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DISSERTATION 


QN 


THE  PASSAGE   OF  HANNIBAL 
OVER  THE  ALPS. 


n  IN 

C 


DISSERTATION 


•z,<^5' 


ON 


THE   PASSAGE    OF    HANNIBAL 


OVER  THE   ALPS, 


BY  A  MEMBER  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  OXFORD. 


yianuq  'ivixx  kxi  ^xq.     PoLYB.  lib.  iii.  cap.  48. 


OXFORD, 

PRINTED  BY  W,  BAXTER,  ^ 


FOR  J.  PARKER  ;   AND  G.  AND  W.  B.  WHITTAKEtt,  AVE  MARIA  LANE, 
LONDON. 


1820. 


(E 


IClm^J^^ 


B 


6't 


PREFACE. 


The  wonderful  undertaking  which  it  is 
the  purpose  of  the  following  pages  to  in- 
vestigate would  naturally  have  attracted 
great  attention,  if  considered  only  with  re- 
ference to  its  general  consequences,  and  to 
its  particular  effects  on  the  great  contest 
carried  on  between  Rome  and  Carthage. 
For  this  march,  which  carried  the  war  from 
a  distant  province  to  the  very  gates  of  the 
former,  totally  changed  the  character  of 
the  struggle,  and  compelled  the  Romans 
to  fight  for  existence  instead  of  territory. 

These  effects,  however,  are  not  the  only 
reasons  which  have  thrown  so  much 
interest  on  the  passage  of  the  Alps  by 
Hannibal ;  for  the  doubt  and  uncertainty 
which  have  existed,  even  from  very  remote 
times,  as  to  the  road  by  which  the  passage 

a3 


VI 


was  effected,  the  numerous  and  distin- 
guished writers  who  have  declared  them- 
selves on  different  sides  of  the  question, 
the  variation  between  the  two  great  histo- 
rians of  the  transactions  of  those  times, 
Polybius  and  Livy,  all  these  things  united, 
have  involved  the  subject  in  difficulties 
w^hich  have  increased  its  importance,  and 
which  have  long  exercised  many  able  writ- 
ers in  vain  attempts  to  elucidate  them. 

The  relation  of  Polybius,  who  lived  very 
soon  after  the  transactions  which  he  de- 
scribes, and  who  had  himself  examined  the 
country  for  the  purpose  of  writing  his 
history,  would  naturally  appear  the  most 
authentic,  on  account  of  its  early  date,  as 
well  as  of  the  internal  evidence  which  it 
bears  of  truth.  Unfortunately  Polybius  was 
writing  to  Greeks,  and  was  therefore,  as  he 
himself  tells  them,  not  anxious  to  introduce 
into  his  narrative  names  of  places  and  of 
countries  which  they  were  little  interested 
in,  and  which,  if  inserted,  would  rather 
have  injured  than  assisted  the  unity  of  his 
story.     In  consequence   of  this,  although 


VII 


he  has  been  remarkably  careful  in  giving 
us  the  distances  performed  by  the  Cartha- 
ginian army  in  their  march  from  the 
Pyrenees  to  the  plains  of  Italy,  as  well  as 
the  time  in  which  they  were  completed, 
he  has  been  generally  sparing  of  his  proper 
names,  and  he  has  not  positively  stated  in 
terms  the  name  of  that  passage  of  the 
Alps  through  which  Hannibal  marched. 

Now  though  the  distances  (which  are 
positive)  and  the  general  description  of 
the  country,  and  the  names  of  the  nations 
(when  these  latter  are  mentioned)  which 
the  army  passed  through,  afford,  as  we 
trust  we  shall  shew,  sufficient  data  to  prove 
beyond  all  doubt  that  Hannibal  passed  by 
the  Alpis   Graitty  or  Little  St.  Bernard", 

*  The  Alpis  Graia,  or  Little  St.  Bernard,  forms  the 
communication  between  the  valley  of  the  Isere  and  that 
of  Aoste.  It  is  situated  a  little  to  the  south  of  the  Mont 
Blanc,  and  is  the  most  northerly  of  the  passages  of  that 
division  of  the  Alps  which  run  from  north  to  south. 
The  Alpis  Cottia  or  Mont  Genevre  is  situated  to  the 
south  of  the  Mont  Cenis  and  to  the  north  of  the  Mont 
Viso,  and  forms  the  communication  between  Brian9on 
and  Grenoble,  and  the  vallev  of  Susa,  which  leads  down 


Yin 

'  yet  as  this  is  not^  expressly  stated,  Livy, 
who  without  acknowledgment  has  bor- 
rowed the  greater  part  of  his  own  narrative 

I   from  Polybius,  has  asserted  that  he  went 

1  over  the  Alpis  Cottia  or  Mont  Genevre ; 
and  as  Livy  is  much  more  read  than  Poly- 
bius,  his  account  has  obtained  much  more 
credit  than  it  deserves,  and  has  been  con- 
sidered as  almost  decisive  of  the  question. 
It  has  been  particularly  adopted  by  all 
the  French  writers  upon  the  subject, 
and  though  they  all  differ  from  each  other 
as  to  the  road  which  the  army  took  to 
arrive  at  the  passage,  and  further,  although 
the  account  itself  is  absolutely  inconsistent 
in  many  parts,  yet  the  authority  of  so  great 
a  name  has  almost  set  criticism  at  defiance, 
and  his  commentators  have  endeavoured 
to  reconcile  his  contradictions  as  well  as 
they  were  able.     It  was  evident  however  to 

.  those  who  were  in  the  habit  of  looking  a 
little  deeper  than  the  surface,  that  Livy's 

to  Turin.  As  there  are  no  post  roads  over  either  of  these 
two  passes,  they  are  but  little  frequented  in  comparison 
with  the  Mont  Cenis  and  the  Simplon. 


IX 


account,  which,  even  when  taken  by  itself, 
was  far  from  satisfactory,  was,  when  com- 
pared with  that  of  Polybius,  with  which  it 
had    been    generally   supposed    to    agree, 
very  different  in  its  conclusion  ;   and   this 
variation   between   them   was  so   decided, 
that  it  was  quite  impossible  that  both  could 
be  right.     Gibbon  was  so  much  struck  with 
this  variation,  as  well  as  with  the  respective 
characters  of  the  two  authors  as  historians, 
that  he  would  have  given  up  Livy  at  once, 
had  he  not  been  unable,  from  his  ignorance 
of  the  passage  alluded  to  by  Polybius,  to 
decide   the   question  in  his  favour.     The 
opinion  of  Gibbon  appears  also    to  have 
been    very    much    influenced    by   that    of 
D'Anville,  an  authority   to    be   respected 
above   ail  others   for  wonderful   accuracy 
and  depth  of  research  in  matters  relating  to 
ancient  topography. 

D'Anville  however  is  guided  in  his  opi- 
nion by  the  idea  that  the  guides  of  Hannibal 
were  Taurini,  a  mistake  which  is  the  more 
extraordinary,  as  Livy  himself  states  them 
to  be  Boii,  who  were  Gauls,  and  hved  toiivy,  ub. 

xxi.  c.  39. 


the  north  of  the  Mont  Genevre,  while  the 
former    were   Ligurians,    and    their    chief 
city  was  situated  at  the  foot  of  that  pass. 
Mr.  Houldsworth,  who  had  devoted  much 
Vide        of  his  time  and  attention  to  subjects  of  this 
iS^otes  nature,   appears   to  have  detected  Livy's 
Books.      inconsistencies  as  well  as  Gibbon,  and  to 
have  been  of  opinion  that  the  army  crossed 
the  Alps  to  the  north  of  the  Mont  Genevre; 
but  as  he  was,  as  well  as  Gibbon,  unac- 
quainted with    the  passage   of  the  Little 
St.  Bernard,  he  was  imable  to  fix  upon  the 
exact  spot. 

It  is  to  General  Melville  that  the  literary 
world  has  been  indebted  for  the  suggestion 
of  this  latter  pass,  and  it  is  by  this  sugges- 
tion that  a  question  so  long  doubtful  has 
received  a  most  satisfactory  explanation. 
This  gentleman  on  his  return  from  the 
East  Indies,  where  he  had  held  a  high 
military  command,  turned  his  whole  atten- 
tion to  the  investigation  of  the  military  an- 
tiquities of  the  Romans,  and  for  this  pur- 
pose he  spent  some  years  in  travelling  over 
France,  Italy,  and  Germany,  and  he  ex- 


amined  with  great  attention  the  countries 
which  had  been  the  scenes  of  the  most 
celebrated  battles  and  events  recorded  in 
Roman  history.  From  his  thorough  know- 
ledge of  Polybius,  he  was  early  struck  with 
the  great  authority  that  his  narrative  car- 
ried with  it,  and  he  determined  if  possible 
to  set  at  rest  the  much  agitated  question  of 
the  passage  of  the  Alps  by  Hannibal.  And 
as  he  perceived  that  no  perusal  of  the 
historian,  however  close  and  attentive,  no 
critical  sagacity  or  discernment,  could 
alone  enable  him  to  arrive  at  the  truth, 
unless  he  verified  the  observations  of  his 
author  on  the  same  ground,  and  compared 
his  descriptions  with  the  same  scenes,  as 
those  which  that  author  had  himself  visited 
and  examined,  the  General  surveyed  at- 
tentively all  the  known  passages  of  the 
Alps,  and  more  particularly  those  which 
were  best  known  to  the  ancients. 

The  result  of  all  these  observations  was 
a  firm  conviction,  that  the  passage  of  the 
Little  St.  Bernard  was  that  by  which 
Hannibal  had  crossed  over  into  Italy,  both 


Xll 

as  being  most  probable  in  itself,  and  also 
as  agreeing  beyond  all  comparison  more 
closely  than  any  other  with  the  description 
given  by  Polybius.  The  arguments  and 
the  evidence  which  will  be  brought  forward 
in  the  following  pages  are  directed  to  the 
confirmation  of  this  opinion,  and  if  they 
shall  appear  satisfactory,  the  General  must 
be  looked  upon  as  the  first  who  has  solved 
this  problem  in  history.  It  is  not  indeed 
meant  that  he  was  absolutely  the  first  who 
made  the  Carthaginian  army  penetrate  by 
that  pass  into  Italy,  since  the  oldest  au- 
vid.  In-    thority  on  this  point,  that  of  Caelius  Anti- 

troduction,  *^  *■ 

i^*^  pater,  as  we  are  prepared  to  shew,  repre- 
sents them  as  having  taken  that  route ;  but 
it  is  affirmed  that  he  was  the  first  to  revive 
an  opinion  concerning  that  passage,  which, 
although  existing  in  full  force  in  the  tra- 
ditions of  the  country  itself,  appears  to 
have  been  long  laid  aside  as  forgotten,  and 
to  have  rested  that  opinion  on  arguments 
the  most  solid  and  plausible  *". 

^  Some  account  of  the  General's  life  and  discoveries 
will  be  found  in  ilie  preface  to  the  Work  of  M.  De  Luc, 


Xlll 

General  Melville  never  published  any 
acconnt  of  his  observations,  and  they  would 
most  probably  have  been  lost  to  the  world, 
had  he  not  found  in  M.  De  Luc  of  Geneva, 
nephew  of  the  late  distinguished  philoso- 
pher of  that  name,  a  person  eminently 
qualified  to  undertake  the  task  which  he 
himself  declined,  and  even  materially  to 
improve  upon  his  labours.  The  very  able 
and  learned  work  which  that  gentleman 
published  at  Geneva  in  1818,  entitled, 
Histoire  du  Passage  des  Alpes  par  Annibal, 
contains  a  very  full  and  clear  report  of 
the  observations  of  General  Melville,  sup- 
ported by  arguments  and  by  evidence  en- 
tirely original,  and  which  must  be  admitted 
by  every  candid  and  judicious  enquirer  to 
be  clear  and  conclusive.  Had  M.  De  Luc 
himself  been  enabled  to  follow  the  route 
which  he  describes,  and  to  verify  on  the 
spot  the  whole  of  General  Melville's  obser- 
vations with  his  own  eyes,  and  with  the  same 
discernment    with   which  he   has  actually 

who  quotes  from  the  Monthly    Repertory   of  English 
Literature  for  October,  1812. 


XIV 


examined  a  part  of  them,  it  would  undoubt- 
edly have  been  beyond  the  power  of 
any  writer,  however  able,  to  add  to  or  to 
perfect  his  work ;  but  though  various  cir- 
cumstances have  prevented  him  from  ac- 
complishing this  most  desirable  object,  it  is 
wonderful  with  how  much  clearness  he  has 
embodied  the  General's  remarks,  and  how 
well  he  has  described  a  line  of  country  with 
which  he  was  not  himself  personally  ac- 
quainted. 

For  clearness  of  description  and  for 
acuteness  of  argument,  M.  De  Luc's  work 
cannot  be  sufficiently  praised ;  and  it  was 
my  intention,  after  I  had  read  it,  to  em- 
ploy myself  in  a  translation  of  it.  For 
the  purpose  of  enabling  myself  to  verify 
his  remarks,  I  determined  to  undertake 
a  journey  along  the  whole  road  pointed 
out  by  M.  De  Luc,  from  the  first  ascent 
of  the  Alps  to  the  termination  of  the 
march  in  the  plains  of  Italy.  This  jour- 
ney was  performed  in  the  Autumn  of 
last  year  (1819)  in  company  with  a 
friend.     We   descended    the   Rhone  from 


XV 

Lyons  to  Vienne,  and  from  thence  struck 
off  by  the  old  Roman  road  across  Dau- 
phiny,  till  we  reached  the  Mont  du  Chat ; 
crossing  that  mountain  we  descended  upon 
Chambery  and  Montmeillan,  and  from 
thence  went  up  the  valley  of  the  Isere  to 
Scez,  at  the  foot  of  the  Httle  St.  Bernard. 
We  crossed  this  mountain,  and  came 
through  the  valley  of  Aoste  to  Ivrea,  and 
finally  to  Turin,  by  the  capture  of  which 
Hannibal's  passage  of  the  Alps  may  be 
said  to  be  finally  terminated.  The  whole 
of  the  country  through  which  we  passed 
was  beautiful,  and  will  amply  repay  by  its 
scenery  alone  the  trouble  of  visiting  it. 
The  valleys  of  the  Isere  and  of  Aoste  are 
extremely  rich  and  populous,  and  cultiva- 
tion is  pushed  almost  to  the  very  summit 
of  the  Alps. 

We  carried  with  us  Polybius  as  well  as 
the  work  of  M.  De  Luc,  and  we  were  as 
fully  satisfied  of  the  general  accuracy  of  the 
latter,  as  we  were  of  our  being  in  the  exact 
road  pointed  out  by  the  former.  Still  how- 
ever much  new  fight  was  thrown  upon  the 


XVI 


subject  in  consequence  of  a  personal  ex- 
amination, and  many  new  facts  were  ob- 
tained. As  also  there  are  a  few  points  in 
which  I  differ  from  M.  De  Luc,  I  have 
thought  it  upon  the  whole  more  advisable 
to  publish  the  result  of  my  observations  in 
an  original  form,  than  to  persist  in  my  first 
resolution,  of  merely  translating  the  work 
of  that  gentleman. 

I  beg  leave  at  the  same  time  to  disclaim 
all  the  merit  of  originality  upon  this  ques- 
tion; and  I  feel  so  much  indebted  to  M.  De 
Luc  for  the  greater  part  of  the  remarks 
contained  in  this  work,  that  I  shall  be 
amply  satisfied  if  I  should  be  allowed  the 
praise  of  an  impartial  examination  of  the 
ground  with  Polybius  in  my  hand,  together 
with  a  most  earnest  desire  to  arrive  at  the 
truth. 

It  may  seem  extraordinary,  that  the  pas- 
sage over  the  Little  St.  Bernard  should 
have  so  entirely  escaped  the  observation  of 
all  modern  writers  upon  this  subject ;  but 
the  almost  total  disuse  into  which  it  had 
fallen,  in  consequence  of  the  establishment 


XVll 

of  the  road  by  the  Echelles,  which  was 
constructed  in  1670,  and  of  that  by  the 
Mont  Cenis,  which  now  forms  the  great 
passage  into  Italy  on  that  side,  will  suffi- 
ciently account  for  this  circumstance.  At 
present  however,  notwithstanding  this  dis- 
use, there  is  a  considerable  intercourse  be- 
tween the  valleys  of  Aoste  and  of  the  Isere, 
and  the  road  along  the  latter  is  excellent 
as  far  as  Scez. 

The  Tarentaise,  into  which  you  enter  at 
Conflans,  is  a  very  populous  country,  and 
the  inhabitants  are  remarkable  for  a  spirit 
of  independence,  which  makes  them  avoid 
much  communication  with  their  more  civi- 
lized neighbours,  though  they  are  among 
themselves  extremely  hospitable  and  kind. 
The  road  over  the  St.  Bernard  itself,  is  at 
present  impassable  for  carriages  as  far  as 
La  Tuille,  but  from  thence  to  Aoste  it  is 
very  tolerable,  and  from  that  town  to 
Ivrea  and  Turin  it  is  excellent.  We 
passed  through  some  very  fine  country  in 
Dauphiny,  and  Vienne,  the  town  from 
which  we  first  set  out,  abounds  in  Roman 

b 


XVlll 

remains.  The  Roman  road  from  Vienna 
to  Ivrea  appears  to  have  been  carried  in 
almost  the  exact  track  of  the  modern  one. 
We  employed  eight  days  in  going  from 
Vienne  to  Turin,  and  found  very  little  dif- 
ficulty in  obtaining  means  of  conveyance. 
Although  we  were  fully  convinced  of  the 
justness  of  our  opinion  by  this  journey,  yet 
in  order  to  satisfy  ourselves  completely,  we 
determined  to  return  by  the  Mont  Genevre 
to  Brianfon  and  Grenoble.  And  this 
latter  tour  has  enabled  us  to  prove,  I  think 
beyond  contradiction,  that  it  is  absolutely 
impossible  for  the  Carthaginian  army  to 
have  taken  this  road,  at  least  if  the  autho- 
rity of  Polybius  is  to  be  considered  of  any 
weight  in  deciding  the  question. 

It  may  be  proper  here  to  state  briefly 
the  precise  road  which  I  conceive  Hanni- 
bal to  have  taken,  and  which  we  shall 
develope  more  at  length  hereafter.  After 
crossing  the  Pyrenees  at  Bellegarde,  he  went 
to  Nismes,  through  Perpignan,  Narbonne, 
Beziers,  and  Montpellier,  as  nearly  as  pos- 
sible in  the  exact  track  of  the  great  Roman 


XIX 


road.  From  Nismes  he  marched  to  the 
Rhone,  which  he  crossed  at  Roquemaure, 
and  then  went  up  the  river  to  Vienne,  or 
possibly  a  little  higher.  From  thence, 
marching  across  the  flat  country  of  Dau- 
phiny  in  order  to  avoid  the  angle  which 
the  river  makes  at  Lyons,  he  rejoined  it  at 
St.  Genis  d'Aouste.  He  then  crossed  the 
Mont  du  Chat  to  Chambery,  joined  the 
Isere  at  Montmeillan,  ascended  it  as  far  as 
Scez,  crossed  the  Little  St.  Bernard,  and 
descended  upon  Aoste  and  Ivrea  by  the 
banks  of  the  Doria  Baltea.  After  halting 
for  some  time  at  Ivrea,  he  marched  upon 
Turin,  which  he  took,  and  then  prepared 
himself  for  ulterior  operations  against  the 
Romans. 

To  establish  any  road  at  all,  it  was 
necessary  to  be  guided  exclusively  either 
by  Polybius  or  by  Livy,  for  the  accounts 
of  these  two  historians  cannot,  as  we  shall 
shew  hereafter,  be  possibly  reconciled  with 
each  other.  For  reasons  which  will  be 
stated  in  the  Introduction,  but  principally 
because  Livy's  account  is  inconsistent  with 

b2 


XX 

itself,  I  have  taken  Polybiiis  as  my  guide. 
It  will  be  shewn,  that  the  road  which  has 
just  been  laid  down  agrees  in  a  most  ex- 
traordinary manner  with  the  one  which  he 
describes,  especially  as  to  the  distances. 
It  may  indeed  be  safely  said,  that  there  is 
only  one  single  point  of  difference  between 
us,  and  that  one  relates  to  the  plains  of 
Italy,  which  are  said  to  have  been  pointed 
out  to  the  army  from  the  summit  of  the 
Alps.  As  it  will  be  shewn  that  these  plains 
can  be  seen  from  no  known  passage  what- 
ever of  the  Alps,  I  trust  that  this  variation 
will  not  be  looked  upon  as  material.  In 
every  thing  else  we  agree. 

M.  De  Luc's  arrangement  of  giving  the 
substance  of  the  Greek  author  at  the  head 
of  each  chapter  has  been  adopted,  and 
will  be  found  convenient,  but  a  literal 
translation  of  the  whole  has  been  added  in 
the  Appendix. 

After  the  establishment  of  my  own 
theory,  I  have  proceeded  to  remark  upon 
^he  other  routes  which  have  been  at  diifer- 
ent  times  proposed.     The  work  of  M.  De 


XXI 

Luc  was  attacked  soon  after  it  appeared 
by  two  French  gentlemen,  who  were 
anxious  to  defend  their  favourite  Livy. 
The  pamphlet  of  the  first,  M.  Le  Comte 
Fortia  d' Urban,  has  been  so  completely 
refuted  by  the  observations  of  the  second, 
M.  Letronne,  that  it  has  not  been  deemed 
necessary  to  take  notice  of  it ;  but  I  have 
endeavoured  to  shew  that  this  latter  author 
has  been  himself  equally  mistaken  in  his 
own  theory. 

The  map  which  accompanies  this  work 
will,  I  have  every  reason  to  believe,  be 
found  correct.  I  have  inserted  in  it  the 
modern  as  well  as  the  Roman  roads,  and  I 
have  given  the  ancient  as  well  as  modern 
names  of  towns ;  great  care  has  been 
taken  in  laying  down  the  chain  of  the  Alps, 
and  when  I  add,  that  it  has  been  executed 
by  Mr.  Arrowsmith,  I  need  say  no  more 
in  its  favour.  Some  plans  of  places  inte- 
resting in  the  discussion  will  also  be  found ; 
they  were  taken  on  the  spot,  and  I  believe 
I  may  answer  for  their  accuracy. 

With  respect  to  distances,  I  have  adopted 


xxu 

D'Anville's  calculation,  which  is  given  in 
his  Mesures  Itineraires ;  he  fixes  the  miles 
as  follows  : 

The  Roman  mile  .  .  .    7^6  toises. 

The  English  mile  ...   826 

The  Geographical ...  960 
The  Roman  mile,  according  to  Polybius, 
was  divided  into  eight  stadia  ;  and  it  is  to 
be  observed,  that  when  miles  are  mentioned 
ill  this  work,  Roman  miles  are  always 
meant,  unless  otherwise  expressed. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Introduction        1 

Chap.  I.  March  of  the  army  from  Spain  to  the 

Rhone.     Passage  of  that  river 1 

Chap.  11.  March  from  the  place  where  the  army 
passed  the  Rhone  to  the  foot  of  the  Alps. 
Description  of  the  Island 11 

Chap.  III.  Account  of  the  different  passages  over 
the  Mountains  which  inclose  the  Island.  Mont 
du  Chat  described — Passage  of  the  army  over 
it,  and  arrival  in  the  plain  of  Chambery.    .     .     27 

Chap.  IV.  March  of  the  army  from  Bourget  to 
Scez.  Description  of  the  country  through 
which  they  passed.     Roman  road  through  it.      41 

Chap.  V.  Attack  made  on  the  army  at  the  foot  of 
the  great  chain  of  the  Alps.  Their  ascent  to 
the  summit.  Description  of  the  Little  St.  Ber- 
nard.    Encampment  there 54: 

Chap.  VI.  Descent  of  the  army.  Description  of 
the  road.  Arrival  at  Donas.  Siege  and  cap- 
ture of  Turin.     Conclusion  of  the  march.       .     68 

Chap.  VII.  Examination  of  Livy's  account.       .     .     89 

Chap.  VIII.  Examination  of  M.  Letronne's  theory.  115 

Chap.  IX.  Examination  of  Folard,  St.  Simon,  and 

Whitaker.     Conclusion 129 

Appendix 149 


ERRATA. 

Page  line 
Introd.     12.      8.  after  account  \nsert  appears  to  be 

12.  27.  for  an  read  au 
15.       2.  for  least  read  less 

29.  27.  for  Brescira  read  Brescia 

4.       8.  for  West  rearf  East 

7.  23.  /or  and  read  or 

19.  5.  /or  which  read  while 

20.  1.  for  parcu  read  paru 

48.  14.  for  Gresivauclan  read  Gresivaudan 

50.  15.  for  magnes  read  magnas 

51.  5.  for  Vocantii  read  Vocontii 

52.  19, 20. /or  his,  him,  his  read  their,  them,  their 

60.  26.  for  put  read  sent 

61.  20.  for  rapes  read  rupes 
66.  19.  for  might  read  must 

95.  12.  for  Chateau  read  Chateaux 

158.  19. /or  Celtic  r^ai  Celtffi 

182.  19.  for  feite  read  fait 


.10 


INTRODUCTION. 


When  it  is  declared  in  the  very  first 
outset  of  this  enquiry,  that  the  narration 
of  Polybius  is  assumed  as  the  entire  basis 
and  ground-work  on  which  it  rests,  it 
immediately  becomes  necessary  to  lay 
before  the  reader  the  reasons  which  seem 
to  place  that  historian's  authority  so  much 
above  that  of  every  other  competitor,  and 
prove  that  he  is  the  only  safe  and  sure 
guide  whom  we  can  follow  in  our  investi- 
gation :  and  though  the  enquiry  may  per- 
haps lead  us  into  what  may  seem  a  minute 
examination  of  his  character,  as  an  his- 
torian and  geographer;  yet  the  issue  of 
the  question  rests  so  materially  on  the 
credit  due  to  his  account,  that  we  therefore 
hope  to  be  pardoned  for  entering  into  it 
somewhat  at  greater  length. 

b 


Of  Polybius's  capacity  and  fitness  to 
describe  great  military  events,  and  parti- 
cularly those  of  that  memorable  period, 
which,  after  a  long  and  desperate  struggle 
between  the  two  great  rivals,  Rome  and 
Carthage,  secured  to  the  former  the 
empire  of  the  world,  we  shall  presently  be 
assured,  if  we  consider,  what  education  he 
had  received,  what  scenes  and  revolutions 
he  had  witnessed,  and  whence  he  derived 
those  sources  of  knowledge,  which  could 
alone  fit  him  for  so  important  a  task. 

Bred  in  the  school  of  Philopoemen, 
whose  mihtary  genius  shed  a  brilliant 
though  transient  lustre  over  the  decaying 
fortunes  and  glory  of  Greece,  the  son  of 
Lycortas,  who  was  himself  a  distinguished 
statesman  and  warrior,  could  have  no  better 
guide  to  train  his  youthful  mind  in  the 
pursuit  of  knowledge,  and  direct  him  in  the 
attainment  of  those  qualities,  which  adorn 
alike  the  character  of  a  general  and  politi- 
cian. Born  with  no  common  talents,  and 
under  the  auspices  of  a  government  which 
then  alone  raised  its  head  against  tyranny 
and  oppression,  and  struggled  for  the 
dying  liberties  of  Greece,  Polybius's  mind 


could  not  fail  of  early  developing  itself, 
and  laying  up  for  a  maturer  age  an  ample 
store  of  valuable  and  diversified  acquire- 
ments. While  in  the  camp  and  field  he 
learned  the  duties  of  a  captain  and  soldier, 
and  made  himself  master  of  the  art  of 
tactics,  and  whole  science  of  war ;  at  home 
he  became  no  less  versed  in  all  the 
branches  of  political  knowledge,  which 
the  complicated  divisions  and  dissensions 
of  Greece  then  rendered  so  necessary  to 
the  education  of  one,  whose  services  were 
to  be  exerted  in  the  administration  of  his 
country,  or  in  furthering  its  interests  abroad 
in  a  diplomatic  capacity. 

At  the  age  of  twenty-four  he  accom- 
panied his  father  in  an  embassy  to  Ptolemy 
Epiphanes,  king  of  Egypt ;  on  which  oc- 
casion he  seems  so  far  to  have  conciliated 
the  favour  and  esteem  of  that  court  by  his 
merit  and  talents,  that  the  successor  of 
Ptolemy,  upon  sending  to  the  Achseans 
for  aid,  according  to  the  terms  of  their  al- 
liance, requested  that  Polybius,  then  in  his  voss.de 

'         ^  'I  ^  Hist.Graec. 

thirty- seventh  year,  might  have  the  com-iib.i.c.  19. 
mand  of  the  cavalry. 

b2 


The  jealousy,  however,  with  which  the 
Roman  Senate  began  to  view  the  appear- 
ance of  such  talents  and  abilities  in  a  ci- 
Haries,     tizcu  of  a  couutrv,  so  fertile  in  senius  and 

Introd.  in  -^  ^  ~ 

^^^^^^^^^g- patriotism,  soon  summoned  Polybius  to 
3.  p.  284.  Rome,  already  the  capital  of  the  world. 
It  is  to  this  removal,  cruel  and  unjust 
no  doubt,  though  honourable  to  the  merit 
and  virtues  which  it  was  meant  to  stifle 
in  their  growth,  that  we  owe  one  of  the 
noblest  histories,  if  we  may  judge  from  the 
grandeur  of  the  design  and  the  remains 
preserved  to  us,  that  the  world  ever  saw. 

Transplanted  to  a  soil,  which  afibrded  so 
much  more  scope  to  an  expansive  genius ; 
to  a  field  which  could  satisfy  at  once  the 
wide  views  of  the  historian,  warrior,  states- 
man, and  philosopher;  he  contemplated 
the  scene  before  him  as  a  citizen  of  the 
world,  and  consoling  himself  with  the  idea, 
that  his  country  did  but  share  the  universal 
fate  of  nations,  formed  the  project  of  de- 
scribing the  events  and  unfolding  the  causes 
which  raised  Rome  to  the  pinnacle  of 
power  and  glory,  and  laid  the  world  at  her 
feet. 


He  arrived  at  Rome  about  thirty-five  voss.  de 
years  after  Hannibal  had  been  forced  toiib.'ilp.  19.' 
quit  Italy  ;  at  a  time  when  that  city,  though 
mistress  of  nations  and  empires,  must  have 
had  the  dangers,  under  which  it  had  so 
nearly  fallen,  still  fresh  in  its  recollection. 
The  terrors  which  the  name  of  the  Car- 
thaginian general  had  created  were 
scarcely  yet  subsided;  the  wounds  which 
he  had  inflicted  were  scarcely  yet  healed ; 
so  that  every  information,  which  regarded 
that  great  captain  and  his  actions,  might 
have  been  easily  obtained  from  hving  wit- 
nesses, and  actors  on  that  great  theatre  of 
war.  A  close  acquaintance,  with  the  most 
illustrious  characters  of  Rome,  among 
whom  was  young  Scipio  ^milianus,  at-  Poiyb. 
tracted  towards  him  by  his  superior  talents  lib-^xrin. 
and  merit ;  a  keen  and  impartial  judgment 
joined  to  unwearied  research  and  patient 
investigation,  placed  within  his  reach  do^ 
cuments  of  the  most  valuable  and  authentic 
nature ;  to  their  truth  indeed  the  concur- 
rent sentiment  of  antiquity,  and  the  inter- 
nal  character  of  his  works,  bear   ample  sce  casau- 

1  r   '  1  •  -r»       1   •  •  hoxCs  Prc- 

and  unieimed  testimony.     Probity,  since- face,  in 

*  .  ,  Schweig- 

rity,  and  candour  are  peculiarly  stamped  hacusers 

b3  '''"''* 


upon  all  his  writings ;  to  these  he  has  sa- 
crificed the  ornaments  of  style,  the  beau- 
ties of  description,  and  embellishments  of 
art :  and  while  history  shall  be  appreciated 
as  a  genuine  guide  and  instructor  through 
life,  so  long  will  his  works  be  preferred  to 
the  more  polished  but  less  authentic  nar- 
ratives of  other  historians. 

It  is  natural  to  suppose,  that  a  character 
like  that  of  Hannibal,  which  formed  so 
prominent  a  feature  in  the  period  of  his- 
tory which  Polybius  meant  to  describe, 
could  not  fail  of  attracting  a  large  portion 
of  his  attention.  We  should  be  led  to 
expect,  from  so  candid  and  impartial  a 
writer,  a  true  and  fair  account  of  that  ex- 
traordinary man,  who  by  his  sole  energy 
grappled  with  the  gigantic  power  of  Rome 
at  her  very  threshold,  and  for  a  time 
stemmed  the  torrent  that  was  destined  to 
overflow  the  world.  Viewing  the  second 
Punic  war  as  the  great  struggle  which 
decided  the  fate  of  the  world,  Polybius  has 
omitted  no  previous  information  or  cir- 
cumstance, which  might  tend  to  bring  his 
readers  to  a  full  and  perfect  conception  of 
this  momentous  contest.     The  causes,  pre- 


tences,  and  motives,  which  led  to  the  war, 
are  examined,  distinguished,  and  balanced 
with  the  utmost  attention,  and  most  scru- 
pulous nicety ;  we  have  a  sure  guarantee 
of  his  adherence  to  truth  and  equity,  from 
his  daring,  more  than  once,  openly  to 
charge  the  Romans  with  injustice  and 
ambitious  views ;  and  we  feel  assured,  that 
in  him  at  least  Greece  had  not  yet  deserved 
the  epithet  of  false.  In  order  to  make  his 
readers  fully  acquainted  with  the  nature 
and  character  of  this  contest,  he  lays  before 
them  the  resources  of  each  nation  and  their 
allies ;  particularly  of  the  Gauls,  on  whose 
assistance  and  cooperation  Hannibal  relied 
so  much,  in  his  invasion  of  Italy;  their 
wars  with  the  Romans,  and  inveterate 
hatred  against  that  people,  are  detailed  at 
length ;  their  numbers,  importance,  and  poiyb. 
geographical  position,  are  defined  with'"*^* 
clearness  and  precision  ;  no  information,  in 
short,  is  omitted,  which  could  be  deemed 
useful  for  the  understanding  of  subsequent 
events. 

But  of  all  points  connected  with  the 
history  of  the  second  Punic  war,  there  is 
none  which  seems  to  have  interested  him  so 

b4 


deeply,  or  which  he  seems  to  have  been  at 
so  much  pains  in  elucidating  and  describing, 
as  the  journey  of  Hannibal  from  Spain  into 
Italy;  as  being  an  event  so  interesting  and 
memorable  in  itself,  and  displaying  the 
character  and  talents  of  that  great  com- 
mander in  so  striking  a  point  of  view ; 
and  because  accounts  so  romantic  and 
improbable  had  been  given  of  it  by  other 
writers,  as  to  involve  the  whole  transaction 
in  doubt  and  mystery. 

His  ardent  love  of  truth,  and  thirst  for 
geographical  knowledge,  and  every  thing 
connected  with  military  science,  led  Poly- 
bius  to  trace  the  march  of  the  Carthaginian 
army  from  the  Ebro  to  the  Rhone,  and 
subsequently  over  the  Alps  into  Italy ;  by 
which  means  he  has  been  able  to  ascertain 
with  accuracy  each  position  and  locaUty, 
and  obtain  information,  which  must  in  vain 
have  been  sought  for  in  any  other  manner : 
he  himself  declares,  that  if  there  is  any 
part  of  his  liistory,  on  the  accuracy  and 
certainty  of  which  he  may  speak  with  the 
Poiyb.       greatest   confidence,  it  is  this,  as  having 

lib.  iiLc.48.  .  ^  O 

received  the    accounts  which   he    delivers 
from  persons  who  were  living  at  the  time 


the  events  took  place,  and  having  travelled 
in  the  Alps,  in  order  to  obtain  certain  and 
precise  information  on  this  subject.  His 
knowledge  indeed  of  this  chain  of  moun- 
tains, of  the  different  passes  that  led 
through  it  from  Italy  into  Gaul,  and  the 
numerous  tribes  that  inhabited  its  valleys, 
seems  to  have  been  both  extensive  and 
accurate;  since  Strabo,  who  wrote  moreHaries, 
than  a  century  and  a  half  later,  has  not  p- sis. 
scrupled  to  borrow  from  Polybius's  geogra- 
phical works,  now  lost  to  us,  much  of  his 
account  concerning  these  mountains. 

If  now  the  character  of  Polybius  be 
weighed  with  that  of  Livy,  every  impartial 
mind  must  easily  discover,  how  far  he 
surpasses  the  Roman  writer  in  all  the 
great  points  that  determine  the  value  and 
authority  of  an  historian ;  nor  can  we 
institute  a  more  just  comparison  between 
them  than  that  with  which  Gibbon 
furnishes  us,  when  examining  this  very 
question. 

''  Nobody,"  says  Gibbon,  '^  admires  more  Gibbon's 
''  than  I  do  the  historical  merit  of  Livy  :  works, 

vol.  ii. 

'^  the   majestic    flow  of  his  narrative,    inpi82,3. 
'' which   events   follow    each    other    with 


10 

"rapidity,  yet  without  hurry  or  confusion; 
"  and  the  continual  beauty  and  energy  of 
'^  his  style,  which  transports  his  readers 
*'  from  their  closets  to  the  scene  of  action. 
''  But  here  we  have  to  do  not  with  the 
^'  orator,  but  with  the  witness.  Considered 
'^  in  this  view,  Livy  appears  merely  as  a 
'*  man  of  letters,  covered  with  the  dust  of 
"  his  library,  little  acquainted  with  the  art 
"  of  war,  careless  in  point  of  geography, 
'^  and  who  lived  two  centuries  after  Hanni- 
"  baFs  expedition. 

*'  In  the  whole  of  his  recital,  we  may 

"  perceive  rather  a  romantic  picture,  cal- 

^'  culated  to  please  the  fancy,  than  a  faith- 

^*  ful    and    judicious   history,    capable    of 

ub  x^r     "  satisfying  the  understanding.     The  God 

ubfxxi      *'  ^^^  appeared   to  the  Carthaginian  ge- 

C.37.        u  neral,  the  mountains  accessible  to  him 

''  alone,  the  vinegar  with  which  he  split 

'^  the  rocks,  are  fables  which  Livy  relates 

"  without  criticism,  as  without  suspicion. 

J^  We  seem  to  read  Homer  describing  the 

'^  exploits  of  Achilles.    In  Polybius,  on  the 

^'  other  hand,  we  meet  with  nothing  but 

'*  unadorned  simplicity  and  plain  reason. 

'^  A  justness  of  thinking,  rare  in  his  age 


11 


'^  and  country,  united  with  a  sterility  of 
'^  fancy  still  more  rare,  made  him  prefer 
*'  the  truth,  which  he  thoroughly  knew,  to 
"  ornaments  which  he  was  perhaps  more 
^'  inclined  to  despise,  because  he  felt  him- 
''  self  incapable  of  attaining  them.  He 
^'  had  examined  attentively  and  skilfully 
"  with  his  own  eyes  the  country  between 
"  the  Po  and  the  Ebro,  where  he  might 
"'  collect  the  precious  remains  of  tradition, 
"  which  the  period  of  sixty  years  had  not 
^'  been  able  to  efface  ;  and  where  he  might 
"  converse  with  some  of  the  old  men  of 
"  the  country,  who  had  in  their  youth 
"  either  resisted  Hannibal's  invasion,  or 
"  followed  his  standard.  His  journey  to 
"  those  parts  was  undertaken  with  the 
"  express  purpose  of  gaining  information 
*'  in  the  country  itself,  and  of  substituting, 
''  instead  of  the  fables  which  already  over- 
''  flowed  the  public,  a  plain  and  authentic 
"  history  of  this  famous  expedition  of  the 
*'  Carthaginians.  The  work  which  has 
''  come  down  to  us  is  the  fruit  of  this 
k  **  design.  To  finish  the  parallel,  I  must 
''  add,  that  Livy's  narrative  cannot  be  re- 
"  conciled  with  itself  any  more  than  with 


12 

ciuver.  It.  *^  that' of  Polybius.     His  obscurities   and 
C.33.   "  ^'contradictions  baffle  the  ablest  s^eogra- 

p.  370-375.  ,  ,  -  r   ^  1    ?' 

crevier's    *' phcrs ;  whcrcas  the  accouttt  oi  rolybms 

Preface  ,  n 

toLivy.     ii  is  clear  and  well  connected  ^ 

Reiske's 

Prefao  Here  then  it  seems  natural  to  ask,  why, 
since  Polybius's  authority  seems  to  rest  on 
such  firm  and  indisputable  grounds,  and 
his  account  deserving  of  so  much  greater 
credit  than  that  of  any  other  writer,  any 
question  should  have  arisen  respecting  the 
event  we  are  now  examining,  or  the 
subject  have  ever  been  involved  in  doubt 
and  obscurity  ?  The  question  here  started 
will  perhaps  best  be  answered,  if  we  reflect 
on  the  plan  which  Polybius  himself  states 


*  Gibbon,  however  misled  by  Cluverius,  conceived 
that  Polybius  took  Hannibal  over  the  Great  St.  Ber- 
nard :  and  being  very  naturally  surprised  at  his  choosing 
so  circuitous  a  route,  still  wavered  between  the  two 
opinions.  "  On  doit  etre  surpris,'*  says  M.  De  Luc, 
''  qu*il  n'ait  pas  soupconne  qu'il  devoit  y  avoir  entre  le 
"  Mont  Genevre  et  le  Grand  St.  Bernard,  un  autre 
"  passage,  qui  pourroit  mieux  convenir  au  recit  de 
"  Polybe,  et  qu*il  n*ait  pas,  en  consequence,  fait  des 
"  recherches  sur  les  voies  Romaines,  et  meme  sur  les 
"  passages  des  Alpes  frequentes  avant  que  les  Romains 
"  eussent  ouvert  leurs  voies  militaires  an  travers  de  ces 
**  montagnes."     Hist,  du  Pass,  des  Alpes,  p.  274, 


13 

that  he  has  followed  in  the  geographical 
part  of  his  history,  and  more  particularly 
in  his  narrative  of  Hannibal's  march  from 
Spain  to  the  Tesino. 

It  should  be  observed,  that  Polybius  wasPoiyb. 

.        .        ^-  ,  .  lib.  iii.  c.  4. 

writmg  pnncipally  tor  his  countrymen, 
to  whom  Spain  and  Gaul  and  generally  the 
western  parts  of  Europe  were  but  little 
known,  and  who  would,  as  he  says,  derive 
as  little  information  and  instruction  from 
the  names  of  people  and  places  with  which 
they  were  unacquainted,  as  from  mere 
sounds  that  strike  the  ear  without  satis- 
fying the  understanding;  he  conceives, 
that  by  dividing  the  heavens  into  four 
quarters,  and  considering  the  several  parts 
of  the  earth  as  situated  under  one  of  these 
divisions,  the  mind  is  able  to  refer  that 
which  is  less  known  to  something  of  which 
it  has  a  fixed  and  definite  notion.  Now 
how  correct  soever  this  principle  may  be, 
yet,  in  its  appUcation,  Polybius,  it  must  be 
confessed,  is  somewhat  vague  and  indis- 
tinct; to  us  indeed  this  must  be  apparent, 
who  are  possessed  of  such  accurate  methods 
of  ascertaining  the  latitude  and  position 
of  any  place  on  the  globe's  surface.     Yet 


u 


will  this  sufficiently  account  for  the 
omission  of  names  both  of  places,  people, 
and  rivers,  which  had  they  been  mentioned 
by  Polybius  would  long  ago  have  removed 
all  doubt  as  to  the  precise  point  by  which 
Hannibal  entered  Italy''. 

Still  however,  though  the  data  which 
Polybius  affords  us  in  the  solution  of  this 
question  be  few,  yet,  as  we  hope  to  shew, 
are  they  fully  adequate  to  lead  us  to  the 
truth  ;  and  after  all,  the  fault  will  be  found 
to  rest  not  with  the  historian,  but  with  those 
commentators  who  have  misconceived  and 
misinterpreted  his  meaning.  Had  an  en- 
quiry been  instituted  at  the  first  with  the 
same  zeal,  and  the  same  judicious  mode 
of  investigation,  that  it  has  been  carried  on 
by  General  Melville  and  M.  De  Luc,  every 
difficulty  would  long  ago  have  been  cleared 
up,  and  much  fruitless  labour,  and  many 

^  Here  perhaps  we  may  be  allowed  to  remark,  how 
little  seems  to  have  been  done  towards  the  improvement 
of  geography  by  the  Romans:  and  that  while  they  paid 
scarcely  any  attention  to  that  branch  of  knowledge,  the 
Greeks  from  the  earliest  times  seem  to  have  pursued 
the  science  with  ardour  and  success ;  as  may  be  seen  by 
the  works  of  Herodotus,  Eratosthenes,  Polybius,  Strabo, 
and  Ptolemy. 


15 

a  useless  comment,  have  been  spared. 
We  must  yet  notice  another,  and  not  least 
fruitful  source  of  error,  which  is  the 
attempt  so  often  made  to  reconcile  the 
accounts  of  the  two  historians :  this  is 
more  particularly  the  case  with  French 
writers,  who  lay  great  stress  on  the  autho- 
rity of  the  Roman  historian,  and  who  have 
also  bowed  to  the  decision  of  their  country- 
man, the  Chevalier  Folard,  in  his  com- 
mentary on  Polybius'^.  When  we  come  to 
examine  the  narrative  of  Livy  by  itself,  we 
shall  then  be  best  able  to  judge  whether 
such  an  attempt  can  be  attended  with 
success. 

Sufficient  seems  now  to  have  been  said 
to  establish  the  superior  authority  of  Poly- 
bius  on  the  question  now  before  us,  so 
that  it  only  remains  for  us  to  trace  the 
route  according  to  his  directions,  and 
interpret  his  opinion  in  the  fairest  and 
most  impartial  manner  that  we  are  able. 

In  order  however  fully  to  understand 
the  subject,   it  will  be  expedient,  before 

"^  Folard  however,  though  he  might  be  an  able  tacti- 
cian, has  in  this  question  fallen  into  numberless  errors, 
which  will  be  pointed  out  in  a  more  proper  place. 


16 

we  examine  and  comment  upon  Polybius's 
narrative,  to  enquire  into  the  knowledge 
which  the  Romans  possessed,  concerning 
the  Alps  in  the  earliest  times;  the  roads 
which  were  made  across  them;  and  the 
different  nations,  which  at  different  periods 
penetrated  through  them  from  Gaul  or 
Germany  to  settle  in  Italy. 


REMARKS 


ON    THE 


EARLY  HISTORY  OF  THE  ALPS. 


The  Romans  could  have  been  but  little 
acquainted  with  the  Alps  before  Hannibal's 
expedition :  their  wars  indeed  with  the 
Cisalpine  Gauls  had  brought  them  to  the 
foot  of  that  vast  chain;  they  must  have 
known  that  these  Barbarians,  with  whom 
they  were  contending,  had  come  from 
another  country,  and  crossed  these  moun- 
tains to  settle  in  the  fertile  plains  of 
Northern  Italy  ;  their  early  connexion  with 
Marseilles  would  also  be  the  means  of 
making  them  first  acquainted  with  Trans- 
alpine Gaul ;  but  their  communication 
with  that  city  was  only  open  to  them  by 
sea,  and  they  had  never  hitherto  attempted 
to  send  their  legions  over  the  natural  bar- 
rier of  Italy.  The  savage  and  uncivilized 
state   of  the    wild    tribes,    that   from    the 

c 


18 

earliest  times  occupied  these  mountainous 
regions,  would  of  course  render  private 
intercourse  and  communication  with  Gaul 
still  more  precarious  and  difficult.  Tra- 
dition indeed  declared,  that  Hercules  had 
once  penetrated  with  a  large  army  into 
Italy,  and  had  left  more  than  one  memorial 
of  his  passage  over  the  Alps ;  but  later 
times  esteemed  that  to  be  one  of  the  many 
fabulous  tales,  which  had  their  rise  in  the 
poetical  imagination  and  fancy  of  the 
Greeks.  When  Hannibal  however  had 
been  driven  from  Italy,  and  Carthage  con- 
quered ;  when  Spain  and  Gaul  had  become 
Roman  provinces;  then  the  Alps  were 
often  crossed  by  Roman  armies,  and  even 
Poiyb.  travellers  ventured  to  explore  those  regions 
of  frost  and  snow ;  and  trade  and  com- 
merce found  their  way  over  those  passes, 
which  nature  pointed  out  as  affording  the 
most  convenient  and  easy  communication. 

