Hannibal was a grandson of Hamilcar Mago

Hamilcar I of Carthage

Hamilcar I of Carthage was a Magonid king of Carthage, in present day Tunisia, from 510 to 480 BCE.-Treaty with Rome:Carthage had concluded treaties with several powers, but the ones with Rome is the most famous. In 509 BC, a treaty was signed between Carthage and Rome indicating a division of...

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He was 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

Carthage

Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...

 in 410 BC and in 409 BC commanded a Carthaginian army sent to Sicily

Sicily

Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...

 in response to a request from the city of Segesta

Segesta

Segesta was the political center of the Elymian people, located in the northwestern part of Sicily, in what are now the province of Trapani and the comune of Calatafimi-Segesta....

. He successfully took the Greek city of Selinus

Battle of Selinus

The Battle of Selinus which took place in the spring of 409 BC, is the opening battle of the so called Second Sicilian War. The 10 day long siege and battle was fought in Sicily between the Carthaginian forces under Hannibal Mago and the Dorian Greeks of Selinus...

 and then Himera

Himera

thumb|250px|Remains of the Temple of Victory.thumb|250px|Ideal reconstruction of the Temple of Victory.Himera , was an important ancient Greek city of Sicily, situated on the north coast of the island, at the mouth of the river of the same name , between Panormus and Cephaloedium...

. In the process of this conquest he was said to have killed some 3000 prisoners of war, reportedly as revenge for the defeat his grandfather suffered in the Battle of Himera

Battle of Himera (480 BC)

The Battle of Himera , supposedly fought on the same day as the more famous Battle of Salamis, or on the same day as the Battle of Thermopylae, saw the Greek forces of Gelon, King of Syracuse, and Theron, tyrant of Agrigentum, defeat the Carthaginian force of Hamilcar the Magonid, ending a...

 seventy years before.

In 406 BC Hannibal Mago died in a plague that had broken out during the siege of Agrigento

Agrigento

Agrigento , is a city on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy, and capital of the province of Agrigento. It is renowned as the site of the ancient Greek city of Akragas , one of the leading cities of Magna Graecia during the golden...

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This person should not be confused with the much more famous Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca

Hannibal Barca

Hannibal, son of Hamilcar Barca Hannibal's date of death is most commonly given as 183 BC, but there is a possibility it could have taken place in 182 BC. was a Carthaginian military commander and tactician. He is generally considered one of the greatest military commanders in history...

 who led the Carthaginian forces during the Second Punic War

Second 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...

about two centuries later.