Now that the entire pensinsula south of the Ebro is under your control, you retire to Cartagena for the winter. With spring, the time is now ripe to attack the fattest city in the land, Saguntum. Situated a mile from the sea, the city is the most opulent south of the Ebro. It is a Greek colony and its inhabitants had become wealthy in gains from the sea and land. It is guarded by a garrison of Roman troops and a brazen populace. You estimate the Saguntines have plentiful stores. The city is built on a hillside, three to four hundred feet above the plain, making planning a siege difficult. But there is more even ground on the west side – although it is guarded by a tower and the walls are highest and thickest here.
