Hannibals of History Trivia Quiz

Answer: Cyrus the Great

Persia originated as a small tributary state of the Median empire. Astyages was the ruler of the Medes and the grandfather of Cyrus the Persian. According to Nicolaus of Damascus, who was born over 500 years after the battle, Cyrus had been at the court of Astyages and wished to go to his home where a revolt was starting. Astyages agreed but then later sent 300 horsemen to bring Cyrus back to court alive, or if not willingly, dead. Cyrus agreed to return but first made a big sacrifice of animals and wine for the cavalrymen to feast upon. Cyrus then sent a secret note to the Persians to come quickly to the nearby town of Hyrba with 5,000 infantry and 1,000 cavalry.

Cyrus slipped out of camp the next morning to meet his men in Hyrba. The Median cavalry was struggling from the overindulgence of the night before and, when they reached Hyrba, they were quickly overwhelmed and slaughtered. Only 50 of the 300 managed to escape to report back to Astyages.

Answer: Cyrus the Great

The Battle of Thymbrara was due to the aggression of Croesus, the King of Lydia, against Cyrus and the Persians. At the time, Lydia was the most wealthy nation in the area, and it is unknown if Croesus was trying to increase his wealth or if he was trying to preemptively attack Persia before they attacked him. The accounts of the battle have a massive number of combatants on both sides with Lydia possibly having twice as many troops as Persia.

Supposedly, the clever Persians put their camels in the front causing serious problems for the Lydian horses. The ensuing panic led to openings in the Lydian lines, giving the Persians a decisive victory. King Croesus and many of his men were able to escape to the nearby town of Sardis. Thinking that the campaign season was over, Croesus released many of his men. After waiting a few days, Cyrus and his forces besieged the city of Sardis and, within two weeks, captured the city and King Croesus. Most likely, the king was burned at the stake, though Herodotus writes that Croesus became an advisor to Cyrus.

Answer: Cyrus the Great

In the fall of 539 BCE, the battle of Opis was the final attempt by the Babylonians to prevent a Persian takeover. Opis lies on the south side of the Tigris river, and autumn is the time of year when the river is easiest to cross. Unfortunately, the badly damaged Nabonidus Chronicle is the only known contemporary account. Due to the effects of time or possibly the limited description, there is not much in the Chronicle to tell about the battle.

Historians believe the victory was probably won before the battle even took place.

The tolerant religious policies of Cyrus were viewed more favorably than Nabonidus' intolerance. Cyrus also skillfully used bribery to persuade local Babylonian leaders to peacefully become Persian. Regardless of exactly how it was done, after Opis, Cyrus was proclaimed king of Babylon without any serious resistance.

Answer: Alexander the Great

Granicus took place in the Troads regions south of modern Istanbul and was the first Macedonian-Hellenic League battle against the Persians. For a little background, Alexander's father Phillip II of Macedon had bullied the other Greek states into forming the Hellenic League (minus the Spartans) to avenge the Persian attacks on Greece from over 150 years previous. It so happened that Artaxerxes III was assassinated in 338 BCE, and the Persian turmoil provided an opportune time for the Greeks to gain vengeance. Phillip, himself, was murdered in 336 BCE and his teenage son Alexander took over command of the Hellenic League troops.

The battle on the Granicus River took place in May of 334 BCE with an estimated 20,000 troops on either side. Since the sources of the day tended to exaggerate greatly, accurate numbers are disputed. What actually happened at the battle also varies considerably from source to source. One source suggests Alexander waited until the morning to try and sneak across the river and surprise the Persians. Most suggest Alexander arrived in the afternoon and immediately crossed the river to attack the Persian forces. This second strategy does make sense as it would have the sun in the Persian's eyes whereas a morning assault would have the sun in the Greeks' eyes.

During the battle, it is suggested that the Greek lances were superior to the Persian javelins and resulted in a decisive defeat of the Persian cavalry. It is also mentioned that a large part of the Persian forces were Greek mercenaries who were held in reserve and were not engaged until the battle was a rout for the Persians. It was recorded that the Greek mercenaries tried to surrender but were instead treated brutally by the Hellenic League for being considered traitors since they worked for the Persians.

Answer: Alexander the Great

The Battle of Issus in 333 BCE was the first encounter between Alexander and Darius III. The Gulf of Issus was a strategic location that the Persians wanted to keep so they could utilize their naval fleet against the Greeks' supply lines. The battle itself took place on either side of the small Pinarus river with the Hellenic forces facing north and the Persians facing south.

