Scipio Forces the Senate's Hand: The Africa Strategy
Scipio's election to the consulship in 205 BCE was constitutionally irregular. The Roman people elected him anyway. His credentials were extraordinary. As proconsul in Spain from 210 BCE, he had conquered Carthago Nova in a single day's assault, systematically eliminated Carthaginian power on the Iberian peninsula, and developed the tactical innovations that would defeat Hannibal at Zama. The debate in the Senate over the Africa strategy was a clash of strategic philosophies made personal. Fabius Maximus argued that the war should be won by grinding Hannibal down in Italy. Scipio argued that the only way to end the war was to threaten Carthage itself, forcing Hannibal to recall his army from Italy. The Senate gave Scipio Sicily as his province, authorised him to cross to Africa if he judged it expedient, but provided limited state resources. Scipio sailed in 204, landed in North Africa, and forced Hannibal to return from Italy for the final reckoning. The Battle of Zama (202) was the most consequential engagement in the western Mediterranean of the ancient world. Carthage sued for peace. Scipio received the cognomen Africanus — the first Roman commander to be named after a conquered territory. His reported epitaph: 'Ungrateful fatherland, you shall not have my bones.'
- Year: 205 BCE
- Category: Military
