Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Gallic War, Book 2
De Bello Gallico 2.2
Caesar marches north
Caesar, De Bello Gallico II. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in Lectitō2.2.1Hīs nūntiīs litterīsque commōtus Caesar duās legiōnēs in citeriōre Galliā novās cōnscrīpsit et initā aestāte in ulteriōrem Galliam quī dēdūceret Q. Pedium lēgātum mīsit.
Moved by this news and these letters, Caesar enrolled two new legions in Nearer Gaul and, at the start of summer, sent his officer Quintus Pedius to lead them into Further Gaul.
Note. quī dēdūceret is a relative clause of purpose: 'to lead them'. initā aestāte is an ablative absolute: 'when summer had begun'.
2.2.2Ipse, cum prīmum pābulī cōpia esse inciperet, ad exercitum vēnit.
He himself came to the army as soon as there began to be a supply of fodder.
2.2.3Dat negōtium Senonibus reliquīsque Gallīs quī fīnitimī Belgīs erant utī ea quae apud eōs gerantur cognōscant sēque dē hīs rēbus certiōrem faciant.
He instructs the Senones and the other Gauls who were neighbours of the Belgae to find out what was happening among them and to keep him informed of it.
Note. Dat negōtium: 'he gives the task' (to the Senones), followed by utī + subjunctive.
2.2.4Hī cōnstanter omnēs nūntiāvērunt manūs cōgī, exercitum in ūnum locum condūcī.
They all reported consistently that forces were being gathered and an army brought together in one place.
2.2.4Tum vērō dubitandum nōn exīstimāvit quīn ad eōs proficīscerētur.
Then indeed he thought he should not hesitate to set out against them.
Note. dubitandum nōn exīstimāvit quīn: 'he thought there should be no hesitation about setting out'.
2.2.4Rē frūmentāriā prōvīsā castra movet diēbusque circiter XV ad fīnēs Belgārum pervenit.
Having provided for his grain supply, he moves camp and in about fifteen days reaches the territory of the Belgae.
Vocabulary
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| nūntius, -ī, m. | messenger; message |
| litterae, -ārum f. pl. | letters (of the alphabet); a letter, dispatch |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| commoveō, -movēre, -mōvī, -mōtus | move, rouse; disturb |
| duo, -ae, -o, plur. adj. | two |
| legiō, -ōnis f. | legion |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| citerior, -ius, adj. | on this side, hither |
| novus, -a, -um | new; novissimus, last |
| cōnscrībō, -ere, -scrīpsī, -scrīptum | enlist, enroll |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| ineō, -īre, -iī, -itus | go into, enter; adopt |
| aestās, -tātis, f. | summer |
| ulterior, -ius, adj. | farther |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| dēdūcō, -dūcere, -dūxī, -ductus | lead down or away, bring; nāvem dēdūcere, to draw down or launch a ship |
| quīntus, -a, -um | fifth |
| lēgātus, -ī, m. | ambassador |
| mittō, mittere, mīsī, missus | send |
| ipse, ipsa, ipsum, intensive pron. | self, himself, herself, itself, themselves; often to be rendered by very |
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| prīmum, adv. | first, in the first place |
| pābulum, -ī, n. | food, fodder |
| cōpia, -ae, f. | supply, abundance; plur., forces, troops |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| incipiō, -ere, incēpī, inceptum | begin |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| exercitus, -ūs, m. | army |
| veniō, venīre, vēnī, ventus | come |
| dō, dare, dedī, datus | give |
| negōtium, -ī, n. | business, matter; task, trouble, difficulty |
| reliquus, -a, -um | left, the remaining, the other, the rest of |
| fīnitimus, -a, -um | neighboring, adjoining |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| apud, prep, with acc. | among, with |
| gerō, gerere, gessī, gestus | carry, wear; carry on, do |
| cognōscō, -gnōscere, -gnōvī, -gnitus | find out, learn; in tenses of completed action, have found out, know |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| dē, prep, with abl. | down from, from, out of; about, concerning, of |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| certus, -a, -um | determined, fixed, certain; certiōrem facere, to make more certain, inform |
| faciō, facere, fēcī, factus | make, do; iter facere, see iter |
| cōnstanter (adv.) | steadily, consistently |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| nūntiō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | report, announce |
| manus, -ūs, f. | hand |
| cōgō, cōgere, coēgī, coāctus | drive together, collect; compel |
| ūnus, -a, -um | one; only, alone |
| locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n. | place, situation |
| condūcō, -ere, -dūxī, -ductum | bring together, assemble |
| tum, adv. | then, at that time |
| vērō, adv. | in truth, indeed; however |
| dubitō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | doubt, hesitate |
| nōn, adv. | not |
| exīstimō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | consider, believe, think |
| quīn, conj. | so that ... not, but that, but |
| proficīscor, -ficīscī, -fectus sum | set out, depart, march |
| frūmentārius, -a, -um | of grain (rēs frūmentāria: grain supply) |
| prōvideō, -ēre, -vīdī, -vīsum | foresee; provide for |
| castra, -ōrum, n. plur. | camp |
| moveō, movēre, mōvī, mōtus | move |
| diēs, -ēī, m. and f. | day |
| circiter, prep. with acc. and adv. | about |
| Roman numeral | a number written with letters: I 1, V 5, X 10, L 50, C 100, D 500, M 1000 |
| fīnis, -is, m. | end, boundary; plur., borders, territory, country |
| perveniō, -venīre, -vēnī, -ventus | come through, come, arrive, reach |