Hannibal belonged to the Barcid family, the military dynasty that followed the earlier Magonid tradition. After Hasdrubal’s death, he took command of the Carthaginian empire in Spain in 221 BCE. The Iberian base gave him access to mineral resources and a large pool of military manpower, while the growing Roman presence made the consolidation of Carthaginian power increasingly difficult.

In 218 BCE Hannibal crossed the Ebro and led his army toward the Alps and Italy. His strategy was to carry the war into the Roman sphere, where a defeat might destroy Rome’s political system and Italian coalition, while also preventing a Roman invasion of Africa. His army was composed chiefly of Spaniards, reinforced by Gallic and African contingents, and it won major victories at Lake Trasimene and Cannae.

Hannibal’s battlefield successes did not produce the political rupture he needed. Rome maintained the loyalty of most of its Italian allies and could draw on manpower reserves that Carthage could not match. Fabius Maximus adopted a defensive approach that limited opportunities for another decisive engagement, while Scipio Africanus’s victories in Spain shifted the war toward Africa. Hannibal was eventually recalled from Italy and suffered defeat at Zama.