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First off, I'm not sure this is what you're looking for seeing as you listed under literature, but I'm going to summarize the battle:

It's the second Punic War between the city states of Carthage (North Africa) and Rome (central italy). A brilliant new Carthagenian General named Hannibal Barca (commonly Hannibal) has boldly trekked his army through Spain, then the Pyrenees, then south France, then crossing the Alps, with African elephants no less, in an incredibly bold plan to attack Rome by surprise. After various battles, the Romans are completely unable to score a major victory against Hannibal, who marches freely up and down the east coast of Italy with his army. At a point, the Romans have some success attempting to starve Hannibal's invasion force, but this was taking to long, and the people demanded swift action, so the Romans gambled everything on sending an enormous army to face off with Hannibal once and for all.

The two armies met near Cannae. The Roman army was led by two generals, who switched off command each day. That day, an aggressive general named Varro was in command. Before the battle he deepened the Roman fighting formation, sacrificing maneuvrability for smashing power, which would prove a fatal mistake. Hannibal lined up in a concave formation, bowed in the center, his infantry a combination of gauls, carthagenians, and others, with his Numibian Cavalry on each wing. His chosen formation seemed to invite an all out frontal attacked, and Varro obliged. To start the battle, Hannibal's superior Numibian cavalry crushed the Roman horsemen (this would repeatedly, in the future, be a problem for Rome) and began to chase off stragglers while awaiting Hannibal's orders. While this happened, the Roman Centuries attacked, and Hannibal's men began to lose ground. Then, just as victory seemed sure for the Romans, Hannibal ordered his best infantry, the Libyan Pikes, into action, crashing down on either side of the Roman's flanks. In another moment, Hannibal's Numibian cavalry returning from running down the routing enemy and charged in the Roman's rear. The Romans were now completely surrounded, and packed in so tight they could not use their weapons. Had there been any oreder, they could have easily organized at a point and by sheer numbers broke free, but that order never came amidst the confusion.

Aftermath: This was a crushing defeat for Rome, who lost up to 86,000 of a force of 90,000 men and horses, while Hannibal lost a (relatively) mere 8,000 out of his army of 50,000 (His elephants had all died in earlier battles and while crossing the Alps). This is especially noteworthy because almost an entire army was completely annhilated in mere hours. The next time this men men would die in such a short period of time came again four times:The first battle of the Somme, D-Day, and at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. After the battle, Hannibal continued his march up and down the Italian coast, to strong to be defeated, to weak to attack Rome. This continued until Scipio Africanus launched a Roman attack on Carthage to draw Hannibal out of Italy to defend his city. This worked, and Hannibal was finally defeated, ironically on his home soil at the battle of Zama. As the other two, the second Punic War was a decisive win for Rome, and helped established their dominance of Mediterranean Sea trade for the next half millenium.

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13y ago
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13y ago

The Romans had more troops and were arranged in three rows, Hannibal had less troops all arranged in one line. As the Roman troops surged forwards, Hannibal's central troops began to fall back bit by bit until the formation of Hannibal's troops was shaped like a C with the Romans in the middle. Once the Roman troops were surrounded like that it was almost impossible for them to win.

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Hannibal decisively defeated a major Roman army and the Romans realized that he was a superior general.

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Q: What was the outcome of the battle of Cannae?
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Did the Romans suffer a defeat against Hannibal?

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What lead the battle of cannae?

This question is confusing and needs rephrasing. It is not clear whether it is meant to ask what led to the battle of Cannae or who led the battle of Cannae.


How did the battle of Cannae effect the Roman empire?

How did the battle of Cannae affect the Roman empire


Who won the war of Cannae?

Carthage won the battle of Cannae.


When did Battle of Cannae happen?

Because the Romans just want battle I dare you to copy and paste this!!


Where was the battle of cannae fought?

It was fought near the town of cannae in apulia, southeast Italy


Hannibal was at the terrible battle?

Cannae.


How many years passed between the battle of Cannae and the battle of Zama?

14 - Cannae 216 BC, Zama 202 BC


How many years passed between the Battle of Cannae and Battle at Zama?

Almost 14 years : Battle of Cannae - August 2, 216 BC / Battle of Zama - October 19, 202 BC .


How long did the battle of Cannae last?

2 hours


What battle was the Roman republics worst defeat ever in history?

The battle of Cannae?


What was the date of the Punic War Battle at Cannae?

The Battle of Cannae took place on August 2, 216 BC. It was a massive victory of Hannibal over the Romans.