Battle of Cannae and General Norman Schwartzkopf claimed to have drawn inspiration from Hannibal's success for his devastatingly effective land offensive in the First Gulf War. Shortly after the start of the Second Punic War, Hannibal crossed into Italy by traversing the Pyrenees and the Alps during the summer and early autumn of 218 BC. He quickly won major victories over the Romans at Trebia and at Lake Trasimene. After these losses, the Romans appointed Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus as dictator to deal with the threat. Fabius used attrition warfare against Hannibal, cutting off his supply lines and avoiding pitched battles. These tactics
Quintus Fabius Maximus (consul 213 BC) Quintus Fabius Maximus (consul 213 BC) Quintus Fabius Maximus was a consul of the Roman Republic in 213 BC. He was the son of Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus, the famous "dictator" who invented Fabian strategy, and served with his father during the Second Punic War. The younger Fabius was a military tribune in 216 BC, and was among the survivors of the Battle of Cannae who ended up at Canusium. In 215, he was curule aedile. As praetor in 214, he commanded two legions with which he captured Acuca in Luceria as well as a fortified camp near Ardoneae. As