While Hannibal was in Carthage, Syracuse was torn apart by a civil war which disrupted the city and left it without effective leadership. The Carthaginians took advantage of the situation, sending Hannibal back to Sicily in 406 BC. He established a new city, Thermae, on the north coast of the island, populating it with the Greek survivors of the now-destroyed Himera. He then launched a new invasion of Greek Sicily, leading his army against Akragas. His force consisted of Carthage’s best elite troops, along with Iberian, Campanian, Baleric and Libyan mercenaries. Akragas was well-defended with a force of its own, supported by Greek Siciliot allies from Syracuse, Gela, Kamarina, Messana, and several Greek cities from Magna Graecia. They also had units of paid Greek and Campanian mercenaries. Both armies were well-matched and Hannibal was unable to break the city’s defense. As the Carthaginians laid siege to Akragas, their camp was struck with plague. As the sickness spread, it claimed many lives including Hannibal. His command was taken over by his relative, Himilco, who, in the spring of 405 BC, finally captured Akragas. The campaign which began as Hannibal’s personal vendetta against the Greeks continued on after his death. In the end, the Carthaginians failed to drive the Greeks from Sicily but secured Carthage’s hold on the western part of the island.
Hannibal (Hanba’al = “mercy of Baal”) Barca (2): Carthaginian general, born in 247 BCE, son of Hamilcar Barca; traveled with his father to conquer Spain when he was nine; from age 18 to 25, Hannibal carried out his brother-in-law Hasdrubal’s plan to consolidate Carthaginian rule on the Iberian Peninsula; Hasdrubal was assassinated in 221 BCE and Hannibal was chosen to lead the Carthaginian army in Spain; by 219 BCE, Hannibal had gained control of Spain between the Tajo and Iberus rivers, with the exception of Saguntum, which he captured in 218 BCE; Hannibal had violated Carthage’s treaty with Rome and Rome declared war on Carthage, thus began the Second Punic War; in 218 BCE, Hannibal marched with 40,000 troops to Rome, allying himself with various tribes and Italian cities along the way; in 211 BCE, Hannibal attempted to take Rome but failed to breakthrough the Roman fortifications; the Romans would retake Capua and the Italian allies of Hannibal were lost to him as a result; Hannibal’s brother, Hasdrubal, was called to help Hannibal in Italy but on his march from Spain, Hasdrubal was defeated and killed by the Roman consul Gaius Claudius Nero in the Battle of the Metaurus River; Hannibal returned to Carthage to defend against the Roman invasion led by Scipio Africanus the Elder in 203 BCE; the Roman invasion was successful and the Second Punic War ended in 202 BCE; always the leader and hater of Rome, Hannibal changed the Carthaginian constitution, reduced corruption in the government, and re-financed the city so that he could fight again; the Romans took Hannibal’s actions as a break in the peace and forced Hannibal to flee to Syria and the safety the court of King Antiochus III; Hannibal fought with the Syrians against Rome, but when the Syrians signed a treaty with Rome Hannibal fled again in 195 BCE this time to King Prusias II of Bithynia, in northern Asia Minor; when the Romans demanded his surrender, Hannibal committed suicide in 183 BCE.
Hatria: Ancient name for Atri (TE).
Hauteville (Altavilla) Dynasty: The first dynasty of the Kingdom of Sicily that ruled from 1130 to 1198. Originally a family of petty nobles from lower Normandy, many attempts have been made to connect them with more ancient and royal roots. These, however, are highly suspect and their origins remain obscure. According to one story, they were descended from a Norman named Hialt, who had founded a small village called Hialtys Villa (= “High Town”), in the Cotentin region of Normandy. It is from this village, whose location remains controversial, that the family derived its name. Many scholars identify it with Hauteville-la-Guishard.