Battle of the Metaurus

The Battle of the Metaurus was a pivotal battle in the Second Punic War between Rome and Carthage, fought in 207 BC near the Metauro River in present-day Italy. The battle gets a chapter in the classic The Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World (1851) by Sir Edward Shepherd Creasy. The Carthaginians were led by Hannibal's brother Hasdrubal Barca, who was supposed to bring the siege equipment and reinforcements needed in order for Hannibal to defeat Rome. The Roman armies were led by the consuls Marcus Livius, who would later be nicknamed the Salinator, and Gaius Claudius Nero. Claudius Nero had just fought Hannibal in Grumentum, some hundreds of kilometers south of the Metaurus river, and reached Marcus Livius with a forced march which...