The molk of 310: Diod. 20.14.4–7 (emphasizing that it was exceptional). Silius Italicus has a story about Hannibal being ordered by the priests to hand over his son for sacrifice, and refusing (4.763–829), but this is obviously a fancy (though Seibert, Hann. 20 note 60, thinks there may be something to it and also (19–20) that a molk may have taken place during the African revolt of 241–237, despite the lack of evidence. Neither idea persuades, cf. Appendix §1).

10 ‘Lepcis’ on the ‘ora minoris Syrtis’: Livy 34.62.3 (Leptis in some MSS). The Emporia region stretched from the Lesser to the Greater Syrtes (gulf of Gabès to gulf of Sirte): Gsell, HAAN 2.127–8; Lancel (1992) 111, 278, 430; cf. Mattingly (1994) xiii, 1, 50–2, 218. The daily talent is disbelieved by Kahrstedt (1913) 134–5, and Walbank, 3.491; but Gsell, 2.319, and de Sanctis, 3.1.32 note 88, judge it as revenue from Lepcis plus its surroundings. See Appendix §3.

11 Roman republic’s estimated income from 200 to 157: T. Frank, An Economic History of Rome, vol. 1: The Republic (Baltimore 1933) 126–41; Nicolet (1978) 1.255–7. Rhodian customs-duties: Pol. 30.31.7–12;Walbank, 3.458–60. Rhodian customsduties before 167: Pol. 30.31.7–12; Walbank, 3.458–60. Punic war-indemnities in 241, 237 and 201: chapter I §V, chapter IV §I, chapter XV §I (that of 241 was perhaps suspended during the Mercenaries’ War, Hoyos (1998) 125). Revenues of Athens at the start of the Peloponnesian War, reportedly 1,000 talents: Xenophon, Anabasis 7.1.27, cf. Thucydides 1.99.3; R. Meiggs, The Athenian Empire (Oxford 1972, repr. 1987) 258–9. Syracusan indemnity: Pol. 1.16.9–10, 17.3; Diod. 23.4.1; Zon. 8.9.11 (Eutropius, 2.19.1, improba...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• I The Heights of Heircte and Eryx
• II Carthage
• III The Revolt of Africa
• IV Barca Supreme
• V Hamilcar in Spain
• VI Hasdrubal’s Consolidation
• VII Hannibal in Spain
• VIII The Invasion of Italy
• IX Three Great Victories
• X Hannibal’s Italian League
• XI Indecisive War
• XII The Defeat of Hasdrubal
• XIII Africa Invaded
• XIV Defeat
• XV Postwar Eclipse
• XVI Hannibal Sufete
• XVII The End of the Barcids
• XVIII Sources
• Appendix Special notes
• Time-Line
• Notes to the Text
• Bibliography