Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Civil War, Book 1
De Bello Civili 1.37
Fabius seizes the Pyrenees passes
Caesar, De Bello Civili I. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in LectitōBC 1.37.1Dum haec parat atque administrat, C. Fabium lēgātum cum legiōnibus iii, quās Narbōne circumque ea loca hiemandī causā disposuerat, in Hispāniam praemittit celeriterque saltūs Pȳrēnaeōs occupārī iubet, quī eō tempore ab L. Afrāniō lēgātō praesidiīs tenēbantur.
While he is preparing and managing these things, he sends ahead into Spain his legate Gaius Fabius with the three legions he had stationed for the winter at Narbo and around those parts, and orders him to seize the Pyrenean passes quickly, which at that time were held by garrisons of Lucius Afranius, the legate.
Note. hiemandī causā: gerund, 'for the sake of wintering'. saltūs Pȳrēnaeōs: 'the Pyrenean passes'. quī … tenēbantur: quī refers to saltūs (masculine plural).
BC 1.37.2reliquās legiōnēs, quae longius hiemābant, subsequī iubet.
He orders the rest of the legions, which were wintering further away, to follow.
Note. longius: 'further away'. subsequī: present infinitive of the deponent subsequor, 'to follow up'.
BC 1.37.3Fabius, ut erat imperātum, adhibitā celeritāte praesidium ex saltū dēiēcit magnīsque itineribus ad exercitum Afrānī contendit.
Fabius, as he had been ordered, with all speed dislodged the garrison from the pass and hurried by forced marches to the army of Afranius.
Note. ut erat imperātum: 'as had been ordered', impersonal passive. adhibitā celeritāte: ablative absolute, 'speed being applied'. magnīs itineribus: 'by forced marches'.
Vocabulary
| dum, conj. | while, as; as long as; until |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| parō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | make ready, prepare |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| administrō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | manage, carry out |
| lēgātus, -ī, m. | ambassador |
| cum, prep, with abl. | with |
| legiō, -ōnis f. | legion |
| Roman numeral | a number written with letters: I 1, V 5, X 10, L 50, C 100, D 500, M 1000 |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| circum, prep. with acc. | around |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n. | place, situation |
| hiemō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | spend the winter |
| causa, -ae, f. | cause, reason; abl. causā, for the sake of |
| dispōnō, -ere, -posuī, -positum | station here and there, post |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| praemittō, -ere, -mīsī, -missum | send ahead |
| celeriter, adv. | swiftly, quickly |
| saltus, -ūs m. | wooded pass, forest glade, woodland |
| Pȳrēnaeus, -a, -um | of the Pyrenees (Pȳrēnaeī montēs: the Pyrenees) |
| occupō, -cupāre, -cupāvī, -cupātus | seize; fill |
| iubeō, iubēre, iussī, iussus | bid, order, command |
| tempus, temporis, n. | time, season |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| praesidium, -ī, n. | protection; guard, escort |
| teneō, -ēre, -uī, -tus | hold, keep; hold back, restrain, stop |
| reliquus, -a, -um | left, the remaining, the other, the rest of |
| longē, adv. | far |
| subsequor, -ī, -secūtus sum | follow closely |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| imperō, -perāre, -perāvī, -perātus | command, order, enjoin |
| adhibeō, -hibēre, -hibuī, -hibitus | hold to, employ, show |
| celeritās, -tātis, f. | swiftness, quickness, speed |
| ex, ē (prep. + abl.) | out of, from; of (ē only before consonants) |
| dēiciō, -icere, -iēcī, -iectus | throw down, cast, drive out of one's course |
| magnus, -a, -um | large, big, great, mighty; loud |
| iter, itineris, n. | a going, journey, march; iter facere, to journey, march |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| exercitus, -ūs, m. | army |
| contendō, -tendere, -tendī, -tentus | stretch, hasten |