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Summary: Great Book! I read it in two days, couldn't put it down.
Review: It seems that Scipio Africanus had ALL the qualities we desire in leaders. I found myself devouring this book for both historical interest and moral teachings. The only failing of this book is that the author so loves Scipio Africanus he makes out other great commanders (Hannibal, Alexander, etc) out to be lucky fools. In his defence the book I read on Hannibal did not hint at the true genius of Scipio Africanus.
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Summary: A brilliant ancient general is brought to life.
Review: Liddell Hart brings to life the savior of the Roman empire and conqueror of the legendary Hannibal. Scipio rises from a young, unknown quantity who is sent to salvage Rome's position in Spain to the consumate ancient general who forces Hannibal home, to Carthage, to defeat. By the end of the volume the reader could easily wonder why Scipio's name is not as familiar as Ceasar's.
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Summary: Scipio Africanus by Liddell Hart
Review: Liddell Hart pieced together the patchwork of Scipio's life to write an incredible biography dealing with the man and his campaigns. Scipio is perhaps the greatest general in ROman history who faced Hannibal on more than one occasion and never lost to him. Recommended for those interested in Roman history or military history and strategy.
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Summary: Easy to Read, Worth Reading - A true Genius
Review: Liddell Hart presents us with the blueprint for the modern warrior. One who seeks to complete the overarching aim of the conflict without wanton destruction and carnage associated with World War 1. Published in 1926, fresh on the folly of the protracted trench warfare and the horribly punitive reparations demanded of the Germans, this book demonstrates a different way. The slaughter of soldiers without any clear military advantage arising from the action horrified LH's generation. Here is LH's description of a better way to prosecute a war. He dispels the notion that it something of a giant chess match played by the detached, but a horrific thing that should be resolved as expeditiously as possible. Here is how he writes that Scipio does it.First Scipio crippled the Carthaginians in Spain by capturing Cartegena, then crippled Hannibal in Italy by diverting Carthaginian resources from Italy to Spain. Then, piecemeal, he disables the remaining Carthaginian threat in Spain until only a sliver is no longer in Roman control. Buoyed by his triumph he proposes to attack Carthage while Hannibal still roams Italy. He receives permission from the fearful Roman Senate but modest support, and then proceeds the most stunning defeat of three separate armies (each larger than his own), including one led by Hannibal after his recall from Italy. Each battle won here was the result of superior tactics and strategy being brought to bear on the enemy. After defeating the Carthaginians (and later the Syrians under Antiochus) there was no excess pillaging and the tribute demanded was modest. Scipio made no personal fortune from the victories and was magnanimous to the defeated. The contrast to the First World War and its aftermath could not be more stark. Scipio realized that peace is the greater aim of war and he sowed the seeds of peace with every action during war. The French chose to sow a future war with the armistice concluding the First World War. As is common even in this day, Scipio was later vilified at home for his decisive action that brought peace. The critics of Scipio's day feared that his popularity would rise if they were silent in the face of his successes.
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Summary: The Best Book On The Great General.
Review: Liddell-Hart has delivered a godsend for military enthusiasts & readers alike,by finely narrating the campaigns & quite convincingly the achievements of this brilliant & great but quite appropriately forgotten general. One of the greatest crimes of this book is the way the author undermines the greatness of the other three immortals of military antiquity:Alexander,Hannibal & Caesar.Though I would not go into great length to prove this,point by point,I would humbly suggest readers that after reading this book,to please look for other sources on the great generals aforementioned,so one could compare & see things in a much better,clearer,more factual light.I strongly suggest reading Theodore Dodge's books on these men.For if one were to rely on this book as a main source,one would be terribly misguided into believing Scipio as the greatest man & general in history.Which is definitely not the case.When all is summed up,comparing him to his rival,the case paves to this irrefutable fact:Hannibal was the original,innovative master,& Scipo his greatest pupil. My other criticism,in a more technical term,is the lack of more maps in the book to detail & highlight his campaigns.Maps detailing the maneuveres in the Battle of the Great Plains,the burning of the Carthaginian camps,the battle against Andobales in Spain,The Siege Of Cartagena,etc.,would have made it a more instructive & fulfilling book. Other than these,I would say that this is the best book on Scipio ever written,a great contribution to humanity in fact,in the sense that it brings to every reader the importance & achievement of a great man who is almost forgotten in the annals of history.And convinces him.And for this alone deserves the highest merit.
