Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Civil War, Book 2
De Bello Civili 2.3
Nasidius brings a fleet
Caesar, De Bello Civili II. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in LectitōBC 2.3.1Interim L. Nāsidius ab Cn. Pompēiō cum classe nāvium xvi, in quibus paucae erant aerātae, L. Domitiō Massiliēnsibusque subsidiō missus fretō Siciliae imprūdente atque inopīnante Cūriōne pervehitur appulsīsque Messānam nāvibus atque inde propter repentīnum terrōrem prīncipum ac senātūs fugā factā ex nāvālibus eōrum nāvem dēdūcit.
Meanwhile Lucius Nasidius, sent by Gnaeus Pompeius with a fleet of sixteen ships, a few of which had bronze beaks, to help Lucius Domitius and the Massiliots, sails through the Strait of Sicily while Curio is off guard and not expecting it; he puts in with his ships at Messana, and there, when the leading men and the town council have fled in sudden terror, he takes a ship out of their dockyards.
Note. One long sentence of movement. Nāsidius … missus … pervehitur … dēdūcit: the main verbs are present (the historic present). xvi: the Latin text here misprints the number; it is sixteen ships. aerātae: 'bronze-beaked', i.e. warships with rams. subsidiō: dative of purpose, 'as help'. imprūdente atque inopīnante Cūriōne: ablative absolute, 'with Curio off guard and not expecting it'. Curio held Sicily for Caesar. appulsīs … nāvibus: from appellō, -ere, 'bring in to land'. fugā factā: 'a flight having been made', i.e. after the town council had fled.
BC 2.3.3hāc adiūnctā ad reliquās nāvēs cursum Massiliam versus perficit praemissāque clam nāviculā Domitium Massiliēnsīsque dē suō adventū certiōrēs facit eōsque magnopere hortātur, ut rūrsus cum Brūtī classe additīs suīs auxiliīs cōnflīgant.
Adding this one to the rest of his ships, he completes his voyage towards Massilia, and sending a small boat ahead in secret he informs Domitius and the Massiliots of his arrival and strongly urges them to fight Brutus' fleet again with his reinforcements added to theirs.
Note. hāc adiūnctā: 'adding this (ship)'. Massiliam versus: versus after a place name means 'towards'. certiōrēs facit: 'makes … more certain', i.e. 'informs'. ut … cōnflīgant: indirect command after hortātur. Brūtī: Decimus Brutus commanded Caesar's fleet; he had already beaten the Massiliots once (Book I).
Vocabulary
| interim (adv.) | meanwhile |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| cum, prep, with abl. | with |
| classis, -is f. | fleet |
| nāvis, -is, f. | ship |
| Roman numeral | a number written with letters: I 1, V 5, X 10, L 50, C 100, D 500, M 1000 |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| paucī, -ae, -a, plur. adj. | few |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| aerātus, -a, -um | covered or fitted with bronze |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| subsidium, -ī, n. | reserve, reinforcement, support, help |
| mittō, mittere, mīsī, missus | send |
| fretum, -ī, n. | strait |
| imprūdēns, -entis | off guard, unaware |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| inopīnāns, -antis | not expecting, off guard |
| pervehō, -ere, -vēxī, -vectum | carry through; (pass.) sail through, ride through, reach |
| appellō, -pellere, -pulī, -pulsus | drive to, bring to; with or without nāvem, put in |
| inde (adv.) | from there; then |
| propter, prep. with acc. | on account of, because of |
| repentīnus, -a, -um | sudden |
| terror, -ōris, m. | terror, fright |
| prīnceps, -ipis | first, chief; as noun: leader |
| senātus, -ūs m. | senate |
| fuga, -ae, f. | flight |
| faciō, facere, fēcī, factus | make, do; iter facere, see iter |
| ex, ē (prep. + abl.) | out of, from; of (ē only before consonants) |
| nāvālia, -ium n. pl. | dockyard, docks |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| dēdūcō, -dūcere, -dūxī, -ductus | lead down or away, bring; nāvem dēdūcere, to draw down or launch a ship |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| adiungo, -iungere, -iūnxī, -iūnctus | join to, join |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| reliquus, -a, -um | left, the remaining, the other, the rest of |
| cursus, -ūs, m. | running, speed; course, route, voyage; race |
| versus (adv.) | toward, in the direction of (often after ad or in + acc.) |
| perficiō, -ficere, -fēcī, -fectus | do or make through, accomplish |
| praemittō, -ere, -mīsī, -missum | send ahead |
| clam (adv.) | secretly |
| nāvicula, -ae f. | small boat |
| dē, prep, with abl. | down from, from, out of; about, concerning, of |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| adventus, -ūs, m. | approach, arrival |
| certus, -a, -um | determined, fixed, certain; certiōrem facere, to make more certain, inform |
| magnopere, adv. | greatly, very much, exceedingly; earnestly |
| hortor, -ārī, -ātus | exhort, encourage, urge |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| rūrsus, adv. | again |
| addō, -ere, -didī, -ditus | add, put to |
| auxilium, -ī, n. | help, aid |
| cōnflīgō, -flīgere, -flīxī, -flīctus | dash together |