Hannibal: Clouds of War (59 page)

flute girls:

one of the numerous terms used by the ancient Greek writer Aristotle to describe prostitutes.

Fortuna:

the Roman goddess of luck and good fortune. Like all deities, she was notoriously fickle.

fugitivus
:

a runaway slave. The Roman practice of branding the letter ‘F’ (for
fugitivus
) on the forehead of such unfortunates is documented; so is the wearing of permanent neck chains, which had directions on how to return the slave to his or her owner.

fustuarium
:

the punishment meted out to soldiers who had fallen asleep on sentry duty, or been convicted of stealing, lying, attempting to evade duty by self-inflicted wounds, or committing the same crime three times. The guilty party was beaten or stoned to death by his comrades.

Gaul:

essentially, modern-day France. Gaulish warriors were renowned fighters, and many thousands of them fought in Hannibal’s army.

gladius
(pl.
gladii
):

little information remains about the ‘Spanish’ sword of the Republican army, the
gladius hispaniensis
, with its waisted blade. It is not clear when it was adopted by the Romans, but it was probably after encountering the weapon during the First Punic War, when it was used by Celtiberian troops fighting for Carthage. The shaped hilt was made of bone and protected by a pommel and guard of wood. The
gladius
was worn on the right, except by centurions and other senior officers, who wore it on the left. It is quite easy to draw with the right hand, and was probably positioned in this manner to avoid entanglement with the
scutum
while being unsheathed.

Gorgon:

in Greek, ‘Gorgo’, a mythical monster whose gaze turned people to stone. Her head was often depicted on Greek warriors’ shields.

gugga:

In Plautus’ comedy,
Poenulus
, one of the Roman characters refers to a Carthaginian trader as a ‘gugga’. This insult can be translated as ‘little rat’.

Hades:

to Greeks and Romans, this was the underworld – hell. The god of the underworld was also called Hades.

hastati
(sing.
hastatus
):

experienced young soldiers who formed the first ranks in Roman battle lines of the third century
BC
. They wore mail shirts, or bronze breast- and back plates, crested helmets, a single greave, and carried
scuta
. They were armed with two
pila
, one light and one heavy, and a
gladius hispaniensis
.

Herakles (to Romans, Hercules):

the greatest of Greek heroes, who completed twelve monumentally difficult labours.

hetairai
(sing.
hetaira
):

in ancient Greek, literally ‘female companions’. They were courtesans, or high-class prostitutes.

himation:

an extremely large piece of wool, often embroidered. It was worn by wealthy Greek men as their main garment.

Iberia:

the modern-day Iberian Peninsula, encompassing Spain and Portugal.

Illyrian: someone from Illyricum (or Illyria):

the Roman name for the lands that lay across the Adriatic Sea from Italy, including parts of modern-day Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia and Montenegro.

Isis, Bark of:

the Navigium Isidis, or Bark of Isis, was a festival held in honour of the Egyptian goddess Isis. It was celebrated on 5 March, and marked the beginning of the Roman sailing season – in other words, when it was ‘safe’ or propitious to begin a voyage.

Jupiter:

often referred to as Optimus Maximus – ‘Greatest and Best’. The most powerful of the Roman gods, he was responsible for weather, especially storms. His Greek equivalent was Zeus.

kopis
(pl.
kopides
):

a heavy Greek slashing sword with a forward curving blade. It was normally carried in a leather-covered sheath and suspended from a baldric. Many ancient peoples used the
kopis
, from the Greeks to the Etruscans and Persians.

kleptai
(sing.
kleptes
):

ancient Greek for thieves, or brigands. The word ‘kleptomaniac’ derives from it.

krater:

a large vase used to mix wine and water in ancient Greece.

lararium
:

a shrine found in Roman homes, where the household gods were worshipped.

Lenaia:

a Greek festival to Dionysos. Greek cities had their own calendars of festivals; we have no idea of that used by the Syracusans, so I have used a celebration attested to the Athenians.

Libyans:

soldiers from Carthage’s African territories. They were heavy infantry, and played important parts in many of Hannibal’s famous victories.

Macedon:

also known as Macedonia, a region linking the Greek peninsula and the Balkans. It was the birthplace of Alexander the Great, and at the time of the Second Punic War, it was still an independent kingdom, hostile to Rome.

maniple:

the main tactical unit of the Roman army in the third century
BC
. There were thirty maniples in a legion, and a total of about 4,200 men. Each maniple was commanded by two centurions, one more senior than the other. There were three classes of infantry in each legion (
hastati
,
principes
and
triarii
) as well as skirmishers, or
velites
(see individual entries). Maniples of
hastati
and
principes
were composed of two centuries of sixty legionaries; forty
velites
were also attached to each unit. A maniple of
triarii
, however, was smaller. It was composed of two centuries of thirty men each, and forty
velites
.

Mars:

the Roman god of war.

Melqart:

a Carthaginian god associated with the sea, and with Herakles (see above). He was also the god most favoured by the Barca family.

mollis
(pl.
molles
):

Latin word, meaning ‘soft’ or ‘gentle’. It’s my usage to make it a term of abuse for a homosexual.

Neptune (in Latin, Neptunus):

the Roman god of the sea. I’ve used the more modern word, as it’s far easier on the ear.

obol (in Greek,
obolos
):

a silver coin; six of them made a drachm.

optiones
(sing.
optio
):

the officers who ranked immediately below centurions; an
optio
was the second-in-command of a century.

