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There's some debate over the type of elephant Hannibal's forces used. They were likely not the African elephants we know today, but North African elephants[1].
by beloch 8mo ago
There's some debate over the type of elephant Hannibal's forces used. They were likely not the African elephants we know today, but North African elephants[1]. This was a physically smaller subspecies that was later extirpated by the Romans. Perhaps analysis of the bone in this story will help settle the debate.
It's also worth noting that, despite the insane effort it must have taken to get elephants over the alps, all but one of Hannibal's elephants died during the first winter in Italy. They made for a great story and were a propaganda coup for the Carthaginians, but didn't wind up making much of a military impact. They were only present for the first couple of battles Hannibal fought.
[1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_African_elephant https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_African_elephant
- aryonoco 8mo agoHannibal knew the elephants would have minimal impact by themselves, they were mainly an instrument of shock and awe and served their purpose well. For centuries, Romans had grabbed land and defeated enemies mostly by projecting immense power and using shock and awe tactics. Hannibal of course learnt a lot about Roman tactics from his father, Hamilcar, and the “treachery” with which Rome had taken Sicily off Carthaginians. But he also grew up in Spain, in close proximity to Romans, and studied them and their methods for years. He knew he needed to have an instrument of shock and awe himself, something the Romans had never seen before, and elephants were perfect for that. For those interested, the Rest is History podcast did a 4 series on Hannibal last year which is highly engaging and informative https://therestishistory.com/series/hannibal https://therestishistory.com/series/hannibal