1-156-872 - Ann Ronan Picture Library/Heritage-Images

Scipio Africanus, Roman general. Publius Cornelius Africanus Scipio (236-183 BC) fought in the Second Punic War against Hannibal and the Carthaginians. As a young military tribune he survived the disastrous defeat at Cannae (216 BC). Ten years later he drove the Carthaginians out of Spain, and in 202 BC, decisively defeated Hannibal at the Battle of Zama, bringing the war to an end and earning himself the name Africanus. Intrigues by political enemies forced Scipio to withdraw from public life, and he ended his life a virtual exile.