It    was   not    however  till    the  time   of 
Augustus  that  the  Alps*^  came  to  be  well 

«*  The  whole  chain,  extending  from  the  Tyrrhenian 
sea  to  the  head  of  the  Adriatic,  was  then  divided  into 
eight  different  parts,  to  each  of  which  a  separate  name 
was  assigned ;  as,  the  Cottian,  Pennine,  Juhan  Alps,  &c. 


lib.  iii. 


19 

known  and  frequented :  that  emperor, 
either  by  the  force  of  his  arms,  or  con- 
ciliatory measures,  finally  subdued  and 
civilized  the  fierce  clans  that  occupied  the 
Alpine  districts;  he  caused  roads  to  be 
constructed,  and  towns  to  be  built  in  the 
heart  of  their  mountains,  and  succeeded  in 
establishing  a  free  and  easy  communication 
between  Italy  and  all  the  parts  of  his 
extensive  empire. 

Strabo  informs  us,  that  Polybius,  who  strab.Geog. 
is  the  earliest  authority  on  the  subject,  p-^i^^j^^j^ 
mentioned  only  four  passages  over  the 
Alps®.  The  first,  through  the  Ligurians, 
close  to  the  Tyrrhenian  sea ;  that  is,  over 
the  Maritime  Alps,  from  Genoa  through 
Monaco  and  Nice  to  Aries ;  this  was 
already  a  Roman  way  in  the  time  of  Poly- 
bius, being  the  first  made  out  of  Italy,  and 

*  It  seems  but  fair  to  state,  with  regard  to  this  passage 
in  Strabo,  that  it  contains  a  positive  assertion,  that  Han- 
nibal took  the  second  road,  sItcc  tyjv  8<a  Taug/vcov,  riv  *Avv/- 
Sotg  Si^A^ev,  and  therefore  has  been  brought  forward 
against  the  hypothesis  here  supported.  But  if  we  prove 
that  Polybius  takes  Hannibal  by  another  pass,  it  will 
follow,  that  these  words  are  to  be  ascribed  to  Strabo,  and 
not  to  Polybius.  Strabo,  who  wrote  in  the  time  of  Livy, 
would  probably  adopt  the  opinion  of  that  historian. 

c2 


20 

Bergier,     WES  knowH  by  the  name  of  the  Via  Au- 

Hist.  des 

Grands  rclia. 

Chemins  de 

TEmpire        Xhc  secono  through  the  country  of  the 

Remain,  ^  ^    *^ 

""^347       Taurini,    over   the    Saltus    Taurinus,  now 
Mont  Genevre,  into  Gaul. 

The  third  through  the  Salassi,  over  the 
Graian  Alp,  or  the  little  St.  Bernard,  to 
Vienne  on  the  Rhone. 

The  last  from  Milan,  through  Como,  by 
the  Rhsetian  Alps,  Mont  Splugen  or  Sep- 
timer,  to  Coire  in  the  Grisons. 

Now  if  we  take  into  consideration,  that 
from  Polybius's  account,  Hannibal's  route 
seems  to  have  been  previously  known  and 
frequented,  and  that  the  four  passes  above 
named  were  all  that  the  historian  himself 
was  acquainted  with ;  it  will  be  obvious  that 
the  object  of  our  search  must  coincide  with 
one  of  these,  and  consequently  that  our 
enquiry  need  not  extend  itself  to  such,  as 
were  in  use  only  subsequently  to  the  times 
of  which   we  are  now  speaking ^     As  no 

^  Thus  the  Mons  Penninus  or  Great  St.  Bernard 
appears  to  have  been  but  little  known  in  Caesar's  time, 
since  he  tells  us,  that  the  communication  by  that  pas- 
sage was  attended  with  much  difficulty  and  danger; 
and  that  he  was  the  first  to  render  it  more  practicable. 


21 

one  however  has  ever  contemplated  the 
possibility  of  Hannibal's  having  passed  by 
the  Maritime  Alps,  or  the  Grisons,  there 
will  in  fact  remain  only  two  passes  between 
which  any  doubt  can  lie,  Mont  Genevre 
and  the  Little  St.  Bernard ;  so  that  we 
may  now  proceed  to  enquire  into  the 
earliest  accounts  which  history  affords  us 
respecting  these  two  mountains,  according 
to  the  order  in  which  they  have  been 
placed. 

The  first  information  we  have  relative 
to  Mont  Genevre,  as  a  passage  fi-equented 
by  the  Roman  armies  on  their  way  to  Gaul, 
is  derived  from  Caesar,  who  seems  to  have 
crossed  that  mountain  with  part  of  his 
army  at  least,  when  proceeding  from  Italy 
to  oppose  a  formidable  inroad  of  the  Hel- 
vetii  into  the  Roman  province.  The  ac- 
count of  his  march  is  very  concise,  and 
from  that  circumstance,  attended  with  a 
certain  degree  of  obscurity.     As  the  pas- 

Caes.  de  Bell.  Gall.  lib.  iii.  c.  1 .  The  Mont  Cenis  does 
not  appear  to  have  been  known  to  the  Romans ;  nor  is  it 
mentioned  till  the  time  of  Charlemagne.  Aimoinus, 
Franc.  Rer.  lib.  iv.  c.  60.  et  lib.  v.  c.  35.  See  also  De 
Luc's  remarks  on  that  mountain,  p.  25. 

c3 


22 

sage  is  interesting,  and  seems  to  throw 
some  light  on  the  history  of  these  moun- 
tains, we  may  perhaps  be  allowed  to  hazard 
some  remarks  upon  it. 

Csesars  tells  us,  that  having  drawn  toge- 
ther five  legions,  he  set  out  on  his  march 
into  Transalpine  Gaul  from  Ocelum, 
which  he  terms  the  extreme  point  of  the 
Cisalpine  province.  For  the  knowledge  of 
this  place,  which  has  generally  been  mis- 
taken, some  supposing  it  to  be  Exilles, 
others  Oulx,  we  are  indebted  to  the  saga- 
city and  judicious  researches  of  D'Anville, 
who  has  ascertained  beyond  a  doubt  that 
Not.  de  it  must  have  occupied  the  position  of  Uxeau 
Gauie,       in  the  valley  of  Pragelas,  near  Fenestrelles. 

p.  500. 

We  learn  also  from  Strabo,  that  the  next 
station  on  that  road  was  Scincomagus, 
which  D'Anville  with  equal  felicity  has 
discovered  to  be  the  Chamlat  de  Scinguin 
on  the  other  side  of  the  Col  de  Sestrieres  ; 

^  — qua  proximuni  iter  in  ulteriorem  Galliam  per 
Alpes  erat,  cum  his  quinque  legionibus  ire  contendit. 
Ibi  Centrones  ec  Garoceli,  et  Caturiges,  locis  superi- 
oribus  occupatis,  idnere  exercitum  prohibere  conantur. 
Compluribus  his  praeliis  pulsis,  ab  Ocelo,  quod  est  cite- 
rioris  provinciae  extremum,  in  fines  Vocontiorum  ulteri- 
oris  provincice  die  septimo  pervenit :  inde  in  Allobrogum 
fines.     Caes.  de  Bell.  Gall.  lib.  i.  c.  11. 


23 

the  road  therefore  must  clearly  have  passed 
over  that  Col ;  and  Caesar  would  then  pro- 
bably, for  the  first  time,  meet  with  that 
opposition  from  the  mountaineers  which 
he  describes.  It  is  however  in  reconciling 
the  names  of  these  people  with  the  position 
of  the  Col  de  Sestrieres\  that  the  main 
difficulty  of  the  passage  seems  to  consist. 
Of  the  Centrones,  who  are  here  for  the  first 
time  named  in  history,  it  is  known  for 
certain,  that  they  inhabited  the  valley  of 
the  Upper  Isere,  or  that  part  of  Savoy  which 
is  called  la  Tarentaise ;  it  is  not  therefore 
easy  to  conceive,  how  they  could  have 
taken  part  in  an  action,  from  the  scene  of 
which  they  were  so  remote.  Of  the  Garo- 
celi  or  Graioceli  next  mentioned  much  less 
is  known;  it  is  conceived  however,  and  with 
great  probability,  that  they  must  have  oc- 
cupied that  part  of  the  chain,  which  lies 
between  Mont  Iseran  and  Mont  Genevre ; 
the  latter  belonging  to  the  Caturiges,  who 
are  the  last  mentioned.  The  Garoceli  thus 
placed  between  the  Centrones  and  Catu-  Not.  de 
riges,  the   latter  occupying  Brianpon  and  caiue. 

''  See  the  map. 

c4 


24 

the  valley  of  the  Durance,  as  far  as 
Embrun,  must  have  inhabited  the  valleys 
in  the  vicinity  of  Mont  Cenis  and  the  upper 
part  of  Maurienne.  This  seems  further 
confirmed  by  old  writings,  in  which  the 
Theatr.      name  of  St.  Jean  de  Maurienne  appears 

Sabaud.  ...  ^        . 

voi.ii.      as   Sanctus   Johannes    Garocelhus.     It  is 
not  improbable,    that  Csesar  might   have 
sent  part  of  his  army  through  the  country 
of  the  Centrones  in  the  first  instance,  as 
also  another  division  through  that  of  the 
Garoceli.     This  explanation  would  obviate 
the  difficulty  of  supposing  the  mountaineers, 
mentioned  by  Csesar,  to  have  assembled  on 
one  point,  from  a  line  of  such  extent  as 
that  which  lies  between  the  little  St.  Ber- 
nard and  Mont  Genevre ;  a  distance  which 
even  across  the  mountains,  from  the  valley 
of  the  Isere  to  that  of  the  Arc,  and  thence 
to  the  Mont  Genevre,  cannot  be  estimated 
at  less  than  60  miles.     If  we  consider  that 
Caesar  had  with  him  five  legions,  the  diffi- 
culty  of  subsisting  so  large  a  force  on  one 
line  in  these  mountains  would  sufficiently 
account  for  Caesar's  dividing  it,  and  choosing 
to  penetrate  into  Gaul  by  different  points ; 
besides  it  may  be  added,  that  the  two  first 


25 

routes  would  lead  his  troops  immediately 
into  tlie  country  of  the  Allobroges,  the  end 
%  of  his  march. 

Caesar*  however,  with  the  greater  part  of 
his  army,  no  doubt  passed  by  the  Mont 
Genevre,  and  there  encountered  the  Catu- 
riges.  Of  his  subsequent  march  we  only 
gather,  that  on  the  seventh  day  from  his 
quitting  Ocelum  he  arrived  on  the  borders 
of  the  Vocontii,  and  thence  into  the  country 

'  It  should  be  observed,  that  Caesar  was  then  travers- 
ing the  territory  of  Cottius,  or  more  properly  of  Donnus 
his  father,  an  Alpine  chieftain,  who  had  formed  to  him- 
self a  kind  of  principality  among  these  mountains. 
Cottius  is  represented  as  lurking  in  the  fastnesses  of  his 
Alps,  and  even  defying  the  power  of  Rome,  till  the 
policy  of  Augustus  thought  it  worth  while  to  conciHate 
him  with  the  title  of  King.  This  circumstance  will 
explain  why  the  road  here  mentioned  should  have 
crossed  both  the  Col  de  Sestrieres  and  Mont  Genevre, 
instead  of  proceeding  by  the  valley  of  Susa ;  as  the  latter 
led  through  the  heart  of  Cottius's  dominions,  the  former 
through  a  small  part  of  them  only ;  hence  we  find,  that 
in  later  times  when  Cottius  was  become  an  ally,  and 
these  Alps  had  taken  his  name,  the  Col  de  Sestrieres  was 
abandoned ;  the  stations  in  the  Itineraries  being  Fines, 
Segusio,  ad  Martis ;  that  is,  by  Susa,  Oulx,  &c.  Wesse- 
ling.  Itiner.  p.  34?  1.  See  the  inscription  on  the  arch  at 
Susa,  Theatr.  Sab.  vol.  i.  Strabo,  lib.  iv.  p.  31^.  Pliny, 
iii.  20.  Dio.  Cass.  Ix.  24.  Marcellinus  xv.  10.  Ovid. 
Eleg.  Pont.  vii. 


26 

of  the  AUobroges  :   he  proceeded  probably 

Sn""^'  ^l^"g  the  Durance  as  far  as  Embrun,  and 

i!^57      thence  by  Gap  and  Die  to  Valence,  and  so 

across  the  Isere  into  the  territory  of  the 

AUobroges. 

It  appears  then  from  this  passage  of 
Caesar,  that  the  Romans  had  already  at 
that  time  a  military  road  over  Mont 
Genevre ;  but  when  it  was  first  opened  we 
are  not  precisely  informed ;  there  is  how- 
ever good  reason  to  believe,  that  this  is  the 
road  to  which  Pompey  alludes,  as  having 
first  rendered  it  practicable  for  troops, 
when  marching  into  Spain  against  Serto- 
rius^ :  in  a  letter  to  the  Senate,  which  has 
been  preserved  to  us  by  Sallust,  he  says, 
^^  Nomine  modo  imperii  a  vobis  accepto, 
''  diebus  XL  exercitum  paravi,  hostesque  in 
"  cervicibus  jam  Italise  agentes,  ab  Alpibus 
sauust.      "  in  Hispaniam  submovi ;  per  eas  iter  aliud 

Hist,  lib.  iii.  *  ^ 

fragm. 

^  This  conjecture  seems  strengthened  by  the  fact, 
which  Pliny  mentions,  of  certain  districts  of  Cottius's 
dominions  liaving  been  admitted  among  the  municipal 
towns  of  Italy  by  a  law  of  Pompey.  Plin.  lib.  iii.  c.  24, 
We  know  also  from  Pliny,  that  Pompey,  in  a  trophy 
erected  by  him  on  the  summit  of  the  Pyrenees,  boasted 
of  having  reduced  in  this  very  expedition  876  towns. 
Plin.  lib.  iii.  p.  298-   Strabo,  lib.  iii.  p.  156. 


"  atque  Hannibal,  nobis  opportunius  pate- 
*^  feci*."  It  certainly  was  esteemed  to  be  the 
shortest  passage  into  Gaul ;  and  as  to  its 
being  so,  this  account  of  Pompey  agrees  strabo, 
entirely  with  that  of  Caesar,  Strabo,  and  p- 285- 
Ammianus  Marcellinus.  Hence  we  might 
fairly  argue,  that,  in  Pompey^s  opinion  at 
least,  Hannibal  had  not  passed  by  the 
Mont  Genevre.  But  if  we  are  to  give 
credit  to  Livy,  we  must  suppose  the  Mont 
Genevre  to  have  been  frequented  in  times 
greatly  anterior  to  those  of  Pompey  and 
Csesar ;  for  this  is  the  passage  which  that 
historian  states  most  of  the  tribes  of  the 
Gauls  to  have  chosen  in  their  migrations 
into  Italy.  Now  as  the  account  of  these 
transactions  is  of  some  consequence  to  the 
proper  understanding  of  this  enquiry,  it 
may  not  be  useless  to  examine  awhile  the 
history  which  Livy  has  given  us  of  them. 

He  states,  that  the  first  passage  of  theLiv.nb.  v. 
Gauls  took  place  under  the  reign  of  Tar- 

'  Appian  also  tells  us,  that  Pompey  opened  a  road  in 
the  Alps  different  from  that  of  Hannibal,  between  the 
sources  of  the  Po  and  Rhone.  Appian.  bell,  civil,  lib.  i. 
Some  have  supposed  that  Pompey's  road  might  have 
passed  by  the  Col  d'Argenlicre,  and  the  valley  x)f  ^hc 
Stura,  but  this  never  appears  to  have  been  in  use. 


c.  34. 


28 

quinius  Priscus,  and  enumerates  five  dis- 
tinct migrations ,  differing  in  that  respect 
fi^om  Palybius,  Diodorus  Siculus,  and  Plu- 
tarch, who  speak  only  of  one.  Of  these  he 
describes  three,  as  proceeding  over  the 
Saltus  Taurinus  or  Mont  Genevre,  and  one 
by  the  Pennine  Alps  or  tiie  great  St.  Ber- 
nard; the  fifth  seems  uncertain.  Though 
the  account  of  these  transactions  is  given 
with  sufficient  detail  of  circumstance,  we 
discover  upon  examination  many  points 
which  tend  to  render  the  whole  confused, 
and  difficult  to  be  explained  or  reconciled 
with  true  principles  of  geography.  We 
are  told,  that  Bellovesus  a  Celtic  prince, 
with  the  superabundant  population  of  the 
Bituriges,  Arverni,  Senones,  iEdui,  Am- 
barri,  and  other  nations  of  Gaul,  proceeded 
in  quest  of  a  country  where  they  might 
settle ;  that  he  arrived  among  the  Tricas- 
tini,  and  afterwards  assisted  the  Phocaeans, 
Avho  had  just  landed,  and  were  preparing 
to  found  Marseilles,  against  the  Salyes. 
He  then  with  all  his  forces  crossed  the 
Alps  by  the  Saltus  Taurinus,  and  having 
defeated  the  Tuscans  near  the  Ticinus, 
founded    Milan.     The    Cenomanni    come 


29 

next  by  the  same  pass,  and  found  Brescia 
and  Verona  in  the  country  of  theLibui.  The 
SaUuvii  are  the  third,  and  are  followed  by 
the  Boii  and  Lingones,  who  cross  over  the 
Mons  Penninus,  and  settle  on  the  right 
bank  of  the  Po. 

The  whole  of  this  account,  I  say,  pre- 
sents difficulties  so  apparent  and  obvious, 
as  to  throw  no  small  doubt  on  the  accuracy 
of  Livy's  researches  into  these  facts. 

In  the  first  place,  the  Boii,  who  seem  ciuv.Germ. 

*  Anq. 

more  properly  to  have  been  a  German  or  Avent.An- 

r       r         J  nal.  Boior. 

Helvetian  tribe,  and  the  Lingones,  a  people  '^^^^^ 
of  Gaul,  who  occupied  part  of  Franche-  ^^f^^^ 
Comte  and  Burgundy,  are  united  together,  *^^-    • 
and  sent  over  the  Pennine  Alps,  which  ac- 
cording to  Livy's  own  account  could  not^^^-^^'^-^'^'- 
have   been    passable    even    in   Hannibal's 
time,  nor  could  it  have  been  a  pass  fre- 
quented in  Polybius's  time,  since  it  is  not 
one  of  the  four  mentioned  by  Strabo  upon 
his  authority. 

Again,  the  Cenomanni  are  made  to  oc- 
cupy the  territory  of  the  Libui,  or,  as  they 
ought  more  properly  to  be  called,  the  Li- 
bicii,  which  certainly  was  not  situated  so 
far   to   the  east  as  Brescira  and  Verona, 


30 

roiyb.  lib.  but  lay,  as  we  learn  from  Polybius,  to  the 
west  of  all  the  other  Gauls. 

But  the  account  of  the  first  migration 
does  not  seem  the  least  improbable.  Here 
we  have  a  vast  multitude  of  the  tribes  in- 
habiting the  central  and  south-eastern  parts 
of  Gaul,  seemingly  wandering  from  their 
native  country  at  random,  and  quite  uncer- 
tain whither  they  were  bending  their  course : 
finally  arriving  at  the  Alps  without  even 
knowing  that  the  country  beyond  was  ha- 
bitable, much  less  what  was  its  fertility,  re- 
sources, and  population.  Why  they  should 
have  wandered  so  low  as  the  Tricastini™, 
and  still  lower  even,  to  the  vicinity  of  Mar- 
seilles, seems  equally  strange.  Certainly 
there  can  be  no  reason,  why  the  valley  of 
the  Durance,  by  which  Livy  must  suppose 
them  to  have  reached  the  Alps,  should  have 
been  more  early  peopled  and  better  known 
to  the  rest  of  Gaul  than  that  of  the  Isere; 

"*  The  position  of  the  Tricastini  is  clearly  marked  by 
the  little  town  of  St.  Paul  trois  Chateaux,  about  fifteen 
miles  to  the  north  of  Orange  on  the  Rhone;  nor  is  there 
any  authority  for  supposing  them  to  have  extended 
much  beyond  that  district.  See  D'Anville,  Notice  de 
TAnc.  Gaule,  p.  100—655. 


31 

so  much  its  superior  in  extent  and  fertility, 
and  situated  so  much  nearer  those  parts  of 
France,  from  which  the  migration  we  are 
speaking  of  took  place.  Again,  if  these 
tribes  had  penetrated  into  Italy  by  the 
saltus  Taurinus,  would  they  have  wandered 
so  far  as  Milan  to  establish  themselves,  and 
form  a  settlement,  when  such  a  position  as 
that  of  Turin  presented  itself  to  them  on 
their  first  arrival?  How  much  more  pro- 
bable is  it,  that  each  tribe  penetrated  into 
Italy  by  the  pass  nearest  to  the  point  where 
it  settled,  and  nearest  also  to  that  from 
whence  it  set  out ;  thus  the  Salyes  or  Sal- 
luvii,  and  other  Ligurians  in  Gaul,  will  be 
made  to  arrive  in  Italy  by  the  Cottian  Alps,  strabo,iib. 
and  found  Turin.    The  Arverni,  ^dui,  and  Pii"-;ib.iiL 

^  ^  cap.  21. 

Insubres  penetrate  through  the  country  of 
the  Allobroges  and  by  the  valley  of  the 
Isere,  and  reach  Italy  by  the  Graian  Alp. 
It  will  be  seen  by  the  inspection  of  D'An- 
ville's  map  of  ancient  Gaul,  that  these  people 
occupied  the  provinces  of  Au  vergne,  Bresse, 
the  Lyonnois,  and  Bourbonnois,  bordering 
on  the  country  of  the  Allobroges  or  Dau- 
phin6  and  Savoy;  and  the  Arverni,  the 
most  powerful  of  these  tribes,  are  known  to 


32 


Liv.  Epit.  have  been  early  connected  with  the  Allo- 
broges.  Hence  it  is  probable  that  they 
must  have  had  some  communication  with 
Italy  before  they  set  out  on  their  expedi- 
tion ;  and  this  supposition  agrees  with  Po- 
lybius's  account,  who  states,  that  these 
Gauls  were  urged  to  this  attempt  by  the 
information  they  had  received,  of  the  ex- 

Poiyb.  treme  fertility  of  the  plains  possessed  by 
the  Tuscans.     Pliny   also    mentions,   that 

piin.iib.  Helico,  an  Helvetian,  on  returning  to  his 
country  from  Italy,  praised  the  wine  of 
that  country  so  much,  that  a  migration  was 
instantly  determined  on.  Finally,  the  tribes 
which  settled  in  the  plains  of  Verona,  Bre- 

ciuver.      scia,  aud  Mantua,  may  have  passed  by  the 

^243Tl?  Rhsetian  Alps,  these  being  among  the  ear- 

.    liest  frequented,  according  to  the  testimony 

of  Polybius.  It 

p^^^j^  There  is  another  tribe,  whicli  is  described 

lib.  ii.  ]^y  Polybius  as  having  come  from  the  other 
side  of  the  Alps,  and  the  country  near  the 
Rhone,  at  the  desire  of  the  Insubres  and 
Boii,  to  assist  them  in  their  wars  against 
the  Romans  ;  and  whose  king  Viridomarus 
was  killed  by  Marcellus  in  single  combat; 
these  are  called  Gaesatae  by  Polybius,  who 


33 


also  informs  us  that  they  derived  this  name 
from  their  mercenary  disposition ".  He  also 
clearly  intimates,  that  Hannibal  followed 
the  same  route  which  this  people  had  taken  Poiyb.  ub. 
to  cross  the  Alps ;  so  that  ir  we  can  ascer- 
tain who  these  Gaesatae  were,  and  from 
whence  they  came,  we  shall  have  another 
clue  to  guide  us  in  our  search.  Now  from 
the  description  given  of  this  people  by 
Polybius,  in  his  second  book,  of  their  going 
to  battle  naked,  their  mercenary  disposition 
and  extreme  ferocity,  it  appears  they  were 
not  Gauls,  but  Germans  who  had  crossed  ciuv.cerm. 
the  Rhine,  and  settled  near  the  Rhone  ^  l  c.'io/ 
The  Roman  inscription  in  the  Capitol 
indeed  expressly  states  them  to  have  been 
Germans : 

M.  CLAUDIUS.  M.  F.  M.  N.  MARCELLUS.  AN.  Fasti  Capi- 

tol.  apud 
DXXXI.     COS.    DE     GALLEIS    INSUBRIBUS.     ET  Grut. 

GERMAN.    K.    MART.    ISQUE.     SPOLIA.    OPIMA 

RETULIT.  DUCE    HOSTIUM.   VIRDUMARO.   AD. 

CLASTIDIUM  INTERFECTO. 

"  It  is  more  probable,  however,  that  they  were  so 
called  from  the  gaesum  or  javelin  which  they  used.  See 
Voss.  de  vit.  sermon. 

"  The  name  of  Gauls  seemsi  to  have  been  at  this  time 
indiscriminately  applied  to  all  Barbarians,  whether  of 
Celtic  or  Teutonic  origin. 

D 


34 


Propertius  also  plainly  denotes  them  to 
be  Germans.  El.  x.  lib.  4. 

Claudius  a  Rheno  trajectos  arcuit  hostes 
Bellica  cui  vasti  parma  relata  ducis, 

Virdumari.  genus  hie  Rheno  jactabat  ab  ipso 
Nobilis  e  tectis  fundere  gaesa  rods. 

casar.de       We   leam    also   from    Csesar,    that  the 

Bell.  Gall.     ^        i  ,  ,  i  c^  •  i 

lib.  i.  c.  31.  Cjrauls  tliemselves,  as  the  Ibeqiiam  and 
Arverni,  had  in  early  times  adopted  the 
practice  of  hiring  German  mercenaries  to 
assist  them  in  their  wars.  It  seems  even 
that  they  had  acquired  permanent  settle- 
Cffis.  de  ments  in  Gaul.  And  we  yet  learn  farther 
lib.  i.  c.  44.  from  Strabo,  that  these  very  Germans  were 

Strabo,  .  ... 

lib.iv.       materially  favoured  and  assisted  in  their 

p.  293.  .  .       "        . 

incursions  into  Italy  by  the  Sequani, 
without  whom,  he  adds,  they  could  have 
effected  nothing.  The  information  derived 
from  this  passage  of  Strabo  is  most  valuable, 
as  pointing  out  the  route  by  which  the 
Gaesatae  must  have  penetrated  into  Italy. 
Proceeding  from  the  country  of  the  Se- 
quani,  they  would  cross  the  Rhone  near 
the  present  Fort  de  I'Ecluse,  the  same  road 
which  the  Helvetii  undoubtedly  wished  to 
take  when  they  were  opposed  and  defeated 
cas.de     by    Caesar;     their    way    would    then    lav 

Bell.  Gall.        *^ 
lib.  i.  c.  4. 


35 

directly  through  the  Allobroges,  by  Cham- 
bery,  to  the  valley  of  the  IsereP,  and  up 
that  river  to  the  Graian  Alp  or  the  little 
St.  Bernard. 

A  few  observations  yet  remain  to  be 
made  on  the  history  of  this  last  passage. 
Whence  it  derived  the  name  of  the  Graian 
Alp  must  be  left  to  conjecture,  unless  any 
credit  be  thought  due  to  the  fabulous  story 
of  Hercules'  expedition  :  but  it  is  not  im- 
probable,  that  the   Celtic  term   grau- Alp  simier. 

*  1  1       I  1    •  Comment. 

may  have  been  corrupted,  and  altered  mtodeAip, 
a  Latin  form. 

It  is  mentioned,  I  believe  for  the  first 
time  under  that  name,  by  Cornelius  Nepos,  com.  Nep. 
in  the  life  of  Hannibal,  and  our  opinion  nib.' c.  22. 
derives  no  small  support  from  his  authority, 
seeing  that  he  positively  asserts  this  to 
have  been  the  Carthaginian  general's  route. 
His  account  is  clear,  plain,  and  concise. 
"  Ad  Alpes  posteaquam  venit,  quae  Italiam 

p  Another  road  seems  to  have  reached  that  valley  from 
Geneva ;  it  is  marked  in  the  Itineraries  as  branching  off 
from  Conflans  ad  Publicanos  on  the  Isere  by  Casuaria 
Ceserieux,  Bautae  Annecy,  to  Geneva ;  this  would  per- 
haps be  the  most  direct  which  the  Gtesatae  could  take. 
See  D'Anville,  Not.  de  I'Anc.  Gaule,  p.  212—145. 
Antonin.  Itiner.  Wesseling.  p.  34-7. 

d2 


36 


*^  ab  Gallia  sejungunt,  quas  nemo  unquam 
^'  cum  exercitu  ante  praeter  Herculem 
*'  Graium  transierat,  (quo  facto  is  hodie  sal- 
*'  tus  Grains  appellatur,)  Alpicos  conantes 
^'  prohibere  transitum  concidit:  loca  pate- 
'*  fecit,  itinera  muniit,  effecitque  ut  ea  ele- 
^'  phantusornatns  ire  posset,  qua  antea  unus 
*'  homo  inermis  vix  poterat  repere." 

This  passage,  however,  appears  to  have 
been  more  early  known  under  the  name 
of  Cremonis  jugum  ;  and  it  is  from  Livy 
that  we  obtain  that  and  another  valuable 
piece  of  information  relative  to  this  moun- 
tain. That  author,  stating  the  different 
opinions  that  had  been  held  respecting  the 
passage  by  which  Hannibal  arrived  in 
Italy,  mentions  that  of  Coelius,  who  sup- 
posed him  to  have  passed  by  the  Cremonis** 
jugum  :  some  however  would  read  Centro- 
nis  jugum  ;  but  whether  we  read  Cremonis 
or  Centronis  jugum  it  matters  little,  as  the 
same    mountain    is   meant   in  both  cases : 


'^  It  is  worthy  of  notice,  that  the  chain  which  forms 
the  north  side  of  this  passage,  and  connects  the  little  St. 
Bernard  with  the  great  chain  of  Mont  Blanc,  is  now 
called  the  Cramont.  See  De  Saussure's  Voyages  dans 
les  Alpcs,  for  a  description  of  this  mountain. 


37 

Livy  telling  us,  that  this  pass  led  through 
the  Salassi  into  the  country  of  the  Gauls,  Poiyb.iib.ii. 
called Libui,  or  rather  Libicii,  who  occupied  piin.iib.iii. 
Vercellse    Verceil,    Laumellum    Loniello,  ciuver. 
and  Ticinum  Pavia.  p-Vsa."'^* 

The  authority  of  Coelius  Antipater,  who 
lived  in  the  time  of  the  Gracchi,  about  625 
U.  C.  less  than  a  century  after  Hannibal's 
expedition,  not  only  confirms  the  idea  that 
the  passage  of  the  little  St.  Bernard  was 
frequented  in  his  time,  but  tends  also 
materially  to  prove  that  this  was  Hannibars 
route ;  since  his  character  for  veracity,  vai.  Max. 
though  nothing  now  remains  of  his  writings, 
is  established  by  ample  and  unquestionable  cicdeorat. 
testimony. 

Brutus  indeed   esteemed  his  history  of 
the  second  Punic   war  so  much,  that  hecic.  ad 

,      .  ,  I   .  ,         .  .   I  ,  1  ,  Att.lib.xiii. 

abridged  it,  as  he  is  said  to  nave  done  that  ep.  s. 
of  Polybius  also  :    and  Cicero,  though  he 
considered    his    style   as    rough    and    un- 
polished,  always  praises    him  for  his  ad-cic.de. 
herence  to  truth,  and   would   have   other 
writers  learn  accuracy  from  his  example'. 

'  For   a  further  account    of    Coelius    Antlpater,    see 
Voss.  de  Hist.  Lat.  lib.  i.  c.  8.    Harles,  Hist.  Ling.  Lat. 
^  i.  273. 


38 

In  the  time  of  Augustus,  when  a  more 

extensive  and  active  communication  with 

the  several   parts   of    so   vast   an  empire 

became  necessary,  we  find  that  emperor, 

among  other   passages  through   the   Alps 

which  he  laid  open,  or  rendered  more  easy 

of  access,  constructing  two  regular  ways 

strabo.      over  the  Pennine  and  Graian  Alps ;    the 

p. 318.      one   leading   from   Milan   to   Lyons,    the 

Hist.des    other  from  the  same  city  to  Vienne,  for- 

G.Chemins,  ^  "^ 

dei'Einp.   merly    the    capital     of     the    AUobroges. 

R.  p.  104-  J  V  to 

**i*  Strabo  however  makes  them  both  terminate 
at  Lyons,  and  thus  describes  them  :  ''  Of 
'^  the  passes  which  lead  from  Italy  into 
^'  Gaul  and  the  north  country,  one  leads 
''  through  the  country  of  the  Salassi,  ter- 
''  minating  at  Lyons  ;  but  this  is  twofold, 
''  the  one  passable  for  carriages,  but  longer, 
"  through  the  Centrones;  the  other  steep 
''  and  narrow,  over  the  Mons  Penninus." 
And  in  another  place  he  says,  ^'  The 
*^  country  of  the  Salassi^  lies  chiefly  in  a 

•  The  Salassi  resisted  the  Romans  for  a  long  time ; 
though  attacked  as  early  as  the  year  609  U.  C.  they 
were  not  finally  subdued  till  the  reign  of  Augustus.  They 
were  contiguous  to  the  Centrones  to  the  north,  and  the 
Libicii  to  the  south;  their  chief  towns  were  Augusta 
Prsetoria   Aosle,   a  colony   founded  by  Augustus,  and 


a 


a 


39 

''  deep  valley,  mountains  closing  it  in  on 
'^  both  sides  ;  it  reaches  also  in  some  parts 
**  lo  the  heights  that  overhang  it.  For 
^'  those  then  vi^ho  intend  crossing  these 
''  mountains,  their  road  lies  through  the 
'^  valley  we  have  described.  It  then 
^'  branches  off,  in  one  direction  crossing 
''  over  the  Mons  Penninus  and  the  summit 
of  the  Alps,  but  this  is  not  passable  for 
carriages ;  the  other  through  the  country 
of  the  Centrones  is  less  steep." 
When  Strabo  says,  that  the  road  to 
Lyons  by  the  Pennine  Alp  is  shorter  than 
by  the  Graian,  he  must  be  understood  to 
mean,  that  the  extent  of  mountainous 
country  which  it  traverses  is  less ;  other- 
wise this  statement  is  inadmissible.  It  is 
also  clear  from  Strabo's  account,  that  these 
passes  were  known  and  frequented  before 
the  works,  which  Augustus  caused  to  be 
executed  there,  had  been  undertaken. 
Finally,  since  it  has  now  been  shewn  that 
the  passage  of  the  little  St.  Bernard  was 
known  from  the  earliest  times  ;  since  it  was 
the  most  central  with  respect  to  Gaul,  and 

Eporedia,  now  Ivree.    Strabo,  lib.  iv.  Li  v.  Epit.  lib.  liii. 
Oros.  V.  4. 


40 


afforded  the  most  obvious  and  easy  com- 
munication between  that  country  and 
Insubria,  from  the  extensive  and  fertile 
valleys  which  it  connects ;  reason  and  pro- 
bability concur  in  pointing  it  out  as  that 
by  which  Hannibars  guides  would  conduct 
him.  It  remains  therefore  to  prove,  that 
Polybius's  narrative  and  description  agree 
with  the  hypothesis  here  brought  forward 
and  maintained. 


CHAP.  I. 

MARCH  OF  THE  ARMY  FROM  SPAIN  TO  THE  RHONE. 
PASSAGE  OF  THAT  RIVER. 

IT  has  been  shewn  in  the  Introduction,  that 
we  meant  to  be  guided  entirely  by  Polybius  in 
this  investigation;  and  before  we  enter  upon 
the  march  itself  across  the  Alps,  it  may  be 
right  to  relate  summarily  the  circumstances 
which  preceded  the  arrival  of  the  army  on  the 
banks  of  the  Rhone,  as  stated  by  that  author. 

He  begins  his  thirty-fourth  chapter  by  saying,  Poiyb. 
that  Hannibal  awaited  atCarthagena  the  arrival  c.  84. 
of  certain  emissaries,  whom  he  expected  from 
the  Gauls ;  and  it  is  observable,  that  from  the 
circumstance  of  his  mentioning  the  war  in  which  | 
this  people  had  been  engaged  with  the  Romans, 
we  can  learn  that  the  envoys  whom  he  expected 
were  to  be  sent  by  the  Boii  and  Insubrians.   , 
For  in  the  second  book  he  uniformly  mentions 
these  two  nations   as   the   chiefs   of  the   con- 
federacy against  the  Roman  arms,  and  the  war 
in  which  they  are  engaged  is  concluded  by  the  Poiyb. 
capture  of  Milan.  c  S4. 

B 


2 

It  is  important  thus  early  to  observe  upon 
this  fact,  in  order  to  shew,  that  the  object  of 
Hannibal  being  to  descend  at  first  from  the 
Alps  amongst  his  allies,  he  would  necessarily 
take  a  more  northerly  passage  over  the  Alps 
than  he  would  have  pursued  on  his  arrival  at 
the  Rhone,  if  the  more  southerly  one  of  the 
maritime  Alps  or  the  Mont  Genevre  (Alpis 
Cottia)  had  been  equally  convenient  for  him. 

It  requires  indeed  some  strong  reasons  to 
account  for  his  turning  directly  to  the  north- 
ward after  he  crossed  the  Rhone,  for  there  can 
be  no  doubt  that  these  two  last-mentioned  pas- 
sages were  much  nearer  than  the  one  which  it 
is  our  intention  to  shew  that  he  actually  did 
take. 

Now  the  situation  of  the  Insubres  is  well 
known;  as  we  find  from  Poly  bins  that  they 
possessed  great  part  of  the  country  to  the  north 
Poiyb.iib.u.  of  the  Po,  and  as  Milan  was  their  capital,  and 
the  nation  was  a  very  powerful  one,  we  may 
conclude  that  they  reached  quite  to  the  foot  of 
the  Alps  both  on  the  north  and  west.  Polybius 
mentions  the  Laii  and  Lebecii  as  being  settled 
on  the  western  bank  of  the  Po,  after  whom 
come  the  Insubres,  that  is^  at  the  spot  where  the 
river  instead  of  running  S.  and  N.  flows  from 
W.  to  E.  which  is  at  Chivasso.  The  Boii,  ac- 
cording to  Polybius,  were  situated  to  the  S.  E. 


3 

of  the  Insubrians,  and  to  the  south  of  the  Po, 
though  Pliny  states  them  to  have  founded  Lodi.  vide 
The  report  of  the  envoys  on  their  arrival  being  NoUcrde^ 
very  favourable,  Hannibal  declared  to  the  army  imubres/  * 
his  intention  of  marching  into  Italy,  and  ap- 
pointed   a    day    for    his    departure.     Finally, 
having  arranged  his  affairs  in  Spain,  he  crossed 
the   Pyrenees   with  50,000  infantry,  and  9000  c.  s5. 
cavalry.     The  distances  which   he  had  to  ac- 
complish, and  by  which  we  are  above  all  to  be 
guided,  are  laid  down  in  the  thirty-ninth  chap- 
ter; the  intermediate  ones  do  not  contain  any 
thing  material  to  our  purpose. 

Stadia. 

From    Emporium  (Ampurias)  to  the 

passage  of  the  Rhone 1600 

From  the  Rhone,  Tro^svof^ivoig  -ra^*  eivrov 
70V  TTOTOcf^ov^  cug  iTTi  Tctg  TTriyagy 
to  the  ascent  of  the  Alps 1400  iib.iii.c.89. 

The  Alps  themselves 1200 

With  respect  to  the  first  part  of  this  journey, 
that  from  Emporium  to  the  Rhone,  Poly  bins 
observes  that  he  is  correct  in  his  reckoning,  be- 
cause the  Romans  have  carefully  measured  and 
marked  it  at  every  8  stadia.  It  is  evident  from 
this,  that  he  wishes  us  to  understand  that  the 
army  marched  along  that  track  which  was  after- 
wards the  great  Roman  road  from  Emporium 
to  Nismes.     This  road,  according  to  D'Anville, 

B  2 


crossed  the  Pyrenees  at  Bellegarde,  and  turning 
to  the  right  to  EIne  (Illiberis)  passed  through 
Perpignan,  Narbonne,  Beziers,  a  little  to  the 
north  of  Montpellier,  Pont  d'Ambrois,  and 
Nismes,  varying  very  little  from  the  present  great 
road.  At  Nismes  (Nemausus)  the  Roman  road 
divided  into  two  parts,  of  which  one  went  south- 
erly to  Aries,  and  the  other  west  to  Tarascon. 
M.  De  Luc  conceives  the  army  to  have  marched 
N.  E.  from  Nismes,  and  to  have  arrived  at  the 
Rhone,  and  effected  their  passage  a  little  above 
the  town  of  Roquemaure,  on  a  spot  where,  ac- 
cording to  M.  Martin  de  Bagnols,  a  very  an- 
cient passage  of  the  river  called  L'Ardoise 
formerly  existed  ^  The  Comte  Portia  d'Urban, 
who  has  lately  published  a  small  tract  upon 
this  subject,  agrees  with  M.  De  Luc,  and  cites 
D'Anville  and  RoUin  together  with  M.  de 
Mandajors,  in  support  of  his  opinion.  Various 
other  authorities  might  be  cited,  but  it  will  be 


*  M.  Martin  de  Bagnol,  in  a  memoir  inserted  in  the  Travaux 
de  r Academic  du  Gard.  1811,  fixes  the  spot  from  personal 
observations  a  league  above  Roquemaure  j  in  this  he  agrees 
perfectly  with  M.  De  Luc,  who  had  not  however  seen  Mr. 
M's  work  when  he  decided  upon  the  same  spot.  In  the  march 
from  the  passage  to  the  I  sere,  Hannibal  proceeded  at  the  rate 
of  20  miles  a  day,  but  he  had  only  his  cavalry  and  elephants 

Vegetius  de  with  him..  Vegetius  seems  to  state  the  Roman  day's  march  at 

c.  9.  '  ^"*  ^^  miles,  the  modern  average  is  14  or  15. 


more  satisfactory  to  mention  M.  De  Luc's  prin- 
cipal arguments,  which  appear  to  be  conclusive 
on  the  subject.  In  the  first  place  then  the 
situation  is  pointed  out  with  great  exactness  by 
its  distance  from  the  vrjcrog  or  Insula  AUobrogum, 
which  is  formed  by  the  Isere  and  the  Rhone. 

From  the  crossing  the  Rhone  to  the  arrival 
of  the  army  at  the  vyjo-og  Polybius  reckons 
75  miles,  for  the  whole  distance  to  the  foot  of 
the  Alps  from  the  passage  of  the  river  being 
1400  stadia  or  175  miles,  and  the  march  along 
the  river  after  entering  the  vrja-og  being  100,  there  c.  49. 
remain  75  between  the  passage  and  the  Isere, 
Now  Roquemaure  is  at  precisely  that  distance 
from  Port  Tlsere.  Secondly,  it  is  pointed 
out  by  the  distance  from  the  sea,  which  Poly- 
bius calls  four  days'  march.  Supposing  a  day's  c  42. 
march  to  be  fixed  at  1 5  miles,  which  is  a  fair 
average,  for  although  we  shall  find  that  the 
Carthaginian  army  did  not  generally  exceed  12 
miles  a  day,  yet  an  army  unincumbered  with 
baggage  would  be  fully  able  to  perform  15,  this 
would  give  us  a  distance  of  60  miles  to  the  sea. 
From  Roquemaure  to  the  present  eastern 
mouth  of  the  Rhone,  along  the  river,  there  are 
64  miles,  and  it  is  supposed  that  the  land  has 
gained  considerably  on  the  sea  in  this  quarter. 
M.  De  Luc  on  this  account  has  looked  for  some 
'  high  spot  close  to  the  sea,  which  might  be  taken 

B  3 


e 

as  a  permanent  land  mark,  and  this  he  thinks 
he  has  found  in  the  village  of  Foz,  a  little  to  the 
east  of  the  eastern  mouth  of  the  river.     This 
village  stands  upon  the  first  rising  ground  that 
bounds  the  great  extent  of  flat  country  in  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  the  mouths  of  the  Rhone, 
all  which  country  has  been  at  some  tittle  or 
other  overflowed.   The  mouths  themselves  have 
evidently  varied  considerably,  and  therefore  M. 
De  Luc  is  justified  in  fixing  upon  the  first  emi- 
nence out  of  the  influence  either  of  the  river  or 
of  the  sea.     From  Foz  to  Roquemaure  the  dis- 
tance is  not  quite  60  miles ;  and  it  is  observable 
that  Polybius  uses  the  word  a-^shov^  almost  four 
days'  march.  Such  is  M.  De  Luc's  opinion,  and 
it  is  entitled  to  great  weight ;   but  D' Anville,  in 
D'Anviiie,  two  vcry  elaborate  articles  on  the  mouths  of  the 

Notice  de  la  •  /»     i 

Gauie,  Art.  lihone,  looks  upou  roz  as  the  extremity  of  the 
ana,  and     Fossa  Mariana,  a  canal  made  by   Marius  to 
daVi.    ^'    avoid    the    difficulties    which   ships   generally 
experienced  at  the  neighbouring  mouth  of  the 
river,  from  the  accumulation  of  mud  and  sand. 
The  eastern  mouth  is,  according  to  the  Itine- 
raries, 16  miles  to  the  west  of  Foz,  and  30  miles 
from  Aries ;  from  that  town  to  Roquemaure  in 
a  straight  line  there  are  hardly  30  miles,  but  if 
you  follow  the  river  there  are  about  35.     This 
would  make  rather  more  than  the  four  days' 
march  at  15  miles  a  day:  but  Polybius  in  men- 


tioning  that  distance  speaks  loosely;  and  a$  the 
76  miles  from  the  Isere  is  a  definitive  number,  we 
must  be  guided  absolutely  by  that,  and  be  con- 
tent with  finding,  which  we  do  both  by  M. 
De  Luc  and  by  D'Anville,  that  Roquemaure  is 
about  four  days'  march  from  the  sea.  If  we  mea- 
sure in  a  straight  line  the  distance,  we  have 
about  54  miles,  and  these  distances  prove  at 
least  that  no  objection  can  be  made  to  Roque- 
maure on  account  of  its  not  fulfilling  the  con- 
dition of  the  passage  being  four  days'  march 
from  the  sea. 

Thirdly,  another  circumstance  which  tends 
to  fix  the  passage  at  this  place,  is  that  of  the 
river  flowing  here  in  a  single  stream,  a^X?  pvcrtg 
is  the  expression  of  Polybius.  The  Rhone 
flows  in  this  manner,  uninterrupted  by  islands 
from  Caderousse  to  Roquemaure,  a  distance  of 
nearly  a  league ;  and,  with  the  exception  of  a 
similar  stream  immediately  below  the  island  at 
Roquemaure,  though  for  a  much  shorter  dis- 
tance, this  circumstance  does  not  occur  for 
many  miles  up  and  down  the  river. 

Fourthly,  the  situation  tallies  also  extremely 
well  with  the  determination  that  Hannibal  had 
taken,  of  leaving  the  sea  behind  him,  and  march- 
ing along  the  Rhone  as  if  he  was  going  to  its 
source.  For  a  little  above  Roquemaure  the 
river  makes  a  bend  to  the  eastward,  and  di- 

B  4 


8 

recti y  crosses  the  line  of  march  from  Nismes  to 
the  sources  of  the  Rhone;  supposing  that  he 
marched  directly  to  the  source.  And  had  he 
crossed  the  river  below  its  junction  with  the 
Durance,  he  would  have  thrown  himself  far  too 
much  to  the  southward,  and  would  have  had 
that  river  to  cross  after  his  passage  of  the  Rhone. 
Its  liability  to  inundation,  and  the  great  breadth 
and  instability  of  its  bed,  would  have  added 
considerably  to  his  difficulties^.  It  is  easy 
too  to  understand,  how  the  convenience  of 
having  a  single  stream  to  cross  instead  of  one 
intersected  by  islands,  would  influence  the  choice 
of  the  spot  in  question  in  preference  to  any 
other.  There  is  certainly  a  long  tract  of  single 
stream  in  the  river,  after  its  junction  with  the 
Durance;  but  I  have  already  given  sufficient 
reasons  for  his  not  crossing  below  that  point. 

Finally,  the  distance  from  Emporium  to 
Roquemaure  agrees  almost  exactly  with  the 
200  miles  or  1600  stadia  which  are  reckoned 


•*  Comte  Fortia  d' Urban,  who  agrees  with  M.  De  Luc  on 
this  point,  lays  much  stress  upon  the  existence  of  an  old  town 
called  Courthezon,  immediately  opposite  to  Roquemaure,  and 
upon  the  high  road  from  Avignon  to  Lyons.  "  Courthezon 
"  dont  le  nom  est  a  peu  pres  le  nieme  que  le  nom  Gr6c  de 
"  Carthage.  II  est  vraisembable  qu'il  {Amiibal)  y  s^journa,  et 
"  que  c'est  ce  qui  a  valu  cette  denomination  a  cette  ancienne 
*'  ville."    This  however  is  somewhat  fanciful. 


