Roman Republic · 216 BC

Cannae, 216 BC: Rome's darkest day

At Cannae, Hannibal surrounded and destroyed the largest army Rome had ever sent into battle. Students study the famous double envelopment, then ask the bigger question: why did Rome not give up?

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
50 minutes
Ages
12–15
On the map
3 steps, 216 BC
Live lesson
7 rounds, 3 on the map
Worksheet
Two A4 pages, with Classroom
You need
A projector; phones for live

Live lesson · new in Classroom

Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.

Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.

€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.

A live lesson on the projector: the class's pins on the map around Alexandria, the closest students listed beside it A student's phone: the question and a map to tap
7 rounds
3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
About 15 minutes
Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
A report
Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
1

Introduction

5 min

Read aloud

At Cannae, Hannibal surrounded and destroyed the largest army Rome had ever sent into battle. Students study the famous double envelopment, then ask the bigger question: why did Rome not give up?

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Describe Hannibal's plan at Cannae and why it worked.
  • Explain why some Italian cities, such as Capua, went over to Hannibal after the battle.
  • Give two reasons why Rome survived the defeat and went on to win the war.
2

Explore the map

15 min

Project the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.

a

216 BC

Hannibal in Italy

Open the map in 216 BC, turn on Historical Events and choose Battles. Find the markers for the Trebia, Lake Trasimene and Cannae. Where did Hannibal go after each battle?

Open this view on the map
b

216 BC

The battlefield

Zoom in on Cannae, near the river Aufidus (Ofanto) in Apulia. The flat plain suited Hannibal's cavalry. Why does a general care where a battle is fought?

Open this view on the map
c

216 BC

Allies change sides

Pan from Cannae west to Capua in Campania, then south to Tarentum. After Cannae, Capua and many towns in the south joined Hannibal. Why was the south harder for Rome to hold than central Italy?

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

15 min

Pick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.

  1. Hannibal put his weakest troops in the center and his best on the sides. Why would that trap an army?
  2. Ancient writers say between about 48,000 and 70,000 Romans and allies died at Cannae. Why do historians disagree about such numbers?
  3. After Cannae, Hannibal did not march on Rome. Was that a mistake? What else could he have done?
  4. Rome refused to pay a ransom for the soldiers Hannibal had captured. Why might the Senate decide that?
  5. Officers still study Cannae today. What can a battle fought 2,200 years ago teach?
4

Game round

10 min

Play the Hannibal Barca round in Rule History and stop at the decision after Cannae. Let the class vote: march on Rome or not? Then compare with what Hannibal chose, and with what Livy says his officer Maharbal told him.

Open Rule History
5

Worksheet

5 min

This worksheet comes with Classroom

€19 per month unlocks every worksheet, every live lesson and the class workspace. The free lesson prints without a subscription.