Battle of Cannae information

Battle of Cannae
	Part of the Second Punic War
	; John Trumbull, The Death of Paulus Aemilius at the Battle of Cannae (1773)
Date	2 August 216 BC
Location	Cannae, Italy41°18′23″N 16°7′57″E / 41.30639°N 16.13250°E
Result	Carthaginian victory (see Aftermath)
Territorial; changes	Carthaginian forces gain foothold in southern Italy; defection of some Roman allies including Capua to Carthage
Belligerents
Roman Republic Allied Italian states: Etruscans ; Samnites ; Iapyges; Veneti	Carthage Allied tribes: Numidians ; Libyans ; Hispanics ; Gauls;
Commanders and leaders
Gaius Terentius Varro; Lucius Aemilius Paullus †; Servilius Geminus †;	Hannibal; Mago Barca; Gisgo; Hanno; Hasdrubal; Maharbal;
Strength
Total: 86,400 15,000 light infantry Velites; ; 55,000 infantry 25,000 Romans; 30,000 allies; ; 6,400 cavalry 2,400 Roman cavalry; 4,000 allied cavalry; ; 10,000 allied garrison;	Total: 50,000 8,000 light infantry 6,000 Skirmishers; 2,000 Balearic slingers; ; 32,000 infantry 21,000 Gauls; 3,000 Hispanics; 8,000 Libyans; ; 10,000 cavalry 4,000 Numidian cavalry; 2,000 Hispanic cavalry; 4,000 Gallic cavalry; ;
Casualties and losses
Total: 67,500–80,000 Livy:; 48,200 killed; 19,300 captured; 14,000+ escaped; Polybius:; 70,000 killed; 10,000 captured; 3,000 escaped;	Total: 5,700–8,000 Livy:; 8,000 killed; ; ; ; Polybius:; 5,700 killed;
	class=notpageimage\| Location of the battle within Italy

The Battle of Cannae (/ˈkæni, -eɪ, -aɪ/;^[c] Latin: [ˈkanːae̯]) was a key engagement of the Second Punic War between the Roman Republic and Carthage, fought on 2 August 216 BC near the ancient village of Cannae in Apulia, southeast Italy. The Carthaginians and their allies, led by Hannibal, surrounded and practically annihilated a larger Roman and Italian army under the consuls Lucius Aemilius Paullus and Gaius Terentius Varro. It is regarded as one of the greatest tactical feats in military history and one of the worst defeats in Roman history, and it cemented Hannibal's reputation as one of antiquity's greatest tacticians.

Having recovered from their losses at Trebia (218 BC) and Lake Trasimene (217 BC), the Romans decided to engage Hannibal at Cannae, with approximately 86,000 Roman and allied troops. They massed their heavy infantry in a deeper formation than usual, while Hannibal used the double envelopment tactic and surrounded his enemy, trapping the majority of the Roman army, who were then slaughtered. The loss of life on the Roman side meant it was one of the most lethal single days of fighting in history; Adrian Goldsworthy equates the death toll at Cannae to "the massed slaughter of the British Army on the first day of the Somme offensive in 1916".^[5] Only about 15,000 Romans, most of whom were from the garrisons of the camps and had not taken part in the battle, escaped death. Following the defeat, Capua and several other Italian city-states defected from the Roman Republic to Carthage.

As news of this defeat reached Rome, the city was gripped in panic. Authorities resorted to extraordinary measures, which included consulting the Sibylline Books, dispatching a delegation led by Quintus Fabius Pictor to consult the Delphic oracle in Greece, and burying four people alive as a sacrifice to their gods. To raise two new legions, the authorities lowered the draft age and enlisted criminals, debtors and even slaves. Despite the extreme loss of men and equipment, and a second massive defeat later that same year at Silva Litana, the Romans refused to surrender to Hannibal. His offer to ransom survivors was brusquely refused. The Romans fought for 14 more years until they achieved victory at the Battle of Zama.

The battle was seen as a major Roman disaster. In modern times, Cannae has acquired a mythic quality and is often used as an example of the perfect defeat of an enemy army.

Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

^ "Slaughter at the Battle of Cannae". Warfare History Network. Retrieved 2023-09-06.
^ Plutarch 1916, 16.8.
^ Delbrück 1975, pp. 320, 327.
^ Goldsworthy 2001, p. 194.
^ Goldsworthy 2001, p. 159.

[2] "Slaughter at the Battle of Cannae". Warfare History Network. Retrieved 2023-09-06.

[FOOTNOTEPlutarch191616.8-3] Plutarch 1916, 16.8.

[FOOTNOTEDelbrück1975320,_327-5] Delbrück 1975, pp. 320, 327.

[FOOTNOTEGoldsworthy2001194-6] Goldsworthy 2001, p. 194.

[FOOTNOTEGoldsworthy2001159-8] Goldsworthy 2001, p. 159.

Battle of Cannae information

and 27 Related for: Battle of Cannae information

Battle of Cannae

Cannae

Pitched battle

Hannibal

Maharbal

Battle of Lake Trasimene

Pincer movement

Battle of the Bastards

Battle of Arausio

Battle of the Trebia

Battle of Changping

Historical examples of flanking maneuvers

Battle of the Teutoburg Forest

Gaius Terentius Varro

Battle of Canusium

Second Punic War

Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus

216 BC

Battle of Walaja

Norman conquest of southern Italy

List of battles by casualties

Battle of Ilipa

Encirclement

List of Roman dictators

Siege of Saguntum

Roman dictator

Battle