The Punic Wars: Rome, Carthage, and the Struggle For the Mediterranean - Hardcover

Bagnall, Nigel

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0312342144 ISBN 13: 9780312342142

Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books, 2005

Synopsis

The Punic Wars triggered an era of astonishing human misfortune. Resulting from a mighty power struggle between the military confederation of Rome and the trading empire of Carthage between 264--241 B.C., 218--201 B.C., and 149--146 b.c., the wars were fought over a period of 118 years. Massive man-made devastation on both sides left RB.C.ome’s population radically depleted and Carthage razed and erased from the map.           
Sir Nigel Bagnall brings his military experience and a modern professional eye to bear in analyzing the Punic Wars here. He marshals classic military strategists such as Livy, Polybius, and Diodorus to plot the wars’ campaigns in Spain, Africa, Sicily, and the Peloponnese, and follows Hannibal’s daring but unsuccessful strike into the heart of Italy.
           
But Bagnall goes beyond military strategy to discuss the force, structures, and politics of Rome and Carthage at their heights. And he contrasts their conduct of battle at strategic, operational, and tactical levels to show how they were governed by the same military principles used by nations today. His thought-provoking final chapter relates these wars’ lessons to modern times in an impressive argument for adapting the experience of the past to the needs of the future. While the history of the Punic Wars dates back over 2000 years, Bagnall’s comprehensive account demonstrates that this ancient conflict is remarkable both for its scope and its contemporary relevance.

About this title

Review:

A serious and well-informed book on the wars between Rome and Carthage...it is, however, not simply a piece of disinterested research but a tale with a moral for current politics...On the interplay of strategic and operational decisions, on the risks of politics in time of war, on the importance of morale: this book gives much food for reflection Spectator His book is to be commended...It is a fine piece of military and political history...a clear and convincing account of what happened, devoid of any high-flown romanticism...He constructs his analysis in such a way as to demonstrate that what happened...might just happen again Economist A modern Field-Marshal applies his strategic expertise to the greatest confrontation of classical times... Bagnall's analysis is leavened with character sketches and dry humour Independent

About the Author:

Sir Nigel Bagnall was born in India in 1927. He joined the British Army in 1945 and served in Palestine, Malaya, Borneo, the Canal Zone, Cyprus, Singapore, and Germany. He ended his distinguished military career as Chief of the General Staff in London and went on to become an Honorary Fellow of Balliol College, Oxford. He died in 2000.

About this edition

• Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 0312342144
• ISBN 13: 9780312342142
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 347