Hannibal Barca, Perhaps the Greatest General of All Time
Kenneth R Thomas* and Andrew Thomas S
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this manuscript is to provide biographical data on Hannibal Barca (hereafter referred to as Hannibal) from the 3rd – 2nd century B.C., whowas one of the greatest generals of all time. The focus will be on his life, from his birth, until immediately after his incredible defeat of the Roman army in the Battle of Cannae; one of the most studied battles in ancient history.
To understand Hannibal’s military actions, the authors chose to compare Hannibal with another successful and famous military commander, Alexander the Great (hereafter referred to as Alexander); both of whom were studied and admired by Sigmond Freud. In addition, the present manuscript serves to complement a longer manuscript that was published in Psychoanalytic Review in 1995 by the senior author of the present manuscript about Alexander. That manuscript averaged about 45,000 reads on Research Gate [1].
In covering the Battle of Cannae, the authors focus on two aspects:
• How Hannibal changed the odds of the battle to his favor by strategically taking control of food resources, water supplies, and the theater of engagement – the geographical area where the battle was to take place.
• Some possible reasons why Hannibal did not conquer Rome after his victory at Cannae utilizing psychoanalytic terms about his character strengths and possible reasons why Hannibal decided not to conquer Rome when he had clearly earned the chance.