9 

by  Polybius  between  ihe  first  of  these  points 
and  the  passage  of  the  river.  For  according  to 
the  Itineraries  there  are  176  miles  from  Em- 
porium to  Nismes,  and  28  in  a  straight  line 
from  Nismes  to  Roquemaure,  making  a  total 
of  204,  which  is  as  close  an  approximation  as 
we  can  reasonably  expect  to  find. 

I  have  been  particular  in  fixing  the  exact  spot 
of  the  passage  of  the  river,  as  it  is  from  thence 
that  the  succeeding  calculations  will  be  made, 
and  having  once  obtained  an  accurate  point, 
we  shall  have  little  difficulty  in  proceeding. 
The  manner  in  which  the  passage  itself  was 
effected  will  be  seen  at  large  in  Polybius,  and  Poiyb.  lib. 
the  description  is  so  admirably  given,  that  it 
would  be  impossible  to  retain  the  spirit  of  it  in 
an  abridgment.  M.  De  Luc  places  the  island 
where  Hanno  passed  with  his  detachment  a 
little  above  the  Pont  St.  Esprit,  and  opposite 
the  village  of  La  Palud,  25  miles  from  Roque- 
maure. The  Rhone  however  is  so  full  of 
islands  above  Caderousse,  that  it  is  difficult  to 
fix  on  the  precise  spot,  nor  is  it  indeed  material. 

It  was  on  the  fifth  day  from  their  arrival  at 
the  Rhone  that  the  army  (with  the  exception 
of  the  elephants)  passed  over,  and  on  the  sixth 
Hannibal  dispatched  500  Numidian  horse  to- 
wards the  mouth  of  the  river,  in  order  to  obtain 
some  information  respecting  the  Roman  army. 


c  45. 


10 

On  the  same  day  Magilws  and  the  other  chiefs 
of  the  country  about  the  Po  were  introduced 
to  the  army,  and  the  final  intentions  of  the  ge- 
neral were  declared:  and  in  the  evening  of  the 
same  day  the  Numidians  returned,  pursued  by 
the  Roman  cavalry,  who  after  examining  the 
camp,  went  back  in  all  haste  to  Publius.  On 
the  seventh  day  the  infantry  were  ordered  on 
their  march  up  the  Rhone,  and  the  same  day, 
and  probably  the  succeeding  one,  were  em- 
ployed in  bringing  over  the  elephants.  On  the 
ninth  day  Hannibal  himself  followed  the  infantry 
with  the  cavalry  and  elephants,  and  in  three 
days  after  his  departure  the  Roman  consul  ar- 
rived at  the  place  from  whence  he  had  set  out. 
This  allows  six  days  for  the  return  of  the 
Roman  cavalry  with  the  account  of  the  passage 
of  the  river  by  the  Carthaginians,  and  for  Pub- 
lius's  own  march  after  receiving  the  information. 
It  is  expressly  stated  by  Polybius,  that  he  (Pub- 
lius) as  well  as  his  cavalry  made  all  possible 
haste,  which  will  account  for  their  doing  in  six 
days  the  work  of  eight.  We  shall  proceed  in 
the  next  chapter  to  examine  the  road  taken 
from  the  passage  of  the  river  to  the  foot  of  the 
Alps. 


CHAP.  II. 

MARCH  FROM  THE  PLACE  WHERE  THE  ARMY  PASSED  THE 
RHONE  TO  THE  FOOT  OF  THE  ALPS.  DESCRIPTION  OP 
THE  ISLAND. 

Having  ascertained  in  the  preceding  chap- 
ter the  place  where  Hannibal  crossed  the  Rhone, 
we  shall  begin  the  present  with  an  abstract  of 
the  march  from  the  passage  to  the  foot  of  the 
Alps,  as  related  by  Polybius. 

He  led  his  army  from  the  sea  along  the  river  c.  47.  et 
towards  its  source  to  the  eastward  ;  and  having 
marched  for  four  days,  he  came  to  a  country 
called  the  vyjcrog,  formed  by  the  Rhone  and  the 
Isere  on  two  sides,  and  the  Alps  which  are  al- 
most inaccessible  on  the  third ;  for  this  coun- 
try is  very  similar  both  in  shape  and  size  to  the 
Delta  in  Egypt.  Here  he  found  two  brothers 
contending  for  the  sovereignty  of  the  country, 
and  having  joined  the  eldest,  and  placed  him  in 
possession  of  the  throne,  he  proceeded  along  the 
river  800  stadia,  (100  miles,)  in  ten  days,  and 
arrived  at  the  very  foot  of  the  Alps.  During 
this  time  the  brother  whom  he  had  assisted  was 
of  the  greatest  use  to  him  in  supplying  the  army 


12 

with  provisions,  with  shoes,  and  with  arms,  as 
well  as  in  protecting  the  rear  from  the  attacks 
of  the  Gauls,  who  were  called  the  AUobroges ; 
and  while  he  traversed  the  flat  country,  these 
Allobroges,  partly  from  fear  of  his  own  cavalry, 
and  partly  from  fear  of  his  escort,  abstained 

^  from  attacking  him.  When  however  his  friends 
had  left  him,  and  he  was  arrived  at  the  foot  of 
the  Alps,  these  barbarians  occupied  the  heights 
and  the  passage,  through  which  he  must  of  ne- 
cessity march,  in  great  numbers,  and  compelled 
Hannibal  to  encamp  in  their  front. 

Such  is  the  short  statement  of  the  proceed- 
ings of  the  army  as  far  as  the  foot  of  the  Alps, 
a  distance  of  1400  stadia,  or  175  miles;  and 
here  we  cannot  possibly  be  mistaken  in  the  di- 
rection that  we  are  to  take,  and  the  road  that 
we  are  to  follow,  as  we  are  expressly  told,  that 

.  the  march  was  along  the  river  ^a^a  rov  '^ora>fj(,ov, 
leaving  the  sea  behind.  It  is  important  how- 
ever here  to  remark  upon  an  inaccuracy  of  Poly- 
bius  with  respect  to  the  general  course  of  the 
Rhone,  from  its  source  to  its  junction  with  the  sea. 
It  will  be  seen,  on  reference  to  the  forty- 
seventh  chapter,  that  he  describes  the  river  as 
keeping  one  uniform  direction  from  N.  E.  to 
S.  W.  and  that  he  makes  no  mention  whatever 
of  the  angle  formed  at  Lyons.  Nor  is  this 
much  to  be  wondered  at,  when  we  consider  the 


13  # 

ignorance  of  the  ancients  as  to  those  parts  of 
practical  geography  in  which  we  have  made 
such  progress,  as  well  as  their  total  want  of 
instruments  to  assist  them  in  the  measurement 
of  angles.  From  the  source  to  the  embouchure, 
the  river,  if  it  flowed  in  a  straight  course,  would 
certainly  flow  from  N.  E.  to  S.  W.  and  with  the 
exception  of  this  error,  it  is  clear  from  his  descrip- 
tion that  our  author  must  have  been  well  ac- 
quainted with  its  general  character.  To  return. 
Having  put  himself  at  the  head  of  the  cavalry 
and  elephants,  Hannibal  marched  up  the  river 
for  four  successive  days,  till  he  arrived  at  the 
Island  or  v9i(rog,  a  distance  of  75  miles,  (since 
from  the  Island  to  the  Alps  there  are  100 
miles,)  and  at  the  rate  of  nearly  nineteen  miles  c.  so. 
a  day,  this  average  is  much  beyond  the  usual 
one,  as  will  appear  hereafter.  The  infantry  had 
two  days  advance,  and  he  joined  them  at  the 
Isere,  since  it  was  there  that  he  found  the  bro- 
thers. This  would  give  twelve  miles  and  a 
half  a  day  for  that  part  of  the  army,  and  as  the 
baggage  would  be  sent  with  them,  the  cavalry 
might  perform  nineteen  miles  without  great  dif- 
ficulty, especially  after  the  halt  which  had  been 
made  on  the  banks  of  the  Rhone.  The  de- 
scription of  the  island,  at  which  the  army  ar- 
lived  on  the  fourth  day,  is  too  clearly  given  to 
admit  of  any  rational  doubt,  as  to  its  situation  ;c.  49. 


14 


for  we  are  told  that  it  was  very  populous,  ^o- 
Xvoy^Xogi  and  fertile  in  corn,  similar  in  size,  as 
well  as  figure,  to  the  Delta,  formed  by  the 
Rhone  and  Isere  on  two  sides,  and  by  inaccessi- 
ble mountains  on  the  third.  In  examining  the 
Island  on  the  map,  we  must  bear  in  mind  Poly- 
bius «  previous  account  of  the  general  direction 
of  the  Rhone,  and  if  we  omit  the  angle  which 
it  really  forms  at  Lyons,  we  shall  have  an 
island  nearly  resembling  the  Delta  both  in  size 
and  form*'. 

The  country  is  at  present  particularly  well 
calculated  for  corn,  and  extremely  populous. 
The  comparison  which  Polybius  draws  between 
it  and  the  Delta  may  be  easily  accounted  for 
by  his  personal  knowledge  of  the  latter,  from 
his  having  been  employed  in  Egypt,  during  his 
father's  embassy  to  Ptolemy  Epiphanes.  It  is 
fortunate  also  for  our  purpose,  that  he  should 
have  been  able  to  make  use  of  so  accurate  an 
illustration,  as  the  coincidence  of  size  which  he 
expressly  mentions  will  prevent  the  possibility 

*=  The  length  of  the  Delta  from  N.  to  S.  is  about  90 
English  miles,  and  its  breadth  from  Rosetta  to  Damietta  about 
70.  From  Lyons  to  Port  I'lsere  there  is  a  distance  of  about 
70  miles,  and  the  same  along  the  river  from  Lyons  to  the 
Mont  du  Chat.  From  Port  de  I'lsere  to  Grenoble  60 
miles,  and  from  Yenne  to  Grenoble  in  a  straight  line  40 
miles. 


15  m 

of  any  mistake,  as  to  the  actual  position  of  the 
Island  at  which  Hannibal  arrived  on  the  fourth 
day  of  his  march.     The  mountains  of  which 
our  author  speaks,  as  inclosing  the  third  side, 
begin  at  the  northern  extremity  of  the  Lac  du 
Bourget,  and  run  in  a  southerly  direction  to 
the  Guiers   vif,  which   they  join  between  the 
Pont  de  Beauvoisin  and  the  Echelles.     From 
hence  to  the  south  they  form  a  sort  of  bason^ 
as  will  be  seen  by  the  map,  running  first  S.  E. 
to  the  Fort  Barraux,  and  the  opening  of  the 
valley  of  the  Gresivaudan;  then  S.  W.  along  that 
valley  to  Grenoble ;  thence  N.  W.  to  Voreppe 
and  Voiron ;  and  then  North,  joining  the  first 
chain  at  the  Font  de  Beauvoisin.     Within  this 
bason  stands  the  convent  of  the  Grande  Char- 
treuse^    This  chain  forms  the  first  step  or  lisiere 
of  the  Alps.      It    is  divided   at  the   Fort  de 
Barraux  by  the  Isere  from  the  great  ridge  that 
runs  from  the  Mount  Cenis,  along  the  Mauri- 
enne   and  the  valley  of  the  Arc.     The  Mont 
du  Chat,  or  northern  part  of  it,  is  not  so  high  as 
the  Jura,  but  to  the  south  and  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  the  Grande  Chartreuse  the  height 
is    much    more    considerable.     The    passages 
through  this  chain  will  be  pointed  out  hereafter; 
it  will  here  be  sufficient  to  give  a  general  idea 
of  the  country  as  it  now  appears.     The  waters 
flow  for  the  most  part  from  E.  to  W.  and  fall 


16 

into  the  Rhone  between  Lyons  and  Port  Tlsere, 
each  stream  flows  in  a  flat  valley,  and  the  hills 
which  separate  them  are  very  low,  and  towards 
the  north  the  country  is  quite  flat.  After  pass- 
ing Bourgoin  upon  the  high  road  from  Lyons  to 
Chambery  the  features  are  bolder,  and  the  hills 
rise  more  and  more,  till  we  arrive  at  the  Guiers 
vif,  and  the  foot  of  the  chain  of  mountains  al- 
ready referred  to.  The  whole  country  is  ex- 
tremely well  cultivated,  though  subject  to  occa- 
sional inundations  in  the  valleys,  very  populous, 
and  towards  the  eastern  part  very  picturesque, 
being  well  wooded,  and  some  of  the  trees  re- 
markably fine.  It  is  extremely  well  calculated 
to  support  an  army. 

The  manifest  error  contained  in  some  edi- 
tions of  Polybius  of  '^Agagog,  instead  of  'Itrdgocg, 
has  been  corrected  by  Sch weigh seuser.     In  the 
older  editions  it  is  ^scc^gug  :  and  M.  De  Luc  as- 
Dc  Luc,     sures  us,  that  General  Melville  when  at  Rome 
consulted  an  ancient  MS.  of  Polybius  in  the 
Vatican,  in  which  he  found  the  word  'la-dgag. 
Polybius  says  also,  that  the  two  rivers  which 
flow  from  the  Island,  flow  from  different  Alps ; 
this  agrees  with  the  Rhone  and  the  Isere,  but 
not  with  the  Saone,  which  does  not  take  its  rise 
Hist,  de  la  ^^  the  Alps  at  all.     It  is  also  worth  notice,  that 
Sfntail'er^^  au  old  MS.  of  Llvy,  which  M.  de  Mandajors 
Pans  1733, gaw  at. Trinity  College,  Cambridge,  the  word 


17 

Bisarar  was  written  in  the  21st  book,  chap. 
31,  in  the  passage  which  relates  to  this  island, 
and  where  Arar.  is  generally  read.  Through  this 
country  then  we  have  to  march  100  miles  along 
the  river  till  we  Veach  the  foot  of  the  Alps; 
and  here  a  difficulty  presents  itself;  for  in  keep- 
ing constantly  on  the  banks  of  the  river,  the  100 
miles  would  be  expended  at  that  part  of  the 
Rhone  where  the  Bourbe  on  the  S.  and  the  Ain 
on  the  N.  throw  themselves  into  itj  and  where 
the  country  is  entirely  flat.  We  must  however 
remember,  that  Polybius  was  ignorant  of  the 
angle  made  by  the  Rhone  at  Lyons ;  and  we 
cannot  help  seeing,  that  a  march  conducted  the 
whole  way  a;long  the  river  from  Port  I'lsere  to 
Yenne,  where,  the  Alps  begin,  ^vould  have 
caused  the  army  to  have  gone  over  almost  twice 
as  much  ground,  as  they  would  have  traversed 
if  they  had  struck  across  the  flat  country  of 
the  Island,  and  avoided  by  that  means  the  angle 
of  Lyons.  We  must  therefore  take  the  expres- 
sion of  along  the  river  in  this  place  in  an  en- 
larged sense,  and  suppose  that  the  prince,  who 
accompanied  Hannibal,  led  him  by  the  shortest 
road  to  the  Alps.  M.  De  Luc  is  of  opinion, 
that  they  quitted  the  Rhone  at  Vienne,  and 
rejoined  it  at  /8t.  Genis,  on  the  spot  where 
the  Guiers  vif  falls  into  it,  and  that  they  fol- 
lowed   the   road    which   was  afterwards   con- 


18 

verted  into  a  Roman  one,  that  is,  from  Vienne 
to  Bourgoin  (Bergiisium)  and  Augusta,  now 
Aouste,  to  Etanna,  now  Yenne,  and  he  is  con- 
firmed in  this  opinion,  as  the  distance  from 
Port  de  risere  by  the  Roman  road  to  Vienne, 
and  thence  to  Etanna,  is  97  miles,  and  it  is 
only  at  Etanna  that  we  leave  the  Rhone  alto- 
gether. Was  Vienne  then  the  capital  of  the 
country  for  which  the  brothers  were  contend- 
ing? M.  De  Luc  is  of  opinion,  and  I  think 
with  sufficient  reason,  that  it  was.  Polybius 
gives  us  no  date  as  to  distances  with  respect 
to  this  capital ;  but  the  prince  whom  Hannibal 
assisted  must  have  been  master  of  no  small 
territory,  since  he  was  able  to  supply  the  Car- 
thaginian army  with  arms  and  provisions  to 
Notice  de  such  an  cxtcut.  Vieunc,  according  to  D'An- 
art.  Vienne.  villc,  was  onc  of  the  most  considerable  towns 
of  the  Allobroges.  Strabo  says,  that  the  chief 
men  of  that  nation  having  assembled  there,  had 
founded  a  city,  the  rest  of  the  people  being 
dispersed  in  the  villages.  Ptolemy  also  men- 
tions this  town  as  being  the  only  considerable 
one  among  the  Allobroges  ;  and  Polybius  him- 
self talks  of  the  brothers  as  contending  V7c\g  Tjjg 
jScKriXeiotgy  which  implies  a  much  higher  com- 
mand than  the  x.ctra  [L%^og  iysf^ovegt  whom  he 
mentions  afterwards  on  the  arrival  of  the  army 
at  the  foot  of  the  Alps.     General  Melville  was 


19 

of  opinion,  that  the  army  turned  off  at  St.  Ram- 
bert,  and  crossed  the  first  chain  of  Alps  at  the 
Echelles,  without  ever  rejoining  the  Rhone ;  but 
this  march  would  not  at  all  agree  with  the  dis- 
tances laid  down  by  Polybius,  which  by  leav- 
ing the  river  at  Vienne,  and  rejoining  it  at  St. 
Genis,  we  unite  as  much  as  possible  the  distances 
and  the  march  along  the  river,  which  would  in 
any  other  manner  be  incompatible  with  each 
other.  The  situation  of  Vienne  is  extremely 
strong,  being  placed  at  an  angle  of  the  river, 
and  protected  by  some  heights,  which  almost 
entirely  surround  it.  There  are  here  abun- 
dance of  Roman  antiquities,  an  amphitheatre, 
a  triumphal  arch,  and  a  temple  resembling  the 
Maison  Quarree  at  Nismes.  The  old  town  was 
much  more  considerable  than  the  modern  one, 
extending  itself  on  the  plain  on  the  western 
side  of  the  river,  and  having  a  bridge  across, 
which  is  now  destroyed.  It  will  be  seen  by 
the  map,  that  the  river  makes  a  turn  to  the  east 
before  it  arrives  at  Vienne,  and  as  there  is  a 
range  of  hills  which  prevent  any  road  from  fol- 
lowing its  banks  to  the  north,  it  is  probable  that 
the  army  would  on  this  spot  turn  off  to  the  east, 
and  cross  the  flat  country.  Jean  Chorier,  who 
has  written  on  the  antiquities  of  Vienne,  which 
he  calls  the  metropolis  of  the  Allobroges,  says, 
"  Les  Gaulois,  dont  les  Allobroges  etoient  une 

c2 


20 

"  illustre  partie,  ont  parcu  souvent  avec  honneur 
"  dans  les  armees  des  Carthaginois,  toujours 
"  compos6es  d'Etrangers.     Annibal  et  son  fr^re 
"  Asdrubalayantpris  leur  route  par  FAIlobrogie 
"  pour  passer  en  Italie,  y  firent  de  nouvelles 
"  levies.  lis  grossirent  leurs  armies  et  peutetre 
**  laiss6rent  dans  Vienne,  qui  6toit  la  Metropole 
"  de  ce  peuple,  quelques  uns  de  leurs  Capitaines, 
*'  pour  maintenir   par  leur  presence  la  bonne 
"  intelligence  de  cette  nation  avec  la  leur.     Ce 
*'  pays  etoit  si  connu  des  Carthaginois  du  terns 
*'  merae  d' Alexandre  que  le  nom  de  Rhone  fut 
**  impos6  par  eux  a  Amilcar  pour  gratifier  notre 
"  nation'^."     M.  De  Luc  is  of  opinion,  that  the 
Roman  road  from  Vienne  to  the  Mont  du  Chat, 
was  constructed  by  Domitius^nobarbus  in  the 
year  of  Rome  631.     This  fact  if  proved  would 
be  important,  because  it  would  suppose  a  pre- 
vious road  to  have  existed  in  the  same  direction; 
but  it  does  not  appear  certain  that  this  was  the 
exact  road  made  after  the  Roman  manner  by 
Domitius,  though  it  is  very  probable,  for  it  was 
after  his  conquest  of  the  Allobroges  and  the 
Arverni  that  it  was  made.     Be  that  as  it  may, 
the  distances  authorize  us  to  conclude,  that  the 

•*  In  the  Guide  de  1' Empire,  (an  account  of  France  now 
in  course  of  publication,)  mention  is  made  of  a  strong  tradition 
at  St.  Vallier,  that  Hannibal  passed  through  it  on  his  march 
over  the  Alps.  t 


V?. 


21 


army  marched  in  this  direction;  and  this  opinion 
is  confirmed  by  a  discovery  which  was  made 
inthe  village  of  Passage,  a  little  to  the  south  of 
La  Tour  du  Pin,  and  not  above  half  a  mile  from 
the  present  great  road  from  Lyons  to  Chambery. 
In  the  year  1714  a  farmer  of  that  village  struck 
his  plough  against  a  large  piece  of  rock,  under 
which  he  found  after  much  labour  around  plate 
of  silver  of  27  inches  in  diameter.  This  was 
deposited  in  the  king's  library  at  Paris,  where  it 
now  is,  and  where  I  saw  it  in  the  autumn  of 
last  year.  The  surface  is  fluted,  except  in  the 
centre,  where  is  represented  a  lion  under  a 
palm  tree,  below  which  is  the  leg  and  hoof  of 
a  goat.  The  exact  resemblance  which  the  lion 
and  palm  tree  bear  to  all  acknowledged  Car- 
thaginian medals,  together  with  the  singularity 
of  the  engraving,  which  is  not  in  lines  or  in 
relief,  according  to  the  Roman  manner,  but  in 
little  points,  render  it  very  probable  that  this 
plate  was  a  votive  tablet,  placed  in  that  spot 
either  by  Hannibal  himself,  or  by  some  Cartha- 
ginian general,  who  followed  him  on  that  road 
with  reinforcements,  and  who  would  follow  his 
steps  exactly ;  for  it  is  remarkable,  that  the  army 
never  appear  to  have  been  led  out  of  their  way, 
and  although  they  were  often  attacked  by  the 
treachery  of  their  guides,  they  never  appear  to 
have  been  deceived  or  misled  in  the  road  itself. 

c3 


22 


It  Mdll  be  seen,  from  the  article  on  this  subject 
inserted  in  the  Appendix,  that  there  was  an  old 
tradition  in  the  country,  that  the  name  of  Pas- 
sage was  derived  from  the  march  of  the  Cartha- 
ginians   by   that    way.     The   situation  of   the 
village  itself  renders  it  not  improbable  that  the 
tablet  was  deposited  here  as  a  votive  offering. 
It  stands  on  a  long  and  high  hill,  from  which 
you  first  discover  the  whole  chain  of  Alps  that 
close  the  Islaftd.     You  come  at  once  in  sight  of 
them  from  their  very  base,  and  few  views  can 
be  more  striking,  as  they  appear  to  oppose  here 
an  insurmountable  obstacle  to  any  further  pro- 
gress.    If    Hannibal    came    by   this    road,   it 
would  be  on  this  spot  that  he  would  first  have 
his  full  and  complete  view  of  the  barriers  of 
Italy ;  and  as  Polybius  has  said  once  or  twice 
that  he  was  accustomed  to  sacrifice  on  great 
occasions,  it  is   not  unreasonable   to   suppose 
that  he  would  do  so  here.     The  Roman  road 
from    Vienne    to    Chambery    passed    through 
Lavisco  :  now  supposing  Lavisco  to  be  Chevelu, 
(a  village  at  the  foot  of  the  Mont  du  Chat,)  a  fact 
which  the  relative   distances  from    Chambery 
and  Aouste  will   sufficiently   prove,    we   shall 
have  98  miles  from  Port  de  Tlsere  to  Chevelu 
at  the  entrance  of  the  passage  over  the  Mont 
du   Chat.    This  distance   agrees  as    well  with 
Polybius  as  it  is  possible  to  wish,  and  we  may 


23 

encamp  the  army  between  that  village  and  the 
others  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain  at  the  end  of 
the  tenth  day  from  the  passage  of  the  Isere,  and 
the  fourteenth  from  Hannibal's  leaving  the  place 
where  he  had  passed  the  Rhone. 

M.  De  Luc,  whose  general  accuracy  and 
research  cannot  be  too  much  praised,  has  fallen 
into  an  error  in  conducting  the  army  from  St.  De  luc, 
Genis  along  the  banks  of  the  Rhone  by  La 
Balme  to  Yenne.  This  has  been  caused  by 
his  not  having  himself  examined  the  ground, 
and  from  his  supposing  that  the  Roman  road 
to  Chambery  from  Aouste  passed  through 
Etanna  or  Yenne,  whereas  that  road  left  Etanna 
to  the  left,  and  passed  through  Lavisco.  There 
was  however  a  road  passing  through  Yenne 
which  led  from  Aouste  to  Geneva.  On  our 
arrival  at  St.  Genis  we  followed  M.  De  Luc's 
road  along  the  river  to  La  Balme,  up  to  this 
place ;  though  very  closely  pressed  by  a  high 
hill  on  the  right,  the  passage  might  be  practi- 
cable ;  but  at  La  Balme  the  river  is  confined  on 
both  sides  between  two  high  rocks,  which  con- 
tinue nearly  to  Yenne,  and  though  the  road  is 
now  very  practicable,  haijing  been  made  in 
modern  times  with  gunpowder,  it  would  have 
been  quite  impossible  to  have  passed  that  way 
formerly.  It  became  therefore  necessary  to 
look  for  another  passage,  and  we  were  convinced 

c4 


24 


upon 'enquiry  and/ from  observation,  that;  the 
old  road  had  passed  by  St.  Maurice,  at  the 
back  of  the  hill  which  flanks  the  modern  road 
close  to  the  river.  This  way  by  St.  Maurice  is 
now  not  much  frequented,  as  it  is  very  hilly,  and 
intersected  by  several  torrents,  which  (as  the 
soil  is  extremely  soft)  have  worn  themselves 
deep  beds,  which  increase  every  year.  The 
torrents  are  all  parallel  to  the  chain  of  the  Mont 
du  Chat,  and  fall  into  the  Rhone  at  Yenne. 
The  passage  of  that  river,  between  two  almost 
perpendicular  rocks  of  great  height,  for  a  dis- 
tance of  about  two  miles  from  La  Balme  to 
Yenne,  is  very  magnificent.  On  the  French  side 
is  a  fort  called  Pierre  Chatel,  from  which  the 
view  is  beautiful,  as  it  commands  thef  river  to  a 
great  extent. 

The  Prince  of  the  AUobroges,  who  accom- 
panied the  army,  probably  left  them  at  Aouste, 
where  the  Guiersvif  falls  into  the  Rhone,  and 
where  the  flat  country  of  the  Island  ends;  for 
Polybius  seems  to  confine  his  attendance  to  the 
plains ;  so  that  from  hence  they  were  to  proceed, 
accompanied  only  by  those  guides  from  the 
plains  of  the  Po  \^ho  had  crossed  the  moun- 
tains in  order  to  ask  for  their  assistance,  and 
by  such  others  as  they  might  obtain  in  the 
country,  or  who  had  perhaps  been  left  with 
them  by  the  Prince,  when  he  returned  to  his 


25 


own  territories.  With  these  guides  the  array 
proceeded  to  the  passage  of  the  Mont  dii  Chat. 
In  the  next  chapter  I  shall  give  an  account  of 
the  different  passages  which  lead  put  of  the 
Island  over  those  mountains  which  form,  aq*- 
cording  to  Polybius,  the  third  side  of  it,  and  I 
shall  conclude  the  present  one  with  some  ex- 
tracts from  my  notes  taken  on  the  spot. 

August  19,  1819.  From  Vienne  to  Bourgoin 
the  road  runs  along  a  broad  valley  with  low 
flat  hills,  a  raised  causeway,  probably  the 
remains  of  the  Roman  way.  At  Septeme,  7 
miles  from  Vienne,  (ad  Septimum,)  country  quite 
open  ;  pass  Otier  (octavum)  to  Dieme,  (deci- 
mum,)  very  well  cultivated,  clover,  corn,  fine 
walnut  trees,  lucerne,  turnips,  full  of  farm  houses; 
before  Bourgoin,  small  round  hills  of  sand 
stone.  To  the  north,  high  hills,  under  which 
the  Rhone  runs,  so  that  its  course  is  very 
visible.  At  Bourgoin  join  the  great  road  from 
Lyons  to  Chambery,  to  Tour  du  Pin.  Passage 
on  the  right,  from  hence  a  magnificent  view  of 
the  Alps,  shutting  in  the  vricrog.  To  Aouste 
country  bolder,  hills  more  prolonged ;  at 
Aouste,  (Augusta  Allobrogum,)  several  Roman 
remains.  The  Guiers  vif  runs  through  it,  and 
divides  France  from  Savoy.  The  hills  on  the 
other  side  of  the  Rhone,  which  is  about  half  a 
mile   from    Aouste,   very   high ;    from    Aouste 


26 


cross  the  Guiers  vif  to  St.  Genis ;  from  hence 
two  roads  to  Yenne ;  one  close  to  the  river,  a 
good  and  modem  one;  the  other  by  St.  Maurice, 
at  the  back  of  the  hills  which  confine  the 
other.  The  Austrians,  in  coming  from  Savoy 
into  France  in  1815,  took  the  latter,  as  the 
French  commanded  the  modern  road  from  Pierre 
Chatel.  Yenne  in  a  small  plain,  very  rich;  Rhone 
flowing  close  to  it.  The  old  Yenne,  or  Etanna, 
now  destroyed,  about  a  mile  E.  S.  E.  from  it. 
Several  Roman  remains  here,  and  a  beautiful 
view  of  the  Rhone  and  surrounding  country. 
The  Mont  du  Chat  passage,  E.  by  N.  very 
high. 


Steteli  of  the  Passage  of  M!da  Chat 


iiii^^te 


ffoo  woo  Toises- 

or  sooo  Jofdf. 


JUbderri'  Itoad..^==^:s^  .     Old  Mvad, =-  . 

Sketcli  of  the  Valley  below  la  Tuile  . 

lomioH.  Bih.  /;/  &.  &  W.B.  Whimktr.  X8M. 


Sid-rSedL^adp. 


CHAP.  HI. 

ACCOUNT  OF  THE  DIFFERENT  PASSAGES  OVER  THE  MOUN- 
TAINS WHICH  INCLOSE  THE   ISLAND.      MONT  DU  CHAT 

DESCRIBED PASSAGE    OF  THE    ARMY    OVER    IT,     AND 

ARRIVAL  IN  THE  PLAIN  OF  CHAMBERY. 

We  are  to  begin  this  chapter  with  an  exa- 
mination of  the  passages  from  the  Island  over 
the  first  chain  of  the  Alps,  in  order  to  shew  that 
we  are  justified  in  taking  the  army  by  the  Mont 
du  Chat^;  which  although  not  absolutely  the 
shortest  way,  was  certainly  the  earliest  as  well 
as  the  most  frequented.  The  passages  at  the 
present  day  are,  first,  by  Moirans  to  Voreppe 
and  Grenoble,  and  thence  up  the  Isere  by  the 
valley  of  the  Gresivaudan  to  Montmeillan : 
second,  the  great  post  road  from  Les  Echelles  and 
the  Pont  de  Beauvoisin  by  the  Crotte  to  Cham- 
bery :  third,  the  road  of  Aiguebellette,  which 
passes  through  that  place,  to  the  south  of  the 


'  While  the  description  which  Polybius  gives  of  the  chain 
of  mountains,  which  closed  the  third  side  of  the  vna-og,  agrees 
admu-ably  with  the  rugged  barrier  that  extends  from  Grenoble 
to  the  Rhone,  the  expression  <r^i^o)),  ug  Ufruv,  ecTr^oa-tru,  evident- 
ly points  out  a  passage  through  it.     Lib.  iii.  c.  49. 


28 


lake  of  that  name,  to  Chambery :  fourth,  the  pas- 
sage of  the  Mont  de  I'Epine  by  Novalese,  which 
runs  under  the  end  of  the  highest  crest  of  the 
Mont  du  Chat,  and  leads  equally  to  Chambery : 
and,  lastly,  the  passage  of  the  Mont  du  Chat 
itself.  By  one  of  these  it  was  necessary  that 
Hannibal  should  pass,  for  if  he  had  gone  over 
the  Rhone  to  the  north,  Polybius  would  have 
stated  it ;  and  such  a  step  would  have  carried 
him  entirely  out  of  his  way,  and  thrown  him  into 
that  most  mountainous  and  difficult  country 
above  Belley ;  if  he  had  not  crossed  the  Rhone, 
but  continued  along  its  banks,  he  would  have 
been  equally  too  much  to  the  north,  and  en- 
tangled in  the  country  round  Annecy,  across 
which  no  road  exists  from  west  to  east.  1 
return  therefore  to  the  five  passages  above  men- 
tioned; and  of  these  the  one  to  the  southward, 
although  a  Roman  road,  could  not  have  been 
the  one  alluded  to  by  Polybius,  since  if  the 
army  had  intended  to  have  taken  this  way,  they 
would  certainly  not  have  marched  100  miles 
along  the  Rhone,  but  would  have  kept  by  the 
side  of  the  Isere^  The  passage  of  the  Echelles 
was  only  made  in  1670,  by  Charles  Emanuel, 

♦  The  rocks  also  on  the  northern  bank  of  the  Isere  came 
formerly  so  close  to  the  river,  that  it  would  have  been  im- 
possible to  have  turned  them,  so  that  the  troops  must  have 
crossed  the  river,  which  is  there  very  deep. 


I 


29 

the  second  Duke  of  Savoy ;  and  before  his  time 
it  was  passed  by  ladders,  and  is  consequently 
out  of  the  question.  The  two  next,  by  Aigue- 
bellette  and  Novalese,  pass  directly  over  the 
crest  of  the  mountains ;  they  are  very  seldom 
used,  and  are  only  practicable  for  mules,  being 
.very  little  more  than  foot  paths;  the  southern 
one  by  Aiguebellette  comes  from  the  Pont  de 
Beauvoisin,  and  is  therefore  hardly  near  enough 
to  the  Rhone ;  but  the  Novalese  road  begins  at 
St.  Genis,  and  so  fulfils  that  condition.  It  does 
not  however  approach  so  near  to  the  distance 
of  800  stadia  as  the  road  by  the  Mont  du  Chat, 
since  it  is  about  10  miles  nearer.  Now  though  D'Anviiie, 
D'Anville,  in  his  Notice  de  la  Gaule,  article  Lavisco. 
Lavisco,  calls  this  road  by  Novalese,  the 
Roman  road  from  Aouste  to  Chambery,  yet  he 
was  certainly  mistaken  in  this  particular.  From 
the  article  in  question  it  is  evident  that  he  was 
ignorant  of  the  existence  of  the  passage  by  the 
Mont  du  Chat ;  for  in  treating  of  Lavisco  itself, 
which  in  the  Itineraries  is  placed  according  to 
his  own  account  at  14  miles  from  Augusta 
Allobrogum,  (Aouste,)  and  14  from  Lemincum, 
(Chambery,)  altogether  28  miles  from  Aouste 
to  Chambery.  he  is  vei'y  much  at  a  loss  where 
to  place  it.  The  distance  by  the  only  road 
with  which  he  was  acquainted,  that  of  Novalese, 
being  not  more  than  17  miles  instead  of  28,  he 


30 


is  reduced  to  the  necessity  of  supposing  an 
error  in  the  Itineraries,  and  instead  of  14  miles 
to  read  8,  i.  e.  a  V  for  an  X.  Now  even  sup- 
posing this  to  be  true,  the  village  of  Novalese, 
vi^hich  is  the  place  that  Mr.  D'Anville  points 
out  as  the  old  Lavisco,  is  nearer  Chambery  than 
Aouste,  whereas  it  ought  to  be  equidistant  from 
both.  But  if  we  go  by  the  Mont  du  Chat,  there 
is  no  necessity  to  alter  the  Itineraries  at  all,  for 
by  this  road  the  distance  from  Chambery  to 
Aouste  will  be  as  nearly  as  possible  28  miles, 
and  the  village  of  Chevelu  at  the  foot  of  the 
pass  will  be  equidistant  from  both  places.  The 
distance  from  each  place  to  Chevelu  was,  as 
nearly  as  I  could  judge  from  the  time  employed 
in  performing  it,  14  miles,  and  there  are  some 
very  old  remains  at  Chevelu  which  appear  to 
be  Roman  buildings. 

From  the  Itineraries  alone  then,  unsupported 
by  any  other  circumstances,  we  may  fairly  con- 
clude that  the  fifth  and  last  passage,  that  by 
the  Mont  du  Chat,  was  the  Roman  road ;  but  this 
opinion  will  be  very  much  strengthened  by  an 
account  of  the  present  state  of  the  road  itself. 
The  Mont  du  Chat  extends  almost  directly 
north  from  the  Mont  de  I'Epine  at  its  southern 
extremity,  about  6  miles  to  the  passage  in 
question ;  beyond  this  passage  it  runs  still  to  the 
north  for  about  5  miles  more,  to  the  channel  by 


»1 


which  the  waters  of  the  Lac  du  Bourget  are 
discharged  into  the  Rhone.  It  is  impossible  to 
turn  the  mountain  at  this  extremity,  because 
it  falls  so  perpendicularly  into  the  Lake,  that 
from  Hautecombe  to  Bordeaux  there  is  not 
even  a  foot-path,  and  a  boat  cannot  even  land 
upon  it.  To  a  person  standing  in  the  plain 
below  this  chain,  at  Yenne  for  instance,  the 
Chevelu  passage  appears  to  be  the  only  one 
by  which  the  mountain  can  be  crossed,  for  the 
intermediate  part  between  Chevelu  and  the  Mont 
de  I'Epine  is  very  high,  and  so  perpendicular,  as 
to  be  quite  inaccessible.  The  Mont  de  TEpine 
itself  appears  very  rugged,  and  difficult  of 
access,  consisting  of  a  great  assemblage  of 
naked  rocks,  forming  altogether  a  pass  of  great 
breadth,  which  it  would  be  the  object  of  an 
invading  army  to  avoid.  The  Chevelu  pass, 
on  the  other  hand,  being  much  lower  than  any 
other  part  of  the  mountain,  presents  every  ap- 
pearance of  facility ;  it  bends  inward^  in  a  half 
circle,  and  the  road  rises  very  gradually  to  the 
top  :  a  small  stream,  which  rises  out  of  a  little 
lake  about  halfway  up  the  mountain,  runs  very 
slowly  down  its  side,  and  all  the  features  of  the 
place  agree  with  the  expression  used  by  Poly- 
bius  of  evKcti^ot  to'ttoi,  through  which  alone  the 
army  could  pass.  From  the  village  of  Chevelu, 
which  is  at  the  foot  of  the  steepest  part  of  the 


32 


ascent  of  the  mountain,  it  is  about  2  miles  to 
the  top.  On  leaving  Chevelu  we  find  the  re- 
mains of  a  fort;  on  the  left,  after  this,  the 
ascent  is  steeper.  On  the  top  of  the  mountain  is 
a  flat  of  about  300  yards.  The  passage  is 
divided  into  two  parts,  by  an  immense  rock  of 
about  200  yards  in  length,  and  nearly  half  that 
space  in  breadth;  the  great  road  runs  to  the  S. 
of  it,  the  rock  standing  E.  and  W.  and  a  smaller 
road  from  some  other  villages  runs  on  the  N. 
side,  and  joins  the  great  road  at  the  descent  on 
the  Lake  of  Bourget.  The  great  road  itself  is 
by  no  means  bad,  and  we  passed  it  easily  in  a 
char  drawn  by  two  horses.  The  Austrians 
passed  over  it  in  force  in  1815  with  baggage 
and  artillery.  The  road  on  the  top  is  covered 
with  stones,  which  have  formed  part  of  a  temple 
that  stood  here,  and  of  which  the  foundation 
still  exists,  and  is  very  easily  traced.  The 
stones  are  well  cut,  many  cornices  being  perfect, 
and  we  found  the  inscription  which  has  given 
rise  to  the  idea  that  the  temple  was  dedicated 
to  Mercury.  From  the  summit  the  view  is 
very  fine.  The  Lac  du  Bourget  is  at  your  feet, 
and  th^  rich  valley  in  which  Chambery  stands, 
together  with  the  magnificent  chain  of  moun- 
tains that  inclose  the  Isere.  Lyons  itself  may 
be  seen  from  the  summit  of  the  Mont  du  Chat, 
which  is  however  considerably  higher  than  the 


t 


33 

passage.     The  great  breadth  of  the  road,  the 
facility  of  the  pass,  the  agreement  of  the  position 
of  Chevelu  with  the  Lavisco  of  the  Itineraries, 
and,  above  all,  the  temple,  sufficiently  prove  this 
to  be  the  Roman  way ;  and  if  this  pass  were  not  in 
almost  every  way  preferable   to   that   by  the 
Mont  de  I'Epine  and  Novalese,   why  should 
this  latter  road  be  still  nothing  but  a  mule  track, 
when  it    certainly  is   much    shorter  than  the 
former?  The  truth  is,  that  the  Chevelu  passage 
is  pointed  out  at  once  to  the  most  superficial 
observer,  by  the  extreme  facility  of  its  ascent ; 
while  the  other,  from  its  great  difficulty,  has 
been  always  looked  upon  as  almost  imprac- 
ticable.    If  then  it  be  clearly  estabhshed,  that 
the  Chevelu  pass  was  the  Roman  way,  and 
since    it    continued     to    be    the     great    road 
into   Savoy    till  the    opening  of   the   passage 
of   the    Echelles,    we    may   fairly    infer    that 
it    was   the   best    and   easiest,    and   therefore 
the  fittest,  for  the  Carthaginian  army  to  take, 
especially  if  we  find  it   agree,  as   it  does  in 
almost  every  particular,  with  the  description  of 
the  passage  by  which  they  actually  did  pene- 
trate, as  given  by  Polybius ;   and  for  the  pur- 
pose of  establishing  this  agreement,  it  will  now 
be  necessary  to  return  to  our  author.     I  have 
said,  that  the  temple  on  the  summit  of  the  pas- 
sage of  the  Mont  du  Chat  was  reported  to  be 

D 


34 

dedicated  to  Mercury.  1  hardly  think  that  the 
inscription  bears  out  this  opinion.  M.  Albanis 
de  Beaumont,  in  his  description  des  Alpes 
Grecques,  calls  this  mountain  the  Mons  Thuates, 
but  without  giving  his  authority.  Now  Theut 
and  Thait  in  Armoric  are  the  names  of  the  deity 
otho  de  Y^ho  presided  over  highways,  and  who  was 
bus,  c  iv.    much  worshipped  by  the  Gauls :  hence  Caesar 

p.  67.  and  .        . 

Camden,     says,  that  that  people  principally  worshipped 
de  Beiio      Mcrcury,  who  had  the  same  office  among  the 
lib.  6.  *      Roman  deities.     The  name  therefore  of  Mons 
Thuates  would  argue  a  passage  here  of  very 
high  antiquity,  and  the  temple,  if  really  dedi- 
cated to  Mercury,  would  tend  strongly  to  the 
confirmation  of  this  opinion.     Let  us  now  see 
how  the  passage  agrees  with  the  account  given 
by  Polybius :  we  left  off  our  abstract  of  his  ac- 
cii.    count  at  the  place  where  Hannibal,  finding  the 
passage  occupied  by  the  AUobroges,  encamped 
at  the  foot  of  it.     We  are   told,  that,  finding 
from  his  spies  that  the  enemy  abandoned  their 
position  in  the  night,  and  only  returned  to  it  in 
the  morning,  he  occupied  the  pass  during  the 
night  with  his  light  troops,  so  that  he  was  able 
to  carry  the  rest  of  the  army  through  in  the 
morning,  as  the  AUobroges  when  they  saw  his 
position  abstained  from  attacking  him.     When 
however  they  saw  the  extreme  difficulty  with 
which  the  cavalry  and  beasts  of  burden  extri- 


35 


cated  themselves  from  the  bad  road,  they  began 
an  assault  upon  them,  and  that  with  so  much 
success,  that  Hannibal  was  himself  obliged  to 
go  to  their  assistance  with  his  best  troops.  As  he 
charged  them  from  above,  he  succeeded  at  length 
in  dispersing  them,  and  immediately  proceeded 
with  all  the  men  that  he  could  collect  to  attack 
their  chief  town,  which  he  took  by  assault,  as  the 
inhabitants  had  joined  the  Allobroges.  Here 
he  found  great  abundance  of  horses  and  beasts 
of  burden,  as  well  as  a  supply  of  corn  and  cattle 
fully  sufficient  for  two  or  three  days.  So  far 
Poly  bins :  and  il  will  be  seen,  on  reference  to 
the  plan  of  the  passage,  that  the  rock  which  we 
have  already  described,  and  which  stands  in 
the  middle  of  the  pass,  would,  if  occupied  by 
troops,  render  it  impossible  for  an  attacking 
force  to  penetrate  at  all,  and  would  most  ef- 
fectually secure  the  passage,  especially  as  from 
the  steepness  of  the  sides  of  the  rock  it  would 
be  almost  impossible  to  dislodge  the  occupants. 
This  rock,  as  well  perhaps  as  the  higher  part  of 
the  Mont  du  Chat  itself  on  the  S.  of  the  pass,  was 
in  all  probability  the  position  occupied  by  the 
Allobroges  first,  and  by  Hannibal  afterwards. 
It  is  worthy  of  observation,  that  Polybius  uses 
the  words  ra  s-evoi  when  speaking  of  the  position 
taken  up  by  the  light  troops  at  night,  but  he  in- 
variably applies  the  term  iva-^aigiui  to  the  road 

d2 


36 


which  the  army  were  obliged  to  take  on  emerge 
ing  from  the  pass  itself,  and  during  the  attack 
of  the  AUobroges  on  the  baggage  and  cavalry. 
It  is  perhaps  too  much  to  suppose  that  these 
phrases  were  intentionally  so  applied,  and  yet  if 
not  intentional,  they  furnish  a  singular  instance  of 
apt  though  accidental  illustration  of  the  road  it- 
self. For  as  soon  as  it  quits  the  actual  passage 
through  the  mountain,  it  descends  in  zigzags 
upon  the  village  of  Bourdeaux  and  the  lake  of 
Bourget,  and  in  this  part  the  mountain  is  ex- 
tremely steep,  rocky,  and  precipitous.  From 
hence  to  the  village  of  Bourget,  a  distance  of 
about  four  miles  and  a  half,  the  mountain  slopes 
gradually  downwards  from  its  top,  to  within 
about  200  yards  of  the  lake ;  after  which  it 
becomes  exceedingly  rocky,  and  in  many  places 
plunges  perpendicularly  into  its  waters.  The 
modern  road  runs  at  the  foot  of  the  slope, 
which  is  itself  so  steep,  as  to  make  it  very 
difficult  of  ascent.  Upon  this  slope  the  Bar- 
barians would  naturally  station  themselves,  and 
the  Carthaginian  light  troops  might  move  along 
the  top  of  it,  when  they  saw  the  baggage  in 
danger,  and  so  charge  down  upon  them. 
Polybius  says  positively,  that  the  road  was 
r^dy/iu  and  x^7]f/^vcih?i  and  that  the  horses  were 
carried  down  precipices ;  and  this  is  exactly 
what   would    happen   at   this  passage,   under 


I 


37 

similar  circumstances.  At  Bourget,  which  is  a 
town  of  some  size  and  antiquity,  the  road  quits 
the  mountain,  and  crosses  over  a  very  rich  plain 
to  Chambery,  about  seven  miles  distant  s.  The 
fighting  would  continue  till  the  troops  reached 
the  plain ;  and  it  is  not  too  much  to  suppose 
that  Hannibal  was  able  to  reach  the  town  with 
ease  before  night,  especially  as  no  resistance 
was  offered.  The  great  quantity  of  supplies 
which  the  army  found  in  this  town  supposes 
the  existence  of  a  most  fertile  country;  and 
certainly  no  place  at  the  entrance  of  the  Alps^ 
with  the  exception  perhaps  of  Grenoble,  is  so 
well  qualified  for  maintaining  a  large  army  as 
Chambery.  There  is  however  a  difficulty  with 
respect  to  this  town  as  to  its  distance  from  the 
Mont  du  Chat,  which  it  is  right  to  mention. 
Polybius  says,  that  the  AUobroges  retired  every 
night  from  the  pass  to  a  town  in  the  neighbour- 
hood, and  returned  in  the  morning.  And  it  ap- 
pears from  the  text,  that  the  town  which  Hanni- 
bal took  by  assault,  was  the  same  to  which  they 
were  accustomed  to  retire.  Now  although  he 
might  very  easily,  after  the  battle,  march  as  far 


'    y  Chambery  is  the  Lemincum  of  the  Romans.     The  little  D'AnviUe, 
village  of  Lemenc,  which  stands  close  to  it,  leaves  no  doubt    ^"q^* 
upon  this  point ;   it  is  situated  in  the  middle  of  a  very  rich 
plain,  which  is  covered  with  villages  and  houses. 

d3 


38 

as  Chambery,  it  can  hardly  be  supposed  that 
the  Barbarians  should  go  so  far  every  night  and 
morning,  especially  as  it  was  important  that 
they  should  be  at  their  posts  early  and  late. 
M.  De  Luc  has  not  noticed  this  difficulty,  but 
it  certainly  is  of  great  importance.  There  is  a 
village  called  Vieux  Chambery,  a  mile  and  a 
half  nearer  to  Bourget  than  the  modern  town  ; 
but  even  that  will  not  be  near  enough  for  our 
purpose.  It  is  possible  that  Bourget  itself  might 
be  the  town  in  question,  for  it  is  even  now  a 
large  place ;  and  this  is  rendered  more  probable 
by  our  knowledge,  that  the  modern  Chambery 
is  not  the  Roman  town,  that  being  Lemenc,  close 
to  it.  There  is  also  Vieux  Chambery  and  other 
villages  between  Bourget  and  Lemenc.  For 
the  protection  of  the  passage  of  the  Mont  du 
Chat,  Bourget  is  much  more  favourably  situated, 
and  it  would  have  had  all  the  advantages  of 
the  plain  of  Chambery  for  its  supplies  as  a 
town,  as  well  as  all  the  advantages  of  its  present 
situation  for  defence.  From  Bourget,  the  Allo- 
broges  could  with  the  greatest  ease  have  gone 
in  the  morning  to  the  pass  itself,  and  returned 
again  at  night.  From  all  these  considerations 
it  is  probable,  that  Bourget  was  the  town  in 
question.  And  here  the  army  after  its  capture 
encamped  for  one  day.  If  Chambery  was  de- 
cidedly the  town  mentioned    by   Polybius,  it 


39 


would  furnish  an  argument  in  favour  of  the 
passage  of  the  army  by  Novalese  and  the  Mont 
de  I'Epine ;  for  the  distance  from  the  top  of  that 
passage  to  Chambery  is  not  more  than  four 
miles,  but  the  descent  of  the  mountain  on  that 
side  is  not  at  all  precipitous  ;  and  as  the  road 
goes  over  the  ridge  of  the  mountain,  and  comes 
down  directly  upon  the  plain,  there  would  have 
been  no  opportunity  for  the  Allobroges  to  have 
attacked  the  army  on  their  descent ;  while  on 
the  Mont  du  Chat  road  their  flank  was  con- 
stantly exposed.  The  general  character  of  the 
Mont  du  Chat  is  extremely  perpendicular  and 
difficult  on  the  French  or  west  face  of  it,  and 
more  easy  of  ascent  and  sloping  on  the  E.  or 
Savoy  side ;  it  is  cultivated  on  the  latter,  but 
not  at  all  on  the  former,  and  it  forms  altogether 
a  very  striking  feature  in  the  country :  as  from 
the  passage  at  Chevelu  to  the  Mont  de  I'Epine 
there  is  a  long  straight  naked  ridge,  of  immense 
height,  like  a  great  screen,  when  it  is  viewed  from 
Dauphiny ;  an  appearance  altogether  so  remark- 
able, that  it  cannot  be  mistaken.  Supposing 
then  Bourget  to  be  the  town  of  the  Allobroges, 
we  shall  conclude  this  chapter  with  the  arrival 
of  the  army  in  this  place. 

