The immediate cause of the 2nd Punic war is generally thought to be Hannibals attack on Saguntum in 219; Polybious, however, prefers to regard this as the first incident in the war rather than the cause

Hannibal is a name that instilled fear in the hearts of many Romans during the 3rd century BC The Punic wars are still recognised today and known as wars that pushed the Roman empire to its limit. There were three Punic wars, the first spanning from 264-241 BC the 2nd Punic war is the best known, it was fought between 218 and 202 BC. This war was Hannibal¡¦s war and it will be the focus of this essay, this war at its completion was basically the end of the Carthaginian Empire as a major power. The third war was more of a slaughter of the Carthage City by Rome than an actual war and...