The Father

By Chris Craig

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But, about the story:

In her conquest of the Italian Peninsula, Rome had become a monster. She needed fresh conquests regularly, if only to pay for the last one. Hungry for expansion, the Romans cast their eyes across the narrow strait separating Italy from the Carthaginian held territories on Sicily. On a pretext they sent their troops to invade and the First Punic War had begun. The Roman Legions carried all before them in the first years of the war. Carthage was driven back until it held but two besieged settlements on the west coast of the Island: Lilybaeum and Drepana.
In a desperate bid to save the war, Carthage raises an army of mercenaries and appoints her finest up and coming military leader to command them. Hamilcar Barca is recalled from Spain to take his army to Sicily and wage a guerrilla war against a Roman army that outnumbers his by three to one.
While fighting in Sicily, Hamilcar must also fight the dominant faction in Carthaginian politics: the merchants who persist in the belief that they can buy the Romans off.
Starved of resources, Hamilcar clings on in Sicily until the Romans construct a vast armada and defeat the Carthaginian navy in a climactic battle off the Aegates Islands of Sicily; the biggest naval battle in the history of the world, to date.
Cut off entirely, Hamilcar has no choice but to follow the instruction he is given by the Carthaginian Senate and negotiate the surrender of Sicily. The war is over, for the time being, but Hamilcar is soon recalled to fight again. His arch enemy in the Senate, Hanno the Fat, has managed to induce Hamilcar’s old mercenary troops to rebel by cheating them out of their promised pay. They rise up and lay siege to the Carthaginian City of Utica; they will take what is rightfully theirs if it is not given. Hamilcar is recalled and asked to crush his old comrades.
He agrees, provided he can then take the army he uses to Spain, so that he can set up a branch of the Carthaginian Empire free from the corrupting influence of the merchants on the Senate. Funded by Spanish silver, Hamilcar will build a power in Spain capable of facing Rome when she inevitably strikes again.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chris Craig
• Release date: Feb 14, 2012
• ISBN: 9781465811288

Chris Craig

Chris Craig: Born in Lithgow, New South Wales, Australia. I grew up in the mountains before moving to Lake Macquarie and attending the University of Newcastle, studying History and Economic History. I have enjoyed a varied career including labouring in the BHP steel works, working as a concrete contractor, a student politician, a newspaper columnist and as an Industrial Officer for the Australian Journalists Association (which became the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance while I worked for them). I cut my teeth reading C.S. Forester, Herman Wouk, Leon Uris and Georgette Heyer. Have you read them? You should, if you haven’t yet. They are the real deal. Well researched, well written. True to the story. If you enjoy them, you’ll enjoy my work. It’s worth a read.

Book preview

The Father

The House of Thunder Series: Book 1

An Historical Novel about the First Punic War

Chris Craig 2012

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1st Edition

Copyright Chris Craig 2012

ISBN 978-1-4658-1128-8

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Last of the Mycenaeans

Lithgow

Catterthun

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Book 2:The Son

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Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the following:

The late Professor Godfrey Tanner for his support and encouragement over the years, particularly for his gifted way of relating ancient issues and episodes to the modern world; the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Dr Bernie Curran for his assistance with translation into Latin (although any typo’s remain my fault).

Of course, my wife, Tracey and our own pride of three lions, John, David and James, for their patience and assistance over the years.

Cover Image

Carthaginian coin showing the image of Hamilcar Barca, father of Hannibal

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Table of Contents:

Title Page

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Author’s Note

THOT Companion

Chapter 1 Messana 264 BC

Chapter 2 Carthage

Chapter 3 Lilybaeum

Chapter 4 Mount Heirkte

Chapter 5 The Central Ranges

Chapter 6 Mount Eryx

Chapter 7 Ostia

Chapter 8 Aegates Islands

Chapter 9 Drepana

Chapter 10 Sicca

Chapter 11 The Saw

Chapter 12 Gades

Chapter 13 Andalusia

Chapter 14 Ilici

The End

Introduction

(return to ToC)

What is it that guides the fortunes of men? Is it the movements of stars, the planets and the moon; or is it, rather, the workings of the world? In 264BC the world was like a flashlight shone onto the side of a water tank. Only the illuminated patch could be seen, or then, was known by its inhabitants. The ancient Greeks called it the inhabited world; we refer to it in retrospect as the known world. To the Romans and Carthaginians, it was the world.