The  side  of  the  mountain,  immediately  above 
the  lake  of  Bourget,  is  covered  with  very  fine 
and  large  old   chesnut  trees  ;  further  on  there 

d4 


40 


are  vines.  The  lake  is  here  of  great  depth, 
and  is  very  beautiful.  We  were  seven  hours 
in  going  from  Yenne  to  Chambery,  in  a  char 
with  two  horses,  but  we  stopped  for  some  time 
on  tlie  top  of  the  passage. 


CHAP.  IV. 

MARCH  OF  THE  ARMY  FROM  BOURGET  TO  SCEZ.  DESCRIP- 
TION OF  THE  COUNTRY  THROUGH  WHICH  THEY  PASSED. 
ROMAN  ROAD  THROU(^H  IT. 

We  have  now  entered  upon  the  Alps  them- 
selves, in  the  passage  of  which  the  army  em- 
ployed fifteen  days,  the  length  of  the  march 
being  1200  stadia,  or  150  miles;  and  if  we  have  Poiyb. 
been  correct  in  the  reasoning  by  which  we  have 
been  induced  to  encamp  the  army  in  the  plain 
of  Chambery  at  the  end  of  the  first  day,  we 
can  hardly  be  liable  to  any  mistake  hereafter ; 
for  once  at  Chambery,  the  road  must  of  ne- 
cessity carry  them  to  Montmeillan,  and  from 
thence  up  the  Isere.  Polybius  says,  that  having 
halted  one  day  after  the  action  in  the  town 
which  he  had  taken,  and  having  procured  ample 
supplies,  the  army  set  forward  on  their  march, 
and  proceeded  in  safety  for  some  days ;  but  on 
the  fourth  the  inhabitants  of  the  country  through 
which  he  was  passing  came  out  to  meet  them 
with  boughs  and  garlands,  and  notwithstanding 
all  the  suspicions  of  Hannibal,  they  succeeded 


42 

in  persuading  him  of  their  sincerity,  by  offering 
him  hostages  for  their  good  conduct,  and  by 
supplying  the  troops  with  cattle  in  abundance. 
In  consequence  of  this,  he  took  some  of  them 
with  him  as  guides  for  two  days  more,  at  the 
end  of  which  those  people  having  assembled  a 
great  force,  attacked  the  army  at  the  entrance 
of  a  ravine,  difficult  of  access  and  precipitous. 
From  the  plain  of  Chambery  to  the  point  of 
attack  we  have  six  days,  and  this  time,  accord- 
ing to  Polybius,  brings  us  to  the  foot  of  the 
highest  ridge  of  the  Alps;  for  we  shall  find,  in 
the   fifty-third   chapter,  that   Hannibal   having 
passed  the  night  of  the  sixth  on  the  field  of 
battle,  put  himself  on  the  morning  of  the  seventh 
at  the  head  of  the  army,  and  led  them  forth- 
with  to   the   summit  of  the   Alps,    which   he 
reached  early  on  that  day,  the  seventh  from 
Chambery,  and  the  ninth  from  his  passage  of 
the  Mont  du  Chat.     Now  although  Polybius  is 
extremely   sparing   of    his    description  of  the 
country  through   which   the   army  passed,  till 
they  arrived  at  the  foot  of  the  highest  chain; 
yet,  as  has  been  before  observed,  it  is  next  to 
impossible  that  having  once  arrived  at  Cham- 
bery, they  could  take  any  other  road  but  that 
of  the  little   St.  Bernard.     It  is  true,  that  at 
present,  the  road    by  the  Mont  Cenis   passes 
equally  through  Chajnbery  and   Montmeillan, 


and  ascends  the  Isere  for  a  short  distance  after- 
wards ;  yet,  as  this  road  is  not  mentioned  by 
Strabo,  in  his  enumeration  of  the  passages  over 
the  Alps,  according*  to  Polybius,  it  is  clear  that 
this  latter  author  was  unacquainted  with  it, 
which  he  certainly  would  not  have  been  if  Han- 
nibal had  passed  over  it.  Strabo  himself  says 
nothing  about  it  as  of  his  own  knowledge,  and 
it  was  therefore  unknown  to  the  Romans ;  but 
even  supposing  this  not  to  be  the  case,  the  river 
Arc,  along  which  the  Mont  Cenis  road  runs,  makes 
its  way  through  a  valley  so  rocky,  and  so  barren 
of  all  cultivation,  that  no  moderate  quantity  of 
troops  (much  less  so  large  an  army  as  that  of 
Hannibal)  could  possibly  find  in  it  supplies 
sufficient  for  their  subsistence,  nor  could  the 
miserable  inhabitants,  who  could  be  supported 
in  this  country,  presume  enough  upon  their 
strength  to  attack  so  great  a  number  of  troops. 
Finally,  why  should  Hannibal,  who  was  pro- 
vided with  guides,  who  must  have  known  the 
best  road,  have  gone  by  the  worst,  even  if  it 
had  been  known  at  that  time,  when  the  best 
lay  equally  open  to  him.  The  valley  of  the 
Isere,  along  which  we  suppose  the  army  to  have 
marched  on  their  way  to  the  little  St.  Bernard, 
is  by  far  the  richest,  the  most  fertile,  most  culti- 
vated, and  most  populous  of  all  the  valleys  on 
the  western  side  of  the  Alps.     The  vine  grows 


44 

almost  at  the  foot  of  the  St.  Bernard  itself;  and 
the  great  breadth  of  the  valley,  together  with 
the  extraordinary  heat  of  the  summers,  enables 
them  to  grow  sometimes  three  crops  in  the 
year.  The  sides  of  the  mountains  are  cultivated 
almost  to  their  summits,  and  are  covered  with 
farm  houses ;  so  that  there  would  be  no  diffi- 
culty in  obtaining  supplies  to  any  amount,  espe- 
cially cattle,  of  which  they  have  great  quantities, 
that  are  fed  in  the  summer  upon  the  tops  of 
the  mountains.  Along  this  fertile  valley  the 
army  would  naturally  proceed  ;  and  we  shall 
find,  that  the  time  spent  in  passing  through  it 
agrees  extremely  well  with  the  distance  from 
the  St.  Bernard  to  the  plain  of  Chambery,  and 
the  average  number  of  miles,  which  troops, 
encumbered  as  they  were  with  provisions  and 
baggage,  and  marching  in  a  single  column, 
would  perform  in  a  day.  The  army  would  na- 
turally follow  the  course  of  the  river ;  and  by 
that  means  would  find  themselves  almost  pre- 
cisely in  the  track  occupied  at  a  later  period  by 
the  great  Roman  road  from  Vienna  to  Augusta ; 
and  this  Roman  road  ran  as  nearly  as  possible 
where  the  present  one  does,  as  may  be  proved 
both  from  the  distances  laid  down  in  the  Itine- 
raries, and  from  some  remains  of  it  which  have 
been  found  in  various  places.  On  the  Roman 
road,  according  to  the  Itineraries,  the  first  sta- 


art. 
Mantala. 


45 

tionfrom  Lemincuni(Chambery)is  Mantala,  and 
the  distance  sixteen  miles.  The  second,  ad  Pub- 
licanos  or  Conflans,  at  the  same  distance  from 
Mantala.  D'Anvil  le,  in  his  account  of  this  road,  Notice  de 
instead  of  making-  it  join  the  I  sere  at  Mont-  GauTe'r"^ 
meillan,  and  thence  along  its  banks  to  Conflans, 
which  would  give  thirty-two  miles  in  the  whole, 
and  consequently  agree  exactly  with  the  Itinera- 
ries, has  supposed  the  existence  of  a  road  run- 
ning directly  east  from  Chambery,  over  some 
extremely  high  and  very  difficult  mountains, 
and  joining  the  Isere  at  a  place  called  Man- 
taillet.  This  makes  it  necessary  for  him  to 
suppose  an  error  in  the  Itineraries  as  to  the  dis- 
tance between  Mantala,  and  ad  Publicanos, 
(Conflans,)  about  which  latter  place  there  can 
be  no  doubt  at  all.  M.  De  Luc  has  I  think 
with  more  propriety  placed  Mantala  at  Bourg 
Evescal,  which  is  sixteen  miles  from  Chambery, 
by  the  Montmeillan  road,  and  the  same  dis- 
tance from  Conflans.  There  is  at  present  no 
road  whatever  across  the  mountains  in  the  di- 
rection which  D'Anville  supposes,  the  chain 
being  of  a  great  height.  Conflans,  or  rather 
THopital,  which  is  a  sort  of  suburb  attached  to 
Conflans,  a  little  to  the  north,  and  upon  the 
river  Arly,  is  ad  Publicanos  without  any  doubt. 
This  Latin  name,  according  to  D'Anville,  desig- 
nates a  place  where  toll  was  taken  for  the  pas- 


46 


sage  of  a  bridge,  or  the  entrance  into  a  new 
territory ;  and  I'Hopital  marks  the  existence  of 
an  Hospitium  or  Stabulum,  which  would  natu- 
rally be  erected  at  such  a  place.  Now  the 
bridge  for  which  toll  would  be  taken  would  be 
the  bridge  over  the  Arly,  which  runs  here  into 
the  Isere ;  and  as  this  river  formed  the  boundary 
between  the  territories  of  the  AUobroges  and 
Centrones,  we  have  an  additional  reason  for 
the  payment  of  a  toll  in  this  place.  From  ad 
Publicanos,  where  the  road  entered  the  country 
of  the  Centrones,  (the  modern  Tarentaise,)  to 
Darantasia  the  capital,  the  Itineraries  give  six- 
teen miles,  three  to  Oblimum,  and  thirteen  to 
Darantasia.  M.  I.  I.  Roche,  director  of  the 
royal  saltworks  at  Moutiers,  who  has  published 
a  small  treatise  upon  the  Centrones,  places 
Oblimum  at  La  Batie,  a  little  more  than  three 
miles  from  THopital,  and  derives  the  name  from 
the  large  deposits  of  mud  and  sand  which  the 
Isere  makes  at  its  angle  in  this  place.  On  the 
opposite  side  of  the  river,  and  at  the  same  dis- 
tance from  I'Hopital,  is  a  small  village  called 
St.  Blaye,  which  may  have  taken  its  name  from 
the  Roman  station.  Darantasia,  according  to 
M.  Roche,  whose  reasons  are  sufficiently  con- 
vincing, must  be  placed  at  the  old  town  of 
Salins,  now  almost  deserted,  and  a  little  to  the 
south  of  Moutiers,  which  is  more  modern.    The 


47 

road  appears  to  have  crossed  to  the  left  bank 
of  the  river  about  half  way  between  Conflans 
and  Moutiers,  and  to  have  repassed  it  at  the 
village  of  Chentron  or  Centron,  about  five  miles 
from   Moutiers.     From   Darantasia  the   Itine- 
raries give  ten  miles  to  Axuma,  now  Ayme, 
one  of  the  chief  towns  of  the  Centrones,  and,  ac- 
cording to  inscriptions  discovered  there,  probably 
called    Forum    Claud ii,    before    the    name    of 
Axuma  was  finally  given  to  it.     It  is  true  that 
Ptolemy  mentions  h  roiig  T^cttaig  "AKrea-h  Kgj'- 
TgMvav  ^o^og  KXay^/i^,  'A|/^a,   meaning   appa- 
rently two  distinct  places.     Forum  Claudii  is 
however  not  marked  in  the  Itineraries,  and  the 
inscriptions  themselves  seem  to   indicate  that 
Ayne  was   first  called    Oppidum  Centronum, 
then  Forum  Claudii,  and  lastly  Axuma.     The 
village  of  Centron  has  no  remains  of  antiquities, 
and  does  not  appear  ever  to  have  been  much 
larger  than  it  is  at  present,  but  its  name  is  cer- 
tainly   derived    from     the    Centrones.     From 
Axuma  to  Bergintrum,  now  Bourg  St.  Maurice, 
eight  miles;  from  thence  to  Scez   two  miles; 
making  altogether  from   Chambery  a  distance 
of  seventy  miles,  or,  if  we  take  it  from  Bourget, 
of  seventy-seven  miles,  as  the  march  of  the  army 
along  the  flat  country  of  the  Alps,  from  the  first 
ascent  at  the  Mont  du  Chat  to  the  foot  of  the 
highest  chain  at  Scez:  this   being   performed 


48 


in  six  days,  would  be  at  the  rate  of  thirteen 
miles  a  day,  or  perhaps  rather  more ;  for  he 
must  have  reached  Scez  about  the  middle  of 
the  sixth  day,  as  it  was  on  that  spot  that  he 
was  attacked  during  his  march  by  the  moun- 
taineers. Such  at  least  is  the  distance  by  the 
Roman  road,  and  the  course  of  the  army  could 
not  be  matei-ially  different  from  it.  Very  little 
difficulty  could  be  encountered  during  this  part 
of  the  march,  and  we  find  that  Polybius  makes 
mention  of  none  whatever.  From  Chambery 
to  Montmeillan  the  valley  is  large  and  very 
rich,  and  from  thence  to  Conflans,  though  not 
so  wide  as  the  valley  of  the  Gresivauclan,  it  is 
still  very  large.  From  the  fort  of  Montmeillan, 
which  commands  both  these  valleys,  the  view 
is  beautiful.  The  roads  are  altogether  excel- 
lent, and  generally  bordered  by  fine  walnut 
trees.  At  Freterive,  a  village  a  little  beyond 
the  place  where  Mantala  probably  stood,  are 
several  Roman  inscnptions  extremely  perfect. 
We  met  however  with  none  which  related  to 
the  name  of  the  place.  Opposite  to  this  village 
is  the  entrance  of  the  Maurienne,  and  the  valley 
which  leads  up  the  river  Arc  to  the  Mont 
Cenis.  We  saw  vines  every  where  on  the 
north  side  of  the  river,  along  which  the  modern 
road  runs.  The  crops  were  very  fine,  and  the 
land  well  cultivated.     The  valley  is  here  about 


49 


two  miles  broad,  and  the  ground  well  calculated 
for  the  march  of  troops.  For  six  miles  before 
we  arrive  at  Conflans,  the  road  is  quite  straight, 
very  fine  and  broad ;  the  country  covered  with 
fine  wood,  where  it  is  not  under  corn  or  vines. 
Walnuts  and  oaks.  The  old  Roman  way  ran 
close  to  the  river,  and  has  been  covered  by  its 
inundations;  beyond  Conflans  the  valley  is  much 
narrower,  but  widens  again,  and  the  mountains 
are  very  high  on  the  sides  of  the  river.  Before 
Moustier  it  narrows  exceedingly,  and  is  very 
rocky  :  the  old  road  passed  on  the  southern  side 
of  the  river :  the  town  of  Moustier  stands  in  a 
little  plain  quite  surrounded  by  mountains. 
There  are  here  some  very  rich  salt  springs,  and 
there  are  silver  and  lead  mines  near  it,  as  well 
as  a  mineral  spring  of  great  celebrity.  From 
hence  the  valley  is  at  first  narrow,  but  soon 
widens ;  the  country  still  very  populous,  but  the 
fertility  such  that  they  export  great  quantities 
of  corn  and  much  cattle.  A  great  spirit  of 
independence  is  observable  every  where;  the 
people  do  not  appear  to  want  any  thing  from 
abroad,  but  are  all  of  opinion,  that  they  have 
amply  sufficient  for  themselves.  At  Ayme  a 
small  river  runs  into  the  Isere,  which  turns  se- 
veral saw  mills,  and  there  is  an  appearance  of 
great  industry  and  prosperity  in  the  town.  Mr. 
Roche,  to  whose  book  1  have  already  alluded, 

E 


50 


quotes  several  inscriptions,  to  shew  that  this 
town  was  formerly  the  Forum  Claudii  of  the 
Centrones,  and  that  it  was  called  Axima  at  a 
later  period.  In  addition  to  the  inscriptions  are 
the  following  verses,  which  may  perhaps  not  be 
thought  misplaced  here. 

Sjlvane,  sacra  semicluse  fraxino, 

Et  hujus  alti  sum  me  custos  hortuli, 

Qui  nos  per  arva,  perque  montes  Alpicos, 

Tuique  luci  suaveolentis  hospites, 

Dum  jus  guberno  remque  fungor  Caesarum, 

Tuo  favore  prosperante  sospitas. 

Tu  me  meosque  reduces  Romam  sistito: 

Daque  Itala  rura  te  colamus  praeside. 

Ego  jam  dicabo  milie  magnes  arbores. 

At  3  or  4  miles  from  St.  Maurice,  on  turning  a 
rock  which  comes  down  close  to  the  river,  you 
open  upon  a  large  plain,  in  which  stands  that 
town  and  Scez.  The  passage  of  the  little  St. 
Bernard  is  directly  in  front,  and  so  marked,  that 
it  is  impossible  to  mistake  it ;  on  both  sides  of 
it  the  mountains  are  very  high,  and  covered 
with  snow;  and  the  passage  itself  seems  low 
and  practicable.  A  large  gypsum  rock,  called 
universally  La  Roche  blanche,  stands  at  the  en- 
trance of  it.  The  plain  itself  is  cultivated,  but 
near  the  passage  firs  alone  are  seen,  all  other  trees 
having  disappeared.  From  this  plain  the  army 
would  have  to  enter  the  defile  of  the  passage  of  the 


51 

little  St.  Bernard  in  the  middle  of  the  sixth  day. 
They  had  left  the  territory  of  the  AUobroges  at 
Conflans,  and  entered  upon  that  of  the  Cen- 
trones.  The  former  were  separated  by  the  I  sere, 
on  the  south  from  the  Segal auni  and  Vocantii ; 
to  the  east  they  bordered  on  the  MeduUi  and 
Centrones ;  to  the  north  on  the  Nantuates  and 
Helvetii ;  and  to  the  west  on  the  Segusiani, 
Ambarri,  and  Sequani  ^.  The  territory  of  the 
Centrones  was  according  to  D'Anville  very  much 
what  the  Tarentaise  is  now,  and  Pliny  calls 
them  borderers,  that  is,  bordering  on  Italy.  Pto- 
lemy places  them  on  the  Graian  Alps,  and  on 
that  side  they  touched  the  Salassi,  who  inhabited 
the  valley  of  Aoste.  The  army  would  reach 
Conflans  in  three  days  from  Bourget,  and  it 
was  on  the  fourth  day  that  the  envoys  met  them. 
This  circumstance  is  in  itself  sufficient  to  point 
out  their  entrance  into  the  territories  of  another 
people.  Polybius  describes  these  envoys  as 
coming  out  to  meet  Hannibal,  SuXXovg  i^oneg 
xa)  (rrz<pdyovg,     Dom  Vincent  Thuillier,  in  his 

^  The  name  of  Acitavones,  cited  by  Pliny  in  the  trophy  of 
the  Alps,  lib.  iii.  c.  20.  is  supposed  by  the  best  critics  to  be 
a  mistake  for  Centrones,  this  people  not  being  mentioned  at 
any  other  time ;  and  it  is  not  likely  that  so  great  a  tribe  as 
the  Centrones  should  have  been  omitted.  Caesar  first  men- 
tions them  as  having  opposed  his  passage,  vid.  Introduction. 
D'Anville,  Notice  de  la  Gaule,  Art.  Centrones,  p.  221. 

e2 


52 


translation  of  this  passage,  has  rendered  ^aX- 
Xovg,  olive  branches,  a  mistake  which  has  in- 
duced the  Marquis  de  St.  Simon  to  carry  the  army 
as  low  as  Barcelonnette,  that  being  the  only 
place  to  the  north  of  the  Durance  where  olive 
trees  grow.  On  the  fourth  day  the  army  would 
arrive  very  near  Moustier,  on  the  fifth  between 
Ayme  and  St.  Maurice,  and  on  the  middle  of 
the  sixth  they  would  be  at  Scez ;  having  arrived 
thus  far  without  experiencing  any  difficulty 
from  the  want  of  supplies,  and  having  been  en- 
gaged in  no  action  since  the  passage  of  the 
Mont  du  Chat.  The  great  size  of  the  army, 
drawing  as  it  evidently  did  its  resources  from 
the  country  through  which  it  passed,  sufficiently 
proves,  that  this  country  must  have  been  well 
cultivated,  and  consequently  full  of  inhabitants ; 
and  this  latter  circumstance  is  confirmed  by 
the  host  of  barbarians,  who  hung  upon  his  rear, 
and  attacked  him  on  his  passage  from  Scez. 
No  other  of  the  known  passages  of  the  Alps 
can  be  at  all  compared  with  this  one,  in  these 
two  essential  qualities ;  and  it  is  only  necessary 
to  have  passed  through  the  Maurienne  or  Mont 
Cenis  road,  and  the  road  from  the  Mont  Ge- 
nevre,  along  the  Romanche  to  Grenoble,  to  be 
convinced,  that  a  large  army  without  magazines 
must  have  been  starved  in  any  attempt  to  get 
through  them.     It  is  upon  this  fact,  which  has 


53 

never  been  sufficiently  considered  before,  that 
I  am  inclined  to  lay  the  greatest  stress,  and 
when  united  with  the  agreement  of  distances, 
it  becomes  almost  irresistible.  In  the  next 
chapter  we  shall  enter  upon  the  passage  of  the 
St.  Bernard,  and  shall  shew,  that  the  situation 
of  the  pass  corresponds  as  nearly  as  possible 
with  the  description  given  by  Polybius  of  the 
spot  where  the  army  was  attacked  by  the  Cen- 
trones,  on  the  middle  of  the  sixth  day  of  their 
march  from  Bourget  and  the  plain  of  Cham- 
bery. 


e3 


CHAP.  V. 

ATTACK  MADE  ON  THE  ARMY  AT  THE  FOOT  OF  THE 
GREAT  CHAIN  OF  THE  ALPS.  THEIR  ASCENT  TO  THE 
SUMMIT.  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  LITTLE  ST.  BERNARD. 
ENCAMPMENT  THERE. 

c.  53.  POLYBIUS,  in  his  relation  of  the  attack  made 
upon  the  army  on  their  entrance  into  the  defiles 
at  the  foot  of  the  highest  chain  of  the  Alps, 
says,  that  they  must  all  have  perished,  if  Han- 
nibal had  not  placed  the  baggage  in  the  front, 
and  the  heary  armed  troops  in  the  rear.  Still 
however  the  loss  was  very  great,  as  the  barba- 
rians rolled  rocks  and  stones  upon  them,  so 
that  he  was  obliged  to  pass  the  night  with  some 
of  his  best  troops  upon  a  certain  *"  XevzoTrsrgov 
o^vgoVf  by  which  manoeuvre  he  was  enabled  to 
protect  the  line  of  march.  The  night  was  al- 
most spent  before  the  army  had  entirely  passed 
the  defiles ;  and  as  the  barbarians  had  by  this 
time  given  up  their  attacks,  Hannibal  quitted  his 
position,  and  putting  himself  at  the  head  of  the 

*  Literally,  a  white  rock,  strong  from  its  position. 


SKETCH  ofi^erASSAGE^ 
over  the 

LITTLE  STBEM^ARD 

ALPIS  GRAM 


■it  2  J  ■* 

J 1 1 J 1 . 

4         J  2  3  -t  5 


Hojnan,  JUles . 


Sf Maurice 
\  Be/'Oin/rumy 


Zotuiori.Hib.  6.&  W.B.WfdOuker  .jauo. 


Sid^Ball.  *ailp. 


55 

column,  led  them  on  to  the  highest  summit  of 
the  Alps.  Here  he  encamped  for  two  days, 
during  which  time  he  was  joined  by  many 
stragglers,  and  horses  that  had  been  left  be- 
hind ;  he  arrived  at  the  summit  on  the  ninth 
day,  from  his  first  ascent  of  the  Mont  du  Chat. 
It  will  be  seen,  on  reference  to  the  plan  of  the 
passage  of  the  St.  Bernard,  that  at  Scez  the 
Isere  makes  an  angle.  The  valley  through 
which  it  runs  from  the  Mont  Iseran  being  on 
the  S.  E.  while  that  from  Scez  to  Moustier  is 
S.  W.  At  this  angle  it  is  joined  by  the  Reclus, 
which  takes  its  rise  in  the  mountain  of  the  little 
St  Bernard.  The  modern  road  goes  from  Scez 
to  Villars,  and  soon  after  crosses  the  Reclus, 
and  goes  up  the  side  of  the  mountain  to  St. 
Germain,  running  from  thence  along  the  right 
bank  of  that  stream,  till  it  arrives  very  near  its 
source,  when  it  again  crosses  it,  and  joins  the 
old  road,  which  had  always  kept  on  the  left 
bank  ;  on  this  left  bank,  and  just  above  the  first 
bridge,  by  which  the  modern  road  crosses  the 
Reclus,  stands  a  high  white  rock  of  gypsum,  called 
in  the  country  universally  La  Roche  blanche. 
The  Reclus,  whose  course  is  N.  E.  and  S.  W. 
runs  under  its  side,  and  is  confined  in  a  very 
deep  and  rocky  channel.  On  the  other  side  of 
the  rock  is  a  woody  ravine,  through  which  an- 
other   small    stream   flows,    which   afterwards 

e4 


56 

comes  down  through  Villars  to  Scez.  The  re- 
mains of  the  Roman  road  made  by  Augustus 
have  been  discovered  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Villars,  and  it  probably  went  up  this  woody 
ravine  in  the  manner  laid  down  in  the  plan. 
The  present  road  by  St.  Germain  is  quite  mo- 
dern. From  the  words  used  by  Poly  bins  ^a- 
goi^yyoL  rtvoi  hvirSocrov  kcu  K^Tif^vd^ri,  which  apply 
extremely  well  to  the  bed  of  the  Reclus.  we 
might  be  tempted  to  suppose,  that  the  army 
had  marched  up  this  torrent;  but  this  passage 
would  have  been  so  difficult,  that  1  can  hardly 
conceive  it  possible  to  have  been  accomplished. 
The  Roman  road,  though  very  much  exposed 
to  the  attacks  of  the  barbarians,  would  have 
been  more  easy.  As  the  two  passages  unite 
towards  the  source  of  the  Reclus,  it  is  possible 
that  separate  columns  might  have  marched  up 
each  of  them ;  but  whether  they  took  the  line  of 
the  torrent,  or  the  Roman  road,  or  both,  the 
position  of  the  Roche  blanche  was  eminently 
calculated  for  the  defence  of  their  march.  From 
hence  Hannibal  commanded  the  whole  plain 
of  Scez,  and  was  able  to  act  against  the  enemy 
on  the  heights  above  St.  Germain,  as  well  as 
upon  those  on  the  flanks  of  the  Roman  road. 
General  Melville  and  M.  De  Luc  attach  great 
importance  to  the  fact  of  the  existence  of  a 
white  rock,  in  the  exact  spot  on  which,  ac- 


57 

cording  to  Polybius,  it  ought  to  be  found. 
The  expression  itself  occurs  only  twice  in 
Polybius,  and  I  am  not  aware  that  it  is 
to  be  found  in  any  other  author.  Literally 
translated,  XBvzo7r$rgov  means  a  white  rock  ;  but 
in  the  10th  book,  chap.  27,  where  the  word  again 
occurs,  it  must  be  taken  in  the  sense  of  a  naked 
rock.  Without  therefore  relying  too  much 
upon  this  coincidence,  it  is  certainly  worth  re- 
marking. M.  De  Luc  has  given  a  very  ani- 
mated description  of  General  Melville's  passage  De  Lac,  p. 
over  this  ground,  and  of  his  discovery  of  the 
Roche  blanche,  while  he  had  his  Polybius  in  his 
hand.  It  is  quite  certain  that  the  rock  in  ques- 
tion is  called  universally  by  this  name,  and  that 
there  is  a  tradition  among  the  inhabitants  that  a 
great  battle  had  been  fought  at  the  foot  of  it. 
Our  guide,  who  was  a  very  respectable  inha- 
bitant of  Villar,  talked  as  a  matter  of  every  day 
conversation  of  Hannibal,  and  of  his  march 
through  the  country  at  the  time  of  the  Saracens. 
He  assured  us  also  that  he  had  himself  seen 
and  handled  very  large  bones  of  beasts,  which 
had  been  taken  out  of  the  little  stream  that 
flows  through  the  ravine,  up  which  the  Roman 
road  passed.  These  bones,  he  said,  were  much 
larger  than  those  of  oxen  ;  and  when  the  little 
stream  overflowed  and  washed  away  the  soil, 
some  of  these  bones  were  sometimes  found. 


58 


He  himself  made  no  mention  of  elephants,  and 
seemed  ignorant  what  the  bones  were :  some  of 
them,  he  said,  had  been  preserved,  but  we  were 
unable  to  discover  where.  The  extreme  diffi- 
culty of  the  road  will  very  easily  account  for  the 
whole  night  spent  on  the  march ;  but  as  the 
passage  up  to  the  top  of  the  St.  Bernard  widens 
considerably  towards  the  end,  Hannibal  might 
without  difficulty,  after  the  enemy  had  desisted 
from  their  attacks,  get  up  to  the  head  of  the 
troops,  and  lead  them  to  the  plain  on  the  sum- 
mit of  the  mountain.  It  is  remarkable  here,  as 
well  as  elsewhere,  that  no  mention  whatever  is 
made  of  any  attempt  made  by  the  guides  to 
mislead  the  army.  They  appear  to  have  been 
always  upon  the  right  road,  and  no  delay  oc- 
curs excepting  that  which  arises  from  the  bad- 
ness of  the  way  and  the  attacks  of  the  enemy. 
When  these  attacks  cease,  they  find  their  way 
to  the  summit,  which,  if  we  have  been  right  in 
our  original  conception  of  their  route,  they  could 
not  well  fail  to  do ;  for  the  pass,  which  is  visible 
from  a  great  distance,  goes  directly  from  Scez 
to  the  top  of  the  St.  Bernard,  neither  turning  to 
the  right  nor  to  the  left.  I  have  before  re- 
marked, that  it  was  impossible  to  mistake  the 
passage  of  the  Mont  du  Chat,  and  from  thence 
the  road  along  the  Isere  is  so  clear,  that,  even 
without  guides,  it  could  not  be  missed.     The 


59 

road  up  the  St.  Bernard  is  visible  from  St.  Mau- 
rice, and,  being  much  lower  than  the  surround- 
ing mountains,  seems  to  have  been  pointed  out 
by  nature  before  any  artificial  labour  was  be- 
stowed on  it.  We  were  four  hours  and  a  half 
m  going  from  Scez  to  the  hospital  at  the  top  of 
the  mountain  by  the  modern  road  ;  the  Roman 
one  is  not  so  long.  It  had  been  in  Bonaparte's 
contemplation  to  carry  a  new  road  up  the  ravine 
where  the  Roman  one  passed,  and  we  saw 
traces  of  the  preparations  that  had  been  made 
for  it.  It  is  certain  that  this  is  altogether  the 
easiest  passage  over  the  Alps;  for  although  that 
af  the  Mont  Genevre  is  lower,  there  is  no  getting 
from  Brian9on  into  the  plains  without  crossing 
some  of  the  secondary  chains,  which  are  of 
^reat  height  and  difficulty,  while  the  Isere  af- 
fords an  easy  way  to  the  very  foot  of  the  St. 
Bernard  without  any  check  at  all.  De  Saussure, 
in  his  Voyages  dans  les  Alpes,  tom.  4,  calls  it, 
"  Le  passage  des  Alpes  le  plus  facile  que  je 
"  connoisse."  It  was  on  the  ninth  day  in  the 
morning  from  the  passage  of  the  Mont  du  Chat, 
as  we  have  already  explained,  that  the  army 
reached  the  summit ;  and  this,  according  to 
Dr.  Maskelyne,  was  about  the  26th  of  October; 
for  Polybius  says  that  it  was  at  the  time  of  the 
setting  of  the  Pleiades,  and  Gen.  Melville  con- 
sulted Dr.  M.  as  to  the  time  at  which  this  took 


60 

place.  The  army  halted  on  the  summit  for  two 
days  ;  and  there  is  in  fact  a  plain  here  of  about 
two  miles  and  a  half  in  length,  which  is  fully 
capable  of  containing  the  number  of  troops 
which  Hannibal  had  with  him  at  this  time.  'J- he 
plain  is,  according  to  De  Saussure,  1125  toises 
above  the  level  of  the  sea ;  it  is  well  sheltered, 
and  in  the  centre  of  it  is  a  small  lake.  The 
river  Doire  takes  its  rise  here.  The  hospital  or 
convent  is  situated  very  near  the  entrance  of  it 
on  the  Savoy  side,  and  is  a  small  building  for- 
merly inhabited  by  a  colony  of  monks  from  the 
great  St.  Bernard,  but  now  by  two  men  who 
reside  there  at  the  expence  of  the  government. 
They  have  a  supply  of  salt  provisions  and  wine, 
and  remain  here  all  the  winter.  During  the 
summer  months  the  traffic  is  considerable,  and 
mules  are  constantly  passing.  The  carriage 
road  ends  at  St.  Maurice  on  the  Savoy  side, 
and  at  La  Tuille  on  the  Piemont  side ;  and 
mules  alone  are  used  for  the  passage  of  the 
mountain.  In  1815,  however,  a  column  of 
Austrians  of  six  thousand  men  and  ten  pieces 
of  cannon  passed  over  it.  These  were  in  all 
probability  the  same  troops  that  we  heard  of  at 
the  Mont  du  Chat.  They  had  put  forward  to 
have  the  road  repaired ;  and  when  we  crossed 
in  August,  1819,  we  found  that  we  should  have 
had  very  little  difficulty  in  passing  with  a  light 
char. 


I 


6] 


This  body  of  men  marched  in  one  day  from 
Pont  Serrant  to  Villars.  Trees  cease  after  the 
village  of  St.  Germain.  We  saw  hardly  any 
snow  on  our  passage  on  the  24th  of  August ; 
the  high  mountains,  however,  on  each  side  were 
covered  with  it.  There  is  no  cultivation  on  the 
summit,  except  that  there  is  a  little  garden  whicli 
adjoins  the  convent.  We  did  not  find  the  cold 
at  all  severe;  and  the  thermometer,  sheltered 
from  the  wind  and  sun,  stood,  at  half-past  nine 
A.  M.  at  54.  About  three  quarters  of  a  mile  to 
the  N.  E.  of  the  convent  stands  the  Colonne  de 
Joux,  or  Columna  Jovis,  a  broken  pillar  of 
reddish  granite  %  about  twenty  feet  high,  and 
seven  in  circumference.  Though  this  is  called 
the  Column  of  Jupiter,  it  might  have  belonged 
to  a  temple  of  Hercules,  which  stood,  according 
to  Petronius,  upon  the  Alpis  Graia : 

Alpibus  aeriis,  ubi  Graio  nomine  pulsae 
Descendunt  rapes,  et  se  patiuntur  adiri, 
Est  locus  Herculeis  sacer  aris,  &c. 

About  three  hundred  yards  to  the  N.  E.  of  this 
column  is  a  large  circle  of  stones  of  eighty 
yards  in  diameter,  exactly  resembling  what  we 
call  a  druidical  circle.  The  stones  are  very 
large,  and  in  general  so  deeply  sunk  in  the 

'  De  Saussure  calls  it  Cipoline  marble,  but  upon  a  very 
close  inspection  it  appeared  to  be  granite. 


62 


earth  as  not  to  be  more  than  two  or  three  feet 
above  it.  This  is  universally  called  the  Circle 
of  Hannibal ;  and  the  tradition  of  the  country 
is,  that  he  held  a  council  of  war  in  that  circle. 
Our  host  at  Scez  had  talked  much  of  these 
stones,  and  our  guide  also ;  but  as  their  testimony 
might  not  be  wholly  uninterested,  we  were  satis- 
fied on  finding  a  large  party  of  muleteers  and 
country  people  assembled  at  the  convent,  who 
were  all  as  well  acquainted  with  the  circle  of 
Hannibal  as  our  first  informants :  the  name  was 
constantly  mentioned  by  them  without  any  en- 
quiry on  our  part.  After  arriving  at  the  source 
of  the  Reclus,  the  road  rises  very  slowly,  and 
the  ascent  appears  to  be  altogether  so  easy,  that 
it  is  difficult  to  persuade  oneself  that  one  has 
arrived  at  the  summit  of  the  great  chain  of  the 
Alps.  The  snow  begins  to  fall  in  September, 
and  the  inhabitants  said  that  their  winter  began 
at  Michaelmas.  The  distance  from  Chevelu  to 
the  Alpis  Graia  is,  by  the  Itineraries,  ninety-two 
miles.  The  army  employed  eight  days  in  per- 
forming this  space,  as  they  halted  one  day  at 
Chambery,  which  gives  a  rate  of  eleven  miles 
and  half  a  day. 

Polybius  goes  on  to  tell  us,  in  the  fifty-fourth 
chapter,  that  as  there  was  already  much  snow 
on  the  mountain,  and  the  troops  were  beginning 
to  sink  under  the  hardships  they  had  encoun- 


63 

tered,  in  order  to  raise  their  spirits  Hannibal 
pointed  out  to  them  the  plains  around  the  Po, 
and  the  situation  of  Rome  itself,  and  by  these 
means  succeeded  in  encouraging  them  a  little. 

This  passage  presents  some  difficulty,  for  it 
is  undoubtedly  certain,  that  from  the  plain  on 
the  summit  of  the  little  St.  Bernard,  it  is  quite 
impossible  to  see  the  country  round  the  Po,  or 
the  situation  of  Rome  itself.  Fortunately  how- 
ever for  our  theory,  it  is  equally  certain  that 
this  country  is  alike  invisible  from  all  the  other 
known  passages  of  the  Alps.  The  very  circum- 
stance of  a  passage  over  this  enormous  chain 
of  mountains  supposes  a  depression  in  the 
chain,  for  no  man  at  all  acquainted  with  the 
country,  or  with  the  difficulties  attendant  upon 
a  march  through  it,  could  for  a  moment  suppose 
that  the  inhabitants  themselves  would  attempt 
to  scale  the  inaccessible  precipices  of  the  highest 
ridges ;  and  if  not  the  inhabitants,  how  much 
less  would  an  army,  encumbered,  as  it  must  be, 
by  its  baggage,  and  beasts  of  burden,  take  any 
way  but  that  pointed  out  to  them,  by  the  very 
nature  of  the  place,  and  the  previous  passage  of 
the  natives  of  the  country.  1  have  said,  that  the 
very  circumstance  of  a  passage  supposes  a 
breach  in  the  main  ridge,  and  if  so,  it  will  follow 
that  the  passage,  from  being  lower  than  the  sur- 
rounding  mountains,  must  be  elffectually   de- 


64 


barred  from  any  extensive  view ;  and  the  facts 
themselves  agree  with  this  reasoning,  for  nothing 
is  visible  from  the  Simplon,  from  the  great 
St.  Bernard,  the  Mont  Cenis,  or  the  Mont  Ge- 
nevre,  any  more  than  from  the  little  St.  Ber- 
nard. It  is  impossible  even  to  command  a 
view  of  any  extent  of  the  valleys  themselves  by 
which  you  descend,  for  it  will  be  easy  to  see,  by 
consulting  a  good  map  of  the  Alps,  that  the 
great  chain  is  always  flanked  by  smaller  ones 
that  run  off  from  it  at  right  angles,  like  the 
buttresses  of  a  cathedral,  and  these  are  in  their 
turn  flanked  by  smaller  ribs ;  so  that  as  the  main 
chain  itself  runs  in  many  different  directions, 
the  valleys  at  the  foot  of  it  are  necessarily  very 
winding,  and  no  one  exists  which  maintains  the 
same  course  for  many  miles  together.  But 
even  if  we  allowed  it  for  a  moment  to  be  pos- 
sible for  an  army  as  large  as  that  of  Hannibal 
to  climb  over  a  part  of  the  highest  ridge  of  the 
Alps,  which  should  be  so  high  as  to  enable  them 
to  command  a  view  of  the  plains  round  the  Po, 
it  would  even  then  from  the  nature  of  the  ground 
be  absolutely  impossible  for  them  to  encamp 
on  this  ridge.  The  passage  itself  however 
would  be  absolutely  impracticable ;  and  although 
the  general  accuracy  of  Polybius,  and  the 
implicit  confidence  which  we  have  hitherto 
placed  in  him,  must  make  us  hesitate  before  we 


65 

abandon  the  strict  literal  reading  of  tlie  account 
in  question;  yet  as  he  says  in  the  very  same 
sentence,  and  in  the  very  same  form  of  words, 
that  Hannibal  shewed  the  army  the  situation 
of  Rome  itself,  as  well  as  the  plains  round  the 
Po,  we  may  reasonably  and  fairly  conclude, 
that  the  direction  and  bearings  of  these  places 
is  all  that  is  meant:  and  that  the  general  was 
satisfied  with  proving  to  the  army  that  they 
had  arrived  at  the  summit  of  the  Alps,  and 
were  now  about  to  obtain  the  reward  of  their 
exertions  by  an  easy  and  rapid  descent  into 
the  plains  of  Italy.  And  this  might  well  enough 
be  done,  as  the  waters  begin  to  flow  dif- 
ferent ways  on  the  plain  itself  of  the  St.  Ber- 
nard: and  the  valley  of  La  Tuille,  which  is  not 
more  than  650  toises  above  the  level  of  the 
sea,  and  consequently  475  toises  below  the 
St.  Bernard,  is  easily  distinguishable  froai  it. 
M.  De  Luc  supposes  that  he  was  able  to  shew  De  luc, 
them  the  valley  of  Aoste,  as  well  as  that  of  La  ^* 
Tuille ;  but  this  is  not  so.  The  direction  of  this 
last  is  N.  E.  and  S.  W.  and  the  valley  runs  on 
in  nearly  the  same  direction  as  far  as  Pre  St. 
Didier,  where  it  makes  a  turn  to  the  E.  and 
runs  in  that  line  to  Aoste.  The  account  of 
Hannibal  pointing  out  the  plains  of  Italy  to  his 
soldiers  has  been  given  by  Livy  in  a  much 
more  romantic  manner,  and  his  description,  as 

F 


66 


well  as  that  of  the  general  appearance  of  the 
Alps,  decidedly  prove,  that  he  was  himself 
totally  ignorant  of  the  subject  upon  which  he 
was  writing.  This  particular  part  has  however 
been  much  dwelt  upon,  and  has  made  a  much 
greater  impression  than  it  deserves;  so  much  so, 
as  to  have  induced  some  French  writers  on  the 
subject  to  carry  the  whole  army  to  the  top  of 
the  Mont  Viso,  from  which  there  can  be  no 
doubt  that  they  would  command  a  most  ex- 
tensive view  of  Italy.  If  however  that  is  the  only 
object  required,  they  would  have  attained  their 
end  much  better  by  going  to  the  summit 
of  the  Mont  Blanc.  But  such  marches  for 
armies  are  inadmissible.  The  guides  from  the 
plains  of  the  Po  would  lead  the  army  by  the 
passages  to  which  they  had  themselves  been 
accustomed,  and  as  those  passages  are  marked 
out  by  nature,  they  might  remain  unaltered  to 
the  present  day,  though  from  various  circum- 
stances they  may  be  more  or  less  frequented 
than  formerly. 

Civilization  has  afforded  great  additional  in- 
citements, and  the  progress  of  the  arts  and  the 
discovery  of  gunpowder  have  given  great  ad- 
ditional facilities  to  our  undertakings  ;  but  these 
have  nevertheless  been  generally  confined  to 
the  improvement  of  those  passages  which  were 
already  known,  and  which,  having  existed  from 


67 

the  first  formation  of  the  barriers  which  they 
were  intended  to  penetrate,  were  pointed  out 
by  the  hand  of  nature  to  the  first  inhabitants 
of  these  countries.  If  any  other  passage  com- 
manded a  view  of  the  plains,  we  might  hesitate ; 
but  as  none  do,  we  must  content  ourselves  with 
explaining  the  account  of  Polybius  as  well  as 
we  can.  It  is  possible  that  Hannibal  might 
have  himself  reached  the  summit  of  some  of  the 
very  high  mountains  near  the  passage,  from 
whence  he  might  command  a  more  extensive 
view ;  but  I  do  not  think  it  at  all  necessary  to 
make  such  a  supposition,  and  I  think  it  much 
more  probable,  that  he  was  satisfied  with  telling 
the  army,  that  nothing  now  remained  for  them 
but  to  descend  and  enjoy  the  fruits  of  their  la- 
bours. The  account  of  this  descent  will  form 
the  subject  of  the  next  chapter,  in  which  the 
march  from  the  Mont  du  Chat  to  the  plains  of 
the  Po  and  the  Insubres  will  be  concluded. 


F  2 


CHAP.  VI. 

DESCENT  OF  THE  ARMY.  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  ROA0. 
ARRIVAL  AT  DONAS.  SIEGE  AND  CAPTURE  OF  TURIN. 
CONCLUSION  OF  THE  MARCH. 

