Scipio Africanus [Paperback]

Alexander Acimovic (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 30, 2007

Scipio Africanus was one of the greatest generals and statesmen of the Ancient World. When he was 18, he saved his father’s life in battle during the Second Punic War and later survived the horrific Roman defeat at Cannae.

At the age of 26, he was named Commander-in-Chief of the Roman army in Spain and in 4 years, by daringly storming the city of Cartagena and crushing two Carthaginian armies in battle, conquered almost the entire peninsula for Rome.

After returning to Rome, he leveraged popular support to gain command of an army to invade Carthage. Lacking logistical and material support, he welded, trained and armed a battle-hardened army. Landing in Africa, he delivered a stunning defeat to the Carthaginians with a surprise attack by night and fire. After the famed Hannibal Barca returned to defend his homeland, Scipio and his army utterly defeated the Punic general at the Battle of Zama.

This book, based on exhaustive research of both ancient and modern sources, describes Scipio’s life and career in detail, analyzes his military and political strategies and decisions, and illustrates the timelessness of his leadership skills and far-seeing diplomacy.

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse, Inc. (March 30, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595435459
• ISBN-13: 978-0595435456
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,205,982 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars from The Bryn Mawr Classical Review, March 19, 2009

By 

Joe - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scipio Africanus (Paperback)

This quote from The Bryn Mawr Classical Review says it all:

"Unfortunately, in the end, A.'s biography cannot be recommended either for the general reader or for the student of ancient history. On the one hand, the general reader will not find enough (accurate) background information in order to understand Scipio's place in this crucial era of the res publica.

On the other hand, the student of ancient history will sorely miss the absence of any extended and thoughtful treatment of the difficult source material. Furthermore, the bibliography is far too incomplete,6 and minor errors abound, both typographical7 and factual8.

Although a modern treatment of Scipio, perhaps the most important general in Roman history, is badly needed, the replacement for Scullard's biography remains to be written."

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Scipio Africanius - A work in Progress, March 6, 2009

By 

Francis R. Grotowski (New South Wales, Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Scipio Africanus (Paperback)

I am still reading this book. Nevertheless, I can recommend it whole heartedly. It is scholarly yet easy to read. It brings to life Scipio, a character I always found fascinating, but about which I could find little - until now! To sum up - erudite and a good read.

P.S. Being able to read the first page on Amazon persuaded me to purchase this book and the rest of it has lived up to that page.Scipio Africanus