Lectitō › Julius Caesar › The Alexandrian War (Bellum Alexandrinum)
Bellum Alexandrinum 18
The fall of Pharos
Hirtius, Bellum Alexandrinum. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in LectitōB. Alex. 18.1Neque vērō diūtius eā mūnītiōne sē continēre potuērunt, etsī erat nōn dissimile atque Alexandrīae genus aedificiōrum, ut minōra maiōribus cōnferantur, turrēsque ēditae et coniūnctae mūrī locum obtinēbant, neque nostrī aut scālīs aut crātibus aut reliquīs rēbus parātī vēnerant ad oppugnandum.
But they could not hold out any longer in that defence, even though the style of building was not unlike that of Alexandria, to compare small things with great, and lofty towers joined together served in place of a wall, and our men had not come prepared for an assault with ladders or wicker screens or other equipment.
Note. nōn dissimile atque Alexandrīae: 'not unlike (that) of Alexandria'; dissimilis … atque. ut minōra maiōribus cōnferantur: 'to compare small with great'. mūrī locum obtinēbant: 'served as a wall'.
B. Alex. 18.2Sed terror hominibus mentem cōnsiliumque ēripit et membra dēbilitat;
But terror robs men of their wits and judgement and weakens their limbs;
Note. A general remark (sententia), with present tenses.
B. Alex. 18.2ut tum accidit.
as happened then.
Note. ut tum accidit: 'as happened then'; ut with the indicative = 'as'.
B. Alex. 18.3Quī sē in aequō locō ac plānō parēs esse cōnfīdēbant, īdem perterritī fugā suōrum et caede paucōrum XXX pedum altitūdine in aedificiīs cōnsistere ausī nōn sunt sēque per mōlem in mare praecipitāvērunt et DCCCC passuum intervallum ad oppidum ēnatāvērunt.
Those same men who had trusted that they were a match for us on level and even ground were terrified by the flight of their comrades and the slaughter of a few, and did not dare to stand in buildings thirty feet high; they flung themselves from the mole into the sea and swam the nine hundred paces to the town.
Note. īdem: nominative plural, 'these same men'. xxx pedum altitūdine: genitive of measure inside an ablative of description. dcccc passuum: 900 paces, about 1.3 km.
B. Alex. 18.4Multī tamen ex hīs captī interfectīque sunt;
Many of them, however, were captured or killed;
Note. captī interfectīque sunt: 'were captured or killed'.
B. Alex. 18.4sed numerus captīvōrum omnīnō fuit sex mīlium.
but the number of prisoners came to six thousand in all.
Note. sex mīlium: genitive of description, 'of six thousand'.
Vocabulary
| neque or nec, conj. | and not, nor; neque ... neque, neither ... nor; neque enim, for ... not |
| vērō, adv. | in truth, indeed; however |
| diū, adv. | for a long time, a long time or while, long; comp |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| mūnītiō, -ōnis f. | fortification, defence works |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| contineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold together, keep within, shut up in; bound |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| etsī, conj. | even if, although |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| nōn, adv. | not |
| dissimilis, -e | unlike, different |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| genus, generis, n. | kind, nature |
| aedificium, -ī n. | building |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| parvus, -a, -um | little, small |
| magnus, -a, -um | large, big, great, mighty; loud |
| cōnferō, cōnferre, contulī, conlātus | bring together; grant, confer; sē cōnferre, to betake oneself, make one's way |
| turris, -is f. | tower; siege tower |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| ēditus, -a, -um | raised, high |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| coniungō, -iungere, -iūnxī, -iūnctus | join together, join |
| mūrus, -ī, m. | wall |
| locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n. | place, situation |
| obtineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold |
| noster, -tra, -trum | our |
| aut, conj. | or; aut ... aut, either ... or |
| scāla, -ae f. (usually pl. scālae) | ladder, scaling ladder |
| crātēs, -is f. | wickerwork, hurdle |
| reliquus, -a, -um | left, the remaining, the other, the rest of |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| parātus, -a, -um | prepared, equipped, ready |
| veniō, venīre, vēnī, ventus | come |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| oppugnō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | attack, besiege |
| sed, conj. | but |
| terror, -ōris, m. | terror, fright |
| homō, hominis, m. | man |
| mēns, mentis f. | mind, spirit |
| cōnsilium, -ī, n. | advice; plan, design, purpose; prudence |
| ēripiō, -ripere, -ripuī, -reptus | snatch out or away, rescue |
| membrum, -ī, n. | limb, member |
| dēbilitō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | weaken, cripple, unnerve |
| tum, adv. | then, at that time |
| accidō, -cidere, -cidī | fall to or upon; befall, happen |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| aequus, -a, -um | level; equal; fair |
| plānus, -a, -um | flat, level |
| pār, paris | equal |
| cōnfīdō, -ere, cōnfīsus sum | trust, be confident |
| īdem, eadem, idem, dem. pron. | the same; sometimes to be translated likewise, also |
| perterreō, -terrēre, -terrui, -territus | thoroughly frighten, terrify |
| fuga, -ae, f. | flight |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| caedēs, -is, f. | cutting down, killing, slaughter |
| paucī, -ae, -a, plur. adj. | few |
| Roman numeral | a number written with letters: I 1, V 5, X 10, L 50, C 100, D 500, M 1000 |
| pēs, pedis, m. | foot |
| altitūdō, -inis f. | height; depth |
| cōnsistō, -sistere, -stitī, -stitus | station oneself, take one's stand; consist |
| audeō, audēre, ausus sum | dare |
| per, prep, with ace. | through, by means of |
| mōlēs, -is f. | mass; dam, breakwater |
| mare, maris, n. | sea |
| praecipitō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | throw headlong; sē praecipitāre: hurl oneself |
| passus, -ūs, m. | pace (mīlia passuum: miles) |
| intervallum, -ī, n. | interval, space, distance |
| oppidum, -ī, n. | town |
| ēnatō, -āre, -āvī | swim out, escape by swimming |
| multus, -a, -um | much, great; plur., many |
| tamen, adv. | however, yet, nevertheless |
| ex, ē (prep. + abl.) | out of, from; of (ē only before consonants) |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| capiō, capere, cēpī, captus | take, catch, seize; receive, suffer; adopt |
| interficiō, -ficere, -fēcī, -fectus | put out of the way, kill |
| numerus, -ī, m. | number |
| captīvus, -a, -um | captive |
| omnīnō, adv. | altogether, wholly, entirely |
| sex (indecl.) | six |
| mīlle, indecl. adj. | a thousand; mīlia, -ium, n. plur., thousands; |