Hannibal's Children
Encyclopedia
Hannibal's Children is the 2002 alternate history novel
by John Maddox Roberts
.
against the Romans
. The defeated Romans were forced to go into exile north of the Danube River. Years later a Roman expedition heads south to see what has changed in the world and meets the heirs of Hannibal who have become kings, or Shofet
, of Carthage.
. Hannibal offers terms to the Romans: abandon your city and move north of the Alps, or be destroyed. The Romans, under the dictator Q. Fabius Maximus
, accept the offer and withdraw into Germania
, vowing to return. The Carthaginians declare victory and go home.
One chapter and several generations later, the Romans have long since reestablished their republic. These Romans, largely out of need, have adopted a practice of Cultural Romanization
more pronounced than the historical Romans did: large numbers of Germans have been adopted into the Roman society, forming a large proportion of both the legions and the Senate. A series of auspicious omens prompt the Senate to send a delegation south into Latium. The expedition leaders are subtly but immediately at cross purposes: the commander, Marcus Scipio, a scion of the ancient patrician Cornelii Scipiones
family, is wholly motivated by a desire to reestablish the Republic in the Mediterranean basin. His deputy, Titus Norbanus, one of the newer, Germanic Romans, seeks personal glory, at least in part to ensure that the Germans (particularly his own family) remain as powerful within the expanded Republic as they do under the current scheme. It quickly becomes clear to the Romans that generations of constant warfare in Germania have strengthened them, whereas the Carthaginians have grown soft in the absence of real opposition. The Republic quickly begins playing the Carthaginians off against the Egyptians
(the only other serious power in the Mediterranean), reclaiming Latium in the process. At the close of the novel, the Egyptian army led by Scipio vanquishes the Carthaginian force, in which four Roman legions led by Norbanus are technically serving. The sequel follows Norbanus's trek back to friendly territory and his march towards power.
Titus Norbanus: Second in command of Roman Expedition
Selene: Queen of Egypt
Hamilcar: Shofet of Carthage
, Hannibal's Children and its sequel The Seven Hills
explore the decline of the Republic in the face of ambition. In the former, the Caesars
and in the latter Norbanus aggressively pursue power for its own sake, in the process exposing weaknesses in the Republic.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by John Maddox Roberts
John Maddox Roberts
John Maddox Roberts is an author who has written many science fiction and fantasy novels, including his successful historical fiction, such as the SPQR series and Hannibal's Children....
.
Plot introduction
The Carthaginians won the Second Punic WarSecond Punic War
The Second Punic War, also referred to as The Hannibalic War and The War Against Hannibal, lasted from 218 to 201 BC and involved combatants in the western and eastern Mediterranean. This was the second major war between Carthage and the Roman Republic, with the participation of the Berbers on...
against the Romans
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
. The defeated Romans were forced to go into exile north of the Danube River. Years later a Roman expedition heads south to see what has changed in the world and meets the heirs of Hannibal who have become kings, or Shofet
Shofet
In Hebrew and several other Semitic languages, shofet literally means "Judge", from the verb "Š-P-T", "to pass judgment". Cognate titles exist in other Semitic cultures, notably Phoenicia.-Hebrew:...
, of Carthage.
Plot summary
The novel opens at the alternate close of the Second Punic WarSecond Punic War
The Second Punic War, also referred to as The Hannibalic War and The War Against Hannibal, lasted from 218 to 201 BC and involved combatants in the western and eastern Mediterranean. This was the second major war between Carthage and the Roman Republic, with the participation of the Berbers on...
. Hannibal offers terms to the Romans: abandon your city and move north of the Alps, or be destroyed. The Romans, under the dictator Q. Fabius Maximus
Fabius Maximus
Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator was a Roman politician and general, born in Rome around 280 BC and died in Rome in 203 BC. He was Roman Consul five times and was twice Dictator in 221 and again in 217 BC. He reached the office of Roman Censor in 230 BC...
, accept the offer and withdraw into Germania
Germania
Germania was the Greek and Roman geographical term for the geographical regions inhabited by mainly by peoples considered to be Germani. It was most often used to refer especially to the east of the Rhine and north of the Danube...
, vowing to return. The Carthaginians declare victory and go home.
One chapter and several generations later, the Romans have long since reestablished their republic. These Romans, largely out of need, have adopted a practice of Cultural Romanization
Romanization (cultural)
Romanization or latinization indicate different historical processes, such as acculturation, integration and assimilation of newly incorporated and peripheral populations by the Roman Republic and the later Roman Empire...
more pronounced than the historical Romans did: large numbers of Germans have been adopted into the Roman society, forming a large proportion of both the legions and the Senate. A series of auspicious omens prompt the Senate to send a delegation south into Latium. The expedition leaders are subtly but immediately at cross purposes: the commander, Marcus Scipio, a scion of the ancient patrician Cornelii Scipiones
Scipio (cognomen)
Scipio is a Roman cognomen representing the Cornelii Scipiones, a branch of the Cornelii family. Any individual male of the branch must be named Cornelius Scipio and a female Cornelia. The nomen, Cornelius, signifies that the person belongs to the Cornelia gens, a legally defined clan composed of...
family, is wholly motivated by a desire to reestablish the Republic in the Mediterranean basin. His deputy, Titus Norbanus, one of the newer, Germanic Romans, seeks personal glory, at least in part to ensure that the Germans (particularly his own family) remain as powerful within the expanded Republic as they do under the current scheme. It quickly becomes clear to the Romans that generations of constant warfare in Germania have strengthened them, whereas the Carthaginians have grown soft in the absence of real opposition. The Republic quickly begins playing the Carthaginians off against the Egyptians
Ptolemaic dynasty
The Ptolemaic dynasty, was a Macedonian Greek royal family which ruled the Ptolemaic Empire in Egypt during the Hellenistic period. Their rule lasted for 275 years, from 305 BC to 30 BC...
(the only other serious power in the Mediterranean), reclaiming Latium in the process. At the close of the novel, the Egyptian army led by Scipio vanquishes the Carthaginian force, in which four Roman legions led by Norbanus are technically serving. The sequel follows Norbanus's trek back to friendly territory and his march towards power.
Characters in Hannibal's Children
Marcus Scipio: Leader of Roman Expedition to Carthage and EgyptTitus Norbanus: Second in command of Roman Expedition
Selene: Queen of Egypt
Hamilcar: Shofet of Carthage
Major themes
As with Roberts's other seriesSPQR series
The SPQR series is a collection of detective stories by John Maddox Roberts set in the time of the Roman Republic. SPQR is a Latin initialism for Senatus Populusque Romanus , the official name of the Republic.The stories are told in first-person form by Senator Decius...
, Hannibal's Children and its sequel The Seven Hills
The Seven Hills
The Seven Hills is the 2005 alternate history novel by John Maddox Roberts, a sequel to his 2002 novel Hannibal's Children..-Plot introduction:War breaks out again between the Carthaginians and the Romans...
explore the decline of the Republic in the face of ambition. In the former, the Caesars
Caesar (title)
Caesar is a title of imperial character. It derives from the cognomen of Julius Caesar, the Roman dictator...
and in the latter Norbanus aggressively pursue power for its own sake, in the process exposing weaknesses in the Republic.
Release details
- 2002, USA, Ace Books (ISBN 0-441-00933-6), Pub date ? May 2002, hardback (First edition)
- 2003, USA, Ace Books (ISBN 0-441-01038-5), Pub date ? March 2003, paperback