The world then stretched from Persia, the Himalayas and India in the east, to Spain and the infinite Atlantic to the west, from the scorched deserts and wild jungle beyond the towering Atlas Mountains of Africa in the south, to the frozen Alps, endless forests and wild tribes of the north.

During the history of the world, empires had ebbed and waned, risen spectacularly and slowly crumbled.

The Persian empire of the King of Kings, for example, had spanned all of the east and reached out to the gates of Greece. Alexander, in turn, had overthrown Xerxes and, in a few short years, ruled an area even greater than the Persians.

But Alexander’s passage was like a firework; brief, spectacular. The embers left glowing after his passing were the remnants of his empire ruled by his generals: Ptolemy’s Egypt, Seleucus in Syria – and the independent Greek cities spreading through the Mediterranean, including southern Italy and Sicily.

These kingdoms and cities, however, did not regard themselves as part of a monolithic Greek empire. They grew in the mould of Athens and Sparta; city states, connected by race and culture to other Greek cities, but fiercely independent and competitive. The city was the peak of their political structure. There was no overarching empirial control or co-ordination of the Greek city-states beyond the Leagues or local alliances.

Then came the rise of two rival powers in the world; firstly Carthage and then Rome.

Carthage was founded in 814BC by the Phoenician people. The Phoenicians originally inhabited the eastern shores of the Mediterranean. As a Semitic group, of the same genetic heritage as, using an example many are familiar with, Jesus, they were an innovative, clever and energetic people. They are credited with the invention of the world’s first alphabet. The city of Tyre was one of their major cities. Under pressure from the growing tribes of Israel and Egypt, the Phoenicians took to their ships and became the trading masters of the known world and beyond: circumnavigating Africa, exploring the Atlantic coast of Europe and setting up Phoenician cities as centres of trade and commerce at intervals throughout the Mediterranean region.

Carthage was (according to Phoenician mythology) established by Queen Dido, daughter of the King of Tyre. The city was situated on the northern coast of Africa, west of the longitude of Sicily, east of Corsica and Sardinia. It became the most prominent of the Phoenician cities and the capital of a trading empire stretching from Egypt to the Canary Islands and the south coast of Britain, controlling half of Spain, all the islands of the Western Mediterranean – Corsica, Sardinia and the Balearics – and the western two thirds of Sicily. The Greek city of Syracuse occupied the eastern part of that island

Like the Greeks, Phoenician people saw their city as the chief focus of their allegiance. Unlike the Greeks, however, the Carthaginians had a concept of empire and established control over vast territories beyond their city. The degree of this control varied across the Carthaginian empire but, by and large, it was a trading empire; a capitalist structure ahead of its time. In Sardinia, for example, the Carthaginians contented themselves with building a fortified city on the coast to control the military and commercial movements in the region. They left the original inhabitants to run their own affairs in the inland parts of the island. Trade was the Carthaginian goal.

Similarly, the Carthaginians had built fortified towns on the coasts of Sicily to control the island and adjacent seas.

As Carthage grew into a mature empire, its geographical location; a crossroads at the centre of the known world, and its position as the pre-eminent trading nation, meant that its people had extensive contact with other civilisations. This contact brought about a mellowing and broadening of Carthaginian culture. In the early days of the Phoenicians, for example, children were sacrificed to Melgarth and Astarte. By the time Carthage had reached its prime, however, these gods had been replaced by Baal Hammon and Tanit, and later the even gentler cult of Demeter and Kore, (Nigel Bagnall, The Punic Wars, Random Century, 1990 pp 15-17). Like the rest of the Hellenistic and Mediterranean world, they still sacrificed animals as offerings to the gods but the only two instances of human sacrifice recorded during Carthage’s conflict with Rome were, in fact, carried out by the Romans.

Carthage had, by the times described in this book, been pre-eminent for six hundred years. During this time it had evolved some extraordinarily democratic institutions. Not only were the one hundred Senators of the Carthaginian government elected annually, but the army’s Generals were also directly elected by their troops, such election subsequently being confirmed by the Senate. The tendency towards democracy was seen by contemporaries as a weakness, a disadvantage in competition with neighbouring city states, and a symptom of moral decline. Many, Polybius for one, believed the ordinary people of Carthage had gained too much power.

Carthage was also a centre of learning. The library of Carthage, for example, was renowned as the biggest in the world at the time.

