Battles & Wars › Greece, Rome & Han › Punic Wars
Battle of Zama
202 BC· Battle· Middle East & Africa
Well documentedSolid records, physical evidence or scientific consensus.
Rome's Scipio Africanus defeated Hannibal in North Africa, ending the Second Punic War on Rome's terms.
See it on the Battles & Wars map →What happened
After Scipio invaded Africa in 204 BC, Carthage recalled Hannibal from Italy. They met near Zama, in today's Tunisia. Scipio left lanes in his lines so that most of Hannibal's 80 or so war elephants charged through harmlessly. Roman and Numidian cavalry, the Numidians led by their king Masinissa, drove off Hannibal's horsemen, then returned to strike his infantry from behind. Carthage lost perhaps 20,000 dead. In the peace of 201 BC it gave up Spain and its navy and paid a huge indemnity.
Why it matters
It made Rome the dominant power of the western Mediterranean. Carthage survived only as a disarmed client city until Rome destroyed it in 146 BC.
How we know
Polybius and Livy describe the battle in detail; Polybius was a close friend of Scipio's adoptive grandson and knew people who were there. The exact site has never been found.
Still debated
Army sizes are estimates, roughly 30,000 to 50,000 a side, and the battlefield's location is unknown.
Connections (2)
▸Hannibal Barca was finally defeated at Battle of ZamaWell documented
The connection
Zama reversed Cannae. Scipio had learned Hannibal's lesson that cavalry wins battles and recruited Numidian horsemen, once Hannibal's own advantage. Hannibal, short of good cavalry and leading partly raw troops, was outflanked and beaten. He escaped, urged Carthage to accept peace, and later went into exile.
When and how
Near Zama, in today's Tunisia, 202 BC; Hannibal against Scipio and the Numidian king Masinissa.
How we know
Polybius and Livy narrate the battle and Hannibal's part in it; both report a meeting between the two generals just before.
Debates and open questions
Whether that pre-battle meeting between Hannibal and Scipio really happened is uncertain; it may be a literary invention.
▸Battle of Zama ended Hannibal's war in Punic WarsWell documented
The connection
Zama ended the Second Punic War, the war Hannibal had launched in 218 BC. The peace of 201 BC stripped Carthage of Spain and nearly all its warships and forbade it to make war without Rome's consent. The Third Punic War (149–146 BC) came when Rome found a pretext and destroyed the city.
When and how
North Africa, 202 BC; treaty agreed in 201 BC between Carthage and Scipio, acting for Rome.
How we know
Polybius and Livy record the peace terms, including an indemnity of 10,000 silver talents payable over 50 years.
Debates and open questions
Historians debate whether Rome's later destruction of Carthage was driven by real fear, greed for land, or the senator Cato's famous hostility.