Appian, War against Hannibal

Appian of Alexandria (c.95-c.165): one of the most underestimated of all Greek historians, author of a Roman History in twenty-four books.

His account of the War against Hannibal is fortunately preserved but contains little information that cannot be found in other sources (Polybius of Megalopolis and Livy). However, it is certainly an accessible text.

The translation was made by Horace White; notes by Jona Lendering.

There are two systems to divide the Hannibalic War: in sixty-one sections or nine chapters. On these webpages, the text is divided into sections; the following table shows the division into chapters.

1	§1: Introduction §2: Hamilcar Barca §3: Hannibal provokes war against Rome §4: Hannibal crosses the Alps
2	§5: Battle of Ticinus §6: Preparations for battle §7: Battle of Trebia §8: New Roman commanders §9: Hannibal in Etruria §10: Battle of Lake Trasimene §11: Destruction of the army of Centenius
3	§12: The policy of Fabius Cunctator §13: Fabius rescues Minucius §14: Hannibal trapped §15: Hannibal deceives the Romans §16: Carthage refuses to reinforce Hannibal §17: New Roman commanders §18: Disagreement among the two Roman commanders
4	§19: Roman preparations for battle §20: Hannibal's preparations for battle §21: Beginning of the battle of Cannae §22: The battle of Cannae §23: The Romans surrounded by the Carthaginians §24: Destruction of the Roman army §25: Roman losses §26: Aftermath
5	§27: Consternation in Rome §28: The Senate refuses to ransom the prisoners §29: Fall of Petilia §30: The Celtiberian cavalry §31: Arpi recovered
6	§32: The fall of Tarentum §33: Siege of the citadel of Tarentum §34: Capture of Thurii §35: Capture of Metapontum and Heraclea §36: The Romans lay siege to Capua §37: Claudius Asellus §38: Hannibal marches on Rome §39: Consternation in Rome §40: Flaccus follows Hannibal
7	§41: Hannibal attacks the camp of Fulvius §42: Hannibal's troops are driven out §43: Capua surrenders §44: Tisia captured and lost by the Romans §45: Dasius and Blatius §46: Dasius and Blatius §47: Dasius and Blatius
8	§48: Death of Fulvius §49: The Romans take Tarentum §50: Death of Marcellus §51: Hannibal foiled at Salapia §52: Battle of the Metaurus §53: Appian's comments §54: Hannibal in Bruttium
9	§55: Scipio sails to Sicily §56: The image of Cybele §57: Hannibal's troubles in Bruttium §58: Hannibal recalled §59: Hannibal tries to take his Italian soldiers to Carthage §60: Hannibal embarks for Africa §61: Punishment of the Bruttians