Deducing dishonest textuality: the fallacy of Hannibal

Introduction
Hannibal considered one of the greatest generals of ancient times, continues to captive, the
ever-growing research on the Carthaginian general is an indicator of the impact of his legacy
which even after hundreds of Years still captures the imagination of scientists and historians
alike. I will therefore be discussing the various insights which might be acquired from
reading Cornelius Nepos vita Hannibal.
Background
Hannibal (also known as Hannibal Barca, 247-183 BCE) was in the second Punic war
between Carthage and Rome (218-202 BCE) famed for his military skill and expertise in
warfare.
The Punic wars were fought between the two nations for power in the Mediterranean region,
the second war followed directly from the first. Hannibal assumed command of the army
following his father's (Hamilcar) death and led them victoriously and ruthlessly through
numerous encounters until he nearly took Rome; it was at this point which he was called back
to Carthage due to lack of resources and support from his fellow people.
After He defended Carthage from a Roman invasion, he was subsequently defeated at the
battle of Zuma by Scipio africanus (236-183 BCE). Thereafter he retired to Carthage as a
statesman, ultimately killed himself by ingesting poison in 183 BCB after voluntary exile
Hannibal is most famed for his military genius and attempting and almost succeeding in
defeating Rome.
A skewed perception?
Upon reading vita Hannibal, the phrase the winners write history comes to the fore of the
mind, although Nepos does an impressive job of being objective, most sources describe
Hannibal as being savage and cruel.
The Greek historian Polybius claims that Hannibal had a violent temper 1 and similarly
According to Livy, he possessed an inhuman cruelty, treachery worse than usual for a

1 Polybius, 3.15.9.

Carthaginian, disregard for truth and the sacred, a lack of fear towards the gods and respect
for oaths and any religion2.
To further this, most encounters with Hannibal were from hostile roman witnesses whose
accounts of him fared no better, thus such accounts should therefore be viewed with
scepticism This was motivated largely by a general hatred towards Hannibal as he is said to
be the greatest enemy Rome has ever faced, it is also, however, rather hypocritical taking into
account the following:
When Hannibal's successes had brought about the death of two Roman consuls, he searched
vainly for one on the shores of Lake Trasimene, and he sent Marcellus' ashes back to his
family in Rome compared to that When Nero had accomplished his march back and forth to
and from the Metaurus he flung the head of Hannibal's brother into Hannibal's camp. It would
not seem that Hannibal was no crueller than his adversaries, and yet the idea still persists.
Even Cicero, stated when talking about Rome and its two great enemies, of the "honourable"
Pyrrhus and the "cruel" Hannibal3.
Nevertheless, the reports of the violence that he committed while trying to conquer Rome and
their allies cannot be dismissed as the fiction of Roman bias. The phrase Hannibal is at the
gates (Hannibal ad portas) meaning a crisis was on its way was adopted to scare young
children into behaving, this indubitably had its roots in Hannibals vicious acts4.
Nepos himself, has apparently made several errors in his depiction of Hannibal opting for a
depiction emphasising his greatness and success in war, the most favourable portrait, by all
means, offered by any ancient author. To Nepos Hannibal was an exceedingly brave man.
Another aspect which follows directly from the first is the mystery problem, that is how are
our views shaped by the historical accounts we come in contact with and can they really be

2 Livy, 30.37.
3 National Great Blacks In Wax Museum. 2016. National Great Blacks In Wax
Museum. [ONLINE] Available
at: http://www.greatblacksinwax.org/Exhibits/Hannibal.htm. [Accessed 15 May
2016].
4 Mulligan, B., 2015. Cornelius Nepos, Life of Hannibal: Latin text, notes, maps,
illustrations and vocabulary (Vol. 1). Open Book Publishers.

