Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Gallic War, Book 3
De Bello Gallico 3.10
Why Caesar had to act
Caesar, De Bello Gallico III. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in Lectitō3.10.1Erant hae difficultātēs bellī gerendī quās suprā ostendimus, sed tamen multa Caesarem ad id bellum incitābant: iniūria retentōrum equitum Rōmānōrum, rebelliō facta post dēditiōnem, dēfectiō datīs obsidibus, tot cīvitātum coniūrātiō, in prīmīs nē hāc parte neglēctā reliquae nātiōnēs sibi idem licēre arbitrārentur.
These were the difficulties of waging war that we have described above, but many things nevertheless urged Caesar to this war: the wrong done in detaining Roman knights, the revolt made after surrender, the defection after hostages had been given, the conspiracy of so many states, and above all the fear that if this region were neglected the other peoples would think they were allowed to do the same.
Note. Erant … quās suprā ostendimus: Caesar refers back to the difficulties he has just described.
3.10.3Itaque cum intellegeret omnēs ferē Gallōs novīs rēbus studēre et ad bellum mōbiliter celeriterque excitārī, omnēs autem hominēs nātūrā lībertātī studēre et condiciōnem servitūtis ōdisse, prius quam plūrēs cīvitātēs cōnspīrārent, partiendum sibi ac lātius distribuendum exercitum putāvit.
So, since he knew that almost all the Gauls were eager for revolution and were quickly and easily roused to war, and that all men by nature love freedom and hate the condition of slavery, he thought he should divide his army and spread it more widely before more states joined the conspiracy.
Note. prius quam … cōnspīrārent: 'before … could conspire', subjunctive because it is something to be prevented. partiendum … exercitum: gerundive of obligation.
Vocabulary
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| difficultas, -tātis, f. | difficulty |
| bellum, -ī, n. | war |
| gerō, gerere, gessī, gestus | carry, wear; carry on, do |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| suprā, adv. and prep. with acc. | above, before |
| ostendō, -tendere, -tendī, -tentus | stretch out before, show, explain |
| sed, conj. | but |
| tamen, adv. | however, yet, nevertheless |
| multus, -a, -um | much, great; plur., many |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| incitō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | stir up, provoke |
| iniūria, -ae, f. | injury, wrong, hurt, harm |
| retineō, -tinēre, -tinuī, -tentus | hold or keep back, keep, restrain; hold fast |
| eques, equitis m. | horseman; (pl.) cavalry |
| Rōmānus, -a, -um | Roman |
| rebelliō, -ōnis f. | renewed war, revolt |
| faciō, facere, fēcī, factus | make, do; iter facere, see iter |
| post, adv. | after, later; prep. with acc., after, behind |
| dēditiō, -ōnis f. | surrender |
| dēfectiō, -ōnis f. | revolt, desertion |
| dō, dare, dedī, datus | give |
| obses, obsidis m./f. | hostage |
| tot (indecl.) | so many |
| cīvitās, -tātis, f. | state |
| coniūrātiō, -ōnis f. | conspiracy |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| prīmus, -a, -um | first, foremost |
| nē, adv. | not; nē ... quidem, not ... even; conj., that not, lest |
| pars, partis, f. | part, side, direction |
| neglegō, -legere, -lēxī, -lēctus | disregard, neglect |
| reliquus, -a, -um | left, the remaining, the other, the rest of |
| nātiō, -ōnis f. | people, nation; birth |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| īdem, eadem, idem, dem. pron. | the same; sometimes to be translated likewise, also |
| licet, -ēre, -uit or -itum est, impers. | is lawful or permitted |
| arbitror, -ārī, -ātus | consider, think, judge |
| itaque, adv. | and so, accordingly, therefore |
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| intellegō, -legere, -lēxī, -lēctus | perceive, understand |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| ferē, adv. | nearly, about, almost, for the most part |
| novus, -a, -um | new; novissimus, last |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| studeō, -ēre, -uī | be eager, give attention, apply oneself |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| mōbiliter (adv.) | readily, easily (moved) |
| celeriter, adv. | swiftly, quickly |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| excitō, -citāre, -citāvī, -citātus | call out, arouse |
| autem, conj. | moreover; but, however; now |
| homō, hominis, m. | man |
| nātūra, -ae, f. | nature, character |
| lībertās, -tātis, f. | freedom, liberty |
| condiciō, -ōnis f. | terms; condition, status |
| servitūs, -tūtis, f. | slavery, servitude |
| ōdī, ōdisse, used only in tenses of completed action with the force of tenses of incomplete action | hate |
| prius, adv. | before, first |
| quam, adv. | how? as; than; with superl., as ... as possible |
| cōnspīrō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | agree, plot together |
| partior, -īrī, partītus sum | share out, divide |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| lātē | widely |
| distribuō, -ere, -tribuī, -tribūtum | divide up, distribute |
| exercitus, -ūs, m. | army |
| putō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | think |