Born to vengeance. Raised to conquer. Forever a legend.

It is 200 years before the birth of Christ and Rome is the burgeoning superpower of the ancient world. With each conquest her empire grows. No one can stand in her way. But one man is destined to challenge all that. A man bound by oath to avenge the wrongs inflicted on his home, Carthage in North Africa – the empire that ruled the Mediterranean before Rome stole its crown; a man who’s pathological hatred of Rome knows no bounds. In pursuit of revenge he will stop at nothing.

From his exile in Spain, 26-year-old Hannibal Barca was the mastermind behind what is arguably the most audacious military move in history. With 40,000 soldiers and 37 elephants he marched 1500 miles from Spain through the wild Pyrenees into the savage lands of the Gauls of France, across the raging Rhone and finally through the snow-gripped mountain passes of the fearsome Alps to challenge his enemies on their own soil – an act so daring that few people believed it possible.

The campaign that follows is so brutal, so violent, so savage, that it almost defies belief. Hannibal destroys the Roman myth of invincibility by defeating the great nation and army not once, but three times, the third defeat being the most utterly crushing and terrible that Rome endured in her entire history. Then he rides, unchallenged, to the gates of the great city and taunts his enemies as they cower inside. Hannibal Barca comes within a whisker of destroying Rome, his greatest enemy.

But this isn’t simply a story of grandeur and spectacle. It is one that touches every emotion. The everyday thoughts and actions of Hannibal’s world are brought to life through a combination of immersive drama, the latest historical research and CGI; from the daily challenges faced by the army on their journey across the river Rhone and the mountainous Alps, to Hannibal’s own fierce personal and ultimately destructive rivalry with Scipio Africanus – the only man ever to be victorious over the Carthagian hero.

The public and private, awesome and gritty story of one of the most brilliant military strategists that ever lived is brought to life here, for the very first time on a grand scale.

Director
Edward Bazalgette
Genghis Khan
Producer
Ailsa Orr
Pompeii: The Last Day
Executive Producer
Phil Dolling
Genghis Khan