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SPQR: The Men Who Made and Secured the Roman Republic

Khalid Elhassan January 3, 2025 13 min

Roman - The Oath of Junius Brutus, by Fragonard Alexander Evarist — The Oath of Junius Brutus, by Fragonard Alexander Evarist. University Online

2. The Republic’s Young General

Scipio Freeing Massiva, the captured nephew of an important Carthaginian ally, by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo. Walters Art Museum, Baltimore

In 211 BC, Scipio’s father and uncle were defeated and killed fighting Hannibal’s brother in Hispania. In elections for a new proconsul to lead an army to avenge the defeat, Scipio was the only candidate for a position seen as a death sentence by many. Only twenty five, Scipio was underage to be legally elected proconsul. So a special law was enacted to give him command. He opened the campaign with a surprise attack in 209 BC that captured New Carthage (modern Cartagena), the Carthaginian seat of power in Hispania. That secured at a stroke ample supplies, as well as a great harbor and base for further operations. Scipio then campaigned across Hispania, winning a series of victories. By 206 BC, he had wrested all of Hispania from the enemy. He then returned to Rome as its most successful general to date, and was elected consul in 205 BC.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.