Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Civil War, Book 3
De Bello Civili 3.56
Calenus in Greece
Caesar, De Bello Civili III. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in LectitōBC 3.56.1Aetōliā, Acarnāniā, Amphilochīs per Cassium Longīnum et Calvīsium Sabīnum, ut dēmōnstrāvimus, receptīs temptandam sibi Achāiam ac paulō longius prōgrediendum exīstimābat Caesar.
Since Aetolia, Acarnania and the Amphilochians had been won over, as we have related, through Cassius Longinus and Calvisius Sabinus, Caesar thought he should try Achaia and advance a little further.
Note. ut dēmōnstrāvimus: 'as we have shown' (in an earlier chapter). temptandam sibi Achaiam: gerundive of obligation in indirect statement, 'that Achaia should be tried by him'.
BC 3.56.2itaque eō Q. Calēnum mīsit eīque Sabīnum et Cassium cum cohortibus adiungit.
So he sent Quintus Calenus there and added Sabinus and Cassius to his force with their cohorts.
Note. Quintus Fufius Calenus, later consul in 47 BC. adiungit: vivid present.
BC 3.56.3quōrum cognitō adventū Rutilius Lupus, quī Achāiam missus ā Pompēiō obtinēbat, Isthmum praemūnīre īnstituit, ut Achāiā Fūfium prohibēret.
When their approach was known, Rutilius Lupus, who held Achaia after being sent by Pompey, began to fortify the Isthmus to keep Fufius out of Achaia.
Note. Isthmum praemūnīre: 'to fortify the Isthmus', the narrow neck of land at Corinth, by a wall across it.
BC 3.56.4Calēnus Delphōs, Thēbās et Orchomenum voluntāte ipsārum cīvitātium recēpit, nōnnūllās urbēs per vim expugnāvit, reliquās cīvitātēs circummissīs lēgātiōnibus amīcitiae Caesaris conciliāre studēbat.
Calenus won over Delphi, Thebes and Orchomenus with the consent of the cities themselves, took some towns by storm, and tried to win the other states to friendship with Caesar by sending embassies round to them.
Note. Delphī, Thēbae and Orchomenus are famous old cities of central Greece. voluntāte ipsārum cīvitātium: 'with the consent of the cities themselves'.
BC 3.56.4in hīs rēbus ferē erat Fūfius occupātus.
It was in these matters, more or less, that Fufius was occupied.
Note. in hīs rēbus … occupātus: 'busy with these matters'.
Vocabulary
| per, prep, with ace. | through, by means of |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| dēmōnstrō, -mōnstrāre, -mōnstrāvī, -mōnstrātus | point out, show; make known |
| recipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take or get back, recover; sē recipere, to betake oneself, withdraw; to collect oneself, recover |
| temptō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | try, attempt |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| paulō, adv. | by a little, a little, somewhat |
| longē, adv. | far |
| prōgredior, -gredī, -gressus | go forward, advance |
| exīstimō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | consider, believe, think |
| itaque, adv. | and so, accordingly, therefore |
| eō, īre, iī, itus | go |
| quīntus, -a, -um | fifth |
| mittō, mittere, mīsī, missus | send |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| cum, prep, with abl. | with |
| cohors, cohortis f. | cohort (a tenth of a legion); company |
| adiungo, -iungere, -iūnxī, -iūnctus | join to, join |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| cognōscō, -gnōscere, -gnōvī, -gnitus | find out, learn; in tenses of completed action, have found out, know |
| adventus, -ūs, m. | approach, arrival |
| lupus, -ī m. | wolf |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| obtineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold |
| praemūniō, -īre, -īvī, -ītus | fortify in front, protect beforehand |
| īnstituō, -stituere, -stituī, -stitūtus | decide upon, determine |
| prohibeō, -hibēre, -hibuī, -hibitus | hold back, prevent, hinder |
| voluntās, -tātis, f. | wish, will |
| ipse, ipsa, ipsum, intensive pron. | self, himself, herself, itself, themselves; often to be rendered by very |
| cīvitās, -tātis, f. | state |
| nōnnūllus, -a, -um | not none, some, several |
| urbs, urbis, f. | city |
| vīs, vīs, f. | violence, force; virtue, potency, efficacy; plur. vīrēs, -ium, strength; omnibus vīribus, with all one's strength, with might and main |
| expugnō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | take by storm, capture |
| reliquus, -a, -um | left, the remaining, the other, the rest of |
| circummittō, -ere, -mīsī, -missus | send around |
| lēgātiō, -ōnis f. | embassy, mission |
| amīcitia, -ae f. | friendship, alliance |
| conciliō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | win over; win, obtain |
| studeō, -ēre, -uī | be eager, give attention, apply oneself |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| ferē, adv. | nearly, about, almost, for the most part |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| occupō, -cupāre, -cupāvī, -cupātus | seize; fill |