Once an additional 20 of the Carthaginian ships had been hooked and lost to the Romans, Hamilcar retreated with his surviving ships, leaving Duilius with a clear victory.

There he saved the city of Segesta, which had been under siege from the Carthaginian infantry commander Hamilcar.

It should be noted that Hamilcar Barca had a subordinate named Gesco conduct the negotiations with Lutatius, in order to create the impression that he had not really been defeated.

Carthage at the time was in such a poor state that its navy was unable to transport his army to Iberia ( Hispania ); instead, Hamilcar had to march it towards the Pillars of Hercules and transport it across the Strait of Gibraltar ( present-day Morocco / Spain ).

A first issue for dispute was that the initial treaty, agreed upon by Hamilcar Barca and the Roman commander in Sicily, had a clause stipulating that the Roman popular assembly had to accept the treaty in order for it to be valid.

Hamilcar had led the initial Carthaginian peace negotiations and was blamed for the clause that allowed the Roman popular assembly to increase the war indemnity and annex Corsica and Sardinia, but his superlative generalship was instrumental in enabling Carthage to ultimately quell the mercenary uprising, ironically fought against many of the same mercenary troops he had trained.

Further, when he and Hamilcar were supreme commanders of Carthage's field armies, the soldiers had supported Hamilcar when his and Hamilcar's personalities clashed.

However, the Numidian king of the relevant area was now a son-in-law of Hamilcar and had supported Carthage during a crucial moment in the Mercenary War.

In the Battle of Himera, Gelo, who had allied with Theron of Agrigento, decisively defeated the African force led by Hamilcar.

Hasdrubal Gisco is the son of the Gesco who had served together with Hamilcar Barca, Hannibal's father, in Sicily during the First Punic War and son-in-law of Hanno the Elder who was one of Hannibal's lieutenants in Italy.

The causes leading the Selinuntines to abandon the cause of the other Greeks, and take part with the Carthaginians during the great expedition of Hamilcar ( 480 BCE ) are unknown ; they had even promised to send a contingent to the Carthaginian army, which, however did not arrive till after its defeat

The Carthaginians had gained command of the sea after their victory in the Battle of Drepanum in 249 BC, but they only held two cities in Sicily: Lilybaeum and Drepanum by the time Hamilcar took up command.

Carthage at this time was feeling the strain of the prolonged conflict ( In addition to maintaining a fleet and soldiers in Sicily they were also fighting the Libyans and Numidians in Africa ), and as a result Hamilcar was given a fairly small army and the Carthaginian fleet was gradually withdrawn so that by 242 BC Carthage had no ships to speak of in Sicily.

With a small force and no money to hire new troops, Hamilcar ’ s strategic goal probably was to maintain a stalemate, as he had not the recourses to win the war and nor the authority to peacefully settle it Hamilcar was in command of a mercenary army composed of multiple nationalities and his ability to successfully lead this force demonstrates his skill as field commander.

The difference is that Fabius commanded a numerically superior army than his opponent and had no supply problems, and had room to maneuver, while Hamilcar was mostly static and had a far smaller army than the Romans and was dependent on seaborne supplies from Carthage.

However, if Hamilcar had hoped to recapture Panormus, he failed in his strategy.

Hamilcar continued his activities unhindered from his position for another two years, being supplied by road from Drepana, although Carthaginian ships had been withdrawn from Sicily by this time and no naval raids were launched.

Hamilcar managed to inflict severe casualties on the Romans soon after, and when the Roman consul requested a truce to bury his dead, Hamilcar replied that his quarrel was with the living only and the dead had already settled their dues, and granted the truce.

Hamilcar ’ s soldiers, who had been kept together only by his personal authority and by the promise of good pay, broke out into open mutiny and marched on Carthage and encamped at Tunis.

After the war, Hanno refused to pay the mercenaries who had been promised money and rewards by Hamilcar.