But Carthage was, above all, a capitalist, trading nation. The pursuit of wealth was seen as a legitimate object for and by its citizens. Like the citizens of many later wealthy nations and empires, the Carthaginians grew unaccustomed to shouldering menial or unpleasant tasks. It has been argued, for example, they preferred to stay in the service of commerce and agriculture rather than serve in the army. When serving overseas, the Carthaginian army mostly comprised mercenary troops from within the trading empire. Only when Carthage itself was under attack was the citizen militia mobilised and armed. This, some commentators argue, demonstrates a high leisure preference or lack of moral rigor among the Carthaginians.

Carthaginians did, however, serve in great numbers in their navy; up to one hundred and fifty thousand men at any one time, in fact. The Carthaginian navy was the greatest of the era. It appears that the demands of keeping such a force at sea took precedence over serving in the land-based army; the use of mercenaries in their land forces arose not from moral turpitude, but rather because they simply did not have enough men for both tasks.

Some Carthaginians did serve in the army, of course. The youth of the nobility, for example, served in the Sacred Band – the elite guard elements of the army. Carthaginian cavalry units were, as in most nations of the time, drawn from the wealthier sections of the population: people who could afford to buy their own horses and armour.

The navy, being closely tied up with the maintenance and facilitation of trade, was regarded as essential and almost exclusively manned by Carthaginians.

Polybius, a Greek historian writing in the second century BC, states the Carthaginian navy was the largest fleet in the history of the world to that time. The ships of this navy were, like other ships of the period, equipped with sails for running before and across the wind when it was favourable, and oars for working into the wind or giving battle. The crew were not slaves chained to their benches, as is popularly imagined. Rather they were highly trained rowers – and there were lots of them. The quinqueremes favoured by the Carthaginians had a crew of four hundred and seventy men; three hundred rowers, one hundred and twenty marines and fifty sailing crew.

The configuration of rowers in these vessels remains a subject for debate. One one hand, some nineteenth century interpretations of the term quinquereme involved a vessel with five banks of oars, one on top of the other, and a single man operating each oar. The use of ships with five storeys above the water line during the period seems unlikely, however, given the construction methods and materials then available. Even if such a thing had been built, it would have been incredibly cumbersome and vulnerable to the weather. Additionally, the length of oar required to reach the water from the upper levels would have been so great (over 10 metres) that they could not be operated by one man - certainly not for long periods required during a voyage or a battle. It should also be noted that the Romans constructed benches on beaches for their rowers to practice on while the fleet was being built. The use of the term benches indicates a single level, as opposed to, say, frames.

Consequently, it would appear that the Hollywood version - that of five rowers operating each oar - is more likely to have been the case. It is possible that the rowers operated on two teirs - three on one level and two on another, giving a total of five rowers for each vertical set of oars. In any case, the convention is adopted in this book that the oars were operated by multiple rowers working together on each oar. Anyone who has done any rowing would understand that, when propelling a large vessel of this sort, any other arrangement is unlikely.

However it was rowed, the navy was the chief arm by which Carthage exerted her influence both within her empire and throughout the world; the sword and shield of their nation. The navy sustained her as the richest power in the world for centuries.

At the centre of this power, this empire, lay the capital: Carthage. At the time of the first Punic War the city was a metropolis of seven hundred thousand people. Built on a peninsula, its battlements rose up from the waters, over-topped by a giant lighthouse that blazed out every night, a beacon to its mighty fleets. The city, like the civilisation that built it, was designed for trade.

Rome, on the other hand, concentrated her energies on land forces.

The legendary events leading to the establishment of Rome began around 750BC when refugees from the fall of Troy are said to have settled on the banks of the Tiber River, in the territory of the native Latin tribe. They formed an alliance with the local natives, intermarrying and setting up a chain of vigorous new communities. The establishment of Rome is the story of the growth and amalgamation of these communities and the unrelenting conflict both within the growing power and with its neighbours and future subjects.

The very foundation myth of the city is, as one might suspect, a tale of ambition and jealousy, violence and bloodshed.

The myth begins with Numitor becoming king of the region. His younger brother, Amulius, became jealous and took up arms against his brother, driving him out and seizing the throne. To ensure that his brother’s line did not reclaim the throne, Amulius murdered all his brother’s sons and declared the daughter, Rhea, to be a Vestal – a virgin in the service of the temple.

Rhea, however, was raped by the god Mars, interestingly the god of war, and gave birth, in due course, to twin boys.

