Hasdrubal the Boetharch

Hasdrubal the Boetharch (Punic: 𐤏𐤆𐤓‬𐤁‬𐤏𐤋‬, ʿAzrubaʿal) was a Carthaginian general during the Third Punic War. Little is known about him. "Boetharch" was a Carthaginian office, the exact function of which is unclear. It may derive from the Ancient Greek term "βοηθός (boēthós)" or "auxiliary," suggesting a leadership role among Carthage's mercenary armies. It is not to be confused with the Greek title boeotarch—a leader of the Boeotian Confederacy.

Life

The Second Punic War ended in 201 BC, and the peace settlement did not allow Carthage to wage any war without Rome's permission. Masinissa of Numidia, an ally of Rome, took advantage of this to raid and seize Carthaginian territory. In 149 BC, Carthage sent an army under Hasdrubal against Masinissa, in breach of the treaty. The campaign ended at the Battle of Oroscopa, where Carthage was defeated and Hasdrubal surrendered its army.

Hasdrubal survived to lead the Carthaginian forces at the Siege of Carthage in 146 BC. Their defeat by Scipio Aemilianus, proconsul of the Roman Republic, brought the war to a close. Hasdrubal's military skill was not to be doubted, as his army had been well trained and equipped. His work at defending Carthage cost the Romans a difficult campaign to suppress the defenders. His tactical skills, however, were dwarfed by those of Masinissa and Scipio.

According to Polybius, after Hasdrubal surrendered to Scipio, his wife cursed her husband, cut the throats of their two sons, threw them into a burning temple, and charged in herself. Hasdrubal was taken to Rome and displayed during Scipio's triumph, but later allowed to live in peace in Italy.

This may be the same general Hasdrubal who was defeated near the town of Tunes (now Tunis) by the Numidian king, Masinissa, just after war was declared (149 BC).

See also

• Other Hasdrubals in Carthaginian history

References

Bibliography

• Havell, H.L. (2009), Republican Rome..., BiblioBazaar, p. 321, ISBN 978-1-115-39574-8.
• Huss, Werner (1985), Geschichte der Karthager, Munich: C.H. Beck, ISBN 9783406306549. (in German)
• Mommsen, Theodor (1870), William Purdie Dickson (ed.), The History of Rome, Vol. 3, New York: C. Scribner & Co, pp. 42–54.
• Book XXXVIII of Polybius's Histories, English trans., 7–8,20
• Smith, William, ed. (1849), Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, Vol. II, C.C. Little & J. Brown, pp. 359–360.

External links

• Media related to Hasdrubal the Boetharch at Wikimedia Commons
• Polybius, Fragments of Book XXXVIII, 7
• Livius.org: Hasdrubal
• William Smith, "Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, Volume 2", C.C. Little and J. Brown, 1849 [1].