died 203 BC
Roman commander and statesman.
He served as consul in 233 BC (an office he would hold five times) and censor in 230. Elected dictator in 217, he used a strategy of harassment and attrition in the Second Hannibal (218–201). These cautious delaying tactics (Cunctator means "delayer") allowed Rome to recover and take the offensive, but Roman impatience led to defeat at the Battle of {{link=Cannae, Battle of">Cannae . He unsuccessfully opposed the invasion of Africa by Scipio Africanus in 205.