Divine conception notwithstanding, Amulius was still determined to stamp out his brother’s line. He ordered the boys to be executed immediately by being flung into the flooding Tiber River. The boys were duly set adrift in a basket on the floodwaters in a Moses like manner. As was the case in Moses’ story, the basket washed up on the shore without being upturned and with its contents still in place. Unlike Moses, however, the twin boys were not discovered by a princess of the royal household, but rather, in this instance, by a wolf. The wolf did not behave as one might expect and, instead of devouring the boys immediately, it actually offered them her teats, feeding them and cleaning them for an unspecified period of time. This happy circumstance persisted until the boys and the wolf were discovered by a local peasant who took the boys home and raised them as his own.

The boys grew to be strapping young men and were eventually recognised as the true heirs of the throne by their grandfather, who forthwith arranged their succession by murdering the usurper, Amulius, himself.

The twin boys, now named Romulus and Remus, decided that the existing towns of the area were too overcrowded and determined that the first act of their reign would be to build a new city on the banks of the Tiber where they had been rescued. As twins, however, there was nothing to indicate which of the brothers was the senior and would have the city named after him. Apparently, the notion of having two kings was foreign to that place and time. So bands of supporters gathered around each of the boys and a means of determining who would be king was agreed.

The brothers sat separately on adjacent hills and awaited a sign from the gods. In due course, six vultures came and circled over Remus. His supporters declared this a sign and claimed, as recipient of the first sign, Remus should be king.

While this very claim was being made, however, no fewer than twelve vultures appeared and circled over Romulus, prompting his supporters to declare that, as the recipient of the biggest sign, he should be king.

A dispute as to the relative importance of timing and size had not been envisaged, apparently. No mechanism for resolving the question had been agreed in advance. So, in keeping with local tradition, a fracas broke out in which Remus was struck down and killed by his brother who announced So perish whoever else shall overleap my battlements!

And so it was that the city was built and named after the victor, Romulus. It is interesting to speculate that, had the brawl turned out differently, Reman citizens would have established the Reman Empire. But it didn’t, so Rome became the centre of a growing power.

For a further two hundred and forty-four years Rome was ruled by kings until the Tarquin family earned such displeasure by their abuse of power and position that they were removed by a popular uprising.

It went this way:

Sextus Tarquinus, son of the reigning king, had raped Lucretia. Lucretia, after denouncing the rapist to her husband, father and friends, committed suicide. Brutus, who had been travelling with Lucretia’s husband, swore to avenge her death and marched on Rome. The population rose up in revulsion at Sextus’ deed and exiled the king and his family. Sextus was later assassinated in exile, and so ended the line of the Roman kings. Rome had become a republic.

In place of the kings, two Consuls were elected annually and governed in conjunction with an expanded Senate of three hundred men. Initially appointed from the heads of the tribal groups within Roman territory, the Senate remained by and large an unelected body up to, and beyond the time of the Punic Wars. Senators were appointed or ‘conscripted’ by the consuls in the tradition of Brutus’ ‘conscripts’. Romans elected to separate high office also became ex-officio Senators, but then held their Senate seat for life. The seats of ‘Fathers’ and ‘Conscripts’ were hereditary.

The Roman republic was a curious mixture. On the one hand, the state was based on the notion of sovereign power belonging to the people. This sovereign power, however, was administered by an elite with an abiding fear that, should the mob be allowed to rule, the country would be brought swiftly to ruin. This tension gave rise to factions - groupings within the political structure – notably the patricians and the plebeians.

The Consuls were limited in the length of their term but not in their powers. Inside Rome they enjoyed the powers of the kings of old. Outside of Rome, they wielded the power of a military dictator.

The social fabric of the Roman nation was, from the start, designed for war. The children of Rome were systematically put through certain exercises by experienced drill masters to fit them for their duty as soldiers (see T.A. Dodge, Hannibal, Da Capo Press, 1891, p42). Military service was required of citizens from the age of seventeen years. A Roman was not eligible for election to office or to hold state employment if they had not served at least ten years in the infantry or five years in the cavalry.

As Dodge, an American General and chronicler of Hannibal’s war states:

There has never been a people better adapted for war by nature and training than the Roman.

This warlike disposition saw the Romans defeat their neighbouring tribes and cities throughout the central area of the Italian peninsula, bringing them into the growing state of greater Rome – the Confederacy. By 290 BC the only competitors to Rome on the Peninsula were the untamed tribes of Gauls in the far north and the Greek cities in the far south - the cities of Tarentum, Crotone, Sybaris and Rhegium (Magna Graecia).

