Hannibal: Clouds of War (58 page)

Here I need to mention the ‘Romani’ walk that I did in April/May 2013, along the line of Hadrian’s Wall. I did it in the full kit of a Second Punic War hastatus, including hobnailed boots. It was for fun, for charity, and because three other madmen agreed to accompany me: the aforementioned Tony Riches and Russ Whitfield, and Dr Mike Bishop, esteemed archaeologist, author and expert on Hadrian’s Wall. If you’re interested in seeing photos of the walk, take a look at my Facebook pages. If you’d like to listen to a podcast of it, head to Mike’s blog at:
http://perlineamvalli.wordpress.com/2013/06/04/podcastella/
. But I digress. I mentioned the walk for another reason. To help raise money, I was auctioning signed books, signed first editions etc. Then, for whatever reason, I decided to auction a minor character in this book. Whoever bid the largest amount would get to ‘star’ in
Clouds of War
. The character auction went so well, topping out at over £300, that I decided to do it with a second minor character. So when you read about Quintus’ comrades Mattheus and Gaius Marius, know that they are named for, and roughly based on, a Mr Matthew Craig and a Mr Ryan Yates respectively. Together these great guys donated over £600 to charity. Thank you, Matthew and Ryan, and my apologies for killing you both! Thanks also to Robin Carter, Paul Warren and Ray Brown, for digging deep into your pockets, and helping out, on many occasions. There are a host of other generous people out there who donated or helped in various ways: they’re too numerous to list, but thank you all, very much. Watch out for the Romani Walk 2014, in Italy!

I owe gratitude too to a legion of people at my publishers, Random House. There’s Selina Walker, my wonderful editor, whose eagle eye keeps my work on the straight and narrow; Katherine Murphy, my expert managing editor; Kiwi extraordinaire Aslan Byrne, who gets my novels into every possible UK outlet; Jen Doyle, who devises wonderfully inventive marketing; Richard Ogle, who designs my amazing new-look jackets; Amelia Harvell, ingenious procurer of all kinds of publicity; Caroline Sloan and Nathaniel Alcaraz-Stapleton, who persuade so many foreign editors to buy my books; David Parrish, who makes sure that bookshops abroad do so too. My sincere thanks to you all. Your hard work is very much appreciated.

So many other people must be named: Charlie Viney, my agent, deserves my thanks and gratitude as always. I’m appreciative of Richenda Todd, my copy editor, whose incisive input improves my novels; Claire Wheller, my first class physio, who stops my body from falling to bits after spending too long at my PC; Arthur O’Connor, an old friend, who also supplies excellent criticism of and improvements to my stories. Massive thanks also to you, my loyal readers. It’s you who keep me in a job, for which I am forever grateful. Your emails from all over the world and contacts on Facebook and Twitter brighten up my days: please keep them coming! Last, but most definitely not least, I want to thank Sair, my wonderful wife (.,,,), and Ferdia and Pippa, my lovely children, for the oceans of love and joy that they bring into my world.

Ways to contact me: email:
[email protected]

Twitter:
@BenKaneAuthor

Facebook:
facebook.com/benkanebooks

_______________

fn1
  JAFRA stands for Just Another F—Roman Author. We can ‘thank’ Angus ‘the Hood’ Donald for that soubriquet …

Glossary

acetum
:

vinegar, the most common disinfectant used by the Romans. Vinegar is excellent at killing bacteria, and its widespread use in western medicine continued from ancient times until late in the nineteenth century.

Aesculapius:

son of Apollo, the god of health and the protector of doctors. Revered by the Greeks, Carthaginians and Romans.

Aetolian Confederacy:

a federal league between the peoples of west-central Greece. In the third century BC, this confederacy was quite powerful. In 212 or 211, the Aetolians became allies of Rome against Philip of Macedon.

agora:

the central meeting area in a Greek city.

Alps:

In Latin, these mountains are called
Alpes
. Not used in the novel (unlike the Latin names for other geographical features) as it looks ‘strange’ to modern eyes.

amphora
(pl.
amphorae
):

a large, two-handled clay vessel with a narrow neck used to store wine, olive oil and other produce.

Aphrodite:

a Greek goddess associated with human sexuality and reproduction.

Apulia:

a region of southeast Italy roughly equating to modern-day Puglia.

Artemis:

an important Greek goddess associated with many things, including hunting and the rites of passage from childhood to adulthood and parenthood for both women and men.

Asklepios:

the Greek spelling of Aesculapius (see above).

Athena:

the Greek goddess of war.

atrium
:

the large chamber immediately beyond the entrance hall in a Roman house. Frequently built on a grand scale, this was the social and devotional centre of the home.

Attic helmet:

a helmet type originating in Greece, which was also widely used elsewhere in the ancient world.

Baal Hammon:

the pre-eminent god at the time of the founding of Carthage. He was the protector of the city, the fertilising sun, the provider of wealth and the guarantor of success and happiness. The Tophet, or the sacred area where Baal Hammon was worshipped, is the site where the bones of children and babies have been found, giving rise to the controversial and unpleasant topic of child sacrifice. For those who are interested, there is an excellent discussion of the issue in Richard Miles’ textbook,
Carthage Must Be Destroyed
. The term ‘Baal’ means ‘Master’ or ‘Lord’, and was used before the name of various gods.

