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The Assult on Tarentum
Part of the Second Punic War
Date 209 BC Location Near Tarentum, Southern Italy Result Carthaginian total victory
Combatants
Carthage	Roman Republic
Commanders
Hannibal	Marcus Livius
Strength
10,000	unknown
Casualties
hardly any	nearly all the army

Second Punic War
Saguntum – Lilybaeum – Ticinus – Trebia – Cissa – Lake Trasimene – Ebro River – Cannae – 1st Nola – Dertosa – 2nd Nola – Cornus – 3rd Nola – 1st Capua – Silarus – 1st Herdonia – Syracuse – Upper Baetis – 2nd Capua – 2nd Herdonia – Numistro – Asculum – Tarentum – Baecula – Grumentum – Metaurus – Ilipa – Crotona – Utica – Bagbrades – Cirta – Po Valley – Great Plains – Zama

Hanibals assult on Tarentum

Hannibal leaves for Southern Italy:The Romans had long been awaiting the chance to strike at Capua the revolted capital of the Campania region in Southern Italy, the Romans had not had the chance to attack because Hannibal was in the region however in 209BC Hannibal was called south to Tarentum giving the Romans a perfect chance to strick, this shows us the Romans extraordinary fear of Hannibal and his capabilities. Meanwhile Hannibal is about to obtain some some important success which might compensate him in no small degree for the loss of Capua. His eyes had long been set on the city of Tarentum the richest in the whole of southern Italy.

Tarentums reasons for the dislike of Rome:Hannibal has for a long time been in communication with a party of Tarentium citizens who are unhappy with Roman rule. One attempt which had been made to by the people of Tarentum to free themslves had been in 211BC however it was halted by the precautions that the Roman commander Brundisium had taken he took effectual means for the defence of the of the city and sent some of the possible malcontents to Rome to serve as hostages for the good behaviour of the rest of the population of Tarentum. These hostages were later caught trying to ecape captivity in Rome. What followed was an example of Roman crulety they had the hostages scourged then convicted of the quaestores parricidii and flung the Tarpeian Rock. This act enfuriated the Tarentum people who renewed there communications with the Hannibal and began to again look for freedom from the romans.

Hannibal assults the city:Marcus Livius the governer of the city was a good soldier but a man of indolent and luxurious habits and on the night appointed by Hannibal for the attack he was feasting with friends and retired to rest, heavy with food and wine. In the middle of the night he was awoken to find Hannibal and 10,000 of his soldiers were in his city. Marcus Livius found his troops being cut down by the invaders, the roman soldiers were asleep or drunk and no match for the dedicated Carthaginians. Marcus Livius managed to bring the remaineder of his troops to the citidel where they held of all carthaginian assults however the city was lost. All the Greek towns in Sothern Italy with the exeption of Rhegium were now under Hannibals control.

What happened next: Sothern Italy provided Hannibal with a powerful foothold on the peninsular. However when he heard news that the Romans were sieging Capua he turned his army around after only days of capturing Tatentum he was outside Capua no general at this point had the courage to face the phoenician warmachine in open battle and the besieging army left the city this shows perfectly the effect that Hannibal had on the Romans he continued to have this effect until the arrival of Scipio Africanus. At this point in history Hannibal looks invinsible having allies in southern Gaul, owning Southern Italy and Spain, cities in Scilly such as Syracuse were beginning to revolt as well, Hannibal was also promised support from across the Addriatic in the form of the very powerful army of King Phillip of Macadon( this Support never came). However when Scipio Africanus comes to the attention of Rome, Hannibals fortunes change, as Africanus copies Hannibals moves and tactics which will eventually bring about a lucky victory for the Romans.