Customer Reviews

Cannae: Hannibal's Greatest Victory (Phoenix Press)

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Cannae by Adrian Goldsworthy proves to be an excellent book on the one of the greatest tactical victories achieved in military history and one of the greatest defeats ever inflicted on a Roman army of any age. The book proves to be well written, well researched and well presented. The author covers the Second Punic War up to Cannae very well and his narrative proves to be easy to read and understand.

When the author get to the campaign and battle of Cannae, the reader will be led step by step on how the campaign unfolded and once battle was given, how it came to be. All of it proves to be well concieved and thought out. The author appears to blamed the defeat much on lack of Roman experiences and training as well as Hannibal's tactical expertise. He was able to my satisfaction, pin point the exact location of the battle and determined that Roman's acceptance of the battle wasn't neither foolish or doomed. Romans had a chance to win, this was no foregone conclusion.

Best thing about the book is the ease of reading, many clear and colorful maps that make the battle easy to understand and the author's clear understanding of the events, forces and people involved that make it easy for him to convey the necessary information to his readers. Author also point out the influence this battle had since it was fought and how many generals since Cannae, tried to emulate Hannibal's success on their own level. (Although the author didn't point this out, I thought Battle of Cowpen fought during the American Revolution is a perfect example of Cannae done to perfection.)

This book appears to be a new edition of the earlier book by the same title. I haven't read the earlier book but after reading couple of Amazon reviews on it, I believed that one of the major changes the author made in this edition was that he totally abandoned SLA Marshall's approach on unit participation theory - theory as written in one review, have been discredited by most modern historians of all ranks. No where in this book is this theory been referred or even mentioned.

Adrian Goldsworthy is one of the premier authorities on the Roman military history at this persent time and this book would be a value addition to anyone whose interest lies in that direction.

This is the battle. The big one. Rome versus Hannibal. Outnumbered and outmatched he still manages to not only win but inflict a crippling defeat, obliterating the Roman army. And with this book you can find out why. Well researched and well presented, this book will show you as clearly as possible how it happened. The book is filled with useful diagrams and maps to help show the position of the forces at every stage in the battle. This isn't a campaign book where most of the text is occupied with the events leading up to the battle, most of the lead up is rushed through pretty quick to get to the fighting.

Cannae: Hannibal's Greatest Victory (Phoenix Press) isn't a full-blown history of Cannae and the Second Punic War. Rather, it is history done in a coffee-table book style. The book has dozens of pictures and great maps of the battlefield. The text is a bit dry, but very detailed. I wouldn't recommend this for newcomers to Roman history - Goldsworthy doesn't provide enough historical context for his readers (I might suggest Robert O'Connell's The Ghosts of Cannae: Hannibal and the Darkest Hour of the Roman Republic for a more general history). Rather, this book is really for readers who want to get into the details of the battle and some nice photos to help bring the history alive.

As a fan of Goldsworthy, I couldn't wait until this title came out and he did no disappoint. Considered by many the greatest battle of all time, Hannibal's strategy used here has tried to be copied by such great as Napoleon, Robert E. Lee, and even General Schwarzkopf in desert storm. The are maps of the battle from scene to scene, along with getting the feeling you are watching the battle unfold. If you have studied this battle much, then this book is a must for all student from beginners to advanced

I liked the detail and the maps. Very good detailed analysis and description. Quick read. The format of the book seemed designed for textbook use. Got a better feel for the battle and inconsistencies among historical commentators.

I've read another book by Goldsworthy (Roman Warfare) which I enjoyed. His writing style is clear and concise - you get a lot of information on each page. The best historians are those who can cause the reader to get a sense that they are actually on the battlefield, or observing from a nearby hilltop. Goldsworthy does just that. Insightful writing and just the right amount of maps and illustrations keep you in the battle. Most of this book concentrates on the actual fighting, which is nice. Reading any book about this battle can be frustrating due to the lack of accurate information, but at least all of the possibilities are addressed in this book. Actually, it's frustrating on the one hand, but not knowing the details for certain adds a bit of mystery to what must have been an epic massacre.

Having read a few different books about Cannae from various authors, I can say that I would reccommend this one over the others, especially if you have time for only one book about the battle.