The Romans began building a system of great consular roads across their territory which enabled the swift concentration of forces at any point along their borders. The Greek cities in southern Italy viewed this expansion of power with trepidation and requested assistance from the Greek city state of Epirus, across the Adriatic. Pyrrhus, the King of Epirus, responded to the call with an army including a number of elephants. Pyrrhus won two hard fought victories against the Roman armies, but Rome’s militaristic social structure, and proximity, ensured that new troops were available to replace their losses. Pyrrhus, on the other hand, was separated from his home base by an ocean voyage and was not so well placed to make good his losses. This circumstance prompted Pyrrhus to declare famously another such victory and we are undone!

The Romans developed tactics to deal with Pyrrhus’ elephants, finally defeating him in 275BC. Pyrrhus returned to Epirus and over the next five years the Romans systematically conquered each of the Greek city states left in the region. Rhegium was the last to fall in 270BC, leaving Rome in total control of the entire Italian Peninsula. The power of Rome was absolute wherever her Legions could march. But at this stage, she did not possess a navy at all. In fact, Rome would need to borrow boats and small ships from the recently subdued Greek cities to transport men and supplies across to Sicily when the time came.

This was the situation in the year 264BC. On one hand, the mature power of Carthage spanned the world with a trading fleet and navy. The pre-eminent power in the region for six hundred years, Carthage had developed social and institutional structures the like of which would not reappear for many centuries.

On the other hand Rome stood astride the Italian peninsula, sword in hand. A brash young militaristic state; armed, trained and fashioned for imperial expansion, she dominated the territory upon which she could march; a nation with a firm belief in her destiny to become the dominant world power. It was inevitable that Rome would clash with Carthage at some point. The two empires stood eyeballing each other across the straight of Messana. And this was not to prove an adequate barrier (Nigel Bagnall, The Punic Wars, Random Century, 1990 p21).

Author’s Note

(return to ToC)

This book, The Father, and its successors are the story of one family’s extraordinary role in that clash of empires. Hamilcar Barca and his son, Hannibal each led the Carthaginian armies against Rome in some of the most famous battles of world history. They came within a hair’s breadth of cutting the rule of Rome short by hundreds of years.

It is the ambition of these pages to simply tell the story in a readable format.To this end some characters and events have been amalgamated with others. For example, the naval struggle between Rome and Carthage during the first Punic War was decided over three major engagements. Some were won by Rome, others by Carthage. For the purposes of telling the story in this instance, however, the single decisive event, the battle of the Aegates Islands, includes features of the previous battles.

Similarly, some names have been changed, in most cases simply to try and avoid confusion. It seems that in the Carthaginian armed forces, almost everyone was called Hamilcar, Hannibal or Hanno and much of the record does not extend to their family names, surnames or nicknames (e.g. Hasdrubal the Bald as opposed to Hasdrubal the Handsome). For this reason it appears, for example, that Hannibal was fighting naval battles off Sicily shortly before he was born. To avoid confusing the reader where possible, the names have been changed to leave the focus on the main players.

Also, to capture the flavour of this clash of empires and cultures, during the initial confrontation with the Carthaginians in Messana, the Romans speak in conversational Latin (which is translated or explained by the context). Do not fear, however; from this point on, for ease of reading, the convention is adopted that they spoke each other’s language well enough to understand each other, or had translators handy (and so it all appears in English).

Additionally, some of the institutions and offices of the time have been simplified in the translation. For example, in the Roman Senate, meetings were usually chaired by a presiding consul. In these pages, he is described as the Chairman, to deliniate that function from the military roles of the consuls. In the Carthaginian case, the Council of One Hundred and Four Magistrates and the Council of Elders (Gerousia) have been amalgamated into a single Senate (Aristotle describes the sitting members of the Carthaginian government as Senators, and Livy refers to the Carthaginian Senate and Senators). Certainly one gets the impression that when the Roman delegation made their demands after Saguntum, they were addressing a joint sitting of the Carthaginian government! In the same spirit, the role of the two Suffetes (joint heads of the Carthaginian political structure), have been amalgamated into that of Chairman of the Senate.

It should also be said that the terms Sir, General, Captain Commander and Admiral are used as translations of salutations and titles which have been universal since warfare became and organised activity. The roles and relative positions of commanders and the commanded have remained remarkably stable throughout the ages.

