Scipio Africanus - by Dexter Hoyos (Hardcover)

About the Book

"The life story of an early Roman military commander whose brilliance surpassed all of the emperors to come. Scipio Africanus (235-183 BCE) commanded his first army at twenty-five, led a daring invasion of Africa to personally defeat Hannibal, and secured Rome's dominance over the Mediterranean. In ten years of command, he never lost a battle, employing bold strategies to triumph over six enemy generals. Charismatic, ruthless, and self-confident almost to the point of arrogance, Scipio was the first Roman leader hailed as Imperator, 'victorious commander, ' a title later adopted by emperors. He drove Carthage's forces from Spain, annexed its territories, and later imposed terms on Antiochus III, extending Rome's reach eastward. Yet political jealousy at home led to his bitter exile. This biography explores the fortunes, fame, and fate of a leader who outshone Caesar in military genius."--

Book Synopsis

The life story of an early Roman military commander whose brilliance surpassed all of the emperors to come.

Scipio Africanus (235-183 BCE) commanded his first army at twenty-five, led a daring invasion of Africa to personally defeat Hannibal, and secured Rome's dominance over the Mediterranean. In ten years of command, he never lost a battle, employing bold strategies to triumph over six enemy generals. Charismatic, ruthless, and self-confident almost to the point of arrogance, Scipio was the first Roman leader hailed as Imperator, "victorious commander," a title later adopted by emperors. He drove Carthage's forces from Spain, annexed its territories, and later imposed terms on Antiochus III, extending Rome's reach eastward. Yet political jealousy at home led to his bitter exile. This biography explores the fortunes, fame, and fate of a leader who outshone Caesar in military genius.

Review Quotes

"Scipio Africanus' triumph and tragedy was to have been, as Hoyos puts it, 'the greatest general in Roman history, ' renowned for never having lost in battle. Invincibility brought Scipio (ca. 235-183 B.C.) laurels, but with them the unease and envy of contemporaries. . . . The contrast between the enduring fame of Hannibal, the Carthaginian general who led troops and elephants across the Alps in 218 B.C., and the twenty-first-century obscurity of Scipio, the Roman general who bested him at the Battle of Zama (202 B.C.), is one of antiquity's strangest twists. In Scipio Africanus: The First Imperator, Hoyos gives the victor, whom the Greek historian Polybius once called 'virtually the most outstanding man in history, ' his due."--Maxwell Carter "The Wall Street Journal"

"Hoyos's Scipio Africanus is a deeply scholarly but hugely readable biography of one of the most famous but curiously under-explored figures of the ancient world. Hoyos puts his knowledge of the borderlands of the Roman world to excellent use in this thorough and convincing history of the man, his military success, and his eventual fate."--Steven Hunt, associate teaching professor in classics education, University of Cambridge

"Hoyos has combined formidable scholarship with superb narrative skills to create an absorbing study of Scipio Africanus, hero of the Roman war against Hannibal and one of the most intriguing figures of antiquity. This fascinating volume will be welcomed by all devotees of Roman history, whatever their level."--Anthony Barrett, professor emeritus at the University of British Columbia and visiting professor at the University of Heidelberg

"Amazingly knowledgeable, delightfully readable: Hoyos's book tells of the exceptional life of Scipio Africanus, the great Hannibal's greater foe."--Michael Sommer, professor of ancient history, Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg

"Through a pseudo-biographical approach, Hoyos captivates the reader not only with a narration of the military achievements of an outstanding general, but with the intricate world of Roman republican politics at a crossroads period of its history. This fascinating history, written with erudition and profound skill, covers such themes as aristocratic faction fighting, dubious family affairs, religious controversies, and even corruption."--Toni Ñaco del Hoyo, ICREA Research Professor in Ancient History, University of Girona, Spain, and coeditor of 'War, Warlords, and Interstate Relations in the Ancient Mediterranean'

About the Author

Dexter Hoyos is honorary associate professor at Sydney University, Australia. His books include Rome Victorious: The Irresistible Rise of the Roman Empire.