Oscans:

ancient inhabitants of much of southern Italy, most especially Campania.

Palikoi:

twin gods sacred to a lake in the Sicilian interior. Traces of their sanctuary are still extant.

Persephone:

Greek goddess, wife of Hades and queen of the underworld. Together with her mother Demeter (see above), she was a patron goddess of Sicily.

phalanx:

the traditional tactical unit of ancient Greek armies and, it is thought, of the Libyan spearmen who fought for Carthage.

phalera
(pl.
phalerae
):

a sculpted disc-like decoration for bravery which was worn on a chest harness over a Roman soldier’s armour. Phalerae were commonly made of bronze, but could be made of more precious metals as well.

Phoenicians:

a seafaring, merchant people who lived mostly on the coastline of modern-day Lebanon. They were the founders of Carthage.

pilum
(pl.
pila
):

the Roman javelin. It consisted of a wooden shaft approximately 1.2 m (4 ft) long, joined to a thin iron shank approximately 0.6 m (2 ft) long, and was topped by a small pyramidal point. The javelin was heavy and, when launched, all of its weight was concentrated behind the head, giving it tremendous penetrative force. It could strike through a shield to injure the man carrying it, or lodge in the shield, rendering it impossible to use. The range of the
pilum
was about 30 m (100 ft), although the effective range was probably about half this distance.

poppy juice:

the drug morphine. Made from the flowers of the opium plant, its use has been documented from at least 1,000
BC
.

Poseidon:

the Greek god of the sea.

Priapus:

the Roman god of gardens and fields, a symbol of fertility. Often pictured with a huge erect penis.

principes
(sing.
princeps
):

these soldiers – described as family men in their prime – formed the second rank of the Roman battle line in the third century
BC
. They were similar to the
hastati
, and as such were armed and dressed in much the same manner. The
triarii
were the oldest, most experienced soldiers, and formed the third rank of the battle line. These men were often held back until the most desperate of situations in a battle. The fantastic Roman expression ‘Matters have come down to the
triarii
’ makes this clear. They wore bronze crested helmets, mail shirts and a greave on their leading (left) legs. They each carried a
scutum
, and were armed with a
gladius hispaniensis
and a long, thrusting spear. See also entry for maniple.

pteryges
:

also spelt
pteruges
. This was a double layer of stiffened linen strips that protected the waist and groin of the wearer. It either came attached to a cuirass of the same material, or as a detachable piece of equipment to be used below a bronze breastplate. Although
pteryges
were designed by the Greeks, many nations used them, including the Romans and Carthaginians.

quinquereme:

the principal Carthaginian fighting vessel in the third century
BC
; it was also used extensively by the Romans. They were of similar size to triremes, but possessed many more rowers. Controversy over the exact number of oarsmen in these ships, and the positions they occupied, has raged for decades. It is fairly well accepted nowadays, however, that the quinquereme had three sets of oars on each side. The vessel was rowed from three levels with two men on each oar of the upper banks, and one man per oar of the lower bank. See also entry for trireme.

Samnites:

the people of a confederated area in the central southern Apennines. Samnium fought three wars against Rome in the fourth and third centuries
BC
, losing the final one. Understandably, the Samnites did not rest easily under Roman rule. They backed both Pyrrhus of Epirus and Hannibal in their wars against the Republic.

Saturnalia:

a seven-day festival held in mid-December, and one of the most important celebrations in the Roman calendar.

scutarii
(sing.
scutarius
):

heavy Iberian infantry, Celtiberians who carried round shields, or ones very similar to those of the Roman legionaries. Richer individuals may have had mail shirts; others may have worn leather cuirasses. Many
scutarii
wore greaves. Their bronze helmets were very similar to the Gallic Montefortino style, a type also used by Roman soldiers. They were armed with straight-edged swords that were slightly shorter than the Gaulish equivalent, and known for their excellent quality.

scutum
(pl.
scuta
):

an elongated oval Roman army shield, about 1.2 m (4 ft) tall and 0.75 m (2 ft 6 in) wide. It was made from two or three layers of wood, the pieces laid at right angles to each other; it was then covered with linen or canvas, and leather. The
scutum
was heavy, weighing between 6 and 10 kg (13–22 lbs). A large metal boss decorated its centre, with the horizontal grip placed behind this. Decorative designs were often painted on the front, and a leather cover was used to protect the shield when not in use, e.g. while marching. Some of the Iberian and Gaulish warriors used very similar shields.

Senate:

a body of three hundred senators who were prominent Roman noblemen of the highest rank. The Senate met in central Rome, and its function was to advise the magistrates – the consuls, praetors, quaestors, etc. – on domestic and foreign policy, religion and finance.

Seres:

the Roman name for the Chinese people.

socii
:

allies of Rome. By the time of the Punic wars, all the non-Roman peoples of Italy had been forced into military alliances with Rome. In theory, these peoples were still independent, but in practice they were subjects, who were obliged to send quotas of troops to fight for the Republic whenever it was demanded.

stade
(pl.
stadia
):

a Greek word. It was the distance of the original foot race in the ancient Olympic games of 776
BC
, and was approximately 192 m (630 ft) in length. The word stadium derives from it.

strigil:

a small, curved iron tool used to clean the skin after bathing. First perfumed oil was rubbed in, and then the strigil was used to scrape off the combination of sweat, dirt and oil.