Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Gallic War, Book 4
De Bello Gallico 4.35
The Britons defeated
Caesar, De Bello Gallico IV. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in Lectitō4.35.1Caesar, etsī idem quod superiōribus diēbus acciderat fore vidēbat, ut, sī essent hostēs pulsī, celeritāte perīculum effugerent, tamen nactus equitēs circiter XXX, quōs Commius Atrebās, dē quō ante dictum est, sēcum trānsportāverat, legiōnēs in aciē prō castrīs cōnstituit.
Caesar saw that the same thing would happen as had happened on the previous days, that if the enemy were driven back they would escape the danger by their speed; nevertheless, having obtained about thirty horsemen, whom Commius the Atrebatian, mentioned before, had brought across with him, he drew up the legions in battle line in front of the camp.
Note. etsi … vidēbat … tamen: 'although … nevertheless'. idem … fore, ut … effugerent: the ut clause explains idem.
4.35.2Commissō proeliō diūtius nostrōrum mīlitum impetum hostēs ferre nōn potuērunt ac terga vertērunt.
When battle was joined, the enemy could not withstand the attack of our soldiers for long and turned their backs.
4.35.3Quōs tantō spatiō secūtī quantum cursū et vīribus efficere potuērunt, complūrēs ex iīs occīdērunt, deinde omnibus longē lātēque aedificiīs incēnsīs sē in castra recēpērunt.
Our men followed them as far as their speed and strength allowed, killed several of them, and then, after burning all the buildings far and wide, returned to camp.
Vocabulary
| etsī, conj. | even if, although |
| īdem, eadem, idem, dem. pron. | the same; sometimes to be translated likewise, also |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| superior, -ius, adj. | higher; former, previous, preceding |
| diēs, -ēī, m. and f. | day |
| accidō, -cidere, -cidī | fall to or upon; befall, happen |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| videō, vidēre, vīdī, vīsus | see; pass., seem |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| sī, conj. | if |
| hostis, -is, m. and f. | enemy, foe |
| pellō, pellere, pepulī, pulsus | drive, drive away, beat, rout |
| celeritās, -tātis, f. | swiftness, quickness, speed |
| perīculum, -ī, n. | danger, peril, risk |
| effugio, -fugere, -fūgī | flee out or away, escape |
| tamen, adv. | however, yet, nevertheless |
| nancīscor, nancīscī, nactus | get, obtain, find |
| eques, equitis m. | horseman; (pl.) cavalry |
| 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 |
| dē, prep, with abl. | down from, from, out of; about, concerning, of |
| ante, prep, with acc. and adv. | before |
| dīcō, dīcere, dīxī, dictus | say, speak; diem dīcere, to appoint or set a day |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| trānsportō, -portāre, -portāvī, -portātus | carry across or over, transport |
| legiō, -ōnis f. | legion |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| aciēs, -ēī, f. | line of battle |
| prō, prep. with abl. | before, in front of; for, in behalf of; for, as; in return for, for |
| castra, -ōrum, n. plur. | camp |
| cōnstituō, -stituere, -stituī, -stitūtus | set together or up; appoint; determine |
| committō, -mittere, -mīsī, -missus | send together; commit, intrust; expose; proelium committere, to join battle |
| proelium, -ī, n. | battle, combat; proelium committere, to join battle |
| diū, adv. | for a long time, a long time or while, long; comp |
| noster, -tra, -trum | our |
| mīles, mīlitis, m. | soldier |
| impetus, -ūs, m. | attack; impetum facere, to charge |
| ferō, ferre, tulī, lātus | bear, bring |
| nōn, adv. | not |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| tergum, -ī, n. | back |
| vertō, vertere, vertī, versus | turn |
| tantus, -a, -um | so great or much |
| spatium, -ī, n. | space, interval; space of time, time |
| sequor, sequī, secūtus | follow |
| quantus, -a, -um | how great or much? |
| cursus, -ūs, m. | running, speed; course, route, voyage; race |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| vīs, vīs, f. | violence, force; virtue, potency, efficacy; plur. vīrēs, -ium, strength; omnibus vīribus, with all one's strength, with might and main |
| efficiō, -ficere, -fēcī, -fectus | make or work out, accomplish, effect |
| complūrēs, -plūra, plur. adj. | several, many |
| ex, ē (prep. + abl.) | out of, from; of (ē only before consonants) |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| occīdō, -cīdere, -cīdī, -cīsus | cut down, kill |
| deinde, adv. | then, next |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| longē, adv. | far |
| lātē | widely |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| aedificium, -ī n. | building |
| incendō, -ere, -cendī, -cēnsum | set on fire, burn |
| recipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take or get back, recover; sē recipere, to betake oneself, withdraw; to collect oneself, recover |