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Summary: Masterpiece of myth-demolishing writing
Review: Liddell-Hart's Scipio should be required reading in every high school and university because he refuses to worship at the altar of the sacred cows of history, killers like Hannibal, Caesar, Alexander, Napoleon, Robert E. Lee, etc. All of these "Great" men brought either tyranny to their country or left a legacy of poverty and destruction behind after their pursuit of glory on the battlefield. Not so with Scipio Africanus. Scipio was an intellectual and a lover of the classics. He joined the army not to seek personal fame and fortune, but to save his people from being destroyed by the rampaging Carthaginian Hannibal. When he was through defeating his enemy in Spain, Sicily, and finally on Hannibal's home turf in Africa at the battle of Zama, Scipio built a framework of peace and stability for the young Roman Republic that would only be threatened by Julius' later introduction of tyranny and one man rule. The most significant point militarily that Liddell-Hart makes is in emphasizing Scipio's use of indirect approach. Instead of relying on bloody frontal assaults into the heart of the enemies main army Scipio used an economy of human lives by attacking his enemies supply bases with few casualties to either side. By ruining Hannibal's ability to stay in Italy and forcing him to return home once Scipio was threatening to overrun Carthage, Scipio preserved the lives of his own men for the final confrontation at Zama. Once the time came for a head to head battle, the roman legions were supremely confident, even though Hannibal had never been defeated. Many readers even today sing the praises of Hannibal, but the truth is that Hannibal was soundly defeated at every turn by Scipio Africanus. Scipio's name must be remembered with higher esteem and honor. Liddell-Hart suggests that Scipio is greater than Napoleon because for all of his brilliance and virtuosity, Napoleon did everything to glorify himself, to seize dictatorial power, and all his efforts were ultimatley futile. He was defeated, he bankrupted France, and millions of men died or lived out their lives as cripples because of his masturbatory fantasies of personal wealth and glory. Scipio brought security and prosperity to his people, and then retired. That is why I also think that Scipio was Greater than Napoleon.
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Summary: The First Soldier Better At Peace Than At War
Review: Oh, if only the victors at Versailles after World War One had read and heeding the lessons of Scipio! Here is the first example of victory by fighting wars without revenge or anger and looking constantly to achieve victory without war by turning ones enemies into friends at every opportunity. Hitler would never have found an angry Germany to lead if Scipio had conquered the Kaiser. Obviously his lessons had not been lost on Roosevelt.
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Summary: Intriguing look at, possibly, history's greatest captain
Review: Scipio Africanus is not the general one usually associates with Rome, but after reading Hart's biography of him, I am convinced that he was Rome's greatest captain. Hart's analysis is clear and concise, and he covers all the aspects of Africanus' genius in detail. Not only was Scipio an unrivalled military genius, but also a skilled diplomat, and a man of vision. Undefeated in battle, Scipio not only conquered Rome's enemies, but through dimplomacy was able to gain powerful allies, and fulfill his vision, of an acient world dominated, but not controlled, by Rome. Unfortunately, his high moral character did not allow him to play the game of politics and therefore, he was cheated out of his rightful place in history. Hart, after presenting a strong case for Scipio's sumpremacy, moves on to compare him to other great captains. I believe he convincingly shows that no other general in history achieved Scipio's understanding of the breadth of war, and it's ultimate goal of creating a lasting peace. For this reason, Hart concludes that Scipio is the greatest captain of all time. This book is a must read for anyone who wants to read about the greatest general they never heard of!
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Summary: One of History's best kept secrets!
Review: Scipio gets his just deserve as one of the greatest generals. Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar and Napoleon have their places in history, now too Scipio. This is justifiably so as he was a master not only of survival, Trebia and Cannae, but also of his teacher, Hannibal. Scipio's achievements place him among all the great generals yet like Wellington overlooked, each possibly because of whom they defeated...
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Summary: The Man Who Saved Rome
Review: The title tells you what Liddell Hart thinks of him: in his estimation, Publius Cornelius Scipio was the greatest general of all time. At first blush this may seem a pet theory: Scipio's name is unfamiliar to most all except classics scholars and opera buffs. But in a detailed, illuminating account of Scipio's career, Liddell Hart prosecutes his theory with vigor. As he explains, "greatness" is not properly measured in terms of body count or territorial gain; to find a "great captain" one first looks for someone who knows precisely what needs to be done in order to achieve a strategic objective, and finds the tactical means to do this. Scipio's trumphs in New Carthage (Spain) and later his annihilation of Hannibal's army at Zama and later exploits in Asia are proof of this ability. Above this, a great general must have a sense of proportion, of measuring the success of a particular strategy in terms of its long-term impact. In this respect, he argues, Scipio wins out over Napoleon, because he never went to excess in the pursuit of his military goals. He was never greedy, bloodthirsty or unrealistic: witness his refusal to pursue endless and futile conquests in Asia, or the relatively generous terms that he offered Carthage in the Punic Wars. Liddell Hart's concept of "greatness by restraint" also reveals his own perspective on military affairs: writing as he did in the 1920s, he was very subtly expressing his profound disgust with many of the WW1 leaders. Tis book can thus be read on two levels: Liddell Hart's derision of Cato (the genocidal Roman senator who, following Scipio's retirement, eventually persuaded Rome to raze Carthage to the ground) can be interpreted as a latter day commentary on the politicians who deluded themselves that Versaille had won them an everlasting peace.
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