The portrayal of the Carthaginians as a rabble (tattered unkempt etc) is highly unlikely. They had a code of laws and ruled by a council elected in a somewhat democratic fashion. The fact that Hannibal respected the decisions of the council supports the fact that they were a civilized state and not barbaric. The barbarism hue probably comes from the fact that history is written by the victor (here the Romans ultimately). As usual the cause of the Hannibal defeat was the poor decision making by the politicians (who usually do so because of their selfish unpatriotic agendas).
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