Hi there. You're listening to the Hellenistic Age podcast. Episode 70, the Second Punic War, to the Victor. The Battle of Kainai was a devastating blow to the Republic, and it would have been a

death knell for many lesser states in the ancient world. But much to the ire of his officers,

Hannibal declined to march upon Rome and chose

to remain in southern Italy. While the Romans were certainly brutalized, they had done anything

but off their terms of surrender, and were ready and waiting for any Carthaginian foray against

their city. This defiance was not lost upon Hannibal, who, despite achieving one of the greatest military

victories in history, was faced with the grim reality that the odds had not shifted too

much in his favor, and that more bodies would be needed to fill his ranks.

In conjunction with the defeats of the Trebion and Trasamine, the outcome of the battle convinced

a number of Italian

cities that the Romans were likely a lost cause.

The Punic commander was careful to grant clemency to any non-Roman prisoners he captured,

even going so far as to explain to the Italian POWs at Kenai that his wish was to only wage

war against Rome, and not her allies.

Italian peoples, such as the Samnites, Brutians, and Lucanians,

all tribes of southern Italy leapt upon the opportunity to fight back against the Romans.

The predominantly Greek city of Tarentum, modern Toronto,

was betrayed in a plot to Hannibal's army in 213. But the most important settlement

to change sides was Capua. Nestled in the region of Campania, nearly 200 kilometers southwest of Rome,

the nutrient-rich volcanic soil made Capua one of the most agriculturally productive sites in all

of Italy. It was also quite close to Latium, and Hannibal was

eventually able to use it as his headquarters for the winter of 216 to 215. In terms of paper strength,

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