Black Panther Party of Northern California - Freedom Archives

PURNING SPEAR
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Hannibal is said to have been the most brilliant military .genius of all time .
At 26, he executed and accomplished what, in his day, was truly impossible,
Born in 246 A,D ., in a wealthy seafaring nation and descendants of another
great Black people, the Phonenicians, Carthage was the center . of trade at that
time . Carthage traded with India, people of the Mediterranean and neighboring
Isles and, of course, traded with other-people of Africa .
Rome, which was only 100 miles from the beautiful, black wealthy shores of
Carthage, naturally envied the richness there and wanted a piece of trade. Diy's
Soon war erupted between Rorne and Carthage (the first of dire° wars between
Rome and Carthage called the .Punic Wars) in which 53eily was lost to Romans .
Though the Carthaginians suffered that defeat, her people were soon 'roused
by Hamilcar Barca--the Lightning, who led his people on to a series of b~illiant
victories . His nine year old son, Hannibal (with the spirit of a born
warriox) then pledged to bury the Romans beneath the sand dunes of the Sahara .
Just seventeen short years later, Hannibal had become supreme commander of the
army, and went on to unite all his people and dust all his local enemies .
Spain and F~ance, plus the savage white tribes in the axea, also were subdued
by this brave black man . Even more daring, with just 80,000 men and 40
elephants, Hannibal decided to revenge his people and bring Rome tumbling down .
Even though Rome had a mi113.on men in its infantry a superior navy, and was
virtually impregnable because of the frozen Alps which provided a natural defense,
she still shook in her. white knees at the thought of Black retribution .
Check now ; Hannibal and his soldiers were
used to the weather of the tropics, were unmerically
and physically outnumbered, and
had not even seen the Alps nor could they imag
.ne the dangers to be encountered; the
freezing weather, frozen paths, incredible
precipices which meant instant death if one
fell, and savage cuhite tribes lurking behind
the rocks . This was incredible : No ~vprye
dared cross the Alps, except Hannibal
But before he even reached the Alps, Hannibal
met an array of whites guarding the
Rhine river which he had to cross . The
Hunkys had the numerical advantage, plus
they did not need to cross the river . Always
thinking, Hannibal sent part of his army
some few miles down vhe a:iver .where they
crossed safely . A1. a signal, Ha~a3.bai
crossed the river and was met full force in
the front by the enemy . Hannibal's other
soldiers then attacked the enemy on its
flank and caught them in a trick which
what looked as defeat into victory, bold
tactics into brilliant strategyr The Alps
were next°
---- . . . .-,,
Hannibal and hia soldiers found themselves fatally unprepaxed for the blizzard
cold of the Alps . Many of his men froze to death, or fell to death on the
high ridges . About halfway, Hannibal and his soldiers wexe met by a hostile
white tribe which let loose boulders on the army and killed many men who were
unable to defend or cover themselves on the narrow path . Unable to progress or