Hannibal: Rome's Greatest Enemy
Product ID: 505484555
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Telling the story of a man who stood against the overwhelming power of the mighty Roman empire, Hannibal is the biography of a man who, against all odds, dared to change the course of history. Over two thousand years ago one of the greatest military leaders in history almost destroyed Rome. Hannibal, a daring African general from the city of Carthage, led an army of warriors and battle elephants over the snowy Alps to invade the very heart of Rome's growing empire. But what kind of person would dare to face the most relentless imperial power of the ancient world? How could Hannibal, consistently outnumbered and always deep in enemy territory, win battle after battle until he held the very fate of Rome within his grasp? Hannibal appeals to many as the ultimate underdog—a Carthaginian David against the Goliath of Rome—but it wasn't just his genius on the battlefield that set him apart. As a boy and then a man, his self-discipline and determination were legendary. As a military leader, like Alexander the Great before him and Julius Caesar after, he understood the hearts of men and had an uncanny ability to read the unseen weaknesses of his enemy. As a commander in war, Hannibal has few equals in history and has long been held as a model of strategic and tactical genius. But Hannibal was much more than just a great general. He was a practiced statesman, a skilled diplomat, and a man deeply devoted to his family and country. Roman historians—on whom we rely for almost all our information on Hannibal—portray him as a cruel barbarian, but how does the story change if we look at Hannibal from the Carthaginian point of view? Can we search beneath the accounts of Roman writers who were eager to portray Hannibal as a monster and find a more human figure? Can we use the life of Hannibal to look at the Romans themselves in an unfamiliar way— not as the noble and benign defenders of civilization but as ruthless conquerors motivated by greed and conquest? Review: A must read. - This is a great, riveting read, especially if you're jam is the history of the Roman Empire. Review: An Incredible Biography of Rome's Most Infamous Villain - The author's retelling of Cannae's impact on the Battle of Zama was both emotional and fascinating. I thoroughly enjoyed this historical biography.
| Best Sellers Rank | #52,554 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #7 in North Africa History #27 in Ancient Roman History (Books) #30 in Historical African Biographies (Books) |
| Customer Reviews | 4.6 out of 5 stars 226 Reviews |
J**Y
A must read.
This is a great, riveting read, especially if you're jam is the history of the Roman Empire.
A**W
An Incredible Biography of Rome's Most Infamous Villain
The author's retelling of Cannae's impact on the Battle of Zama was both emotional and fascinating. I thoroughly enjoyed this historical biography.
M**R
Enjoyable Read
I read a poem recently about Hannibal and I had to admit while I recognized the name I didn’t know anything about him (musta slept through that Western Civ class). So I found this biography and downloaded it to my kindle. Very glad I did. It was a concise and easy to read history of one of the greatest military minds ever. Hannibal went up against the big bad Romans and while he didn’t defeat them, he did way more damage than anyone would till Rome was teetering and the Huns invaded (or was it the Goths? Another Western Civ class I skipped).
B**E
Hits the sweet spot!
This book hits that sweet spot of being both informative and entertaining. Books about classical history can tend to be overly academic and confusing if you're like me and didn’t write a doctoral thesis on the subject (looking at you, Mary Beard). Sit back, relax and learn about Hannibal whooping some Roman a** (Well, for the most part)!
E**K
Great book, well written, hard to put down.
Wow. This book is well written. Hard to put down. It’s unbelievable to think what the world would have been if Hannibal defeated Rome. The world is seldom kind to great men. -Philip freeman
J**N
Excellent Account on Rome's Greatest Foe
Philip Freeman gives an excellent account into one of the most fascinating people in history. I didnt know much about Hannibal as we didnt learn about him growing up, but man was he a pain in the a** for the Romans!! Can't recommend enough if you're a fan of Roman history and that time period. Also, enjoyed the section on what would have happened if Hannibal had succeeded in capturing Rome. Really puts into perspective the impact of the Roman Empire. Definitely check out his other works on Julius Caeser and Alexander if you enjoyed this one.
G**K
An Entertaining and Informative Account
Hannibal is one of the most interesting historical figures. He’s the man who almost stopped Rome from becoming the empire that is the foundation of Western Civilization. Freeman’s account is quite entertaining, following Hannibal from a child to his death. But mostly he looks at Hannibal’s military genius and walks the reader through the many famous battles. As he does this, he also teaches a lot about Rome and why it was different and ultimately why it defeated Hannibal and conquered their empire. The part that I enjoyed the most was Freeman’s discussion of why Hannibal did not assault the city of Rome itself. It is a question many scholars have tackled. Freeman’s explanation is simple and probably accurate. Hannibal thought he had won. He thought that Rome would come to terms with him after their devastating defeats. He didn’t need to plunder their city and risk a long siege. But Rome was unlike the other powers of its day. It didn’t surrender—ever. It just raised a new army and continued the war.
H**O
Excellent!
This author does a great job of creating non-fiction that reads like a fictional narrative.
A**H
Worst in terms of clarity and also lacks critical information
I would say , this was the worst book in terms of how , Hannibal's set piece battles had been portrayed. It delivers abysmally in regards to clarity of battles described and therefore the true essence of Hannibal's tactical genius is lost amony the "slurry words".
A**L
Great read for getting in to history
I really like Philip Freeman’s biographies of great historical figures. They are written as very easy-to-follow stories and does not go too deep into historical contexts, which in other books can be quite tedious if you’re not a die hard history buff. While I personally liked his book on Alexander the Great a bit more, I recommend this book for anyone interested in getting in to history and wanting to have a good overview of this legendary military tacticians and strategist.
M**W
Good book
Very interesting. Easy to follow.
G**E
Kind of Boring
I find the very generic. Somewhat disappointed.
M**S
Well worth the time to read definitely recommend
Good introduction to this point in history enabling you to link it to other of freemans books definitely worth the read to gain a grasp of Hannibal his mind
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