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o After breaking away from Etruscan domination, Rome was
sacked by Gauls in 390 B.C.o In 321 B.C., the Romans were beaten and ritually humiliated
by the Samnites at the Battle of the Caudine Forks.o In the 280s, the Greek mercenary general Pyrrhus destroyed
two Roman armies.o Finally, in the Punic Wars, the Romans lost several successive
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three times in Italy itself by the Carthaginian military genius
Hannibal. Rome’s darkest hour came at the Battle of Cannae
when, in one afternoon, Hannibal obliterated two entire Roman
armies, killing between 60,000 and 80,000 men.x Yet Rome usually ended up winning wars. The key to the Romans’
early success was a dogged determination never to give up, no
matter what the cost, coupled with vast reserves of manpower drawn
from the Italian cities they had conquered and given citizenship.
These manpower reserves repeatedly enabled the Romans to keep
¿JKWLQJDQGZHDUGRZQWKHLURSSRQHQWVx The Romans learned from their enemies, as well. They adopted
weapons and tactics that took the best from each foe: for example,
the short sword of the hill tribes of Spain, which evolved into the
gladius and became an immediately recognizable symbol of Roman
imperialism and military might.x In its weapons, tactics, and organization, the army of Philip V of
Macedonia was a direct descendant of the army commanded by
Alexander the Great. At Alexander’s death, his empire had split
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using Alexander’s style of warfare. These Hellenistic kingdoms
were powerful and wealthy, and collectively, they controlled the
richer, more urban, more culturally sophisticated eastern half of
the Mediterranean.