Hannibal Barca was the best known Carthagian: a general and the son of another great general, Hannibal took control of Spain in 221BC and then set off 3 years later at the head of a 90,000 man infantry, 12000 calvary and 37 elephants. He crossed France, crossed the Alps into Italy and was left with only 17 elephants and 23000 men. His finest hour was in 216BC when he aninihilated a Roman army of 80,000 despite being vastly outnumbered. Rome continued to try to defeat him by never fighting him; they contained him instead.
Of course, the ruins of Carthage and associated museum were closed when I was there. I peered through the wrought iron fence instead.
During WWII, Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Algeria were heavily involved in the North African campaign. After the British defeated Rommel at El Alamein in Egypt, German re-inforcements squared off with British and American forces in Tunisia. Conditions were tough with heavy rain and cold and long supply lines. The Battles of Kasserine Pass, Tunis and Bizerte ended with the capture of over 125,000 Germans and 115,000 Italians.
The American Cemetery is a wonderful, peaceful memorial in a lovely garden setting covering 27 acres. Over 2800 soliers, sailors, aircrew are buried there, among laurel fig trees, hibiscus, eualyptus and orangeberry. Among the dead are four instances where two brothers were buried side by side. In one case, the brothers were killed on the same day: Robert and Clyde Olson. One was a bomber pilot; the other an infantryman. Another marker is the grave of Pvt Nicolas Minue who won the Medal of Honor.