Where such name changes, amalgamations and translations have been made they have been kept to the minimum required by the format of the work. Nonetheless, the themes are true. It is based on real history, people and events. Some of the speeches made in the Senates, such as Hanno’s plea to keep the young Hannibal in Carthage, for example, are quoted in translations of texts now two thousand years old. While rigorously sticking to history, the intention of this book is to introduce an epic tale to modern day readers. And it is a tale with currency in the modern world. As Polybius put it, writing in the second century BC:

the study of history is at once an education in the truest sense…the most infallible, indeed the only method of learning how to bear with dignity the vicissitudes of fortune is to be reminded of the disasters suffered by others.

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Chapter 1

Messana 264BC

(return to ToC)

Companion Link

A sliver of new moon was rising across the restless, dark waters of the strait of Messana. The translucent circle of the rest of the moon could be seen clearly and the stars were brilliant in the crisp, night air. The breeze was cool enough to drive the Carthaginian sentries to their small fire. In a dip between dunes high up on the sand, their low conversation was drowned out by the rhythmic surge of waves along the beach.

Two patches of darkness made their way silently across the water and nosed into the shallows. Shades of men appeared over the side of the boats and there was a swift splashing of sandalled feet hastening up onto the shore. Keeping low, they paused to take their bearings. Short swords gleamed briefly as they moved across the sand in quick, darting runs.

The sentries, looking forward to the imminent changing of the guard, saw nothing of the approaching menace. Thrusting with lethal stabs the assailants burst into the firelight, cutting off all but the shortest cry with their blades. The sentries lay dead about their fire, in no further need of its warmth.

One of the assailants spoke in an urgent whisper to the others, saying Movete illa corpora ex incendiorum luce. The soldiers quickly dragged the bodies of the Carthaginian sentries out of the circle of firelight.

Celeriter suscipite vigilias, he continued and they took up positions watching the road towards the walled city of Messana.

Behind them a swarm of dark boats began to glide into the beach. Wading ashore, a thousand legionaries assembled in an organised mass to whispered commands. Ahead, the lookouts could see a party of a dozen guards carrying lighted torches before them, marching out from the city gates. These were also cut down by an ambush from the shadows as they rounded the corner leading to the beach. Their bodies were dragged aside and ranks of red-cloaked legionaries began to silently march along the road towards the city.

As the column approached the city walls, a figure hastened out to meet them. He was ushered to an officer at the head of the men and, kneeling, he assured the Roman that the gates were open. The column renewed its march with a quickened pace and entered the city.

Commander Hanno! Sir! The Romans! The Romans, Commander!

The Carthaginian officer commanding the garrison at Messana was a portly, middle-aged man. His kindly appearance was accentuated by tufts of hair still ruffled from sleep. He lifted himself up on one arm in bed, scratching his head as the servant continued to shake him and babble about Romans.

What about the blasted Romans? he demanded, rubbing sleep from his eyes and trying to get sense from the man who continued to shake him with one hand while holding a badly smoking oil lamp in the other.

The Romans. They are here! the servant replied.

Whaaat!

They are here, Sir.

I didn’t mean, oh, never mind!

Hanno ran to the window and looked down to see the ranks of Roman legionaries marching into the city square below.

Call the troops! Turn out the guard! By the gods! This is an outrage! Where is my uniform, my sandals? Blast you! The officer dashed about the room locating items of clothing and shouting at no-one in particular.

Rushing into the courtyard, Hanno could see that some of his garrison had tumbled out of their barracks. But they were penned by a ring of Roman spears. A Roman officer approached, his pride and bearing making him appear taller than he actually was, and spoke in clear, deliberate Latin:

Nomen mihi est Appius Claudiu; mene comprehendus?

Observing that he was not understood, he turned to a soldier standing in the front rank behind him. Gesturing impatiently he said:

Miles quam celerrime veni! Converte mea verba huic stulto.

Ita vero, Consul, replied the soldier hurrying to stand at the officer’s side, he explained to the Carthaginian I am to translate, Sir.

Hanno of Thapsus, said the Roman officer, saluting with a hand slapping across his chest and then being held out in front of him, senatus populusque Romanus exoptant ne vestri milites hac nocte non caedderentur.

Commander Hanno of Thapsus, translated the soldier, It is the wish of Rome that no more blood of your troops should be shed tonight.

Horati sumus a civibus hanc urbem tueri.

We have been invited to protect this city by its citizens...

This is outrageous! exploded Hanno of Thapsus, Remove your men from Messana at once!

Ut ego dicebam, egregie, hortati sumus cives Messanae tueri; nobis est officium et consilium ita facere.