But by defeating Hamilcar in 480 BC, Gelo managed to keep Sicily free from Carthaginian invasion for the next seventy years.

However, the constant skirmishing without ultimate victory may have caused the morale of some of Hamilcar ’ s troops to crack and 1, 000 Celtic mercenaries tried to betray the Punic camp to the Romans, which was foiled.

Hamilcar ultimately left Carthage for the Iberian peninsula where he captured rich silver mines and subdued many tribes who fortified his army with levies of native troops.

The Carthaginians in the following spring ( 409 BCE ) sent over a vast army amounting, according to the lowest estimate, to 100, 000 men, with which Hannibal Mago ( the grandson of Hamilcar that was killed at Himera ) landed at Lilybaeum, and from thence marched direct to Selinunte.

Under the Carthaginian military leader, Hamilcar, Carthage sends across a large army.

Following the assassination of Hasdrubal, Hannibal, the son of the Carthaginian general, Hamilcar Barca, is proclaimed commander-in-chief by the army and his appointment is confirmed by the Carthaginian government.

* Nevertheless, Hamilcar Barca leads a Carthaginian army in an invasion of the Iberian Peninsula with the aim of building a base from which war with Rome can be renewed.

* Hamilcar Barca strikes at the supply lines of the mercenary army besieging Carthage, forcing them to cease the siege of the city.

* The mercenary army, under the leadership of Spendius, attempts to fight its way out of the siege but is totally defeated by the Carthaginian forces led by Hamilcar Barca.

* Hamilcar and another Carthaginian general, Hannibal, besiege Mathos ' mercenary army at Tunis and crucify the captured mercenary leaders in sight of the mercenary battlements.

Hamilcar pardons his captured prisoners, accepting into his army anyone who will fight for Carthage, and exiling anyone who will not.

* Hamilcar Barca transfers his army to the slopes of Mount Eryx ( Monte San Giuliano ), from which he is able to lend support to the besieged garrison in the neighbouring town of Drepanum ( Trapani ).

* Aircraft for army co-operation and liaison and gliders were given names associated with mythological or legendary leaders ; e. g. Westland Lysander, Airspeed Horsa, General Aircraft Hamilcar, Slingsby Hengist.

* The Carthaginian general Hamilcar crosses the Mediterranean with an army and wins Battle of Himera against the tyrant of Syracuse, Agathocles ' forces.

With a reduced army and fleet, Hamilcar commenced his operations.

In 244 BC Hamilcar transferred his army at night by sea to a similar position on the slopes of Mt.

Hamilcar sized the town of Eryx, captured by the Romans in 249 BC after destroying the Roman garrison, and positioned his army between the Roman forces stationed at the summit and their camp at the base of the mountain.

Hamilcar Barca refused the demand to surrender Roman deserters or disarm Carthaginian soldiers despite being threatened by Lutatius to have the Punic army pass under the yoke.

Hanno the Great initially commanded the Punic army, but after his defeat at Utica Hamilcar Barca was called out of retirement.

Modern historians have wondered at Duilius ’ decision not to immediately follow up with another naval attack, but Hamilcar ’ s remaining 80 ships was probably still too strong for Rome to conquer.

Carthage, seeking to make up for the recent territorial losses and a plentiful source of silver to pay the large indemnity owed to Rome, turned its attention to Iberia, and in 237 BC the Carthaginians, led by Hamilcar Barca, began a series of campaigns to expand their control over the peninsula.

During one of the raids, when troops under a subordinate commander named “ Boaster ” engaged in plunder against the orders of Hamilcar and suffered severe casualties when the Romans caught up to them, Hamilcar requested a truce to bury his dead.

Hamilcar, furious that Sicily had been given up too soon while he had been undefeated, could rely on support from this party.

Around this time the War Office and Air Ministry began to draw up specifications for several types of military gliders to be used by the unit, which would eventually take the form of the General Aircraft Hotspur, General Aircraft Hamilcar, Airspeed Horsa and the Slingsby Hengist.