In  the  latter  part  of  the  fifty-fourth  and  in  the 
fifty-fifth  chapter  we  find,  that  on  beginning 
their  descent  all  attacks  on  the  army  by  the 
barbarians  had  ceased  ;  notwithstanding  which, 
their  loss  was  nearly  as  great  as  in  their  ascent, 
for  the  road  was  extremely  bad,  and  covered 
with  snow,  so  that  the  men  lost  their  way,  and 
fell  down  precipices ;  and  finally  they  came 
to  a  place  where  it  was  impossible  to  pass  ;  for 
the  road,  which  for  a  distance  of  a  stadium  and 
half  was  very  rugged  and  liable  to  be  carried 
away,  had  actually  been  so  in  a  very  great  de- 
gree ;  so  that  having  in  vain  endeavoured  to 
turn  this  difficult  passage,  Hannibal  was  obliged 
to  encamp  at  the  commencement  of  it.  He  was 
unable  to  go  by  any  other  way,  for  a  fresh  fall  of 
snow  having  covered  the  old  snow  of  the  year 
before,  which  by  an  accident  of  very  unusual 
occurrence  had  remained  unmelted,  it  became 
impossible  for  the  men  and  horses  to  proceed. 


69 


The  troops  were  therefore  employed  in  clearing 
away  the  snow  and  repairing  the  road,  and  in 
a  day  the  cavalry  and  baggage  were  enabled  to 
pass ;  the  horses  were  then  sent  down  to  the 
plains  below,  and  distributed  in  the  pastures. 
In  three  days  more  they  succeeded  with  great 
difficulty  in  making  a  road  for  the  elephants, 
who  were  by  this  time  almost  starved.  After 
this  he  collected  his  whole  army,  and  de- 
scended to  the  plains,  which  he  reached  after 
a  march  of  three  days ;  and  entered  boldly  into 
the  country  round  the  Po,  and  the  territory  of 
the  Insubrians,  having  saved  -20,000  infantry 
and  6000  cavalry.  After  this  account  follow 
three  chapters  of  no  importance,  and  then  in 
the  sixtieth  chapter  we  are  told,  that  he  en- 
camped for  some  time  at  the  foot  of  the  Alps, 
in  order  to  recruit  the  strength  of  his  soldiers, 
of  whom  he  had  lost  18,000  infantry  and  more 
than  2000  cavalry  in  the  passage  of  the  Alps, 
for  he  passed  the  Rhone  with  more  than  46,000 
men.  After  this,  finding  that  the  Taurini  were 
at  war  with  the  Insubres  his  allies,  he  made 
overtures  of  reconciliation  to  them,  which  not 
being  accepted,  he  attacked  their  capital,  and 
taking  it  after  a  siege  of  three  days,  put  the  in- 
habitants to  the  sword ;  in  consequence  of  which, 
the   neighbouring   people  immediately  entered 

F  3 


70 

into  treaties  with  him,  so  that  he  was  enabled 
to  undertake  further  and  more  brilliant  opera- 
tions. 

It  will  not  be  necessary  to  follow  Polybius 
any  further,  and  in  fact  the  descent  of  the  Alps 
ceases  at  his  arrival  in  the  plains  of  the  Insu- 
brians;  but  it  is  essential  to  insert  that  part 
which  relates  to  the  capture  of  Turin,  in  order 
to  explain  the  error  into  which  those  writers 
have  fallen,  who  have  supposed  Hannibal  to 
have  arrived  first  among  the  Taurini. 

The  road  downwards  from  the  St.  Bernard 
passes  through  a  valley  by  the  side  of  the  Doire, 
which  takes  its  rise  on  the  plain,  for  about  5  miles, 
till  it  arrives  at  Pont  Serrant ;  here  this  stream  is 
joined  by  another,  which  comes  down  from  the 
Glacier  de  TOratoire,  in  a  very  deep  and  formi- 
dable ravine.  The  road  crosses  it  by  a  wooden 
bridge,  and  the  army  would  probably  have 
crossed  below  its  junction  with  the  Doire, 
where  the  ground  is  easier.  The  ravine  itself 
might  have  formed  one  of  the  numerous  pre- 
cipices, into  which  the  soldiers  fell  from  missing 
their  way.  Shortly  after  the  road  reaches  La 
Tuille,  a  large  and  well  built  village,  standing 
in  a  small  plain  tolerably  well  cultivated.  Here 
the  Doire  is  joined  by  the  Baltique,  which  flows 
from  the  Ruitor,  a  very  high  snowy  mountain 


71 

to  the  eastward,  which  forms  one  part  of  the 
central  chain  of  the  Alps.  It  now  becomes  a 
stream  of  some  size,  and  takes  the  name  of  the 
Doria  Baltea.  The  modern  road  runs  along 
this  river  as  far  as  Ivree ;  and  it  is  clear  from  the 
Itineraries,  that  the  Roman  road  went  the  same 
way  except  in  a  few  instances,  where  it  was 
carried  along  the  tops  of  the  mountains  instead 
of  the  banks  of  the  river.  On  leaving*  La  Tuilie 
the  river  turns  to  the  north,  and  enters  a  very 
narrow  passage  between  two  rocks ;  from  hence 
it  runs  on  to  Pre  St.  Didier  in  a  direction 
almost  parallel  to  the  All6e  Blanche,  and  the 
back  of  the  Mont  Blanc ;  being  divided  from 
them  by  the  long  chain  of  the  Cramont,  in  all 
probability  the  Cremonis  jugum  of  Livy.  After  Lib.  21. 
La  Tuilie,  the  Artolica  of  the  Itineraries,  the 
modem  road  crosses  from  the  left  or  W.  to  the 
right  or  E.  bank  of  the  river,  and  recrosses  it 
about  three  miles  lower  down.  The  old  road  re- 
mained constantly  on  the  left  bank,  and  was 
obliged  to  be  abandoned  in  consequence  of  the 
numerous  avalanches,  which  always  fall  from 
a  pointed  rock  that  overhangs  it,  and  which  in 
the  winter  frequently  carried  it  away.  It  is 
very  remarkable,  that  that  part  of  the  old  road 
which  was  most  exposed  to  these  accidents  is 
about  300  yards  in  length,  a  distance  agreeing 
almost  exactly  with  the  stadium  and  a  half  of 

F  4 


72 

Polybius^;  and  it  appears,  that  from  tlie  very  na- 
ture of  the  ground  it  must  always  have  been  so 
exposed ;  for,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  plan,  it  is 
situated  at  the  bend  of  the  river,  and  immedi- 
ately under  one  of  the  highest  points  of  the  Cra- 
mont,  and  that  chain  of  mountains  which  forms 
the  S.  E.  side  of  the  Allee  Blanche.  From  this 
point  the  ground  slopes  rapidly  down  to  the 
river  in  a  concave  or  funnel-shaped  direction, 
the  mouth  of  the  funnel  ending  at  the  river,  so 
that  an  avalanche  from  the  top  would  be  neces- 
sarily confined  within  the  limits  of  the  bend, 
and  within  the  space  of  three  hundred  yards. 
It  appears,  from  the  reports  of  the  inhabitants, 
that  this  passage  is  peculiarly  subject  to  ava- 
lanches; and  it  happens  also,  that,  owing  to  the 
narrowness  of  the  bed  of  the  river  in  this  spot, 
and  the  precipitous  nature  of  the  rocks  on  both 
sides  of  it,  the  snow  which  is  brought  down  in 
this  manner  from  the  Cramont,  and  which  falls 
in  immense  masses  into  it,  remains  sometimes 
unmelted  during  the  whole  of  the  summer,  and 
forms  a  natural  bridge  over  the  torrent  for  a 
considerable  distance.  This  event  happens  so 
rarely,  as  to  be,  in  the  vvords  of  Polybius,  'iiiov 
jcoCi  'Tccc^n'k'keiyiLivov :  but  it  does  sometimes  take 
place ;  for  M.  De  Saussure,  in  the  year  1792, 

*  The  stadium  is  equal  to  125  passus,  or  625  Roman  feet; 
a  stadium  and  a  half  will  therefore  be  937^  Roman  feet. 


73 

at  vvhicli  time  he  passed  over  this  road,  says, 
speaking  of  this  precise  spot,  "  Le  chemin  est 
"  bon  et  assez  large,  mais  sur  une  corniche 
"  tres  eievee  au  dessus  de  la  Tuille.  On  voit 
*'  la  sous  ses  pieds  des  amas  de  neige  qui  se 
"  sont  conserves  depuis  I'hiver,  et  qui  forment 
'*  des  ponts  sur  ce  torrent."  Our  guide  told  us 
that  the  same  thing  had  happened  in  1816,  at 
which  time  the  snow  formed  a  complete  bridge 
over  the  river.  I  took  great  pains  to  ascertain 
whether  the  snow  ever  remained  unmelted  the 
whole  year  round  in  any  other  part  of  the  road, 
and  I  was  assured  that  such  an  event  never 
took  place ;  nor  would  it  occur  in  this  spot, 
were  it  not  entirely  sheltered  from  the  sun  by 
the  extreme  narrowness  of  the  ravine  and  the 
great  height  of  the  mountains  on  both  sides. 
It  may  perhaps  be  thought,  that  the  coincidence 
of  the  distance  of  a  stadium  and  a  half  between 
the  present  day  and  the  time  of  Polybius  is  too 
exact ;  and  that  in  the  course  of  2000  years  the 
appearance  of  the  defile  must  have  undergone 
some  more  material  alterations  ;  but  the  funnel- 
shaped  construction  of  this  part  of  the  passage 
has  prevented  the  avalanches  from  extending 
themselves ;  and  although  masses  of  rock  may 
have  fallen  from  the  highest  points,  there  ap- 
pears to  have  been  no  mark  of  any  change  in 
the  lower  part  of  the  hollow.     M.  De  Luc,  in 


74 

the  appendix  to  his  work,  has  inserted  a  very 
curious  paper  upon  the  effects  of  torrents  on 
rocks,  in  which  he  proves  very  satisfactorily, 
that  it  requires  an  immense  time  for  a  river 
flowing  over  rocks  to  make  much  impression 
upon  them,  and  that  in  consequence  it  will  be 
long  before  the  appearance  of  a  valley  can  be 
materially  altered.  From  De  Saussure's  ac- 
count it  is  clear  that  he  passed  by  the  modern 
road ;  but  General  Melville,  who  passed  in 
1775,  went  by  the  old  one,  which  was  not  then 
abandoned :  it  was  at  that  time  made  with 
trunks  of  trees,  and  his  guide  informed  him  that 
it  was  generally  carried  away  in  the  spring  by 
the  avalanches. 
De  Luc,  p.  M.  De  Luc  has  supposed,  that  the  road  taken 
by  the  General  was  on  the  right  bank  of  the 
river,  instead  of  the  left.  This  is  one  of  the 
very  few  errors  into  which  that  gentleman  has 
fallen,  and  it  is  one  which  he  would  have  cor- 
rected immediately,  if  he  had  himself  had  an 
opportunity  of  visiting  the  spot.  It  is  clear  that 
General  Melville  passed  by  the  old  road,  as  the 
modern  one  is  not  exposed  to  avalanches. 

It  appears  from  the  Itineraries,  that  Artolica 
(La  Tuille)  was  six  miles  from  Alpis  Graia,  or 
the  summit  of  the  St.  Bernard ;  and  we  find, 
from  the  narrative  of  Polybius,  that  it  was  on 
the  first  day's  descent  that  the  army  arrived  at 


168. 


75 

the  impassable  spot:  and  this  would  agree  very 
well  with  the  distance  of  this  difficult  pass, 
which  is  about  half  a  mile  beyond  La  Tuille, 
and  where  the  army  evidently  arrived  in  good 
time,  as  an  attempt  was  made  to  turn  it  before 
they  encamped  for  the  night.  There  appears 
here  to  be  a  little  obscurity  in  Polybius  on  the 
subject  of  the  new  snow  which  had  fallen  on 
the  old,  and  which  prevented  them  from  pro- 
ceeding ;  for  it  does  not  appear  quite  certain  to 
which  of  the  roads  the  difficulties  occasioned 
by  the  new  snow  falling  upon  the  old  are  to  be 
referred.      If   these   difficulties   prevented  the 

I  army  from  turning  the  pass,  then  they  must 
have  endeavoured  to  cross  the  river,  and  to 
pass  on  the  other  side,  or  on  the  snow  itself, 
which  formed  a  road  over  the  bed  of  the  tor- 
rent ;  and  as  the  banks  are  precipitous,  and  the 
bed  very  deep,  the  men  and  horses  would  suffer 
dreadfully  in  the  attempt.  If,  on  the  contrary, 
these  difficulties  apply  to  the  road  itself,  then  it 

I  is  possible  that  Hannibal  might  have  endea- 
;^oured  to  turn  the  ravine  altogether  by  a  road 
which  runs  at  the  back  of  the  rocks  which  are 
on  the  right  bank  of  the  river,  and  which  after- 
wards ascends  the  chain  of  mountains  that  form 
[the  south  side  of  the  valley  of  Aoste,  and  cross- 
ing them  falls  into  that  valley  opposite  to  the 
town  of  Morges,  a  little  below  Pre  St.  Didien 


7« 

As  this  road  takes  its  way  at  first  through  a 
very  deep  and  hollow  ravine,  it  would  be  very 
liable  to  be  choked  up,  and  rendered  impas- 
sable by  a  great  fall  of  snow.  It  is  now  very 
little  used,  and  the  descent  by  it  into  the  valley 
of  Aoste  is  almost  impracticable. 

In  whatever  way  the  attempt  to  turn  the 
pass  was  made,  the  troops  were  finally  obliged 
to  encamp  at  the  entrance  of  it,  and  in  all  pro- 
bability in  the  plain  on  which  La  Tuille  itself 
is  situated.  The  next  day  was  employed  in 
making  a  road  good  enough  for  the  passage 
of  the  cavalry,  and  three  more  days  in  con- 
structing one  for  the  elephants.  During  these 
three  last  days,  the  infantry  and  cavalry  would 
probably  move  down  the  valley  towards  Aoste, 
with  a  view  to  the  more  easily  obtaining  sup- 
plies; for  although  there  are  very  fine  pastures 
and  a  small  plain  at  Pre  St.  Didier,  the  country 
grows  much  richer  towards  Aoste,  and  no  large 
number  either  of  men  or  horses  could  have  re- 
mained long  at  the  former  place.  From  La 
Tuille  to  Arebrigium,  or  Pre  St.  Didier,  the 
Itineraries  give  six  miles,  and  from  thence  to 
Aoste  tw^enty-five,  or  thirty  from  the  difficult 
pass.  The  troops  were  now  in  a  friendly 
country,  and  no  inconvenience  could  be  ap- 
prehended from  the  dispersion  of  the  army  in 
different  quarters,  as  might  be  found  most  con- 


77 

veiiient  for  their  subsistence.  The  valley  from 
Pr6  St.  Didier  to  Aoste  is,  with  the  exception 
of  one  short  part  of  it,  rich,  and  well  cultivated. 
There  are  some  large  villages  and  vineyards 
begin  shortly  after  the  road  leaves  the  former 
place ;  in  many  places  it  is  very  wide,  and  or- 
chards and  meadows  are  in  great  abundance. 
At  Pre  St.  Didier  a  road  turns  off  to  Corma- 
yeur  and  the  AUee  Blanche  at  the  back  of  the 
Mont  Blanc.  Here  is  a  warm  spring,  much 
celebrated,  and  in  the  summer  very  much  fre- 
quented. It  appears  however  to  have  no  mi- 
neral qualities  whatever,  and  to  be  nothing  more 
than  pure  hot  water.  The  situation  of  the 
village  is  very  striking :  surrounded  as  it  is  by 
enormous  mountains,  and  standing  in  the  middle 
of  the  most  beautiful  meadows  and  trees,  the 
verdure  of  which  is  made  more  vivid  by  the 
contrast  with  the  nakedness  of  the  rocks  that 
overhang  them,  and  the  magnificent  glaciers 
which  descend  from  the  sides  of  Mont  Blanc, 
into  the  AUee  Blanche.  The  elephants  might 
get  down  to  Pr6  St.  Didier  on  the  evening  of 
the  fourth  day,  and  supposing  this  to  be  the 
case,  the  whole  army  would  be  assembled  be- 
tween Aoste  and  that  village  by  the  end  of  the 
fifteenth  day  from  Chevelu,  or  Lavisco,  the 
ascent  of  the  Mont  du  Chat.  The  descent  from 
the  St.  Bernard  probably  commenced  on  the 


78 

eleventh  day ;  for  although  they  arrived  on  the 
ninth,  and  stayed  two  days,  yet  as  they  reached 
the  summit  early  on  the  ninth,  that  day  must 
be  reckoned  as  one  of  the  two.  One  day  for 
the  passage  of  the  cavalry  makes  twelve,  and 
three  for  the  elephants  fifteen ;  and  this  is  the 
c.  56.  number  of  days  which,  according  to  Polybius, 
he  employed  in  passing  the  Alps  ;  "  having 
"  performed  the  passage  of  the  Alps  in  fifteen 
"  days,  he  descended  boldly  into  the  country 
"  of  the  Insubrians,  and  the  plains  about  the 
*'  Po."  This  statement  is  however  rather  in- 
consistent with  the  account  in  the  beginning  of 
this  very  same  chapter,  which  says,  that  having 
assembled  his  army  after  the  passage  of  that 
difficult  piece  of  road,  which  had  delayed  him 
for  four  days,  he  descended,  and  reached  the 
plains  in  three  days'  march  from  the  broken 
ground,  which  would  give  eighteen  days  in- 
stead of  fifteen.  Are  we  then  to  consider  the 
♦  passage  of  the  Alps  as  terminated  at  Pre  St. 
Didier,  or  at  the  commencement  of  the  plains 
of  the  Po,  and  the  real  termination  of  those 
mountains  ?  It  is  a  question  of  importance,  be- 
cause it  is  necessary  for  us  to  know  where  our 
distance  of  a  hundred  and  fifty  miles,  which 
Polybius  gives  as  the  amount  of  the  passage  of 
the  Alps,  is  to  terminate.  I  think  that  there 
can  be  very  little  doubt  that  we  must  read 


79 

eighteen  days  instead  of  fifteen,  and  that  the 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  are  to  be  completed 
at  the  commencement  of  the  plain,  and  at  the 
spot  where  the  army  was  encamped,  in  order 
to  recover  from  its  fatigues,  that  is,  at  the  end 
of  the  valley  of  Ivree  ;  and  1  am  confirmed  in 
this  opinion  by  the  words  that  Polybius  himself 
makes  use  of  in  the  sixtieth  chapter,  in  which  he 
says,  that  having  entered  Italy,  he  encamped 
xyff  uvTTjv  rrjv  'tfcx^^co^uccv  rm  '  A.'K'Trzcov ;  and  indeed  c.  so. 
the  enumeration  he  makes  of  the  losses  sus- 
tained by  the  army,  and  the  recapitulation  of 
the  march,  is  not  made,  till  after  the  fact  of  their 
having  reached  the  plains  has  been  stated  ;  and 
there  can  be  no  doubt  upon  his  own  shewing, 
that  eighteen  days  must  have  elapsed  before 
this  event  took  place.  It  is  possible  that  he 
might  have  intended  to  leave  out  of  the  account 
the  three  days  employed  in  making  the  road 
for  the  elephants  ;  but  I  think  it  more  probable 
that  he  meant,  that  in  fifteen  days  the  chief  dif-  ^ 
ficulties  of  the  passage  were  overcome,  and 
that  he  entered  into  a  friendly  country.  The 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  cannot  however  be 
considered  as  concluded,  till  the  whole  passage 
was  actually  finished;  and  till  the  army  were 
distributed  into  quarters.  The  roi  ^eg)  rov  Ucciov  c.  39. 
?rgJ/a  are  the  full  termination  of  the  march, 
and  appear  to  be  always  so  considered  in  all 


80 


the  places  where  they  are  mentioned,  and  from 
them  no  furtlier  communication  of  distances 
is  made.  It  remains  therefore  to  see  how  the 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  agree  with  the  ar- 
rival at  the  plains,  and  the  final  place  of  en- 
campment. As  Folybius  vsays  that  the  en- 
campment took  place  at  the  very  foot  of  the 
Alps,  we  must  place  it  between  Donas  and 
Ivr6e.  For  the  valley  of  Aoste  ends  at  Donas, 
a  little  below  the  Fort  du  Bard,  and  about  four- 
teen Roman  miles  and  a  half  from  Ivree.  The 
Itineraries  give  a  hundred  and  twenty-nine 
miles  from  Lavisco  to  Aoste,  and  forty-six  from 
thence  to  Ivree,  making  a  sum  of  a  hundred 
and  seventy-five  miles,  from  which  deducting 
fourteen  miles  and  a  half,  (the  distance  from 
Donas  to  Ivree,)  there  remain  a  hundred 
and  sixty  miles  and  a  half  for  the  passage,  instead 
of  a  hundred  and  fifty,  as  stated  by  Folybius. 
And  it  is  further  to  be  observed,  that  the  dis- 
tance from  Pr6  St.  Didier  to  Aoste  is  in  all  the 
best  modern  maps  fixed  at  twenty,  instead  of 
twenty-five  Roman  miles,  as  stated  in  the  Itine- 
raries''.    This  would  reduce  the  difference  to 

^  This  difference  may  be  ex;^lained  by  the  fact  of  the 
Roman  road  from  Pr^  St.  Didier  going  over  the  tops  of  tlie 
moimtains,  instead  of  along  the  valley,  and  so  lengthening 
the  distance.  Hannibal  would  naturally  keep  in  the  valley 
for  the  sake  of  subsistence. 


81 


only  five  miles  between  our  calculation,  and 
that  of  Polybius  ;  and  this  is  certainly  as  close 
an  approach  as  can  be  expected  in  so  great  an 
extent  of  country,  especially  as  our  author  does 
not  and  cannot  speak  with  so  much  certainty 
with  respect  to  this  distance,  as  he  does  with 
respect  to  those  which  were  already  marked  out 
by  the  Romans  in  his  own  time.  For  the  pas- 
sage of  the  Alps  by  the  little  St.  Bernard  was 
only  made  practicable  for  carriages  in  the  time 
of  Augustus.  Donas *^  may  be  fairly  called  the 
entrance  of  the  Alps,  for  two  secondary  chains 
of  mountains,  which  run  off  at  right  angles  from 

*^  Here  the  road  has  been  literally  cut  and  chiselled  in 
the  rock,  which  closes  in  to  the  very  edge  of  the  river.  Tra- 
dition assigns  this  very  remarkable  work  to  Hannibal,  and 
this  pass  indeed  has  been  known  for  centuries  among  the 
natives  as  that  of  the  Carthaginian  army.  There  can  be  but 
little  doubt  that  this  is  what  Appian  alludes  to  as  the  J/e^o? 
(iji'  vvv  KetXovri  'Am^ov.)  Luitprand  of  Pavia,  a  Lombard 
writer,  and  Paulus  Jovius,  have  gone  so  far  as  to  state,  that  an 
inscription  recording  his  passage  was  visible  in  the  rock. 
But  this  opinion  is  refuted  by  the  writer  of  the  Theatrum 
Sabaudiae,  in  the  Art.  entitled.  Via  quam  dicunt  Annibalis  in 
rupe  excisa.  We  are  there  told,  that  the  inscription  which 
really  exists  records  the  passage  of  Tomaso  Grimaldi,  a  noble 
Genoese,  in  1474.  This  writer  concludes  by  expressing  his 
belief,  that  this  work  was  executed  in  the  time  of  Augustus. 
Theatr.  Sabaud.  vol.  i.  p.  54.  Though  we  searched  for  an 
inscription,  we  could  discover  none  whatever. 

G 


82 


the  main  chain,  meet  here,  and  form  a  very 
narrow  pass,  that  closes  the  valley  of  Aoste  as 
with  a  door.  The  first  of  these,  the  Mont 
Soana,  comes  in  an  easterly  direction  from  the 
Mont  Iseran,  and  the  other  runs  south  from 
the  Mont  Cervin.  The  descent,  which  is  rapid 
the  whole  way  from  Aoste,  here  ceases  almost 
entirely;  and  between  8t.  Martin  and  Ivree  there 
are  no  mountains,  but  only  a  wide  valley  with 
hills  on  each  side,  and  Ivree  itself  is  com- 
pletely detached,  and  stands  in  the  plains.  If 
we  had  supposed  the  army  to  have  taken  the 
road  by  Aiguebellette  or  the  Mont  de  TEpine, 
instead  of  the  Mont  du  Chat  by  Chevelu,  the 
distance  would  have  been  shortened  by  thirteen 
miles,  which  would  bring  the  army  very  near 
Ivree  ;  but  this  is  not  necessary,  for  there  is  no 
obstacle  whatever  betweenDonas  and  Ivree,  and 
the  valley  such  a&  it  is  scarcely  rises  at  all: 
with  respect  to  the  real  termin^ttion  tli^refore 
of  the  Alps,  we  may  safely  place  it  at  Donas ; 
and  another  reason  which  will  prevent  us  from 
pushing  it  further  is  the  distance  to  be  per- 
formed by  the  army  in  their  descent  of  three 
days,  after  the  passage  of  the  rocks  near  La 
Tuille.  From  Pr6  St.  Didier  to  Donas  we 
have  a  little  more  thau  fifty  Roman  miles,  which 
makes  about  seventeen  miles  a  day,  too  long 


B3 


a  march  certainly  for  troops  in  the  fatigued  and 
shattered  condition  of  the  Carthaginian  army. 
In  point  of  fact  however,  the  cavahy  and  in- 
fantry had  six  days  instead  of  three  to  perform 
this  march  in,  since  they  had  three  clear  days 
during  the  time  that  tlie  road  was  preparing  for 
the  elephants ;  and  as  the  country  was  now 
friendly,  these  animals  might  have  followed  the 
army  by  shorter  distances,  and  as  they  were 
much  exhausted,  have  arrived  at  Donas  a 
day  or  two  later.  It  is  sufficient  for  our  pur-' 
pose  to  shew,  that  it  was  quite  possible  for 
the  main  body  of  the  army  to  reach  Donas 
without  any  difficulty.  It  is  quite  impossible 
that  the  whole  army  could  have  been  assembled 
at  Pr6  St.  Didier,  as  subsistence  could  not  be 
found  for  them,  and  they  must  therefore  neces- 
sarily have  extended  themselves  along  the 
valley  towards  Aoste.  The  modern  road  be- 
tween these  two  places  is  in  some  places  cut 
into  the  rocks  on  the  side  of  the  valley,  and  is 
sometimes  difficult,  but  generally  speaking  the 
bottom  of  the  valley  itself  is  by  no  means  bad, 
and  towards  Aoste  it  widens  considerably,  and 
is  very  rich.  There  are  many  very  large  vil^ 
lages  in  it,  and  it  is  extremely  populous.  This 
valley  was  occupied  by  the  Salassi,  of  whom 
Polybius  says  nothing,  but  who  were  probably 

G  2 


84 


a  branch  of  the  Iiisiibres,  since  they  were 
friendly  to  the  Carthaginians  ^  At  Villeneuve, 
a  few  miles  above  Aoste,  we  found  several  Ro- 
man inscriptions  in  very  good  preservation,  and 
the  town  is  large  and  the  valley  wide  here. 
Aoste  itself  (Augusta  Praetoria)  is  a  well  built 
town,  remarkable  for  its  triumphal  arch,  which 
remains  very  perfect.  There  are  also  the  re- 
mains of  an  amphitheatre.  From  Aoste  to 
Chatillon  the  beauty  of  the  country  exceeds  any 
thing  I  have  ever  seen.  The  vegetation  most 
abundant.  The  chesnut  trees  are  of  great  age, 
and  approach  in  size  almost  to  those  celebrated 
ones  on  Mount  Etna.  The  valley  which  is  very 
wide  swarms  with  farm  houses  and  small  vil- 
lages, and  the  roads  are  excellent.  Fine  springs 
of  water  gush  from  the  rocks  on  each  side,  and 
the  luxuriance  of  the  crops  shew  that  we  have 
reached  Italy.  Towards  Verres  the  valley  be- 
comes narrower,  and  at  Donas,  as  has  already 
been  observed,  it  is  almost  entirely  closed  by 
the  mountains  which  meet  there.  Nothing  can 
be  more  picturesque  than  the  effects  produced 
by  them.  Here  you  emerge  from  the  high  Alps, 
and  descend  gradually  upon  Ivree,  through  a 


*  Ptolemy  ranks  them  nnder  the  Insubres  as  well  as  the 
Libicii.     Cluver.  Ital.  Ant. 


8S 


wide  valley,  bounded  by  much  lower  heights ; 
and  at  Ivr6e  you  find  yourself  completely  in 
the  plain,  which  you  see  perfectly  from  St. 
Martin,  a  little  below  Donas.  At  this  place 
then,  if  our  reasoning  be  conclusive,  the  army 
would  arrive  on  the  eighteenth  day  from 
Chevelu,  or  about  the  fourth  of  November ;  and 
they  were  immediately  encamped  at  the  very 
foot  of  the  mountains ;  and  by  no  other  known 
passage  over  the  Alps,  excepting  the  great 
St.  Bernard,  could  Hannibal  have  descended 
among  the  Insubrians  ;  and  the  distances  alone, 
setting  aside  all  the  other  reasons,  put  the  great 
St.  Bernard  out  of  the  question.  It  is  remark- 
able that  all  the  writers  who  have  written 
in  favour  of  the  Mont  Genevre,  have  totally 
overlooked  this  passage,  and  have  relied  upon 
the  Taurini,  among  whom  he  came  indeed,  as 
Polybius  tells  us,  but  not  till  after  he  had  re- 
cruited his  troops  among  the  Insubrians.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  who  these  latter  were;  Livy 
himself  tells  us,  that  Milan  was  their  capital, 
and  both  he  and  Polybius  say  expressly  that 
they  were  at  war  with  the  Taurini.  According 
to  the  best  authors,  these  nations  were  divided 
by  the  Orca,  to  the  south  of  which  river  were 
those  nations  who  were  Ligurians,  and  to  the 
north  the  Gauls.  The  former  had  been  sub- 
dued and  were  friendly,  the  latter,  from  constant 

G  3 


86 


wars,  were  still  hostile  to  the  Romans*.  In  the 
forty-fourth  chapter  Polybius  expressly  states, 
that  the  envoys  sent  from  the  plains  about  the 
Po  were  Gauls;  and  as  they  were  to  accom- 
pany and  even  to  guide  the  army  over  the  Alps, 
they  would  naturally  bring  them  first  into  their 
own  country,  in  order  that  they  might  recover 
from  the  fatigues  of  the  march.  M.  De  Luc 
closes  the  150  miles  at  Aoste,  but  in  my  opinion 
incorrectly ;  for  even  if  we  put  dates  and  dis- 
tances out  of  the  question,  it  is  impossible  to 
say  that  the  plain  of  Aoste  is  the  country  which 
borders  on  the  Po,  since  it  is  separated  from 
the  real  plains  near  Ivree  by  a  long  valley  of 
30  nailes  in  length.  'J 'he  error  has  arisen  from 
not  taking  into  consideration  the  three  days  of 
descent  in  addition  to  the  fifteen  first  employed 
in  the  passage.  In  consequence  of  this,  M.  De 
Luc  has  been  unable  to  make  his  distances 
agree  with  those  of  Polybius  as  accurately  as 
thpy  ought  to  do.  This  gentleman  has  con- 
cluded his  work  with  the  battle  of  the  Ticino,  and 
has  corrected  a  very  gross  error  of  M.  Folard, 
who  in  defiance  of  all  authority  has  made  the 
battle  take  place  on  the  right  bank  of  the  river 


'  In  Polybius*s  account  of  the  "yirar  between  the  Gauls  and 
Romans,  no  mention  whatever  is  made  of  the  Ligurians  as 
having  taken  a  part  in  it. 


87 

instead  of  the  left.  It  is  not  necessary  for  us 
to  carry  the  discussion  further  than  the  capture 
of  Turin,  which  was  effected  after  a  siege  of 
three  days,  and  which  terrified  the  neighbouring 
district  into  submission.  The  circumstance  of 
this  attack  is  in  itself  a  sufficient  proof,  that  he 
did  not  descend  by  the  Mont  Genevre;  for  we 
know  that  the  Insubres  were  his  alHes,  and  that 
they  were  at  war  with  the  Taurini :  how  can  it 
then  be  supposed,  that  these  last  would  have 
suffered  the  Carthaginians  to  encamp  in  perfect 
tranquillity  at  the  foot  of  the  Alps,  and  conse- 
quently almost  at  the  very  gates  of  their  city, 
while  they  themselves  knew  that  they  were  in 
alliance  with  their  enemies,  and  while  they  were 
in  such  a  state  of  weakness  and  disorganiza- 
tion, that  it  would  have  been  imposiiible  for 
them  to  have  opposed  any  resistance  to  a  well 
combined  attack  ?  and  would  Hannibal,  on  en- 
tering a  territory  whose  inclinations  towards 
him  were  at  least  doubtful,  have  dispersed  his 
army,  and  left  himself  entirely  without  defence, 
in  the  manner  described  by  Poly  bins  ?  Among 
the  Insubrians,  on  the  contrary,  he  was  at  liberty 
to  recruit  his  forces  without  any  fears ;  and  what 
was  more  natural  than  that  he  should  turn  his 
arms  first  against  the  enemies  of  those  allies,  to 
whom  he  had  been  so  much  indebted,  espe- 
cially as  by  defeating  them  he  secured  the  neu- 

G  4 


88 


trality  at  least,  if  not  the  more  active  coopera- 
tion, of  the  country  in  their  neighbourhood. 
More  especially  as  the  Ligurians  occupied  a 
large  district  in  the  north  of  Italy,  and  were  a 
powerful  tribe,  whom  it  became  necessary  there- 
fore to  conciliate  or  awe  into  submission  by 
force.  We  find  indeed  from  Livy,  that  after  the 
capture  of  Turin,  Hannibal  was  joined  by  a 
large  body  of  that  nation.  Here  then  we  may 
close  this  branch  of  the  discussion,  in  which  we 
have  endeavoured  to  confine  ourselves  strictly 
to  Polybius,  and  to  make  the  road,  by  which 
we  have  supposed  the  army  to  march,  agree 
with  his  account.  It  now  remains  for  us  to 
examine  the  hypothesis  of  other  writers  who 
have  treated  on  this  subject,  and  to  shew  that 
they  all  disagree  with  our  author,  and  that  some 
of  them  are  absolutely  inconsistent  with  them- 
selves ;  as  Livy  is  the  source  of  all  the  opinions 
in  favour  of  the  Mont  Genevre,  we  shall  examine 
his  account  in  the  following  chapter. 


(M> 


CHAP.  VJI. 

EXAMINATION  OF  LIVy's  ACCOUNT. 

M.  DE  LUC,  in  his  very  ingenious  refutation 
of  Livy  by  a  comparison  with  Polybius,  has 
introduced  the  parallel  passages  of  the  two  au- 
thors, and  has  by  this  means  shewn  how  closely 
the  Latin  historian  has  generally  copied  the 
Greek  one,  as  well  as  the  new  matter  which  he 
has  introduced  ;  but  as  this  comparison  may  be 
easily  made,  we  shall,  in  order  to  avoid  need- 
less repetitions,  confine  ourselves  to  those  pas- 
sages where  he  forsakes  his  original ;  for  that 
Polybius  was  that  original,  cannot  be  doubted 
by  any  one  who  will  take  the  trouble  of  reading 
the  two  accounts  together. 

And)  first,  it  may  be  noticed  as  somewhat 
singular,  that  he  never  once,  in  the  whole  course 
of  his  narrative,  acknowledges  that  he  is  in- 
debted to  Polybius,  Again,  the  total  want  of 
all  computation  of  distance,  though  Polybius 
prefaces  his  account  with  a  very  exact  detail 
on  this  head,  must   strike   every   observer   as 


90 


being  the  result,  if  not  of  design,  at  least  of 
great  negligence  and  inaccuracy. 

Having  brought  Hannibal  from  the  Pyrenees 
to  the  Rhone,  and  made  him  cross  that  river  at 
the  same  point  and  under  the  same  circum- 
stances which  Polybius  describes,  Livy  tells 
us%  that  on  the  day  after  Hannibal  had  ha- 
rangued his  army,  he  set  forward  along  the 
Rhone,  and  up  the  stream  towards  the  interior 
of  Gaul ;  not  that  this  was  his  nearest  way  to 
the  Alps,  but  because  he  conceived  that  the 
farther  he  retired  from  the  sea,  the  less  proba- 
bility there  would  be  of  his  encountering  the 
Romans,  with  whom  he  was  not  desirous  of 
fighting  before  he  reached  Italy. 

Now  we  in  vain  look  in  Polybius  for  such  a 
comment  on  Hannibal's  movement  up  the 
Rhone;  on  the  contrary  we  are  assured,  that 
it  must  have  formed  part  of  the  original  plan : 
this  appears  plainly  from  the  thirty-ninth  chap- 
ter of  the  third  book,  in  which  the  distances  are 
enumerated  from  the  passage  of  the  Rhone  to 
the  arrival  of  the  army  into  Italy  ;  and  which 
proves  beyond  a  doubt,  that  the  march  up  the 

a  Postero  die  profectus  adverse  rip^  Rhodani,  mediterranea 
Galliae  petit :  non  quia  rectior  ad  Alpes  via  esset,  sed  quan- 
tum a  mari  recessisset  minus  obvium  fore  Romanum  cre- 
dens :  cum  quo  priusquam  in  Italiam  ventum  foret,  non  erat 
in  animo  manus  conserere.    Li  v.  lib.  xxl.  cap.  31.  ed.  Crevier. 


\ 


91 

Rhone  was  not  forced  upon  Hannibal  by  the 
approach  of  Scipio,  but  must  have  been  under- 
taken according  to  his  previous  design  and 
plan.  Polybius  has  expressly  declared,  that  Ppiyb.  ub. 
Hannibal  had  formed  the  whole  plan  of  his34— ts. 
march  long  beforehand.  He  had  well  ascer- 
tained, previously  to  setting  out,  all  the  difficul- 
ties and  dangers  which  must  necessarily  attend 
so  bold  and  arduous  an  undertaking;  he  had 
well  enquired  into  the  nature  of  the  country 
and  places  through  which  he  was  to  pass,  as 
well  as  the  character  and  disposition  of  its  in- 
habitants ;  above  all,  he  relied  on  the  guides  of 
the  country,  K(x,6nyi[^o(nv  iy')(a^toigi  who  had  ad- 
vanced to  tlie  passage  of  the  Rhone  to  meet 
him,  and  who,  as  they  were  to  share  his  good 
or  ill  fortune,  were  necessarily  devoted  to  his 
cause.  Are  we  then  to  suppose,  that  the  unex- 
pected appearance  of  the  Roman  consul  at  the  \-|'*'i 
mouth  of  the  Rhone,  at  a  distance  of  four  days' 
march  from  the  Carthaginian  camp,  could  have 
the  effect  of  totally  deranging  such  a  well- 
digested  plan,  of  altering  combinations  so  deli- 
berately made,  of  counteracting  measures  so 
maturely  weighed  and  organized?  or  rather 
must  we  not  attribute  this  comment  of  Livy  to 
the  necessity  under  which  he  found  himself,  of 
giving  some  explanation  of  the  deviation  here 
assumed  from  the  course  he  supposes  Hannibal 
intended  to  follow  ? 


92 

I  repeat,  that  nothing  of  this  sort  is  to  be 
found  in  Poly  bins.  The  only  measure  which, 
in  his  account,  seems  to  imply  apprehension  on 
the  Carthaginian  general's  part,  is  the  pmdent 
precaution  of  placing  the  cavalry  and  elephants 
in  the  rear  in  his  march  towards  the  north, 
after  the  passage  of  the  Rhone. 

But  allowing  for  a  moment  the  truth  of  Livy's 
assertion,  and  supposing  Hannibal  to  have  orT- 
ginally  intended  to  proceed  to  the  Alps  by  the 
shortest  way,  qua  rectior  ad  Alpes  via  esset^ 
how  are  we  to  account  for  his  crossing  the 
Rhone  so  much  above  the  Durance,  along 
whose  banks  he  might  have  marched  with  as 
much  facility,  and  as  little  molestation  from  the 
enemy,  as  along  the  Rhone  ?  If  no  reason  can 
be  assigned,  it  follows,  that  it  never  entered 
into  his  determination  to  proceed  that  way. 
Lib.xxi.  Livy*^,  however,  goes  on  to  tell  us,  that  Han- 
nibal in  four  days  arrived  at  the  country  called 
the  Insula,  which  we  have  seen  so  accurately 


•'  The  Roman  way  followed  the  Durance  from  Cabellio, 
CavailloUj  to  Apta  Julia,  Apt;  Segustero-  Sisteron;  Ebro- 
dunura,  Embrun,  to  Brigantio,  Brian^on,  and  the  Mont  Ge- 
nevre.     Wesseling.  Vet.  Rom.  Itiner.  p.  342,  3. 

^  Quartis  castris  ad  Insulam  pervenit:  ibi  Isara  Rhoda- 
nusque  amnes,  diversis  ex  Alpibus  decurrentes,  agri  aliquan- 
tum  amplexi,  confluunt  in  unum.  Mediis  campis  Insula; 
nomen  inditum ;  incolunt  prope  Allobroges,  gens  jam  inde 
nulla  Gallic^  gente  opibus  aut  famA  inferior. 


m 


described  by  Polybius.  The  Roman  historian 
merely  informs  us,  that  this  name  is  given  to  a 
certain  j3ortion  of  territory  encompassed  by  the 
Isere'^  and  Rhone,  at  their  junction;  thus  omit- 
ting all  mention  of  the  mountainous  barrier 
which  closed  the  third  side,  as  well  as  of  its 
extent  and  fertility.  This  difference  between 
the  two  accounts  is  as  striking  as  its  reason  is 
manifest.  Polybius  evidently  describes  a  coun- 
try in  which  the  operations  he  details  are  carried 
on,  and  consequently  wishes  to  make  his  readers 
as  well  acquainted  with  its  situation  as  possi- 
ble ;  while  Livy  necessarily  omits  a  detail  which 
would  be  in  evident  contradiction  with  the 
route  he  had  in  view.  Nor  is  the  latter  more 
correct  or  exact  in  the  position  which  he  assigns 
to  the  Allobroges.  '*  Hard  by,"  says  he,  "  live 
"  the  Allobroges :"  surely  not  near  the  Insula, 
as  Crevier  well  observes,  but  in  it.  It  certainly 
is  in  the  Insula  that  Polybius  places  the  scene 
of  those  transactions,  in  which  Hannibal  settled 
the  disputes  between  the  two  brothers,  by  se^ 
curing  to  the  elder  the  possession  of  the  throne. 
These  are  allowed  by  Livy  to  be  Allobroges  : 
while,  however,  he  copies  from  the  Greek  his- 

^  Though  most  of  the  MSS.  read  Arar,  it  is  clear  that  it 
ought  to  be  Isara.  One  MS.  reads  Bisarar,  which  gives  the 
true  reading  Ibi  Isara. 


94 

torian  the  general  facts,  he  still  amplifies  and 
adorns  the  narrative  in  a  manner  peculiar  to 
himself.  He  then  proceeds  to  state  %  that  Han- 
nibal, having  settled  the  disputes,  did  not  con- 
tinue his  march  by  the  direct  route,  but  inclined 
to  the  left  towards  the  Tricastini ;  that  is,  he 
did  not  take  the  road  which  would  have  brought 
him  to  Vienne  and  the  Mont  du  Chat,  by  still 
continuing  his  march  along  the  Rhone,  but  he 
sought  to  regain  the  road  which  led  to  the 
Cottian  Alp  in  the  best  and  shortest  manner  he 
could.  If  in  this  account,  however,  Livy  is 
consistent  with  his  plan  and  hypothesis,  he  is 
not  equally  so  with  reason  and  Polybius.  With 
reason,  because  it  seems  absurd  to  imagine  that 
Hannibal  should  cross  the  Isere  either  with  the 
whole  or  part  of  his  army,  to  waste  time  of  so 
much  value,  in  settling  a  dispute,  with  which  he 
could  have  no  concern,  had  his  arrival  in  the 
country  not  formed  a  natural  incident  in  his 
march.  With  Polybius,  because  his  silence  as 
to  all  deviation,  nay,  rather  his  positive  decla- 
ration to  the  contrary,  from  the  computation  of 

^  Sedatis  certaminibus  Allobrogum,  quum  jam  Alpes  pe- 
teret,  non  rect&  regione  iter  instituit ;  sed  ad  laevara  in  Tri- 
castinos  flexit:  inde  per  extremam  oram  Vocontiorum  agri 
tetendit  in  Tricorios :  baud  usquam  impeditd  vi^,  priusquam 
ad  Druentiam  flumen  pervenit.  Is  et  ipse  Alpinus  artinis, 
longe  omnium  Galliae  fluminum  difficillimus  transitu  est,  &c. 


95 


the  march  along  the  Rhone,  prevents  us  from 
supposing  he  could  at  all  have  entertained  the 
idea. 

Let  us,  however,  see  hov^'  the  Carthaginian 
army  is  to  arrive  at  the  Mont  Genevre  from  the 
left  bank  of  the  Isere,  if  it  be  contended  that  it 
did  not  cross  that  river. 

It  will  surely  not  be  by  returning  to  the  Tri- 
castini;  that  is  nearly  the  very  point  from  which 
they  had  set  out  after  the  passage  of  the  Rhone. 
Nor  is  it  possible  to  conceive  how  the  Tricas- 
tini,  the  people  of  St.  Paul-trois-Chateau,  could 
have  been  to  the  left  of  the  Carthaginian  army 
as  it  moved  from  the  Isere.  There  is  sufficient 
reason,  therefore,  for  supposing  the  passage  to 
be  corrupt;  and,  if  a  conjecture  might  be  al- 
lowed in  a  difficulty,  which  seems  scarcely  to 
admit  of  a  more  reasonable  explanation,  I 
should  be  inclined  to  suppose  that  these  words, 
ad  laevam  in  Tricastinos  flexit,  are  in  their 
wrong  place,  and  ought  to  have  formed  part  of 
the  passage  quoted  from  the  beginning  of  the 
same  chapter^.  This  will  at  least  enable  us  to 
obviate  what  is  so  repugnant  to  reason  and 
common  sense. 


f  This  passage  might  then  stand  thus :  Postero  die  pro- 
fectus  adverse  rip^  Rhodani,  ad  laevam  in  Tricastinos  flectit 
et  mediterranea  Galliae  petit. 


96 


In  this  return  from  the  Insula  towards  the 
Durance,  one  would  be  inclined  to  imagine  that 
Livy  must  have  had  in  view  the  road  laid  down 
in  the  Itineraries,  as  leading  from  Valentia  Va- 
lence on  the  Rhone,  and  near  its  junction  with  the 
Isere,  by  Dea  Vocontiorum  (Die),  and  the  Mons 
Seleucus  (Mont  Saleon),  to  Vapincum  (Gap), 
and  Eburodunnm  (Embrun),  on  the  Durance. 
This  road  we  have  before  alluded  to  in  examin- 
ing Caesar's  march  over  the  Mont  Genevre,  and 
it  would  certainly  conduct  Hannibal  through 
the  Vocontii ;  but  the  question  is,  where  to  find 
the  Tricorii,  whom  D'Anville  would  place  in 
the  valley  of  the  Drac,  a  river  which  joins  the 
Isere  near  Grenoble,  while  M.  de  Valois,  with- 
out sufficient  authority  I  conceive,  supposes 
their  capital  to  be  Vapincum  or  Gap.  It  must 
be  observed  also,  that  D'Anville  founds  all  his 
reasoning  on  this  passage  of  Livy,  and  that  he 
imagines  the  northern  extremity  of  the  territory 
of  the  Vocontii  to  be  here  meant.  The  question 
is  evidently  one  of  great  intricacy,  and  which 
must  be  left  to  geographers  to  settle  s.     But  by 

s'  Cluverius  conceives  that  some  vestiges  of  the  ancient 
name  may  yet  be  traced  in  the  town  of  Cors  or  Corps, 
situated  near  the  source  of  the  Drac,  and  is  therefore  inclined 
to  place  this  nation  in  the  valley  of  that  river.  (Cluver.  Ital. 
Antiq.  p.  372.)  His  authority  has  been  followed  in  the  an- 
nexed map. 