As I was saying, your Excellence, we have been invited to protect the citizens of Messana and it is our right and intention to do so.

That is absurd… spluttered Hanno.

Sine me introcere; ego sum Appius Claudius; huc iussu senatus Romani veni.

Allow me to introduce myself, I am Appius Claudius and I am here at the order of the Roman Senate.

But that is absurd. The citizens of this city sought the protection of Carthage, Hanno demanded.

Quidam e civibus veos ad urbem tuendam hortati sint, said Appius, gesturing down the avenue where a struggling man was dragged into the street. A woman wailed from the doorway behind him, her cries echoing through the dark streets.

Some may have done, relayed the translator.

Illi nunc revolvunt quia novi urbis duces, vt videtis, nos salutaverunt.

They are reconsidering now, while the new leaders of the city, have, as you can see, welcomed us, the translator concluded as Appius turned, indicating a figure standing to one side, wringing his hands and looking furtively about.

You sorry swine! Your treachery will not go unpunished by the Senate of Carthage, Hanno railed at the cringing Messanian. Turning back to the Roman officer he continued; This is an affront to Carthage. What about the treaty between our two great peoples? We are in this city by virtue of that treaty. Does your Senate know that you are breaking their word and oath? Do you understand the consequences?

Tibi more maiorum respondebo, replied Appius.

I give you your answer in the ancient way the translator hurriedly explained as Appius turned to a soldier in the ranks. Snatching the javelin from his hand Appius hurled it across the courtyard, where it stuck, quivering in the ground.

In nomine senatus populique Romani bellum contra hancregionum et indicam et geram! cried Appius which, after a pause, was translated to In the name of Rome I declare and make war on this land!

Hanno of Thapsus stood, shocked and unbelieving, looking from the javelin to Appius Claudius and back again.

Do you understand, Sir? asked the translator, seeing Hanno’s apparent confusion.

Yes, yes, thank you. I do. I only wish you did too Hanno replied in a quiet, shocked voice, putting a hand to one side of his face.

Dicite urbem huic stulto hac nocte relinquendam esse… said Appius in a calmer tone.

Hanno cut the translator off with a wave, saying Yes, yes, tell him we will leave tonight but we will take our weapons. The translator and Appius both looked surprised. I may be a fool, continued Hanno, but I can understand your language well enough, thank you. Kindly release my men so that I may speak to them. We shall leave the city in one hour.

Yes, said Appius, nodding his head stiffly, it shall be arranged. I speak your language as well, as you see.

The Carthaginian garrison, a line of several hundred men, burdened with weapons and sacks of possessions, wound out through the city gate as light began to grow in the eastern sky.

A voice floated down from the walls as they marched away:

Valete, parricidae qui in puerorum trucidatione delectant! it wailed.

What was that? asked Hanno’s deputy craning to look back over his shoulder as they marched on.

Never mind about that, replied Hanno, "you listen to me for a moment.

I will march to Tyudaris and send word by ship. You must take a section of men and go straight to Syracuse. Tell King Hiero what has happened. Tell him that Rome is invading Sicily, they have broken their treaty with us and that he will be next. Tell him that. Now go.

The deputy nodded his understanding and, as they reached a fork in the road, he led a dozen soldiers off to the south while Hanno turned to the west with the rest of his troops. "I’ll give them ‘goodbye baby killers’. We will be back!" Hanno said to no one in particular as they marched over the hill and out of sight from Messana.

Huge green and white striped sails flapped noisily as the ship let fly her sheets, gliding into the stone wharf. A large gang plank was pushed across as the ship was made fast bow and stern. Hanno, now dressed in the silver headband and purple cape of a Supreme Commander, took his leave of the ship’s officers and crossed to the dock to a waiting group of officers who all bowed deeply.

Greetings, Gisgo, it’s good to see you again, Hanno said to the foremost officer as they all rose.

Greetings also, Sir, and congratulations on your appointment as Supreme Commander of Sicily replied Gisgo.

Behind Hanno a column of troops began to emerge from the ship and cross to the dock. They wore the black cloaks, white tunics and red trim of the Spanish infantry.

Yes, Gisgo, Supreme Commander. It is a great height from which to fall. My namesake in the Senate of Carthage will be only too happy to push me if we fail in this task. But I am grateful for the chance to win Messana back. How goes the campaign?

If you would accompany me, General, Gisgo led the way to a group of horses being held for them. Mounting, the group began to make its way up the dirt road winding over the crest of the hill towards Messana. Behind them other ships were pulling alongside the dock and disgorging their cargoes of troops.