The Persians had a definite size advantage, but the narrowness of the battle location favored Alexander's smaller forces. The beginning of the battle seemed to be going the Persians' way, but Alexander and his elite Companions were able to break through and attack Darius III and his elite guard. Darius was no match for Alexander, so he fled. Rather than pursue Darius, Alexander decided to reinforce his struggling left flank. Seeing their leaders flee, the Greek mercenaries and Persian forces panicked and ran. After the battle, both the wife and daughters of Darius were captured since they had accompanied the Persian campaign.

Answer: Alexander the Great

In October 331 BCE, Gaugamela was the second and last battle fought between Alexander and Darius. In the two years between the battles, Alexander had built a half-kilometer-long land bridge to the Island of Tyre so he could properly lay siege. Once Tyre was secure, Alexander captured Egypt as well. After this, his focus turned once again to Darius and the Persians. Meanwhile, Darius had written several letters demanding his wife and mother back, then offering to pay a huge ransom, and ultimately offering Alexander co-leadership of Persia. Alexander gave Darius two choices either surrender or face him in battle. Alexander chose to stay in the fertile crescent and took the longer northern route towards Babylon. Scholars think Darius must have assumed Alexander would take the direct desert route, as he did nothing to disrupt the Greeks' northern approach.

Darius decided on Gaugamela as the place where he would encounter Alexander's forces. The area was flat and broad, and Darius had his army make the ground as smooth as possible so his chariots could be used to their fullest. At the start of the battle, the Persians had an advantage in numbers. The Macedonian infantry lined up in phalanx formation and engaged the center of the Persian army. Meanwhile, Alexander and his cavalrymen rode wide to the right to the edge of the Persian forces in an effort to draw off the enemy Scythian cavalry. The battle of the horsemen was fierce with the Persians appearing to have the upper hand. Once the battle started going the Macedonian way, Alexander and his select companions broke away and formed the spear tip of a wedge with infantry behind them. They then attacked the left infantry line of the Persians and defeated most of the royal guards. Darius ran, and many of his forces ran with him. The Persian king wanted to regroup and build a larger army, but one of his satraps, Bessus, murdered Darius instead.

This was only the beginning of Alexander's conquest of Asia. While his father had formed the League to gain vengeance on the Persians, Alexander had momentum and a hunger for more. His conquest brought him all the way to India where his troops had finally had enough. Reluctantly, Alexander turned back with his troops and they made it to Babylon where Alexander died of possible typhoid fever or alcohol poisoning, though the exact cause is unknown. His famous deathbed words were that his empire should go to the strongest.

Answer: Hannibal Barca

The battle at Trebia River was the first major encounter between Carthage and Rome in the Second Punic war in December 218 BCE. The First Punic war had ended twenty-three years earlier with Carthage forfeiting Sicily and paying reparations to Rome. Hannibal Barca's father, Hamiclar, had set up a colony on the Iberian peninsula (modern Spain). The resources of food and silver allowed the Carthaginians to repay Rome and increase their strength again. With a treaty, the Ebro River became the northernmost boundary of Carthage in northern Iberia. Rome violated this treaty by establishing the city of Saguntum well within the Carthaginian borders. The retaliation against Rome started the Second Punic war.

Hannibal amazed the Romans by taking a large military force and crossing the Alps into Northern Italy...in October. The Romans had been forming winter encampment when the Carthaginians appeared. Several small skirmishes ensued over the next few months, one of which wounded Consul Scipio. Rather than attack the Carthaginian mainland as planned, Sicily called up Consul Sempronius to reinforce Scipio's men. The Carthaginians were eager for a conflict to help recruit the disgruntled local Gallic tribes. Semronius was also itching for a battle to obtain glory for himself while Scipio was injured.

Hannibal first sent 2,000 soldiers into a hiding place to ambush the Romans to gain the advantage. He then had his light Nubian cavalry provoke the Romans into forming battle lines while the main Carthaginian troops ate breakfast and formed up. The Roman forces chased after the Nubians and had to cross the icy Trebia river before attacking the Carthaginians. While the Roman infantry outnumbered the Carthaginians and had the upper hand in the battle, the cavalry for Hannibal got the best of the exhausted Roman horsemen who retreated. The combination of the Nubian cavalry and the hidden Carthaginian troops attacked the flank of the Romans driving all but the infantry into a panic. When Semronius saw the battle was lost, he had his infantry retreat to a nearby town in an organized fashion.