97 

which  ever  route  we  suppose  Hannibal  accord- 
ing to  Livy  to  liave  reached  the  Durance,  they 
will  be  found  to  agree  but  little  with  the  de- 
scription given  by  Polybius,  of  a  plain  country  Poiyb. 
through  which  Hannibal  passed  without  mo- 
lestation, being  protected  by  his  cavalry  and  the 
friendly  escort  of  the  Allobroges.  We  have 
also  seen,  that  Polybius  expressly  stated  the 
country  which  he  then  traversed  to  be  that  of 
the  Allobroges  ;  so  that  unless  we  suppose  that 
denomination  to  have  extended  also  to  the 
Vocontii,  who  are  mentioned  earlier  than  the 
Allobroges  in  the  Roman  history  ^,  and  conse- 
quently must  have  been  a  distinct  people,  we 
shall  have  here  evidence  sufficiently  decisive^ 
that  the  routes  described  by  the  two  historians 
are  perfectly  different. 

Hannibal  having  reached  Embrun,  would  there 
certainly  find  the  Durance,  but  not  such  as  it  is 
described  by  the  Roman  historian,  whose  ex- 
aggerated account  of  the  ravages  of  this  Alpine 
torrent,  and  the  difficulties  attending  its  passage, 
can  only  agree,  as  M.  De  Luc  well  observes, 
with  the  latter  part  of  its  course,  after  it  has  re- 

*•  M.  Fulvius  Flaccus  triumphed  over  the  Ligurians  and 
Vocontii,  A.  U.  C.  629 ;  one  year  before,  C.  Domitius  ^no- 
barbus  obtained  a  similar  honour  for  a  victory  over  the  Allo- 
broges. Fasti.  Capit.  apud  Pigh.  Liv.  Suppl.  Freins.  1.  Ix. 
c.  39. 

H 


98 


ceived  the  waters  of  the  Bleaunne,  to  its  junction 
with  the  Rhone  at  Avignon. 

Hannibal,  continues  Livy  S  having  crossed 
the  Durance,  at  length  reaches  the  x41ps ;  we 
are  besides  informed,  that  his  line  of  march  from 
that  river  lay  chiefly  through  a  plain  country, 
and  that  he  accomplished  it  without  molesta- 
tion. The  reader  will  remember,  that  these 
were  precisely  the  circumstances,  if  we  except 
all  mention  of  the  Durance,  under  which  Poly- 
bius  brought  the  Carthaginian  army  to  the  foot 
of  the  Alps  ;  the  dvuCoTirj  tuv  " hXirim,  But  such 
a  description  will  be  found  to  agree  but  little 
with  the  country  to  which  Livy  has  now  con- 
ducted them.  In  the  valley  of  the  Durance 
they  would  be  engaged  in  the  very  midst  of  the 
Alps ;  and  if  we  consider  Embrun  as  the  first 
point  where  they  would  find  the  Durance,  they 
would  be  within  a  few  miles  only  of  Brian^on^, 
at  the  foot  of  Mont  Gene v re  or  the  central 
chain. 

The  surprise  which  this  circumstance  must 
create  in  the  mind  of  the  reader,  who  has  given 

*  C.  32.  Annibal  ab  Druentia  campestri  maxime  itinere 
cum  bona  pace  ad  Alpes  incolentium  ea  loca  Gallorura  per- 
venit,  &c. 

''  D'Anville  estimates  the  distance  at  little  more  than 
28  miles.  Not.  de  TAnc.  Gaule,  Art,  Rama.  p.  537.  Wesseling. 
Itiner.  vet.  Rom.  p.  341. 


99 


his  attention  to  the  subject,  is  not  at  all  likely ' 
to  be  abated  upon  finding  that  Livy  here 
again  takes  up  Polybius's  account,  at  the  very 
point  where  that  historian  has  brought  the 
Carthaginian  army  to  the  foot  of  the  first 
range  of  the  Alps.  The  description,  however, 
which  Livy  gives  of  the  defile,  at  the  en- 
trance of  which  Hannibal  found  his  progress 
opposed  by  the  Barbarians,  whom  he  calls 
mountaineers  ^  is  very  different  from  that  of 
Polybius,  which  was  found  to  agree  so  well 
with  the  passage  of  the  Mont  du  Chat.  Livy's 
fine  and  wintery  description  can  only  apply  to 
the  central  and  snowy  chain,  and  even  then 
will  scarcely  suit  the  Mont  Genevre ;  which 
though  forming  part  of  the  primitive  range,  is  in 
elevation  far  below  the  point  of  eternal  snow, 
not  exceeding  950  toises,  or  6000  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  sea. 

Here  then  we  find  ourselves  entangled  and 
bewildered  in  difficulties,  from  which  it  seems 
impossible  to  extract  any  sense  or  truth ;  and 
we  may  in  fact  conclude,  that  whether  we  have 
been  correct  or  not  in  our  explanation  of  Poly- 
bius's  account,  it  is  impossible  to  attach  any 
credit  whatever  to  that  of  Livy.     We  must  also 

*  C.  32.  Erigentibus  in  primos  agmen  clivos  adparuerunt 
inminentes  tumulos  insidentes  montani. 

h2 


100 


•conclude,  that  the  latter  having  adopted  a  fixed 
plan,  and  being  determined  to  bring  Hannibal 
into  Italy  by  the  Mont  Genevre,  he  has  endea- 
voured to  force  and  twist  the  narrative  of  the 
Greek  historian,  whom  he  did  not  understand, 
to  his  views,  without  considering  whether  tlie 
circumstances  of  distance,  time,  or  place,  would 
be  found  to  tally.  He  in  fact  presents  us  with 
a  lively  example  of  those  writers,  whose  ac- 
Poiyb.  count  of  this  expedition  Polybius  censures  as 
so  improbable  and  void  of  reason ;  and  who 
like  the  tragic  writers  would  want  a  god  or 
some  other  machine  to  extricate  their  hero  from 
his  difficulties. 

Let  us  however  proceed  in  our  comparison. 
Hannibal  having  occupied  the  defile  during  the 
night,  when  the  mountaineers  retired  to  their 
homes,  is  attacked  next  morning  during  the 
descent ;  he  succeeds  however  in  routing  his 
assailants,  and  finally  capturing  their  city  or 
strong  hold  "',  and  the  adjoining  villages. 

Now  as  we  are  compelled  to  place  the  scene 
of  action  on  the  Mont  Genevre,  we  are  conse- 
quently obliged  to  suppose  that  Hannibal  was 
there  opposed  by  the  Segusini,  or  the  people 
of  the  valley  of  Susa,  and  contiguous   to  the 

*"  Castellum  inde,  quod  caput  ejus  regionis  erat,  viculos- 
que  circumjectos  capit. 


101 

Caturiges",  on  whose  territory  tlie  army  would 

have  marched  from  Embrun  to  Brian^on.     The 

town  which  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  victor 

could  therefore  be  no  other  than  Cezanne  at 

^     the  foot  of  the  mountain  on  the  Italian  side, 

mL  though  it  never  could  have  been  of  sufficient 

Bl  importance   to   deserve   the   title   of  caput  re- 

M    gionis  ;  nor  could  the  wretched  valley  in  which 

m    it  stands   ever    have    furnished    the    supplies, 

K    which  must  have  been  required  to  subsist  so 

numerous   an   army.     If  Hannibal   from   this 

place  continued  his  march,  as  he  naturally  would 

along  the  Doria  Susana,  he  would  have  reached 

Turin  in  six  days  at  least,  without  meeting  with 

any  other  mountain  to  obstruct  his  passage ; 

this  cannot  however  be  the  route  which  Livy 

has   in    view,    since   he   follows''   Polybius   in 

nearly  all  the  circumstances  which  that  writer 

applied  to  Hannibal's  march  after  having  passed 

["■"*■"'"•""■" 

K  "  Ptolemy  would  indeed  give  Brian^on  to  the  Segusini,  but 
H  D'Anville  contends  with  reason  for  its  belonging  to  the  Ca- 
^    turiges.     Not.  de  I'Anc.  Gaul.  art.  Brigantio  and  Caturiges, 

p.  174—215,  16\ 

°  C.  34.     Perventum  inde  ad  frequentem  cultoribus  alium, 

ut  inter  montana  populum.  ibi  non  bello  aperto,  sed  suis 

artibus,    fraude,    deinde    insidiis   est   prope    circu inventus. 

Magno  natu  principes  castellorum  oratores  ad  Poenum  ve- 

niuntj  &c. 

h3 


102 


so  well  with  the  passage  of  the  little  St.  Ber- 
nard. Let  us  however  suppose  that  the  Car- 
thaginian army  would  attempt  to  proceed  by 
the  Col  de  Sestrieres,  as  the  Roman  armies  cer- 
tainly did,  befoj*e  a  free  passage  was  allowed 
them  through  Cottius's  dominions?,  we  shall  still 
find  a  perfect  disagreement  between  that  route 
and  the  Roman  historian's  account.  Cezanne 
is  situated  at  the  foot  of  the  Col  de  Sestrieres 
as  well  as  the  Mont  Genevre ;  so  that  a  person 
setting  out  from  thence,  might  easily  pass  the 
former  mountain  in  one  day ;  whereas  from 
Livy's  account  Hannibal  was  nine  days  in 
reaching  the  summit  of  the  Alps'^  from  the 
town  he  captured  ;  so  that  it  is  impossible  on 
either  supposition  to  reconcile  Livy's  narrative 
with  truth. 

Yet  has  it  been  contended,  that  Livy  could 
never  have  meant  to  place  the  first  defile  or  the 
entrance  of  the  Alps  at  the  Mont  Genevre, 
but  that  we  must  look  for  this  entrance  of  the 
Alps  before  the  army  reached  the  Durance. 
Now  this  supposition  is  entirely  contradicted 
by  the  text  of  the  author,  and  can  only  be  ad- 

p  See  the  Introduction. 

•J  C.  35.  Nono  die  in  jugum  Alpium  perventum  est,  per 
in  via  pleraque  et  errores,  quos  aut  ducentium  fraus,  aut,  ubi 
fides  iis  non  esset,  teraere  initae  valles  a  conjectantibus  iter, 
faciebant. 


103 

mitted  by  implying  a  manifest  error  in  his  nar- 
rative: still  we  will  allow  for  a  moment,  that 
Hannibal  might  have  been  attacked  by  the 
Catiiriges"^  on  his  crossing  into  their  country 
from  that  of  the  Tricorii,  and  that  he  reached 
the  Mont  Genevre  on  the  ninth  day.  We  shall 
yet  be  able  to  shew  that  this  mountain  can  no 
more  be  conceived  to  be  the  second  than  it  was 
the  first  passage:  that  it  differs  in  short  en- 
tirely from  Livy's  own  description,  and  from 
that  of  Polybius.  Having  visited  this  moun- 
tain as  well  as  the  little  St.  Bernard,  during 
the  summer  of  1819,  with  a  view  to  this  ques- 
tion, I  shall  here  present  the  reader  with  the 
result  of  my  observations. 

The  town  of  Brian^on  is  situated  in  a  valley 
from  which  three  others  branch  off  in  different 
directions ;  that  of  the  Guisanne  to  the  N.  W. 
the  fertile  valley  of  Neuwache  to  the  N.  and  the 
valley  of  the  Durance,  which  descends  from 
Mont  Genevre,  to  the  S.  W.  The.  foot  of  this 
mountain  is  little  more  than  two  miles  from  the 
town ;  the  valley  that  leads  to  it  is  at  present 
defended  by  the  numerous  and  formidable  forts 
of  Brian^on,  but  it  is  too  wide  to  admit  of  an 
army  suffering  from  any  attack  made  from  the 

^  This  is  the  supposition  of  General  Frederic  Guillaume, 
in  his  Hist,  des  Campagnes  d'Hannibal,  Milan.  1812, 

h4 


104 

heights  on  either  side  with  such  missiles  as  the 
mountaineers  could  have  used.  The  present 
beautiful  road  over  the  Mont  Genevre,  con- 
structed by  French  engineers  under  the  reign  of 
Buonaparte,  ascends  the  right  bank  of  the  Du- 
rance ;  the  old  road  could  be  traced  for  a  con- 
siderable way  on  the  left  bank,  but  still  it  would 
be  too  remote  from  the  mountains  on  that  side 
to  render  any  attack  from  that  quarter  at  all 
formidable.  The  mountains  themselves  are  too 
high  and  difficult  of  access  to  favour  this  sup- 
position :  in  fine,  this  valley  is  much  too  consi- 
derable to  answer  the  notion  conveyed  by  the 

poiyb.i.iii.  terms  (pa^ayya  riva.  ivcrSccTov  za)  zgTjf^vuirjy  in 
Polybius,  or  the  angustiorem  viam  ex  parte  al- 

Liv.i.  xxi.  tera  subjectam  jugo  insuper  imminenti,  in  Livy. 
The  modern  road  runs  for  some  time  in  a  N. 
direction,  towards  the  valley  of  Neuwache,  and 
then  winds  round  the  mountain  which  separates 
this  valley  from  that  of  the  Durance.  The  old 
road  keeps  constantly  on  the  left  bank  of  the 
river,  which  is  here  however  but  a  very  incon- 
siderable stream.  The  ascent  on  that  side 
seems  by  no  means  abrupt,  and  presents  no 
difficult  passage  or  defile,  till  within  a  short 
distance  of  the  summit,  where  the  heights  close 
in  on  both  sides  considerably,  and  form  a  pas- 
sage not  unlike  that  of  the  Mont  du  Chat.  The 
summit  itself  is  a  long  and  wide  plain,  tolerably 


105 

well  cultivated  in  parts.  The  large  village  of 
Bourg  Mont  Genevre  is  situated  nearly  in  the 
centre :  the  heights  themselves  on  either  side 
of  the  plain  do  not  rise  to  a  thousand  feet  above 
its  level,  and  are  covered  to  the  top  with 
abundance  of  large  fir  trees.  This  description, 
it  will  easily  be  seen,  essentially  differs  from  Po- 
ly bins  s  account  of  the  high  summit  on  which 
Hannibal  arrived  on  the  ninth  day.  We  are 
there  told,  that  the  summit  was  so  far  from  being- 
cultivated,  that  it  was  destitute  of  all  vegeta- 
tion ;  and  unless  a  great  change  in  the  climate 
and  temperature  of  the  Alps  be  supposed  to 
have  taken  place  since  that  time,  this  must  be 
allowed  to  present  a  strong  argument  against 
Livy's  hypothesis.  The  temperature  indeed  of 
some  valleys  may  have  been  improved  to  a  cer- 
tain degree  by  superior  cultivation;  in  others 
also,  where  the  snows  and  glaciers  advance  and 
recede  at  stated  periods  like  the  ebb  and  flow 
of  the  sea,  some  variation  may  well  be  con- 
ceived;  but  these  effects  are  but  partial,  and 
the  general  features  of  Alpine  scenery  and  vege- 
tation can  have  undergone  but  little  change 
since  the  days  of  Polybius  ;  for  that  author, 
when  combating  the  false  notions  and  exagge- 
rated accounts  which  certain  writers  gave  of 
the  Alps,  states,  that  even  in  those  early  times 
they  were  inhabited  by  many  and  numerous 
tribes.  And  if  the  present  state  of  the  Mont  Ge- 


106 

nevre  differs  from  the  account  given  by  Poly- 
bius  of  the  summit  of  the  Alps,  much  more  does 
it  vary  from  Livy,  who  describes  not  only  the 
summit,  but  all  parts  of  these  mountains  as  co- 
vered with  snow  and  stiff  with  frost. 

The  plain  of  the  Mont  Genevre  is  about  three 
miles  in  length,  and  at  its  termination  on  the 
Italian  side  the  descent  is  very  rapid,  arid  in 
zig-zag  down  a  steep  ravine,  which  affords  a 
passage  for  the  waters  of  the  Doria  Susana. 
The  old  road  still  keeps  on  the  same  side, 
which  becomes  now  the  right  bank  of  the  river. 
This  part  of  the  descent  is  known  by  the  name 
of  the  Tourniquet ;  and  supposing  this  to  re- 
present the  difficulties  encountered  by  the  Car- 
thaginian  army  previous  to  their  reaching  the 
point  rendered  impassable  by  the  falling  away 
of  the  road  and  old  snow,  we  shall  find  our- 
selves at  Cezanne,  without  meeting  a  single 
spot  which  could  agree  with  the  last  mentioned 
circumstance.  Upon  repeated  enquiries  indeed, 
we  invariably  received  the  same  answer,  that 
there  was  not  one  point  on  which  snow  was 
known  to  remain  all  the  year  round.  The  valley 
of  the  Doria  is  indeed  so  wide,  even  long  before 
reaching  Cezanne,  that  it  renders  such  a  suppo- 
sition altogether  untenable. 

1  should  also  observe,  that  from  no  part  of 
the  passage  can  a  view  of  Italy  be  obtained ; 
for  the  chain  of  the  Col  de  Sestrieres  entirely 


107 

blocks  up  the  valley  of  Fenestrelles  to  the  east, 
while  Mont  Cenis  and  the  mountains  of  Mauri- 
enne  equally  obstruct  the  view  to  the  north,  by 
the  valley  of  Exilles  and  Susa.  At  Cezanne 
the  descent  terminates ;  and  from  thence  to 
Turin  there  is  not  one  point  which  would  pre- 
sent any  difficulty,  much  less  where  we  might 
expect  to  find  in  autumn  snow  of  the  preceding- 
year.  Though  the  valley  of  Cezanne  is  culti- 
vated in  some  degree,  it  is  altogether  poor  and 
barren,  nor  at  all  to  be  compared  with  the  en- 
virons of  St.  Didier  in  the  Val  d'Aoste.  As  far 
as  Exilles,  indeed,  there  are  no  pastures,  the 
river  Doria  covering  the  whole  plain  with  stones 
or  morass.  There  yet  remain  a  few  circum- 
stances to  be  pointed  out,  in  which  Livy's  nar- 
rative differs  from  that  of  Polybius.  Of  the 
story  of  the  vinegar  used  in  softening  rocks '^,  it 
is  difficult  to  say  whence  it  derived  its  origin, 
and  whether  there  is  in  reality  any  foundation 
for  it :  certain  it  is,  that  Polybius  never  leads  us 
to  suppose  that  such  an  expedient  was  resorted 
to  by  Hannibal.     It  is  quite  improbable  that 

'  C.  37.  Inde  ad  rupem  muniendam,  per  quam  unam  via 
esse  poterat,  milites  ducti,  quum  caedendum  esset  saxum, 
arboribus  circa  immanibus  dejectis  detruncatisque,  struera 
iiigentem  lignorum  faciunt :  eamque  (quum  et  vis  venti  apta 
faciendo  igni  coorta  esset)  succendunt,  ardentiaque  saxa 
infiiso  aceto  putrefaciunt. 


108 


the  Cai'thaginian  army  should  have  had  any 
supply  of  that  acid  ;  or  if  they  had,  that  it  could 
produce  any  effect  on  primitive  rock.  There  is 
also  a  manifest  contradiction  in  this  story  of 
Livy ;  for  while  he  tells  us  that  Hannibal  made 
an  immense  fire  to  heat  the  rock,  he  forgets 
that  elsev^^here  he  has  informed  us,  that  the 
summit  of  the  Alps  is  naked,  and  destitute  of 
trees'.  M.  De  Luc  also  very  justly  notices  an- 
other strange  error  into  which  Livy  has  fallen 
with  respect  to  this  rock,  when  he  represents 
the  road  as  having  fallen  away,  and  formed  a 
precipice  of  a  thousand  feet  high ;  whereas  in 
Polybius  this  slip  of  the  road  is  clearly  stated 
to  have  taken  place  not  in  respect  to  height, 
butlength^  By  this  alteration,  the  operation 
which  Hannibal's  soldiers  had  to  perform,  and 
which  is  so  naturally  stated  in  the  Greek  histo- 
rian, in  Livy  becomes  absurd  and  unintelligible. 
Livy  states  besides,  that  Hannibal  allowed 
his  troops  three  days  rest  after  their  fatigues 
during  this  work";  and  yet  he  allows  it  is  ge- 
nerally agreed,  that  the  Carthaginian  army  per- 

•  C.  37.  Nuda  enim  fere  cacumina  sunt,  et,  si  quid  est 
pabuli,  obruunt  nives. 

*■  C.  36.  Natura  locus  jam  ante  prseceps,  recenti  lapsu 
terras  in  pedum  mille  admodura  altitudinem  abruptus  erat. 

"  Ibi  junjenta  in  pabulum  missa,,  et  (juies  uiiiniendo  fessis 
hominibus  data  iriduo.     \bu\. 


I 


109 


formed  their  march  through  the  Alps  in  fifteen 
days,  when  by  his  own  calculation  the  number 
of  days  amounts  to  nineteen. 

1  must  remark,  however,  that  the  same  in- 
consistency, as  it  should  seem,  equally  attaches 
to  Polybius ;  and  that  the  only  difference,  in 
fact,  between  them,  as  to  the  days  spent  among 
the  Alps,  is  not  in  their  number,  but  in  the  man- 
ner in  which  they  are  said  to  have  been  passed 
by  the  army.  Polybius's  three  additional  days 
are  spent  in  reaching  the  plains  from  the  last 
difficult  pass ;  according  to  Livy  they  are  days 
of  rest,  allowed  to  the  army  after  their  fatigues. 
He  also  represents  the  Carthaginians  as  having 
been  exposed  to  many  errors  and  wanderings, 
from  the  treachery  of  their  guides  or  the  rash- 
ness of  their  leaders.  In  this  circumstance  he 
again  differs  from  Polybius,  whose  silence  on 
so  important  a  point  cannot  but  be  construed 
as  a  refutation  of  the  fact. 

Livy  having  finally  brought  Hannibal  into 
Italy,  expresses  his  surprise  that  it  should  ever 
have  been  matter  of  doubt  in  what  direction 
Hannibal  crossed  the  Alps''.     He  with  reason 

"  C.  38.  Id  quum  inter  omnes  constet,  eo  magis  rairor 
ambigi,  quanam  Alpes  transient :  et  vulgo  credere,  Penino 
atque  inde  nomen  et  jugo  Alpium  inditum,  transgressum. 
Ccelius,  per  Cremonis  jugum  dicit  transisse:  qui  ambo  saltus 
eum  non  in  Taurines,  seel  per  Salassos  montanos  ad  Libuos 


no 


rejects  the  popular  opinion,  which  considered 
the  great  St.  Bernard  as  that  passage,  from  the 
false  idea  of  its  having  derived  the  name  of 
Mons  Penninus  from  the  term  PcEni,  when  it 
evidently  was  so  called  from  the  worship  of  the 
Celtic  god  Pen.  But  his  reasons  for  rejecting 
the  opinion  of  L.  Caelius  Antipater,  who  af- 
firmed, in  his  history  of  the  second  Punic  war, 
that  Hannibal  had  passed  by  the  Cremonis 
jugum,  are  not  equally  valid.  He  seems  to 
allow  that  this  passage  might  have  been  fre- 
quented at  that  time,  but  maintains  that  it  could 
not  have  been  that  of  Hannibal,  as  it  would  not 
have  brought  him  directly  upon  the  Taurini,  but 
the  Libuan  Gauls.  Now  it  is  agreed,  says  he, 
on  all  hands,  that  he  arrived  among  the  Taurini 
after  crossing  the  Alps.  Certainly  not,  accord- 
ing to  Polybius,  who  states  positively,  that  hav- 
ing refreshed  his  troops  by  a  few  days'  halt,  he 
entered  boldly  into  the  country  of  the  Insubres. 
ptoi.Geog.  Now  the  Libui  are  reckoned  by  Ptolemy  under 
the  Insubres,  so  that  Polybius  and  Caelius  may 

Gallos  deduxissent.  Nee  verisimile  est,  ea  turn  ad  Galliam 
patuisse  itinera;  utique,  quae  ad  Peninum  ferunt,  obsepta 
gentibus  semigermanis  fuissent.  neque,  Hercule,  montibus 
his  (si  quem  forte  id  movit)  ab  transitu  Pcenorum  ullo  Ver- 
agri,  incolae  jugi  ejus,  norunt  noraen  inditura;  sed  ab  eo, 
quem,  in  summo  sacratum  vertice,  Peninum  montani  appel- 
lant. 


Ill 

very  well  be  conceived  to  agree  in  this  particular. 
Livy,  however,  rejects  the  account  of  Cailius  on 
the  authority  of  L.  Cincius  Alimentus^,  an  early 
Roman  historian,  who  became  Hannibal's  pri- 
soner, and  had  an  opportunity  of  hearing  that 
general  state,  that  from  the  passage  of  the 
Rhone  to  his  arrival  among  the  Taurini,  he  had 
lost  36,000  men,  besides  a  vast  number  of 
horses  and  beasts  of  burthen.  However  con- 
fused and  perplexed  the  passage  undoubtedly 
is,  the  meaning  seems  evidently  to  be,  that 
Hannibal's  whole  loss,  from  the  time  of  his 
crossing  the  Rhone  to  his  arrival  among  the 
Taurini,  amounted  to  the  number  above  stated. 
Now  it  is  well  remarked  by  Gibbon,  that  "  Han-  Misceii. 

•  ii'ii  •  '  t  nil  1      Works,  vol, 

"  nibal  wished  to  give  an  idea  of  the  losses  he  u.  p.  i85. 
''  had  sustained  in  passing  the  mountains,  in 
"  consequence  of  battles,  cold,  and  fatigue.  He 
"  begins,  therefore,  from  his  crossing  the  Rhone, 
"  and  ends  at  his  arrival  in  the  territory  of  the 
"  Taurini ;  since  it  was  really  in  their  country, 
"  and  by  taking  their  capital,  that  he  began  his 
"  operations  in  Italy.     Their  territory,  there- 

^  C.  38.  L.  Cincius  Alimentus,  qui  captum  se  ab  Hannibale 
scribit^  maxime  auctor  me  moveret — ex  ipso  autem  audisse 
Hannibale^  postquam  Rhodanum  transient,  triginta  sex 
millia  hominum,  ingentemque  numerum  equorum  et  aliorum 
jumentorum  araisisse,  in  Taurinis,  quae  Gallis  proxima  gens 
erat,  in  Italiam  degresso. 


112 


"  fore,  formed  the  limit  between  things  totally 
"  distinct — his  losses  in  Italy,  and  those  in  the 
"  Alps.  It  was  not  necessary  that  the  country 
"  of  the  Taurini  should  be  the  first  place  of 
"  Italy  into  which  he  descended  from  the  Alps  ; 
*'  it  sufficed  that  it  was  the  first  where  he  fought 
''  a  battle.  The  former  explanation  is  adopted 
"  by  Livy,  but  the  latter  appears  to  me  very 
"  capable  of  being  defended.  It  deprives  the 
"  Latin  historian  of  what  appears  to  him  a  de- 
''  cisive  proof;  it  even  turns  this  decisive  proof 
"  against  himself,  by  laying  open  the  source  of 
*'  his  mistake.  The  argument  upon  which  Livy 
"  builds  is  not  only  refuted,  but  destroyed  ; 
*'  and  the  authority  of  Polybius  subsists  alone 
"  and  unrivalled." 

It  appears  from  Livy's  account,  if  we  leave 
out  all  mention  of  what  he  has  copied  from 
Polybius,  and  read  it  with  reference  to  itself 
alone,  that  Hannibal  crossed  the  Rhone  at 
Roqueraaure;  that  he  then,  frightened  by  the 
Romans,  marched  up  to  the  Island  of  the  AUo- 
broges ;  that  he  then  returned  through  the  Vo- 
contii  and  Tricorii  till  he  reached  the  Durance, 
a  distance  of  nine  days' march  from  the  summit 
of  the  Alps ;  and  that  he  then  crossed  the  Mont 
Genevre,  and  descended  among  the  Taurini. 
This    marching    and    countermarching    wouUl 


113 


alone  be  sufficient  to  make  us  suspect  his  ac- 
curacy ;  but  when  we  find  that  he  follows  Poly- 
bins  step  by  step  tb  the  Insula,  then  drops  him 
during  the  return  to  the  Durance,  and  then 
takes  him  up  again  in  the  same  place  where  he 
had  left  off,  beginning  afresh  from  the  Durance, 
as  Polybius  does  from  the  Isere ;  that  after  this 
he  follows  him  word  for  word,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  his  own  exaggeration,  through  a  country 
which  it  is  clear  he  knew  nothing  about,  since 
the  country  described  by  Polybius  is  as  differ- 
ent as  possible  from  the  road  between  the  Du- 
rance and  the  Mont  Genevre ;  and  when  finally 
he  brings  him  out  with  an  enfeebled  army 
among  a  hostile  people ;  what  can  we  conclude 
but  that  the  Latin  author  is  not  only  totally  un- 
worthy of  credit,  but  that  he  was  also  so  igno- 
rant of  geography  and  of  the  country  he  was 
describing,  as  not  to  be  able  even  to  make  out 
a  credible  or  intelligible  account  of  his  own 
hypothesis.  The  exaggerations  with  respect  to 
the  appearance  of  the  Alps ;  the  descent  of  a 
whole  army,  with  baggage  and  elephants,  down 
a  precipice  one  thousand  feet  high ;  the  flat 
country  described  as  existing  in  the  most  rug- 
ged, barren,  and  mountainous  part  of  the  Alps ; 
the  misstatement  as  to  the  character  of  the  Du- 
rance; ought  in  themselves  to  make  us  reject  his 

I 


114 

authority ;  and  at  all  events  he  ought  not  for  a 
moment  to  be  placed  in  competition  with  an  au- 
thor, who,  besides  being  totally  free  from  all  the 
faults  of  his  rival,  has  a  just  claim  to  our  belief, 
from  having  himself  visited  the  countries  which 
he  so  accurately  describes. 


CHAP.  VIII. 

EXAMINATION  OF  M.  LETRONNE's  THEORY. 

IN  the  last  chapter  we  have  endeavoured  to 
shew,  that  the  account  of  Livy,  although  copied 
almost  literally  in  many  parts  from  that  of 
Poly  bins,  was  on  the  whole  quite  inconsistent 
with  it,  and  that  this  inconsistency  was  pro- 
duced by  the  determination  of  the  Roman  his- 
torian to  carry  the  army  over  the  Mont  Genevre. 
And  it  seems  clear,  that  if  Livy  had  not  written 
at  all  upon  the  subject,  the  facts  mentioned  by 
Polybius,  first,  that  the  army  marched  along 
the  river  a  distance  of  1 75  miles,  till  they  arrived 
at  the  foot  of  the  Alps;  and,  secondly,  that  they 
descended  among  the  Insubrians,  would  be  quite 
sufficient,  if  not  to  establish  the  passage  by  the 
little  St.  Bernard,  at  least  to  exclude  that  by 
the  Mont  Genevre. 

As,  however,  Livy,  an  author  of  so  great  and 
in  many  respects  so  deserved  a  reputation,  had 
positively  stated  this  latter  to  be  the  road  which 
Hannibal   followed,   it  became    necessary   for 

I  2 


116 


writers  upon  the  subject  to  choose  between  the 
two  authorities ;  and  we  have,  we  trust,  given 
sufficient  reasons  why  that  of  Polybius  should 
be  preferred.  I  say,  that  it  became  necessary  to 
choose,  for  it  appeared  absolutely  impossible  to 
reconcile  the  two  accounts  with  each  other  by 
any  reasonable  means.     That,  however, 

— —  quod  optanti  Divum  promittere  nemo 
Auderet,  volvenda  dies  en  attulit  ultro. 

And  accordingly  in  the  Journal  des  S^avans 
for  January,  1819,  appeared  a  critique  on  M. 
De  Luc's  book,  by  Mons.  Letronne,  a  French 
scholar  of  reputation,  who  has  found  no  diffi- 
culty whatever,  in  that  which  has  appeared  im- 
possible to  inferior  powers. 

Mons.  L.  maintains,  in  the  first  place,  that 
Livy  is  in  all  respects  quite,  correct  in  his  ac- 
count of  this  transaction;  and  he  quotes  the 
passage  in  Strabo,  to  which  we  have  already 
alluded%  in  order  to  prove  that  Polybius  had, 
in  his  own  writings,  actually  stated  that  the 
Carthaginian  army  passed  by  the  Mont  Ge- 
nevre ;  or,  which  amounts  almost  to  the  same 
thing,  that  they  had  descended  amongst  the 
Taurini.  Enough  has  been  said  in  the  Intro- 
duction to  shew,  that  the  words  in  this  passage, 
jjv  'AmCocg  iinX6cVi  are  an  interpolation  of  Stra- 

'  In  the  Introduction;  page  19- 


117 

bo's,  and  are  not  to  be  considered  as  the  original 
words  of  Polybiiis  ;  and  even  if  onr  reasoning 
on  this  point  should  not  be  conclusive,  the  words 
are  at  all  events  doubtful ;  whereas  the  »ar^^g 
roiKiJijripZg  sig  ra  'tts^)  rov  UocSov  ^gJ/ot,  zou  ro  rm 
^Iffof^Q^av  ihog,  in  the  fifty-sixth  chapter,  are 
most  decidedly  the  very  words  of  Polybius, 
extracted  from  his  own  writings,  and  therefore 
as  such  to  be  depended  upon.  M.  Letronne, 
however,  who  has  attacked  M.  De  Luc  very 
severely  for  his  omission  of  the  former  passage, 
himself  passes  over  the  latter  one  without  any 
mention  whatever,  and  prefers  taking  his  author 
at  secondhand  in  Strabo,  to  reading  him  in  his 
own  words.  Although  it  is  far  from  my  inten- 
tion to  charge  M.  L.  with  bad  faith,  it  certainly 
behoved  him  to  be  extremely  careful  not  to  lay 
himself  open  to  the  charge  of  a  wilful  omission 
of  the  text  of  his  author,  at  the  very  moment 
when  he  was  accusing  M.  De  Luc  of  the  very 
same  fault.  It  seems,  besides,  altogether  to 
have  escaped  him,  that  Polybius  in  his  own 
story  mentions  the  attack  upon  Turin  as  having 
taken  place  long  after  Hannibal  had  reached 
the  plains,  and  not  till  the  army  had  completely 
recovered  from  their  fatigues.  So  far  indeed  is 
he  Jfrom  having  noticed  this  fact  in  Polybius, 
that  he  positively  quotes  him  as  his  authority 
for  saying,  that  the  Taurini  were  the  first  people 

I  3 


k 


il8 

whom  Hannibal  met  with  on  his  descent  from 
the  Alps;  and  this  authority  he  finds  in  the 
sixtieth  chapter :  D'Ailleurs  cette  circonstance  ^ 
est  tout  a  fait  en  harmonie  avec  ce  que  Polybe 
raconte  plus  has  ;  savoir,  que  les  Tanrini  furent 
les  premiers  peuples  qu  Annibal  rencontra  k  la 
Poiyb.  i.iii.  descente  des  Alpes. 

If  by  this  violence  committed  on  the  text  of 
one  of  his  authors,  M.  L.  was  in  any  degree 
assisted  in  his  hypothesis,  some  excuse  might 
be  found  for  him  ;  but  the  admission  of  his  pre- 
mises only  throws  him  into  much  greater  diffi- 
culties for  the  purpose  of  arriving  at  his  con- 
clusion, as  we  shall  find  on  examining  the 
manner  in  which  he  pursues  his  construction  of 
the  Greek  text. 

After  allowing  with  M.  De  Luc  that  the 
army  crossed  the  Rhone  near  Roquemaure^ 


^  The  circumstance  of  the  passage  in  Strabo,  when  he 
says  that  the  army  passed  by  the  Mont  Genevre. 

*=  Notwithstanding  the  passage  at  Roquemaure,  M.  L. 
holds  with  Livy  that  the  subsequent  march  to  tlie  northward 
was  made  for  the  purpose  of  running  away  from  the  Roman 
army:  and  he  again  quotes  Polybius  in  support  of  this 
opinion.  As  it  might  be  difficult  to  discover  the  passage 
from  which  this  support  is  to  be  obtained,  it  may  be  right  to 
state,  that  the  whole  authority  is  contained  in  the  word  ^??; 
which  important  word,  according  to  M.  L.  has  been  hitherto 
neglected  by  translators.     Le  mot  i|??  a  et^  pass^  par  les 


119 


and  agreeing  entirely  as  to  the  situation  of  the 
Insula  Allobrogum,  he  arrives  at  the  banks  of 
the  Isere  on  the  fourth  day  :  here,  however,  he 
stops,  and  does  not  cross  that  river;  and  for 
this  also  he  has  the  authority  of  Polybius,  ?«e 
'TF^og  TT^v  KdXovfjusvrjv  N?o*oi',  and  a  little  further, 
'TT^og  7]v  u(pizofjusvog^  which  means  that  he  only 
came  to  the  Island,  and  did  not  enter  it.  As 
however  the  words  which  immediately  follow, 
xuTocXocC&fv  h  abr^  iio  dhxcpovg,  give  us  to  un- 
derstand, that  the  operations  in  which  Hannibal 
assisted  the  elder  of  the  contending  princes 
took  place  within  the  Island,  he  is  of  opinion 
that  they  were  performed  by  a  detachment  of 
the  main  army  which  was  sent  for  that  purpose 
across  the  Isere ;  but  for  this  opinion  he  does 
not  produce  any  authority.  Now  with  great 
deference  to  M.  Letronne,  I  conceive  that  the 
last-mentioned  Greek  words  clearly  point  out 
that  the  whole  army  crossed  over  into  the 
Lsland ;  and  from  the  whole  of  the  subsequent 
passage  I  collect,  that  the  co-operation  was 
effected,  not  by  a  detachment,  but  by  the  whole 
army.  To  this  I  might  add,  that  the  accurate 
description  of  the  Island,  its   fertility,  extent, 

traducteursi  il  importe  cependant,  parcequ'il  montre  avec 
quelle  h^te  Annibal  vouloit  s'^loigner  des  Romains.  Journal 
des  S9avans,  Jan.  1819,  p.  26. 

I  4 


]20 


population,  and  topography,  all  concur  in  prov- 
ing that  the  operations  did  take  place  within  its 
limits*^;  but  one  decisive  reason  supersedes  the 
necessity  of  all  the  rest;  Hannibal  must  have  en- 
tered the  Island,  since  he  v^as  to  march  for  800 
stadia  along  the  Rhone  from  his  arrival  at  the 
Isere.  Against  this  argument,  however,  M.  Le- 
tronne  is  prepared  with  a  reply,  to  which  if  the 
praise  of  accuracy  be  denied,  that  of  extraordi- 
nary ingenuity  must  certainly  be  allowed.  It  is 
true,  says  M.  L.  that  Hannibal  had  hitherto 
marched  up  the  Rhone,  and  the  words  Trczgoi  rov 
vorufLov^  which  immediately  followed  the  name 
of  that  river,  could  apply  to  nothing  else ;  but 
when  Polybius  was  describing  the  Island,  the 
Isere  was  the  river  last  mentioned,  by  parity  of 
reasoning  therefore,  ^a^a  rotf  Trorocf/^oif  now  ap- 
plies to  the  Isere.  This  solution  is,  I  repeat, 
extremely  ingenious  ;  but  I  think  that  we  have 
great  reason  to  complain  of  Polybius,  for  having 
given  us  so  little  warning  of  this  transition. 
M.  L.  cannot  however  lay  claim  to  the  origin- 
ality of  this  idea ;  for  Professor  Schweighaeuser 
had  already  anticipated  him  in  a  note  to  the 
third  book  of  Polybius,  c.  50.  vol.  v.  p.  596. 

•^  No  mention  is  made  by  M.  Letronne  of  the  assistance 
afforded  to  the  army  by  the  prince  of  the  Allobroges,  nor 
of  the  protection  given  by  him  to  them  while  they  were 
marching  through  his  territories. 


121 


The  learned  Professor  however,  at  the  end  of 
his  note,  which  is  a  long  one,  finally  abandons 
this  idea,  because  he  plainly  sees,  that  Polybius 
has  expressly  stated,  c.  39,   Hannibal  to  have 
marched  1400  stadia  along  the  Rhone,  till  he 
came  to  the  Alps.     This  consideration,  which 
has  staggered  the  Professor,  has  had  no  effect 
upon  M.  Letronne,  who  has  found  an  expedient 
even  in  this  extremity.     For  according  to  him, 
the  expression  of  Polybius, 'Ato  Js  rrig  hocSa^crsug 
rov  'PoJavou  'Tto^evofjusvoic  'tto,^    avrov   rov  Trorcx^fJLov, 
implies  only,  that  this  was  the  general  direc- 
tion of  the  route  at  the  first  setting  out,  and 
not  that  the  1400  stadia  were  to  be  measured 
along  the  river.     Hannibal  therefore  does  not 
cross  the  Isere,  but  marches  along  its  banks 
on  the  south  side  in  order  to  complete  the  100 
miles,  which  are  to  be  expended  before  he  can 
reach  the  Alps.  Unfortunately  on  this  occasion, 
M.  L.  who  lays  great  stress  on  his  authorities, 
and   who   even    derives   proofs  from  passages 
which  to  common  minds  appear  to  bear  a  totally 
different  interpretation,  M.  L.  I  say,  has  on  this 
occasion  forgotten  to  remember,  that  Polybius 
positively  states    the    army   to    have  marched 
these  100  miles  through  a  plain  country,  h  ro7g 
I'TriTi^oigy  c.  50:  now  such  a  country  between 
Valence  and   Grenoble  I  challenge  M.  L.  to 


122 


find.     Some  of  the  highest  of  the  secondary 
chains  of  the  Alps  take  their  rise  immediately 
to  the  soutli  of  the  Isere,  and  very  much  lower 
down  the  river  than  Grenoble ;  and  in  fact  that 
town,  which  ought  according  to  M.  L.'s  march 
to  be  in  the  midst  of  plains,  is,  as  every  body 
who  has  seen  it  well   knows,  surrounded  by 
some  of  the  highest  mountains  in  France.  There 
never  w^as  any  Roman  road  on  the  south  bank 
of  that  part  of  the  Isere  between  Valence  and 
Grenoble,  and  the  road  which  now  exists  there 
is  barely  passable,  and  nothing  more  than  a 
mere  communication  from  one  village  to  an- 
other.    It  is  indeed  only  laid  down  in  maps  of 
a  very  large  scale.     The  great  road  runs  to  the 
north  of  the  river,  and  the  Roman  road  only 
joined  it  at  Moirans.     But  even  allowing  M. 
Letronne    to    march    through    an    impas^;able 
country    along    the    banks    of    that    ^orui^og, 
which  was  the  Rhone,  and  which  he  has  now 
converted  into  the  Isere ;  this  march,  if  he  keeps 
close  to  his  river,  must  at  last  conduct  him  to 
the  little  St.  Bernard  by  the  valley  of  the  Gresi- 
vaudan,    which    runs    from    Montmeillan    to 
Grenoble,  a  valley  so  rich,  and  so  broad  and 
magnificent,  that  if  Hannibal  had  once  arrived 
in  it,  he  never  could  have  abandoned  it     So 
that  if  his  original  intention  had  been  to  march 


123 


along  the  Isere,  it  is  also  clear  that  it  was 
equally  his  intention  to  go  by  the  little  St. 
Bernard. 

M.  L.  is  therefore  very  little  advanced  in  his 
undertaking,  and  it  w^ould  have  been  very  diffi- 
cult for  him  to  have  escaped  out  of  this  strait, 
had  he  not  fortunately  found  the  river  Drac 
just  before  his  arrival  at  Grenoble ;  which  river 
as  it  comes  from  the  southward,  would,  if  fol- 
lowed up  to  its  source,  at  length  put  the  army 
into  the  right  road  to  the  Mont  Genevre.  The 
roT^i^og  therefore,  which  from  the  Rhone  had 
become  the  Isere,  is  now  to  undergo  another 
change,  and  to  be  called  the  Drac. 

*  *  *  Heu  quoties  fidem 
Mutatosque  Deos  flebit    *     * 

Qui  nunc  te  fruitur  credulus  *    * 

The  reason  given  by  M.  L.  for  the  march 
along  this  latter  river  ought  not  to  be  omitted ; 
"  II  remonta  ce  torrent  (le  Drac)  que  sa  largeur 
"  dut  lui  faire  prendre  pour  la  meme  riviere  que 
"  risere."  That  is  to  say,  Hannibal,  guided  by 
the  people  of  the  country  %  who  knew  the  roads, 

''■  I  say  guided  by  the  people  of  the  country,  because  as  he 
had  not  yet  arrived  at  the  foot  of  the  Alps,  according  to  M. 
L.  he  must  still  have  been  accompanied  by  the  troops  of  the 
prince  of  the  AUobroges,  whom  he  had  reinstated  in  his 
capital. 


124 


follows  the  Tsere  as  long  as  it  is  impracticable, 
and  as  soon  as  it  becomes  easy,  he  abandons  it, 
and  marches  up  the  banks  of  the  equally  imprac- 
ticable Drac,  along  which  there  is  no  road  what- 
ever, either  ancient  or  modern.  M.  Letronne, 
in  his  perusal  of  Polybius,  seems  to  have  neg- 
lected the  excellent  advice  given  by  that  author 
to  those  historians,  who,  from  a  desire  of  asto- 
nishing their  readers,  fall  into  one  or  other  of 
two  errors  most  contrary  to  the  genius  of  his- 
tory, '^svSoXoystv,  or  fjuot'^of^eva,  y^a,(psiv  uvTolg, 
Finally,  the  entrance  of  the  Alps  is  placed  at 
St.  Bonnet,  a  small  town  near  the  source  of  the 
Drac,  and  on  the  great  road  from  Gap  to 
Grenoble.  It  is  necessary  for  M.  L.  to  make 
this  the  entrance  of  the  Alps,  because  his  100 
miles  terminate  here;  for  as  to  its  being  really 
the  entrance  of  the  Alps,  he  might  as  well  apply 
that  term  to  Brian^on  itself,  the  one  being 
situated  in  as  mountainous  a  country  as  the 
other.  Polybius  has  stated,  that  the  army 
marched  through  the  territory  of  the  AUobroges. 
Now  though  it  is  quite  notorious,  that  this  na- 
tion never  extended  itself  along  the  Drac  to  the 
south w^ard,  M.  Letronne  says,  that  as  in  Poly- 
bius's  time  nobody  knew  any  thing  about  them, 
they  might  as  well  have  lived  on  the  Drac  as 
any  where  else.  In  this  manner  has  Polybius 
been  reconciled  with  Livy;  but  putting  the  latter 


125 

entirely  out  of  the  question,  is  it  possible  for  a 
moment  to  admit  an  explanation  of  the  Greek 
historian,  so  utterly  contrary  to  all  rules  of 
grammar,  as  well  as  of  common  sense.  Let  us 
now  see  how  the  inconsistencies  of  M.  L.'s 
favourite  author  Livy  are  accounted  for.  And 
tirst  with  respect  to  the  *'  ad  laevam  in  'JVicasti- 
"  nos  flexit,"  the  vexata  quaestio  of  the  com- 
mentators. Nothing  is  easier ;  ad  laevam  refers 
to  the  position  of  the  historian  himself,  '*  on 
"  auroit  du  sentir  que  cet  historien  en  disant 
''  '  flexit  ad  laevam,'  parle  relativement  a  sa 
*'  position  en  ItaHe,  ce  qui  est  assez  ordinaire  Joum.  des 
"  aux  auteurs  anciens."  But  allowing  Hannibal  33!^*"*'  ^ 
to  turn  to  Livy's  left  hand,  how  is  he,  according- 
to  M.  Letronne's  hypothesis,  to  arrive  among  the 
Tricastini,  who  are  to  be  found  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  St.  Paul-trois-Chateaux  on  the 
Rhone  ?  From  this  situation,  in  defiance  of  all 
authorities  ancient  and  modern,  they  are  brought 
up  to  the  N.  E.  and  placed  on  the  Drac  and 
Isere.  No  difficulty  now  occurs ;  we  march, 
still  following  Livy  across  the  Vocontii  and 
Tricorii,  and  arrive  at  the  foot  of  the  Alps  at 
St.  Bonnet.  Here  however  we  ought  to  get  to 
the  Durance,  at  which  river  when  we  have  arrived, 
we  are  according  to  Livy  to  pass  through  a  flat 
country  foi*  some  days,  and  then  finally  to  reach 


I 


126 

the  Alps;  and  as  this  difficulty  might  have 
finally  vanquished  M.  L.  he  has  wisely  omitted 
to  notice  it  at  all ;  he  therefore  marches  to  the 
Mont  Genevre,  and  descends  by  Suze  upon 
Rivoli.  After  this  examination,  we  may  with- 
out any  unfairness  quote  M.  L.'s  own  words 
to  M.  De  Luc.  "  Ce  n'est  pas  par  de  telles 
''  raisons  qu'on  pent  se  flatter  d  eclaircir  defi- 
journ.des  "  nitivemcut  un  point  d'histoire."  The  result 
p.  29.  *  indeed  of  our  observations  appears  to  be,  that 
M.  L.  is  quite  wrong  in  his  interpretation  of 
Polybius,  and  still  more  so  in  that  of  Livy ;  so 
that  the  only  point  in  which  he  makes  his  two 
authors  agree,  is  in  their  common  variance  from 
his  own  hypothesis.  In  consequence  of  the 
article  in  the  Journal  des  S^avans  for  January 
1819,  M.  De  Luc  published  an  answer  to  M. 
Letronne,  which  is  remarkable  for  its  clearness 
of  argument,  and  its  temperance ;  to  this  M.  L. 
replied  in  the  Journ.  des  S^avans  for  Dec.  1819. 
In  this  reply  he  discovers,  that  the  snow,  which 
had  remained,  according  to  Polybius,  unmelted 
during  the  whole  summer,  was  in  reality  only 
the  snow  which  had  fallen  about  a  month  be- 
fore ;  and  he  assures  us  "  que  les  Carthaginois 
"  purent  la  prendre  pour  de  la  vieille  neige  restee 
"  la  depuis  Tannee  precedente."  M.  L.  also 
treats  all  the  accessory  proofs,  such  as  the  plate 


127 

of  silver  and  the  XiVKorergov^  and  the  tradition 
respecting  the  via  Annibalis,  with  great  con- 
tempt, and  he  even  furnishes  M.  De  Luc  gra- 
tuitously with  another  fact  of  the  discovery  of 
some  medals,  supposed  to  be  Carthaginian,  at 
Aoste.  Finally  he  says,  that  as  all  these  little  facts 
agree  equally  well  with  the  passage  by  the  great 
St.  Bernard,  which  is  manifestly  absurd,  they 
cannot  possibly  be  of  any  importance  when  ap- 
plied to  the  little  St.  Bernard.  These  little  facts, 
liowever,  are  merely  brought  in  as  con-oborative 
of  the  general  argument,  and  no  weight  could 
possibly  be  attached  to  them  if  they  stood  alone. 
General  Melville  and  M.  De  Luc  may  perhaps 
have  attached  rather  too  much  importance  to 
them,  but  if  they  were  thrown  on  one  side  en- 
tirely, the  main  argument  founded  on  the  text 
of  Polybius,  on  the  concurrence  of  distances, 
and  on  the  moral  as  well  as  physical  proba- 
bilities, which  all  unite  in  favour  of  the  little  St. 
Bernard,  would  remain  completely  uninjured 
and  unchanged^. 