trusted. The victors in history more often than not write the history from their own biased
perceptions and to accommodate their own time frame.
Learning about Hannibal from an entirely roman perceptive, as this is the only accounts we
have of him, therefore gives us a skewed and unsympathetic view.
Nevertheless, Nepos offers the best representation of Hannibal as His biographies display a
methodical interest in how certain events can make or break a state. Nepos emphasizes the
importance of obedience to the state over personal ambition and how the decisions made by
those in charge can either contribute to peace or bring about war as in the case with
Hannibal5.
It was customary for historians of the time period to write biographies focused on providing a
moral education for their readers. thus biographies for the readers provided a standard to
which they could co-ordinate their lives in attempt to achieve greatness or virtue.
Hannibal's chief virtue, according to Nepos, was his military brilliance (prudentia), he
illustrates this skilfully by maintaining a line between history and biography consequently we
read about his shrewd ploy to conceal his wealth from greedy Cretans and how he sent forth
tactical oxen to escape a pursuing arm, they had burning bundles of sticks attached between
their horns.
Furthermore, it had been custom for historians of antiquity to write their biographies keeping
in mind their intended readers, roman historians would therefore write for the roman public
often filling in the missing gaps or changing the names of gods fit into the roman culture so
that the public who read the works might understand them better.
Nepos, however, states in the Prologue to his biographies of foreign commanders, customs
will doubtlessly differ between nations, since they come about from different "national
traditions" (maiorum instituta). Thus, Nepos warns his readers that they should not be
appalled to see illustrations of foreigners engaging in behaviour different to their own which
they might find shocking6.
5Mulligan, Cornelius Nepos, Life of Hannibal: Latin text, notes, maps, illustrations and
vocabulary.

6 Mulligan, Cornelius Nepos, Life of Hannibal: Latin text, notes, maps, illustrations and
vocabulary.

For his time Nepos is remarkably unbiased in his approach to the biography of the warlord,
allowing the reader greater understanding of Hannibal, albeit not completely factual and
somewhat idealised the insights gained from Nepos Vita Hannibal cant be understated
especially when compared to his counterparts such as Livy who shows some bias in that he
writes a lot that is 'pro-Scipio' or rather Pro-Roman.
A false image of Hannibal still prevails largely through known literature however, Nepos
offers a representation of Hannibal in which the reader glimpses a new perspective on the
African general and the roman people.
For one, Hannibal may not have been as cruel and ruthless as so often depicted, and even
then his cruelty was only for the roman people. Rome itself, was not the all-powerful empire
which was so often depicted, we know historical texts were largely written by romans and
those royal to Rome but it seems more then plausible after reading vita Hannibal that we have
a wrapped and rather one-sided perception of the roman empire.
The life of Hannibal has suffered a history of distortion, little is known about his life besides
his war campaigns and his character has been biased to such a level over the centuries that its
unclear if we know anything about his true character at all.
however one fact remains, Hannibal is considered one of the greatest military tacticians of
antiquity as no one has since been able to do what he had done. He had crossed the alps with
100 00 men and nearly 40 war elephants, modern scientists are still baffled at the
accomplishment.
It was only after Hannibals defeat that Rome went on to conquer the Mediterranean, the war
with Hannibal doubtlessly helped and fortified the roman army, it is clear that without the
African general, Romes stature would not have been so great, it is only because of its victory
over Hannibal that it could go on to eventually conquer the known world.
All this considered, the insights which may be drawn from Nepos Vita Hannibal far weigh the
undeniable shortcomings presented by the distortion of Hannibals life over the years by
Roman and Greek historians alike. Reading Nepos grants the reader the best representation of
Hannibal and the Roman state, significantly this impacts how we view the Hannibal and the
history behind him. The present world order is by and large influenced by the roman empire,
therefore the views and historical accounts approved are largely biased and do not allow for
overall image which make historians like Nepos invaluable.

Reference list
Books
Mulligan, B., 2015. Cornelius Nepos, Life of Hannibal: Latin text, notes, maps, illustrations
and vocabulary (Vol. 1). Open Book Publishers.
Website
hannibal.

2016. Hannibal

Ancient

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Encyclopedia.

[ONLINE]

Available

at:http://www.ancient.eu/hannibal/. [Accessed 11 May 2016].

Rev. John Selby Watson, MA. 1886. Cornelius Nepos: Lives of Eminent Commanders (1886)
pp. 305-450.. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/nepos.htm#preface.
[Accessed 12 May 2016].
The

Biography.com

website.

2016. Hannibal

Biography.

[ONLINE]

Available

at:http://www.biography.com/people/hannibal-9327767. [Accessed 14 May 2016].

National Great Blacks In Wax Museum. 2016. National Great Blacks In Wax Museum.
[ONLINE] Available at: http://www.greatblacksinwax.org/Exhibits/Hannibal.htm. [Accessed
15 May 2016].