Cannae - why bother with the cavalry?

[Mark Hygate]

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So we have the Romans in the centre. Just thought I’d pass on some of the “secret” information to you Mark.....

Steven,

Many thanks, although I hardly consider that 'secret', but it does show the value of a re-look at the original and it is at times like these I wish I had a flair for languages and had indeed chosen Latin at school and perhaps even found Ancient Greek if my life had taken a different course. All I can do is rely on others for the translating and see what can be teased out and impart good analysis, which is something I do better, if I do say so myself, leavened with a hard dose of military reality and military history.

In fact I took my view on this relatively minor point from the Livy translation by Butterfield, but actually my Polybius translation is the newest (I believe) one by Robin Waterfield (Oxford) and doesn't show any detail like you show, merely saying that it was the Roman cavalry on the right, as you say. Thanks.

Helping clear up this minor point, however, is excellent to our general understanding.