^  M.  L.  observes  with  respect  to  this  word,  that  it  occurs 
frequently,  "  ce  mot,  qui  revient  plusieurs  fois:"  it  only  recurs 
in  the  tenth  book  already  quoted,  never  again  in  Polybius, 
and  in  no  other  author  that  1  am  acquainted  with. 

8  We  finish  our  quotations  from  the  Journal  des  S^avans, 
with  advising  M.  L.  to  revise  the  following  :  ''  Nous  pensons 
"  ([ue  M,  De  Luc  doit  cesser  de  regarder  comme  impossible 
''  la  conciliation  de  Polybe  avec  Tite  Live." 


128 


We  cannot  after  all  take  our  leave  of  M. 
Letronne,  (who  although  blind  to  the  errors  of 
his  own  route,  has  shewn  much  quickness  in 
detecting'  the  absurdities  of  others,)  without 
thanking  him  for  taking  the  trouble  of  refuting 
General  Frederic  Guillaume,  who  has  aban- 
doned the  Rhone  altogether,  and  M.  Le  Comte 
Fortia  d'Urban,  who,  because  he  possessed 
some  property  near  Orange,  places  the  Insula 
AUobrogum  close  to  that  town,  and  calls  the 
Eygues  the  Isaras.  It  remains  for  us  to  say  a 
word  concerning  the  Chevalier  de  Folard,  the 
Marquis  de  St.  Simon,  and  our  countryman 
Mr.  Whitaker,  though  last,  not  least,  who  has 
carried  the  army  over  the  great  St.  Bernard. 


CHAP.  IX. 

EXAMINATION  OF  FOLARD,  ST.  SIMON,  AND  WHITAKER. 
CONCLUSION. 

The  Chevalier  de  Folard,  having  determined, 
it  seems,  to  lead  Hannibal  by  the  Cottian  Alp, 
and  yet  being  compelled  to  follow  Polybius, 
the  author  he  vras  commenting  upon,  as  far  as 
this  hypothesis  would  allow,  has  struck  out  for 
the  Carthaginian  army  a  route  which  no  one 
has  ever  I  believe  contemplated  but  himself, 
and  which  it  is  only  necessary  to  hear  de- 
scribed in  order  to  be  satisfied,  if  not  of  its 
utter  impracticability,  at  least  of  its  discrepancy 
from  the  accounts  of  both  the  original  historians 
whom  we  have  examined.  The  Chevalier  seems 
indeed  to  disdain  all  the  rules  of  criticism,  and 
wishes  his  readers  to  understand  that  he  means 
to  be  guided  solely  by  his  knowledge  of  the 
country  through  which  he  supposes  the  Cartha- 
ginian army  to  have  passed ;  a  knowledge  which 
several  campaigns  in  the  Alps  and  Piedmont 
had  furnished  him  with.     He  supposes  Han- 


k 


130 


nibal  to  have  arrived  at  Romans,  on  the  Isere, 
at  some  distance  from  its  junction  with  the 
Rhone,  without  having  any  intention  of  cross- 
ing that  river.  He  easily  gets  rid  of  the  diffi- 
culty which  the  march  of  800  stadia  further  up 
the  Rhone  would  place  in  his  way,  by  rejecting 
that  passage  in  Polybius  altogether  as  a  blunder 
of  some  copier.  He  styles  these  800  stadia 
"  une  imagination,  une  faute  des  copistes,  dont 
**  Poly  be  se  moqueroit  s'il  mettoit  la  tete  hors 
.**  de  son  tombeau^." 

It  is  impossible  to  argue  according  to  the 
rules  of  criticism  with  one  who  so  boldly  rejects 
them  all ;  but  we  will  be  content  to  dispute  the 
question  on  M.  de  Folard's  own  ground,  and, 
laying  aside  both  Polybius  and  Livy,  to  debate 
the  point  from  our  own  knowledge  of  this  sin- 
gular route.  The  Chevalier  supposes  Hannibal 
to  have  followed  the  right  bank  of  the  Isere  as 
far  as  Grenoble,  there  to  have  crossed  the  Drac, 
and  followed  this  river  till  its  junction  with  the 
Romanche.  Hannibal,  according  to  M.  de 
Folard,  now  leaves  the  Drac,  and  follows  this 
third  river  in  its  course  through  the  mountain- 
ous country  of  Oysans,  the  territory  of  the  an- 


*  Histoire  de  Polybe,  traduite  du  Grec  par  Dom  Vincent 
Thuillier,  avec  un  commentaire  par  M,  de  Folard,  &c.  torn. 
-iv.  p.  73.  Amsterdam,  1729. 


131 


cient  Uceni.  Thus  much  indeed  it  is  fair  to 
state  in  favour  of  the  Chevalier's  opinion,  that 
the  route  he  has  adopted,  however  difficult  and 
improbable  for  an  army  to  take,  is  yet  distinctly 
marked  in  the  Itineraries  as  a  road  known  to  the 
Romans,  and  used  by  them  ^. 

As  far  as  the  Bourg  d'Oysans,  though  the 
Romanche  is  confined  between  high  and  per- 
pendicular rocks,  the  road  is  yet  sufficiently 
good  and  practicable ;  the  Bourg  itself  is  situ- 
ated in  a  charming  plain  or  bason,  which  the 
receding  mountains  allow  to  extend  to  some 
distance  on  each  bank  of  the  river.  But  about 
two  miles  further  up  the  river,  and  a  little  be- 
yond  the  point  where  it  receives  the  impetuous 


^  This  road  is  laid  down  in  the  Tabula  Theodosiana  as 
leading  from  Vienne,  by  Cularo,  (Grenoble,)  to  the  Alpis 
Cottia.  The  stations,  which  have  been  marked  in  the  an- 
nexed map,  are  Catorissium,  (Bourg  d'Oysans,)  Mellosedum, 
(Mizouin,  or  Mont  de  Lens^)  Durotincum,  (Villars  d'Ar^ne,) 
Stabatio,  (Monastier  de  Brian^on.)  The  whole  distance,  in 
the  Itineraries,  amounts  to  42  miles ;  but  this  falls  short  of 
the  real  distance  by  at  least  20  miles.  D'Anville  is  therefore 
inclined  to  suppose,  that  some  station  has  been  omitted  be- 
tween Cularo  and  Catorissium.  See  D'Anv.  Not.  de  I'Anc. 
Gaule,  Art.  Catorissium.  The  entrance  of  the  Alps  being 
placed  at  the  Mont  de  Lens,  we  should  have  from  thence  to 
Brian9on  about  32  miles,  from  Brian^on  to  Turin  65  miles, 
making  a  total  of  97  or  100  miles ;  which  falls  short  of  Poly- 
bius's  distance  by  50  miles. 

k2 


132 


Ven^on,  which  issues  from  the  valley  of  Venos, 
the  bed  of  the  Romanche  is  closely  confined 
between  exceedingly  high  and  rugged  moun- 
tains, which  scarcely  afford  a  passage  to  the 
waters  of  the  roaring  torrent.  The  old  road 
here  left  the  river  to  scale  the  almost  perpen- 
dicular heights  of  the  Mont  de  Lens,  being  cut, 
as  Mr.  Folard  allows,  like  a  staircase  in  the 
rock ;  and  was  even  then  so  difficult  and  im- 
practicable, that  it  was  thought  proper  within  a 
few  years  to  carry  the  road,  after  incredible 
pains  and  labour,  close  along  the  banks  of  the 
river.  This  astonishing  enterprise,  which  is  one 
of  the  last  great  works  performed  under  the 
reign  of  the  late  French  Emperor,  is  but  little 
known,  not  in  this  country  only,  but  even  in 
France;  yet  in  the  boldness  of  the  undertaking, 
the  sublime  grandeur  of  its  scenery,  the  extent 
of  the  excavations  which  have  been  made,  it 
surpasses  both  the  pass  of  Bramante  in  the  road 
to  the  Mont  Cenis,  and  that  of  Gondo  on  the 
Simplon*'. 

The  old  road  seems  clearly  to  have  been  a 
Roman  work,  of  which  several  traces  are  yet 
distinctly  seen  on  the  Mont  de  Lens  ;  this  is 

*=  The  route  here  described  is  laid  down  in  the  Guide 
de  TEmpire  as  the  second  road  from  Lyons  to  Turin,  by 
Grenoble  and  Brian^on.  Buonaparte  meant  it  for  a  military 
road,  as  affording  the  shortest  communication  with  Italy. 


133 


probably  the  Mellosedum  of  the  Itineraries;  but 
before  this  the  v alley  never  could  have  been 
practicable  for  an  army.  It  is,  hov^rever,  by  this 
pass  that  M.  de  Folard  supposes  Hannibal  to 
have  led  his  troops ;  nay,  farther,  he  conceives 
that  this  was  the  route  which  the  Gauls  had 
constantly  followed  in  their  expeditions  into 
Italy.  The  difficulties,  however,  of  M.  de  Fo- 
lard's  route  only  begin  with  the  Mont  de  Lens ; 
for  the  valley  of  the  Romanche,  beyond  that 
passage,  presents  nothing  but  a  scene  of  the 
utmost  wildness  and  desolation ;  mountains  of 
slate  and  schist,  that  crumble  into  ruins,  leave 
not  a  trace  of  vegetation ;  and  behind  these  rise 
lofty  peaks  covered  with  glaciers,  from  which 
numberless  torrents  descend  into  the  Romanche, 
and  fill  the  bed  of  that  river  with  rubbish  and 
huge  fragments  of  rock.  The  Romanche  rises 
at  the  foot  of  the  Col  du  Lautaret,  a  pass,  the 
height  of  which  is  little  inferior  to  that  of  the 
little  St.  Bernard,  and  much  above  that  of  the 
Mont  Genevre,  but  which  certainly  presents  no 
difficulty.  It  is  here  that  M.  de  Folard  sup- 
poses Hannibal  to  have  been  attacked  for  the 
first  time;  but  whence  these  desolate  regions 
could  have  supplied  a  number  of  inhabitants 
sufficient  for  this  enterprise,  cannot  well  be  de- 
vised :  nor  does  the  valley  of  the  Guisanne,  on 
the  other  side  of  the  Col  du  Lautaret,  contain 

k3 


134 


any  town  which  can  be  supposed  to  represent 
that  which  Hannibal  took  after  having  defeated 
the  Allobroges. 

It  will  not,  I  think,  be  necessary  to  follow 
M.  de  Folard  any  further;  the  absurdity  of  his 
hypothesis  is  too  manifest  to  require  it ;  I  will 
only  notice  the  strange  wanderings  by  which  he 
leads  Hannibal  over  the  Col  de  Sestrieres,  and 
also  the  Col  de  la  Fenetre,  for  the  express  pur- 
pose, as  it  seems,  of  bringing  the  Carthaginian 
army  to  the  heights  of  Balbotet^  which  he  much 
insists  on,  as  being  the  only  spot  from  which  a 
view  of  the  plain  can  be  obtained.  But  is  this 
a  sufficient  reason  for  bringing  an  army  out  of 
the  track  which  common  sense  would  point  out 
to  them;  since  they  had  only  to  follow  the 
river,  which  descends  from  the  Col  de  Ses- 
trieres, in  order  to  arrive  in  the  open  plains? 
Those  who  would  lead  the  Carthaginian  army 
to  the  peak  of  Rocca  Melone,  or  the  summit  of 
Monte  Viso,  would  have  as  much  reason  on 
their  side.  Let  us  hear  the  Marquis  de  St. 
Simon,  who  maintains  the  latter  opinion  : 

"  Quoique  je  ne  sache  pas  pr6cis6ment,"  says 

**  Mr.  Dutens,  in  his  Itinerary,  also  states,  that  he  had 
been  repeatedly  assured  by  Pi^montese  officers,  that  the  open 
plain  could  be  seen  from  no  other  situation.  Gen.  Frederic 
Guillaume  has  in  this  point  followed  the  authority  of  Folard. 
Hist,  des  Camp.  d'Annibal. 


135 


the  Marquis,  "  quelle  route  Annibal  s'est  ouvert 
"  pour  arriver  a  la  sommite  des  Alpes,  je  ne  le 
*'  perds  pas  plus  de  vue  qu'un  chasseur  qui  des 
**  hauteurs,  laisse  sa  meute  parcourir  les  routes 
**  et  les  fourr6es  d'un  bois  a  Tentree  de  laquelle 
**  il  I'a  conduite ;  il  ne  la  voit  plus,  mais  il  I'en- 
"  tend  au  loin,  et  la  rejoint  aussitot  qu  elle  quitte 
**  les  fonds.  Je  me  retrouve  de  meme  avec  An- 
<*  nibal  sur  le  Mont  Viso,  sans  m'inquieter  de 
"  tons  les  detours  ou  la  fraude  de  ses  guides ; 
"  son  peu  de  confiance  en  eux  et  son  manque  de 
"  connoissance  de  Tinterieur  des  montagnes,  a 
"  du  le  faire  errer  pendant  neuf  jours  *"." 

M.  De  Luc  has  bestowed  one  entire  chapter 
on  the  refutation  of  Mr.  Whitaker,  who,  in  two 
large  volumes  8vo.  has  taken  much  pains  to 
shew  that  Hannibal  went  by  the  great  St.  Ber- 
nard. M.  De  Luc's  objections  to  this  writer's 
hypothesis  are  so  decisive  and  convincing,  that 
it  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  any  thing  further 
on  the  subject.  It  is  strange,  that,  with  the  as- 
sistance of  General  Melville's  notes  and  obser- 
vations to  direct  him  in  his  researches,  Mr. 
Whitaker  should  have  preferred  to  support  an 
opinion,  which  has  not  one  valid  argument  or 
plausible  reason  to  recommend  it.     He  seems 

®  Hist,  de  la  guerre  des  Alpes,  ou  Camp,  de  1744.  par  M. 
le  Marquis  de  St.  Simon,  Aide  de  Camp  du  Prince  de  Conti. 
Amsterdam,  1770. 

K  4 


136 


to  have  thought,  that  learning,  of  which  it  cannot 
be  denied  that  he  has  given  proof,  was  to  supply 
the  place  of  personal  observation,  and  that  wild 
theories  could  supersede  that  knowledge  which 
must  be  derived  from  experience  and  judicious 
investigation.  Mr.  Whitaker  is  often  so  blinded 
by  the  predilection  with  which  his  hypothesis 
has  inspired  him,  that  when  he  finds  the  text  of 
Polybius  at  variance  with  it,  he  does  not  scruple 
to  throw  all  the  blame  on  the  historian,  and  to 
charge  him  with  committing  gross  errors  and 
mistakes. 

By  the  help  of  such  reasoning  Mr.  W.  has 
little  difficulty  in  proving,  that  by  the  Insula 
AUobrogum  is  meant  a  little  island  on  which 
part  of  Lyons  stands,  but  which  to  other  eyes 
bears  little  resemblance  to  the  Delta  of  Egypt, 
as  mentioned  by  Polybius.  It  is  thus  that  the 
Druentia  of  Livy  is  metamorphosed  into  the 
Arve,  and  the  entrance  of  the  Alps  placed  at 
Martigny,  without  any  indication  of  the  route 
by  which  Hannibal  was  to  reach  that  place, 
which  is  not  at  the  entrance,  but  in  the  heart  of 
those  mountains.  I  presume  not  to  follow  Mr. 
W.  in  his  strange  peregrinations  through  the 
valley  of  Bagnes ;  this  is  a  labyrinth  from 
which  no  clue  could  possibly  extricate  us.  Any 
one  who  has  visited  that  valley,  rendered  so 
unfortunately  celebrated  by  the  late  dreadful 


[ 


137 

inundation  of  the  Drance,  must  be  satisfied  that 
nothing  under  a  demi-god  could  disengage  Han- 
nibal from  thence,  when  once  involved  in  those 
pathless  and  desolate  regions.  But  the  strongest 
objection  after  all  arises  from  the  computation 
of  distances,  of  which  Mr.  W.  takes  no  account 
whatsoever.  From  Lyons  to  Geneva,  along  the 
Rhone,  there  are  120  miles  ;  from  thence  to 
Martigny  80;  in  all  full  200  miles,  which  is 
more  than  double  the  distance  that  Polybius 
gives.  From  Martigny  to  Ivrea,  by  the  great 
St.  Bernard,  there  are  not  100  miles,  while  the 
passage  of  the  Alps  themselves,  in  Polybius,  is 
enumerated  at  150.  This  final  argument  is  at 
once  conclusive  against  Mr.  Whitaker,  as  well 
as  all  those  writers  who  have  inclined  to  the 
great  St.  Bernard. 

Having  thus  gone  through  the  various  hypo- 
theses of  those  writers,  who  have  maintained 
that  the  Carthaginian  army  marched  by  the 
Mont  Genevre  or  the  great  St.  Bernard,  it  has 
I  trust  been  shewn,  that  neither  of  these  roads 
can  be  made  to  agree  with  the  plain  text  of 
Polybius ;  and  if  we  lay  the  Greek  author  aside, 
and  with  the  followers  of  Livy  take  the  Latin 
one  alone  for  our  guide,  how  does  it  happen 
that  among  the  host  of  writers  upon  this  subject, 
no  two  of  them  agree  upon  the  road  which  the 
army  took  in  order  to  reach  the  Mont  Genevre. 


138 


This  fact  alone  would  be  sufficient  to  throw 
great  doubt  and  suspicion  upon  the  account 
given  by  Livy,  as,  if  he  had  expressed  himself 
with  tolerable  clearness,  these  variations  could 
hardly  have  occurred.    Perhaps,  however,  Livy 
has  been  unfortunate  in  his  supporters,  for  they 
have  generally  been  either  scholars  or  military 
men ;  the  former  of  whom  have  remained  at 
home  in  their  closets,  and  have  contented  them- 
selves with  marching  on  their  maps,  without 
any  real  knowledge  of  the  actual  state  of  the 
country,  and  without   appearing  to  be  aware, 
that  a  large  army  encumbered  with   baggage 
cannot  pass  like  an  individual  over  pathless 
mountains,  and  heights  almost  inaccessible,  and 
still  less  through  countries  totally  incapable  of 
affording  them  subsistence  ;  but  that  on  the  con- 
trary, a  long  march  through  a  difficult  country, 
and  under  an  able  general,  is  always  planned 
beforehand,  and  not  left  to  accident ;  that  the 
easiest  roads  are  fixed  upon ;  and  that  if  maga- 
zines cannot  be  provided  beforehand,  the  line 
of  march  is  conducted   as  much   as   possible 
through   a  country,   where  the    population   is 
large  enough,  and  where  the  fertility  and  culti- 
vation are  sufficient,  to  ensure  subsistence  for 
the  troops.     Can  it  be  reasonably  supposed, 
that  a  general,   endowed  with   the   talents  of 
Hannibal,  would  engage  himself  and  forty  thou- 


139 


sand  men,  upon  whom  not  only  his  own  reputa- 
tion, but  the  safety  and  even  the  existence  of 
his  country  depended,  in  a  long  chain  of  moun- 
tains of  which  he  could  personally  know  neither 
the  extent  nor  the  resources,  without  having 
long  before  fixed  upon  his  plan  of  operations  ? 
and  could  he,  as  some  authors  have  imagined, 
have  trusted  blindly  to  his  good  fortune  to  ex- 
tricate him  from  defiles,  which  he  would  in  that 
case  have  rashly  entered  without  knowing  to 
what  place  they  led,  or  whether  there  was  any 
issue  at  all  from  them  ?  The  most  rational  and 
easy  way  to  penetrate  through  a  very  extended 
chain  of  mountains,  is  to  trace  the  rivers  which 
flow  from  them  up  to  their  sources,  for  sub- 
sistence and  population  are  generally  to  be 
found  on  their  banks,  and  the  road  is  usually 
more  easy,  and  the  ascent  more  gradual ;  and 
accordingly  in  the  road  which  we  have  pro- 
posed, we  have  only  to  pass  over  two  moun- 
tains, the  Mont  du  Chat,  and  the  little  St. 
Bernard ;  while  to  effect  a  communication  be- 
tween the  Isere  and  the  Durance,  chains  of 
mountains  are  to  be  crossed,  in  many  places  of 
nearly  as  great  a  height  as  the  little  St.  Bernard 
itself,  and  a  country  is  to  be  traversed,  where 
the  inhabitants  are  so  poor  as  to  be  unable  to 
do  more  than  subsist  themselves.  It  is  impos- 
sible for  a  writer  totally  unacquainted  with  the 


140 


Alps,  and  with  the  supplies  necessary  for  a 
large  army,  to  be  aware  of  the  difficulties  at- 
tendant upon  its  progress ;  and  the  most  learned 
scholar  will  be  often  incapable  of  thoroughly 
understanding  his  author,  unless  he  join  some 
practice  with  his  theory. 

On  the  other  hand,  this  subject  has  been  ex- 
amined by  military  men,  who,  writing  only  as 
such,  have  either  altogether  neglected  the  old 
writers,  or  have  from  ignorance  of  the  language 
in  which  they  are  written  fallen  into  mistakes 
equally  prejudicial  to  the  advancement  of  truth, 
and  to  the  right  solution  of  the  difficulties  in 
which  the  subject  is  involved.  Some  of  those, 
who  from  their  acquaintance  with  the  country 
ought  to  have  been  particularly  well  qualified 
to  assist  in  the  investigation,  have  unfortunately 
formed  their  theories  before  they  had  consulted 
their  authorities,  and  have  carried  Hannibal 
over  the  Alps  by  the  same  roads,  and  in  the 
same  manner,  in  which  they  themselves  would 
have  marched  from  Spain  to  Italy;  and  certainly 
if  the  question  were  to  be  decided  upon  mere 
probability,  and  if  we  had  no  other  data  what- 
ever to  go  upon  than  the  single  fact  of  his 
having  gone  from  the  one  country  to  the  other, 
I  should  be  more  inclined  to  trust  to  the  specu- 
lations of  men,  who  pursue  the  same  career  that 
he  did,  than  to  those  of  writers,  who  are  prac- 


141 

tically  unacquainted  with  military  matters : 
but  here  the  case  is  different,  for  we  have  seve- 
ral certain  foundations  on  which  to  build,  and 
the  scholar  will  be  more  probably  right  as  to 
these  than  the  military  man.  For  the  question 
to  be  discussed  is  not  what  road  was  the  best, 
or  what  was  the  shortest  from  Spain  to  Italy, 
but  what  road  Hannibal  did  actually  take  as  re- 
ported by  the  oldest  historians ;  and  of  these  the 
oldest  extant  united  in  himself  the  two  pursuits, 
which  best  qualified  him  to  describe  this  march, 
since  he  was  a  man  of  letters  as  well  as  a  soldier, 
and  since  above  all  he  had  himself  gone  over 
the  ground,  while  the  exploits  of  Hannibal 
were  still  fresh  in  the  recollection  of  the  inha- 
bitants. To  him  then,  as  uniting  the  advantages 
of  both,  the  scholar  and  the  soldier  should  turn ; 
and  if  they  had  originally  consulted  him  instead 
of  Livy,  the  honour  of  the  discovery  of  the  pas- 
sage by  the  little  St.  Bernard  would  probably 
not  have  been  reserved  to  so  late  a  date  as  the 
time  of  General  Melville,  and  the  question 
would  have  been  decided  long  ago.  In  con- 
firmation of  Poly bi us  as  an  old  historian  we 
have  also  Caelius,  who  lived  very  soon  after 
him,  and  to  whose  character  for  accuracy, 
truth,  and  research,  such  ample  testimonials 
have  been  given  in  the  Introduction.  If  then  we 
have  made  our  line  of  march  agree  with  that 


142 


laid  down  by  Polybius,  we  can  have  no  better 
assurance  of  our  being  in  the  right ;  and  at  all 
events  if  we  ourselves  be  in  the  wrong  as  to  the 
author,  whom  we  have  endeavoured  faithfully 
to  interpret  and  to  follow,  we  may  hope  that 
we  have  not  failed  in  the  arguments  that  we 
have  used   to   restore   him  to  the  high  rank, 
which  he  ought  to  hold  as  an  authority  upon 
this  point ;  and  to  raise  him  to  that  place,  so 
long  and  so  improperly  usurped  by  Livy.    With 
respect  to  our  own  hypothesis,  it  is  perfectly 
true  that  we  have  but  few  data  upon  which  to 
ground  the  turning  off  at  Vienna,  and  the  march 
across  the  Insula  to  St.  Genis  D'Aouste.     The 
Roman  road  is   however  something,  for  that 
was  in  all  probability  founded  upon  some  an- 
cient road  of  the  country,  and  the  Carthaginian 
silver  tablet  found  at  Passage  furnishes  an  ad- 
ditional confirmation  ;  it  is  however  very  pos- 
sible that  the  army  might  have  marched  a  little 
higher  up  the  river,  though  it  is  improbable 
that  they  would  lose  time  by  keeping  always 
close  to  its  banks,  when  much  might  be  saved 
by  cutting  off  the  angles.     We  have  little  also 
to  urge  as  to  the  absolute  certainty  of  the  pas- 
sage by  the  Mont  du  Chat  instead  of  the  Mont 
de  TEpine,  or  the  passage  of  Aiguebellette,  ex- 
cept the  superior  facility  of  the  former,  and  its 
better  agreement  with  the  text  of  Polybius,  to 


143 

say  nothing  of  its  much  greater  apparent  an- 
tiquity. Upon  these  points  the  reader  will 
judge  for  himself  in  their  proper  places,  but 
these  are,  after  all,  trifling  matters,  and  make 
no  difference  whatever  in  the  general  argument ; 
nor  can  it  be  said,  that  we  are  in  any  one  single 
point  at  issue  with  our  author  except  in  the 
view  of  Italy,  which  as  he  gives  us  to  under- 
stand is  to  be  seen  from  the  summit  of  the  Alps 
crossed  by  Hannibal.  We  have  however  shewn, 
that  this  view  exists  on  no  known  passage 
whatever^,  and  this  discordance  therefore, 
proves  no  more  against  us  than  it  does  against 
every  other  writer  on  the  same  subject.  In 
every  thing  else  we  agree  in  description  of  the 
country,  and  in  distances,  which,  taken  altoge- 
ther, form  the  most  certain  data  to  reason  upon. 
The  causes,  military  and  political,  which  in- 
duced Hannibal  to  take  the  road  described  by 
Polybius,  agree  perfectly  well  with  the  one  fixed 
on  by  us ;  for  he  could  not  have  taken  a  road 


^  It  has,  it  is  true,  been  supposed  by  some  writers,  that 
Hannibal  must  have  gone  to  Balbotet  on  the  Col  de  Fenes- 
trelles,  because  that  is  the  only  place  from  whence  the  Alps 
are  visible;  but  Balbotet,  which  is  close  to  Fenestrelles,  is  so 
near  to  the  plains  around  the  Po,  that  it  would  not  require  a 
march  of  three  days  to  reach  them,  besides  which  it  cannot 
by  any  possibility  be  made  out  to  be  the  summit  of  the 
Alps. 


h 


144 


better  calculated  than  the  little  St.  Bernard  to 
effect  the  objects  which  he  had  in  view.  It  is 
true,  that,  with  the  exception  of  the  great  St. 
Bernard,  it  was  the  longest,  but  it  enabled  him 
to  descend  among  the  Insubrians,  his  friends, 
which  could  not  be  accomplished  by  any  shorter 
road  ;  he  was  to  be  guided  by  the  ambassadors 
from  the  Gauls,  who  lived,  as  we  have  shewn, 
in  the  Milanese,  and  who  therefore  would  take 
him  by  the  road  they  best  knew,  and  through 
their  own  allies.  He  was,  in  a  military  point  of 
view,  to  choose  that  line  of  march  which  was 
easiest,  and  best  suited  for  the  subsistence  of  his 
army  :  and  in  these  two  points,  the  latter  of 
which  is  always  kept  in  view  by  Polybius,  the 
valleys  of  the  Isere  and  of  Aoste  are  eminently 
superior  to  all  the  others  of  the  Alps  ;  so  much 
so,  that  even  at  the  present  moment,  if  time  were 
not  an  object,  and  if  the  improved  means  of 
transporting  subsistence,  which  modern  armies 
enjoy,  were  put  aside,  an  army  might  cross  the 
Alps  with  greater  general  facility,  and  with 
much  less  individual  suffering,  by  this  passage 
than  by  any  other.  The  only  two  parts  of  the 
road  that  are  bad  are  the  Mont  du  Chat  and 
the  little  St.  Bernard  itself;  and  a  little  labour 
would  put  these  two  places  into  very  good 
order. 

In  addition  to  our  general  agreement  with 


145 


our  author,  this  theory  is  supported  by  a  great 
number  of  facts,  which  though  when  taken 
singly  they  may  appear  unimportant,  are  yet 
collectively  of  great  strength;  such  as  the  silver 
tablet,  the  universal  tradition  of  the  inhabitants, 
and  others  of  that  nature.  It  is  also  consistent 
with  itself,  which  is  a  quality  that  must  be  de- 
nied to  many  others ;  and  if  we  may  judge  by 
the  attack  made  on  it  by  M.  Letronne,  it  is  not 
open  to  any  very  powerful  objections  ;  certainly 
to  none  that  1  am  at  present  aware  of. 

It  is  impossible  to  conclude  this  dissertation, 
without  again  expressing  my  obligations  to  M. 
De  Luc.  It  is  to  him  that  the  theory  of  General 
Melville  owes  all  its  developement ;  and  it  was 
most  fortunate  for  the  literary  reputation  of  the 
General,  that  he  communicated  his  notes  to 
M.  De  L.  as  well  as  to  Mr.  Whitaker,  who  ap- 
pears to  have  been  totally  unaware  of  the  value 
of  the  treasure  confided  to  him.  To  all  who 
may  feel  interested  in  this  question,  I  most  ear- 
nestly recommend  the  perusal  of  M.  De  Luc's 
work ;  and  I  am  most  happy  in  being  able  once 
more  to  bear  testimony  to  the  uniform  good 
faith,  diligence,  accuracy,  and  talent  displayed 
in  his  remarks. 

Should  the  arguments  brought  forward  by 
that  gentleman  and  by  myself  fail  in  producing 
conviction,  I  would  advise  an  inspection  of  the 


146 


ground  itself,  ia  a  visit  to  the  places  themselves ; 
as,  independently  of  the  great  interest  attached 
to  the  question  which  has  been  here  discussed, 
this  passage  is  decidedly  the  most  beautiful  of 
all.  The  valleys  of  Aoste  and  of  the  Isere  are 
superior  to  all  others  in  Alpine  scenery,  and 
their  beauty  alone  will  amply  repay  the  trouble 
of  visiting  them.  Although  these  valleys  are  not 
much  frequented  by  strangers,  yet  their  great 
population,  and  the  constant  intercourse  they 
maintain  with  each  other,  will  always  ensure 
to  the  traveller  the  means  of  transporting  him- 
self with  ease  from  place  to  place.  It  is  easy 
to  go  from  Geneva  to  Scez,  at  the  foot  of  the 
little  St.  Bernard,  in  three  days;  and  when 
once  there,  the  two  valleys  may  be  thoroughly 
examined  in  a  week.  To  those,  however,  who 
are  unable  or  unwilling  to  undertake  this  jour- 
ney, I  trust  that  the  arguments  brought  forward 
in  the  preceding  pages  in  favour  of  the  passage 
by  the  little  St.  Bernard  will  appear  sufficiently 
conclusive  to  set  the  question  fairly,  if  not  finally, 
at  rest ;  and  if  so,  1  feel  that  I  cannot  better 
conclude  this  dissertation,  than  by  referring  all 
the  honour  of  the  discovery  to  General  Melville, 
in  the  words  of  M.  De  Luc,  whose  modesty  on 
this  occasion,  and  whose  uniform  delicacy  and 
unwillingness  to  bring  forward  his  own  merits, 
deserve  the  highest  praise. 


147 

**  Si  ce  fiddle  et  judicieux  historien/'  (speak- 
ing of  Polybius,)  "  revenoit  au  monde,  et  qu'il 
*'  vit  cornbien  toutes  les  peines  qu'il  sest  don- 
"  n6es  pour  ne  laisser  rien  d'incertain  sur  la 
**  route  d'Annibal,  ont  ete  inu tiles,  il  demande- 
*'  roit  a  quoi  servent  tous  les  progres  que  les 
"  modernes  ont  faits  dans  la  geographie.  II 
**  seroit  surpris  qu'au  milieu  de  ces  progres  et 
**  avec  les  donnees  qu'il  foumissoit  pour  ne  pas 
"  se  tromper,  on  fut  tombe  dans  un  si  grand 
"  norabre  d'erreurs  ;  il  verroit  que  I'exactitude 
"  et  la  justesse  d'esprit  sont  des  qualit6s  aussi 
"  rares  a  present  qu'elles  Tetoient  de  son 
"  temps ;  il  seroit  etonn6  qu'un  Ecossois,  (le 
"  General  Melville,)  un  habitantde  laCaledonie, 
**  de  ce  pays  le  plus  recule  des  pays  soumis  par 
"  les  Romains,  eut  r6solu  cette  question  si  sou- 
**  vent  agitee  sans  succ^s,  question  que  les  ha- 
**  bitans  des  Alpes,  et  des  pays  qui  sont  a  leur 
"  pied,  que  les  militaires  meme  qui  ont  fait  la 
"  guerre  dans  ces  pays,  avoient  6te  hors  d'fetat 
"  de  resoudre." 


l2 


APPENDIX. 


^  PoLYBius,  book  iii.  chap.  34-. 

Hannibal  having  taken  every  precaution  for  the 
security  of  Africa  and  Spain,  now  awaited  and  expected 
the  arrival  of  those  persons  who  had  been  sent  to  him 
by  the  Gauls;  for  he  had  made  exact  enquiries  with 
respect  to  the  fertility  of  the  country  at  the  foot  of  the 
Alps,  and  near  the  Po ;  the  number  of  its  inhabitants, 
and  their  courage  in  war;  but  above  all,  he  had 
ascertained  their  hatred  against  the  Romans  from  the 
former  war,  of  which  we  gave  an  account  in  the  preced- 
ing book,  in  order  to  make  our  readers  better  acquainted 
with  the  events  now  to  be  related. 

Hannibal  therefore  entertained  much  hope  from  this 
circumstance,  and  sent  diligently  to  the  chiefs  of  the 
Gauls,  both  those  who  dwelt  on  the  other  side  of  the 
Alps,  and  those  who  inhabited  these  mountains  them- 
selves; making  large  offers  and  promises;  for  he  con- 
ceived that  he  should  alone  be  able  to  raise  a  war  in 
Italy  against  the  Romans,  by  succeeding  in  passing  the 
difficult  places  that  intervened,  and  arriving  in  the 
country  above  mentioned,  and  obtaining  the  assistance 
and  co-operation  of  the  Gauls  in  his  future  projects. 

L  S 


150 


These  emissaries  having  therefore  arrived,  and  having 
announced  the  good  will  and  expectation  of  the  Gauls, 
and  declared  that  the  passage  of  the  Alps  was  indeed 
very  laborious  and  difficult,  but  not  at  all  impossible, 
Hannibal  drew  together  his  troops  from  their  winter 
quarters  at  the  commencement  of  spring. 

News  had  also  lately  arrived  from  Carthage,  which 
much  elated  him,  and  inspired  him  with  confidence  in 
the  good  will  of  his  fellow  citizens ;  so  that  he  now  openly 
exhorted  his  troops  to  prepare  for  a  war  with  the 
Romans,  laying  before  them  in  what  manner  the  Romans 
had  ventured  to  ask,  that  he  and  all  the  principal  officers 
of  the  army  should  be  given  up  to  them :  he  explained 
to  them  also  the  fertility  of  the  country  in  which  they 
would  arrive,  and  the  good  will  and  friendship  of  the 
Gauls  towards  them.  Upon  the  army's  testifying  their 
eagerness  and  zeal,  he  praised  their  spirit,  and  having 
fixed  a  day  for  his  departure,  broke  up  the  assembly. 

Part  of  Chap.  39.  Distances. 
From  the  pillars  of  Hercules  to  the  Pyrenees  there 
are  8000  stadia ;  from  the  pillars  to  Carthagena,  whence 
Hannibal  set  out,  the  distance  is  3000  stadia;  from 
thence  to  the  river  Ebro  there  are  2600  stadia;  from 
the  Ebro  to  Emporium  1600:  for  all  these  distances 
have  been  measured  in  steps,  and  divided  at  intervals  of 
eight  stadia  accurately  by  the  Romans.  From  the  pas- 
sage of.  the  Rhone,  for  those  who  proceed  along  the 
river  as  if  towards  its  source,  to  the  first  ascent  of  the 
Alps  on  the  way  to  Italy,  there  are  1400  stadia.    There 


151 

remains  the  passage  of  these  mountains,  a  distance  of 
about  1200  stadia;  upon  crossing  these  mountains 
Hannibal  would  enter  Italy  by  those  plains  which  arc 
adjacent  to  the  Po. 

Chap.  42. 

Hannibal  having  reached  the  Rhone,  immediately 
prepared  to  eflfect  a  passage  where  the  river  was  one 
entire  stream,  being  then  encamped  about  four  days 
journey  from  the  sea;  and  having  by  every  means 
conciliated  the  people  who  inhabited  the  banks  of  the 
river,  he  purchased  from  them  all  their  canoes  and 
boats  in  sufficient  quantity  for  his  purpose ;  for  these 
people  who  dwell  on  the  Rhone  are  much  in  the  habit 
of  trading  to  the  sea  :  he  besides  received  from  them  a 
quantity  of  timber  for  constructing  canoes ;  so  that  in 
two  days  he  had  got  together  a  vast  supply  of  vessels  to 
carry  over  the  army ;  each  one  striving  to  stand  in  no 
need  of  his  neighbour,  but  to  put  in  himself  all  hope 
of  effecting  a  passage. 

Meanwhile  a  numerous  body  of  Barbarians  was 
collected  on  the  opposite  bank,  to  prevent  the  passage 
of  the  Carthaginians ;  upon  the  sight  of  whom,  Han- 
nibal, judging  that  in  his  present  situation  it  was  not 
possible  for  him  to  cross  the  river  by  force  in  the  face  of 
so  numerous  a  body  of  enemies,  nor  to  remain  there, 
lest  he  should  be  attacked  on  all  sides,  at  the  approach 
of  the  third  night  sent  off  a  detachment  of  his  ai-my, 
with  natives  as  guides,  and  under  the  orders  of  Hanno 
the  son  of  Bomilcar.  These  having  marched  up  the  river 


152 


for  200  stadia,  came  to  a  place  where  it  is  divided  by 
an  island;  there  they  halted,  and  having  cut  down 
timber  from  a  neighbouring  forest,  they  partly  used  it  in 
constructing  boats,  and  partly  fastened  it  together  for 
rafts,  of  which  they  soon  made  a  sufficient  number  for 
their  present  purpose ;  on  these  they  then  crossed  over 
without  any  opposition,  and  having  taken  up  a  strong 
position,  they  waited  there  that  day  to  rest  from  their 
fatigues,  and  also  to  be  ready  to  execute  those  orders 
which  should  be  issued  to  them.  Hannibal  also  did  the 
same  with  the  remainder  of  his  army ;  liis  greatest  diffi- 
culty being  how  to  carry  over  his  elephants,  of  which 
he  had  thirty-seven. 

Chap.  43. 
At  the  approach  of  the  fifth  night,  those  troops  who 
had  crossed  over  at  day-break,  began  their  march  along 
the  river  against  those  Barbarians  who  were  opposed  to 
Hannibal.  The  latter  having  his  forces  now  prepared, 
proceeded  to  carry  them  across  the  river ;  having  filled 
the  larger  vessels  with  the  cavalry  armed  with  targets, 
and  the  canoes  with  light  infantry.  The  larger  vessels 
were  placed  higher  up  and  along  the  stream,  and  below 
them  the  smaller  boats;  that  the  force  of  the  current 
might  be  broken  by  the  former,  and  so  render  the 
passage  of  the  canoes  more  secure.  It  had  been  devised 
also,  to  draw  the  horses  as  they  swam  from  the  sterns  of 
the  larger  vessels,  one  man  being  able  to  manage  three 
or  four  on  each  side  of  the  vessel  by  means  of  ropes, 
so  that  a  great  body  of  horse  was  carried  over  in  the 
very  first  crossing. 


153 


But  the  Barbarians,  seeing  the  attempt  made  by 
their  enemies,  hurried  out  of  their  intrenchments  in 
a  scattered  and  tumultuous  manner,  persuaded  that 
they  could  easily  prevent  the  passage  of  the  Carthagi- 
nians. But  Hannibal,  as  soon  as  he  saw  on  the  opposite 
side  his  troops  now  advancing,  and  signifying  their 
approach  by  smoke,  as  had  been  agreed  upon,  gave 
orders  for  the  whole  army  to  embark,  and  for  those  who 
were  appointed  to  the  larger  vessels,  to  force  their  pas- 
sage across  the  stream.  This  being  speedily  executed, 
and  those  who  were  in  the  larger  boats  vying  with  each 
other  in  loud  cries,  and  struggling  against  the  rapidity 
of  the  stream;  and  both  armies  standing  on  each  bank 
of  the  river;  the  Carthaginians  anxious  for  and  ex- 
horting their  men  with  their  shouts,  and  the  Barbarians 
opposite  raising  their  war  song,  and  daring  them  to 
come  on ;  the  scene  was  such  as  would  be  likely  to  create 
no  small  dread  and  anxiety  in  the  minds  of  the 
spectators. 

At  this  moment,  the  Barbarians  having  quitted  their 
tents,  the  Carthaginian  detachment  that  had  crossed 
the  river  falls  on  them  suddenly  and  by  surprise ;  some 
proceed  to  set  the  camp  of  the  enemy  on  fire,  but  the 
greater  part  attack  those  who  were  guarding  the 
passage. 

The  Barbarians  being  thus  unexpectedly  attacked, 
part  of  them  hastened  to  defend  their  camp,  while 
the  rest  made  head  as^ainst  their  assailants.  Hannibal, 
perceiving  that  every  thing  succeeded  according  to  his 
plans,  immediately  collected  his  troops  as  they  crossed, 


154 


and  having  exhorted  them,  attacked  the  Barbarians. 
The  Gauls  however  being  drawn  up  in  no  order,  and 
taken  by  surprise,  were  soon  routed  and  put  to  flight. 

Chap.  44. 

The  Carthaginian  general  having  now  made  himself 
roaster  of  the  passage  and  defeated  his  enemies, 
immediately  took  measures  for  bringing  over  the  re- 
mainder of  his  army;  and  this  being  speedily  accom- 
plished, he  encamped  that  night  close  to  the  river :  but 
on  the  morrow,  hearing  that  the  Roman  fleet  had 
arrived  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  he  formed  a  party  of 
500  Numidian  horse,  and  sent  them  to  observe  where 
the  enemy  was,  and  what  was  their  force  and  design  ; 
at  the  same  time  he  appointed  proper  persons  for 
bringing  across  the  elephants.  He  then  called  together 
a  meeting  of  his  forces  and  introduced  among  them 
Magilus  and  the  petty  chiefs  of  the  Gauls,  who  had 
come  to  him  from  the  plains  of  the  Po,  and  made 
Ipipwn  to  his  army  by  means  of  an  interpreter  what 
had  been  determined  upon  by  them. 

Among  the  circumstances  calculated  to  inspire  them 
with  confidence,  these  were  the  principal:  first,  the 
presence  of  those  men  who  incited  them  to  the  war, 
and  undertook  to  assist  them  against  the  Romans ;  and 
next,  the  promise  which  they  made  of  conducting  them 
through  places,  in  which  they  would  lack  nothing,  and 
at  the  same  time  reach  Italy  speedily  and  with  safety, 
was  most  persuasive;  as  well  as  the  account  they  gave 
of  the  fertility  and  extent  of  the  country  inta  which 


155 


they  were  to  arrive,  and  the  zeal  of  its  inhabitants,  who 
would  assist  them  in  their  battles  with  the  Romans. 

The   Gauls   having    made    this    statement,    retired. 
Then  Hannibal  himself  came  forward,  and  began  first 
by  reminding  his  troops  of  their  former  achievements ; 
in  which,  though  often  engaged  in  difficult  and  arduous 
enterprizes,  they  had  never  once  failed,  in  consequence 
of  their  having  followed  his  advice  and  direction.     He 
then  exhorted  them  to  be  confident  also  in  this  under- 
taking, seeing  that  they  had  already  accomplished  the 
most  important  part  of  their  task,  since  they  had  effected 
the  passage  of  the  river,  and  had  beheld  with  their  own 
eyes  the  zeal  and  good  will  of  their  allies;  wherefore  he 
conceived   that   they  ought   to   have   no   anxiety  with 
respect  to  the  details  of  their  operations,  as  that  would 
be  his  concern;  but  by  their  obedience  to  his  commands 
to   shew  their  worth,   and   act  consistently  with  their 
former  exploits. 

The  troops  having  testified  by  their  acclamations 
great  zeal  and  alacrity,  he  praised  their  spirit,  and 
having  offered  vows  to  the  Gods  in  behalf  of  all,  he  dis- 
missed them,  with  orders  to  refresh  themselves,  and  to 
get  ready  with  all  diligence,  as  the  departure  would 
take  place  on  the  morrow. 

Chap.  45. 

The  meeting  had  just  broken   up,   when   the   Nu- 

midians,  who  had  been  sent  forward  on  the  look  out, 

arrived,  having  lost  the  greater  part  of  their  trOop,  and 

the  rest  having  taken  to  a  hasty  flight ;  for  having  fallen 


L 


156 


in. not  far  from  their  own  camp  with  a  party  of  Roman 
horse,  who  had  been  sent  out  by  Publius  Scipio  on  the 
same  duty,  they  had  fought  on  both  sides  with  such 
animosity,  that  about  14-0  Romans  and  Gauls  had  fallen, 
and  about  200  of  the  Numidians.  The  Romans  after- 
wards in  pursuit  came  up  to  the  Carthaginian  intrench- 
ment,  and  having  made  their  observations,  hastened 
back  to  inform  their  commander  of  the  enemy's  pre- 
sence. Upon  arriving  at  the  camp  they  made  their  re- 
port; Publius  Scipio  then  immediately  ordered  the 
heavy  baggage  on  board,  and  breaking  up  from  his  en- 
campment, marched  with  all  his  force  up  the  river, 
being  very  eager  to  bring  the  enemy  to  an  engage- 
ment. 

