Giacomo's blog

If you have any interest in Roman History, or military history, this is a must read. While Liddell Hart has been questioned for his lack of depth by not delving into the German and Italian writings on Scipio, he still provides a detailed and thoroughly interesting portrait of one of the greatest generals and statesmen of all time.

So little is written about Scipio, and yet he is one of the most interesting characters of the early Roman era, or for that matter, one of the most interesting and influential characters of any era. Liddell Hart makes a strong case for Scipio being named the greatest general of all time, and while I would have challenged that offhand before reading this, now I'm not so sure. Scipio Africanus was an amazing man, who literally changed the course of history. What would have happened if Hannibal Barca won? What if there had been no Scipio?

What I like best about Liddell Hart's depiction of Scipio is that he portrays the man behind the scenes and not just the general. He also explains things so that even the battle scenes are easily understood by a non-military reader. And Liddell Hart goes into good detail of the reasons behind Scipio's actions—why he made decisions to do what he did. I've read this three times now, and it still holds up.
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