>>6078753During the mid-era of the Roman republic, after three losses at the hands of the Carthaginian general Hannibal, at the battles of: lake Trasimene, the Trebia river, and the battle of Cannae; the Roman male population might have shrunk as much as 25%.
Even after multiple Italian states declaring their loyalty to Carthage, Rome kept demanding unconditional surrender of their enemy, and eventually won the second Punic war.
I cannot think of one single state apart from the Romans who would have continued to push such demands after such incredible losses; but that simply speaks to Rome's cultural tenacity, even before they were an empire.
