HANNIBAL’S APPOINTMENT RECONSIDERED: CRISIS, LEGITIMACY, AND THE REPUBLICAN INSTITUTIONS OF HELLENISTIC CARTHAGE

Abstract

The assassination of Hasdrubal in 221 bc created a power vacuum in Carthaginian leadership, echoing the crisis that followed Hamilcar’s death eight years earlier. Yet Hannibal’s subsequent appointment has attracted surprisingly limited attention in modern scholarship. This article reconsiders the event as the result of converging forces: a military command in search of stability, an aristocracy negotiating legitimacy, and a republic striving to preserve institutional continuity. Through an integrated analysis of education and politics, it contends that Hannibal’s elevation illustrates the capacity of Hellenistic Carthage to manage crisis through a calibrated balance of formation, tradition, and collective authority.