COULD HANNIBAL HAVE TAKEN ROME?
Autumn 216 BCE, Hannibal was the master of Italy. He had defeated consular armies in 218, 217 and 216, most recently destroying 80,000 men at Cannae. Elsewhere, Rome was being defeated too. The city stood at Hannibal’s mercy and yet he did not place it under siege, and he never would. Nor would Hannibal come as close to taking Rome’s empire again. Yet he would stay in Italy until forced to return to