Baal Saphon:

the Carthaginian god of war.

ballista
(pl.
ballistae
):

a two-armed Roman catapult that looked like a crossbow on a stand, and which fired either bolts or stones with great accuracy and force.

Boeotian helmet:

a broad-brimmed helmet worn by Greek and Roman cavalrymen during the Second Punic War.

bouleuterion
:

the building in a Greek city where the
boule
, or ruling council, met.

Bruttium:

the modern-day Calabrian peninsula.

caldarium
:

an intensely hot room in Roman bath complexes. Used like a modern-day sauna, most also had a hot plunge pool. The
caldarium
was heated by hot air which flowed through hollow bricks in the walls and under the raised floor. The source of the piped heat was the
hypocaustum
, a furnace constantly kept hot by slaves.

Campania:

a fertile region of west central Italy.

Cannae:

modern-day Canne della Battaglia, a site about 12 kilometres/7.5 miles west of the town of Barletta, in Apulia. It was the site of Hannibal’s incredible victory over the Romans in August 216
BC
.

Capua:

modern-day Santa Maria Capua Vetere, near Naples, in Campania. In the third century
BC
, it was the second largest city in Italy and had not long been under the control of Rome.

carnyx (pl. carnyxes):

a bronze trumpet, which was held vertically and topped by a bell shaped in the form of an animal, usually a boar. Used by many Celtic peoples, it was ubiquitous in Gaul, and provided a fearsome sound alone or in unison with other instruments. It was often depicted on Roman coins, to denote victories over various tribes. See also the Author’s Note.

Carthage:

modern-day Tunis. It was reputedly founded in 814
BC
, although the earliest archaeological finds date from about sixty years later.

cenacula
(pl.
cenaculae
):

the miserable multi-storey flats in which ordinary Romans lived. Cramped, poorly lit, heated only by braziers, and often dangerously constructed, the
cenaculae
had no running water or sanitation. Access to the flats was via staircases built on the outside of the building.

centurion (in Latin,
centurio
):

one of the disciplined career officers who formed the backbone of the Roman army. See also entry for maniple.

Cerberus:

the monstrous three-headed hound that guarded the entrance to Hades.

Ceres:

the Roman goddess of agriculture, grain crops and fertility.

chiton:

the standard wool or linen tunic worn by Greek men.

Cisalpine Gaul:

the northern area of modern-day Italy, comprising the Po plain and its mountain borders from the Alps to the Apennines. In the third century
BC
, it was not part of the Republic.

consul:

one of two annually elected chief magistrates, appointed by the people and ratified by the Senate. Effective rulers of Rome for twelve months, they were in charge of civil and military matters and led the Republic’s armies into war. If in the field together, each man took charge of the army on alternate days. In other circumstances, each could countermand the other; both were supposed to heed the wishes of the Senate. No man was supposed to serve as consul more than once, although in practice this was not the case.

contubernium
(pl.
contubernia
):

a group of eight legionaries who shared a tent and who cooked and ate together.

corona muralis
:

a prestigious silver or gold award given to the first soldier to gain entry into a town under siege. Such awards were denied to the exiled legionaries on Sicily, hence my fictitious description of Marcellus’ recognition of his men.

crucifixion:

contrary to popular belief, the Romans did not invent this awful form of execution; in fact, the Carthaginians may well have done so. The practice is first recorded during the Punic wars.

cubit:

an ancient unit of measurement, used by the Egyptians and Romans, among others. Depending on the civilisation, it measured between 44 and 45 cm, or 17 to 18 in.

Demeter:

the Greek goddess of corn (grain, not maize), and the mother of Persephone. Together, they were the patron goddesses of Sicily. She was revered in Italy as Ceres.

didrachm
:

a Greek silver coin, worth two drachmas, which was one of the main coins on third century
BC
Sicily, and in Italy. Strangely, the Romans did not mint coins of their own design until later on. The
denarius
, which was to become the main coin of the Republic, was introduced around 211
BC
.

Dionysos:

the twice-born son of Zeus (see below) and Semele, daughter of the founder of Thebes. Recognised as man and animal, young and old, male and effeminate, he was one of the most versatile and indefinable of all Greek gods. Essentially, he was the god of wine and intoxication but was also associated with ritual madness,
mania
, and an afterlife blessed by his joys. Named Bacchus by the Romans, his cults were secretive, violent and strange.

drachm:

a silver Greek coin. See entry for
didrachm
above.

equestrian:

a Roman nobleman, ranked just below the class of senator. In the third century
BC
, men such as these provided the regular cavalry for the Roman army.

Eros:

the Greek god of love.

Etruria:

a region of central Italy, north of Rome and the homeland of the Etruscans, a people who had dominated much of north-central Italy before the rise of Rome.

extraordinarii
(sing.
extraordinarius
):

the pick of the Roman allied troops, a mixed force of infantry and cavalry placed at the immediate disposal of the consul. See also entry for
socii
.

falcata
sword:

a lethal, slightly curved weapon with a sharp point used by Hannibal’s light Iberian infantry. It was single-edged for the first half to two-thirds of its blade, but the remainder was double-edged. The hilt curved protectively around the hand and back towards the blade; it was often made in the shape of a horse’s head. To see an example of one, take a look at the cover of the UK paperback of
Hannibal: Enemy of Rome
. That’s my sword!