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In 206 BCE, in the fields of south-eastern Spain, near the present-day town of Alcalá del Río, located 14 km north of Seville, the most brilliantly maneuverable battle of the Second Punic War took place.
This battle may even surpass in its artistry the famous Battle of Cannae from 216 BCE, during which Hannibal defeated Roman forces almost twice as large as his army. Today’s Spanish Alcalá del Río is ancient Ilipa. While there is probably no ancient history enthusiast who has not heard about Cannae, the Battle of Ilipa, because we are talking about it, remains somewhat unnoticed in the annals of history. It’s a pity, because it is one of the most interesting and important battles of the Second Punic War. It would not be an exaggeration to say that it was on Spanish soil near Ilipa that the fate of the Second Punic War was largely decided. The Battle of Ilipa took place in the final phase of the conflict, so in order to fully understand its impact on the final tipping of the scales of victory in the entire war to Rome’s side, it is necessary to show the genesis of it. Here’s how it happened and what happened then.
Briefly about the causes of the outbreak of the Second Punic War
The Second Punic War took place in the years 218 – 201 BCE between Carthage and the Roman Republic. Due to the enormous material, financial and human resources involved in waging this war by each of the parties involved in it and the geographical diversity of places where this conflict took place (i.e. the Apennine Peninsula, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily, Sardinia, the Balkan Peninsula and Africa Northern) some historians have been tempted to compare the Second Punic War to the world war of ancient times1. The most important figure of the Second Punic War was Hannibal, a Carthaginian leader from the powerful Barkid family. For this reason, the Second Punic War is also called the Hannibal War.
Hannibal was the eldest of the three sons of Hamilcar Barkas, a Carthaginian leader who, in 237 BCE, together with his son-in-law Hasdrubal the Fair, set out from his native Carthage to the Iberian Peninsula in order to bring Carthaginian influence to this area of the ancient world. In 229 BCE, Hamilcar Barkas died in one of the battles with the indigenous inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula. After his death, the rule over the Carthaginian estates in Spain that he had created was taken over by Hasdrubal the Fair due to Hannibal’s young age at the time of his father’s death. Hasdrubal the Fair continued to expand Carthage’s influence in Spain, but unlike his father-in-law, he did it mainly through diplomacy. Around 228 BCE, he founded the city of New Carthage2 (Latin: Carthago Nova, now Cartagena), which he established as the capital of the Carthaginian rule in Spain3.
It should be mentioned that the expansion of Carthage’s influence among the Iberian tribes did not go unnoticed by the Romans. Rome, concerned about the growth of Carthaginian rule in Spain in 226 BCE, turned to Hasdrubal the Fair with a proposal to conclude a treaty aimed at dividing the influence of both states in this area