# Hannibal wasn't black... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [August 31, 2012, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hannibal-wasnt-black/633232 "2012-08-31T05:08:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![blondesareeasy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@blondesareeasy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondesareeasy)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hannibal-wasnt-black/633232/1 "2012-08-31T05:08:22Z")
He was coloured. And he was a she. So there. ---
**Author:** ![Steken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Steken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steken)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hannibal-wasnt-black/633232/2 "2012-08-31T07:33:50Z")
What? ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hannibal-wasnt-black/633232/3 "2012-08-31T07:41:05Z")
And black bears are really dark haired! And secretly Bengal tigers! Hey, this is fun! ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hannibal-wasnt-black/633232/4 "2012-08-31T08:21:22Z")
> [@blondesareeasy](#): > > He was coloured. And he was a she. So there. You’re thinking of Annabelle. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 8:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hannibal-wasnt-black/633232/5 "2012-08-31T08:33:50Z")
Assuming the OP is serious, this is the only column of Cecil’s that I can find that mentions Hannibal and blackness. [Was Ludwig van Beethoven of African ancestry?](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2598/was-ludwig-van-beethoven-of-african-ancestry) Cecil however does not assert that Hannibal is black in the column, he merely mentions his name in a list of historical personages supposedly black, a list which, Cecil comments, “includes quite a few names likely to strike some today as risible”. As to whether he was a she, there I am not going! ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hannibal-wasnt-black/633232/6 "2012-08-31T11:26:32Z")
MODERATOR COMMENT: **blondesareeasy** , welcome to the Straight Dope Message Boards. We’d like a little more explanation from you: (1) Is this in response to one of Cecil’s columns? If so, which one? (DId **aldiboronti** guess correctly?) (2) On your statement that “he was a she” , do you have any cites or references to back this up? General comment: We don’t like trollers around here, and if that’s what you’re doing, your future here will be very limited. However, I’m giving you benefit of the doubt for now, if you’d care to comment further. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hannibal-wasnt-black/633232/7 "2012-08-31T13:55:51Z")
> [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](#): > > However, I’m giving you benefit of the doubt for now, if you’d care to comment further. Aha, a [Fabian strategy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fabian_strategy) of delay and avoidance! Just the thing for dealing with the Hannibal question. A moderator of classical tastes, I see! ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hannibal-wasnt-black/633232/8 "2012-08-31T14:01:57Z")
Dex is going to lose at Cannae. Hubris gets all mods in the end.