Scipio Africanus: The Roman Miltary Genius (Unabridged‪)‬

Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, the Elder, was a man who made a difference in his own time. Indeed, he could have been said to be a legend. In all fairness, since he was a skilled orator, he had a hand in creating that legend, building himself up larger than life to inspire the men he lead into battle and to place fear in the hearts of his enemies.

Not as much is known about his personal life. He seems to have been a very private man, and many of the documents, such as his personal journal, have been lost to the ravages of time. Still, we have accounts by Polybius and Livy, as well as endless commentary down through the ages about his battles, his strategies, and the way he changed the Romans approach to military encounters. He learned from Hannibal, who came from a tribe of traders who were more concerned with results than ethics, that a win by trickery is still a win; and honor on the field of battle can simply make a commander and his men very dead.

This book looks through the works we have, it speculates about what his personal life might have been like, and it asks questions while making correlations. Welcome to ancient Rome - may you enjoy your tour of it.