09-21-2019, 01:11 PM
Re: Duncan Ross. His proposal is creative, but not entirely convincing. There is not question that Kbor Khlib is a Numidian royal monument. But Ross' thesis hinges on Russell's identification of the battle site, which is far from certain. A rough mid-20th consensus formed around the Dra-el-Metnan plain (Kromayer, Scullard), although any other number of sites have been proposed.
Battlelines: Infantry probably needed about mile before the extension, and perhaps not much more after the extension, if the lines were deeply concave/convex. The cavalry actions probably needed much more space. I've written up my thoughts on the tactical aspects of the battle; PM or email me and I will send a copy (can't post on academia.edu).
Additional skirmishes: It seems clear that a number of minor actions took place before and after the battle. Polybius is clearly uninterested in these (but mentions significant violence against Libyan cities by Scipio, which no doubt involved some fighting as well as much massacre). But these skirmishes were important to family traditions, especially to up and comers, and were likely exaggerated in importance as they entered the annalistic tradition.
This thread has advanced the curious argument that these skirmishes somehow negate that at battle occurred or that the battle itself was somehow very minor. Most people believe that the Battle of Gettysburg took place and that it was the turning point of the US Civil War. That a skirmish was fought at Second Winchester on June 15th 1863 and another skirmish at Falling Waters on July 14th 1863 does not negate that a major battle took place on 1-3 July 1863 that changed the course of the war. But many written histories of the Civil War might omit these actions, even if they might be important to the officers and men who fought in them, and might receive local commemoration (say, a roadside marker).
Polybius had to sift through the morass of Roman family tradition, which involved a great deal of chest-thumping and finger pointing. No doubt he often hewed to certain traditions favored by the Aemillii and Scipiones, although not always: he famously botches the story of Scipio's election to aedile (wrong year, wrong running mate), which he ought to have gotten right given his close access to the family. We get the correct information, oddly, from Livy.
No one thinks Polybius is gospel, and the last generation of criticism on Polybius has emphasized the schematicism of his analysis and the moral lens with which he refracts his story. But if you want to write a history of Middle Republic, you are either inside the warm and cozy Polybius Club enjoying your free drink, or you are outside in the cold reading Appian's story of the duel between Scipio and Hannibal and insisting that this must contain some sort of Gnostic truth.
Battlelines: Infantry probably needed about mile before the extension, and perhaps not much more after the extension, if the lines were deeply concave/convex. The cavalry actions probably needed much more space. I've written up my thoughts on the tactical aspects of the battle; PM or email me and I will send a copy (can't post on academia.edu).
Additional skirmishes: It seems clear that a number of minor actions took place before and after the battle. Polybius is clearly uninterested in these (but mentions significant violence against Libyan cities by Scipio, which no doubt involved some fighting as well as much massacre). But these skirmishes were important to family traditions, especially to up and comers, and were likely exaggerated in importance as they entered the annalistic tradition.
This thread has advanced the curious argument that these skirmishes somehow negate that at battle occurred or that the battle itself was somehow very minor. Most people believe that the Battle of Gettysburg took place and that it was the turning point of the US Civil War. That a skirmish was fought at Second Winchester on June 15th 1863 and another skirmish at Falling Waters on July 14th 1863 does not negate that a major battle took place on 1-3 July 1863 that changed the course of the war. But many written histories of the Civil War might omit these actions, even if they might be important to the officers and men who fought in them, and might receive local commemoration (say, a roadside marker).
Polybius had to sift through the morass of Roman family tradition, which involved a great deal of chest-thumping and finger pointing. No doubt he often hewed to certain traditions favored by the Aemillii and Scipiones, although not always: he famously botches the story of Scipio's election to aedile (wrong year, wrong running mate), which he ought to have gotten right given his close access to the family. We get the correct information, oddly, from Livy.
No one thinks Polybius is gospel, and the last generation of criticism on Polybius has emphasized the schematicism of his analysis and the moral lens with which he refracts his story. But if you want to write a history of Middle Republic, you are either inside the warm and cozy Polybius Club enjoying your free drink, or you are outside in the cold reading Appian's story of the duel between Scipio and Hannibal and insisting that this must contain some sort of Gnostic truth.