Answer: Hannibal Barca

The battle of Lake Trasimene was a brilliant victory for Hannibal's forces. The Carthaginian forces had broken winter camp and managed to slip behind the army of Consul Flaminius into the Tuscany region of modern Italy. Hannibal sacked the towns he came across and killed all the men he found. Flaminius quickly pursued the Carthaginian force and had almost caught up to them at Lake Trasimene.

Hannibal decided the lake would make a great place to make a stand. He had his troops set up camp on a couple of hills on the north side of the lake in plain view of the Romans. Once night fell, Hannibal and much of his force did a silent night march to set up an ambush for the Romans. Being able to pull this off without a trained army finding out is remarkable. The next day the Romans marched to where they thought the Carthaginians were camped and were about to set up their battle lines when the trap was sprung. The Carthaginian forces descended on the Roman flanks and mass panic ensued. Since they could not line up properly, the Roman forces were vulnerable to being picked off one by one. Only the most well-trained of the Roman infantry were able to break out and flee the battlefield. However, Hannibal's forces were able to catch up to them. The entire legion of 25,000 Roman soldiers were either killed or captured, sending a shockwave through the city of Rome.

Answer: Hannibal Barca

After the massive victory at Lake Trasimene, Hannibal could have waltzed into Rome and overthrown the capital. Instead, he bypasses Rome and makes his way back towards Sicily and then Carthage. In southeastern Italy, he stopped and captured the strategic supply center of Cannae. The Romans were enraged and formed together 8 legions of 5,000 soldiers and 600 cavalry each to march to Cannae. Once again, two new consuls sought glory by defeating the Carthaginian scourge. Varro was the more aggressive consul with more to prove than well-connected Paullus. The Romans also had an unusual law requiring the consuls to alternate days of command allowing Hannibal to take advantage of the more reckless Varro.

Leading up to the battle Hannibal had far fewer infantry but a superior number of cavalry compared to the Romans. Hannibal's cavalry attacked the Roman water gatherers, creating a water shortage in the Latin camp. Once again the Carthaginians had the advantage of the sun being in the Romans' eyes and the added advantage of a wind blowing the dust from battle into the Roman troops. Add in that many of the Roman infantry were new recruits, and Hannibal had a few advantages going into battle.

Hannibal combined his brilliant understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of his men with strategic troop placement to lead to the greatest success. The Romans had overwhelming numbers of infantry and decided to line them up deeply. Hannibal decided to thin his line and took up a position with the middle of his infantry. He then had his men slowly retreat as the Romans pushed forward making a crescent shape with his line. The Roman infantry thought they were about to rout Hannibal, but he actually allowed them to move forward so his troops could completely encircle the Roman army. This tactic has become known as a pincer movement, and eventually, the Romans were packed so tightly that they had nowhere to go and no way to fight. It quickly became a bloodbath with an estimated 50,000 Romans killed with only 14,000 escaping. Despite this overwhelming defeat and the loss of one-fifth of men over the age of 17 in under two years, the Romans still would not sign a peace treaty. The logistics of capturing Rome were too difficult for Hannibal's forces, so instead, he spent the next several years creating havoc in the countryside. He would eventually siege Rome five years later in 211 BCE.

Answer: Hannibal Barca

In 203 BCE, the battle of Utica took place twenty-five miles from Carthage, ending in a huge victory for Rome. The Carthaginians recalled Hannibal and his army from Italy to help defend the city. The Numidian cavalry up until this point had been powerful allies with the Carthaginians, but Massinissa decided to change sides and join the Romans. This loss proved to be too great for the Carthaginians in the outcome of the battle of Zama.

The two infantries were evenly matched, and a fierce battle began. Hannibal first employed 80 elephants, but the Romans simply opened up holes to let the elephants through and then chased them off with arrows. The Roman and Numidian cavalry overwhelmed the Carthaginian horsemen causing them to flee. Once the Romans and Numidians returned and started attacking the flanks of the Carthaginians, the battle was over for Hannibal. Half of the Carthaginians were killed, and many of the rest were captured. Hannibal, along with a few thousand of his men, managed to escape the battle, but the overwhelming defeat left Carthage no choice but to accept the harsh terms of a peace treaty with Rome.

Hannibal first tried to play a part in Carthaginian politics, but he had too many enemies within Carthage and his presence scared Rome. Hannibal voluntarily went into exile and offered his services to anyone in the Mediterranean who opposed Rome. Finally, around 181 BCE Hannibal, had to commit suicide or be captured by Rome. Carthage never would rebuild the power they once had, and despite there being a "third" Punic war about 50 years later, the Carthaginians were no match for the Numidian and Roman forces. In 146 BCE Carthage was completely destroyed, and the inhabitants were sold into slavery.