Scipio Defeats Hannibal at Zama: Rome Rises
Scipio Africanus defeated Hannibal at the Battle of Zama in 202 BC, ending the Second Punic War and establishing Roman supremacy over the western Mediterranean. Hannibal had terrorized Italy for 15 years after his legendary crossing of the Alps with war elephants. Rome recalled Scipio from conquering Spain to invade North Africa and force Hannibal home. At Zama, Scipio opened gaps in his lines to neutralize Hannibal's 80 war elephants, letting them charge through harmlessly. Roman cavalry then swept the Carthaginian flanks while the infantry pinned the center. Carthage surrendered its fleet, paid 10,000 talents in reparations, and was forbidden from waging war without Roman permission. Hannibal eventually fled to the Seleucid Empire, then Bithynia, where he poisoned himself rather than be captured.
October 19, 202 BC
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