Lectitō › Julius Caesar › The Alexandrian War (Bellum Alexandrinum)
Bellum Alexandrinum 72
Zela and its hill
Hirtius, Bellum Alexandrinum. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in LectitōB. Alex. 72.1Zēla est oppidum in Pontō positum, ipsum ut in plānō locō satis mūnītum: tumulus enim nātūrālis, velut manū factus, excelsiōre undique fastīgiō sustinet mūrum.
Zela is a town set in Pontus, itself fairly well fortified for a place on level ground: for a natural mound, as if made by hand, holds up its wall with a slope rising higher on every side.
Note. ipsum ut in plānō locō: 'itself, for a place on level ground'. excelsiōre … fastīgiō: 'with a higher slope', i.e. the mound raises the wall above the plain.
B. Alex. 72.2Circumpositī sunt huic oppidō magnī multīque intercīsī vallibus collēs;
Around this town lie many large hills, cut apart by valleys;
Note. Circumpositī sunt: 'are placed around', with the dative huic oppidō.
B. Alex. 72.2quōrum ēditissimus ūnus, quī propter victōriam Mithridātis et īnfēlīcitātem Triāriī dētrīmentumque exercitūs nostrī superiōribus acceptum temporibus magnam in illīs partibus habet nōbilitātem, paene coniūnctus est oppidō nec multō longius mīlibus passuum III abest ab Zēlā.
the highest of these, which is very famous in those parts because of Mithridates' victory and the misfortune of Triarius and the defeat of our army suffered in earlier times, is almost joined to the town and is not much more than three miles away from Zela.
Note. victōriam Mithridātis: Mithridates VI, father of Pharnaces, defeated the Roman legate Triarius near Zela in 67 BC. milibus passuum III: 'than three miles', ablative of comparison after longius.
B. Alex. 72.3Hunc locum Pharnacēs veteribus paternōrum fēlīcium castrōrum refectīs operibus cōpiīs suīs omnibus occupāvit.
Pharnaces occupied this place with all his forces, after repairing the old works of his father's lucky camp.
Note. paternōrum fēlīcium castrōrum: the 'lucky camp' of his father Mithridates. refectīs operibus: ablative absolute.
Vocabulary
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| oppidum, -ī, n. | town |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| pōnō, pōnere, posuī, positus | place, put; pōnī with in and abl., to be placed in, rest or depend on |
| ipse, ipsa, ipsum, intensive pron. | self, himself, herself, itself, themselves; often to be rendered by very |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| plānus, -a, -um | flat, level |
| locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n. | place, situation |
| satis, adv. | enough, sufficiently |
| mūniō, -īre, -īvī, -ītus | fortify |
| tumulus, -ī m. | mound, hillock |
| enim, conj. | for |
| nātūrālis, -e | natural, by nature |
| velut | even or just as, as |
| manus, -ūs, f. | hand |
| faciō, facere, fēcī, factus | make, do; iter facere, see iter |
| excelsus, -a, -um | high, tall |
| undique, adv. | from or on all sides |
| fastīgium, -ī n. | top, summit; slope; height |
| sustineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold or bear up, sustain, withstand |
| mūrus, -ī, m. | wall |
| circumpōnō, -ere, -posuī, -positus | put around; fix on (a stick) |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| magnus, -a, -um | large, big, great, mighty; loud |
| multus, -a, -um | much, great; plur., many |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| intercīdō, -ere, -cīdī, -cīsus | cut through, cut apart |
| vallis, -is, f. | valley |
| collis, -is m. | hill |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| ēditus, -a, -um | raised, high |
| ūnus, -a, -um | one; only, alone |
| propter, prep. with acc. | on account of, because of |
| victōria, -ae, f. | victory |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| īnfēlīcitās, -ātis f. | ill luck, misfortune |
| dētrīmentum, -ī n. | loss, harm |
| exercitus, -ūs, m. | army |
| noster, -tra, -trum | our |
| superior, -ius, adj. | higher; former, previous, preceding |
| accipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take to oneself, receive, accept; hear; suffer |
| tempus, temporis, n. | time, season |
| ille, illa, illud, dem. pron. | that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc |
| pars, partis, f. | part, side, direction |
| habeō, -ēre, -uī, -itus | have, hold; consider |
| nōbilitās, -tātis f. | the nobility |
| paene, adv. | almost, nearly |
| coniungō, -iungere, -iūnxī, -iūnctus | join together, join |
| neque or nec, conj. | and not, nor; neque ... neque, neither ... nor; neque enim, for ... not |
| multō, adv. | by much or far, much, far |
| longē, adv. | far |
| mīlle, indecl. adj. | a thousand; mīlia, -ium, n. plur., thousands; |
| passus, -ūs, m. | pace (mīlia passuum: miles) |
| Roman numeral | a number written with letters: I 1, V 5, X 10, L 50, C 100, D 500, M 1000 |
| absum, abesse, āfuī, āfutūrus | be away, be absent, be distant; be wanting |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| vetus, veteris | old, former |
| paternus, -a, -um | of a father, a father's |
| fēlīx, -īcis | fortunate, lucky, happy |
| castra, -ōrum, n. plur. | camp |
| reficiō, -ficere, -fēcī, -fectus | make anew, renew, repair |
| opus, operis, n. | work, task |
| cōpia, -ae, f. | supply, abundance; plur., forces, troops |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| occupō, -cupāre, -cupāvī, -cupātus | seize; fill |