Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Gallic War, Book 1
De Bello Gallico 1.38
The race to Vesontio
Caesar, De Bello Gallico I. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in Lectitō1.38.1Cum trīduī viam prōcessisset, nūntiātum est eī Ariovistum cum suīs omnibus cōpiīs ad occupandum Vesontiōnem, quod est oppidum maximum Sēquanōrum, contendere trīduīque viam ā suīs fīnibus prōcessisse.
When he had gone three days' march, he was told that Ariovistus with all his forces was hurrying to seize Vesontio, the largest town of the Sequani, and had already gone three days' march from his own territory.
Note. ad occupandum Vesontiōnem: gerundive of purpose, 'to seize Vesontio'.
1.38.1Id nē accideret, magnopere sibi praecavendum Caesar exīstimābat.
Caesar thought he must take great care that this did not happen.
1.38.1Namque omnium rērum quae ad bellum ūsuī erant summa erat in eō oppidō facultās, idque nātūrā locī sīc mūniēbātur ut magnam ad dūcendum bellum daret facultātem, proptereā quod flūmen alduas Dubis ut circinō circumductum paene tōtum oppidum cingit, reliquum spatium, quod est nōn amplius pedum MDC, quā flūmen intermittit, mōns continet magnā altitūdine, ita ut rādīcēs eius montis ex utrāque parte rīpae flūminis contingant, hunc mūrus circumdatus arcem efficit et cum oppidō coniungit.
For that town had an abundance of everything useful for war, and it was so well protected by the nature of the ground that it gave great means for carrying on a war: the river Dubis, as if drawn round with compasses, almost encircles the whole town; the remaining space, which is not more than sixteen hundred feet wide where the river leaves a gap, is filled by a mountain of great height, so that the banks of the river touch the foot of the mountain on both sides; a wall built round this mountain makes it a citadel and joins it to the town.
Note. ut circinō circumductum: 'as if drawn round with a pair of compasses'. The town is modern Besançon, which still sits in a loop of the Doubs.
1.38.5Hūc Caesar magnīs nocturnīs diurnīsque itineribus contendit occupātōque oppidō ibi praesidium conlocat.
Caesar hurried there by forced marches night and day, seized the town and placed a garrison in it.
Vocabulary
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| trīduum, -ī n. | three days |
| via, -ae, f. | road, way |
| prōcēdō, -ere, -cessī, -cessum | go forward, advance |
| nūntiō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | report, announce |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| cum, prep, with abl. | with |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| cōpia, -ae, f. | supply, abundance; plur., forces, troops |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| occupō, -cupāre, -cupāvī, -cupātus | seize; fill |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| oppidum, -ī, n. | town |
| magnus, -a, -um | large, big, great, mighty; loud |
| contendō, -tendere, -tendī, -tentus | stretch, hasten |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| fīnis, -is, m. | end, boundary; plur., borders, territory, country |
| nē, adv. | not; nē ... quidem, not ... even; conj., that not, lest |
| accidō, -cidere, -cidī | fall to or upon; befall, happen |
| magnopere, adv. | greatly, very much, exceedingly; earnestly |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| praecaveō, -cavēre, -cāvī, -cautus | beware beforehand, beware, be on one's guard |
| exīstimō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | consider, believe, think |
| namque, conj. | for |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| bellum, -ī, n. | war |
| ūsus, -ūs, m. | use; experience |
| summus, -a, -um | uppermost, highest, greatest |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| facultās, -tātis, f. | possibility, opportunity, chance, means |
| nātūra, -ae, f. | nature, character |
| locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n. | place, situation |
| sīc, adv. | so, thus |
| mūniō, -īre, -īvī, -ītus | fortify |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| dūcō, dūcere, dūxī, ductus | lead; make, dig; with or without in mātrimōnium, marry |
| dō, dare, dedī, datus | give |
| proptereā | for this reason; proptereā quod: because |
| quod, conj. | that, in that, because |
| flūmen, -minis, n. | river |
| circinus, -ī m. | pair of compasses (for drawing circles) |
| circumdūcō, -ere, -dūxī, -ductum | lead around, draw around |
| paene, adv. | almost, nearly |
| tōtus, -a, -um | all the, the whole or entire |
| cingō, cingere, cinxī, cinctus | surround, gird |
| reliquus, -a, -um | left, the remaining, the other, the rest of |
| spatium, -ī, n. | space, interval; space of time, time |
| nōn, adv. | not |
| amplius (adv.) | more, further |
| pēs, pedis, m. | foot |
| Roman numeral | a number written with letters: I 1, V 5, X 10, L 50, C 100, D 500, M 1000 |
| quā, adv. | in which place, where |
| intermittō, -mittere, -mīsī, -missus | leave off, interrupt; let pass; pass., be left between, intervene, elapse |
| mōns, montis, m. | mountain |
| contineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold together, keep within, shut up in; bound |
| altitūdō, -inis f. | height; depth |
| ita, adv. | in this manner, thus, so; ita ut, as |
| rādīx, -īcis f. | root; (of a hill) foot |
| ex, ē (prep. + abl.) | out of, from; of (ē only before consonants) |
| uterque, utraque, utrumque | each, either, both |
| pars, partis, f. | part, side, direction |
| rīpa, -ae, f. | bank |
| contingō, -ere, -tigī, -tāctum | touch, reach |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| mūrus, -ī, m. | wall |
| circumdō, -dare, -dedī, -datus | put around, surround |
| arx, arcis f. | citadel, stronghold |
| efficiō, -ficere, -fēcī, -fectus | make or work out, accomplish, effect |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| coniungō, -iungere, -iūnxī, -iūnctus | join together, join |
| hūc, adv. | to this place, hither |
| nocturnus, -a, -um | of night, nocturnal; nocturnum tempus, night-time |
| diurnus, -a, -um | by day, daily |
| iter, itineris, n. | a going, journey, march; iter facere, to journey, march |
| ibi, adv. | in that place, there |
| praesidium, -ī, n. | protection; guard, escort |
| collocō (conlocō), -āre, -āvī, -ātum | place, station; give in marriage |