Battle of the Trebia

A battle fought in 218 BCE during the Second Punic War, in which Hannibal’s Carthaginian army defeated Roman forces near the Trebia River in northern Italy.

Hannibal’s ambush at the Trebia: Hannibal’s use of a concealed force under Mago to attack the Roman rear during the Battle of the Trebia. The hidden force helped turn the Roman advance into a rout.
Second Punic War: A war fought between Rome and Carthage from 218 to 201 BCE, chiefly in the western Mediterranean. Trebia was one of Rome’s first major defeats in this war.
Hannibal: A Carthaginian general who led the invasion of Italy during the Second Punic War. He chose the battlefield and coordinated the cavalry and concealed attack.
Battle of Lake Trasimene: A 217 BCE battle in which Hannibal ambushed and destroyed a Roman army beside Lake Trasimene. It followed Trebia as another major Roman defeat during Hannibal’s advance.
Trebia River: A river in northern Italy that flows into the Po near Piacenza. Roman troops crossed its cold waters before fighting Hannibal.
Hannibal’s crossing of the Alps: Hannibal’s 218 BCE passage from Iberia into Italy with an army and war elephants. The crossing brought Hannibal’s depleted army into northern Italy before the battle.
Mago Barca: A Carthaginian commander and younger brother of Hannibal. Mago led the concealed force that attacked the Roman rear.
Battle of Zama: A 202 BCE battle in which Scipio Africanus defeated Hannibal in North Africa. Zama ended the war that began with Hannibal’s invasion of Italy.
Cavalry warfare: The use of mounted forces for reconnaissance, shock, pursuit, and battlefield maneuver. Carthaginian cavalry superiority helped drive Roman forces toward the river.
Battle of Ticinus: A 218 BCE cavalry engagement in northern Italy in which Hannibal defeated Roman forces under Publius Cornelius Scipio. This earlier clash preceded the Roman concentration near the Trebia.

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