Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Gallic War, Book 2
De Bello Gallico 2.21
Caesar rallies the men
Caesar, De Bello Gallico II. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in Lectitō2.21.1Caesar, necessāriīs rēbus imperātīs, ad cohortandōs mīlitēs, quam in partem fors obtulit, dēcucurrit et ad legiōnem decimam dēvēnit.
Caesar gave the necessary orders and ran down to encourage the soldiers wherever chance took him, and came to the tenth legion.
Note. quam in partem fors obtulit: 'to whatever part chance brought him'. fors is an old word for chance.
2.21.2Mīlitēs nōn longiōre ōrātiōne cohortātus quam utī suae prīstinae virtūtis memoriam retinērent neu perturbārentur animō hostiumque impetum fortiter sustinērent, quod nōn longius hostēs aberant quam quō tēlum adigī posset, proeliī committendī signum dedit.
He encouraged the soldiers in no longer a speech than to tell them to remember their old courage, not to be thrown into confusion, and to bear the enemy's attack bravely; and since the enemy were no further away than a spear could be thrown, he gave the signal for battle.
Note. nōn longiōre ōrātiōne … quam utī …: 'with no longer a speech than (telling them) to …'. quam quō tēlum adigī posset: 'than the distance to which a spear could be thrown'.
2.21.4Atque in alteram item cohortandī causā profectus pugnantibus occurrit.
And going to the other wing to encourage them too, he found them already fighting.
2.21.5Temporis tanta fuit exiguitās hostiumque tam parātus ad dīmicandum animus ut nōn modo ad īnsignia accommodanda sed etiam ad galeās induendās scūtīsque tegimenta dētrahenda tempus dēfuerit.
So short was the time and so ready for fighting were the enemy that there was no time even to put on their badges, let alone to put on helmets and pull the covers off the shields.
Note. ad īnsignia accommodanda: gerundive of purpose. The soldiers had no time even to fix crests and badges to their helmets.
2.21.6Quam quisque ab opere in partem cāsū dēvēnit quaeque prīma signa cōnspexit, ad haec cōnstitit, nē in quaerendīs suīs pugnandī tempus dīmitteret.
Wherever each man happened to come from the work, and whatever standards he saw first, by those he took his stand, so as not to lose fighting time looking for his own unit.
Note. quam quisque … in partem: 'into whatever part each man'. quaeque = et quae.
Vocabulary
| necessārius, -a, -um; as noun, -ī m. | necessary, critical; (noun) close friend, relative |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| imperō, -perāre, -perāvī, -perātus | command, order, enjoin |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| cohortor, -hortārī, -hortātus | encourage, exhort |
| mīles, mīlitis, m. | soldier |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| pars, partis, f. | part, side, direction |
| fors, fortis f. | chance, luck |
| offerō, offerre, obtulī, oblātus | bear to, proffer, offer |
| dēcurrō, -currere, -cucurrī, -cursus | run down |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| legiō, -ōnis f. | legion |
| decimus, -a, -um | tenth |
| dēveniō, -īre, dēvēnī, dēventum | come, arrive |
| nōn, adv. | not |
| longus, -a, -um | long; tedious |
| ōrātiō, -ōnis, f. | speech; ōrātiōnem habēre, to deliver an oration, speak |
| quam, adv. | how? as; than; with superl., as ... as possible |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| prīstinus, -a, -um | former |
| virtūs, -tūtis, f. | manliness, courage, bravery |
| memoria, -ae, f. | memory |
| retineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold or keep back, keep, restrain; hold fast |
| nēve or neu, conj. | and that not, and not, nor |
| perturbō, -turbāre, -turbāvi, -turbātus | greatly disturb, disturb, agitate, throw into confusion |
| animus, -ī, m. | mind; heart; spirit, courage |
| hostis, -is, m. and f. | enemy, foe |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| impetus, -ūs, m. | attack; impetum facere, to charge |
| fortiter, adv. | bravely |
| sustineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold or bear up, sustain, withstand |
| quod, conj. | that, in that, because |
| longē, adv. | far |
| absum, abesse, āfuī, āfutūrus | be away, be absent, be distant; be wanting |
| quō, adv. | to what place? whither? to which place, whither; for which reason, wherefore, therefore; quō ūsque, till when? how long? |
| tēlum, -ī, n. | missile, spear, weapon |
| adigō, -ere, adēgī, adāctum | drive, hurl (a weapon) to |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| proelium, -ī, n. | battle, combat; proelium committere, to join battle |
| committō, -mittere, -mīsī, -missus | send together; commit, intrust; expose; proelium committere, to join battle |
| signum, -ī, n. | sign, signal |
| dō, dare, dedī, datus | give |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| alter, -era, -erum | one or the other (of two); another, second |
| item | likewise, also |
| causa, -ae, f. | cause, reason; abl. causā, for the sake of |
| proficīscor, -ficīscī, -fectus sum | set out, depart, march |
| pugnō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | fight |
| occurrō, -currere, -currī, -cursus | run against, meet |
| tempus, temporis, n. | time, season |
| tantus, -a, -um | so great or much |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| exiguitās, -ātis f. | shortness, scantiness |
| tam, adv. | so |
| parātus, -a, -um | prepared, equipped, ready |
| dīmicō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | fight |
| modo, adv. | only |
| īnsigne, -is n. | badge, mark, decoration |
| accommodō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | fit, adjust, put on |
| sed, conj. | but |
| etiam, adv. | and now, also, too, even |
| galea, -ae, f. | helmet |
| induō, induere, induī, indūtus | put on; clothe |
| scūtum, -ī, n. | shield |
| tegimentum, -ī n. | covering |
| dētrahō, -trahere, -trāxī, -trāctus | draw or pull off |
| dēsum, deesse, dēfuī | be lacking, fail |
| quisque, quaeque, quidque, indef. pron. | each |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| opus, operis, n. | work, task |
| cāsus, -ūs, m. | fall; chance, accident |
| prīmus, -a, -um | first, foremost |
| cōnspiciō, -spicere, -spēxī, -spectus | behold, perceive, see |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| cōnsistō, -sistere, -stitī, -stitus | station oneself, take one's stand; consist |
| nē, adv. | not; nē ... quidem, not ... even; conj., that not, lest |
| quaerō, quaerere, quaesīvī, quaesītus | seek; ask, inquire |
| dīmittō, -mittere, -mīsī, -missus | send different ways, send forth or away, despatch; let slip, lose |