But  Hannibal  on  the  morrow  of  the  assembly,  at 
day-break,  drew  out  the  whole  of  his  cavalry  towards  the 
sea,  to  form  his  rear  guard,  and  leading  out  the  infantry 
from  the  camp,  he  sent  them  forward  on  their  march. 
He  himself  waited  for  the  elephants  and  the  men  who 
had  been  left  with  them. 

Chap.  46. 

The  elephants  were  brought  over  in  the  following 
manner.  Having  made  a  great  number  of  rafts,  they 
joined  two  of  these  together  strongly,  and  made  them 
fast  to  the  land  on  the  bank :  the  breadth  of  the  two 
thus  united  being  about  fifty  feet.  They  then  fastened 
two  more  to  the  extremity  of  these,  which  advanced  out 
into  the  river:  they  secured  also  that  side  which  was 


157 

against  the  stream,  by  cables  from  the  land  fastened  to 
some  trees  which  grew  on  the  bank,  in  order  that  they 
might  not  be  forced  away  by  the  strength  of  the  cur- 
rent. Having  made  this  raft  in  the  form  of  a  bridge 
about  two  hundred  feet  in  length,  they  added  to  the  end 
of  it  two  other  larger  floats  very  firmly  joined  together, 
but  fastened  to  the  rest  in  such  a  manner,  that  the  ca- 
bles by  which  they  were  held  might  easily  be  cut 
asunder.  They  fixed  also  many  ropes  to  these,  by 
means  of  which  the  boats  that  were  to  tow  them  across 
might  keep  them  from  being  carried  down  the  stream  ; 
and  thus  resisting  the  current,  convey  the  elephants  on 
them  to  the  other  side.  They  next  spread  a  great  quan- 
tity of  earth  upon  the  rafts,  laying  it  on  till  they  had 
rendered  them  level,  and  similar  in  colour  with  the  road 
on  the  land  that  led  to  the  passage.  The  elephants  being 
accustomed  to  obey  the  Indians  till  they  approached  the 
water,  but  never  daring  to  venture  in,  they  first  led 
forward  two  female  elephants  along  the  rafts,  when  the 
rest  presently  followed.  Upon  reaching  the  extreme 
rafts,  the  cables  which  fastened  them  to  the  rest  were 
cut,  and  they  were  instantly  towed  by  the  boats  towards 
the  other  side.  At  this,  the  elephants  being  thrown  into 
great  disorder,  turned  every  way,  and  rushed  to  every 
part  of  the  raft.  But  being  surrounded  on  all  sides  by 
water,  their  fears  subsided,  and  they  were  constrained  to 
remain  where  they  stood.  In  this  manner  were  the 
greater  part  of  the  elephants  brought  over,  two  rafts 
being  thus  continually  fitted  to  the  rest.  Some  how- 
ever through  fear  threw  themselves  into  the  stream  in 


158 


the  midst  of  the  passage.  The  Indians  who  conducted 
these  all  perished ;  but  the  beasts  themselves  escaped ; 
for  owing  to  the  strength  and  size  of  their  trunks  they 
were  able  to  raise  these  above  the  water,  and  breathe 
through  them;  and  thus  discharging  the  water  as  it 
entered  their  mouth,  they  held  out,  and  for  the  most 
part  walked  across  the  river,  their  feet  resting  on  the 
ground. 

Chap.  47. 

The  elephants  having  now  been  brought  across,  Han- 
nibal placed  them  and  his  cavalry  in  the  rear,  and  set 
forward  on  his  march  along  the  river,  proceeding  from 
the  sea  in  an  easterly  direction,  as  if  he  were  marching 
towards  the  central  parts  of  Europe. 

Now  the  Rhone  takes  its  source  above  the  Adriatic 
Gulph,  inclining  to  the  west,  in  that  part  of  the  Alps 
which  stretches  towards  the  north  :  it  then  flows  towards 
the  southwest,  and  falls  into  the  Sardinian  sea;  it  runs 
for  a  considerable  space  through  a  valley,  the  north  side 
of  which  is  inhabited  by  the  Ardyes  Celtic;  but  on  the 
south  it  is  bounded  by  the  ridge  of  the  Alps,  which  face 
the  north.  The  chain  of  mountains  here  described  se- 
parates the  plains  of  the  Po,  concerning  which  we  have 
already  spoken  at  length,  from  the  valley  of  the  Rhone, 
beginning  at  Marseilles,  and  reaching  to  the  extremity 
of  the  Adriatic  Gulph. 

These  were  then  the  mountains  which  Hannibal  was 
to  cross,  upon  quitting  the  banks  of  the  Rhone,  in  order 
to  enter  Italv. 


159 


But  some  of  those  who  have  written  an  account  of 
this  passage,  wishing  to  astonish  their  readers  by  mar- 
vellous descriptions  of  these  places,  are  fallen  unawares 
into  two  defects  most  contrary  to  all  real  history.  They 
are  compelled  to  give  false  accounts,  and  also  to  con- 
tradict themselves.  For  having  presented  Hannibal  to 
our  view,  as  a  general  unequalled  for  his  daring  and  fore- 
sight, they  at  the  same  time  shew  him  to  have  been  the 
most  inconsiderate  of  men.  In  the  next  place,  not  being 
able  to  bring  the  matter  to  an  end,  nor  to  extricate 
themselves  from  these  falsehoods,  they  introduce  the 
gods  and  sons  of  gods  into  a  narrative  of  real  facts. 
They  suppose  the  Alps  to  be  so  steep  and  rugged,  that 
it  were  impossible  not  merely  for  cavalry,  or  armies  with 
elephants,  but  even  for  infantry  lightly  equipped,  to 
surmount  them ;  and  represent  them  besides  as  so  des- 
titute of  inhabitants,  that  unless  some  god  or  hero  had 
met  Hannibal  and  pointed  out  the  way  to  him,  both  be 
and  his  army  would  have  been  brought  to  such  distress, 
as  must  have  ended  in  their  total  destruction.  Such 
then  is  the  dilemma  into  which  these  writers  have  con- 
fessedly fallen. 

Chap.  48. 
For  in  the  first  place,  what  general  would  appear  so 
void  of  counsel,  or  so  destitute  of  sense,  as  Hannibal;  if, 
leading  so  great  an  army,  and  placing  in  it  all  his  hopes 
of  success,  he  had  neither  ascertained  by  what  way,  or 
through  what  countries  he  was  to  proceed,  nor,  in  short, 
where  or  whither  he  was  going :  if  finally  he  should  ap- 


160 


pear  to  have  attempted,  not  what  was  barely  practicable, 
but  absolutely  the  reverse;  and  yet  when  no  general, 
however  desperate  his  situation,  would  think  of  leading 
his  forces  into  a  country,  of  which  he  had  no  previous 
knowledge,  this  is  the  conduct  which  these  writers 
ascribe  to  Hannibal,  who  then  entertained  the  full  and 
undiminished  hope  of  succeeding  in  his  enterprize.  In 
like  manner,  what  they  relate  with  regard  to  the  desert 
state  of  these  places,  their  steepness  and  difficulty  of  ac- 
cess, equally  convicts  them  of  falsehood.  They  indeed 
seem  never  to  have  heard,  that  the  Gauls  who  live  near 
the  Rhone  had  more  than  once,  and  not  long  before  the 
passage  of  Hannibal,  crossed  the  Alps  with  numerous 
armies;  had  engaged  with  the  Romans,  and  assisted  the 
Gauls  who  live  near  the  Po,  as  we  have  before  shewn. 
And  besides  they  are  not  aware,  that  the  Alps  are  in- 
habited by  a  numerous  race  of  people ;  but  from  their 
ignorance  in  these  several  matters,  they  are  obliged  to 
assert,  that  some  hero  made  his  appearance  amongst  the 
Carthaginians,  and  pointed  out  the  way  to  them ;  in 
this  circumstance  they  naturally  follow  the  example  of 
tragic  writers,  who  in  their  catastrophes  have  con- 
tinually recourse  to  some  god  or  machine,  because  they 
lay  down  at  first  plots  which  are  contrary  to  truth  and 
reason.  So  these  historians  are  compelled  to  make  use 
of  a  similar  expedient,  and  cause  both  heroes  and  gods 
to  appear,  after  they  have  laid  down  in  the  beginning 
facts  so  improbable  and  so  inconsistent  with  truth.  For 
how  is  it  possible  to  adapt  a  reasonable  end  to  so  ab- 


161 


surd  a  beginning.  But  the  truth  is,  Hannibal  did  not 
in  any  wise  act  as  these  writers  affirm;  but  conducted 
his  enterprize  with  consummate  judgment;  for  he  had 
accurately  ascertained  the  excellent  nature  of  the  coun- 
try in  which  he  was  to  arrive,  and  the  hostile  disposi- 
tion of  its  inhabitants  towards  the  Romans  ;  and  he  had 
for  guides  and  conductors  through  the  difficult  passes 
that  lay  in  the  way,  natives  of  the  country,  men  who 
were  to  partake  of  the  same  hopes  with  himself.  But  I 
speak  with  confidence  on  this  subject,  because  I  have 
made  enquiries  from  persons  who  lived  at  the  time  these 
transactions  took  place;  and  have  visited  the  ground, 
and  journeyed  besides  through  the  Alps,  for  the  purpose 
of  inspecting  these  places,  and  gaining  some  accurate 
information  respecthig  them. 

Chap.  49. 
Meanwhile  however,  Publius  the  Roman  general 
coming  up  to  the  place  where  the  Carthaginians  had 
crossed  the  river,  three  days  after  they  had  broken  up 
their  camp,  and  finding  the  enemy  gone,  his  surprise  as 
might  be  expected  was  extreme;  having  felt  assured 
that  they  would  never  attempt  to  pass  into  Italy  by  that 
way,  on  account  of  the  multitude  and  unsettled  dispo- 
sition of  the  barbarous  nations  that  lay  in  that  direction. 
Perceiving  however  that  they  had  made  the  attempt,  he 
hastened  back  to  his  ships,  and  upon  his  arrival  immcr 
diately  embarked  his  forces;  and  having  sent  his  bro- 
ther to  conduct  the  operations  in  Spain,  he  himself  set 
sail  for  Italy;    desirous   of  marching  with    the  utmost 

M 


c 


162 


speed  through  Tyrrhenia ;  so  as  to  reach  the  Alps 
before  the  enemy  could  have  succeeeded  in  passing 
those  mountains. 

But  Hannibal  having  marched  for  four  successive 
days,  from  the  passage  of  the  Rhone,  came  to  a  place 
called  the  Island,  a  country  very  populous  and  fertile  in 
corn ;  it  derives  its  appellation  from  this  circumstance ; 
The  Rhone  on  one  hand,  and  a  river  called  the  Isara 
on  the  other,  flowing  on  both  sides  of  it,  form  the  land 
into  an  angle  at  their  junction;  it  nearly  resembles  the 
Delta  of  Egypt  in  extent  and  shape,  except  that  the 
sea  forms  one  of  the  sides  of  the  latter,  and  connects  the 
branches  of  the  river  that  inclose  it ;  but  the  third  side 
of  the  former  is  terminated  by  a  chain  of  mountains 
extremely  rugged  and  steep,  not  to  say  inaccessible. 
On  his  arrival  in  this  country  he  found  two  brothers 
contending  for  the  sovereignty,  and  in  arms  against  each 
other;  when  upon  the  elder's  requesting  his  aid  and 
cooperation  in  securing  for  him  the  throne,  he  readily 
acceded  to  the  proposal ;  as  it  was  then  already  evident 
what  advantage  he  was  likely  to  secure  to  himself  from 
such  a  measure.  Having  therefore  joined  his  forces 
with  him,  and  driven  out  the  other  brother,  he  received 
in  return  no  small  assistance  from  the  victor. 

For  he  not  only  abundantly  supplied  the  army  with 
corn  and  other  necessaries,  but  very  seasonably  ex- 
changed for  new  ones  whatever  arms  were  old  and 
worn  out;  he  besides  furnished  a  great  part  of  the 
forces  with  new  clothing,  and  especially  with  shoes, 
which  proved  of  infinite  service  to  them  in  their  march 


163 


through  the  mountains.  But  above  all,  as  they  must 
have  passed  through  the  country  of  the  Gauls,  named 
Allobroges,  with  some  degree  of  apprehension,  he  pro- 
tected their  rear  with  his  forces  during  their  march,  and 
secured  them  from  all  attack  till  they  drew  near  to  the 
foot  of  the  Alps. 

Chap.  50. 

When  Hannibal  had  marched  for  ten  days  along  the 
Rhone,  a  distance  of  about  800  stadia,  and  was  pre- 
paring to  ascend  the  Alps,  he  then  found  himself  in  a 
situation  pregnant  with  extreme  difficulty  and  danger; 
for  as  long  as  the  army  remained  in  the  plain,  all  the 
chiefs  of  the  Allobroges  had  refrained  from  molesting  it 
in  its  progress,  partly  through  fear  of  the  cavalry,  and 
partly  also  of  the  Barbarians  that  followed  in  the 
rear. 

But  when  the  latter  had  returned  to  their  own  country, 
and  the  army  was  now  entering  the  difficult  passes,  the 
chiefs  of  the  Allobroges  collected  a  numerous  body  of 
men,  and  seized  upon  the  defiles  through  which  Han- 
nibal and  his  army  were  necessarily  obliged  to  pass. 

Now  if  they  had  conducted  their  plan  with  secrecy, 
they  must  have  utterly  destroyed  the  Carthaginian 
army;  but  their  intentions  becoming  evident,  this  plot, 
though  it  caused  a  considerable  loss  to  the  Carthagi- 
nians, proved  no  less  destructive  to  themselves.  For 
when  the  Carthaginian  general  had  observed  that  they 
had  occupied  the  most  advantageous  posts,  he  halted  and 

M  2 


164 


encamped  at  the  foot  of  the  heights;  whilst  he  sent 
forward  some  of  the  Gauls  that  served  him  as  guides  to 
spy  out  the  design  and  plan  of  the  enemy.  These  hav- 
ing obeyed  his  orders,  Hannibal  learnt  that  during  the 
day  the  Barbarians  kept  a  careful  guard  at  their  post, 
but  that  when  ni^ht  came  they  retired  to  a  neighbour- 
ing town.  Upon  this  information  Hannibal  prepared 
his  measures,  and  adopted  the  following  plan  ;  he  led  on 
his  forces  in  open  sight,  and  having  brought  them  up 
close  to  the  entrance  of  the  defile,  he  encamped  within 
a  short  distance  of  the  enemy;  as  night  came  on,  he 
ordered  fires  to  be  lighted ;  when  leaving  the  greater 
part  of  his  army  there,  he  himself  with  a  select  body  of 
his  bravest  troops,  lightly  equipped  for  the  occasion,  pe- 
netrated through  the  defiles  during  the  night,  and 
seized  upon  those  posts  which  the  enemy  had  deserted ; 
they  having  retired  according  to  their  usual  practice  to 
their  city. 

Chap.  51. 
When  this  had  been  executed,  and  morning  came, 
the  Barbarians,  perceiving  what  had  taken  place,  at 
first  desisted  from  forming  any  enterprize;  but  after- 
wards, observing  the  beasts  of  burthen  and  the  cavalry 
slowly  and  with  difficulty  extricating  themselves  from 
the  difficult  places,  they  were  urged  by  that  circum- 
stance to  make  an  attack  upon  them  during  the  march. 
Upon  this  determination  they  assailed  the  Carthaginians 
on  several  points  at  once,  and  caused  them  a  severe  loss, 
especially  in  horses  and  beasts  of  burthen  ;  not  so  much 


165 


indeed  from  the  assailants,  as  owing  to  the  nature  of 
the  ground ;  for  as  the  way  by  which  they  were  advanc- 
ing was  not  only  rough  and  narrow,  but  also  precipitous, 
many  of  the  beasts  that  were  loaded  with  -the  baggage, 
from  the  least  shock  and  confusion,  were  carried  together 
with  their  loads  down  the  precipices;  and  this  disorder 
was  chiefly  caused  by  the  wounded  horses ;  for  some, 
rendered  unmanageable  by  the  pain,  fell  against  the 
beasts  of  burthen;  others,  rushing  forwards  and  over- 
throwing every  thing  they  encountered  in  so  difficult  a 
road,  created  the  utmost  confusion  and  alarm. 

Hannibal  observing  this,  and  reflecting  that  even 
though  the  troops  should  escape,  the  loss  of  the  baggage 
must  be  attended  with  the  ruin  of  the  army,  advances 
to  their  aid  with  the  detachment  which  had  occupied 
the  heights  during  the  night ;  as  he  made  his  attack 
from  higher  ground,  he  destroyed  many  of  the  enemy, 
not :  however  without  suffering  equally  in  return ;  for 
the  disorder  of  the  march  was  much  increased  by  the 
conflict  and  clamour  of  these  fresh  troops.  But  when 
however  the  greater  part  of  the  Allobroges  had  perished 
in  the  combat,  and  the  rest  had  been  forced  to  fly  for 
shelter  to  their  homes,  then,  only,  the  remainder  of  the 
beasts  of  burthen  and  cavalry  with  great  toil  and  diffi- 
culty succeeded  in  emerging  from  the  pass.  Hannibal 
having  then  drawn  together  all  the  troops  he  could 
collect  after  the  engagement,  proceeded  to  assault  the 
town  from  whence  the  enemy  had  made  their  attack,  and 
finding  it  almost  deserted,  because  the  inhabitants  had 

M  3 


166 


been  all  induced  to  go  forth  in  quest  of  booty,  he  easily 
became  master  of  it;  and  from  thence  derived  many 
important  advantages  both  for  his  immediate  as  well  as 
future  w^ants. 

For  his  present  supply  he  obtained  a  vast  number  of 
horses  and  beasts  of  burthen  and  captives,  and  besides, 
a  quantity  of  corn  and  cattle  sufficient  to  maintain  the 
army  with  ease  for  two  or  three  days;  he  also  infused 
such  terror  into  the  neighbouring  people,  that  none  of 
those  who  dwelt  near  the  ascent  of  the  mountains 
would  easily  be  induced  to  form  any  enterprize  against 
him. 

Chap.  52- 

Having  then  pitched  his  camp  in  that  place  and  re- 
mained there  one  day,  he  again  set  out  on  his  march, 
and  proceeded  for  some  time  in  perfect  safety ;  but  on 
the  fourth  day  he  again  became  exposed  to  imminent 
danger.  For  the  people  who  dwelt  round  the  passage, 
having  conspired  together  to  deceive  him,  came  out  to 
meet  him,  with  boughs  and  garlands;  for  this  is  the 
symbol  of  peace  with  nearly  all  barbarous  nations,  as 
the  Caduceus  is  among  the  Greeks.  But  Hannibal, 
cautious  of  giving  hastily  credit  to  these  assurances, 
questioned  them  minutely  as  to  their  purpose  and  in- 
tentions altogether.  They  assured  him  that  they  were 
well  aware  of  the  capture  of  the  neighbouring  town,  and 
the  destruction  of  those  who  had  made  an  attack  upon 
him  ;  they  also  expressly  declared  that  they  were  come 


167 

for  that  purpose,  as  bein^  desirous  of  neither  doing  or 
suffering  any  injury,  and  offered  to  deliver  into  his 
hands  some  of  their  people  as  hostages. 

Hannibal  remained  long  in  doubt,  and  mistrusted 
this  declaration ;  but  when  he  had  reflected,  that  if  he 
should  accept  their  offers,  it  would  render  this  people 
more  cautious  and  gentle  in  their  conduct;  but  were  he 
to  reject  them,  it  would  force  them  to  become  his  avowed 
enemies ;  he  assented  to  their  proposal,  and  pretended 
to  enter  into  an  alliance  of  amity  with  them  :  but  when 
these  Barbarians  had  given  their  hostages,  and  furnished 
the  army  with  cattle  in  great  abundance,  and  altogether 
had  put  themselves  into  his  hands  without  any  reserve, 
Hannibal  was  induced  in  some  degree  to  lay  aside  his 
suspicions,  and  even  employ  them  as  guides  to  conduct 
the  army  through  the  remaining  defiles.  When  the 
Carthaginians  then  had  proceeded  for  two  days  under 
the  conduct  of  these  guides,  the  Barbarians  having 
meanwhile  assembled  together  in  great  numbers,  made 
a  sudden  attack  upon  the  Carthaginians,  as  they  were 
passing  through  a  ravine  very  diflficult  of  access,  and 
closed  in  by  steep  and  rugged  heights. 

Chap.  53. 

Here  then  must  Hannibal  and  his  whole  army  have 
been  infallibly  destroyed,  had  not  he  still  been  in  some 
degree  on  his  guard,  and,  foreseeing  the  possibility  of 
such  an  attack,  placed  his  baggage  and  cavalry  in  the 
van,  while  he  kept  his  heavy  infantry  in  the  rear;  for 
as   these   closed  the  march,  they  prevented  a  heavier 

M  4 


168 


loss,  by  sustaining  the  shock  of  the  Barbarians ;  not- 
withstanding however  a  vast  number  of  men,  beasts  of 
burthen,  and  horses  perished.  For  the  Barbarians  hav- 
ing the  advantage  of  the  ground,  and  advancing  along 
the  sides  of  the  mountains,  as  the  army  proceeded  on 
its  way,  by  rolling  rocks  upon  them,  and  hurling  stones, 
spread  the  utmost  disorder  and  confusion  throughout 
their  ranks ;  insomuch  that  Hannibal  was  forced  with 
one  half  of  his  army  to  bivouac  that  night  close  to  a 
certain  naked  rock,  strong  from  its  position;  whence  he 
could  protect  his  baggage  and  cavalry,  now  separated 
from  him ;  nor  was  it  till  the  whole  night  had  been 
spent,  that  they  were  at  length  enabled  to  emerge  from 
this  ravine. 

But  the  following  day,  the  enemy  being  now  retired, 
Hannibal  rejoined  his  baggage  and  cavalry,  and  led  on 
the  army  to  the  highest  summits  of  the  Alps,  having  no 
longer  to  encounter  any  numerous  body  of  the  Bar- 
barians, but  harrassed  on  different  points  by  straggling 
parties,  that  fell  either  on  his  advance  or  rear,  as  oppor- 
tunity was  offered  them,  and  carried  off  some  of  the 
baggage.  On  these  occasions  the  elephants  were  of 
the  greatest  service,  for  wherever  they  presented  them- 
selves in  the  march,  the  enemy  never  ventured  to  ad- 
vance, being  struck  with  terror  at  the  sight  of  these 
beasts. 

Having  reached  the  summit  of  the  mountains  on  the 
ninth  day,  Hannibal  pitched  his  camp,  and  remained 
there  for  two  days,  desirous  of  resting  the  troops  he  had 
brought  thus  far  safe ;  and  also  that  he  might  wait  for 


169 

those  who  chanced  to  have  been  left  behind ;  during 
this  time  many  of  the  horses  that  had  broken  loose 
through  fright,  and  beasts  of  burthen  that  had  thrown 
off  their  loads,  having  followed  the  traces  of  the  army, 
contrary  to  expectation  rejoined  the  camp. 

Ghap.  54. 

There  was  already  snow  collected  on  the  summit  of 
the  mountains,  as  it  was  now  near  the  setting  of  the 
Pleiades  ;  wherefore  seeing  his  troops  in  a  state  of  great 
dejection  from  the  hardships  they  had  suffered,  and 
those  that  still  awaited  them,  Hannibal  sought  by 
drawing  them  together  to  raise  their  drooping  spirits. 
The  sight  of  Italy  was  the  readiest  expedient  he  had 
for  this  purpose,  for  it  is  so  close  beneath  these  moun- 
tains, that  when  viewed  togetlier  the  Alps  appear  as  the 
citadel  of  Italy. 

Pointing  out  therefore  to  his  soldiers  the  plains  ad- 
jacent to  the  Po,  and  reminding  them  of  the  friendly 
disposition  of  their  inhabitants  the  Gauls  towards  them, 
and  shewing  them  the  place  where  Rome  itself  was  si- 
tuated, he  in  some  degree  revived  their  courage.  On 
the  morrow  they  decamped,  and  began  the  descent,  no 
longer  exposed  to  the  attack  of  any  enemy,  except  a 
few  lurking  marauders;  but  from  the  nature  of  the 
ground  and  the  quantity  of  srmw  their  loss  was  scai'ce 
less  than  what  they  had  experienced  during  the  ascent. 

For  the  descent  was  not  only  narrow  and  steep,  but 
the  snow  rendering  it  impossible  to  distinguish  where 
they  placed  their  steps,  whenever  they  turned  out  of 


170 

the  proper  track,  they  were  inevitably  lost  in  some  pre- 
cipice. Still  however  they  bore  up  against  these  hard- 
ships, as  being  now  used  to  such  distress.  At  last 
they  came  to  a  place,  where  it  was  neither  possible  for 
the  elephants  or  beasts  of  burthen  to  pass,  owing  to  the 
narrowness  of  the  road,  which  was  extremely  broken, 
and  liable  to  be  carried  away  for  the  distance  of  a  stadium 
and  a  half;  and  this  had  actually  taken  place  very  re- 
cently in  a  more  than  usual  degree;  so  that  the  troops 
again  felt  their  spirits  sink,  and  gave  way  to  the  utmost 
gloom  and  despondency.  Hannibal  at  first  endeavoured 
to  avoid  this  obstacle  by  taking  a  circuitous  route,  but 
a  fresh  fall  of  snow  having  rendered  this  impracticable, 
he  abandoned  that  design. 

Chap.  55. 

For  an  accident  of  a  peculiar  and  unusual  nature  had 
taken  place,  a  quantity  of  snow  which  had  remained 
unmelted  since  the  last  winter  was  now  covered  with 
fresh ;  this  last  was  easily  penetrated  by  the  feet  from 
its  being  recent,  and  consequently  soft,  and  of  no  con- 
siderable depth.  But  when  the  men  had  trodden 
through  this,  and  reached  that  which  lay  beneath  and 
was  firm,  they  made  no  longer  any  impression :  but 
they  slid  forwards  on  both  their  feet,  as  it  happens  to 
those  who  tread  on  a  muddy  and  slippery  surface.  But 
what  next  followed  was  still  more  distressing;  as  they 
could  have  no  hold  on  the  snow  beneath,  whenever  they 
fell,  they  struggled  to  raise  themselves  with  their  hands 
or  knees ;  but  the  ground  being  very  steep,  they  were 


171 

sure  to  slide  forward  with  greater  force,  carrying  with 
them  whatsoever  they  held  to  for  support.     The  beasts 
of  burthen  also,  when  they  endeavoured  to  rise  from  their 
fall,  broke  through  the  surface  of  the  lower  snow,  and 
remained  there  with  their  loads  as  it  were  wedged  in, 
both  through  their  weight,  and  the  firm  nature  of  the 
old  snow.     Having  therefore  desisted  from  this  attempt, 
Hannibal  encamped  near  this  narrow  ledge,  and  having 
caused  the  snow  to  be  cleared  away,  he  set  his  army 
about   propping   up   and    reconstructing    the    road ;  a 
task  attended  with  great  labour  and  difficulty.     In  the 
space  of  a  day  however  sufficient  progress  was  made  to 
allow  a  passage  for  the  beasts  of  burthen  and  horses ; 
when   these  were  immediately  led  down  to  the  plains 
which  were  free  from  snow,  and  sent  to  pasture.     He 
then  ordered  the  Numidians  to  proceed  further  in  the 
repairs  of  the  road,   relieving  each   other   during  the 
work;  when  after  much  labour  and  toil  during  three 
days  they  succeeded  in  making  the  elephants  pass,  these 
animals  being  now  almost  worn  out  with  famine;  for 
the  summits  and  higher  points  of  the  Alps  are  entirely 
naked  and  destitute  of  vegetation,  from  being  constantly 
covered  with  snow  both  winter  and  summer;  but  the 
middle  regions  on  both  sides  abound  in  wood  and  trees, 
and  are  altogether  habitable. 

Chap.  56. 
Hannibal  having  now  collected  his  whole  force,  de- 
scended, and  in  three  days  more  from  the  time  that  he 
had  passed  over  the  broken  way,  reached  the  plain, 


172 

having  lost  many  of  his  soldiers,  as  well  from  the  attacks 
of  the  enemy,  as  in  passing  rivers,  during  the  course  of 
the  march ;  many  likewise  in  the  precipices  and  defiles 
of  the  Alps;  and  a  still  greater  number  of  horses  and 
beasts  of  burthen.  Finally,  having  completed  his 
journey  in  five  months  from  Carthagena,  and  spent 
fifteen  days  in  crossing  the  Alps,  he  descended  boldly 
into  the  plains  that  are  near  the  Po,  and  the  territory 
of  the  Insubrians,  having  saved  of  his  infantry  not  more 
than  12000  Africans  and  8000  Spaniards;  of  his  ca- 
valry only  6000 ;  as  he  himself  declares,  in  an  account 
of  the  number  of  his  force  engraved  on  a  column  at 
Lacinium. 


Chap.  60. 

Hannibal  having  now  entered  Italy  with  the  forces 
above  mentioned,  encamped  at  the  foot  of  the  Alps, 
and  turned  all  his  attention  at  first  to  recruit  and  refresh 
his  army.  For  the  troops  had  not  only  suffered  ex- 
treme hardships  from  the  difficulties  of  the  way,  both  in 
the  ascent  and  descent  of  the  mountains,  but  they  were 
besides  reduced  to  the  utmost  distress  from  the  want  of 
necessary  provisions,  and  neglect  of  their  persons,  d  uring 
their  journey.  Many  indeed  seemed  to  have  lost  all 
energy  and  courage  from  want  and  continued  sufferings. 
For  it  was  not  easy  to  convey  provisions  necessary  for 
the  support  of  so  many  thousands  through  a  country 
of  so  difficult  an  access,  and  those  which  they  brought 
with  thein  had  been  for  the  most  part  lost,  together  with 


173 

the  beasts  that  carried  them.  So  that  his  army,  which 
after  the  passage  of  the  Rhone  amounted  to  38000  foot, 
and  more  than  8000  horse,  was  now  reduced  to  nearly 
half  that  number,  from  the  losses  it  had  sustained  in 
the  passage  of  the  mountains ;  and  these  from  being 
exposed  to  such  repeated  sufferings,  both  in  appearance 
and  condition,  were  brought  to  a  state  more  resembling 
that  of  wild  beasts  than  human  beings. 

Hannibal's  whole  care  was  therefore  directed  to  the 
best  means  of  reviving  the  spirits  of  his  troops,  and 
restoring  the  men  and  horses  to  their  former  vigour  and 
condition. 

When  therefore  his  troops  were  sufficiently  recovered 
from  their  fatigues,  he  first  of  all  invited  the  Taurini, 
who  dwell  at  the  foot  of  the  Alps,  to  enter  into  an 
alliance  with  him,  they  being  then  at  war  with  the 
Insubrians,  and  but  ill  affected  towards  the  Carthagi- 
nians:  upon  their  refusal,  he  surrounded  their  chief 
city,  and  took  it  after  a  siege  of  three  days,  putting  to 
the  sword  all  who  had  opposed  to  him  ;  by  this  measure 
he  spread  such  terror  among  the  neighbouring  Bar- 
barians, that  they  all  came  immediately  and  submitted 
at  discretion.  Now  the  remainder  of  the  Gauls  who 
inhabited  these  plains  were  desirous  according  to  their 
first  intention  of  joining  the  Carthaginians ;  but  the 
Roman  legions  having  already  passed  through  most  of 
their  country,  and  thus  prevented  them,  they  were 
forced  to  remain  quiet;  some  indeed  were  compelled 
to  join  the  Romans. 

Seeing  this  therefore,  Hannibal  judged  tliat  he  ought 


174 


without  loss  of  time  to  move  forward,  and  achieve  some- 
thing, for  the  purpose  of  giving  confidence  to  those 
who  were  desirous  of  making  common  cause  with 
him. 


EXTRACT  FROM  THE  HISTOIRE  DE  L  ACAD.  DES  INSCRIP- 
TIONS RELATING  TO  THE  SILVER  TABLET  FOUND  AT 
PASSAGE  IN  DAUPHINY,  AND  NOW  PRESERVED  IN  THE 
king's  library  at  PARIS. 

JbiN  1714,  un  fermier  de  la  Terre  du  Passage  en  Dau- 
phine,  Diocese  de  Vienne,  faisant  ses  labours  au  lever 
du  Soleil  eut  sa  Charrue  accrochee  par  une  grosse 
pierre,  dont  I'ebranlement  rendit  quelque  son ;  ii  employa 
le  reste  de  la  journ6e  a  Tenlever,  et  en  etant  venu  k 
bout,  il  trouva  dessous  un  grand  bouclier  d'argent,  de 
vingt  sept  pouces  de  diametre,  et  du  poids  de  quarante- 
trois  marcs.  M.  Gallien  de  Chabons  Seigneur  du  lieu, 
et  Conseiller  au  Parlement  de  Grenoble,  etoit  heu- 
reusement  alors  au  chateau  du  Passage;  le  fermier  lui 
porta  le  soir  m^me  le  bouclier,  dont  il  fut  si  charm^,  que 
sur  le  champ  il  lui  donna  quittance  d'une  ann6e  entiere 
de  sa  ferme,  lui  recommendant  seulement  le  secret  de  la 
decouverte  et  de  la  recompense;  ensuite  il  renferma 
precieusement  ce  bouclier,  qu'il  appelloit  une  Table  de 
Sacrifice,  dans  une  armoire  de  la  Sacristie  de  sa  Cha- 
pelle,  et  Pon  n'en  eut  connoissance  qu*apres  sa  mort. 
Alors  ses  heritiers  apprirent   toute  Phistoire  par   son 


MOWCLIMR    VOTIF  JB^'ARGEWF  FUR 


COI'Y  OF  THE  INSCMIPTTON  otr  THE  MONT  Hr  CMdT. 

The  Stane  is  about  2f*2M.aib*. 


■^^A 


r:-:^'^ 


/^A 


m 


^^j 


London  Pub.  In-  /;.A:  W.  B.Whitt^a-.l8!U>. 


175 

livre  lie  ralson,  on  il  avoit  ^crit  que  si  jamais  on  sc 
defaisoit  de  cette  antiquite,  il  falloit  que  ce  fut  pour 
avoir  en  echange  un  fonds  capable  d'entretenir  honnete- 
ment  un  cliapelain  au  chateau  du  Passage :  ils  resolurent 
de  suivre  cette  vue;  ils  envoy eren t  le  Bouclier,  toujours 
appelle  Table  de  Sacrifice,  a  M.  de  Boze,  pour  s^avoir 
s'il  conviendroit  au  Cabinet  du  Roi,  Sa  Majeste,  I'agrea  ; 
Elle  le  fit  payer  le  double  de  sa  valeur  intrins^que  et  il 
fut  place  a  cote  de  celui  de  Scipion. 

Ce  second  Bouclier  votif,  qui  est  tres  entier  et  tres 
conserve,  est  de  la  meme  forme,  c'est  a  dire,  exactement 
rond,  a  peu  pres  de  la  meme  grandeur  et  du  m^me  poids 
que  le  precedent,  mais  il  n*est  pas  a  beaucoup  pres  aussi 
charge  de  figures  et  d'ornements.  On  y  a  seulement 
represente  au  centre,  un  lion  sous  un  palmier,  et  au  bas 
dans  une  espece  d'Exergue  les  membres  epars  de  divers 
animaux,  sur-tout  de  sangliers.  De  ce  centre  partent 
des  rayons  d'une  ciselure  simple  et  noble,  qui  s'elevant  ct 
s'elargissant  dans  une  juste  proportion,  viennent  aboutir 
a  la  circonference  de  tout  le  bouclier,  et  forment  en  ce 
genre  un  tres  agreable  coup  d'oeil. 

M.  de  Boze  I'ayant  fait  voir  a  1' Academic,  on  ne  balan9a 
pas  a  y  reconnoitre  un  ouvrage  Carthaginois ;  le  rapport 
de  la  gravure  de  ce  bouclier  avec  cellc  des  medailles  de 
Carthage,  Tauroit  seul  indique,  mais  le  lion  et  le  pal- 
mier, symbol es  ordinaires  de  cette  Ville  fameuse,  ache- 
voient  de  le  determiner.  De  la  les  conjectures  prenant 
leur  essor,  on  alia  jusqu'a  soup9onner  que  le  bouclier 
pourroit  bien  avoir  appartenu  a  Annibal,  et  ^tre  une 
ofFrande  qu*il  auroit  faite  apres  son. passage  du  Rhone  a 


fe 


176 

quelque  Divinite  des  environs  comme  a  celle  des  Vocon- 
tiens,  "  Dea  Vocontiorum,"  si  celebre  dans  I'histoire,  et 
dont  on  trouve  un  si  grand  nombre  de  monuments  en 
Dauphine.  On  observa  que  son  Temple  etoit  precise- 
ment  dans  le  canton  ou  la  d^couverte  s'etoit  faite,  et  que 
suivant  I'ancienne  tradition  du  pays,  la  terre  du  Passage 
avoit  retenu  ce  nom,  du  passage  d'Annibal  avec  son 
armee,  lorsqu'il  la  menoit  en  Italie:  on  ajouta  que  si 
les  Grccs  et  les  Remains  avoient  coutume  d'offrir  aux 
Dieux,  des  Boucliers  votifs  pour  leur  demander  des  succes 
ou  pour  les  en  remercier ;  cet  u^age  n'etoit  pas  moins 
ordinaire  aux  Carthaginois,  comme  on  I'a  dqa  vu  par 
Texemple  d'Asdrubal  frere  d*Annibal5  dans  les  depouilles 
de  qui  on  trouva  ce  bouclier  d*argent,  du  poids  de  cent 
trente  huit  livres,  qui  fut  mis  au  Capitole.  On  remarqua 
encore  que  si  le  lion  etoit  un  des  symboles  de  Carthage, 
il  etoit  devenu  par  excellence  celui  d'Annibal,  a  qui  on 
en  avoit  donne  le  surnom,  et  qu'Amilcar  son  pere  avoit 
coiitume  de  dire  de  ses  enfans,  que  c'etoient  des  lions 
quil  nourrissoit  pour  la  destruction  de  Rome  et  de  ses 
Allies.     (Tom.  ix.  p.  155.) 


177 


EXTRACT  FROM  THE  THEATRUM  SABAUDIyE,  RELATING  TO 
THE  ESTABLISHMENT  OF  THE  CONVENT  ON  THE  LITTLE 
ST.  BERNARD. 

J^  ON  satis  fuit  eximio  Viro  Dei,  Bernardo,  quae  dix- 
imus  in  Monte  Jovis^  fecisse,  nisi  id  ipsum  in  supradicto 
monte  qui  ex  Salassis  in  Centrones  sive  ex  Augustensi 
Valle  in  Tarentasiensis  ducit,  praestitisset.  Is,  cum 
Mons  Columnae  Jovis  diceretur  accepta  denominatione 
a  Marmore^  Column^  cujus  in  sum  mo  eminebat  Lapis 
Carbunculus  sen  Pyropus  quem  Jovis  oculum  dicebant, 
ut  fert  veterum  traditio'',  non  modo  deject^  column^, 
quod  idem  in  Monte  Jovis  aeque  praestiterat,  Daemones 
Viatoribus  similiter  insidientes  inde  ejecit,  verum  etiam 
allam  Hospitalem  domum,  sub  eorundem  Regularium 
ordinis  sui  Canonicorum  regimine,  perpetuo  ad  viatores 
excipiendos  inhabitandam,  inibi  aedificavit ;  quai  quia 
minoris  molis  est,  minoreque  Religiosorum  nuraero 
habitatur,  Minoris  Sancti  Bernardi,  vulgo,  le  Petit  St. 
Bernard  apud  Gallos,  San  Bernardo  il  piccolo  apud 
Italos,  nomen  obtinuit. 

a  The  Great  St,  Bernard. 

b  This  tradition  of  the  eye  still  exists  on  the  spot. 


178 


ON  THE  DISTANCES  FROM  THE  PYRENEES  TO  THE 
VILLAGE  OF  ST.  MARTIN. 

1 T  has  not  been  thought  necessary  to  insert  a  map  of 
the  road  taken  by  the  army  from  Ampurias  to  Nismes, 
as  it  appears  from  the  39th  chapter  of  Polybius  that 
he  supposes  them  to  have  marched  in  the  track  of  the 
great  Roman  road*",  which  formed  the  communication 
between  those  two  places.  It  may  however  be  satisfactory 
to  give  the  Roman  stations,  and  their  distances  from 
each  other,  as  marked  in  the  Antonine  Itinerary.  The 
distances  are  given  generally  as  corrected  by  D'Anville, 
since  without  these  corrections  they  are  in  some  places 
manifestly  wrong. 

Roman  Miles. 

From  Emporium  (Ampurias) 

to  Juncaria  (Junquera) 16 

Ad  Pyrenseum  (Fort  Bellegarde)    .....  6 

Ad  Stabulum  (Boulon) 6 

Salsulis  (Salces) 28 

Narbone  (Narbonne) 30 

Beterras  (Beziers)     16 

Araura  sive  Ceserone  (St.  Thibery)  ....  12 

Forum  Domitl  (Gigean?) 18 

Sextatione  (Soustantion) 15 

Ambrussum  (Pont  Ambrois  on  the  Vidourle)  15 

Nemausus  (Nismes)     15 

Add  the  distance  to  Roquemaure 30 

207 

*  D'Anville  supposes  this  to  have  been  the  Via  Domitia.    See  his  Notice 
«ur  La  Gaule,  art.  Forum  Domitii. 


179 

The  distance  is  staled  by  Polybius  at  500  miles,  so 
that  here  is  an  excess  of  7,  which  is  certainly  not  con- 
siderable. The  Roman  road  quitted  the  present  post 
road  at  Boulon,  and  went  to  the  eastward  to  Elne 
(lUiberis)  and  Roussillon  (Ruscino),  a  town  now  de- 
stroyed, on  the  river  Tet,  a  little  below  Perpignan. 
It  then  rejoined  the  great  modern  road,  and  went  in  the 
same  direction  till  a  few  miles  beyond  Beziers,  when  it 
turned  off  to  the  E.  to  St,  Thybery,  on  the  river 
Herault,  and  proceeded  in  a  straight  line  to  Soustantion, 
which  is  about  three  miles  to  the  N.  E.  of  Montpellier. 
It  crossed  the  Vidourle  above  the  bridge  of  Lunel  by  a 
bridge  at  Ambrussum,  the  remains  of  which  are  now 
called  Pont  Ambrois,  from  thence  to  Nismes.  The 
distance  from  Emporium  to  Juncaria  is  not  in  the 
Itinerary,  but  I  have  stated  it  according  to  its  actual 
amount. 

From  the  passage  of  the  Rhone  to  the  foot  of  the 
Alps,  or  from  Roquemaure  to  St.  Jean  de  Chevelu 
(Lavisco),  there  is  a  distance  of  175  miles,  according  to 
Polybius.  The  Antonine  Itinerary  gives  no  road  be- 
tween Valence  and  Grange,  but  the  Itinerarium  Hiero- 
solymitanum  gives  thirty-eight  miles  from  Arausione 
(Orange)  to  Acuno  (Anconne),  a  small  village  a  little 
above  Montelimart,  and  thirty-two  miles  from  Acuno  to 
Valentia  (Valence),  in  all  seventy  miles  from  Orange  to 
Valence.  The  real  distance  is  not  quite  so  great.  From 
Valentia  we  take  up  the  Antonine  Itinerary  again, 
coming  from  Milan  by  the  Mont  Genevre  or  Cottian 

N  '2 


1«0 


Alps  to  Vienne,  where  we  fall  in  with  the  road  from 
Milan  by  the  Graian  Alps  or  little  St.  Bernard. 

From  Orange  to  Valence    70 

To  Ursolis  (St.  Vallier?) 22 

Vienna  (Vienne) 26 

Bergusia  (Bourgoin) 20 

Augustum  (Aoste) 16 

Labiscone  (Chevelu) 14 

Add  from  Roquemaure  to  Orange 6 

174 

The  third  division  of  the  march  consists  of  the  pas- 
sage of  the  Alps,  1 50  miles. 

From  Labiscone  to  Lemincum  (Chambery)  14 

Mantala  (Freterive?) 16 

Ad  Publicanos  (rHopital)    16 

Oblimum  (La  Batie)    3 

Darantasia  (Salins)    13 

Bergintrum  (Bourg  St.  Maurice)    18 

Arebrigium  (Pre  St.  Didier) 24 

Augusta  Praetoria  (Aoste) 25 

Vitricium  (Verr^s) .  25 

Add  from  Verres  to  St.  Martin 10 

164 

This  gives  14  miles  too  much,  but  on  the  other 
hand  a  considerable  deduction  is  to  be  made  from  the 
three  last  stations  in  the  Itinerary.     The  distance  from 


181 


St.  Maurice  to  Pre  St.  Didier  is  not  so  much  as  24 
miles,  and  five  miles  are  to  be  deducted  from  the  stage 
from  Pre  St.  Didier  to  Aoste,  which  is  not  above  20. 
The  same  number  is  also  to  be  taken  from  the  stage 
between  Aoste  and  Verres.  These  deductions  will 
reduce  the  excess  to  about  the  distance  required  of  150 
miles.  We  left  Pr^  St.  Didier  on  the  twenty-fifth  of 
August,  at  least  an  hour  after  day-break,  and  went  at 
a  very  slow  foot's  pace  to  Aoste,  stopping  to  bait  on 
the  way.  We  stayed  some  time  at  Aoste,  and  reached 
Verres  just  as  it  became  dark,  stopping  to  bait  on  the 
road*  i  This  we  could  certainly  not  have  done  had  it  been 
SO  miles.  -.x  (^.■^■iylyj^  ^.'lui  a* 

Hannibal  crossed  the  Pyrenees  with  50,000  infantry 
and  9,000  cavalry,  and  arrived  in  Italy  with  20,000 
infantry  and  6,000  cavalry,  having  lost  33,000  men 
in  the  march,  and  it  is  remarkable  that  this  number 
differs  very  little  from  that  reported  by  Livy  on  the 
authority  of  Cincius  Alimentus.  Lib.  xxi.  c.  38.  The 
passage  is  a  little  corrupt,  but  there  can  be  little  doubt 
of  his  alluding  to  the  total  loss  during  the  march,  and 
not  only  among  the  Taurini. 

The  march  was  completed  in  five  months  from  Cartha- 
gena,  which  he  left  early  in  June,  and  arrived  at  the 
plains  of  the  ,Po  in  the  first  days  of  November  in  the 
year  B.  C.  218,  and  U.  C.  534,  ;^t5^.<»i  j  t-.  lo  ^m-r-i  /r.*. 
:  Polybius  states  the  amount  of  the  army  oil  the 
authority  of  an  inscription  made  by  Hannibal  himself, 
and  found  at  Lacinium. 


182 


The  most  extraordinary  passage  of  the  Alps  iii 
modern  times  is  that  by  Francis  1.  in  his  invasion  of 
Italy  in  1515.  As  the  Swiss  troops  had  occupied  the 
great  roads,  he  was  obliged  to  make  the  most  extra- 
ordinary efforts  to  carry  his  army  over  mountains  which 
had  never  before  been  passed  except  by  the  people  of 
the  country.  The  main  body  of  the  array  appears  to 
have  gone  from  Mont  Dauphin  by  the  rock  of  St.  Paul 
into  the  valley  of  Barcelonnette,  and  then  by  the  Col  de 
L'Argentiere  into  the  valley  of  La  Sture,  and  so  to  the 
Marquisate  of  Saluzzo.  The  reader  may  consult 
Mons.  Sismondi's  Histoire  des  Republiques  Italiennes 
on  this  subject,  as  well  as  Paulus  Jovius  and  Guicciar- 
dlni.  Leger,  in  his  Histoire  des  Eglises  Vaudoises, 
affirms,  that  Francis  caused  a  passage  to  be  cut  through 
Mont  Viso  for  this  purpose;  and  it  is  certain  that  in  one 
of  the  best  maps  of  that  country,  that  of  Buonaparte's 
Campaigns  by  Bacler  D*Albe,  we  find  on  the  summit 
of  the.  Mont  Viso  the  words  *'  Traversette,  Trou  faiie 
**  de  main  d'homme."  Mention  is  made  of  the  piercing 
a  rock  called  Pied  de  Pore  both  by  Varillas,  and  by 
Paulus  Jovius,  the  former  of  whom  attributes  the  merit 
of  this  enterprise  to  Navarre,  and  the  latter  to  Trivulzio; 
but  this  rock  appears  to  have  been  situated  in  the  valley 
of  La  Sture^  and  none, of  the  historians  of  the  time  say 
any  thing  of  a  passage  cut  through  the  Mont  Viso.  Thie 
whole  march  is  extremely  curious,  and  well  worth 
examination. 

THE  END. 


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