We have, Commander, said Gisgo as they rode, as you ordered, gathered all the garrisons from our Sicilian bases and put them to work investing Messana.

What of the Syracusans? Hanno broke into the report.

Hiero has also marched on Messana, Commander. He arrived two days ago with ten thousand foot and one thousand, five hundred horse. He has set up his camp to the south of the city.

As they spoke they arrived at the crest of the hill. The vista of the siege of Messana appeared below them, stretching across the plain.

At the southern end, was the Syracusan camp – a tent city surrounded by wooden fencing and overtopped by the smoke of cooking fires. The camp was nestled with its back against the line of hills bordering the plain and running down to the coast.

Directly below Hanno, to his left, was the Carthaginian camp, another tent city with lines of tethered horses and surrounded by a wooden palisade.

From each camp stretched a line of trenching. Earth was piled up on the side away from the town and topped by wooden fencing. At the end of each line of trench, parties of men were busily extending the works. The two lines almost met, with only a gap of a few hundred paces to go. Immediately behind the gap a battalion of infantry could be seen taking their ease, lounging on the grass beside the road which ran through the gap and up to the city gates. Other columns of troops busily marched too and fro behind the line of trenching.

The encirclement is almost complete, Gisgo observed Hanno.

Yes Commander, and we have another party building the first of the artillery – a heavy bolt shooter - down here, he replied, pointing.

Following the gesture, Hanno could see another party at work carrying large square sawn logs of wood. These were being fastened to each other with spikes driven by huge mallets, and bound with thick rope. When finished, the machine would look like a giant crossbow and hurl great arrows, taller than a man and as thick as his arm. When the siege works were complete, a row of these monsters would bombard the town from behind the trench and palisade fortification.

And our navy blockades Messana from the sea Gisgo raised his arm, pointing towards the squadron of warships beating across the wind beyond the city. From this day forward, no-one enters or leaves the city without your permission, Commander.

What is our strength, Gisgo? Hanno enquired.

Sir, we have five hundred horse, mainly Gallic cavalry. We have already encamped some eight thousand foot, some Gauls, some Spanish warbands and two battalions of Libyan spearmen.

And my convoy is unloading another one thousand infantry. Recruiting agents have been sent from Carthage to Gaul, Spain and Greece, but the men they raise will not be here in time for this endeavour. Have the Romans attempted to interfere with the works?

They have sent out two sallies, so far Commander. Both were beaten back without much delay to the entrenchment. They appear to have only one legion defending the city, perhaps four thousand men all told. They will find it hard to bring in re-enforcements now.

Excellent, said Hanno, leading the group of mounted officers towards the Carthaginian camp at a walk. Have my baggage brought to my tents. I will inspect the troops and works before dark. Send a messenger to Hiero. I want to arrange a meeting first thing in the morning with him to establish the details of our co-operation. I don’t like relying on a Greek, but we don’t have much choice. We must keep them as close to our side as possible. So arrange the meeting, Gisgo, and select such officers to accompany me as you think fit.

Yes Commander. First thing in the morning.

They entered the gates of the camp, the guards presenting their arms smartly, as could be expected for the arrival of the new Commander. As they passed through the camp, soldiers paused in their tasks and errands to bow to the passing dignitaries.

The Libyan spearmen were tall and black, clothed in red, white, brown or green tunics, depending on which battalion they belonged to. They carried round shields and long spears, twelve feet in length. They walked tall and proud. In full uniform they wore magnificent plumes of feathers towering over their heads, making them appear even more tall and terrible to the diminutive Romans of the legions. The Libyan leaders wore splendid capes made from animal skins.

The Spanish wore white tunics, fringed with red. They were fierce warriors, carrying an oval shield and the dreaded pilum, a short throwing spear with a metal weight half way along its shaft and tipped with a lethal metal rod. When hurled at the enemy, it would pierce his shield and impale the soldier behind. It was so effective the Romans had copied it and equipped the heavy troops of their legions with it.

The Gauls were also fierce warriors. Dressed in an assortment of plain cloth tunics, they sported red and brown hair and great beards, adorned in plaits and lashed with thin leather strips. Their leaders wore capes of animal skins and furs. The Gallic warriors carried small, round shields, a clutch of javelins and a long, heavy, round ended sword. They scorned marching to battle in formation and other such refinements, preferring to hurl their spears at the