The Battle of Cannae
Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cannae
What’s old is new again and those who forget history are doomed to repeat it – I can’t quite remember which ancient wag came up with the first phrase, although I recall the philosopher George Santayana being the source of the latter quote. The Battle of Cannae in 216 BC was among the earliest recorded instances of an encirclement or a pincer movement in warfare and its lessons reverberate through time to modern conflicts today.
During the Second Punic War, the forces of Carthage under the great general Hannibal were seeking to destroy the Roman Republic. The two sides met at Cannae, an ancient village in the heel of Italy. The Romans’ eagerness to attack, coupled with arrogance in their superior numbers allowed them to be lured in as the numerically inferior Carthaginian infantry retreated in a curving line. The retreat was a cunningly planned move that hemmed in Roman forces and allowed Carthaginian cavalry to strike and destroy the enemy from behind.
Later examples of encirclement include the massive losses suffered by German forces against the Soviet armies at Stalingrad in 1943 and the continuing battles of the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
